This assassin's codename was No. 19.
No. 19 did not answer the old man's question, instead directly heading toward the back of the grocery shop.
"Halt!"
The old man flared in anger, standing up sharply. A fierce light exploded in his eyes, leaving not a trace of frail old age about him.
Swish!
A gleaming, cold dagger appeared in his hand, stabbing straight for No. 19's heart. This old man's strength was actually at the True Condensation Realm's middle stage.
Ye Yunfei's figure blurred, appearing before the old man like a ghost. His hand shot out like lightning, grabbing the old man's wrist.
"Seeking death!"
Shocked and furious, the old man erupted with spiritual power from his entire body, creating a terrifying pressure of spiritual might that bore down on Ye Yunfei. Simultaneously, he desperately tried to wrench his hand free.
But Ye Yunfei's strength was far too great; there was no way he could pull it back.
Although this old man cultivated various profound secret arts of the Tianyou Tomb, before Ye Yunfei, he simply had no chance to employ them.
Crack!
With a slight twist of his hand, Ye Yunfei snapped the old man's wrist.
"Hu Miao, use your Illusion Art," Ye Yunfei said.
"Okay," Hu Miao replied and immediately cast the illusion technique.
"What do you think you're doing?!" the old man stammered, both shocked and angry.
In the next moment, threads of illusion laws surged into his Soul Sea, coiling around his Soul Body.
The old man's Soul Power was somewhat strong, and he struggled furiously. Ye Yunfei slapped him on the head, sending his mind reeling.
Then, he lost all ability to resist, instantly coming under the control of Hu Miao's Illusion Art.
This old man's Soul Sea also contained a Soul Restraint. After finding it, Ye Yunfei simply dismantled it.
"Lead the way. Take us into your branch stronghold," Hu Miao said to the old man.
The old man nodded stiffly. Then, walking ahead, he led the way deeper into the back of the grocery shop.
Behind it was a small courtyard. In one corner stood an old well, its opening covered by a slab of bluish stone. The old man walked over to the well, moved the stone slab aside, and jumped straight down.
No. 19 jumped down after him.
Without a moment's hesitation, Ye Yunfei and Hu Miao also leaped into the well.
There was no water inside. The bottom was flat ground, with a dimly lit underground passage sloping downward. The old man took the lead, following the passage deeper inside.
A moment later.
They arrived at an underground palace. The palace contained a spacious hall. Dozens of rooms lined both sides of the hall.
"This is our branch stronghold," the old man said, his gaze somewhat dazed.
Ye Yunfei released his Soul Power and discovered there was an assassin in every one of those rooms.
"No. 2, what's the meaning of this! Who are they?"
From one of the rooms, a black-robed elder drifted out like a specter, his sinister gaze locking onto Ye Yunfei and Hu Miao.
"He's No. 1. He's the person in charge of this branch stronghold," the old man said to Hu Miao.
He was still under Hu Miao's illusion control, unable to control his own actions, his mind lost in a fog, only knowing to obey Hu Miao's commands.
"No. 2, what are you implying! Have you betrayed us?" Hearing the old man's words, the black-robed elder referred to as No. 1 couldn't help but narrow his eyes.
Swish-swish-swish…
Swarms of black shadows flickered as dozens of figures in black emerged in the hall, surrounding Ye Yunfei and Hu Miao on all sides.
"Huh? You look somewhat familiar. You are… Ye Yunfei?! Impossible! Ye Yunfei, you're actually still alive?!"
Suddenly, the black-robed elder recognized Ye Yunfei and cried out in shock.
The Tianyou Tomb had dispatched assassins to eliminate Ye Yunfei several times. As the person in charge of a branch stronghold, this black-robed elder had naturally seen Ye Yunfei's portrait. So, he recognized him quickly.
"Of course I'm still alive," Ye Yunfei said with a faint smile.
"Attack! Kill him!"
Knowing things had taken a bad turn, the black-robed elder roared.
Swish-swish…
Dozens of assassins simultaneously activated their movements, merging into space and vanishing from sight.
