Qin Fengming leaped into the courtyard and stood there. Looking over the five-foot-high fence, he saw that more than a dozen zhang away, two figures were still locked in fierce combat.
Qin Fengming reached behind him with his right hand, and the treasured sword was already in his grip. With a sway of his body, he charged toward the two men in the distance.
Since he had come here, Qin Fengming naturally did not want to miss the chance to cross hands with an expert.
The two men were more than a dozen zhang away, but after two flashes, Qin Fengming was already standing beside them as they fought. After a brief look, sword flowers blossomed in his hand, and he slashed fiercely at one of the tall figures.
The two men in combat had naturally noticed Qin Fengming's sudden appearance.
Fifth Senior Brother was overjoyed. Although he had not clearly seen who had arrived, he recognized the familiar figure at a glance—it was his Junior Disciple Brother, Qin Fengming.
Back then, he had explained everything clearly to Qin Fengming: he would be responsible for drawing everyone's attention, while Qin Fengming would enter the room and look for the Jade Box. Now that his Junior Disciple Brother had appeared, it meant without a doubt that the Jade Box was already in hand.
Wang Qi was startled when someone suddenly appeared. His second brother had just led several stronghold chiefs toward the mountain gate. Needless to ask, this newcomer was certainly another person who had come to raid the stronghold. With a flash of his body, he tried to withdraw from the battle.
After fighting the black-clad man opposite him just now, he already knew that his opponent's martial skills were extremely formidable. On his own, he could only hold the man to a draw, and it would be difficult to decide victory or defeat in a short time. Now that the other side had gained another helper, the situation was unfavorable for him.
After launching several urgent attacks, he leaped away before Qin Fengming could begin his assault.
"Bandits, how dare you be so bold as to invade my stronghold? None of you will leave!" As he spoke, he raised a hand. A whistling arrow rang out, and in an instant, killing cries erupted throughout the area within a li. Beneath the lanterns and torches, more than twenty men suddenly appeared.
Qin Fengming had clearly seen Wang Qi's second brother rush toward the mountain gate more than ten li away, yet so many skilled fighters had remained behind. After exchanging a glance with Fifth Senior Brother, Qin Fengming was also shocked to the core.
It turned out that Mount Cang Mountain had undoubtedly been prepared for this.
This was no time to investigate the matter. Qin Fengming exchanged another glance with Fifth Senior Brother, and the two unexpectedly understood each other without words. As their figures flashed, they advanced instead of retreating, launching a direct assault on Wang Qi.
There were naturally no rules of the martial world in this battle. Qin Fengming and Fifth Senior Brother had already made up their minds to unleash their finest techniques and join forces to kill the man before them in the shortest time possible.
Seeing how fierce the two men opposite him were, and how calm they remained even when they were about to be surrounded, Wang Qi was frightened. He had no choice but to face the attacks of two experts.
The moment they clashed, Wang Qi was already at a severe disadvantage. Qin Fengming's swordsmanship had now improved several times over. Even if he fought Wang Qi alone with all his strength, he would not have been at the slightest disadvantage. With Fifth Senior Brother added to the battle, Wang Qi was immediately beset by peril on all sides.
"Brothers, hurry over and capture these two!"
The men rushing over were already less than fifty zhang from the battlefield. Frightened, Wang Qi shouted loudly, hoping to disrupt the rhythm of the two men's attacks.
Although this was Qin Fengming's first true battle against an expert, he felt no fear at all. He knew there could be no hesitation, and his treasured sword swept out without the slightest pause. Fifth Senior Brother's experience far surpassed Qin Fengming's, so he naturally remained utterly unmoved.
Sword techniques and blades poured down around Wang Qi like a violent storm, immediately leaving him with the feeling that he could not cope.
"Pfft!" With the muffled sound of a treasured sword piercing flesh, a miserable cry rang out. Then a figure suddenly fell to the ground. Rolling rapidly across the earth, he tumbled away several zhang in utter disarray.
Qin Fengming's body flashed, and he was about to shoot toward the fallen figure when he suddenly heard a series of clicking sounds all around him. He moved swiftly and shot upward into the sky.
"Whoosh! Whoosh!~~" As Qin Fengming's body sprang rapidly upward, several sounds of objects tearing through the air shot past beneath his feet.
"Things are getting tight. Pull out!" Just as Qin Fengming landed, Fifth Senior Brother's urgent voice came from nearby.
Hearing this, Qin Fengming knew that he could no longer kill Wang Qi. Numerous figures had already appeared all around them. Seeing Wang Qi fall, those who carried hidden weapons immediately fired them at high speed.
Following Fifth Senior Brother's shout, he had already rushed forward to meet the two men charging toward them.
If the two men wanted to escape now, they had to break through before the others completed their encirclement. If they hesitated even slightly and waited until all twenty or thirty men arrived, leaving would be as difficult as ascending the heavens.
Qin Fengming naturally would not gamble with his life. Once he unleashed his movement technique, he headed toward the direction where there was only one man blocking their path, moving even several points faster than Fifth Senior Brother.
