“We still have to be careful when we roam the jianghu. You would rather go without the spiritual ginseng than place yourself in danger. There are other people here, so let’s have them probe him first!” The horse-faced man instructed earnestly, but it only made the lady in blue scorn him.
“Master said that you have to listen to me when outside!” The horse-faced man became furious as well. If you’re looking to die, you’re more than welcome to, but don’t drag me into it as well. If it weren’t for the fact that you’re master’s daughter, I would have abandoned you a long time ago.
He had experienced the many dangers of the jianghu. Even if he managed to get the spiritual ginseng, the slightest of carelessness would lead him to his death. If this Li Qingshan was a clever person, he would immediately offer it to someone, or he would be dead for sure. No, even if he did offer it up, the person on the receiving end would definitely silence him with death in order to avoid the news spreading, stopping others from hunting them down.
The horse-faced man looked at Li Qingshan in the crowd like he was a dead man. He sipped his tea. Even if he could not obtain the spiritual ginseng, watching this lucky, young talent die to the dangers of the jianghu was a wonderful matter as well.
In the same restaurant he had fought the night before, Li Qingshan sat down and received the terrified gazes of the aristocrats and cups of wonderful wine. Just when he was about to drink the alcohol, he suddenly stopped and looked at the rippling liquid.
With his halt, the restaurant quietened down as well. An aristocrat asked carefully, “Sheriff Li, what’s wrong?”
Li Qingshan said nonchalantly, “The wine is poisoned!” He casually splashed the alcohol onto the ground, and a white mist immediately rose up. It only demonstrated the toxicity of the alcohol. The poison was odourless and traceless as well. If it were not for his awakened eyes and his caution, which allowed him to see the peculiarity of the wine, he probably would have been poisoned already.
The aristocrat became sheet-white. He had passed this cup of wine to Li Qingshan earlier, so he waved his hands frantically. “It’s not me!”
Li Qingshan leapt to his feat. Just when the aristocrat wanted to cry for help, he saw Li Qingshan look at a waiter on the side. “You’re the one who poisoned it!” This was his almost beastial instincts, his sharp senses towards killing intent and hostility.
“I don’t think I’ve seen him before. He’s not a waiter of this establishment,” said an aristocrat.
The waiter panicked and cried out for the injustice. Suddenly, he saw a fist hurling towards him. Before the punch had even arrived, the gust of wind had sucked his breath away. He could not afford to hide any longer, so he slid a knife out from his sleeve and stabbed it viciously at Li Qingshan’s abdomen.
With a bang and the shattering of bone, the waiter’s chest collapsed. His corpse flew out the building, landing in the streets below. He still grasped the knife firmly in his hand, but the blade was now bent.
Li Qingshan treated it like nothing before turning around. “Let’s keep drinking!” He knew that this could not even be considered as an appetizer for what would be coming next.
But was there anyone who was still in the mood to drink?!
Li Qingshan said, “Sir Ye, the sect master of the Dragon’s Gate sect has publicly attacked a government official, and he has slipped away. Have you considered putting out a warrant for his arrest?”
Ye Dachuan said, “Yes, yes, yes. I will definitely mention this matter in my official report to the prefect.”
“A nest of bandits like the Dragon’s Gate sect cannot remain. As the sheriff, I am willing to suppress the Dragon’s Gate sect and bring back Yang Anzhi. What do you think, sir?”
The aristocrats were horrified. The Dragon’s Gate sect was probably going to follow in the steps of the Black Wind stronghold. Fortunately, they had summoned their descendents back immediately.
Ye Dachuan looked at the sun in the sky. “Isn’t it too late?”
Li Qingshan said, “Thank you for your concern, sir. I will be right back!” Since he could not drink, he needed to find something to do. He would never spare the cause of all of this, the Dragon’s Gate sect. He would never give his enemies an opportunity to rest.
Comrade Lei Feng once taught us that we must treat our fellow comrades with the same warmth of spring, while we must treat our enemies with the same cruelty and mercilessness of harsh winter.
Note: Lei Feng again. Propaganda dude of the People’s Republic of China that everyone should be looking up to and idolise. Mentioned in chapter 9.
The Dragon’s Gate sect was located on the Dragon’s Gate mountain five kilometers from the city. Li Qingshan left the city gates and did not travel on the main road. He found the direction and traveled straight for the mountain. When he left the city, two black shadows tailed behind him, but they were not the senior brother and junior sister.
They just happened to be people of the jianghu who were close to Qingyang city and happened to hear the news regarding the spiritual ginseng. The waiter who poisoned the drink was their companion. They had been waiting downstairs the entire time, waiting for Li Qingshan to die of poison so that they could immediately flee with the spiritual ginseng. If it did not go to plan, they would attack Li Qingshan together.
However, their waiting was met with the waiter’s corpse thrown out of the restaurant, followed by Li Qingshan leaping out the window as well, rushing out of the city. They looked at each other and thought, He’s escaping. They could not help but pursue him.
Although it was five kilometers as the crow flew, it involved crossing mountains and ravines, so it was not just five kilometers. Li Qingshan took great strides, leaving behind a deep footprint with each step. Whenever he came across any obstacles, he would have to slow down or stop.
As it seemed, there was a reason why he had been labeled as clumsy. It was all because the Ox Demon’s Fist of Great Strength focused on practising the body and not qi, so there was nothing that focused on movement. As a result, he could only run along like how he would normally, circulating his true qi in his feet so that he would speed up slightly.
But right now, his situation was rather different. His spine twisted in a strange manner as he constantly altered his posture as he ran; it was like he was stretching. His neck constantly twisted as well, and he gasped heavily through his mouth. His heart pounded thunderously as white steam rose from his body. It was actually vaporized sweat.
It should have never been so strenuous for him to run. He actually seemed like he was carrying a huge burden, but his steps moved faster and faster. As each step fell, it seemed lighter. His body was bent forward with his arms dangling down. He looked like a wild beast in human form as he ran through the forest, moving faster and faster.
In the dark forest, the vegetation rapidly approached him before being rapidly thrown behind him.
Suddenly, a steep mound over ten meters in height appeared before him. Originally, he would definitely stop and think about how to detour around it or climb up it.
But now, not only did he show no sign of stopping, but he even rushed towards the mound instead. As soon as he arrived below the mound, his body retracted, and he kicked off with his feet. Leaping off the ground, his arms extended forwards, grabbing two protruding rocks. With a tug, he leapt onto the mound.
He completed the entire motion in a single stroke; he was just like a vicious tiger crossing through the mountains. This move was the Tiger Demon Climbs the Mountain from the Tiger Demon’s Fist of Bone Forging.
The black ox had already passed the Tiger Demon’s Fist of Bone Forging to Li Qingshan. He had been studying it the entire time when he travelled back to Qingyang city. With his practise from the Ox Demon’s Fist of Great Strength, it became much easier, so he grasped the method very quickly. As he ran, he experimented with the three most basic forms of the nine forms of the Tiger Demon’s Fist of Bone Forging, the Tiger Demon Flexes its Spine, the Tiger Demon Stretches its Back, and the Tiger Demon Rubs its Head. These were the basics to training the Tiger Demon’s Fist of Bone Forging. The other forms built off this foundation.
Only now did he understand why the black ox only gave him this Tiger Demon’s Fist of Bone Forging after he had achieved the strength of an ox. It simply placed too great of a burden on his body. If he started off with the Tiger Demon’s Fist of Bone Forging, his body probably would have collapsed immediately.
