Chen Qingqing in Someone's Sights

Bamboo-Wood Ward, in the room Chen Xun rented.

He slowly scraped the flesh-clinging python bones clean until only white bone remained.

Then he mixed them with the medicinal herbs he had bought, placed them in a pot, and began brewing them.

He brewed them for a full hour, only considering it successful once the liquid in the pot had turned thick and black.

Chen Xun made it look simple only because he had the experience of having perfected the Iron Garment Art. Brewing the medicine came as naturally as moving his hand.

For anyone else, even with the recipe in hand, poor control over the heat and timing would leave plenty of impurities in the brewed medicinal liquid.

Using it for cultivation would only yield twice the effort for half the result, and it could even worsen bottlenecks, making it difficult to cultivate the art to mastery.

Afterward, Chen Xun scooped out the impurities and filtered out a basin of thick black medicinal liquid.

Once Chen Xun had finished, Chen Qingqing ran over. "Brother, the water at Sister Ye's place is ready. Go carry it over."

"Alright, I'm going."

Chen Xun followed Chen Qingqing to Sister Ye's home.

Her home was more than twice as large as the house Chen Xun rented. At that moment, a steaming bathing tub sat in the main hall.

Sister Ye had rolled up her sleeves. Her face was flushed, while her lovely hair had been dampened by sweat and steam.

"Thanks for the effort, Sister Ye."

Chen Xun thanked her sincerely.

"It's nothing. Hurry up and use the water."

Sister Ye urged him.

"Alright, then I'll carry it away."

Chen Xun crouched, gripped the bottom of the tub, and gave a low shout before lifting the bathing tub, which was filled more than halfway with hot water.

Watching Chen Xun leave with the tub braced in his arms, Sister Ye's eyes flickered, and her face grew even redder.

"His strength seems to have grown again."

Before, Chen Xun had needed to hug the bathing tub as he carried it away, stopping every few steps.

Now, he simply lifted it and walked off.

That obvious change did not escape Sister Ye's eyes, leaving her somewhat wistful.

"Little Brother Chen Xun is improving so quickly."

After Chen Xun carried the tub out of her home, she immediately shut the door, went into the bedroom, took off her clothes, and used a small bucket of hot water to wipe the sweat from her body.

Back at Chen Xun's place, he carried the bathing tub inside and poured the entire basin of brewed medicinal liquid into it in one go.

If anyone else cultivating the Iron Garment Art saw this scene, their eyes would surely widen in utter shock.

When they took medicinal baths, they would never dare use as much medicinal liquid as Chen Xun did.

At most, they used only one-third of his amount each time.

Chen Xun dared to do this because the blessings of his three great traits allowed him to achieve what ordinary people could not.

He then sent Chen Qingqing outside, stripped naked, and immersed his entire body in the pitch-black hot water.

The next moment, Chen Xun began circulating a complex breathing method, absorbing the medicinal power in the liquid. Mixed with the qi and blood within his body, it condensed into a special energy that surged into the skin all over his body.

The moment his skin came into contact with that power, it greedily began absorbing it.

Thus, Chen Xun's skin gradually changed its originally fragile nature, steadily becoming tougher.

Only after a full hour did Chen Xun completely absorb all the medicinal power from the liquid.

He opened his panel and took a look.

[Martial Art: Iron Garment Art (Minor Success 110/800)]

His proficiency had increased by ninety points in one stroke—a tremendous improvement.

"Not bad. If this continues, I'll achieve major success in the Iron Garment Art in less than ten days."

Chen Xun smiled in satisfaction.

But soon, he frowned again.

"However, the day to return the book is almost here too."

Without the help of that purple piece of equipment, Chen Xun's progress would probably plummet like a rock.

"Looks like I need to make a trip there as soon as possible."

As Chen Xun pondered, he got dressed and poured out the water.

"Qingqing, I'm heading back."

"Goodbye, Sister Ye."

Chen Xun waved to the two women and left Green Bamboo Alley along the road.

Yet at the mouth of the alley, Chen Xun paused briefly before continuing forward as though nothing had happened.

Only after he had left did the two men hiding in the corner emerge and lean close together to whisper.

"Is it him?"

