Chapter 41: Within the Dense Forest

What worrying aptitude!

Hidden behind a large tree, listening to the panicked clamor in the dense forest, Li Yuan shook his head inwardly.

Whether one practices martial arts or not really has no great connection to one's mental fortitude.

Having never been through anything, suddenly hearing the anguished screams of one's own kind—even he couldn't help feeling a little uneasy.

Still, his mental age was after all a bit older than the other apprentices, and by now he had already calmed down.

"Given that Nian Jiu's methods, these gang-member apprentices all had time to send a signal—looks like he really is severely wounded, perhaps…"

Li Yuan began to scheme.

It wasn't greed for the imperial court's bounty, but if Nian Jiu didn't die, he would always feel uneasy in his heart.

"Can't rush. Caution first…"

Settling his mind, Li Yuan hefted his hammer and moved, bending his body as he wove between the great trees, scanning his surroundings.

Soon, he spotted a corpse, its death appearance wretched—the skullcap had been sent flying.

Even though in his past life he had dealt with corpses more than a few times, Li Yuan still felt a touch of discomfort, mainly because this one had died far too miserably.

Rustle, rustle~

Suddenly, Li Yuan dropped low, and saw a Sanhe gang member dart over quickly, beginning to frisk the corpse.

"……"

Li Yuan's mouth twitched slightly, but he quickly ducked down again.

Bang!

Just as that gang member raised his head, he suddenly felt a gust of wind flash behind him; before he could even turn around, he was knocked to the ground—the one looting the corpse himself fell victim to another's looting.

"Is this the Fuxiu Fuxiu Daoren from that fake Daoist Priest's side?"

Li Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly. The one who had ambushed the Sanhe gang member from behind was unmistakably that burly fellow who had earlier wanted to 'let him bleed a little.'

"Skills aren't much, but silver's not lacking!"

That burly fellow weighed the silver he'd searched, and was just about to rise when he suddenly heard a gust of wind whistling behind him. Without thinking, he crossed his arms over his head and threw himself forward—his reflexes were extremely quick.

Missing the strike, Li Yuan planted his feet, twisted his body to spin, his blood qi surged violently, and stacking his hammer force like a smith at the forge,

With a 'bang' he sent that big fellow tumbling to the ground.

Bang!

That big fellow was sent sprawling face-down on the ground; both arms shielding his head snapped in a single blow. Before he could even let out a scream, he felt his hands and waist go empty, and his head was stomped into the mud.

When he raised his head again, his face was full of shock, fury, and grievance:

"Fuck!"

What a thrill!

Having succeeded in one strike, the grudge-keeping Daoist Li scurried away fast as a spirit ape, darting behind a great tree, his heart pounding, his face flushed red.

"The adrenaline's surging! This is way more thrilling than beating Qian Bao. Lucky my hammer technique is superb—if I hadn't held back the force of that one strike, I'd probably have killed him on the spot!"

Li Yuan steadied his breathing, weighed the silver he'd gotten—surely over twenty taels, two years of monthly allowance for an inner-court apprentice, all in one go!

"Isn't this way faster than smithing?"

Having taken a small revenge and gained silver, he glanced at the burly fellow in the distance raging impotently yet not daring to make a sound, and Li Yuan felt nothing but satisfaction in his heart.

After this small trial of his blade, his unease gradually faded.

That burly fellow's blood qi was thicker than Yue Yue Yunjin's—surely on the verge of breaking through to Internal Force.

But when Li Yuan struck, he had even activated his talisman-boost, relying on the boost of the Great Craftsman's Hammer and the Saber-Sickle, and even in a fair fight he was confident he could take him down.

If an ambush couldn't succeed, there'd really be no justice.

"Mm, can't be careless. But if someone with this kind of skill dares to act alone, there's no reason I shouldn't dare!"

Stuffing the silver into his bosom, Li Yuan gripped his hammer tight and warily surveyed the dense forest, which seemed to have suddenly gone quiet.

Having measured out his current skill, his courage suddenly swelled.

Where was Nian Jiu?

……

……

"Puh!"

In a hidden tree hollow, Nian Jiu coughed up a great mouthful of blood, his face savage.

After striking out several times and fleeing, every old and new wound on his body had flared up, and he was nearly about to pass out again.

Reason told him he should withdraw at once, but he was unwilling.

"Unwilling…"

Clenching his teeth hard, Nian Jiu forcibly raised his qi, trying to stabilize his injuries, when suddenly from outside the tree hollow came the baying of dogs and a cold laugh:

"Search! That Nian Jiu is nearby!"

Damn it!

Nian Jiu's heart was shocked and furious, his grievance almost driving him mad.

If he had no wounds, with just these people he could kill them all with one hand, but now…

"Anyone who wants to kill me has to die!"

Listening to the footsteps drawing closer, Nian Jiu's single eye reddened, and the remaining force within his body tensed up in an instant.

Hush!

He shot out in one motion, his single arm whipping like a lash, emitting a sharp sound of tearing air.

Bang!

