"Hero, please leave your name and whereabouts. This humble girl will surely repay you with heartfelt gratitude!"
Ren Xue came back to her senses from the shock and hurriedly bowed in thanks, trying to hold Zhou Qiming back.
It was simply too unbelievable, too insane. Tian Liang, the Jade Thief Hand who had stirred up storms, had died so easily at this man's hands. Just who was this Dragon Face Mask Person? What was his purpose in saving her? Surely he wasn't simply doing good deeds without leaving his name behind.
"No need."
Zhou Qiming shook his head coldly. He didn't want to keep entangling himself with her, worried that spending any more time with this woman would make him stupid too.
However, before leaving, he remembered something and had Ren Xue take a dose of the antidotes for the Sleeping Powder and poisonous smoke as well.
Tendon Transformation Martial Artists had far too tenacious a vitality. Zhou Qiming had nearly used the maximum undetectable dose, yet it still hadn't completely drugged Tian Liang. Ren Xue's small frame, however, couldn't take it so well.
"Thank you. Young Hero, if you ever need anything, you can come to Hero's Tower and ask. My Ren Family will do everything in its power to repay you." Ren Xue's complexion had recovered, and she thanked him sincerely.
"What? You're from Hero's Tower, and Ren Pingsheng is your father?" Zhou Qiming suddenly stopped and showed a hint of emotion.
"Y-yes." Ren Xue lowered her head, feeling that things were developing in a strange direction.
"Ten pounds of Treasure Fish and one thousand taels of silver." Zhou Qiming held out his hand and gestured at the amount.
"Huh?" Ren Xue's eyes widened, and she was utterly bewildered.
"Of course it's payment. Is this how you treat your benefactor? If you come up even a fraction short, I'll let you experience the greatest malice in this world."
Zhou Qiming's tone brooked no argument, making him seem like a completely different person from before. Hero's Tower's earlier attitude had left him very displeased, and of course he was going to take advantage of a bargain that had come knocking on his door.
He had already been repaying spite with virtue. If he had realized earlier that this woman resembled Ren Pingsheng, he probably wouldn't even have bothered to interfere.
"Hero's Tower doesn't have Treasure Fish, but my Ren Family has exclusive Exotic Meat that can substitute for it. The effect is just as good." Ren Xue hurriedly informed him.
"That works." Zhou Qiming nodded, then left her the location and method for their evening transaction.
Ren Xue had been firmly taken in hand. There was no way she would go back on her word and find people to ambush him. Besides, with the Disguise Mask, Zhou Qiming had nothing to fear.
"Young Hero, you really aren't Young Master Bai Hao?" Ren Xue asked hesitantly, staring at him without blinking as she tried to see through the mask and discover the person behind it.
Even after seeing the Bai Family Token on the ground with her own eyes, as well as the token of affection Bai Hao had given her, she still refused to give up. She clung to that last sliver of luck and hope.
"Hmph. I truly regret saving you. Every extra day you live is a waste of grain."
Zhou Qiming let out a cold laugh and vanished from the spot in an instant.
His figure rapidly disappeared into the bustling marketplace. After turning through several lively alleys, he was just about to leap onto a roof when a Masked Swordsman blocked his path.
The sun had not yet begun to slant westward. The two of them faced each other beneath the shade of a tree.
"What do you want?" Zhou Qiming barked, reaching for his blade.
"Hero, the Jade Thief Hand fell into your hands, didn't he? We are from Chasing Wind Tower, and we've come especially to invite you to join us."
The sword-bearing man was exceedingly polite, bowing with utmost respect.
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Chasing Wind Tower's information was exceptionally well connected. Its channels were even more reliable and prompt than the County Yamen's, so they had long since set their sights on Tian Liang. They simply hadn't dared to act.
Just moments ago, someone from Chasing Wind Tower had discovered that Tian Liang seemed to have been killed by this masked man without the slightest ability to resist. The other party was very likely a mid-ranked expert on the Human Ranking!
One had to understand that the heroes on the Human Ranking were also divided into tiers. Someone like Bai Hao, who had only barely made the list and occupied the tail end at fiftieth place, was merely the top genius of a small county town.
