“How did Old Feng’s precious boots end up in your hands? What’s your relationship? As far as I know, that guy treasured these Cloudtreading Boots dearly and would never lend them to anyone!”
As these words were spoken, a gaudily dressed figure emerged from seemingly nowhere, revealing himself beneath a massive flowering tree about twenty zhang away from Han Li. He was of medium build, with mismatched eyes and a face pockmarked with dark spots, looking around forty years old. Hanging from his body were seven or eight pouches of varying sizes.
Despite his hideous appearance, his face was now etched with astonishment. His eyes were fixed intently on the spirit boots on Han Li’s feet, as if he still couldn’t believe that the Cloudtreading Boots had ended up there.
“Who are you, and why did you ambush me?” Han Li ignored the other’s question and instead fired back a blunt retort. He had no intention of being led by the nose or allowing the other party to dominate the situation.
The ugly man was taken aback at first, but quickly grew furious, his face twisting into a vicious scowl. He raised his hand as if to immediately teach this insolent brat a lesson, but then seemed to remember something and forcibly suppressed his violent impulse, lowering his hand again. Still, he snarled menacingly, “Kid, don’t think just because you’re wearing Old Feng’s spirit boots that I won’t dare to teach you a lesson! When that old fool Feng Yue gave you the boots, didn’t he mention my name, Zhong Wu of the Spirit Beast Mountain? But it’s strange—you’re clearly from Yellow Maple Valley. Why would he give the boots to you? Unless you’re his illegitimate son? But looking at you, you don’t resemble him at all!”
As he spoke, the ugly man began scrutinizing Han Li with a peculiar gaze.
This time, it was Han Li’s turn to grow angry. With a dark expression, he coldly retorted, “Don’t go fabricating relationships for people! Feng Yue is already dead. I took these boots right off his feet!”
“Dead? The madman Feng Yue?” The ugly man, who had been full of bluster moments before, leaped three feet into the air upon hearing this, his expression shifting to one of shock and suspicion. He involuntarily took a few steps back, reassessing Han Li.
“Did you kill him?” The brute took a deep breath, his eyes darting around nervously as he asked in a hesitant tone, all traces of his earlier ferocity gone.
“That’s right. Do you want to avenge him?” Han Li clasped his hands behind his back, watching the other calmly. Unbeknownst to the man, a thread secretly retrieved from his storage pouch was already coiled around Han Li’s ring finger.
Han Li had admitted to the killing largely to establish his authority, hoping the man would recognize the difficulty of the task and back off, avoiding any conflict. He didn’t want to end up in a mutually destructive battle the moment he entered this area, jeopardizing his herb-gathering plans.
Although the man’s tone suggested some camaraderie with Feng Yue, Han Li was confident that the likelihood of him actually seeking revenge was slim. Most cultivators were inherently detached and self-interested, especially someone as vicious as this brute.
Of course, if the man insisted on avenging Feng Yue, Han Li would have no choice but to strike first. He would expend a great deal of energy to unleash his full agility and, catching the man off guard, use the thread on his finger to silently loop around the man’s neck and end him.
But Han Li knew all too well that the chances of such a hasty ambush succeeding were not high—only about thirty or forty percent. The ugly man was too far away; even with his speed, Han Li couldn’t guarantee a one-hit kill from twenty zhang away. If the man simply cast a defensive spell on himself, the thread would be useless.
“Avenge him? Don’t joke around. Do I look like someone who’d do something so pointless?” Just as Han Li had expected, the ugly man laughed dismissively upon hearing his response.
“I did have some dealings with him before, but nothing deep. Now that he’s dead, those ties are gone!” The ugly man shamelessly declared, clearly stating his position without a hint of embarrassment.
Han Li remained silent. Though he didn’t let his guard down, he felt somewhat relieved. It seemed he wouldn’t have to engage in a major battle the moment he entered the central area.
“But, little brother, you’re really something! That Feng Yue wasn’t an easy opponent, especially with those top-tier artifacts he had. Tsk, tsk, each one was a rare treasure!”
The ugly man rubbed his nose, suddenly becoming much friendlier toward Han Li, even changing how he addressed him. However, after this seemingly casual question, he subtly took a few more steps back, widening the distance between them.
Seeing this, Han Li inwardly sighed in frustration.
By his estimate, even if he were to immediately turn hostile and attack now, his chances of success had dropped to less than ten percent. These so-called “experts” were indeed cunning and experienced, each one a tough nut to crack.
