True Heart

This Hundred-Year Soul Skill was unexpectedly feeble!

The Forging Hammer's momentum did not diminish as it hurtled straight for his face.

"Wait, you can't open the iron box, can you? I can tell you what's inside..."

"No need!" Tie Li cut him off directly. How could he let him reveal the treasure inside the iron box?

Kern's expression changed repeatedly. Only his right claw had been injured; his legs were unharmed. After witnessing Tie Li's fierce attacks, he wanted to flee.

His agile body sprang away several times in succession, quickly widening the distance between himself and Tie Li.

At that moment, Tie Li suddenly withdrew his Martial Soul.

A bolt of lightning burst forth with astonishing speed, shooting straight toward Kern.

It was the Thunder Python's Single Horn. Tie Li infused it with Soul Power, causing it to erupt with blue-white lightning. With Tie Li's charged throw, it was like his right hand had struck out a flash of electricity from thin air.

Sizzle

This was the Thunder Python Horn of a four-hundred-year Thunder Python. Its power could not possibly be weak. Only because Tie Li had absorbed the Thunder Python's Soul Ring could his Soul Power trigger the horn's effects.

The power unleashed by the horn was even fiercer than Tie Li's First Soul Ring.

Just as Kern's First Soul Ring lit up with white light, a scorched wound appeared across his abdomen. The horn pierced through his stomach, exposing the writhing organs within.

"You..."

Kern stared fixedly at Tie Li, as though he had countless words he could not express.

No one present had expected Tie Li to truly kill a Two-Ring Soul Grandmaster.

Huff, huff

Tie Li collapsed halfway to the ground in exhaustion, his face deathly pale from overusing his Soul Power.

The Soul Power required to unleash the Thunder Python Horn just now had been immense. For a moment, Tie Li thought it would drain him dry.

Fortunately, the attack it unleashed had not disappointed him. Otherwise, things would have gone terribly wrong.

"Don't let any of them escape." Manager Ma immediately issued a kill order.

Whether for the Snowwind Trading House or for Tie Li himself, if even one survivor escaped, it would become a problem for them.

The missing cargo was in Tie Li's hands. Afterward, he could not possibly take it out and share it with the caravan. Even if Tie Li was willing, they would not dare accept it. If anyone escaped and the matter was exposed, Tie Li would face endless trouble.

As a trading house, the Snowwind Trading House operated openly. What it feared most was retaliation from the shadows, which could easily result in massive losses. Such a situation was difficult for any trading house to accept.

Although Tie Li had been the one to act, the Snowwind Trading House had been involved.

In truth, Manager Ma also harbored a slight concern: would Tie Li kill them to silence them?

Fortunately, none of them knew what the cargo actually was or how valuable it might be.

That was also why Tie Li had interrupted Kern. He himself feared that, after learning the value of the treasure inside the iron box, he would be unable to resist the temptation and kill everyone to silence them.

After recovering a little, Tie Li joined the battle. With a Soul Master joining in, the situation instantly became one-sided.

Sizzle.

Only after killing the last person did Tie Li walk over to search Kern's corpse.

Two money pouches and a jade box!

Next was Manager Bai's corpse. He had only one money pouch, but it was bulging, clearly filled with many coins.

Just as before, Manager Ma had everyone search for money pouches and hand them over to Tie Li.

However, Tie Li did not take them this time.

"Their goods and carriages should be enough to compensate for your losses, right?"

The losses Tie Li mentioned could be understood another way: I took the missing cargo, while these money pouches, goods, and carriages are your compensation.

We all benefited, so afterward, none of us can betray the others!

Manager Ma's face lit up with delight upon hearing that. This was exactly what he wanted Tie Li to say.

"Then I'll leave the rest to you."

"Don't worry. I'll handle it properly."

Tie Li wanted to return to the carriage to rest, but he discovered that its roof had been destroyed and needed repairs.

Seeing this, Manager Ma immediately called for his men to patch it up. They quickly finished the work.

The group set out again. No accidents occurred along the way, and they arrived safely at Fragrant City.

With the Snowwind Trading House's insignia and documentation, they entered Fragrant City after a brief questioning.

"Lord Soul Master, this is your payment for this trip!"

After entering Fragrant City, Manager Ma hurriedly took out two Gold Soul Coins. Perhaps the other party no longer thought much of such a small sum, but rules were rules, and he could not make decisions on his own.

"Mm, good. Stamp this for me while you're at it."

Tie Li took a small booklet from his clothes. This could be considered adding to his credentials. With a trading house's stamp, he would have priority when accepting escort missions from other trading houses in the future.

After all, when trading houses hired Soul Masters, they also hoped to find ones with good reputations and trustworthy records.

"Alright."

Having arrived in Fragrant City, Tie Li was utterly unfamiliar with the place.

"First, find an inn. I can also ask the innkeeper about the city while I'm there."

He had carried the little iron box in his clothes the entire way and had not dared open it, fearing that the temptation would be too great and he would develop thoughts of killing everyone to silence them.

The inn prices were all roughly similar. After checking the prices at three inns, Tie Li found that the fourth charged about the same, so he stayed there.

He had money in his pocket, but that did not mean he should be a sucker.

"Innkeeper, what trading houses are there in Fragrant City?" After booking a room, Tie Li asked the innkeeper beside him, a middle-aged man in his forties wearing brown cloth clothes and trousers.

"There are relatively few trading houses in the city. Most supplies are delivered by trading houses from outside..."

Perhaps it was related to the terrain. Fragrant City's geography and environment were poor, and its supplies depended on outside trading houses for delivery. According to the innkeeper, Fragrant City had only one proper trading house: the Purple River Trading House.

After learning the general situation, Tie Li returned to his room.

He took out the little iron box. It could not be opened through brute force.

Tie Li took out the Thunder Python Horn. Back in the caravan carriage, he had noticed something: whenever the Thunder Python Horn came near the little iron box, the two would react strangely.

The Thunder Python Horn would occasionally gather electric light, while the little iron box would keep making a "thump, thump" sound.

Crackle, crackle

Thump, thump

Tie Li brought the Thunder Python Horn close to the little iron box, and the two reacted again.

This time, Tie Li poured Soul Power into the Thunder Python Horn. It immediately transformed into lightning, and he smashed it heavily into the little iron box.

It had to be said that the little iron box's quality was truly excellent. Even the physique of a Two-Ring Soul Grandmaster had been pierced through with ease, yet the little iron box suffered only slight damage.

However, the treasure within the little iron box was drawn out, erupting with power that surpassed the Thunder Python Horn.

Rumble

With a violent roar, the little iron box instantly shattered into four pieces. A bead woven from blue-white lightning floated in the air.

Tie Li was startled at first, but upon seeing the bead, his pupils suddenly constricted.

"Is that... the Millennium Thunder Python Inner Core?" Tie Li's voice trembled faintly, as though he could not believe what he was seeing.

The Forging Hammer Martial Soul emerged of its own accord. The power shared by the First Soul Ring and the Thunder Python Inner Core resonated with one another.