At this moment.
Ding Dian knew very well that this kid in front of him had never intended to let him go.
Either way, he wasn't going to survive.
He might as well beg for a quick death!
"If you won't tell me, I'll find it myself!"
Qin Shuang looked at Ding Dian and said calmly, "But I won't let you die so easily. I'll cover your body in cuts, smear them with honey, and leave you out in the wilderness. Then you can taste what it's like to have ants climb a tree!"
"You... you'll die a horrible death!"
Hearing Qin Shuang's words, Ding Dian's eyes flew wide, and fear flickered in them.
Just imagining himself covered in ants was enough to make him wish he were dead!
A look of resolve appeared in his eyes. He circulated his technique, reversing his Qi and Blood, then spat out a huge mouthful of blood. His eyes remained wide, but the light in them faded, and he slowly toppled to the ground.
"He killed himself?"
Qin Shuang looked at the dead Ding Dian, deep in thought. He stepped forward and stripped the Soft Armor from him. To his surprise, inside the armor, over Ding Dian's chest, was a bowl-sized piece of beast hide covered in tiny writing. It seemed to be a set of instructions.
Qin Shuang put the beast hide away and examined the armor.
The Soft Armor was silver-colored, made of square silver slips the size of pigeon eggs, strung together. A tiny '☽' symbol was stamped on each slip, and the connecting threads were silver as well. It protected both the front and back of the torso. The whole suit felt quite light in his hands and was exceptionally well crafted.
"This Soft Armor offers excellent protection. It's really good!"
Qin Shuang looked at the armor in his hands, satisfaction in his eyes.
This trip had brought in a truly impressive haul.
Ding Dian owed his life to this Soft Armor. Otherwise, he would have died to Qin Shuang's very first strike. It was as if the armor had given him an extra life!
Qin Shuang knew just how sharp the Yellow Springs Saber was. The fact that this Soft Armor could withstand it showed just how extraordinary it was!
"I'll head back and take a look first!"
Qin Shuang put away the Soft Armor and beast hide, then searched Ding Dian and found three banknotes along with several small bottles that looked like they contained poison. He stowed everything away, then set off toward Hualing Village.
Before long,
Qin Shuang returned to the tiled house.
"Hall Master, this subordinate has failed you. I only killed two of them; three of the Silver Masked Men escaped. However, they've gotten tracking powder on them, so I have a way to find them!"
Jin Yang hurried forward and respectfully reported to him.
"Did any of our men die?"
Qin Shuang asked.
"Only a dozen or so were injured."
Jin Yang clasped his fists.
"You all did your best. Take me after them!"
Qin Shuang's gaze flickered as he spoke in a deep voice.
He knew that the five who remained were all in the Bone Forging Realm, while the Martial Arts School's disciples were only in the Qi and Blood Realm. With just Jin Yang, a Bone Forging Realm martial artist, leading them, killing two had been no small feat—especially since those men hadn't been intent on fighting.
The three who escaped were Ding Dian's subordinates. Perfect. He could capture them and force them to reveal where Ding Dian lived in Yunzhou, then try to find the scroll he had mentioned.
According to Ding Dian, that scroll was exactly like the one Qin Shuang had obtained from Qi Yunfeng. It was probably no ordinary thing.
"Yes. They went toward Gong'ao Mountain!"
Jin Yang pointed toward a hollow in the mountains north of the city. He quickly brought over a big black dog and led the way toward Gong'ao Mountain.
Qin Shuang followed Jin Yang at a full sprint, gradually leaving Hualing Village behind.
At that moment, ten li outside Hualing Village, three middle-aged men sat atop a large boulder in a wooded hollow. Two were fat and one was thin, and all three wore dark robes.
"Brother Jin, what should we do next?"
A fat man looked at the thin man in dark robes and asked.
"Let's wait here. If the gang master escaped that man's pursuit, he'll definitely find us."
Jin Shisan said, lost in thought.
Though he said that, the worry between his brows grew more pronounced. Back in Hualing Village, he had seen that the young man's Qi and Blood were twice as strong as the gang master's. Whether the gang master could escape was anyone's guess.
"There's no need to wait. I've already killed your gang master."
Just then, a calm voice came from three zhang away.
"What?"
Jin Shisan and the other two changed expression at the sound. They hurriedly reached for their weapons and looked toward the grass three zhang away, their pupils contracting.
A young man in blue-green robes stood there, a Black Saber strapped to his back and his figure as straight as a pine. He watched them at his leisure.
The young man had a high nose bridge and a face as sharply carved as a blade, with distinct features and slanting brows that swept toward his temples. His long hair was loosely tied with a plain band. With his hands behind his back, he carried a fierce air that made him difficult to look at directly.
Jin Shisan recognized him. The young man before them was the very one who had pursued the gang master!
Jin Shisan's hand trembled around his saber. He looked at Qin Shuang, his voice shaking. "Y-you... what do you want?"
"Does Ding Dian have a lot of gold and silver in Yunzhou?"
Qin Shuang looked at Jin Shisan and asked.
"He does... The gang master has fifteen residences in Qingyao City, Yunzhou, an iron mine, a horse ranch, three docks, and three sons. On the surface, he's a famous wealthy merchant in Qingyao City, but in truth, he's the gang master of the Blood Shadow Gang..."
Jin Shisan clasped his fists toward Qin Shuang and answered.
He held nothing back, telling Qin Shuang everything about gang master Ding Dian's affairs in Yunzhou.
He knew that the young man before him had killed the gang master and was now asking about his wealth, which meant he was very interested in it. As long as they helped the young man obtain that wealth, they could save their own lives.
"Jin Shisan, if you help me get all of Ding Dian's property, I won't just spare your lives—I'll make sure you're rewarded, too!"
Qin Shuang looked at Jin Shisan and smiled faintly.
Now that Ding Dian was dead, finding the scroll would have taken a great deal of effort. But with Jin Shisan and the other two, it would be much easier.
"Thank you, young hero, for sparing our lives!"
"Thank you, young hero. We'll do everything we can to help you get those valuables!"
"..."
Jin Shisan and the other two clasped their fists respectfully and readily agreed.
At one in the afternoon, the sky was clear and cloudless.
Hualing Village.
Inside the tiled house.
Qin Shuang sat at the table, the beast hide he had obtained from Ding Dian laid out before him. He reached into a bamboo cage beside him with his right hand to catch a dragonfly, catching it and letting it go. His feet pressed into the grass, while his left hand held three pills over a plate.
The beast hide contained a set of instructions for a technique called the Life and Death Seal, a martial art that could control others and make them serve its user.
According to the instructions, one had to refine a trace of their own Qi and Blood into a blood seal, then drive it into a target's body to control them. Once someone was struck by the Life and Death Seal, they had to take an antidote once a year. Otherwise, their Qi and Blood would flow in reverse, their entire body would itch unbearably, and they would be unable to live or die.
[Life and Death Seal (Not Yet Initiated)] [Simplification: Stamp ten Rebirth paper money bills to initiate]
"Hmm?"
"I have to stamp ten Rebirth paper money bills to initiate it?"
Seeing the display in his mind, Qin Shuang fell into thought.
As far as he knew, in this martial world, people also burned paper money for the dead to use in the underworld. It was slightly different from what he remembered from his previous life, though: the paper money bore words such as 'Rebirth Mantra' and 'Rebirth in Paradise,' along with numerous Buddhist mantras, lotus designs, and Buddhist symbols.
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