"It's him."

"Then that's good."

"In a moment, I'll pretend to be a peddler passing by and draw that brat's sister's attention. You watch for your chance, use the kidnapper's drug to knock her out, then grab her and run. Understand?"

"Understood."

Having settled on their method of committing the crime, the two hurried away and entered a house.

When they emerged from the room, one had dressed as a peddler, carrying a shoulder pole with a goods box hanging from each end.

The other had not changed much in appearance, merely keeping twenty or so meters away from his companion disguised as a peddler.

When the two returned to Green Bamboo Alley, the peddler had already sold quite a few goods.

Several middle-aged women chatted in Green Bamboo Alley while some children played and fought.

The peddler's arrival drew their attention, and they all gathered around him.

"How much is this?"

"How do you sell this one?"

While dealing with the women, the peddler searched for his target.

Because his wares were cheap and offered excellent value, more and more people gathered to watch.

"Qingqing, a peddler has come. I heard his prices are a little cheaper than in the market. Want to take a look?"

"Yes, of course."

So Sister Ye brought Chen Qingqing over as well.

The instant he saw Chen Qingqing, delight flashed in the peddler's triangular eyes.

"The target has appeared. Wait for the right moment."

The peddler hastily gave their agreed-upon signal.

Yet after waiting for quite a while, the number of people around him gradually dwindled. Even Chen Qingqing finished buying something and left, but nothing happened.

The peddler's expression immediately darkened into something frightening.

"How much is this comb?"

"Not selling anymore, not selling anymore. I'm packing up."

The peddler shouted impatiently, packed up his stall, hoisted his shoulder pole, and left.

"Fine, don't sell it then. What are you being so vicious for?"

The woman who had asked the price snapped unhappily.

The peddler ignored her and kept his head down as he hurried along.

When he reached the place where the two had agreed to meet, a figure was already waiting there.

"What's wrong with you? Didn't I tell you to make your move?"

The peddler was furious and immediately strode over to question him.

But when he drew close enough to see the other man's face, the anger on the peddler's face suddenly froze.

"You... it's you."

"That's right. It's me."

Chen Xun smiled at the peddler.

"You... why are you here?"

"What do you think?"

Chen Xun smiled at him again, but that smile made the peddler's heart pound with terror.

Without another word, the peddler threw down his shoulder pole, turned, and ran.

"Think you can run?"

Chen Xun sneered. The proficient-level Charging Bull Step activated, and he instantly caught the man, knocking him unconscious with a casual blow.

Fortunately, this place was remote, and no one witnessed the scene.

After knocking out the peddler, Chen Xun carried him on his back through secluded paths until he finally arrived before a house.

If the peddler woke up, he would discover that this was the very house where he had changed his disguise.

Chen Xun pulled a key from his clothes, unlocked the door, and entered.

The room was a mess. A bound man lay on the floor—it was the peddler's companion—and several new wounds could be seen on his body.

When he saw Chen Xun return, his motion of rubbing at the ropes abruptly stopped, and terror filled his eyes.

"Looks like you aren't very honest."

Chen Xun looked coldly at the rope that had nearly been worn through.

"Since that's the case, don't blame me for being impolite."

"Mmph! Mmph!" The bound man desperately tried to explain, but with a cloth stuffed in his mouth, he could not utter a single word.

An hour later.

Chen Xun fetched a basin of cold water and used a clean towel he had found to wipe the blood from his hands.

Two corpses now lay on the floor.

"Yu Qiang, Yu Sheng. Very good. I had planned to let you live a few more days, but you were in such a hurry to court death."

"Then I'll grant your wish."

Cold light flashed in Chen Xun's eyes, and murderous intent surged within him.

Had he not noticed that something was wrong today, Chen Qingqing might truly have been abducted by them.

At the thought of that possibility, Chen Xun's killing intent grew even stronger.

"Normally, you hide in the Wild Wolf Gang, so it isn't convenient for me to kill you."

"Today, you left the Wild Wolf Gang to meet these two. That gave me the perfect opportunity."

After washing the blood from his hands, Chen Xun picked up a short blade he had found in the house and tucked it into his inventory space.

He pushed open the door, locked it behind him, and left.