The Youth

After saying so much before, Li Yunxin only needed this one instant.

Two greenhorns. Or perhaps two powerful greenhorns.

But he was no fourteen-year-old boy.

And his parents in this world were, at the very least, not some True Martial Sect disciples who had fled betrayal, only knowing a few talismans as those two had claimed.

They were more likely the ones spoken of by those two men, enshrined by lofty sects and great schools...

Danqing Daoist!

In that instant, the cloud patterns originally painted at the edge of the wooden table silently flowed outward. They were said to flow, but they moved with incredible speed. By the time the two Daoists blinked, they found themselves entangled in wisps and strands of mist.

Red Pine Master frowned and was about to disperse the mist and subdue Li Yunxin. But the moment he moved, his heart was seized by even greater shock—spiritual power in his sea of qi had become as drifting and indistinct as that mist, unable to gather into qi!

Li Yunxin had already darted out in a single step, then stamped the ground viciously.

The two Daoists did not know what else he intended to do, but they had already realized that they seemed to have made a mistake this time.

It seemed... that Grotto Heaven Daoist they had plotted to kill back then had not been entirely unguarded against the two of them—at least half of what he had said had been utter nonsense.

"This humble Daoist observed him for over a month and knew long ago that he was merely a yellow-mouthed child. How laughable that Li Chenfeng and his wife possessed some genuine skill, yet truly intended to hide their names and live in obscurity, not even passing their arts on to their only son. Had that lightning tribulation not exposed their tracks that one time, heh heh..."

Looking at this youth today, his schemes ran deep and he advanced and retreated with perfect measure—how was he any "yellow-mouthed child"?!

Alarmed and panicked, they immediately bit their tongues and sprayed a mouthful of essence blood onto their swords. The longswords instantly began to hum and vibrate. In the span of a breath, the mist wrapped around them dispersed.

But though the mist had scattered, the spiritual power in their bodies still could not gather into qi. The two did not know what strange spell this was; they only knew that now, they could rely only on their worldly martial arts to capture that youth!

Yet when they took another step, the entire courtyard changed—within a space no larger than a palm, darkness suddenly fell. Above them, the sky churned with changing wind and clouds. Even the tree in the courtyard began to wave its branches and leaves, like a great ghost that had suddenly come alive!

This had happened seven days ago. It was the beginning.

From that day onward, Li Yunxin finally left the small mountain village where he had lived for fourteen years and truly set foot in the world.

Yet it was not the high-spirited, magnificent, fantastical journey he had once imagined. Now, exhausted to the bone, he leaned against a tree and sat, waiting only to gather a little more strength so he could leave this place of trouble as soon as possible.

During the chase and escape earlier, the two Daoists had used a talisman to seal his sea of qi. That pursuit had changed from a conflict between cultivators into a struggle between three ordinary people.

If his sea of qi had not remained sealed even now, why would he have needed to fear those five constables and risk his life to draw in Ninth Young Master?

Only when a few torchlights faintly appeared in the distance again and voices drifted over did Li Yunxin barely manage to rise from the ground. He first searched several corpses and found more than a dozen copper coins, a few scraps of silver, and a one-tael silver ingot. Then, staggering along, he headed downstream beside the river.

※※※

Drooping willows and white sandy banks, fair spring sunshine and lovely scenery.

A convoy traveled along the river. Two martial artists on horseback led the way, followed by four young men carrying sabers. Behind them came three large carts, their wheel ruts deep, suggesting that they carried quite a bit of cargo. There were people on all three carts, but the most eye-catching was likely the young girl on the last cart.

The girl was in her teens and wore a fitted outfit of black clothing. Her hair was tied in a ponytail, with several strands hanging beside her temples—the very look of a daughter of the martial world. At that moment, she held a willow branch in her hand and looked about left and right in boredom. Her bright eyes were lively and animated, but her cherry lips were slightly pursed, clearly showing that she was not very happy.

They had already been traveling for three days. Though the scenery was lovely, the land was sparsely populated. Every so often, when she spotted a thin curl of smoke rising from between distant mountain hollows,

it was enough to make her eyes light up.

In truth, the girl Qiao Jiaxin regretted it a little. She should not have pestered her father to bring her along on the escort job. If she had stayed home, she would probably be catching fish in the water right now. Catching little transparent fish and shrimp to keep in a clay jar, then watching them swim about every day—that too would have been a delight.

She twined the willow branch around her hand for a while, raised a hand to block the sunlight shining from the east, shifted her legs, and turned to speak to a middle-aged man in a ragged Daoist robe on the other side of the cart. "Hey, Old Liu, do a trick for me."

The old man in Daoist robes frowned. "This humble Daoist is not some street performer—this humble Daoist is a painter. Things like tricks..."

Qiao Jiaxin curled her lip. "A few days ago in Hui City, I saw you dragging a woman into an alley to perform tricks for her. You drew something on a piece of paper, waved your hand and burned it, then scared her away."

The Daoist's old face reddened, and he hurriedly cut her off. "Don't talk nonsense. With my status, how could I do such a thing? You must have seen wrong, seen wrong!"

The driver in front burst out laughing and turned to tease the old Daoist. "I believe Jiaxin—I also saw you enter Jadeite Tower—"

The old Daoist's face turned green again. "I-I-I am the head of the Dongxuan Sect. How could I go to such a place?!"

