Tracking

"Poison? When did you put it..."

The tall, thin man's expression changed in horror as he instantly understood the source of the dizziness clouding his mind.

He jerked his head up and looked at Lin Qing's calm face, his eyes filled with shock.

"Ah! I'm so pissed!!"

He let out an angry roar, trying to gather the last of his strength for a desperate strike.

But a fierce wave of dizziness crashed through his mind. His vision blackened in fits, and his arms and legs grew heavy as lead.

The powder of Seven-Step Smiling Madness was extraordinarily fine. Lin Qing had concealed it between his fingers.

Earlier, during their fierce exchanges of fists and blades, the impacts had sent his opponent's blood and qi surging.

The instant the man's pores opened, the force of their collision had carried the powder onto his skin and clothes, without a sound.

Then, as he launched into his frenzied, life-or-death attacks, his blood and qi circulated faster.

The poison had already seeped through his pores and tiny wounds, spreading into every limb and bone.

"Thud!"

The tall, thin man could no longer hold himself up. His knees buckled, and he fell heavily to the ground, the saber in his hand clattering beside him.

He clutched his own throat with both hands, as though trying to breathe.

Purple-black veins had spread from his neck to his cheeks, making his entire face look hideously contorted.

His body convulsed violently. The light in his eyes quickly faded, and at last he slumped completely, a smile of release on his face. Then he went still.

Lin Qing stood where he was, breathing slightly hard. He watched warily for a moment, confirming that the man had died from the poison.

He went over to the corpse. Without the slightest hesitation, he snatched up the saber beside it and thrust it straight into the man's neck.

Spurt!

The blade sank into flesh.

Only after confirming that there was no chance the man could survive did Lin Qing lower the saber and let out a long breath.

A powerful wave of exhaustion washed over him.

It wasn't all physical. Most of it came from finally relaxing after being wound so tightly.

"This world is far too dangerous."

He murmured to himself as he looked at the corpse on the ground.

He felt little satisfaction at having killed someone, only a weighty sense of urgency.

"I only went to the Black Market, and someone targeted me for a robbery and a killing. If I hadn't been prepared and kept a few cards up my sleeve, I'd be the one dead today."

"I fought to the death and killed a Second Barrier Realm martial artist with extensive combat experience, despite only being at the First Barrier Realm."

"That proves some of my preparations were right."

Lin Qing thought it over cautiously.

The tall, thin man was by far the strongest opponent he had faced so far.

In this chaotic world of martial arts, one could never be too cautious or keep too many cards hidden.

After resting for a while, he began to take care of the aftermath.

First, he searched the spoils.

From the tall, thin man, he found a bulging purse containing dozens of taels in silver pieces—far more than his impoverished younger brother had.

He also found a palm-sized token, cold to the touch.

It was made of some kind of metal, pitch-black all over and heavy in the hand.

Three archaic characters were carved across the front in sweeping strokes: the Ge Pao Society.

On the back was a numbered designation: Number 79.

"The Ge Pao Society?"

Lin Qing held the black-iron token, his brows drawing together.

He had never heard of this organization.

But judging by the token's material and its number, this clearly wasn't some loose band of small-time ruffians.

It was an organization with a strict hierarchy.

The Liu Xiaodao brothers both used the Wave-Breaking Blade Technique.

Could that technique have something to do with the Ge Pao Society they belonged to?

"Looks like I'll have to find a way to investigate the Ge Pao Society once I'm back."

"If I've provoked a troublesome power, I'll need to be ready to deal with it."

Lin Qing carefully put away the token and silver, then thoroughly cleaned up the scene, doing his best to erase every trace of the fight.

Finally, he dragged the body into a secluded natural crevice in the rocks and covered it with dead branches and leaves.

By the time he finished, it was already getting late.

He slung the bulging bundle of medicinal herbs onto his back, checked his bearings, and hurried toward Qingping County.

Lin Qing raced along at full speed.

He didn't slow until the low outline of Qingping County's walls came into view.

But as soon as he entered the city, that prickling sensation of being watched from behind abruptly returned.

Like a worm burrowing into his bones, it lingered on and off without ever going away.

His expression grew grave.

"Once might be a coincidence, but twice probably isn't."

He suspected he was almost certainly being watched.

And his pursuer was good at tailing people.

The enemy was hidden while he was exposed. That was a cardinal taboo.

He went home and put down the bundle of herbs, then left the shop again and wandered casually around the city.

First, he bought oil, salt, vinegar, and other daily necessities from a few general stores. Then he went to a clothing shop and picked out two ordinary changes of clothes.

Finally, he turned into a busy, noisy tavern.

Lin Qing chose a seat by a second-floor window and ordered a few small dishes and a pot of rough wine.

He appeared to be leisurely watching the street below, but out of the corner of his eye, he discreetly scanned the tavern and its surroundings.

Before long, one figure caught his attention.

The man wore a coarse-cloth tunic, washed until it had faded white, and a battered bamboo hat. He looked like an ordinary old farmer.

He was crouched beside a bamboo-weaving stall across the street, seemingly picking out an item, but the gaze beneath his hat kept sweeping over the tavern.

Lin Qing distinctly remembered catching sight of someone dressed similarly outside a general store earlier.

He'd also seemed to spot someone like that loitering not far from the clothing shop.

Once was coincidence, twice was chance.

The third time was no coincidence at all.

"Finally showing your tail."

Lin Qing's heart sank, but he kept his expression composed and continued eating at an unhurried pace.

His ears were pricked up, carefully catching the tavern patrons' conversations in the hope of hearing some clue about the Ge Pao Society.

But amid the noisy chatter, most people were talking about the war on the Northern Border, skyrocketing grain prices, or the latest street-corner gossip.

There was no information related to the Ge Pao Society.

After finishing his meal, he paid and went downstairs.

Lin Qing deliberately wandered around the streets a few more times.

He even stopped at a bookstore and leafed through some light reading for quite a while.

The old farmer's figure kept reappearing somewhere in his field of vision, never too close or too far. His tracking skills were exceptionally good.

If Lin Qing hadn't been so cautious and alert, he likely wouldn't have noticed at all.

His test complete, Lin Qing didn't waste any more time. He headed straight back to Benevolent World Hall on Yongning Street.

He still showed no sign that anything was wrong. He chatted as usual with his older sister, Lin Wan, and helped sort the medicinal herbs.

He acted as if he had no idea he was being watched.

The next three days passed without incident.

Business at Benevolent World Hall remained brisk. Every day, Lin Qing went back and forth between the martial arts school and the medicine shop, training hard as though nothing had changed.

Yet the feeling of being watched didn't disappear. It only grew more discreet.

Lin Qing knew the other party was scouting the area and learning his routine.

But he hadn't spent those days doing nothing to prepare.

He had secretly embedded poisoned spikes in the courtyard wall. He had even set up warning bells and poison powder by the entrance.

Still, waiting around like this was no solution in the end.