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"Hahahahahahaa...." As soon as Xia Wen heard this, he burst out in a peal of laughter.

After calming himself down, he looked at Yang Ze with narrowed eyes.

"As you already know, the entirety of the city has been blocked by those from the Leihui Sect. One can not leave it at will. But...." Speaking till here, a smile formed on his face.

"I can help you get out. I can help you escape from this city, help you escape to a much safer location."

"What's the catch, old man!?" There was no way this man was doing things out of goodwill.

"I like you... Straight to the point." Rubbing his chin, his expression suddenly turned grave. "First, I would like my wife's belonging back."

Pointing at the bracelet Yang Ze was wearing, he continued further.

"Secondly, I need you to write a letter to my daughter Xueqi, explaining to her that you can not answer her feelings. Explain, that she should move on with her life and forget about you."

"Do these two things and I will make sure you get out of this place safely."

Yang Ze slowly stood up from his chair and walked in front of the window, looking at the scenery outside. Was it any other person, Xia Wen's offer would have been irresistible for them, after all, who doesn't want to get out of a place that would soon be engulfed in a war? Staying here means getting involved in a conflict that would perhaps be fatal to them.

However, all of this was for ordinary people. For Yang Ze, this war was nothing but a fleeting event. As for the matter of leaving the city safely, he didn't need Xia Wen's help, he could do it himself.

"I will think about it." Speaking in a flat tone, Yang Ze sat back on the chair and closed his eyes, unwilling to talk any further.

"..." Xia Wen stared silently at him for a long time before standing up and storming out of the house. How could he not understand the meaning behind Yang Ze's words? The boy didn't want to cooperate with him. Stopping in front of the wooden cabin, he stared at the window to Yang Ze's room for a while before walking away with a cold face.

"Heh..." Inside the room, Yang Ze opened his eyes and looked at his back with a sneer. Only a fool would believe his so-called promise of escorting him to safety. In the city, Xia Wen wasn't willing to take any action against him for fear of retaliation by the so-called powerhouses behind him. However, as soon as he agrees to his request and walks out of the city, there is no doubt he was going to try and kill him.

For the patriarch of the Xia Family, this was the only way. He will send his written letter along with the bracelet to his daughter, making it seem like Yang Ze was the one to walk away from her. And after doing that, he would send someone after Yang Ze, or worst case scenario, he himself would take action against Yang Ze, making sure he never comes back to his daughter.

"Looks like things are going to get pretty messy." With a heavy sigh, Yang Ze walked out of the room into the garden. At the corner, he could still see the figures of Yao Xiang and Xiao Li, having a discussion.

Thinking for a while, he waved his hand, and as soon as he did it, the aura of heaven and earth converged in front of him before forming into a small 'T' shaped symbol. With the wave of his hand, the symbol disappeared before appearing near Yao Xiang and silently merging in her body. After doing so, Yang Ze thought for a moment before waving another symbol in the body of Xiao Li.

According to his agreement, he only needed to keep her safe. And with his strength as an expert in the Manifestation realm, this was a piece of cake.

After doing all this, he walked back to his room and took out the unfinished martial art book from his personal space. There are still more than a thousand books remaining for him to finish.

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"Are you clear about it all!?" Inside the Xia family pavilion, Xia Wen was standing in front of a group of servants that was kneeling in front of him.

"Yes, master."

"Good... Then go on." With a wave of his hand, he looked at the back of those servants as determination filled his eyes.

"Since you aren't interested in my offer, then let me give you a gift."

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Two days later, inside a small tavern, two people were discussing amongst themselves in a low voice.

"Have you heard!?"

"Oh god! Please don't let it be another piece of bad news."

"Well... Unfortunately, it is."

"What is it now!?"

"Have you heard about the Vault of Heaven!?"

"Huh!? Heard about it... I am a member of the Vault of Heaven." The man pulled out a small token before placing it on the table in front of him.

"Oh!" The other man looked at him with a pitiful gaze.

"The hell!? What is going on!?" Looking at his eyes, the man had a sudden ominous feeling in his heart.

"Well... Haven't you heard about the rumors?"