"Trifling tricks, attempting to show off in front of me?" Ye Yunfei sneered.
He released his Soul Power, sensing every inch of space within the hall, searching for the figures of those assassins.
Swish-swish…
Suddenly, over ten long swords abruptly appeared, thrusting toward Ye Yunfei and Hu Miao from separate directions. Over ten assassins appeared following the swords.
"Slay!"
With his Soul Power, Ye Yunfei clearly perceived the figures of those over ten assassins. He let out a soft shout.
Hum, hum, hum…
The Five Elements Spirit Swords manifested simultaneously, slicing outward.
Having been re-forged, the power of these swords was over a hundred times greater than before!
Their lethality was terrifying. In the great hall, sword energy spread out vast as a sea, sharp to the extreme.
Crack, crack…
Before those dozen or so assassins could even react, their bodies were hacked to pieces, dismembered limbs and flesh scattering across the floor.
In truth, what was truly formidable about these Tianyou Tomb assassins were their bizarre, elusive movement arts that allowed them to vanish into thin air, appearing and disappearing unpredictably, making them impossible to guard against.
Their actual combat prowess wasn't particularly strong.
Judging from the eyes of a past Heavenly Emperor, there was no mystery whatsoever to the movement arts these Tianyou Tomb assassins executed. Ye Yunfei's Soul Power could perceive their movements and attack trajectories with perfect clarity. Therefore, these assassins were far too weak against Ye Yunfei, hardly worth a single blow.
"You…"
The black-robed elder was utterly shocked.
"Slay!"
Ye Yunfei pointed a finger.
Hum, hum, hum…
The Five Elements Spirit Swords tore out once more.
Aah! Aah…
The remaining assassins were relentlessly shredded into fragments by the swords.
Though these assassins had vanished from sight, Ye Yunfei's Soul Power sensed their auras, pinpointing their locations accurately.
In a matter of moments.
Almost every assassin within this branch stronghold had been slaughtered by Ye Yunfei.
Only the black-robed elder and the old guide remained.
"Ye Yunfei, you dare provoke our Tianyou Tomb like this. Aren't you afraid of our eternal vendetta, an unending feud with you?" The black-robed elder bellowed angrily.
"Is your Tianyou Tomb currently on good terms with me?" Ye Yunfei retorted with a cold laugh.
Swish!
As soon as the words left his mouth, Ye Yunfei took a single step. His speed reached an extreme limit, appearing instantly before the black-robed elder, practically face to face. The tenfold acceleration of his Heavenly Shadow Robe made his movement technique so fast it was invisible to the naked eye.
"Seeking death!" the black-robed elder exclaimed in shock and fury.
Boom!
His answer was a fist, hurtling toward him with extreme speed.
A terrifying power like a raging hurricane instantly engulfed him.
Ye Yunfei's speed was too fast, his strength too great. The black-robed elder was full of unique skills, but he had no opportunity to employ a single one. Frantically, he had no choice but to throw a punch forward to meet it.
Pop!
The black-robed elder's entire right arm exploded on the spot.
Pop!
Ye Yunfei's fist landed squarely on the elder's Dantian, shattering it.
"Aah! You crippled me!"
Terror flooded the black-robed elder to the extreme. For a martial artist, having one's cultivation crippled was far more painful than death.
"Hu Miao, control him with the Illusion Art," Ye Yunfei said.
Hu Miao immediately stepped forward, casting the illusion technique. Having lost his cultivation, this black-robed elder was utterly powerless, with no strength to tie a chicken. There was no way to resist, and he fell directly under Hu Miao's control.
Ye Yunfei discovered that this black-robed elder's Soul Sea also contained a Soul Restraint, which he directly dismantled.
Then, Ye Yunfei had Hu Miao interrogate the black-robed elder.
To Ye Yunfei's pleasant surprise, this black-robed elder knew a great many things. He revealed the specific locations of over a dozen Tianyou Tomb branch strongholds in succession.
And most importantly, he also disclosed the location of the Tianyou Tomb headquarters in the Eastern Region!