In the memories he had inherited from the original owner of this body, the boy's father, Su Dahe, had died after taking a desperate risk to repay his debts, gathering mountain goods on a cliff.
He had lost his footing and fallen, leaving not even a body behind.
And hadn't the man who lent his father money been none other than Niu Han?
Now that Wang San had suddenly shouted those words, things had taken an interesting turn.
Wang San finally breathed a sigh of relief. Revealing what he had been holding back had bought him a chance to live.
"I can tell you, but... but you have to promise not to kill me. What happened here, I... Aah!"
Before he could finish, the arrow Su Yan had just wiped clean pierced straight through Wang San's palm.
The pain twisted Wang San's monkey-like face, making him look even uglier.
"Talk."
Su Yan uttered only that single word, yet Wang San felt an indescribable pressure bearing down on him.
He dared not bargain any further. "It was Niu Han and his men. Uncle Dahe said he'd found traces of a treasure plant, and that was why he borrowed ten taels of silver from him."
"Uncle Dahe thought finding the treasure plant would let him plug the hole, but he didn't know how greedy Niu Han's gang was. They ordered their men to watch him in the woods... Later, later we heard Uncle Dahe had fallen to his death gathering stone ear herb... It must have been them."
Wang San spilled everything in one breath to buy himself a chance to survive, then stole a cautious glance at Su Yan's face.
Yet Su Yan looked utterly calm, as though it wasn't his father who had died. Wang San's heart gave a sudden lurch.
I'm done for. This brat must be thinking of killing me.
He knocked his head against the ground again and again. The movement tugged at his wounds, and the pain left his face pale and contorted.
Even so, he dared not stop for a moment.
"Brother Yan, it really had nothing to do with me. It was all Niu Han and his gang."
"Is that so?" Su Yan drew out the words, his tone heavy with meaning. "Then how did you know?"
Wang San froze where he was. Meeting Su Yan's gaze, he hurried to explain, "I wasn't... Niu Han's men told me to watch you. They said, 'That boy's fair and clean-looking, and both his parents are dead. He definitely won't survive. When it's time to collect the debt, we'll sell him as a companion boy to some master in the city, then take his house too...'"
"Flay the skin, strip the bones, drink the blood, suck out the marrow. They really are quite something."
A cold gleam flashed in Su Yan's eyes. Old wrongs and new vengeance rose together; it seemed a confrontation with Niu Han's gang was inevitable.
"It had nothing to do with me..."
Shhk!
Su Yan raised his hand and drove the arrow in, killing Wang San.
Wang San had been watching him as Niu Han's accomplice, hoping to work his way into their gang.
He hadn't expected it to lead first to this attempt to follow Su Yan and steal his valuables. That had been pure coincidence.
Niu Han's thugs aren't scattered stragglers like Wang San. They lend money around the villages and have some influence. Looks like I'll have to come up with a plan.
Su Yan searched all four bodies. Apart from two taels of loose silver on Zhao Fu, he couldn't find so much as half a copper on Wang San or Huang Tian.
He had the Darkwater Centipede chew the wounds beyond recognition, then apply a mouthful of venom to corrode them, destroying every trace of the original injuries.
Su Yan concealed his footprints, then shouldered his basket and headed into the woods in another direction.
Li Hu and his companions had handed him twelve taels of silver for nothing. Together with his thirty-seven taels in savings, he now had forty-nine taels of fine silver.
If he wanted to pay the Martial Arts Hall's tuition, selling a little more of the stock in the Insect Realm Space would cover it.
But Su Yan couldn't go down the mountain immediately. He had to return with a full basket and allow some time to pass. That way, even if someone discovered Li Hu and the others were dead, no one would take notice of him.
Since entering the Growth Stage, the Darkwater Centipede had become increasingly extraordinary. Su Yan let it lead him through the old forest for half a day, finding several cinnabar lingzhi and digging up a few fo-ti roots until his basket was nearly full.
Once the time of day seemed right, Su Yan took another path down the mountain.
Perhaps Wang San and the others had feared word getting out and had planned everything in secret. Though an entire day had passed, no one seemed to have noticed anything.
Early the next morning, after refining a strand of insect essence, Su Yan shouldered his basket as usual and headed straight for the mountain market.
Many mountain villagers were going to market too, and when they saw Su Yan heading the same way, envy appeared in their eyes.
That heavy basket had to be full of mountain goods. With skills like his, paying taxes was nothing. Even marrying a wife or two, building a large courtyard house in the village, and buying a few acres of farmland would be easy.
Su Yan moved swiftly. It had been roughly a month since he refined the Darkwater Centipede and began continually tempering his body with insect essence while also training it himself.
Though his appearance had changed little, his body was no longer what it had been. He could match two or three sturdy men.
