Chapter 3046

Ouyang Tianyun had been staying home during the day and going out at night for the past few days. With his abilities, traveling tens of thousands of miles every night was as easy as blinking. Consequently, a branch of the Heavenly Dao Sect was destroyed every single night.

At first, people assumed it was the work of enemies, given how much the Heavenly Dao Sect had come to be despised. However, they soon noticed a pattern in the chaos: every night, a different branch suffered an attack. The locations were unpredictable—east one day, west the next, perhaps south the day after, and then north. There was no fixed rule, but one thing was certain: after every night passed, the Heavenly Dao Sect lost one of its branches.

Eventually, onlookers began to guess which location would be targeted next. The entire Nine Domains buzzed with this news.

Yan Xiwan and Ouyang Tianyun were drinking tea at a town teahouse when they heard the rumors.

Yan Xiwan sipped her tea and said, "It seems the mastermind behind the Heavenly Dao Sect is quite steady. They haven't shown themselves at all, despite all this time."

Ouyang Tianyun smiled. "No rush. If they are not in a hurry, neither are we."

Time was a constraint for mortals, but for cultivators like them, time was abundant. Using time to wear down an enemy was not difficult.

Yan Xiwan tilted her head, looking at Ouyang Tianyun. "I feel like you’ve been particularly happy these days."

Ouyang Tianyun raised an eyebrow slightly. "Of course I am happy. It’s rare to spend our honeymoon together like this."

Yan Xiwan arched an eyebrow. "I wasn’t talking about that. I meant, you seem very pleased with your nightly mischief."

Ouyang Tianyun looked at her thoughtfully. "Is my wife angry that I haven’t accompanied you properly these days? If so, I won’t go back tonight."

"What are you thinking?" Yan Xiwan was speechless. He always liked to tease her. "Go do your business."

Ouyang Tianyun put on a regretful expression, with a hint of grievance in his eyes, as if to say Yan Xiwan was heartless and unreasonable.

Yan Xiwan turned her head away. Forget it. she’s getting better at pretending.

"I’m just curious," Yan Xiwan asked, "how do you think the mastermind behind the Heavenly Dao Sect will reveal themselves?"

Ouyang Tianyun returned to a normal tone. "Soon." He smiled faintly. "The reason they haven’t appeared is that the branches I’ve destroyed so far are the obvious ones. Losing these minor pawns doesn’t hurt them much."

"You mean you know about their hidden branches?" Yan Xiwan asked.

Ouyang Tianyun nodded. "Don’t forget, we have divine sense. Besides, while most members in the Heavenly Dao Sect branches are puppets, there are still conscious heads of households. Soul searching reveals quite a bit. So, what comes next will be quite interesting."

"Alright, then have fun playing," Yan Xiwan said with a grin.

Seeing her reaction, Ouyang Tianyun laughed. "Why do I feel like you’re hoping I’ll leave?"

"Where did you get that idea? Am I that kind of person? Don’t wrong me," Yan Xiwan said, putting on an expression of being unjustly accused and hurt.

Ouyang Tianyun raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Really. Absolutely not," Yan Xiwan answered seriously.

"If my wife says so, I will certainly believe her," Ouyang Tianyun said earnestly. "So, once this matter is settled, I will definitely reward my wife properly."

Yan Xiwan’s heart skipped a beat. She was quite afraid of her "rewards." When Ouyang Tianyun decided to reward her, it was day and night without rest.

"Let’s skip the reward. I think it’s better if we keep things normal, right? Hehe," Yan Xiwan said. She really didn’t want to be "rewarded."

Ouyang Tianyun raised an eyebrow, his expression gentle. "My achievements today are all thanks to my wife. How could I not reward her?"

Yan Xiwan was speechless. She really didn’t want the reward.

Ouyang Tianyun’s lips curled up at the corner. she knew her wife could be willful and playful at times, but she would never escape her grasp.

"Let’s not talk about that. Let’s eat the pastries quickly. They look quite unique," Yan Xiwan said, looking around and deciding to change the subject.

Ouyang Tianyun didn’t pursue the topic. He had his own plans and decided to let Yan Xiwan win this round.

She picked up a piece of pastry and handed it to Yan Xiwan. "This cake is called Thousand-Layer Cake. It’s a specialty of Honghe Town. The filling is made from plants crushed from the Honghe River, the only river in Honghe Town. The taste is quite good."

Yan Xiwan took a bite. It was refreshing and delicious. She nodded slightly. "Indeed, it’s good. But how do you know so much about it?"

"My dear wife, my travels these days haven’t been in vain. Besides," Ouyang Tianyun pointed to the sky, "He is there. He tells me information. Whatever I want to know, he tells me all."

Yan Xiwan hummed and took another bite. "It’s nice. The taste is really good."

"If you like it, eat more," Ouyang Tianyun said, handing her another piece.

Yan Xiwan didn’t refuse. The couple ate quietly. At that moment, a person walked in and placed a sword on the counter.

"Shopkeeper, I have no money on me. Can I use this sword as payment for my meal?"

The shopkeeper, who was calculating accounts, looked up at the swordsman and said, "No need to pledge the sword. Just come back within ten days to pay. In Honghe Town, we don’t do pledges like that."

"What if I eat and run?" the swordsman asked curiously.

"If you run, you run. Seeing a person clearly through one meal is worth it. Besides, you are a swordsman. If you want to deepen your martial qi cultivation, you cannot let your bright and upright life have a stain. If you ruin your life for one meal, I think I’ve made a profit," the shopkeeper said.

Hearing this, Ouyang Tianyun nodded slightly in his mind. This shopkeeper was a rare, clear-minded person.

"Then shopkeeper, please give me a bowl of noodles. After eating, I’ll go find some odd jobs nearby to earn money to pay for the noodles," the swordsman said directly.

"Very well. Please wait," the shopkeeper said without hesitation. He let the swordsman sit and ordered the waiter, "Waiter, serve a bowl of noodles to this guest."

"Coming right up!" The waiter didn’t seem surprised by such things, indicating the shopkeeper often acted this way.

Soon, a bowl of noodles was served. The swordsman didn’t hesitate, ate it quickly, and then left, saying he would go find work nearby.