The girl giggled again. "Yes, yes, the Dongxuan Sect. Your Dongxuan Sect only has you in it!"

She was laughing happily when the cart suddenly stopped.

Looking ahead, she heard her father, Qiao Duanhong, ask in a deep voice, "Who are you, sir?"

Qiao Jiaxin's heart immediately began to pound—Have they run into bandits? Have they run into bandits?!

She hurriedly jumped down from the cart and craned her neck to look, but she saw only a youth.

A youth dressed in green. He looked like a scholar, but a short saber hung at his waist, making him seem somewhat out of place. The youth stood by the roadside, curiously studying their party. He even extended a hand and raised his thumb, though no one knew what he meant by it.

Qiao Jiaxin stared blankly for a while, and her face reddened slightly.

Because she thought... that youth was truly handsome.

He was unlike the people from the escort agency, whose skin had darkened and reddened from years of sleeping rough and eating in the open. The youth's skin was very fair, even seeming slightly translucent under the sunlight. His clothes clung to his body, making his whole figure appear slender and tall, as though a gust of wind might make him sway to and fro.

Pah, pah, pah! What am I thinking about?!

Just then, she saw the youth scratch his head and smile awkwardly. "Um, are you escorting goods?"

Qiao Duanhong let his gaze pause briefly on the short saber at the youth's waist, then examined him carefully. "Hongfu Escort Agency of Weicheng. We are indeed escorting goods."

The youth seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and clasped his hands. "I have long admired you, a pleasure to meet you. My name is Li Yunxin, and I happen to be heading to Weicheng. Could I catch a ride with you?"

Qiao Jiaxin could not help laughing. Though this was her first time accompanying an escort job, she was accustomed to seeing people of the martial world at home. So at a glance, she could tell that this youth...

Haha, was a novice—of course, that was how her uncles called them. Whenever they spoke of young masters who came before them and put on an elaborate pretense of being martial heroes, she would laugh too.

As for the phrase "catch a ride," it was her first time hearing it, but she roughly understood what it meant. Traveling alone through the wilderness was certainly dangerous. Even if one did not encounter bandits or mountain brigands, there were still wolves, tigers, leopards, and bears.

Mm... that old Daoist surnamed Liu had "caught a ride" too.

Qiao Duanhong frowned slightly and hesitated for a moment. In truth, he was somewhat worried that this youth was a scout. Generally speaking, organized bands of mountain brigands would send scouts to infiltrate a caravan before making their move. They might use knockout smoke or slip in laxatives, then send out a signal once the deed was done, whereupon a whole crowd would come charging out from somewhere in mighty force—though that was only something he had heard.

In reality, Hongfu Escort Agency only traveled the route between Luo City and Hui City. Though they had encountered danger from time to time over the past decade or so, they had never truly met such a situation. After all, this region was the fertile land of fish and rice of Great Qing; it could not tolerate large bands of bandits and vagrants.

After turning the matter over in his mind, Qiao Duanhong softened his tone. "I am Qiao Duanhong. A ride is possible. But—"

He felt that if this youth was not a bandit scout, then he was some young master who had sneaked out for amusement. His hands were slender, fair, and delicate; clearly, they were not hands hardened by strenuous labor. His clothes were not luxurious, but neither did they seem to come from a humble household. Seeing his relaxed and casual bearing, he had likely seen some of the world as well. A child from a poor family would usually be timid and submissive—how could he possess such poise?

Thus, he was about to explain that a ride cost silver. He feared that this young master might not understand.

Who would have thought that before he could finish, the youth knowingly reached into his sleeve, pulled out a one-tael silver ingot, and tossed it to Qiao Duanhong. "I understand, I understand. Is this enough?"

Heh, he was certainly generous. One tael of silver was enough for a modest rural household to live on for a month.

At this, Qiao Duanhong felt even more at ease. He caught the silver and tucked it into his robes. "It is enough. Young Master Li, head to the back—pick a cart."

Li Yunxin clasped his hands with a smile and walked over.

Qiao Jiaxin had already jumped back onto the cart and watched him curiously. Daughters of the martial world weathered wind and rain, and everyone coming and going from her home was a martial artist, so she had none of the rules of a proper young lady. When she looked at boys her own age like this, the thin-skinned ones would blush, while even the calmer ones would look awkward. She was, after all, a pretty girl, and boys were at the age when they were most sensitive to certain feelings.

But this one was different. He neither blushed nor looked awkward. Instead, he eagerly studied their entire group, as if everything about them were astonishingly fresh to him.

That was indeed true. He had lived in that little mountain village for fourteen years, and this was his first time leaving it. Naturally, he was even more curious... about what the customs and people of this larger ancient world, this other world, were truly like.

When his gaze met Qiao Jiaxin's, he even curled his lips slightly in a smile and nodded at her.

Qiao Jiaxin let out a soft little cry in her heart and lowered her head instinctively. But she immediately felt that being so shy was even more embarrassing, so she lifted her head again.

But the youth had already jumped onto the cart. Qiao Jiaxin felt it sink slightly—he had sat down beside Old Daoist Liu.

She felt a little relieved, and yet a little disappointed.