Yan Dahu decided to teach Su Mo a lesson!
His pair of eagle claws could easily gouge five holes into a solid wooden stake.
He was confident Su Mo's wrists couldn't be much harder than a wooden stake!
Unfortunately, he had probably never heard of two sayings from a certain world.
The first was: Among all the martial arts under heaven, nothing is invincible against everything, and speed alone cannot be surpassed.
The second was: One force can overcome ten techniques!
Though they sounded somewhat contradictory.
When the two were combined, however, it was no joke.
Su Mo's fists were fast enough—and powerful enough!
Thus, Yan Dahu's plan to teach Su Mo a lesson fell through!
Su Mo watched Yan Dahu clutch one arm, having been sent flying several meters by his blow. His face instantly went from red to white, then from white back to red.
Unable to help himself, he asked with concern, "Martial Arts Master, are you all right?"
After a pause, Su Mo sighed. "Hmm... You probably might possibly be a little hurt..."
"I heard the sound of bones cracking."
He wondered whether he had used a little too much force!
Who would have thought that this Martial Arts Master and first-class retainer from the Eagle Claw Sect in Tieshan County—
Yan Dahu was just as unable to take a beating as Leper Zhou!
Yan Dahu glared at Su Mo with grief and fury, his heart utterly shattered!
How infuriating!
Unfortunately, his skills were inferior to his opponent's, so he could only swallow his anger resentfully!
Su Mo saw that the other man said nothing.
He sighed again.
He truly hadn't expected that Entry Level Yang Tian Jue would let him utterly dominate a first-class retainer who looked fairly strong.
The other man probably wasn't a true Martial Arts Master, and his reputation wasn't very great either.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have become a retainer.
He had announced his title twice in succession, and the second time he had deliberately added the words "first-class." Clearly, he took great pride in being a retainer.
"Are we still fighting?"
"If not, I'll be leaving!"
Su Mo seriously reminded him, "You're not going to report me to the authorities, are you?"
"The last person who attacked me of his own accord and then reported me was beaten to death in the courtroom!"
Yan Dahu's face turned from red to white again in fury!
You can't bully someone like this!
What did Su Mo take him for? Would he report someone to the authorities just because he lost a spar?
If word got out, wouldn't his fellow martial artists laugh him to death?
Su Mo thought for a moment, then added, "I came here to return a gift to Magistrate Xue."
"Sorry for the trouble, Martial Arts Master. Please help me deliver it."
With that, he handed the brocade box in his hand to Yan Dahu.
Yan Dahu instinctively accepted the brocade box.
Only then did he realize—
Su Mo had fought him with only one arm!
What was the point of fighting anymore!
Su Mo said no more and turned to look for Xue Yishu.
As it concerned his Golden Finger, it was naturally far more important than currying favor with a mere magistrate.
He hoped Xue Shan would spare Xue Yishu for his sake and not come looking for her, allowing him to hide her in peace for seven days and complete the mission!
The County Magistrate's daughter's favorability was not very useful.
But wasn't there still another pending reward?
Besides, this might be a series of missions!
Just like the Dried Corpse Case handled by Lin Moyin, which had follow-up developments!
Su Mo didn't have to search for long.
He had just walked less than a hundred zhang when he saw the fake scholar hiding behind a massive banyan tree that would take two people to encircle. She furtively poked out her head and peered in his direction.
At least she has a conscience!
My effort in saving her that time wasn't wasted.
Xue Yishu watched in shock as Su Mo sent the first-class Wang Family retainer brought by her mother flying several meters away with a single punch.
Su Mo was tall, but slightly slender, looking just like a frail scholar.
How could he knock back Yan Dahu, who was built as massively as an ox, with one punch?
Xue Yishu had personally seen Yan Dahu kick apart a wooden stake as thick as a sea bowl while practicing his martial arts!
He ranked among the top three retainers brought by her mother!
Could this frail scholar be a true Martial Arts Master?
If this master scholar were willing to help me...
Xue Yishu's eyes rolled, and an idea immediately sprang to mind.
