The moment Jin Qiao'er hit the ground, a Silver Masked Man came charging at her with a long saber!
Her expression changed dramatically. She hadn't expected enemy experts to be lying in wait outside the Martial Arts School, too. Clutching the bundle tightly, she immediately used her lightness skill to flee, taking the first path she could find. The bundle held her grandfather's life's work; she absolutely couldn't let anything happen to it.
But the Silver Masked Man was far more skilled than she was and stayed hot on her heels.
One pursued while the other fled. Before long, they reached Clear Water River and raced along its bank.
Qin Shuang was catching dragonflies beneath a willow tree when a slender young woman in red came sprinting past. With a soft thump, a bundle landed in the grass about ten feet away from him. The girl didn't even look back and kept running.
More than thirty feet behind her, a Silver Masked Man was in hot pursuit.
"Hm? Jin Qiao'er?"
Qin Shuang recognized the girl in red. She was none other than Jin Qiao'er, daughter of Jin Boyang, the master of Golden Tiger Martial Arts School.
He remembered.
Golden Whip Martial Arts School and Golden Saber Martial Arts School had just come to demand an explanation. How had Jin Qiao'er escaped?
Qin Shuang looked at the bundle nearby and saw that it had been slashed open. The corner of a yellowed book peeked out, with the character for "medicine" written on it.
An idea struck Qin Shuang. He stepped forward and picked up the bundle.
"You bastard, put that bundle down!"
Just then, the Silver Masked Man's expression turned vicious. He gripped his long saber and brought it down toward Qin Shuang's head. In an instant, a dense layer of Qi and Blood Gauze Robe appeared around him. Qi and blood also flooded the saber in his hand, turning it bright red!
A terrifying, savage aura burst from him!
"Bone Forging Realm. Qi and Blood Gauze Robe!"
Qin Shuang saw the Silver Masked Man and his gaze turned cold. Holding the bundle, he used Grass on Flying and sprang aside, dodging the saber. In an instant, a Qi and Blood Gauze Robe appeared around him. He unleashed his perfected Fierce Tiger Fist, striking with Fierce Tiger Pouncing. Like a ferocious tiger, he launched himself at the Silver Masked Man!
"What?"
The Silver Masked Man saw that the passerby by the river was also a Bone Forging Realm expert, with strength no less than his own. He was shocked and tried to dodge, but caught completely off guard, he was too late. A burst of pain flared beneath his ribs.
Crack!
A bone snapped. Ding Zhen felt himself fly through the air and crash heavily to the ground ten feet away. He opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood!
"Die!"
Qin Shuang had landed his first blow. He darted forward and reached the Silver Masked Man, then stomped down on his throat!
Crack!
A bone snapped. Ding Zhen's neck was crushed beneath Qin Shuang's foot, and he died instantly.
Qin Shuang removed the Silver Masked Man's silver mask and saw a young man he didn't recognize. He searched the man's clothes and found five banknotes worth one hundred taels each, several dozen taels in loose silver, and a wooden token.
"Windfalls really are the best!"
Qin Shuang tossed the Silver Masked Man's corpse into Clear Water River, tucked the banknotes and silver into his clothes, and sighed.
Killing Qi Yunfeng had earned him more than three hundred taels, and now he'd taken over five hundred more from this Silver Masked Man. That was enough to buy plenty of Tiger Blood Pills.
Qin Shuang turned his attention to the bundle he'd just picked up and opened it.
Inside was a two-foot-long bamboo tube, brown with age and polished smooth from years of handling. He put it away and continued searching the bundle. There were more than ten White Porcelain Bottles inside. When he opened one, he found it full of Tiger Blood Pills!
The yellowed book, its edges curled, was titled Basic Introduction to Medicine.
"Nice!"
"With this many Tiger Blood Pills, I can use them to refine my Qi and Blood!"
Excitement gleamed in Qin Shuang's eyes.
This trip had been a huge haul.
