Repay Kindness?

When Chu Qing returned to his small courtyard, the assassin's corpse was still lying there, looking rather desolate.

Chu Qing glanced at it silently, then entered the house.

Wen Rou was still meditating on the kang. Hearing footsteps, she opened her eyes, her voice tinged with weakness:

"You're back."

"Mm."

Chu Qing took out the antidote bottle from his bosom and tossed it to Wen Rou:

"Antidote."

Wen Rou opened the bottle, took out a pill, and put it into her mouth. Then, she circulated her internal energy.

Watching the black mist on the back of her hand gradually fade, Chu Qing turned and went outside, picked up a shovel, and began digging a pit in the courtyard.

A short while later, a large pit was dug.

Chu Qing re-examined the assassin's corpse. Unfortunately, the assassin had nothing of value on him, so Chu Qing gained nothing. He then threw the corpse into the pit and covered it with soil.

Only after stomping the earth firm did Chu Qing exhale:

"Looks like the Corpse Buriers' business isn't easy either..."

There's a group of people in the martial arts world who seek neither fame nor fortune, nor a future. They specialize in burying the unclaimed bodies of those who died in martial arts conflicts.

They are known as Corpse Buriers...

Chu Qing remembered seeing them once. These people were taciturn. Some carried coffins, while others simply had a roll of straw matting tucked into their waist.

Perhaps because they dealt with corpses year-round, they all carried a certain chilling aura.

Shaking his head, Chu Qing put down the shovel and went into the house, intending to check on Wen Rou's condition.

Just as he approached Wen Rou, he saw her suddenly spit out a mouthful of black blood. After glancing at Chu Qing, she rolled her eyes and collapsed onto the kang.

Chu Qing's heart jolted. He thought there was something wrong with the antidote.

He took her wrist to check, then sighed in relief.

The abnormality in her body was gone, but it was like the thieves had departed, leaving an empty building...

So, she's just asleep?

"Hey, are you seriously treating me like a good person? You sleep here, where am I supposed to sleep?"

Looking at Wen Rou, curled up on the kang with a hint of pain still on her face, Chu Qing poked her twice to no reaction, then fell silent for a long time.

He knew she wasn't simply asleep, but had fallen into a deep slumber.

However, once she woke up from this sleep, her injuries would be mostly healed.

Sighing, he grabbed the quilt and threw it over Wen Rou.

He himself walked out of the room, brought over two chairs, and sat cross-legged to continue cultivating.

The night passed without a word. The next morning, Chu Qing's ears twitched, hearing movement in the bedroom.

Knowing that Wen Rou was awake, he stood up and stretched his limbs.

After sitting all night, his bones were a bit stiff, and they crackled as he stretched.

Entering the room, he saw Wen Rou sitting against the wall, hugging the quilt. She looked up at Chu Qing, her eyes still confused:

"Who exactly are you?

"You smell a bit like the Chu Family's eldest brother, but it's also not quite the same."

"Is your nose really that sensitive?"

Chu Qing looked at Wen Rou in surprise.

Wen Rou nodded:

"Very sensitive."

"If you've met someone before, and you see them again, no matter what they've disguised themselves as, can you recognize them at a glance?"

"As long as their scent hasn't changed, I can recognize them."

Chu Qing thought for a moment, then said:

"Wait a moment."

He went to the kitchen, cooked two bowls of gruel, sprinkled some pickled vegetables in the bowls, and brought one to her.

Wen Rou licked her lips, then glanced at Chu Qing again before hugging the bowl and slurping it up.

"After you finish eating, you'll leave here."

Chu Qing was eating his own bowl.

Wen Rou didn't argue, simply giving a soft 'Mm'.

But after a long silence, she looked up at Chu Qing:

"But... you saved my life."

"So what?" Chu Qing looked up at her.

"My master said that a life saved should be repaid with oneself." Wen Rou said words that could make anyone's heart pound, with an unruffled gaze.

Thankfully, Chu Qing wasn't a novice, so he just chuckled. "Are you sure you're not confusing 'repaying kindness' with 'seeking revenge'?"

"?" Wen Rou's confusion deepened as she looked at Chu Qing again.

"Don't overthink it," Chu Qing said softly. "We met by chance, and it was my good fortune to save your life. I wasn't looking for any repayment."

He felt a bit speechless inside. Am I suddenly a magnet for romance? First Xia Wanshuang, now Wen Rou… What is going on? Women are like quicksand, especially given my current situation. I absolutely cannot get deeply entangled.

Wen Rou pondered for a moment, then said nothing, simply finishing the bowl of porridge quickly. After that, her complexion looked much better.

She threw off the covers and got out of bed. "Then I'll be going."

"Mm." Chu Qing nodded, but as Wen Rou was about to leave the room, he called out to her again. "Wait."

"Do you want me to repay you with myself now?" Wen Rou turned back and asked him.

"…Could you please forget about the 'repaying with oneself' part?" Just how worried is Cui Bunü that Wen Rou won't get married? What kind of nonsense has he been teaching her all this time? It's like anyone who saves her automatically gets stuck with her.

Chu Qing said softly, "If you want to repay me, promise me one thing."

"Okay." Wen Rou nodded seriously.

"Don't disturb me again. Neither you, nor anyone you know, is allowed to come here," Chu Qing said in a deep voice. This woman's constitution was actually a bit troubling. He had a feeling that even moving wouldn't make a difference to her; if she wanted to, she'd find him by following his 'scent.' Rather than hiding, it was better to be upfront with her.

Wen Rou thought for a moment. "Okay."

Chu Qing waved his hand when he heard that, and only then did Wen Rou leave. But as he watched her disappearing back, Chu Qing couldn't help but frown again… His identity as an assassin made him inherently suspicious. This girl agreed so readily; is she just putting on a show?

Unfortunately, he still didn't have a good solution for this girl. Their relationship was a mess; he couldn't hit her, couldn't kill her, truly troublesome.

But thankfully, for the next two days, Wen Rou really didn't come looking for him. She must have taken Chu Qing's words to heart.

Chu Qing, meanwhile, continued his routine: practicing cultivation in the morning, cultivating qi at night, and going to the oil and grain store around midnight to find Zhou Yi. Sometimes it was to help him resolve the Demonic Seed, and other times it was to check if Wu Qianhuan had left a message.

He wasn't in a hurry regarding Cheng Sihai's matter. As long as the man was in Heavenly Dance City, Chu Tian would be able to find him.

Sure enough, by the evening of the second day, Chu Qing received news from Chu Tian. The message was long, and Chu Qing summarized it. Cheng Sihai was currently hiding in the Liu Family residence in Heavenly Dance City.

The Liu Family wasn't some martial arts clan; its head, Liu Dafu, was a wealthy merchant in Heavenly Dance City, similar in background to Xia Wanshuang.

Cheng Sihai, using the alias Ji Changchun, worked as an advisor for the Liu Family.

As for the Four Great Guardians, they became the Liu Family's martial arts instructors.

It was currently unclear whether the head of the Liu Family knew the true identities of these individuals.

Of course, none of this really mattered to Chu Qing.

He just needed to know where Cheng Sihai was.