Dirty Water

Ye Tong was not putting on an act. He could sense the capital behind the other party's arrogance and tyranny. The aura fluctuating around the brocade-robed youth was powerful, but even stronger was the silent, sword-hugging middle-aged man standing not far from him.

Sit and await death? That was not Ye Tong's way of doing things. Endure humiliation? The pride in his bones from two lifetimes would never allow him to bow his head.

When Ye Tong pulled the stopper from the bottle, an intoxicating fragrance drifted out. Even a light breath of it made every pore on one's body open wide, bringing a sensation of floating toward immortality.

Gao Hu liked the scent very much, but conversely, he especially hated the youth before him. The Gao Family was not one of the great aristocratic clans of the county city, but the foundation accumulated over several generations and a hundred years was still beyond comparison for ordinary households. Most importantly, his second uncle was a city-defense officer with no lowly position.

Normally, whether playmates or ordinary residents, they were less than pigs and dogs in Gao Hu's eyes. So long as anyone displeased him, they would suffer either his fists or his abuse.

Yet this bastard before him actually dared deny him face. He was simply courting death. He had come here to seize by trickery and force, intending to make a ruthless fortune off an outsider.

"Kid, I think you're looking to die!" Gao Hu drew his longsword, its tip pointing straight at Ye Tong.

Medicine Slave squatted to one side. After glancing at Gao Hu and the others, a trace of mockery flashed through his eyes. Then, unhurriedly, he took a jade bottle from his robes, poured out a yellow pill, and casually tossed it into his mouth.

Ye Tong shook his head and sighed. "If I'm not mistaken, you should be some spoiled second-generation young master from a county-city family, right? Your purpose is simple: to throw your weight around, seize by trickery and force, buy medicinal pills from me at a low price, then resell them at a high price for a huge profit. Am I right?"

Having his thoughts exposed, Gao Hu roared in shame and fury, "Say one more word of nonsense and I'll slaughter you! Kneel and apologize, then offer up the pills!"

"Get lost!" Ye Tong's expression darkened.

Several dozen meters away.

At the window of another pavilion surrounded by peach blossoms, Zui Qingshan stood with his arms folded, watching the scene before the neighboring pavilion with great interest. He had noticed that youth yesterday, drawn over by a pot of medicinal cuisine. Yet yesterday's poisonous medicinal meal had already piqued his interest. Who would have thought there would be a spectacle to watch today as well?

Eastern Mu Continent: three sects, two halls, eight Lineages.

He was a nineteenth-generation disciple of the Fengshan Sect, as well as the Senior Disciple Brother among the nineteenth generation. Now that he had broken through to the Foundation Establishment Realm, he could be considered extraordinarily gifted, a peerless genius.

This time, he had come to the county city of Zifu County at the request of the sect elders, intending to select talented youths and bring them into the Fengshan Sect to strengthen it.

"If you can fight, then try not to wag your tongue!" Zui Qingshan raised a hand to stroke his chin, eagerly anticipating the coming slaughter.

Before the pavilion.

The drawn-sword atmosphere attracted the attention of many passersby. Lan Xiaozhu, a pretty young girl in a green dress, happened to pass by and spotted Ye Tong facing off against the others. Having lived in the county city since childhood, she knew many of its people and affairs well. In particular, she knew Gao Hu, who stood opposite Ye Tong. Not only had she heard of some of his vile deeds, she had witnessed them herself, and she despised him from the bottom of her heart.

"Neither of them is a good person."

Lan Xiaozhu muttered inwardly. But then she thought of the youth about her own age. Apart from not answering her question and not praising her young lady, he did not seem to have done anything wrong. Comparing Gao Hu and Ye Tong, the scales in her heart tilted unfairly toward Ye Tong.

Who was Gao Hu?

He was someone long accustomed to being arrogant and overbearing.

If the person standing before him had been someone he needed to look up to, or someone with a background comparable to his own, then he would not have become angry at that one word, "Get lost." But at this moment, those words made him feel humiliation—the humiliation brought by an outsider youth.

Gao Hu roared sternly, "Kill him!"

"Wait!" Ye Tong raised an arm. After a barely perceptible glint of cunning flashed through his eyes, he asked, "Before we begin, will you announce your name? I don't like fighting nameless nobodies."

"This young master is Gao Hu..."

Only after speaking did Gao Hu suddenly remember that he had already told the other party his name. Asking again was disregard, contempt, and proof that he had not taken Gao Hu's earlier words seriously at all.

"Clap, clap, clap..." Ye Tong applauded vigorously and cried out, "The county city really is a fine place! In broad daylight, beneath the bright heavens, you, Gao Hu, dare seize by trickery and force before so many eyes, even intending to murder for loot. Impressive—truly impressive enough to make me fall to the ground in admiration. Let me ask you: with such a ruthless heart and vicious hands, so shameless and despicable, do your elders know?"

"You..." Gao Hu's body swayed, and he nearly spat a mouthful of old blood eight yards away.

He regretted it.

He regretted allowing this bastard to speak again. With so many onlookers around, once this basin of dirty water had been splashed over him, it would not be long before his foul reputation spread far and wide.

"A bunch of idiots!" Gao Hu's eyes reddened as he roared, "What are you still standing around for? Kill this damned brat for me!"