Jin Qiao'er ran on for a while before realizing her bundle had fallen. Hearing sounds of a fight behind her, she turned to look and saw that the Silver Masked Man pursuing her had been killed by a young man.
"Junior Brother Qin?"
Qin Shuang put away his things and was about to head back to Fusheng Restaurant when Jin Qiao'er, who had already run far away, came back. She stared at him, her beautiful eyes filled with shock and disbelief.
At that moment, Jin Qiao'er's heart was in turmoil.
She hadn't expected that the person who killed the Silver Masked Man chasing her would be none other than Junior Brother Qin Shuang, who had come to the Martial Arts School to learn fist techniques but only trained sporadically!
She'd been so intent on escaping that she hadn't noticed Qin Shuang.
Hadn't Junior Brother Qin failed to even get started with Fierce Tiger Fist?
How could he kill a Bone Forging Realm expert?
Didn't that mean Junior Brother Qin's martial arts had reached at least the Bone Forging Realm?
"Let's find somewhere else to talk!"
Qin Shuang looked around, then spoke to Jin Qiao'er and ran toward an alley near Long Street by East Gate. Jin Qiao'er hurried after him.
Before long,
the two of them reached a corner of the alley. Qin Shuang looked at Jin Qiao'er, clutching the bundle in his hands, and asked, "What happened?!"
"My grandfather's junior brother came to the house. Father and Grandfather told me to leave with this bundle first. They might..." Thinking of her father and grandfather, Jin Qiao'er's eyes reddened. She glanced at the bundle in Qin Shuang's hands and continued,
"Your grandfather's junior brother came for this bamboo tube?"
Qin Shuang looked at the bundle in his hands, and an idea struck him. The Tiger Blood Pills and Basic Introduction to Medicine weren't valuable enough to provoke someone into coming to the house to settle a score. That meant the most precious thing was the bamboo tube that hadn't been opened yet!
"Mm."
Jin Qiao'er hesitated briefly, then determination shone in her beautiful eyes. "Junior Brother Qin, if you hadn't killed the man chasing me, I would already be dead, and the things would've been stolen. I... I have an unreasonable favor to ask..."
"Go ahead."
Qin Shuang looked at Jin Qiao'er, and an idea struck him.
"You can have all the pills and other things in the bundle. Inside the bamboo tube is a Tiger Roar Divine Intent Diagram. Once you've learned the Tiger Roar Divine Intent in it, could you... could you return the diagram to me? My father and grandfather risked their lives to protect it..."
"If... if that's not enough, I'm willing to pay any price!"
Jin Qiao'er looked at Qin Shuang, her beautiful eyes reddening, her face full of pleading.
She knew that without Junior Brother Qin, she would probably already be dead. She also knew this request was unreasonable, but she had to ask. Her father and grandfather would rather die than let anything happen to that diagram. If she lost it, how could she ever face them?
"Tiger Roar Divine Intent Diagram?"
Qin Shuang's interest was piqued. "Learn the Tiger Roar Divine Intent in it?"
"Mm."
Jin Qiao'er nodded and said, "I heard my grandfather say that if someone could comprehend the Tiger Roar Divine Intent in it, they might be able to condense a Divine Seed and advance to the Divine Wheel Realm. But my grandfather and father studied it for decades and got nowhere."
"All right. Once I've learned the Tiger Roar Divine Intent in it, I'll give you the diagram back."
Qin Shuang nodded.
"Thank you, Junior Brother Qin!"
Jin Qiao'er's eyes lit up. She bowed deeply to Qin Shuang, then added, "Junior Brother Qin, I want to go back and see how my father and grandfather are doing!"
"All right!"
Qin Shuang thought of how he'd just killed someone here. It really wasn't a good place to stay and catch dragonflies. With all these Tiger Blood Pills, he could go back and improve his Qi and Blood first!
If you think this book is worth reading, add it to your bookshelf so you can find it again next time.
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