But an expert like this Dragon Face Mask Person, if he truly possessed the strength to rank somewhere in the twenties or thirties on the Human Ranking, would still belong to the first echelon even in several major prefectural cities.
As for the top ten of Yuyun Prefecture, the sword-bearing man didn't even dare imagine it. Shallow waters couldn't raise a true dragon, and Luoshan County had not produced a talent in the Human Ranking's top ten for a very long time.
"What's in it for me if I join Chasing Wind Tower?" Zhou Qiming knitted his brows tightly. He hadn't expected Tian Liang to attract so much attention and drag him into their sights as well.
"Chasing Wind Tower here in the county was founded by its boss, Yan Sanniang. It specializes in providing information to Blade Catchers. Once a mission is completed, we can collect the reward on their behalf, taking a twenty-percent service fee."
The sword-bearing man was Yan Sanniang's trusted lieutenant. He was called Heartless Sword Xu Fei, and he too possessed the Body Tempering strength of Great Accomplishment of Tendon Transformation.
Yet even with the same Great Accomplishment of Tendon Transformation, Tian Liang was already a cold corpse, while Zhou Qiming had not suffered the slightest injury. There wasn't even a speck of blood on his clothes.
He had completed the Blade Catcher Mission in the time it took an incense stick to burn. Such terrifying strength was unheard-of. If he, Xu Fei, had been in Tian Liang's place, he would have died at this man's hands as well!
"Fine. I'll join Chasing Wind Tower." Zhou Qiming nodded in agreement.
He had also figured out the nature of this faction: it was a privately established organization for Blade Catchers.
Take Tian Liang, for example. Apart from the several lineages in the Inner City, he had offended many other enemies as well. If Chasing Wind Tower handled the legwork, it could collect the bounties offered by nearly all of them. That made it far more generous than County Magistrate Li Shou, and the rewards from the two sides did not conflict.
What attracted Zhou Qiming most was its information network. In this world without telephones or the internet, an information gap was the foremost means of staying alive. If he could learn an enemy's movements, strength, and weaknesses in advance, he could prepare beforehand!
Relying only on the information filtered through the County Magistrate's side could easily lead to blind, short-sighted decisions. Now that he had Chasing Wind Tower's supplement, he wouldn't be limited to hearing only one side.
Xu Fei was overjoyed to have recruited this Mysterious Expert. He handed over Chasing Wind Tower's information booklet, along with an identity Jade Token.
"With your strength, you can be directly classified as an Earth-rank Fighter."
"Good. Notify me when there are suitable missions or important information." Zhou Qiming nodded and put away the Jade Token.
As an Earth-rank Blade Catcher, Zhou Qiming would have excellent access to both information and resources. He was fairly satisfied.
Soon, Xu Fei stepped forward and knocked out several of Tian Liang's teeth. He also cut off some hair and an arm before cupping his hands and taking his leave.
Zhou Qiming hurried back to the Inner City to submit the mission. Chasing Wind Tower's bounty would be gathered and sent over after some time; all he had to do was wait patiently for Xu Fei's news.
On the way, Zhou Qiming also tried out the effect of the Disguise Mask for the first time. It was the greatest harvest of this trip.
The mask seemed to have quite a history, though he didn't know what material it was made from. Even Tian Liang, its previous owner, had only initially unlocked some of its functions.
All Zhou Qiming currently knew was that its name was the Thousand Illusions Mask. It fit extremely closely against the skin of the face and could change one's appearance. With a few makeup techniques added in, one could disguise oneself as someone familiar and close.
"For now, simply changing my appearance is enough. What a treasure!" Zhou Qiming's eyes shone, and a smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.
With the Thousand Illusions Mask, he could meet the County Magistrate while showing his "true" face, without needing to wear another Dragon Face Mask.
Using Zhou Tailai's Blade Catcher identity would be much more convenient in the future as well.
"What? Blade Catcher Zhou, you're back this quickly? Tian Liang really died at your hands? Impressive!"
County Magistrate Li Shou was reclining in a rocking chair beneath a vine trellis in the courtyard, basking in the sun. When he saw the astonishing scene before him, his assessment of Zhou Tailai's strength immediately rose by an entire tier!
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