Chapter 66: Masked in Black, Concealing True Strength

A ghostly shadow slipped into the Chu family villa, completely unnoticed by the martial arts master from the Linghu Sect whom Cao Moling had sent in secret to protect the family.

Because this shadow was a grandmaster of martial arts, and his strength was no less than that of Cao Moling. Once Jiang Chen perceived this clearly, a guess formed in his mind.

"You two go take a bath and sleep first, I'll handle things here."

Jiang Chen stood at the doorway of the grand hall, turning his head to say to Chu Yan and Yao Bing.

"Let's go, Yanyan, back to our room!"

Yao Bing pulled Chu Yan toward the bedroom. She had long since lost the patience to wait for Jiang Chen, and furthermore, feeling she was in the wrong earlier, she wished even less to face him.

"Jiang Chen, mind your limits and be careful!"

Chu Yan offered a reminder; teaching someone a lesson was fine, but he shouldn't beat the person to death.

"Rest assured, I know what I'm doing."

Seeing that Chu Yan and Yao Bing had retreated to their room, Jiang Chen stepped out toward the front yard.

The chauffeur and bodyguard lying on the ground endured the agony of his broken bones and managed to pull himself up once more.

Clutching his chest, he threatened Jiang Chen, "Brat, you just wait! Our young master's master is a martial arts grandmaster. Even if you are a martial arts master, you're dead meat!"

"Fine, I'll wait for that bastard Han Qiyue's master to come looking for revenge. But tell him not to bother coming to the Chu family—he can come straight to the Heavenly Pavilion at Purple Mansion to find me."

As Jiang Chen spoke, he swept his gaze around to check if any other martial arts grandmasters had sneaked in.

"The Heavenly Pavilion at Purple Mansion?"

The chauffeur-bodyguard was startled, then sneered, refusing to believe that Jiang Chen was qualified to live in Linzhou's premier mansion. He feigned compliance and said, "Alright! I will relay your words to the young master's master!"

Dragging his injured body, he prepared to leave. Once he got back and saw the head of the family, he would make sure the family head brought the young master's master to obliterate the Chu family!

"Before you leave, cripple the hand you used to strike at me. Leave just one hand to drive with."

Jiang Chen ordered the chauffeur-bodyguard; he couldn't let him make this trip for nothing.

"You..."

The chauffeur-bodyguard was consumed with fury. He hadn't even managed to land a hit on Jiang Chen and had instead suffered broken ribs; on what grounds should he cripple his own hand?

"Are you going to do it yourself, or shall I help you?"

Jiang Chen rubbed his hands together as he walked toward the chauffeur-bodyguard.

"Don't come closer... I'll do it myself!"

Terrified into submission, the chauffeur-bodyguard backed down.

He thought of the young master's wretched fate. If he broke it himself, it could still be surgically reattached; if the other party did it, it would be permanently ruined!

"Crack!"

He squatted down, pressed his right hand against the ground, and gritting his teeth, struck it hard with his left fist. Cold sweat poured from his forehead as he tightly suppressed the scream threatening to escape his lips.

"Get lost!"

Having dealt with this small fry, Jiang Chen knew the real big fish was yet to come.

As if granted a pardon from heaven, the chauffeur-bodyguard clutched his broken hand and fled, turning tail as though terrified that Jiang Chen might go back on his word.

"Show yourself since you've watched enough of the show. Let's have a proper chat!"

Jiang Chen looked toward a dark corner and spoke.

"As expected of the young master of the Jiang family who survived the extermination of his house—your perception is truly sharp!"

A figure clad in a black night-suit and a black mask emerged from the dark corner, appearing as though meant to merge completely with the night.

Jiang Chen could not tell whether the masked figure in black was male or female; even the voice was devoid of any distinct gender or age markers, as the individual had intentionally disguised every aspect of themselves.

His thoughts immediately went to the mysterious masked man who had controlled Xiong Wuqiang with poison, especially since this person had blurted out his identity the moment they spoke.

"You're here for that treasure of the Jiang family, aren't you?"

Jiang Chen asked tentatively, hoping to fish for information from the other party.

"Young Master Jiang is a straightforward person, so I'll be direct—I heard everything from your conversation just now!"

