Chu Feng brought Murong Xinyu back toward White Tiger Manor, and along the way, they indeed encountered quite a few more assassins — some masked, others simply dressed in ordinary military garb. Murong Xinyu even recognized some of them.
They attacked on sight, trying to take Murong Xinyu's life. Fortunately, Chu Feng was there to protect her, and they hadn't run into any overly powerful experts, so the journey was relatively smooth — at least no one could stop Chu Feng.
However, this only made Murong Xinyu more anxious and flustered. She felt that something terrible must have happened at the manor. Chu Feng, on the other hand, grew increasingly pleased — because this was exactly what he had hoped for. If the White Tiger Manor fell into internal chaos, he could exploit the opportunity to slip in.
But when Chu Feng and the others finally reached the foot of White Tiger Manor, they discovered large numbers of the manor's experts engaged in fierce combat outside its walls. Inside the manor, battle cries rang out in waves, and the rumble of explosions never ceased.
"Oh heavens, how could this be happening?"
A rebellion — it was undeniably a rebellion. Watching the people of the manor, who once lived together like family, now slaughtering one another, Murong Xinyu's face turned pale, her beautiful eyes flickering with indescribable emotion.
But it was clear she was tense, panicked, and at a complete loss. She wanted to stop it but was powerless, because everything unfolding today was beyond anything she could have imagined or anticipated.
"Looks like you're a girl who stays out of worldly affairs," Chu Feng said with a smile, looking at Murong Xinyu in her current state.
"What do you mean by that?" Murong Xinyu snapped coldly.
Although she could not cultivate martial arts, she was naturally sharp and intelligent, so her father had entrusted her with managing many of the manor's affairs. To now be mocked by a boy several years her junior was deeply unpleasant.
"An internal upheaval of this scale was clearly premeditated. Your White Tiger Manor had already split into two factions behind the scenes long ago."
"And you — as the eldest miss of White Tiger Manor, as the manor lord's own daughter — you had absolutely no idea beforehand. And now you stand here looking utterly helpless. Weren't you staying out of affairs after all?" Chu Feng sneered.
"You—" Murong Xinyu wanted to retort, but she couldn't find a reason to, because Chu Feng was absolutely right. Though she was clever, she was too naive. She had only seen the surface harmony of White Tiger Manor, never realizing the enormous danger lurking beneath.
She despised herself. Her father had been in seclusion for years, and she and her uncle had been left to manage the manor's affairs. Yet when problems arose from within, she had been completely oblivious. She couldn't bear to face her father now.
"I have a question for you — could it be that even now, you still don't know who orchestrated this rebellion?" Chu Feng asked.
"I..." Murong Xinyu's face was blank with bewilderment.
"It seems a life of too much harmony truly does dull the senses." Chu Feng shook his head and hinted, "Think about it. If it wasn't an outsider, then who among your family could possibly command enough authority to make so many people serve him, willing to bear the name of traitor just to launch this uprising?"
"Could it be... him?" Murong Xinyu's eyes widened in sudden realization, yet she couldn't believe it.
"Who?" Chu Feng pressed.
"I..." Murong Xinyu hesitated, looking troubled.
"At a time like this, you still want to keep secrets from me? I'm the only person who can help you," Chu Feng said.
Seeing the sincerity in Chu Feng's eyes and remembering that without his protection along the way she would have long since lost her life, Murong Xinyu finally spoke: "My uncle — Murong Yanguan. In White Tiger Manor, apart from my father, only he has that kind of influence. While my father was in seclusion, many of the manor's affairs were handled by me."
"But what I dealt with were only minor internal matters. The truly important affairs of the manor were all managed by my uncle. Now that I think about it, during all those years my father was in seclusion, the real power of White Tiger Manor was indeed in my uncle's hands."
Realizing the gravity of the situation, she still couldn't accept this truth. She couldn't imagine that her uncle would do something like this to the manor.
"This isn't your fault. After all, you're still young and inexperienced. The blame lies with your father for trusting your uncle too much."
"From the looks of it today, your uncle must have been plotting this for a long time. Now that he's seizing power by force, the first person he'd want to eliminate is certainly your father. Where is your father in seclusion?"
Chu Feng feigned concern, but in truth he was quietly probing for clues. Although the secrets of White Tiger Manor were unknown to most, Chu Feng felt that the manor's lord couldn't be completely without any trace of where he was hidden.
And the place where the manor's lord had entered seclusion would certainly not be simple. Chu Feng needed to get in there, and Murong Xinyu could help him. The girl was clever but lacked cunning — she was truly easy to use.
"Oh no — my uncle has the key to the Lifeblood! If he..." Hearing Chu Feng's words, Murong Xinyu's face changed dramatically, and without another word she dashed toward the other side of White Tiger Manor.
Chu Feng said nothing and followed closely behind her. After a short while, Murong Xinyu led him to a jumbled pile of rocks outside the manor.
It could be called a stone forest, but it was far too chaotic — likely the result of a mountainside collapse. Chu Feng extended his Mental Power but couldn't sense anything unusual. These were just ordinary mountain rocks, and their arrangement followed no discernible pattern.
But watching Murong Xinyu spin around and peer in every direction, it was clear she was searching for something. This place was definitely not as simple as it appeared.
Just then, Murong Xinyu found a massive boulder and let out a sigh of relief. She removed the jade pendant from around her neck and pressed it into a groove on the boulder's surface. The scattered rocks shifted and rearranged, and soon a deep, dark passageway emerged.
The moment the tunnel opened, Murong Xinyu rushed inside. Chu Feng hurried in after her, and the entrance sealed shut behind them. But instead of darkness, Chu Feng's eyes beheld a sight of dazzling splendor.
This place could truly be described as resplendent with gold and jade. The walls of the passageway were lined with countless murals, all exquisitely detailed. Glowing stones hung from the ceiling, illuminating the corridor as brightly as daylight. Most notably, the ancient aura that pressed in from all sides told Chu Feng that this place had been built long ago — at the very least, several hundred years.
"The Lifeblood — so this is the place I was looking for." A faint smile curled at the corner of Chu Feng's lips. This location was far too well hidden; even his Mental Power hadn't detected a thing out of place. If Murong Xinyu hadn't brought him here, Chu Feng could have searched for a lifetime and never found it.