With such a physique, he naturally traveled faster than others.
Upon reaching the Mountain Market, Su Yan headed straight for the Hundred Herbs Hall's shop.
Bai Shan spotted Su Yan from a distance and immediately smiled. "Young Yan, what mountain goods did you find this time?"
"Wild fo-ti, around ten years old, and some cinnabar lingzhi."
Bai Shan had dealt with Su Yan several times and was fairly familiar with him. Knowing his abilities, he naturally wouldn't treat him like an ordinary mountain villager.
Taking the basket from Su Yan, Bai Shan carefully removed its contents. He weighed them in his hand and said in surprise, "These are probably more than ten years old. Steward Song will need to take a look."
Neither of them had kept their voices down, and the mountain gatherers and herb farmers waiting in line were already whispering among themselves, their eyes full of envy.
An old man wearing coarse gray-black hemp clothing smacked his lips, then pressed his dry, cracked lips together. "That should fetch two or three taels of silver, shouldn't it?"
He addressed his companion, but couldn't help glancing toward Bai Shan.
Bai Shan declared, "As long as the herbs have years of medicinal potency behind them, the price our Hundred Herbs Hall offers will never disappoint you. If this fo-ti truly has fifteen years... no, thirteen years of medicinal potency, it could fetch five taels of silver."
The fo-ti roots were sizable, and judging by their weight, they were indeed worth that price.
Leaving the handful of mountain villagers chattering among themselves, Bai Shan asked another assistant to help and led Su Yan inside.
Su Yan was slightly surprised. Bai Shan leaned close and explained quietly, "Young Yan, Steward Song gave instructions some time ago. If you came to sell herbs, I was to bring you to see him."
"See him?"
Doubt immediately stirred in Su Yan's mind. Though they had occasionally interacted, they were only nodding acquaintances. There was probably another reason for this sudden meeting.
"Brother Bai, is something the matter?"
Bai Shan shook his head and gave an awkward smile. "How would we know about Steward Song's affairs?"
As he spoke, he led Su Yan through the main hall. After only a few steps, they reached the inner courtyard.
It was a small courtyard with covered walkways on three sides, all fitted with wooden doors and windows. The rooms on either side were tightly shut and looked more like storerooms.
In the courtyard stood an ornamental rockery and a pitch-black water vat planted with water lilies.
Beside the vat, Song Qi sat in a wicker chair, resting with his eyes closed.
"Bai Shan, leave us for now."
Song Qi seemed to have noticed them before they even entered. Bai Shan had barely taken half a step into the courtyard when his voice rang out.
"Yes." Bai Shan bowed slightly. "Call me if you need anything, Steward Song. I'll be waiting out front."
Only after Bai Shan withdrew did Song Qi open his eyes and rise. "It's only been a few days since you last sold us goods, yet you've found more aged medicinal herbs. It seems you have quite a knack for finding them."
A flicker of something unusual passed through Su Yan's eyes, but his expression remained calm. He pondered, The Hundred Herbs Hall has a foundation built over two hundred years. Even ordinary treasure plants are merely somewhat more expensive herbs to them. Surely they wouldn't covet my methods.
"It's all luck. I rely on the mountains for my livelihood."
"You have several dozen taels of silver, yet you haven't moved to the city, bought land, or built up your household. You want to practice martial arts?"
Song Qi's deep eyes seemed to shine as he stared at Su Yan, his tone certain.
"Yes."
Neither servile nor overbearing, Su Yan raised his head to meet his gaze and answered.
"Good, good. You have some ambition."
"Let me ask you this: what is the difference between three-line red and blood tendon flower?"
Suddenly, the old fellow Song Qi changed tack and asked a question about identifying herbs.
For a moment, Su Yan couldn't make heads or tails of it. He had no idea what Song Qi was planning.
"Three-line red has a blood-boiling poison. When an ordinary person is poisoned, their blood grows hot as though boiling, and their whole body turns red. Without treatment, they die within three to seven days. It favors sunlight, and its vines grow on cliff faces. The whole plant is red, its flowers have four petals, and it takes its name from the three black lines beneath each flower."
Su Yan looked at Song Qi. "Apart from their effects, the differences between the two are mostly on the backs of their flowers."
"Good, good, good. You really have memorized the Hundred Herbs Diagram."
After hearing his answer, Song Qi broke into a smile, seemingly delighted.
"Steward Song, may I ask why you called me in today?"
"To make a deal."
Song Qi lifted his gaze, his expression growing more serious. "You want to learn martial arts. I'll show you the way, but you must help me find blood tendon flowers in the mountains. I won't take them for nothing—I'll buy them from you at thirty percent above the usual price. What do you say?"
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