Chapter 31

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

The Su family’s trading company was the largest trading company in the entire Blackrock City. Although it did not have a Force Tempering Martial Master overseeing it, it had four Blood Tempering Realm martial artists under its command.

More importantly, it was rumored that the Su family of Blackrock City was a branch of the Su family of Yuan Chang County. This was the reason why very few factions dared to provoke the Su family’s trading company.

Su Yun was the only daughter of the Su family. She had a large courtyard in the Yonghe District in the inner city.

When Xu Ling found Su Yun, she was at the pavilion in the middle of the lake behind the house.

Su Yun leaned against the wooden railing and watched the fish. From time to time, she would throw fish food into the lake, causing the koi fish in the lake to gather and fight for food.

“Su Yun.” Xu Ling quickly stepped forward.

“Xu Ling, why are you in the mood to look for me today? What’s the matter?” Su Yun sized Xu Ling up with a smile.

Every time she went to look for Xu Ling, she would basically be practicing martial arts in the courtyard. It was rare for her to take the initiative to look for her today.

However, Xu Ling was wearing a training suit and did not look like she was there to play with her.

“There is indeed something.” Xu Ling did not beat around the bush and went straight to the point. “I want to ask you for help to buy poison-resistant medicine. The requirement is…”

Xu Ling described the specific requirements in detail.

“You want this medicine to deal with the Blood Tempering martial artist who attacked the Xu family’s caravan?” Su Yun asked in confusion.

“Yes.” Xu Ling nodded and didn’t say that Han Zhao needed it.

“That’s not right. The amount you need is too little. This doesn’t seem to be prepared for many Blood Tempering martial artists. Could it be that the Xu family is confident that they can dispatch only one Blood Tempering martial artist to deal with the enemy in more than ten breaths?” Su Yun frowned slightly and discovered the loophole in Xu Ling’s words.

Even when dealing with an injured Blood Tempering Realm martial artist, it was best to mobilize many martial artists of the same level to encircle and annihilate him.

This would maximize the number of casualties.

Of course, if he could launch a sneak attack, it would be another story.

“If you don’t make it clear, I won’t help you!” Su Yun stared at Xu Ling’s face.

“Alright, I’ll tell you the truth.” Xu Ling looked helpless. “Actually, Junior Martial Brother Han needs my help. He asked me for help because…”

After listening to Xu Ling’s explanation, Su Yun snorted, “Since that’s the case, why didn’t he come to me himself? He only knows how to take advantage of you!”

“Su Yun, you can’t say that. We’re all from the same sect. It’s only right for us to help each other,” Xu Ling retorted.

Su Yun looked at Xu Ling with a faint smile, making her blush.

“Are you going to help me or not?” Xu Ling was annoyed.

“Of course, I’ll help you!” Su Yun smiled and immediately changed the topic. “However, if you want it, I can give you the cost price. One hundred taels. If Junior Brother Han wants it, then you have to follow the market price. Two hundred taels, not even one less copper coin!”

“Why are you like this?” Xu Ling glared at her and said bitterly, “Two hundred taels it is. I just didn’t expect you to even earn my money.”

“I’m scared of you. Why are you so anxious just because I’m joking? Don’t tell me you want to make up the difference yourself?” Su Yun looked helpless and said angrily, “The cost price is fine. You can come and collect the goods in ten days.”

“Thank you.” Xu Ling smiled sweetly, revealing two shallow dimples on her cheeks.

“Xu Ling…”

“Hmm?”

“I don’t think Junior Brother Han is a good match. You…” Su Yun wanted to say something but hesitated. After spending two years together, she truly treated Xu Ling as a good friend, so she didn’t want to see her being deceived.

“I’m going to get angry if you keep spouting nonsense!” Xu Ling rebuked, her ears turning red.

“Alright, alright, alright. Let’s not talk about it anymore. Come and try this Hundred Flowers Wine! It’s sent from the prefecture capital. A pot is worth ten gold coins.”

When Su Yun saw this, she sighed in her mind and didn’t say anything else.

…

Ten days later, Xu Ling’s servant rushed to Xinqiao District to inform Han Zhao.

Han Zhao immediately went to Xu Ling.

“Is this the antidote?” Han Zhao held a palm-sized porcelain bottle in his hand. He opened it and saw a thin layer of white powder at the bottom of the bottle. A foul smell wafted out. Just by smelling it, he felt his body heat up slightly.

“This is the Breeze Powder. It’s specially used to resist the kind of poison that causes one’s body to be numb and their blood qi to stagnate,” Xu Ling explained.

“Thank you, Senior Sister Xu.” Han Zhao cupped his fists.

“If the dosage of the poison isn’t large, you can detoxify it by smelling it. If the dosage is large enough to poison a Blood Tempering Realm martial artist, you need to suck in all the powder at the bottom of the bottle into your nose. If you inhale it all, it can last for about twenty breaths,” Xu Ling added.

“I’ll remember that!” Han Zhao said seriously.

One breath was equivalent to three seconds. Twenty breaths were 60 seconds.

If he had launched a sneak attack at close range, he might have been able to finish off the enemy in one breath. In short, it would have taken less than ten breaths.

In the past ten days, he had been investigating the situation near Nine Links Mountain and had already found some clues. He was just waiting for Xu Ling to obtain the antidote.

Now it was time to move.

