Within Xi Dingzhou, several heavy snowfalls had descended in the days before.
The weather grew colder, and the snow on the roads hardly had ti to lt before it was trampled into ice. Looking around, everything was enveloped in a vast whiteness, giving an impression of the boundless expanse of heaven and earth. Occasionally, a bird would fly overhead, adding a touch of desolation to the scene.
Traders who had ventured to distant lands began to return gradually. As it beca impossible to tend to the crops, many n in the city took up temporary jobs.
Consequently, there were far fewer travelers on the highways.
However, on the roads of Great Qin, one could always encounter those from Jianghu, regardless of circumstances.
To ordinary folks, the biting cold discouraged even stepping outside their hos, but for martial artists dedicated to their physical training, such conditions were just part of their routine.
A hundred miles west of Xi Dingzhou City.
On the official road, a skinny red horse plodded through the snow. The animal looked so frail that it seed a gust of wind might knock it over, yet its steps were surprisingly steady. The cold wind brushed through its mane, revealing a hint of spirited grace.
A young man, appearing about twenty years old, was seated on the horseback.
He was dressed in black vigorous attire, not like typical martial artists who carried just one weapon. On his back, he carried a short stick-like object wrapped in blue cotton fabric for several layers, its true form obscured. Next to this object, he carried an extrely heavy blade.
The blade was entirely black, massive and unadorned, with a blade as white as snow, which gave onlookers a tense feeling.
The young man’s brows were tightly furrowed, seemingly deep in thought.
A black-patterned silk pouch hung at his waist.
"Miss ng appears to have left Xi Dingzhou City and seems to have run into trouble, yet there is no imdiate worry," he thought.
"This matter might be related to one of the three factions in Fufeng County, the Immortal Pavilion. The Tan Family’s influence is confined within the city walls, and that county is rather far. We could only narrow down a few possible locations she could be, but the specifics still require the young hero to investigate himself."
"Additionally, young hero, as you haven’t disguised your appearance for this journey, those seeking Miss ng might guess your direction and associate it with her. If Miss ng notices you, she would surely react and inadvertently expose her whereabouts, turning it counterproductive," he pondered.
"It would be better to change your appearance and proceed covertly."
Wang Anfeng, after the disguise, looked up towards the road ahead.
Since he already knew the likely whereabouts of ng Yuexue, Wang Anfeng was not using qinggong to hasten his travel lest he attract attention. He rode the skinny horse, rely posing as a common ranger of Jianghu.
During these two years, he had learned the art of disguise from his third master, Hong Luoyu. Though he hadn’t mastered it completely, ordinary martial artists would not notice anything amiss. Even his scent was disguised using a concoction of dicines, and he wrapped his wooden sword in its sheath at his back.
The blade on his back had belonged to Xiong Ying, the late gang leader of the Twenty-Seven Allied Gangs.
The renowned weapon of the Twenty-Seven Allied Gangs was a long staff, which Gongsun Jing had taken. Although the blade had been Xiong Ying’s, it was not well known in Jianghu. Beyond its heft and sharpness, it had no distinctive features, resembling just a rigid, broken piece of rock.
Yet the valiant manner of Xiong Ying’s death made Wang Anfeng unable to simply discard it. Despite their opposing stances leading to ard conflict, Xiong Ying was a remarkable man. Since he needed to change his appearance, he decided to carry this heavy blade on his back for the ti being.
His thoughts shifted quickly, but his expression remained unchanged. Wang Anfeng urged his horse forward, continuing along the official road for about an hour and reached an inn next to the road. With a light tug of the reins, the skinny horse seed to understand and halted, standing next to the inn.
Wang Anfeng exhaled a puff of white breath.
The city where ng Yuexue was located was not far from here.
Because it was not far, he needed to be cautious in his actions. This inn was the last stop on the route, bustling with people — any anomaly would likely be noticed.
With that thought, the young man dismounted.
By now, the attendants inside had seen him and ca out to greet him. Wang Anfeng handed over his horse’s reins to a servant and strode into the large hall of the inn.
The Great Qin inns were of two types: state-run and privately owned. This particular one was clearly operated by wealthy local rchants by the roadside, catering to passing rchants and rangers to make so silver. Stay tuned for updates on .Côm
Inside the hall, there were many diners, so dressed in thick, affluent attire, appearing as businessn; they huddled in small groups, conversing in hushed tones. Others were in simple martial attire with liquor on their tables, talking and laughing loudly; the noise was deafening.
