The roar, filled with indignation and unwillingness from the Black Dragon Stronghold youth, echoed throughout the open-air market, but it was quickly drowned out by the mocking laughter and whispered gossip of the surrounding crowd.
The farce had finally come to an end.
After "reclaiming" his Black Hawk Medallion, the old medicinal stall owner hastily packed up his wares, muttering curses as he vanished into a small alleyway, as if terrified of retaliation. The fat Kim Bao guffawed, pointing at the black-robed youth, not forgetting to add a few more stinging insults, causing the face of the Black Dragon Stronghold member to alternate between ashen white and livid green.
Humiliated in front of the world, and swindled out of four hundred low-grade Spirit Stones only to exchange them for a rusty bracelet, the black-robed youth trembled from head to toe with rage. Gritting his teeth, his venomous gaze swept through the crowd, as if trying to root out the one who had played him for a fool in the shadows. But how could he find them? The fish had already entered the net; how could it possibly see the shadow of the fisherman?
Ultimately, unable to do anything else, he could only leave behind a gaze full of malicious resentment, hurriedly departing amidst endless sneers. He knew that after today, the tale of the Black Dragon Stronghold being duped in the City of Chaos would become a laughingstock spread far and wide.
Meanwhile, in another place, the true fish had swum out of the muddied waters.
Tran Kien, the mastermind who had directed this entire play, did not show the slightest hint of complacency. Immediately after swapping the Lac bird fragment, without a moment of hesitation, he quietly backed away, blending into the clamoring crowd. Like a wisp of smoke, he vanished into the labyrinth of interconnected alleys in the City of Chaos.
He did not stop. He took a convoluted path through no less than ten different alleys, occasionally changing directions abruptly, even utilizing his Primordial Chaos Qi to conceal his aura. He knew the City of Chaos was a place of crouching tigers and hidden dragons; the truly terrifying figures would never expose themselves in a noisy place like the open-air market. He had to ensure he had no tails following him.
Only after ensuring his safety did Tran Kien seek out a small, dilapidated inn located in the most remote district of the city. He rented the only premium room—not for enjoyment, but because it was situated at the highest vantage point, with windows facing all four directions, making it ideal for observation and defense.
Upon entering the room, he didn't rush to examine his spoils. He carefully inspected the room once more, from under the bed and the ceiling beams to the cracks in the walls. Only after confirming the absence of any restrictive spells or surveillance mechanisms did he use a few pieces of furniture to set up a simple early-warning trap right by the door.
Having done all this, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. He sat cross-legged on the bed, the calm on his face gradually replaced by anticipation and excitement.
He carefully withdrew an object from his robes.
The green bronze fragment, shaped like a Lac bird spreading its wings. It lay silently in the palm of his hand, bearing an ancient, desolate air. Under the flickering light of the oil lamp, the patterns etched onto the Lac bird's body seemed to come alive, harboring a bizarre Dao resonance.
The moment he brought it out, the Sun Star Guardian fragment in his chest began to vibrate with searing heat, creating a familiar resonance.
Tran Kien hesitated no longer. He took a deep breath, circulating the Primordial Chaos Qi of his Foundation Establishment Realm, and slowly, very slowly, poured it into the Lac bird fragment.
"BUZZZ!!!"
The moment his Qi made contact, the green bronze fragment suddenly erupted with a blinding, verdant halo of light. An aura that was incredibly sharp, free, and somewhat ethereal spread from within, filling the entire room. It was not as domineering as the "Guardian" aura of the Sun Star, but rather like a gust of wind, seeking to tear through all bindings and soar through the Nine Heavens.
In Tran Kien's mind, a series of vague images and concepts suddenly manifested.
He saw images of tens of thousands, millions of spiritual Lac birds soaring over an ancient battlefield. They did not attack in chaos. They flew in a bizarre formation, sometimes merging into a giant arrow that pierced through all defenses. Sometimes they scattered into a storm of spiritual energy, enveloping and tearing the enemy apart. And sometimes they transformed into wings, augmenting the Lac Viet warriors, making their movement techniques nimble and ethereal.
This was... a portion of the Outer Layer's enlightenment: Unhindered Lac Feathers!
Tran Kien was wild with joy. He hurriedly memorized all those precious comprehensions. He knew that given enough time, he could rely on these fragments of enlightenment, combined with his existing mnemonic chants, to truly deploy a fraction of the might of this supreme formation.
After absorbing the Primordial Chaos Qi, the light on the Lac bird fragment slowly died down, returning to its original old, worn appearance.
Tran Kien let out a long breath, his heart overflowing with joy. This trip to the City of Chaos had truly not been in vain.
But just as he was about to put the fragment away, suddenly, a chill ran down his spine. A sensation of deadly peril, the feeling of being stared at by an invisible, venomous snake, abruptly crashed down upon him.
He didn't hesitate in the slightest. His body curled up like a shrimp, shooting off the bed.
"THWIP!"
Right where he had just been sitting, a tiny, pitch-black needle had silently pierced through the paper window, embedding itself deep into the wooden bed board. The surrounding wood rapidly turned pitch-black.
Lethal poison!
Cold sweat drenched Tran Kien. He hadn't sensed the attacker's aura at all. This person's movement technique was even more profound than Shadow Sparrow's!
He had no time to think. He knew he had been followed. His "framing and shifting the blame" farce might have fooled the two tigers, but it hadn't deceived the far more cunning old eagle hiding in the shadows.
He smashed through the window and, without a moment of hesitation, leaped straight out into the night of the City of Chaos.
Behind him, standing silently on a rooftop opposite the inn, was a tall, skinny shadow wearing the same robes as the old bronze stall owner from earlier. The lethargy was completely gone from his aged eyes, replaced by unmasked intrigue and a flash of greed.
"Primordial Chaos Qi... a Lac Viet relic... Interesting, truly too interesting. It seems this old man has netted a big fish this time."
The chessboard in the City of Chaos had seemingly only just begun.