The teenager who had just been grumbling said, “It’s all because granny became interested when she saw how well-built and tough Li Qingshan was, but granny already has us, so granny can’t be so fickle.” He spoke with a tone like he was in love. The teenagers all looked at the West Gate Granny with utter infatuation. It was not forced at all. They were just like when the men of Jiaping city saw courtesan Furong.
As a second layer Qi Practitioner, Furong’s arts of charm were already enough to drive regular people crazy and strike fear into the hearts of Qi Practitioners, so just how powerful would the arts of charm of this ninth layer Qi Practitioner, the West Gate Granny, be? It was not something that a few normal boys could resist. Even Qi Practitioners would always do whatever they could to fulfil their desires, let alone ordinary people.
The West Gate Granny said in a spoilt manner, “Alright, alright. I’ll kill him as soon as I see him.”
“As long as granny loves us, does it matter if granny has other men? We’re all good brothers.”
As they spoke amorously, the carriage rolled slowly and silently over the cobblestone path. Upon closer inspection, a gap of around an inch remained between the carriage wheels and the path as if a cushion of air existed.
The horse’s hooves landed on the ground as normal. After a few inscriptions flashed, the treasured horse that usually pulled the carriage during the day could now take off effortlessly. It rushed off at an unbelievable speed.
They left behind a casino full of corpses. Afterwards, the little caretakers under the little leaders gathered together and began a new discussion, just like the grass that never stopped sprouting on the plains. Perhaps, people originally unrelated to all of this would join in as well, which would be followed with further conflict and slaughter; this was the jianghu.
Li Qingshan still ended up going to Giant Deer valley, as it was not very likely for these horse bandits to accept the invitation from the Island Lord of Cherishing Flowers. The files indicated that the horse bandits were composed of people with the bloodline of barbarians. Every single one of them had a great, brown beard.
Even if the Island Lord of Cherishing Flowers invited them, it was probably unlikely for these barbarian horse bandits to visit the island on their horses, so he wanted to just finish them off conveniently.
The horse bandits dwelled on the vast, grassy plains. They had no set place where they stayed. The Giant Deer valley was only one of their resting places.
After Li Qingshan realised that it was all futile, he did not give up. Instead, he laid on the ground and used his nose before closely studying the traces there. He was like a wild beast with extremely sharp senses.
As his daemon form gradually strengthened, the world in his eyes became richer and more colourful. There were many layers to it. His tracking ability had almost become part of his instincts.
The smell and traces from the ground were still very fresh. They were not far, and from the traces on the ground, there were at least two hundred horse bandits, which made Li Qingshan’s eyes light up.
As a result, he immediately set off. True qi gathered in his feet, and he crossed through the grass that stood as tall as a man. He moved swiftly under the amber sky as night set in, and two hours later, he had covered fifty kilometers and finally found the horse bandits.
Within the smoke, the horse bandits rushed at the travelling merchants, letting out war cries. The merchants did their best to stop them and raise their defenses, but the thrumming of horse hooves were unable to hide the fear in their eyes. The curved blades lit up the surroundings with dazzling, white light.
Suddenly, someone said, “What’s that?”
A cloud of dust rushed over from the north-west direction, heading directly towards the group of horse bandits. A figure leapt high into the sky, through the dust and smoke, landing on the mount of the bandit leader.
Li Qingshan stood on the horse’s saddle and pressed one hand against the bandit leader’s head while his other hand grasped the reins. He forcefully turned the horse around. The moment he brushed past the mercantile caravan, the merchants all raised their heads and saw a teenager in high spirits. His expression gave everyone a false impression; it was as if he was not holding the head of the bandit leader, but a huge chunk of gold.
Someone murmured, “That’s a person!”
The horse bandits rushed over as they cursed. They could not worry about the caravan anymore. They had to save their leader.
After that, no one ever saw the infamous horse bandits of Giant Deer valley anymore.
After arriving in the middle of the boundless wilderness, Li Qingshan swung down with his right hand and slammed the horse bandit’s head into his chest. The tremendous force spread to the horse, and it collapsed onto the ground loudly.
When the horse bandits arrived, Li Qingshan had already vanished. They raised their heads swiftly, and a sky of fire filled their gazes.
The number changed to seven hundred and fifty five.
Just a day after Li Qingshan had left Giant Deer valley, the carriage arrived.
The same teenager in red disembarked to check. “Granny, he’s not here.”
“This kid is pretty quick.” The West Gate Granny unfurled a mental map and pointed at a location, “Let’s go to the next place.” It was exactly the same as Li Qingshan’s original route. She had a complete grasp over how Li Qingshan would go about his missions.
However, the boys all refused. They all grumbled about how it was just too boring. They had grown accustomed to the joys and pleasures in Clear River city. They disliked all the travelling.
The West Gate Granny said in a doting manner, “Alright, we’ll rest when we get to the next city.”
……
It was a tiny puddle on the map, but when he saw it in person, it was a huge, misty swamp.
“This is the place. This bastard sure knows how to live.” Li Qingshan stowed the mental map away and cast his gaze into the distance, piercing through the mist. He vaguely made out an island. The island was covered with green, shady willow trees, with some red walls and green tiles poking out.
Next to the lake was a city. The scenery was wonderful, yet it was also highly convenient. This really was a good place for someone to settle down and live out the rest of their lives. However, when he thought about how someone like him could settle down and live out the rest of his life, Li Qingshan felt extremely discontent. Afterwards, he licked his lips as he imagined the smiles dropping from their expressions with the malevolence and pleasure of a daemon.