A figure crashed heavily to the ground, blood and dead leaves flying.

"The horizontal cultivation of the Thousand-Quintal Cave is truly remarkable. Suffering such grievous wounds, yet still having the strength to struggle?"

A hoarse voice came through.

Nian Jiu, supporting himself with one arm, looked fiercely at the masked man in grey before him, his heart sinking completely:

"Internal Fortification?!"

"Pity. Though horizontal cultivation is good, the person is a waste! Had I not shielded you, Qiu Long would have beheaded you long ago!"

The man in grey sneered coldly.

"Earlier, was it you who lured Qiu Long and the others away?"

Nian Jiu struggled to his feet, his eyes still extremely fierce: "Masked, do we know each other? Or are you from one of the families in Gao Liu County?"

"Who I am, you need not concern yourself with. You only need to know I helped you; in the future, you must repay me!"

The man in grey raised his hand and tossed over a bottle of pills:

"Take the medicine and leave. Pursuers and Qiu Long, this old man will resolve them for you!"

"Resolve Qiu Long? Who exactly are you? How do you want me to repay?"

Nian Jiu took the medicine, his heart still on guard.

But the man in grey merely waved his hand, left a phrase of 'I will find you in the future', and with a few leaps and bounds, disappeared into the dense forest.

"There are many Internal Force martial artists in Gao Liu County, but Internal Fortification seems to have only two practitioners. Is this person Cao Yan? Or an outsider Fuxiu Fuxiu Daoren?"

Nian Jiu leaned against a large tree, sniffed the porcelain bottle, and the ferocity on his face eased slightly:

"Superior Yuan-Returning Pill?"

Casually swallowing one pill, Nian Jiu's complexion instantly became much ruddy, but he did not regulate his breath, nor did he flee along the path the man in grey indicated,

but instead turned and charged toward where the human voices were coming from.

Anyone daring to hunt Laozi must die!

"My blood qi has not yet reached the Yongquan point; I am still far from Great Perfection, but with the support of the Great Artisan's Hammer and the blade-sickle, several Fuxiu Fuxiu Daoren with Great Perfection blood qi are no match for me!"

Moving through the dense forest, Li Yuan was no longer as anxious and panicked as at the very beginning.

The very first scream caused the entire dense forest to be filled with alarm; members, apprentices, and disciples of various families, and Fuxiu Fuxiu Daoren all began to move.

Some were fleeing, some were searching for Nian Jiu, but there were also those fishing in troubled waters, targeting the apprentices and disciples of various families.

Along the way, Li Yuan encountered four or five such Fuxiu Fuxiu Daoren.

He was not polite either; lightly breaking limbs and feet, heavily beating them until they vomited blood and fell unconscious, the silver in his hand suddenly piled up to more than fifty taels, enough to clear Sun Fatty's debt.

He also gradually became familiar with the rhythm of combat, gaining different insights into the Internal Three Harmonies, and even achieving mastery of the Six Harmonies.

"No wonder they say 'Blood Battle Immortality is worth ten years of Ku Gong'. I have only ambushed a few times, haven't fought face-to-face yet, but my fighting style has already improved significantly!"

Suddenly, hearing a distant scream, Li Yuan turned his foot and darted into the grass by the roadside.

"He, he is here!"

A piercing scream rang out from a distance; soon, Li Yuan heard footsteps.

He looked up and saw the fake Daoist Priest Zhang Zhang Yuanfang coughing blood and flying backward, actually breaking a large tree; with withered branches and rotten leaves flying up in large quantities, he was already unknown whether dead or alive.

"Internal Force!"

Li Yuan's heart shivered.

Beneath the flying chaotic leaves, there stood a beggar with one arm and one eye, messy hair covering his face, covered in bloodstains, his steps somewhat staggering.

"Nian Jiu? Injured so heavily, yet still so fierce?"

Even though this person bore no resemblance at all to the portrait on the wanted poster, the name still popped into Li Yuan's mind; he immediately crouched low.

'This person must be a madman; injured so heavily, yet not fleeing, but wanting to kill!'

Li Yuan felt a bit of heart-pounding fear.

"Fuxiu Fuxiu Daoren! Pfft..."

Reaching out to pull the dagger stuck in his chest, Nian Jiu spat out a mouthful of black blood, slowly raised his head; beneath the messy hair, his single eye scanned the surroundings, and he limped toward where the human voices were coming from.

"What kind of horizontal cultivation is that?!"

In the grass, Li Yuan was shocked.

He saw clearly that after Nian Jiu pulled out the dagger, the flesh and blood inside the wound actually closed up instantly, not even a drop of blood flowing out!

"Oh? There is still a little rat from the Weapon Smithy here..."

The moment the cold, bloodthirsty voice entered his ears, Li Yuan's scalp exploded.

Bang!

Almost without thinking, his whole body leaped up like a white ape; at the same time, he twisted his body, swung his arm, and the long-handled heavy hammer weighing more than thirty jin almost danced out afterimages:

White Ape Hammer Strike!

(End of this chapter)