Ye Tong retreated two steps and sneered. "Your thoughts were exposed, so you flew into a rage from shame? You want to kill me to silence me, then make up a story to justify yourselves and block the mouths of the masses?"

The dozens of surrounding onlookers all revealed contemptuous expressions. No matter how slow-witted they were, they finally understood the cause of this conflict. Discussion immediately rose up. "The youth is right. This Gao Hu truly is ruthless and vicious, shameless and despicable. He has disgraced all of us from the county city!"

"Just because he has a little backing, he dares seize by trickery and force and treat human lives like grass. Though this Gao brat is young, he's rotten to the core."

"Who in most of the southern district doesn't know that the Gao Family produced a good-for-nothing? Shielded by his family elders, Gao Hu has done every evil deed imaginable over the years. He's not even fit to be compared with a pig."

"This youth has courage, and such sharp words! Facing a villain like Gao Hu, he is utterly fearless. He is truly a model for our generation."

"I just hope the youth doesn't suffer."

"Damn Jia Hai..."

Gao Hu had keen hearing, and every word of the surrounding discussions fell into his ears. His shame and anger deepened, as did the killing intent in his heart.

In the neighboring pavilion.

The smile on Zui Qingshan's face deepened, and he found things even more interesting. He had not expected that youth to possess such pride. Faced with the provocation of an evil young master, he had actually struck back head-on without the slightest fear. After today, Gao Hu's notorious name would likely spread like fluttering snow.

"What a pity!"

"At sixteen or seventeen, he is only at the Qi Refining Fourth Level. If he were at the eighth or ninth level of Qi Refining, he would meet the Fengshan Sect's standards for accepting disciples. Then he could be taken in as a sect disciple."

Within the crowd, Lan Xiaozhu glared furiously at Gao Hu. Having learned the cause of the matter, her usual sense of justice made her want nothing more than to give Gao Hu a savage beating.

She could not understand how Gao Hu could be so shameless, so vicious. After failing to seize by trickery and force, he actually wanted to kill the other person. He was shameless beyond measure.

At this moment.

Lan Xiaozhu's impression of Ye Tong changed greatly. His courage in refusing to fear power and refusing to bow before evil made her admire him from the bottom of her heart. She thought that if he could approve of her young lady's calligraphy and paintings, and if he could praise her young lady a little, then he would be an even better person.

Four sturdy-looking youths lunged toward Ye Tong. The weapons they carried became saber light and sword shadows, driving straight for the vital points all over Ye Tong's body.

Murder! To them, killing an outsider with no background carried no more pressure than slaughtering pigs and cattle.

"Hmph..." A low, cold snort rang out. A shadow flashed past, and the four youths, only at the fourth or fifth level of Qi Refining, were all sent flying backward. Their gleaming weapons also fell to the ground in an instant.

It was Medicine Slave! He struck in an instant, crushing the four youths. Just as everyone felt their vision blur, he had returned to his original position.

"How is that possible?"

Gao Hu's expression changed drastically. He staggered back several steps before looking warily at Medicine Slave. He had never dreamed that the old man, who appeared feeble and aged, would possess such terrifying strength. The aura fluctuation from that instant showed that he was an innate expert.

A ghostlike figure instantly blocked Gao Hu. The nearby sword-hugging middle-aged man had already revealed a vigilant expression.

Ye Tong fixed his gaze on the middle-aged man's face and asked with a smile, "Couldn't hold yourself back anymore?"

The middle-aged man remained silent.

Ye Tong shook his head and sighed. "You do not look like someone who commits evil deeds. Following this sort of thing, don't you feel stifled? Fine, take him and get lost quickly. If you can send him home within half an hour, he may still keep his little life. If you delay, hehe..."

The middle-aged man frowned upon hearing this. What did that mean?

With the middle-aged man protecting him, the shock in Gao Hu's heart faded away. Though he felt somewhat unwell, he paid it no mind and shouted, "Eagle Guard, kill them!"

The middle-aged man said indifferently, "My duty is to keep you safe, not to obey your orders to kill."

"You..." Gao Hu flew into a rage. Just as he raised an arm to point at the middle-aged man, his body suddenly shuddered. Horror filled his face, and he fell stiffly backward.

The middle-aged man caught Gao Hu in an instant. Killing intent surfaced in his eyes as he abruptly raised his head to glare at Ye Tong. "You poisoned him?"

Ye Tong sneered. "I am only at the Qi Refining Fourth Level. If I did not use poison, did you expect me to fight you head-on? How would that be any different from throwing an egg against a rock?"

"The antidote!" the middle-aged man barked.

Ye Tong said coldly, "Ten thousand taels of blue silver for one antidote. Take it or leave it."

The middle-aged man gave Ye Tong a deep look, then held Gao Hu and turned to race into the distance.

"Hey, you only have a quarter of an hour!" Ye Tong shouted at their backs.

More than ten meters away, a burly man asked, "Little brother, didn't you just say he had half an hour?"

Ye Tong smiled. "There is indeed still half an hour before the poison kills him. But after a quarter of an hour, that Eagle Guard who is so loyal to his master will not feel well either! Facing an innate expert, I could hardly poison only Gao Hu and not poison him too, could I?"

The burly man's expression changed slightly. A chill spread upward from his tailbone, and the other dozens of people nearby also revealed startled looks, becoming somewhat wary of Ye Tong.