Moreover, he guessed that the man likely assumed Han Li had acquired all of Feng Yue’s artifacts, which was why he was acting so cautiously. Fully aware of this, Han Li smiled without saying a word, neither confirming nor denying whether he had obtained the artifacts. This only made the brute more annoyed and increasingly wary.
“Was it you who created that… masterpiece on the wall in front of the gate?” Han Li suddenly recalled the scene at the entrance and asked coolly.
“Bullshit! That was the work of Han Tianya, that freak from the Saber Transformation Cottage. I’d never waste my time on something so pointless! All that flesh and blood gone to waste—what a pity! It would’ve been perfect for feeding my little darlings. I hear the flesh and blood of cultivators are highly nourishing.”
Han Li initially listened with a faint smile, but as the ugly man spoke those last few sentences, pulled out a large pouch from behind his back, and tossed a bloody piece of meat into it, Han Li’s smile grew strained, even taking on a slightly greenish hue.
The brute sneakily observed Han Li’s reaction, secretly pleased with himself.
This kid from Yellow Maple Valley was too young and inexperienced. With just a few words, he had already shaken his composure. In a real fight, that would be a significant weakness. But the fact that he had managed to kill Feng Yue was truly surprising! Yet, no matter how he looked at him, the kid seemed utterly ordinary, hardly like someone capable of such a feat.
Logically speaking, given his youth and shallow cultivation, even if he had a few decent artifacts, they couldn’t compare to Feng Yue’s Yellow Silk Umbrella, Cloudtreading Boots, and other top-tier equipment! How could Feng Yue have fallen to this kid? There had to be more to the story. But the Cloudtreading Boots were indeed on his feet—that was undeniable. Could it be that he didn’t kill Feng Yue himself but merely stumbled upon the opportunity or had some other help?
Zhong Wu pondered this, his mind still muddled, unable to accurately gauge Han Li’s strength. But he would never personally test it—risking his life was something only fools would do, and he was far too clever for that!
After much thought, the ugly man stowed his pouch away, blinked his mismatched eyes, and said to Han Li with a beaming smile, “By the way, I haven’t asked for your name yet, little brother. Would you mind telling me?”
“Han Li of Yellow Maple Valley,” Han Li replied calmly, his expression having improved somewhat.
“So it’s Brother Han! I’ve never heard your name before—you must be a rising star among Yellow Maple Valley’s disciples. How much do you know about the central area?” Zhong Wu acted as warmly as if they were long-lost friends.
“Not much. But Brother Zhong, being older, must know far more than I do,” Han Li replied, growing wary of the other’s intentions.
“Heh! Brother Han, if you trust me, how about we exchange information about the central area? It would benefit both of us!” After a moment of hesitation, Zhong Wu finally whispered his true intention.
Han Li was taken aback but quickly fell into deep thought. Although exchanging information with disciples of other sects was explicitly forbidden by all factions, many disciples did it anyway. After a moment, he smiled and said, “Sure. After exchanging information, we’ll both benefit greatly.”
“Haha! Excellent! I knew Brother Han wasn’t the indecisive type. Come, let’s input the information into jade slips and exchange them!” Zhong Wu’s pockmarked face gleamed with excitement, and he rubbed his hands together incessantly, clearly eager to see what Han Li had to offer.
Seeing this, Han Li sneered inwardly but outwardly agreed readily.
Compiling the information was a simple task. Within the time it took to drink a cup of tea, both had finished and tossed their jade slips to each other.
When Zhong Wu and Han Li each received the other’s jade slip, they quickly scanned the contents to confirm they were indeed about the central area. Then, with hidden agendas, they exchanged knowing smiles.
In such a short time, forging fake information was impossible. But deliberately omitting key details during copying was an unspoken rule!
After this exchange, Zhong Wu and Han Li seemed to grow much closer. Zhong Wu even began chatting with Han Li about various strange tales and anecdotes from the cultivation world. To see them laughing and talking so amiably, one would never guess that just moments ago, they had been on the verge of a life-and-death struggle. It seemed both were masters of knowing when to advance and when to retreat.
Though Han Li wore a smile and appeared engrossed in the conversation, he was inwardly grumbling.
If they were going to chat, why did the other insist on maintaining such a distance? Every time Han Li took a slight step forward, the other would smilingly take two small steps back. Even though Han Li had no intention of killing him now, the man’s extreme caution was both amusing and frustrating.
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