"Click! Ah~" Amid the explosive snap of a mechanism, a flying dart struck the left shoulder of the figure blocking their way. With a flash, Qin Fengming leaped out of the encirclement. After another burst of movement, he vanished into the boundless night...
When Qin Fengming cautiously bypassed layer upon layer of searches and returned to the place where he had hidden the horses, a black-clad man was already sitting cross-legged in the mountain hollow.
"Fifth Senior Brother?" Qin Fengming was greatly startled upon seeing him, and a soft cry escaped his lips.
"Hehe, not bad. To perform like this on your first mission is quite extraordinary. Wang Qi truly lives up to his reputation—his skills are formidable. If you and I had not joined forces, injuring him would have been extremely difficult. You must have obtained the Jade Box by now, right?"
"Of course. This is the Jade Box. Fifth Senior Brother, please take a look." Seeing that it really was his senior brother, Qin Fengming was astonished, but he did not hesitate. With a wave of his hand, he took out the Jade Box obtained from Wang Qi's room and handed it to his senior brother.
"Mm, not bad. It is precisely the target of our mission. Junior Brother, I will take this Jade Box back to the sect first. You can return at your leisure."
After examining it, Fifth Senior Brother spoke with delight in his eyes. Once he finished, he did not delay any longer. He clasped his fist toward Qin Fengming, then vanished into the dark mountains with a flash of his body.
After his senior brother left, Qin Fengming naturally did not dare remain there for long. He led out his horse and followed the route he had memorized during the day, quietly leaving the area of Mount Cang Mountain beneath the dense night.
This mission had helped Qin Fengming tremendously, and his gains had also been immense. They would be extremely important to his future growth.
As for what Wang Qi and the others at Mount Cang Mountain would do after discovering that the Jade Box was missing, Qin Fengming no longer cared in the slightest. Since Fifth Senior Brother had said that everything had been arranged, he naturally had nothing more to consider. As for the two traitors from the Luoxia Valley branch, Fifth Senior Brother already knew about them and would certainly deal with them properly.
By the time the sky brightened, Qin Fengming had already reached a place forty or fifty li from Mount Cang Mountain.
Since he did not need to hurry back to the sect this time, Qin Fengming decided to use this free time to return home and see his parents and relatives, so that he could ease the longing in his heart.
Haobai City bordered Qijia City, where Qin Family Village was located. Riding at full speed, the journey would take five days. But people said that the longing to return home was like an arrow, and Qin Fengming urged his fine horse to its utmost speed. By the evening of the fourth day, he had reached Tenglong Town, thirty li from Qin Family Village. He planned to spend the night in town and return home after daybreak.
Qin Fengming was familiar with Tenglong Town. After entering the town, he went straight to its largest inn, Fulai Inn.
After handing his horse to a waiter, Qin Fengming went alone to the second floor of the tavern and sat down at a table near the window.
He told the waiter to bring several dishes, then ate alone while watching the street outside. His heart was filled with complicated emotions.
Five or six years ago, when he had come here, he had still been an ignorant boy. Now, he was already a martial world practitioner capable of carrying out missions alone. The changes in between had been utterly beyond his expectations.
Suddenly, a burst of noisy commotion came from the distant street. Amid the racket were the curses of men and the cries of women.
Just as Qin Fengming was puzzled, he saw a crowd bustling over from the distance. The two men in front kept shoving pedestrians aside, making the entire street boil with noise.
Sitting on the second floor, Qin Fengming had a clear view of everyone below. He saw seven or eight burly men with their chests and bellies exposed and their hats worn crookedly. Two men led the way, while two in the middle supported a young girl. Her hair was disheveled, and she cried and struggled as she walked.
These people made their noisy way toward the eastern side of Tenglong Town. The pedestrians behind them pointed and whispered, but not one person stepped forward to stop them.
Qin Fengming watched in complete confusion, unable to understand what was happening. At that moment, the diners upstairs began discussing it among themselves.
"Look, the Zhang Family is causing trouble again. I wonder which family's girl has fallen victim this time?"
"I heard it was a mother and daughter from out of town. They came here to seek refuge with relatives, but unfortunately the Young Master Zhang ran into them. He was instantly struck by her beauty and proposed marriage to the mother and daughter on the spot. They refused him, though. So the Young Master Zhang flew into a rage and sent people to drag the girl to the Zhang residence. Another life is about to be lost."
"Shh, everyone, be careful. Don't let anyone from their family hear you and bring trouble upon yourselves for nothing."
Hearing this, Qin Fengming immediately understood. It turned out that the Young Master Zhang, the local tyrant, was once again committing evil against his neighbors.
Five years earlier, Qin Fengming had come to Tenglong Town with his father to buy medicine for his grandfather's injured leg. He had been viciously beaten by the Young Master Zhang for no reason. The scene was still vivid before his eyes. Now, hearing of this injustice, Qin Fengming could not help letting out two cold, mocking chuckles under his breath.
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