Chapter 25: The Truth Behind the Xue Residence, Part 1

Xue Huaiyuan finally realized that Li Yan had turned invisible; no wonder he couldn't locate him.

Sneering, he began to slash wildly at the empty air. His speed was immense, and at first, Li Yan managed to dodge the attacks. However, he soon found himself struggling to keep up.

Eventually, Li Yan revealed himself.

Seeing Li Yan reappear, Xue Huaiyuan breathed a sigh of relief. He could not let him escape. Xue Huaiyuan continued to assault Li Yan with his energy, assuming that the restrictions on Li Yan’s body had not yet been lifted and that he would be unable to manifest much power. He decided to finish him off now.

Li Yan closed his eyes, recited a spell, and upon opening them, entered his half-infected state. Xue Huaiyuan was momentarily stunned by the sight of Li Yan’s red eyes, as if he hadn't expected it. Regardless, he said nothing and swung his weapon toward Li Yan.

Li Yan did not waste words. He swung his blade directly at Xue Huaiyuan’s arm, severing it. Xue Huaiyuan let out a cry of pain, but as he screamed, he suddenly began to laugh.

Confused, Li Yan scratched his head. Why was the man laughing when his arm had been cut off? But he soon noticed something strange. The blood flowing from the severed arm was not the normal shade of red, but blue. Furthermore, swarms of tiny, dense insects were crawling within the blood and around the wound.

"Hahahaha!" Xue Huaiyuan laughed at Li Yan. "You’ve released them! Prepare to die!"

Li Yan did not understand what he meant, but the insects were indeed crawling rapidly toward him. Li Yan transformed his energy into flames and began to burn them. Yet, a bizarre phenomenon occurred: even after being incinerated, the insects returned, growing larger than before. It was as if they were feeding on Li Yan’s energy.

Alarm bells rang in Li Yan’s mind. He had not expected these bugs to be so formidable. Originally, he had assumed they were merely ordinary vermin. Unfazed, he tossed a common match into the swarm.

This time, after being burned by ordinary fire, the insects did not rise again. Seeing this, Li Yan finally exhaled. It appeared they could only absorb supernatural power and were not immune to ordinary fire. Once he realized this, he burned all the remaining insects to ash.

With the insects destroyed, Xue Huaiyuan was completely bewildered, staring at Li Yan in disbelief.

Li Yan looked at him with a smile. "I’ll give you one chance. Let’s sit down and have a civilized conversation. If you refuse to talk, we can proceed with a more physical discussion."

Xue Huaiyuan remained silent for a moment after hearing this, then resumed his attack. Realizing how stubborn the man was, Li Yan decided to pivot from "civilized" to "physical." After a sound beating, Xue Huaiyuan finally agreed to talk.

The two sat down. Fearing a surprise attack, Li Yan placed a restriction on Xue Huaiyuan’s body.

Frowning, Xue Huaiyuan asked, "Who exactly are you? Why are your eyes red as well, and how are you able to wield that power?"

Li Yan scowled; he had no intention of answering those questions. Seeing Li Yan’s silence, Xue Huaiyuan wisely shut his mouth. Thinking of everything Xue Huaiyuan had done, Li Yan felt his anger flare. He demanded sternly, "Tell me what is going on. What is the truth about the Xue Estate, and what about Qin Lian?"

Xue Huaiyuan hesitated, unwilling to speak. Li Yan, already incensed, beat him again before casting a Truth-Binding Curse upon him.

Dazed and confused by the spell, Xue Huaiyuan asked anxiously what Li Yan had done. Li Yan gave a wicked smile, patted him gently on the shoulder, and said, "Don't worry, it’s just a Truth-Binding Curse. If I ask you something and you don't answer or tell a lie, you will die right here. No one can save you—you’ll be struck down by lightning."

Upon hearing this, Xue Huaiyuan wept loudly, his body trembling as he begged Li Yan to lift it. But knowing the man’s penchant for lying, Li Yan refused.

"Speak," Li Yan commanded sternly. "If it isn't the truth, you're finished."

Trembling, Xue Huaiyuan began his story. Based on his account and the things Li Yan had already discovered, the picture became clear.

Xue Huaiyuan had been an ordinary man from a poor family. He started working early as a waiter and handyman to support his relatives. His life was simple, mundane, but happy. One day, while working, he met Qin Lian. She was young, beautiful, and wealthy. Desperate to change his fate, Xue Huaiyuan deliberately pursued her.

He eventually coaxed Qin Lian into telling her parents she wanted to marry him. Her parents refused, but seeing her persistence, they reluctantly accepted him as a live-in son-in-law.

Xue Huaiyuan agreed, but he soon found that while he no longer had to worry about money or food, he had no status. The servants in the estate bullied him. Qin Lian had treated him well at first, standing up for him, but as time passed, she grew to despise him. She let the servants mistreat him without intervention.

The two grew distant, becoming husband and wife in name only, yet they never formally separated. Qin Lian looked down on him, and whenever he went home to visit his family, she would check him for silver, forbidding him from using any money to support his own relatives.

Unwilling to live such a life, Xue Huaiyuan began to dabble in business. As his ventures flourished, Qin Lian’s attitude shifted, and they experienced a period of happiness. Later, when he had earned enough, he bought a grand estate, and they moved in with several maids. Xue Huaiyuan eventually took a few concubines, and for a while, he lived a life of ease.

But the good days didn't last. Strange occurrences began to plague the Xue Estate. People died one after another for days on end. With no other options, Xue Huaiyuan hired someone to suppress the phenomena, but to his horror, the man died within the estate. By unfortunate coincidence, someone reported the frequent deaths to the authorities. Xue Huaiyuan was framed for murder and imprisoned.

He was initially sentenced to death, but his family bribed the officials to commute the sentence. He spent several years behind bars before finally being released.

After he got out, everything had changed.