After entering, Ouyang Yun looked at Zhao Ping'an, who sat motionless, and at the obviously displeased expressions of the three men beside him. He immediately began his introduction.
"Mm. Sit down. You've come for Tian Yiming, I assume. Here's his head. Where's my Spiritual Medicine?"
Unfortunately, Zhao Ping'an showed no reaction, merely nodding indifferently before getting straight to the point.
"Th-this..."
Ouyang Yun looked toward Chou Wanren, the highest-ranking cultivator among them.
"Grandmaster Zhao, how could we carry Fourth-grade Spiritual Medicine around with us? We need to confirm Tian Yiming's death and verify his identity before we can have it brought out from the Royal City Treasury for you."
Though Chou Wanren was furious at Zhao Ping'an for treating them as if they were beneath notice, might made right. This was not Profound Water City, so he could only explain.
Ouyang Yun had told him that this young Grandmaster, young to an absurd degree, had not only reached the peak of the ninth level of the Grandmaster realm but had also mastered a Human-grade Lightness Skill. Even if all four of them attacked together, they probably wouldn't so much as touch the hem of his clothes.
"Mm? No Spiritual Medicine? Are you trying to deceive me?"
At Chou Wanren's explanation, Zhao Ping'an's expression turned cold, and he spoke in a chilly voice.
He didn't care how the other party planned to return to Profound Water City and complete the mission. As far as he was concerned, without the Spiritual Medicine, they weren't taking Tian Yiming's head. Nor was he afraid they would renege and refuse to pay—the saber in his hand was no decoration.
"Um... Give me one day. I'll bring the Spiritual Medicine before noon tomorrow!"
Watching Zhao Ping'an's expression change, Chou Wanren hesitated briefly, then spoke at once.
"Chou Wanren, right? I hope you don't lie to me. Otherwise, I can't guarantee what I might do. And keep the people you brought under control! If it happens again, none of you will be going home. Now get out."
A strange light shimmered in Zhao Ping'an's eyes as he stared fixedly at the three men. Their scalps prickled, and cold sweat broke out on their foreheads.
"Yes! Yes! Yes!"
Chou Wanren and the other two had no desire to stay another second. The moment Zhao Ping'an spoke, they fled the hall and raced toward the outskirts of Wu'an Mountain.
Ouyang Yun apologized and hurried after them.
Zhao Ping'an flashed over to the gate that Tian Yiming had destroyed and watched the men flee as if for their lives. For a long while, he said nothing.
The sky was already growing dim. Half the sun had sunk below the horizon.
"Time for dinner..."
After glancing at the sunset, Zhao Ping'an headed back to his pavilion.
Before long, the account book for the losses from Tian Yiming's attack was compiled by the accountant sent over by his Master, Zheng Hetong, and delivered to Zhao Ping'an.
The medicinal herb farmers had only been frightened; none had been killed or injured. The guard team had suffered twelve deaths and twenty wounded—most of them were as good as crippled. The rest of the damage was to buildings.
After tallying everything, the total losses came to roughly three thousand taels of silver. Most of that went toward compensation for those who had died.
The damaged gates and houses weren't worth much.
Money was just a number to Zhao Ping'an now, and he didn't care about it. Besides, he had just found five thousand Gold Notes on Tian Yiming—worth fifty thousand taels of silver.
At noon the next day, Zhao Ping'an had just finished lunch when Chou Wanren and Ouyang Yun arrived with the Fourth-grade Spiritual Medicine: ten stalks in all. Zhou Ruiming had also asked Ouyang Yun to bring five thousand taels of silver in banknotes to help rebuild Wu'an Mountain.
Five stalks were the agreed-upon reward, two were Ouyang Yun's apology, and the last three were Chou Wanren's apology.
As the saying went, you couldn't strike someone who came with a smile.
When Zhao Ping'an faced the two men again, he no longer wore a cold expression. Of course, he wasn't about to be overly warm either. After calmly accepting the Spiritual Medicine, he handed over the head. The other two Grandmasters hadn't come this time.
As for the other items Tian Yiming had possessed, the two men didn't mention them at all.
That confirmed Zhao Ping'an's suspicion: the dynasty clearly knew nothing about the Treasure Map.
After receiving Tian Yiming's head and verifying his identity, the two men took their leave at once.
The weather around South Ridge City didn't change much with the seasons. Temperatures stayed in the twenties year-round, and after being left out overnight, the head had already begun to stink.
Zhao Ping'an had no idea how people in ancient times preserved things.
After watching the two leave Wu'an Mountain, Zhao Ping'an took the Spiritual Medicine and hurried back to the study on the second floor.
"I wonder how many [Deduction Points] one stalk of Fourth-grade Spiritual Medicine will give me?"
Looking at the ten Fourth-grade Spiritual Medicines neatly laid out before him, Zhao Ping'an muttered to himself and reached for one.
The variety, effects, and toxicity of a Spiritual Medicine made no difference to him. All that mattered was its grade, so he hadn't bothered checking what the two men had brought.
As Zhao Ping'an's right hand closed around a ginseng root gleaming with a golden sheen, a window immediately popped up on his Game Panel.
[Ding, foreign energy detected. Absorbing it will increase the current total deduction value by 5%. Absorb? Yes/No?]
"Five percent? Not bad. Yes!"
As soon as Zhao Ping'an made his choice, the ginseng in his hand quickly dried and shriveled.
At the same time, a wave of heat surged into his body, then quickly vanished into its depths, its destination unknown.
The [Deduction Points] on his panel also rose rapidly, from 50% to 55%.
One after another, the Fourth-grade Spiritual Medicines withered to yellow husks, and Zhao Ping'an's [Deduction Points] climbed all the way to 100%. The Spiritual Medicines were just enough to use up the full amount.
He immediately spent his [Deduction Points] to begin deducing the Lightness Skill Soaring Dragon Void Steps.
When he tapped the three glowing words [Ready to Deduce!] beside it, the waves of heat that had just vanished without a trace surged out from within him once more, flowing into his mind.
They didn't affect him, though. A new window simply appeared on the panel:
[Ding, the Yellow-tier martial art Soaring Dragon Crossing the Void Steps has begun deducing its advancement. Current progress: 0%. Deduction in progress...]
At the same time, the total [Deduction Points] in the corner dropped straight from 100% to 35%.
Under Zhao Ping'an's watch, roughly thirty seconds passed before the deduction progress rose from 0% to 1%. In other words, completing the deduction would take about fifty minutes, nearly an hour.
He didn't sit in his room and wait. Taking a Special Heavy Long Saber, he headed to the Training Ground behind the house and began his martial arts practice for the day.
He practiced Nine Forms of Hegemonic Saber, Purple Light Ghostly Eyes, Five Thunders Sky Severing Palm, and Phantom Flying Dagger, one after another. There was no Qi bursting in every direction, no ghostly figure darting about—only simple saber swings, palm strikes, and tossed stones, while he stared at the copper coins hanging in the distance without moving a muscle.
Anyone who knew what he was doing would recognize that he was practicing martial arts. Anyone who didn't might think he was playing house.
Before you continue