Chapter 8: Li Xiao's Shock!

When Li Xiao noticed Li Dashan directing his gaze toward the mere two-and-a-half-year-old Li Chang'an, his tightly furrowed brows twitched, and his own eyes followed suit, shifting toward the child.

However, what he saw struck a sudden note of horror within him.

His very own grandnephew was utterly drenched in blood!

Before Li Xiao, Li Chang'an maintained a perfectly disciplined demeanor, donning a lingering mask of dread as he spoke: "Granduncle, just... just a moment ago, a hound demon charged in from the side of the courtyard. Several adults entangled themselves in a fierce struggle with it. That beast moved like a phantom, leaving neither trace nor shadow, and with a single swipe of its claws, it slit the throats of several uncles!"

Upon hearing this, Li Xiao impassively drew closer to Han Laoba's corpse to steal a glance. Discovering the smooth, clean slashes of the wounds, his brow knit even tighter. Fraught with suspicion and uncertainty, he remarked: "No matter how one looks at it, these wounds appear to be inflicted by a sharp weapon. Are you certain they were killed by a hound demon?"

Li Dashan and Huang Xiaoru both faltered, stammering for a long while without managing to utter a single coherent word.

Li Xiao could not help but cough heavily, raising his voice as he demanded: "What exactly transpired here? Speak the truth!"

At the threshold, several neighbors, having caught wind of the commotion, were already poking their heads out to peer and pry.

After all, the racket raised at Li Chang'an's home just now had been immense; it was naturally impossible to keep it hidden from the surrounding neighborhood.

Li Dashan's face flushed a deep crimson. His gaze swept over Li Chang'an once more, and seeing no reaction from the boy, he finally found his voice: "All of... all of this, was done by Chang'an!"

"What?!" Upon hearing this response, Li Xiao initially thought his own ears had played a trick on him.

Only after turning the thought over and analyzing it repeatedly in his mind did he confirm that his hearing had not failed him, whereupon he could not help but inhale a sharp breath of cold air.

Fearing that Li Chang'an might be misunderstood, Li Dashan hurriedly explained: "It is like this: Chang'an claims he once encountered a Taoist priest who bestowed upon him certain immortal arts. Today, that wretched dog Han Laoba insisted on driving our family to ruin. In a fit of irrepressible desperation, Chang'an deployed those techniques, and it ultimately culminated in this!"

At this juncture, Li Dashan dared not harbor any further secrets, recounting the entire sequence of events to Li Xiao with absolute fidelity.

Yet, upon listening to Li Dashan's explanation, Li Xiao's countenance grew even more marvelous to behold, layered with an expression of complete daze, as though he were listening to a book of heavenly myths.

Of course, it was not that he lacked worldly experience.

On the contrary, Li Xiao had ventured out to roam the wider world in his youth and possessed a sufficient understanding of those legendary, formidable martial artists capable of cleaving gold and shattering stone through sheer individual might.

But it was precisely because of this knowledge that, upon hearing Li Dashan clarify the origin and course of the matter, Li Xiao found it all the more inconceivable. His subconscious knee-jerk reaction was even to assume that Li Dashan was fabricating a wild tale.

For as far as he knew, even those renowned martial artists who had long established their names within the martial underworld could not possibly engage several grown men in combat at the tender age of two, let alone slaughter every last one of them!

Thus, reason dictated to Li Xiao that such a thing was an impossibility.

And yet, every bizarre circumstance witnessed right before his eyes served, either directly or indirectly, to validate the authenticity of the information spilling from Li Dashan's mouth!

Li Xiao took a deep breath, banishing the chaotic thoughts from his mind. He directed his gaze toward Li Chang'an in the courtyard and spoke: "Was this truly your doing?"

Li Chang'an nodded, confessing to the deed with absolute openness and poise.

This matter was something he could never hope to conceal entirely