Down the Mountain

"Disciple, I'm heading back to the Upper Realm to find your mistress. Go down the mountain and fend for yourself."

After moving a mountain, Qin Guan returned to his quarters and found a letter his master had left for him.

"That old man's up to no good again!"

After reading the first sentence, Qin Guan immediately had a bad feeling.

"Twelve years ago, I was careless for a moment and accidentally slapped the Old Ancestor of the Nan Family in Qingzhou to death. To make amends, I secretly sold you to the Nan Family before he died and signed a marriage contract with him. So go to their home and become their live-in son-in-law..."

At this point, Qin Guan's mouth twitched. Twelve years ago, he'd only been four, and his master had sold him off. And he'd trusted the old man so much! What a shameless old rogue...

He'd never imagined he would become someone's live-in son-in-law in this lifetime. To him, it was a man's humiliation. A man should stand tall between heaven and earth—how could he stoop to living off a woman?

Qin Guan felt helpless. His master had pulled him out of a pile of corpses, raised him, and taught him everything he knew. In his heart, he'd long regarded his master as his father.

A father's debts were a son's to repay. It was only right.

He'd have to eat this bitter pill, whether he liked it or not...

"Alas!"

Qin Guan sighed and continued reading.

"You little brat, did you just curse your master?"

Qin Guan was speechless. The old monster had lived for who knew how many years, yet he still acted like a child. When would he ever grow up?

"Take good care of that tower. It's very important to you, so don't lose it. If you do, I guarantee I'll beat you to death!"

"Also, if you ever get into serious trouble and can't deal with it, open that Red Brocade Pouch. It might help you."

"Lastly, don't complain that I sold you off. I'm sending you to enjoy life. Qingzhou is full of beautiful women, and with your strength, you can do whatever you want there."

Qin Guan: "..."

After reading his master's letter, Qin Guan picked up the Storage Bag on the table and opened it.

Inside were a Red Brocade Pouch, a Marriage Contract, and a Small Black Tower.

When he saw the Little Black Tower, Qin Guan's eyes lit up. What a treasure!

Whoosh!

The moment Qin Guan picked up the Little Black Tower, it suddenly transformed into a streak of Mysterious Light and shot into the space between his brows.

Qin Guan tried to communicate with it, but That Black Tower didn't give him the time of day.

"Quite the personality. I like it."

Qin Guan grinned and left the Little Black Tower alone. He knew that artifacts like this had minds of their own. He'd have to take his time and build a bond with it.

Half a month later, in Qingzhou.

A ferry drifted slowly across a broad river.

A beautiful young woman stood aboard the boat. She wore white, her face as lovely as jade. A golden sash embroidered with phoenixes encircled her slender waist, accentuating her graceful figure.

"Miss, stand back!"

Just then, a Green Robe Old Man suddenly appeared in front of the woman and shielded her.

"What's wrong, Elder Xu?" The woman looked puzzled.

The Green Robe Old Man gazed into the distance, his expression grave. "A formidable fellow is coming this way!"

The woman was surprised. She had never seen Elder Xu so tense before.

Just then, countless ripples spread across the calm river. The next moment, the water erupted into chaos. Countless fish seemed to have been startled and leaped out of the river, fleeing in panic.

Splash! Splash!

The river, which had only been rippling moments before, began to buck violently, surging against the shore.

"A-a-a tremor! There's a tremor!"

The boatman cried out in panic, clinging tightly to the mast with both hands.

The Green Robe Old Man pressed down gently with his palm, and the rocking ferry steadied in an instant.

Just then, the sky suddenly darkened.

"A-a mountain's flying!"

The boatman stared up in terror. A small mountain came hurtling over the ferry.

"Whoa!"

Before the others could recover, a red column of water suddenly shot up from beneath the surface, several dozen zhang away from the ferry.

The next moment, a young man burst out of the water. A faint red glow surrounded him as he shot toward the descending mountain, fast as a cannonball fired from the river.

"Sorry!"

In midair, Qin Guan held up the small mountain and bowed toward the ferry. Then he plunged back into the river.

The small mountain sped across the water and vanished from their sight in moments.

"I'd long heard that immortals existed in this world. To have the good fortune to see one moving house today—my ancestors' graves must be smoking!"

After Qin Guan left, the boatman kept kowtowing in the direction he had gone.

"That young man was no ordinary person," the Green Robe Old Man said gravely.

The woman smiled and asked, "How does he compare to you?"

The Green Robe Old Man gave a bitter smile. "I can't be sure. If I were, and he'd disturbed you, would I have let him leave so easily?"

"Giggle!"

The woman covered her mouth as she laughed. "This is the first time I've seen you admit defeat so readily, Elder Xu."

"His Gang Qi is immensely powerful. When facing a Martial Cultivator like that, you must be ready to die. Otherwise, you shouldn't provoke him." The Green Robe Old Man spoke solemnly, then continued:

"As far as I know, none of the great Aristocratic Clans in Qingzhou has anyone like him. To reach such heights at such a young age is truly rare. Could he also be heading for that place?"

The woman in white furrowed her delicate brows. "Look into him."