I Can Control Resources

The moment they arrived, they were hit by the thick stench of blood. On the ground lay Ma Sanqian, twitching uncontrollably and spurting blood.

"!!!" Master Zhang was utterly stunned.

He recognized the blood-soaked figure on the ground as Ma Sanqian in a single glance. The problem was, he hadn’t sensed any unfamiliar energy signatures in the area whatsoever.

’No energy signature...’

’Who could have done this to Ma Sanqian?!’

Of course, those questions weren’t important right now.

Because what he needed to do now was...

Save him!

"Out of my way!" Master Zhang rushed forward. He quickly pulled out some hemostatic powder and sprinkled it over Ma Sanqian’s wounds to stanch the bleeding.

Next, he fed a few medicinal pills into Ma Sanqian’s mouth.

After some frantic first aid...

Ma Sanqian’s bleeding finally stopped, but he remained unconscious. His face was deathly pale, like paper.

"Who was it?! Who did this?! How dare they injure someone in my Daoist Sect!" Master Zhang rarely lost his temper, but this time, he couldn’t hold back.

’Someone actually snuck into the back mountains to attack one of my people?’

"Show yourself!" Master Zhang roared. His Spiritual Power surged out like a tidal wave, blanketing the entire back mountain.

As the Sect Leader of the Daoist Sect, Master Zhang had grown up within the Daoist Sect. Moreover, this back mountain area was his personal training ground.

The methods of the Daoist Sect centered on nature, with the key point being a single concept: enlightenment.

Master Zhang himself had achieved his own sudden enlightenment right here in these mountains.

As a result, he knew everything about this place—every blade of grass, every tree, every hill, and every stream. He knew it better than anyone, as intimately as he knew the muscles of his own body.

And because of that, he quickly noticed something was amiss.

Not far away...

a certain tree had an extra branch!

The branch was incredibly lifelike. Its sway in the cold wind, the green leaves upon it—everything was perfect, beyond reproach.

But a new branch couldn’t possibly sprout on a tree overnight.

"The Transformation Concealment Technique?! Impressive... but have you forgotten whose territory this is?!" Master Zhang exploded with rage, striking out with his palm toward the nearby branch.

"Ouch!" a cry of alarm rang out. A figure dropped rapidly from the tree and twisted into a bizarre posture, dodging Master Zhang’s palm strike.

"Who’s there!"

"Surround them! Don’t let them escape!"

"Eight Trigrams Array!"

A few sharp commands rang out.

The Daoist Sect’s Elders and Inner Sect Disciples immediately surrounded the figure.

Meanwhile, Master Zhang turned his gaze back.

He looked at the person they had surrounded...

A very curvy figure.

It was, without a doubt, a woman.

Master Zhang’s gaze traveled upward. When he saw the woman’s face, his eyes widened in shock.

It wasn’t because she was exceptionally beautiful, but because he recognized her.

Or rather, anyone from a major sect or family would know her. After all, she was the wife of the West Alliance Yi Family’s Patriarch.

"It’s you?!" Master Zhang’s mouth fell open. He simply couldn’t believe that the one who had attacked his son was Luna of the West Alliance Yi Family.

’As I recall... we have no quarrel with each other, do we?’

"It’s me, but I’m not the one who attacked your son, Ma Sanqian," Luna said with a shrug. She hadn’t expected Master Zhang to see through her disguise.

That was a minor surprise.

But regardless of any surprises...

she wasn’t about to take the blame for this.

"Not you? Is there anyone else here? Besides, in the entire Alliance, who other than you possesses such formidable assassination skills?" Master Zhang’s eyes narrowed.

"Thank you for the compliment, Master Zhang. I also used to think that aside from my senior sister, no one in the Alliance was better at concealment than me. That is, until a moment ago... when I saw two people with my own eyes."

"Two people? Who?"

"Gao Neng and Fang Tangtang," Luna said with a sigh.

"Gao Neng and Fang Tangtang?! What are you talking about? Wait, are you saying it wasn’t you who attacked my son, but Gao Neng and Fang Tangtang?" Master Zhang seemed thoroughly confused.

"To be precise, it was Gao Neng alone. He took your son down with a single strike. Mmm... I saw it with my own eyes," Luna said, nodding.

"..." Master Zhang was silent.