The masked figure in black made no attempt to deny it. "As long as Young Master Jiang hands the treasure over to me, in return, I will help you deal with Han Qiyue's martial arts grandmaster master!"

Jiang Chen was now almost certain that this person was likely not the murderer responsible for wiping out the Jiang family, but rather some individual or faction that had set their sights on the family's treasure.

Continuing to probe, he asked, "How did you know the treasure is with me?"

"After the Jiang family was slaughtered, only Miss Jiang and Young Master Jiang went missing, so the treasure can only be with the two of you siblings. I investigated Miss Jiang; she doesn't have it, nor does she even know of its existence!"

The masked figure stated with absolute confidence, "That means the treasure is with Young Master Jiang! Tonight at the banquet, Elder Chu announced that you are his granddaughter's husband, a genius miraculous doctor, and a martial arts master to boot. That strength must have been unlocked by the treasure!"

Hearing this, Jiang Chen frowned slightly. The fact that the person had investigated his elder sister, Jiang Qing, stirred his vigilance, though he was relieved to note she had suffered no harm.

He probed further: "You poisoned Xiong Wuqiang and kept tabs on my sister just waiting for me to bring the treasure back?"

"Huh? Xiong Wuqiang? Someone else has also set their sights on the Jiang family's treasure?"

The masked figure asked in genuine surprise.

Now it was Jiang Chen's turn to be astonished—was this masked figure not the same mysterious masked man?

"Young Master Jiang, it seems your situation is quite perilous!"

The masked figure said with deep meaning, "To show my sincerity, as long as you hand the treasure over to me, I will also protect the lives of you and your sister. How about it?"

"How about this: you tell me who the murderer behind the extermination of the Jiang family is, and I'll gift the Jiang family's treasure to you. Deal?"

Jiang Chen negotiated with the masked figure. Sometimes, intelligence gathered this way was far truer and more reliable than information extracted through harsh interrogation.

"Young Master Jiang shouldn't push his luck. If I told you, would you also expect me to help you take revenge?"

The tone of the masked figure turned frosty.

"Meaning you do know who slaughtered the Jiang family?"

Jiang Chen narrowed his eyes for confirmation.

"Young Master Jiang needn't fish for words from me. If you aren't willing to hand over the treasure, then I'm afraid I'll have to offend you!"

The masked figure assumed a posture ready to seize it by force.

"If you're going to resort to robbery, don't blame me for being impolite!"

Seeing that the negotiations were breaking down, Jiang Chen rubbed his fingers together.

"I don't mean to look down on you, but with your strength as a martial arts master, you really aren't worth much in my eyes!"

The masked figure shook their head and sighed, essentially looking straight down upon Jiang Chen.

"Why don't we make a wager? If you can defeat me, I will hand the treasure over on a silver platter. But if you lose to me, you must tell me everything you know!"

Jiang Chen offered one final round of negotiation to the masked figure.

"Deal!"

The masked figure agreed without the slightest hesitation.

"Please go ahead. I'll make sure you lose and accept it with a whole heart!"

Jiang Chen gestured for the masked figure to make the first move.

"Young Master Jiang, I'm afraid your calculations are mistaken!"

The masked figure laughed with the air of a guaranteed victor. "If I'm not mistaken, you've concealed your strength. You aren't just a high-level martial arts master; you're an early-stage martial arts grandmaster!"

"Too bad I forgot to tell you—I've concealed my strength as well. I am actually a mid-stage martial arts grandmaster!"

"Why don't you surrender right now, lest we actually fight and I accidentally injure you severely!"

Jiang Chen chuckled as well. He had already sensed the mid-stage grandmaster level of the masked figure long ago; that was something that didn't require the use of his eyes to perceive!

"You can still laugh, Young Master Jiang? Could it be that you think you can defeat a superior through sheer willpower and actually have the ability to fight me?"

The masked figure sneered, believing Jiang Chen's confidence had crossed into delusion.

"You'll know once you try!"

Jiang Chen smiled and beckoned to the masked figure with a finger.

"Then Young Master Jiang had better prepare to get hurt!"

Abandoning any underestimation or carelessness, the masked figure unleashed their full power. The profound inner energy of a mid-stage martial arts grandmaster surged forth completely, locking onto Jiang Chen as they launched their attack!