Wang Anfeng’s gaze swept over the martial artists and rested on the swords and blades placed on the tables or leaning against the walls. His expression unchanging, he muttered to himself in his heart.
There indeed was a problem.
On this road just now, there weren’t many pedestrians, yet this inn was already full, occupied mostly by warriors from Jianghu with swords and blades, while there were only a few returning rchant caravans.
At that mont, another servant hurried over, his eyes and manners friendly and pleasing. While leading Wang Anfeng toward a table, he repeatedly apologized with a smile, saying,
"This esteed guest, I really am sorry, we have many people today, and there are truly no empty tables left."
"There are so empty seats over there, how about we squeeze in together and share a table?"
Wang Anfeng was about to speak, but then he rembered that he was disguised as soone else at the mont, so he restrained himself, paused, and rely said in a calm voice,
"It doesn’t matter."
The servant breathed a sigh of relief, his gaze swept over the extrely heavy Mo Blade on Wang Anfeng’s back and hurriedly shifted away, leading Wang Anfeng forward. They reached a spot by the rear window where there was a table with only two people sitting by it. On the side against the wall, there was a hefty man.
Next to him, there lay a massive iron staff, thick as the mouth of a bowl, which, if swung, would likely keep both horse and rider at bay.
Beside him sat a handso youth.
His clothes were quite luxurious, combining elegance and warmth, apparently lacking in martial prowess.
As Wang Anfeng sized up these two, the hefty man was also looking at Wang Anfeng, holding a chicken bone as a toothpick, his face relaxed and indifferent. His gaze settled on Wang Anfeng’s face, and he didn’t seem to care much; but when he saw the black heavy blade behind Wang Anfeng, his pupils shrank slightly, and his otherwise lax expression grew a bit more solemn.
He unconsciously sat up straighter, his right hand hanging down moved slightly, edging closer to the weapon beside him.
anwhile, the servant was smiling and discussing the matter of sharing a table with the handso youth, with a very humble attitude. The youth didn’t put on airs and was quite gentle. He kept watching the servant until the latter finished speaking, then the youth smiled and said,
"Such matters, of course, should be."
"When we’re on the road, it’s inconvenient for everyone, naturally we should show understanding to each other. Moreover, we have finished our al, and we were just about to go upstairs to rest."
The servant was slightly surprised, then heaved a huge sigh of relief and hurriedly made room, standing off to the side.
The handso youth stood up, gave Wang Anfeng a nod with a smile, and stepped away, while the hefty man, still chewing on the chicken bone, suddenly spat it out. The bone, crisp like a crossbow bolt, easily penetrated the thick wooden table and embedded itself into the stone floor beneath.
He stood up and grabbed the massive iron staff with his right hand.
The furniture around seed to shake at the sa ti. The wall where the weapon had leaned was already creased with fine cracks, demonstrating its weight. However, in this man’s hand it seed as light as a bamboo pole. He walked past in front of Wang Anfeng, following behind the handso youth up to the second floor.
The staircase was already sowhat in need of repair; when ordinary people walked on it, it would emit slight creaking noises. This bulky man, large as he was and carrying a massive iron staff, made no sound as he stepped on the stairs, clearly possessing exceptional qinggong.
Wang Anfeng watched the two of them go upstairs.
The actions of this large man were clearly a display of martial force. As martial artists moved through Jianghu, such occurrences were common and not ant with malice, but purely to avoid trouble.
However, at this ti and place, such a master could not cease to concern Wang Anfeng, leaving him to wonder whether it was related to the troubles ng Yuexue was caught up in.
anwhile, the servant promptly took a white cloth to wipe the chair for Wang Anfeng, inviting him to sit down and serving him a cup of hot tea as he asked,
"Esteed guest, what would you like to eat?"
Wang Anfeng returned to his senses and glanced at the nu. It was densely packed with the nas of about thirty dishes, each seemingly exuding a trendous allure, such that the young man’s gaze lingered on them, unable to shift away.
Wang Anfeng controlled his impulse to glance elsewhere, focused his attention and in an even tone, said,
"Hmm…"
"Just bring a couple of random dishes, that will be fine."
PS: First release...
Thanks for the generous rewards from Jiutiao Dahai, and to Chideng Wubai Nian for the grand prize as I await a good book, thank you.
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