"What rumors?" The man was growing visibly impatient.

"The Vault of Heaven has gone bankrupt, and all the money that people invested in it is now down the drain."

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!? WHO SAID THIS!?" The man almost jumped up from his seat.

"Dude, you can go and ask anyone in town. Everyone knows about it... There are even people going to ask for an answer from the brat running the shop.

I heard he is now living in those newly built buildings. Maybe you can find all your answers there. Who knows, maybe you might get your money back."

"This... this..." The man stood up from his seat and started pacing around nervously. "I... I used all of my family's savings to buy a membership... If... If what you say is true... then.... then...."

Without completing his sentence, he rushed out of the shop towards the direction the man pointed him.

As soon as the man left, the other person stood up from his seat before taking out a small notebook. After crossing a name on it, he picked another name before walking toward another person sitting at the corner of the tavern.

"Hey... Have you heard!?"

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Yang Ze who was still immersed in reading the martial art books was suddenly jolted awake. Looking out of the window, he could see a crowd of people walking toward his house.

"The Hell!?" Looking at the angry crowd, Yang Ze's brows jumped as he stood up and looked at them with a grave expression.

"HUA JI... COME OUT."

The crowd stopped in front of his house as a deafening shout sounded. Just from the voice, one could imagine the speaker's anger.

"COME OUT YOU BASTARD."

"YEAH, SHOW US YOUR FACE."

"TELL US WHAT WE HEARD IS WRONG."

"YEAH!"

Seeing no response, the crowd was growing increasingly impatient. And why shouldn't they be!? A majority of people here used up their entire life savings just to get a membership in hopes they will strike rich. Now imagine their helplessness and anger when they realized that everything they did was all for nothing. Their life savings were now gone, and along with it, the bright future prospect that once they all had dreamed of.

"ARE YOU COMING OUT OR NOT!?" One of the men even came forward with a burning torch in his hand.

"YEAH... COME OUT NOW. THIS IS YOUR LAST WARNING."

Inside the room, Yang Ze looked at the crowd expressionlessly. How could he not realize that everything was orchestrated by the Xia Family? This was their retaliation for not accepting their offer. They couldn't use raw strength, but they sure as hell could use other tricks. And one of them was to rile up his customers against him.

Thinking for a moment, Yang Ze walked out of the house and stood in front of the crowd.

"....."

As soon as he stepped out of the house, the entire crowd went silent. The silence was so overwhelming, that one could even hear the heartbeats of hundreds of people standing there along with their rugged breathing.

"What is it!? Why are you all howling like wolves in the middle of the day!?"

'Little bastard...' Listening to Yang Ze speak in such an annoyed tone, the people almost rushed out to give him a beating.

"Is it true!?" It was at this moment, that a middle-aged fat man walked out as he asked in a grave tone.

"What is it!?" Narrowing his eyes, Yang Ze asked in a puzzled tone. For the past few days, he has been busy browsing those martial arts that he stole from the Alliance. Even his only source of information was Yao Xiang and Xiao Li left to participate in the war. And with his personality, he couldn't care less about what was going out in the city. So, there was no way for him to know why these people turned against him.

"THE BUSINESS." The man almost shouted hysterically. "IS IT TRUE THAT EVERYTHING IS GONE!? HAS THE BUSINESS BECOME BANKRUPT!?"

"What the hell!?" With a frown, Yang Ze looked at the crowd as he slowly began to understand what was actually going on here.

"Who said this!?"

"JUST ANSWER THE DAMN QUESTION." A woman in her forties walked out before shouting shrilly.

"....." Yang Ze didn't immediately answer but looked at the crowd in front of him silently. He could see many of them carrying sharp weapons and sticks. if he dared to say something against them, he was sure they would all jump on him like a pack of hungry wolves.

At this moment, the one thing that mattered the most was how he was going to handle the situation. One mistake and he could turn the entire city against him.

Closing his eyes for a moment, he took a deep breath and looked at the crowd with a grave expression. With a face that was filled with some fear, hesitation, and helplessness, he slowly nodded towards the crowd before uttering a single word.

"YES."