Goldie A’bao grabbed two Bone Eating shamans and swung them around madly like weapons. He constantly produced a meaningless howl and roar as the buildings collapsed loudly. Screams rose and fell.
Just like how even ten people would struggle to stop a man trying to throw his life away, the Bone Eating shamans in the surroundings were like a pack of wolves that had surrounded an enraged bear. Their sharp teeth and claws struggled to be of any use, and they could be killed in a single stroke if they were careless.
“All of you, back away! I’ll stop him!” the Bone Eating chieftain bellowed out. The thought that this was what he faced after a pursuit almost made him spew with flames out of fury.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
The urgent sound of gongs rang out from the city walls. The guards called out, “The Bone Eating barbarians are here! The Bone Eating barbarians are here!”
Countless people woke up from their sleep. The entire city was completely thrown into a state of alarm.
At this moment, Li Qingshan had already arrived in front of the Fragrant Flower house.
The house blazed with lantern light, filled with a noisy and confused commotion. With a bang, the gates swung open, and a group of people on horses rushed towards the fighting. In the lead was a furious, beautiful madam. Those behind her were all female too, both young girls and old women.
Li Qingshan heard Goldie A’bao mention that the Fragrant Flower clan was a matriarchy, so the leaders of the clan were all women too. This was very similar to the night roamers, and the reason was basically no different. The cultivation method passed down through the clan was more suited for women to practise. The powerful would be the ones to speak was obviously how the world worked!
The beautiful madam in the lead seemed to sense something. She looked back, casting her gaze into a gloomy alleyway, but she saw nothing at all. She could not be bothered with thinking too much about it. She said worriedly, “The Bone Eating tribe has actually infiltrated the city at night. Are they planning on declaring war?”
Li Qingshan had already leapt over the walls and entered the estate. His footsteps were gentle and silent, quickly crossing through the garden.
All the people in the estate had been mobilised, so the security became extremely lax. He made his way right into the courtyard and came across a steaming pool. There was spring shaped like a huge, fake mountain in the centre of the pool; the air in the surroundings wafted with a special fragrance.
The person who frequently bathes here must possess extremely great status in the Fragrant Flower clan. She might even be the woman I saw earlier!
However, he did not come here to indulge in women. Even if he wanted to, he was physically limited right now. He was choosing an appropriate place to hide, just in case the Bone Eating tribe and the Fragrant Flower tribe actually reached an agreement. Even if they carried out a full-scale search of the city, they definitely would not search this place.
According to his senses, there was a hollow space inside the fake mountain. He leapt into the hot spring and swum beneath the fake mountain, and sure enough, he found a tiny opening. The opening was the size of a ball, small enough to prevent any adult from entering. However, he was only a tiny baby around a foot long right now, so he entered through the hole with ease and reached the interior of the fake mountain. He let out a sigh of relief.
After the previous experience of washing up in a hot spring with Goldie A’bao, he felt like these hot springs were very nice. The underground rivers had been heated up and boiled by the flames of the earth, which was a manifestation of two types of powers of the world. It would be beneficial to his comprehension of the way to merge water and fire.
Of course, the most important reason was that it was comfortable in it. As he remained in the hot spring and steam surged about, he felt sleepy. He let out a yawn, leaned back on his arms, and laid down. He believed that no one could find him here. All he had to do was get some good sleep and wait for himself to grow. He closed his eyes slowly.
……
During the morning of the next day, within the drifting mist, the Fragrant Flower market gradually stirred. Everyone discussed what had happened last night the moment they saw each other.
“What exactly happened last night? “You slept through it. The Bone Eating barbarians entered the city!” “The Bone Eating barbarians! The Bone Eating cannibals?” “Who else would there be? “The Fragrant Flower clan and the Bone Eating barbarians engaged in a great battle, which sure was alarming. They forced back the Bone Eating shamans after much difficulty. You should take a look at the city’s east. Several dozen houses have been demolished!” “Why did I hear there was a monster?”
In the Fragrant Flower house.
“Are you certain that monster last night was Goldie A’bao of Goldie fort? A merchant?”
Xianghua Man frowned as she listened to her daughter’s report. Ever since she became the matriarch of the Xianghua clan, it had been many years since such a large incident had happened in the city. She almost thought the Bone Eating shamans had lost their minds and launched a sneak attack against them last night, but they ended up fighting with some unknown monster instead. It really was quite a fright!
However, the conclusion of the investigation left her in disbelief. The terrifying monster was actually a merchant called Goldie A’bao, a mortal through and through! She had personally witnessed the terrifying power of the monster. He had managed to kill so many Bone Eating shamans right before dying, taking twenty Bone Eating shamans down with him at the very least. How could he be a mortal?!
“Yes, mother. Someone saw him enter the city. He even borrowed a great sum of money, bought a courtyard and so much livestock! The ground in the courtyard is packed full with the corpses of livestock. They all seem like they’ve been sucked dry, just like a few corpses of the Bone Eating shamans!”
When Xianghua Zi recalled the courtyard full of corpses, she still felt uncomfortable even now. It caused her even more disgust than seeing a courtyard filled with stinking, rotting corpses and blood.
“This was the handiwork of a mortal?” Xianghua Man frowned.
“At least he seemed no different from a mortal when he came to trade a few days ago. Shamans would never work in such a lowly profession. Maybe he learnt some powerful shaman art but had been hiding his strength the entire time!”
“Why was the Bone Eating tribe determined to kill him?”
“We’re still not sure about that, but the shaman art he uses achieves the same effects as the shaman arts passed down through the Bone Eating tribe, directly robbing others of their life force. No, it should be even better than the Bone Eating tribe. It can even be used on other wild beasts. It’s very likely that the Bone Eating shaman wanted to steal the shaman art from him. In order to avoid them, he fled to Fragrant Flower market. With no other option, he absorbed too much life force, which made him lose control and end up like that. It’s also possible that he wholeheartedly wanted the Bone Eating shamans to perish with him.”
“Hmph, these Bone Eating barbarians have bitten off more than they can chew this time. To think that such a powerful shaman art actually exists in the world. We can’t let them obtain it. Go and investigate closely just what the merchants from Goldie Fort have been up to recently. Investigate who has seen them around and what they’ve said!” Xianghua Man ordered.
Last night, Xianghua Man did not waste the opportunity either, launching a counterattack, heavily injuring the Bone Eating chieftain and even making several Bone Eating shamans stay behind. It would take several years for the Bone Eating tribe to recover from this loss. If such a wondrous shaman art existed, she wanted to possess it.
A few days later, Xianghua Man received the news that Goldie A’bao had sold a wondrous item for a very high price in the Fragrant Flower market a few days ago. The wondrous item was shaped like a bundle and was impervious to damage.
She immediately became convinced that the item was closely connected to this incident, so she gave her second daughter, Xianghua Zi, an order. “Visit Black Water cave and find the master of the cave. Purchase the item from them!”
“What if he refuses to sell it?”
“Then offer an even greater price, so high that he can’t turn it down, or it strikes fear into his heart!”
Within the fake mountain, Li Qingshan’s ears twitched, and his lips curled slightly. He had no idea where Black Water cave was, nor did he know who had purchased the Asura Field. Originally, he found it slightly troublesome, but he did not have to worry anymore.
Looks like I don’t have to visit Black Water cave now!
