The Enemy Not Only Refused to Surrender but Dared to Strike Back

A faint smile squeezed onto Huang Tianzong's face, swollen like a purple eggplant, though it looked sycophantic no matter how one saw it.

Of course, it would have been better to ignore that punchable face.

Zhou Qiubai could not be bothered to respond. He merely nudged a small stone on the ground with his toe. The stone rolled a few times before stopping at Huang Tianzong's feet.

"Speak." Zhou Qiubai's voice was as calm as still water, devoid of emotion. "What's the price?"

Huang Tianzong swallowed and glanced around before lowering his voice. "Sir, this matter is rather strange. In the northwestern corner of the Star Dou Forest, near Ghost Cry Ravine, a peculiar fragrance has been drifting out at night over the past half month."

"A peculiar fragrance?" Zhou Qiubai raised an eyebrow slightly, seeming to take an interest in the matter.

Anything unusual was bound to invite conflict.

"Yes, it smells like... like bamboo mixed with the scent of wine, with an indescribable sweetness to it." Huang Tianzong rubbed his hands together, growing increasingly nervous. "At first, no one paid much attention. But three days ago, a squad from the Black Wind Mercenary Group went in to investigate. Seven men went in, but only two came back. And those two had gone mad, repeating the same words over and over—"

He paused, imitating their terrified, frenzied tone. "'The bamboo kills people! Transparent bamboo!'"

Transparent bamboo.

A Spirit Beast?

"Has the news spread?" he asked, quietly speculating.

He had read his share of Spirit Beast encyclopedias, yet he did not seem to recall any record of such a Spirit Beast.

"Not completely." Huang Tianzong hurriedly shook his head, revealing a fawning smile. "The Black Wind Mercenary Group wants to keep this information to themselves. They've sealed it up tight. But you know, there are no walls without cracks. I got it out of one of their drunken members. That kid is probably lying in some gutter by now."

Zhou Qiubai glanced at him. "You want me to go?"

"How would this lowly one dare order you around, sir?" Huang Tianzong shuddered in fright. "I merely... merely thought that your abilities are unmatched. If you are interested, this lowly one is willing to guide you there. If you gain anything afterward, just let me have a sip of the soup."

As he spoke, his gaze covertly flicked toward the money pouch at Zhou Qiubai's waist, as though calculating something.

Zhou Qiubai smiled faintly. This man was a straightforwardly greedy sort—afraid of death, yet sensible enough to recognize the situation.

The norm on Douluo Continent.

"Fine. Lead the way." He casually flicked out a Gold Soul Coin, which Huang Tianzong hurriedly caught. "This is the deposit. If there truly is something to gain when we arrive, I'll give you ten times more."

Huang Tianzong's eyes immediately lit up. He bowed repeatedly. "Thank you, sir! Thank you, sir! When do we leave?"

"Now."

The two slipped into the forest one after the other.

Huang Tianzong led the way while Zhou Qiubai followed behind, his right hand resting casually on his sword hilt as his gaze swept the surroundings with seeming indifference.

Keeping his Martial Soul summoned was also a way to train his Soul Power.

Zhou Qiubai knew the Star Dou Forest like the back of his hand. Over sixteen years, his footsteps had measured nearly every tree and stone along its outskirts.

But he had indeed seldom gone to the so-called Ghost Cry Ravine.

With a name like that, it looked like the sort of place that had treasure.

The stranger a place was, the more likely it was to breed strange things.

"Sir." Huang Tianzong suddenly stopped and pointed toward a patch of thinning woods ahead. "Another half li forward is the edge of Ghost Cry Ravine. That peculiar fragrance drifts up from the bottom."

Zhou Qiubai nodded and gestured for him to continue.

The soil beneath their feet gradually became damp and soft, while the air began to fill with a scent combining rotting leaves and some mineral odor.

Beneath that unpleasant smell indeed hid a thread of crisp bamboo fragrance, like wine.

The scent was unusual, like the Bamboo Leaf Green he had smelled in the backyard of some ancient temple in Jiangnan, but with an added touch of wild sweetness.

"Wait." He suddenly pressed a hand onto Huang Tianzong's shoulder, his expression turning grave.

Beyond the ordinary-looking bushes ten zhang ahead came an extremely faint rustle, like clothing brushing against branches and leaves.

There was more than one source.

Zhou Qiubai closed his eyes.

First Soul Skill, Listen to Rain.

Two people were hiding in the bushes to his front left. Their breathing was heavy, their heartbeats slightly fast. They were clearly extremely nervous.

One person was concealed in the treetop behind them to the right, breathing slowly and heavily.

Three more people lay in ambush within the shadow of the rocks directly ahead. One of them held a military crossbow, its mechanism already drawn taut.

Six people in total.

An ambush.

Zhou Qiubai opened his eyes and looked at Huang Tianzong.

The man's face had turned deathly pale. He had clearly sensed that something was wrong as well.

"S-sir..." Huang Tianzong's voice trembled, his face filled with terror.

"Stand behind me," Zhou Qiubai said flatly.

The instant his words fell, the bushes ahead abruptly parted, and six figures pounced out like leopards.

At their head was a one-eyed man with a vicious scar running across his face, carrying a Ghost Head Broadsword in his hand.

The five men behind him quickly spread out, forming a fan-shaped formation that surrounded Zhou Qiubai and Huang Tianzong.

"The Black Wind Mercenary Group is conducting business. Uninvolved people, stay away!" The one-eyed man's voice boomed like a bell, his blade pointed directly at Zhou Qiubai. "Kid, if you know what's good for you, get lost. I'm in a good mood today. I don't want to see blood."

Zhou Qiubai ignored him and instead turned to Huang Tianzong. "This is what you meant by 'sealed up tight'?"

Huang Tianzong was practically on the verge of tears. "I-I really didn't know they had set up an ambush here..."

The one-eyed man's face darkened. "No wonder you were so enthusiastic that night. So you were the one who leaked the secret. Fine. We'll bury both of you here today!"

He swung his blade. "Attack!"

All six launched their attacks at once.

But Zhou Qiubai reacted faster.

The instant the one-eyed man spoke the word "attack," Zhou Qiubai shifted his right foot half a step back. His body drifted left like a willow catkin in the wind as a short sword stabbed in from his right, grazing past the hem of his clothes and missing entirely.

The wielder of the short sword Martial Soul was a thin, small man. Seeing his strike miss, he immediately changed his thrust into a slash while loudly shouting the name of his Soul Skill.

Couldn't you chant it silently?

Why shout so loudly?

Thus, without even looking at him, Zhou Qiubai brought together the index and middle fingers of his left hand and jabbed at the inside of the man's wrist.

The thin man felt his wrist go numb, and his entire arm instantly lost all sensation. His short sword clanged to the ground.

Before he could even panic, Zhou Qiubai's toe lightly kicked the tendon at the side of his knee.

A light crack sounded. It was not serious, but it was enough to make him drop to his knees, clutch his leg, and scream in agony.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye.

The one-eyed man's pupils contracted sharply as he realized they had kicked an iron plate.

However, he was still a seasoned veteran who had lived by the blade. Not only did he fail to retreat, he instead roared violently as the Ghost Head Broadsword whipped up a sheet of ghastly pale blade light and came chopping down at Zhou Qiubai's head!

Oh?

The enemy not only refused to surrender but dared to strike back at me?