Using the night, he tread across the water and stepped onto the island on the other side. Only then did he see the luxurious estate clearly.
There were many armed guards patrolling outside the estate. The security was very tight, but to Li Qingshan’s eyes, such a security system was basically non-existent.
Li Qingshan gently kicked off the ground and landed on the eaves several dozen meters away before rushing towards the largest building.
Behind a veiled curtain, the pale bodies of people moved around. Moans and verbal teasing constantly sounded out.
“Master, you’re so good!”
Li Qingshan rubbed his nose. He felt like he would always intrude at a time like this. At such a late time of the night, the bad people would be going at it in bed, while the good person could only watch the eroticism that was vividly presented before his eyes.
A gentle cough drowned out all of the sounds within the obscenity. Someone sprang up from the bed and lifted the veiled curtain. “Who is it?”
Two pairs of eyes met. Both of them were rather stunned.
Li Qingshan had never thought that Shen Xihua would actually be elderly. Most of his hair had greyed already. Only then did he suddenly remember that the files detailed that there had been an attempt to bring him to justice, but he discovered them and fled, which led to the case being placed aside. As a result, even a young boy would become an old man after all this time.
On the other hand, Shen Xihua saw a young man in cloth robes sitting boldly on an armed chair, glaring right back at him. Although he did not give off any special aura, just his ability to appear in Shen Xihua’s bedroom silently was enough to shock him.
“Put on your clothes. There are some things I want to discuss with you.” Li Qingshan placed something on the table before standing up.
Shen Xihua rushed to the table. He saw the item and stiffened. His face paled as he cradled it in his hands carefully. Coldness pierced his bones. He trembled once more, and he became even whiter.
It was a black wolf baring its fangs and claws, forged out of black iron.
In a small pavilion shaded by trees, Li Qingshan leaned on the railing and gazed at the scenery of the lake. Shen Xihua had put on clothes and rushed over while he cradled the Black Wolf tablet in his hands. “Sir, may I know your name and why you’ve come to my humble abode?”
Li Qingshan took back the Black Wolf tablet. “Don’t you know what you’ve done? You’re the culprit, Shen Xihua!” He had seen quite a lot of detective television series in his past life, so he copied how they naturally exuded confidence.
With a thud, Shen Xihua’s knees crumbled to the ground. “Sir, they were all deeds that I committed when I was young and muddle-headed. Sir, you are a great man, so please just spare me. If there’s anything you require, I will do everything I can to ensure it is obtained or achieved.”
A powerful figure among the unorthodox martial arts practitioners of the jianghu, a first-layer innate master, had lost all of his bearing, kneeling on the ground and begging for his life. Li Qingshan had not even done anything to him yet; this was all just from seeing his Black Wolf tablet.
Shen Xihua felt extremely helpless. Who would be willing to serve a kid who was several decades younger? As soon as he saw the Black Wolf tablet, he thought about running, but he was reluctant to abandon everything he had built up. And, if the Hawkwolf Guard really tried to find him, they would always find him. As for fighting, that was even more impossible. Let alone his fate if he lost, even if he somehow managed to win, his entire family would accompany him to the grave whether it be because of infuriating the Hawkwolf Guard or killing a Hawkwolf guard.
When Li Qingshan stood before him, he was no longer just a lonely teenager, but a terrifying system of violence from the government. Anyone from the so-called jianghu could only act subserviently before this system. Of course, it was impossible for him to understand the hostile relationship between Li Qingshan and Zhuo Zhibo. That was something well beyond his reach.
However, Shen Xihua was still hopeful. Since Li Qingshan had not attacked him right from the get-go, it meant that he still had a chance. As a result, he gathered his courage to come here so that he could hear what Li Qingshan wanted to say to him.
As expected, Li Qingshan said, “I have something I want you to do for me.” He sat down on the stone bench in the pavilion and looked at Shen Xihua from above. He did not tell him to walk over and sit down with him.
Li Qingshan could treat ordinary people with courtesy, but if he was supposed to dwell on this bit of courtesy with someone like this fellow, there would be something wrong with his head. Compared to murder or robbery, he found these acts to be even more disgraceful. If it were not for the sake of his plan, he would have wanted to kill Shen Xihua right now.
Shen Xihua’s face lit up. “Please let me know, sir.”
Li Qingshan took out twenty-four files and tossed them before Shen Xihua. “I want you to invite all the people mentioned in there to here, including their subordinates and disciples. The more the better.”
Shen Xihua’s expression changed drastically. He immediately thought of what Li Qingshan was trying to do. He was such a young teenager, yet he was actually hiding such terrifying thoughts. He actually wanted to take out all the unorthodox masters within the surrounding region of several hundred kilometers in one fell swoop.
Li Qingshan said, “It can be a birthday, having children, or other reasons. You might have obtained a peerless cultivation method or divine weapon for everyone to come and appreciate. You can handle the exact details.”
Shen Xihua said, “Sir… t- that’ll be unrighteous of me to do!”
Li Qingshan broke into laughter. “You’re a rapist, yet you still mention the word ‘righteousness’?”
Shen Xihua became bright red. He disputed groundlessly, “Those are all matters of the past. I even left quite a lot of money for those women. T- they aren’t necessarily unhappy with the outcome…”
Before he was even done, a great force pushed his head down. With a bang, his head struck the ground heavily, drawing blood.