He didn’t speak right away.

He simply didn’t believe it.

While it was true that Gao Neng and Fang Tangtang had just visited, he remembered them leaving. Most importantly, Gao Neng was only Tier Six.

’Tier Six...’

’Could a Tier Six really evade the senses of so many people in the back mountains?’

’Does he think our Daoist Sect is some place anyone can just waltz into?’

"If you don’t believe me, check your son’s body for residual lightning energy. You should know that Gao Neng uses lightning. Also, there’s a fresh blade wound on your son’s shoulder. As you know... that’s not my weapon of choice," Luna continued, clearly having read Master Zhang’s mind.

"Master... there really is residual lightning energy in Sanqian’s body!"

"Check the blade wound! It’s a heavy blow!"

"It does look like Gao Neng’s handiwork!"

"..."

A few of the Elders quickly reported their findings.

"It really was Gao Neng?" Master Zhang immediately walked over to Ma Sanqian’s side.

"Judging by the blade wound on Sanqian, it’s at least ninety percent certain," a few of the Elders confirmed with a nod.

"You know as well as I do that if I, Luna, had truly made a move, I wouldn’t have left a survivor," Luna added with a smirk, having overheard the conversation between Master Zhang and the Elders.

"Gao Neng!!!" Master Zhang’s fists clenched.

"Going to get revenge? He can’t have gone far. Try using the same method you used to find me. You might just track him down," Luna continued.

"I didn’t use a special method to find you. I just happen to be familiar with every branch on every tree here," Master Zhang replied, naturally catching the hidden jab in Luna’s words.

"Familiar with the branches? Ah, so that’s how it was... I was wondering how I could have possibly been exposed. Hmm... so does that mean you didn’t notice Gao Neng getting away either?"

"I did not," Master Zhang said, shaking his head.

"Hahaha, who would’ve thought? That kid really has the makings of a great assassin." Luna laughed, then added with a troubled expression, "He has the talent, all right—so much so that now I can’t even find him... Crap. I’m not wasting any more time talking to you. I’m out of here!"

With that, Luna seemed to remember something and sped off.

Master Zhang and the other Elders, naturally, didn’t try to stop her.

However, several of the Elders turned to Master Zhang, awaiting his decision.

"My son was already injured, but to wound him so grievously with a single strike... Gao Neng’s potential is truly immeasurable," Master Zhang said, tilting his head back.

"Should we give chase?" the Elders exchanged glances.

"Forget it. Even if we caught up to him, what then? Could we really take revenge?"

"Sigh... We already refused his challenge, but he still came and ambushed him. This is just bullying!" a few Inner Sect Disciples grumbled, frustrated by Master Zhang’s words.

"Carry Sanqian inside," Master Zhang said with a shake of his head.

"Yes, sir!" Two Inner Sect Disciples quickly moved to lift Ma Sanqian from the ground and carry him slowly toward his quarters.

The other Elders didn’t say anything more either.

Had it been anyone else, they certainly wouldn’t have let it slide. But the attacker was Gao Neng... there was really nothing they could do.

Of course, they had a pretty good idea of Gao Neng’s intentions.

’He’s seeking a breakthrough!’

From a purely tactical standpoint, his actions were actually understandable.

So, if one had to place blame, it fell on Ma Sanqian’s bad luck. Who told him to remain at the Tier Six Late Stage for so many years without a breakthrough? Now he’d been targeted, hadn’t he?

The Elders departed.

The remaining Inner Sect Disciples began to clean the blood from the ground.

"That Gao Neng really doesn’t pull his punches!"

"Yeah, if he’s got that kind of strength, he should be fighting the alien races! What’s so great about ambushing our Senior Apprentice-Uncle? The North District is occupied by aliens, but you don’t see him going there to fight."

"Shh, don’t talk nonsense. With Gao Neng’s current status, the Alliance would never let him go to the battlefield. If he did, who would refine the Alliance’s pills?"

"That’s true..."

"Let’s just hurry up and clean."

"Right."

"..."

The Inner Sect Disciples continued their cleanup.

「Meanwhile, underground.」

Gao Neng and Fang Tangtang were staring at each other.

"The North District was occupied? What’s that about?" Gao Neng was momentarily baffled. He hadn’t heard anyone mention this at all.