Seeing Su Mo walk toward her, she hurried out from behind the banyan tree and waved hard. "Brother! Brother! I... I mean, I'm here!"
Su Mo naturally had no intention of exposing her identity.
He frowned and demanded with a hum, "Who are you?"
"Why did you climb over the wall and leave the County Yamen?"
"And who was chasing you, claiming to be a Wang Family retainer?"
Xue Yishu's pretty face immediately filled with bitterness, but she quickly replied, "He is a retainer of my mother."
"I am the son of the Magistrate of Changping County. My name is Xue Yuan!"
"My mother forced me to marry a woman I didn't like. When I refused, she locked me in the rear courtyard, so I had no choice but to climb over the wall and flee the County Yamen."
Su Mo...
So this was a refined young lady? A daughter of a wealthy family?
How could she lie so smoothly without even blinking?
Though he thought this, his face filled with alarm. "What? You're Magistrate Xue's son?"
"Damn it!"
"You've gotten me into serious trouble!"
He drew a deep breath and said heavily, "No! I'll take you back right now and apologize to the magistrate!"
As he spoke, he made as if to move forward!
Xue Yishu hurriedly said, "Brother, wait! I still have something to say!"
Su Mo frowned and stopped. "What else do you have to say?"
Xue Yishu explained, "Don't be afraid that my father will punish you!"
"He doesn't want me to marry that woman. That's only my mother's idea!"
Su Mo was stunned. "If that's the case, why did you run away?"
Xue Yishu let out a long sigh, her face wearing an expression of complete despair, and slowly spat out several words.
"My father is henpecked!"
This reason left Su Mo speechless!
Who would have thought that the county magistrate, normally so imposing that no one in the yamen dared disobey him—
was actually henpecked!
After a moment of silence, Su Mo said, "Since that's the case, then I shall take my leave!"
Xue Yishu hurriedly called after him, "Brother, please wait!"
Su Mo frowned and looked at the fake scholar. "What else is there?"
Xue Yishu hesitated briefly before gritting her teeth. "I currently have nowhere to stay!"
"Could you take me in, Brother?"
This time, Su Mo was genuinely stunned.
He had been wondering what excuse he could use to spirit her away.
He hadn't expected her to take the initiative and ask him to take her in!
Was it really appropriate for a daughter of a government official to go to an unfamiliar man's home?
Could she really think her disguise was good enough that no one would recognize her as a woman?
Seeing Su Mo freeze, Xue Yishu's eyes rolled, and she said, "Don't worry! I won't let you suffer for helping me!"
She somehow produced a silver ingot. "There are ten taels of silver here."
"As long as you take me in, the silver is yours!"
After a pause, she added, "But it has to be for at least seven days!"
"And if my mother sends people to capture me, you have to help drive them away!"
Su Mo couldn't help asking, "Why seven days?"
Xue Yishu explained, "My maternal uncle will arrive in Changping County in seven days."
"My uncle dotes on me the most."
"As long as I beg him, Mother definitely won't force me to marry anymore!"
As she spoke, her eyes rolled again. "My uncle is a true master, and an Immortal Dao occultist at that!"
"When my uncle arrives, I'll ask him to give you some pointers on your martial arts. He'll definitely help you make rapid progress!"
This time, Su Mo was truly shocked.
"What?"
"Your uncle is an Immortal Dao occultist?"
Xue Yishu looked smug. "I scared you, didn't I?"
"My uncle is an Immortal Dao occultist of the Spirit Severing Realm, incredibly powerful! He usually devotes himself to cultivation and rarely goes out!"
"Father went through great difficulty to invite him to Changping County!"
After a pause, Xue Yishu feared Su Mo wouldn't believe her, so she pulled an ancient Jade Token from her fair neck.
"This is the Magic Item my uncle gave me!"
"If anyone bullies me... hmph!"
She wasn't stupid enough to say what would happen if anyone bullied her!
How exciting! Yesterday, a brother actually supported me with nearly ten monthly votes! Wow! I had so much spirit for writing!
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