There was a high chance that the heretic Blood Tempering martial artist was hiding in the Flying Dragon Stockade. If he could not end the battle quickly, he had to escape immediately.

The leader of the Flying Dragon Stockade, Qi Xing, was an expert who had broken through to the first Blood Qi Breakthrough of the Blood Tempering Realm.

Moreover, there were more than a hundred strong bandits in the village.

If he was surrounded, he would be in trouble too.

“I’ll return the two hundred taels of silver as soon as possible. I’ll have to trouble Senior Sister Xu this time.” Han Zhao cupped his fists and bowed. “I still have something on, so I’ll take my leave first.”

He had already understood the market.

This level of antidote would cost at least 200 taels of silver. He did not want Xu Ling to suffer a loss.

As for the favors he owed, it would not be too late when he became stronger.

“Junior Martial Brother Han…” Xu Ling’s lips quivered.

She knew that Junior Martial Brother Han had strong self-esteem, so she couldn’t say anything else. She could only watch him leave.

…

Nine Links Mountain.

The moon was covered by black clouds, and only a faint halo of light shone from behind the thick clouds. There was only a winding path in the dense forest that led somewhere. The wind swayed on the tops of the tall trees, making a rustling sound.

A tall and straight-masked man in black blended perfectly into the night and gradually entered the depths of the forest.

“Howl~” A wolf howl came from somewhere.

After Han Zhao entered the depths of the forest, the annoying summer cicadas stopped chirping.

Flames appeared in the distance, and the outline of a village came into view.

He climbed to the top of the tree and looked into the distance.

As his Life Nurturing Technique broke through again, his five senses became much sharper, far exceeding that of ordinary people.

He circled around the village and found that the north side of the Flying Dragon Stockade was backed by a cliff. Only the east, west, and south could let him pass through.

There were lookout posts at all three entrances, and someone took turns guarding them.

He waited patiently at the southern entrance for three hours. Finally, there was a gap between the shifts.

Swoosh!

Han Zhao circulated his true qi under his feet. His entire body was like an agile cheetah as his figure moved around in various blind spots. He took advantage of the moment when the bandits climbed onto the observation deck to sneak into the stockade.

With his speed comparable to a Blood Tempering martial artist, these martial artists, who were at most at the Skin Tempering Realm, could not discover his traces at all.

Although it was called a village, the houses were arranged in an orderly manner, and the streets were neatly planned. It was a rather impressive village. It was difficult to imagine that this was a bandit’s nest.

After entering the village, Han Zhao was not in a hurry to take action. Instead, he hid in the shadows.

He was shocked when he heard the sound of well-proportioned breathing coming from the corner of the street.

“Good lord, there are even hidden sentries. How cautious!”

Not only was there a watchtower around the stronghold, but there were also hidden sentries guarding the stronghold.

Indeed, they had done too many guilty things!

With this move alone, even if an ordinary Blood Tempering martial artist successfully infiltrated the village, they would still be discovered by the secret sentries.

However, he was not an ordinary person.

These hidden sentries were all exposed to his powerful five senses.

He only needed to rely on his hearing to determine the approximate location of the hidden sentries nearby and then quietly avoid them.

Han Zhao circled the interior of the stockade again and understood the plan inside clearly. She calculated the route to escape.

Soon, Han Zhao snuck into the largest house behind the mountain stronghold and caught a bandit on night duty at the back door.

He grabbed the other party’s neck with one hand and pinched his pulse with the other. He stimulated the other party with his true qi, paralyzing his body and making him unable to resist.

“Speak! Did an expert come to Flying Dragon Stockade recently and was seriously injured?” Han Zhao said in a low voice.

The bandit’s face was filled with fear. His mouth kept opening and closing, but he could not make a sound.

“If yes, open your mouth. If no, close your mouth,” Han Zhao asked.

The bandit opened his mouth wide as if he was using all his strength.

“Very good! As long as you cooperate well, I, Song Que, can spare your life.” Han Zhao nodded and asked, “Where is the other party now? Tell me his exact location. I’ll let go of you now. If you dare to make a sound, my fingers will immediately stab into your throat. Do you understand?”

As he spoke, Han Zhao’s right hand turned into a sword finger and pressed against the bandit’s throat. However, his left hand was still pinching the bandit’s pulse. Even if the bandit wanted to scream, he did not have the strength.

“That person… is… in the… west wing of the backyard,” the bandit said with difficulty. His trembling hand pointed to the left. His voice was so soft that only he could hear it clearly.

However, with Han Zhao’s current hearing, he could hear everything clearly.

“I’ll knock you out first and then go to the west wing to check. If you’re lying to me, this will be the last sleep of your life.” Han Zhao lowered his voice. “I’ll ask you one last time. Are you lying to me? If not, open your mouth!”

The bandit opened his mouth wide.

“Very good.” Han Zhao struck the bandit’s neck heavily with his hand and broke his neck while he was unconscious.

“I’m sorry. Song Que broke his promise. It has nothing to do with me.” Han Zhao sighed inwardly.

He had investigated Flying Dragon Stockade. When these bandits robbed the road, they usually killed all the men, leaving only the women.

Therefore, there was no need to interrogate the bandits when they were captured. They would be beheaded directly. There would not be anyone wronged.

Han Zhao hid the corpse in the shadows in the corner and rushed to the west wing on the left.