Chapter 67: My Hobby is Divine Archery (1)

Chapter 67: My Hobby is Divine Archery (1)

Zhou Xuchuan retrieved the bag he had left nearby and walked over to Duan Hecheng's group, who were still stunned.

"Zhou Xuchuan of Mount Hua," he introduced himself curtly.

"I-I'm Duan Hecheng of the Diancang Sect..."

"Ah! The Seventh Young Master of the Diancang Sect!" Zhou Xuchuan's eyes widened in surprise.

Why would someone of his status come to a place like this..?

Even though the Diancang Sect's martial arts were highly practical, they still did not use poisons. They had no reason to come to the Poisonblood Valley.

"Excuse my earlier impoliteness. I was unaware of your status."

"You're our savior, Great Hero Zhou, please don't worry about such things."

Duan Hecheng might be the youngest of the Diancang Sect's young masters, but he was still above Zhou Xuchuan in age and was in his early thirties. Not only was he a senior in this world, he was also above Zhou Xuchuan in status considering that he was the disciple of the sect master, even though they didn't belong to the same sects.

"And if I may be so bold enough to ask, could I ask you to escort us to a safer place?"

Everyone was frozen in shock, but they weren't exactly in good condition right now. The nearly thirty people they had started off with had now been halved, with half of them being injured. Not only that, they had barely slept, not to mention eaten, so they were all in terrible condition.

"Understood. I discovered a cave that could be used as refuge. Follow me."

*

The cave was not that deep, at least not deep enough for them to worry about any creatures showing up suddenly from inside. Duan Hecheng and his group were finally able to relax.

"We owe you our lives, Great Hero Zhou," Duan Hecheng expressed his gratitude.

"Not at all. I have only done what I had to." Zhou Xuchuan waved his hand dismissively.

"Helping someone may be natural as a person of the Orthodox Faction, but it is not easy to put it into practice. Above all, aren't we in the notorious Poisonblood Valley where one cannot guarantee their own lives? Please, allow me to express my gratitude."

Duan Hecheng respectfully cupped his fists.

He is like a character from heroic tales!

Zhou Xuchuan couldn't help but inwardly exclaim. From what he could tell, Duan Hecheng's actions were all genuine. He wasn't saying things out of formality. Putting everything else aside, it wasn't easy for someone to bow toward juniors much younger than them.

"Thank you, Great Hero!"

The cultivators resting behind him also stood up and expressed their gratitude.

Hm, this feels strange.

For some reason, Zhou Xuchuan felt an odd sensation prickling at him. This was the first time other cultivators—over a dozen of them to boot—had shown gratitude toward him.

Usually, it's the other way round...

When his life hung by a thread on the battlefield, some people appeared like the wind to save him. He could remember bowing toward them in gratitude as they left.

"That aside, are you alone here, Great Hero Zhou?" Duan Hecheng asked, his eyes filled with hope.

"Oh, yes. I'm by myself."

"Whoa... you're here by yourself in the Poisonblood Valley?" Duan Hecheng's disbelief was evident, he seemed to be wondering why Zhou Xuchuan would do something so outrageous.

Zhou Xuchuan had a good guess about what it was.

"Take the child of the manor lord as the sect master's disciple. In other words, the manor wanted the Diancang Sect's martial arts and protection."

Even if the Galaxy Manor ran the Flying Tiger Agency, and nearly had a monopoly of all business in Yunnan, they were in the end, just merchants. They needed power to protect the manor and their assets, and their own escort agency did not suffice.

Not to mention the lack of experts among the escorts, even those escorts were hired wanderers. They needed the power and reliability of experts. Naturally, the Diancang Sect of the Ten Major Organizations was a powerful guarantee for them.

"The Diancang Sect agreed, but with three conditions. First, only one person can become the sect master's disciple. Second, that disciple will be restricted from telling anyone else about the martial arts. And third, there would be complete silence about the arrangement. I believe you can see why."

The first and second were all self-explanatory, and the third was because they feared criticism from other organizations in the martial world, since this deal between the Diancang Sect and the Galaxy Manor amounted to trading martial arts for money. No matter how flexible the Diancang Sect became, they would receive disdain from other sects in the martial world if they were to commit such acts.

Buying martial arts manuals for money was frowned upon by the Orthodox Faction. Although the Diancang Sect had done so with severe restrictions, they wouldn't be able to avoid disdainful gazes if they were to be discovered.

Even the Evil Faction would ridicule the Diancang Sect for losing their dignity if they knew about it. This led to the sect enforcing a silence order on the matter to prevent rumors from spreading.

"Is it okay for you to tell me something important?"

"And my senior brothers, the other Seven Young Masters, know about this." Duan Hecheng avoided Zhou Xuchuan's question.

"Would you like guess what my senior brothers think of me?"

"...Mm." Zhou Xuchuan groaned instead of replying. He could guess from Duan Hecheng's grim expression.

"A rich young master who became the sect master's disciple through luck, as well as the shame of the Diancang Sect. That's how they see me." Duan Hecheng laughed bitterly. "It would been easier if I had family to encourage me, but I had none of that, so it was hard to endure."

Zhou Xuchuan thought that there was more to the story than this.

"Anyway, I wanted to be acknowledged as a cultivator of the Diancang Sect by my senior brothers. That is why I came to the Poisonblood Valley to hunt the Seven-horned Serpent."

"When you mention the Seven-horned Serpent..."

"Oh, my, I totally forgot... I asked you for help in hunting the Seven-horned Serpent and didn't even explain what it is." Duan Hecheng scratched the back of his head apologetically.

"This happened before the Poisonblood Valley was designated as a forbidden area, but there was a time when cultivators of our sect went on an expedition. Back then, they came across a snake with seven horns, and from the records, even augmented qi couldn't harm it."

I see, the Diancang Sect knew about it too, huh.

Zhou Xuchuan wasn't surprised, since Mount Diancang and Mount Ailao were close. If local herbalists kept running into accidents around the area, the Diancang Sect naturally had to respond, since helping others resolve problems through their martial prowess could increase their reputation.

Above all, if they could process some of the poisons they obtained and traded it with the Tang Family, it could help out with their finances as well.

"I heard that crafting a weapon from its horn could probably create one of the greatest swords in the world. If I can verify its legend and hunt it down, my senior brothers will definitely acknowledge me as a true member of the Seven Young Masters of the sect."

He isn't wrong, but...

Zhou Xuchuan was originally planning to take the horn as well, given its value as an ingredient for a weapon.

Duan Hecheng. His personality isn't bad, and his martial prowess is also quite decent. His background is intriguing too. The fact that he isn't well-known despite that is because his sect considered him a disgrace and hid him, huh?

Zhou Xuchuan could picture the circumstances in his head.

And the fact that he had not made himself known in the future means that...

He was probably destined to die here.

"I know I am practically taking a mile when you already gave me an inch, but I must ask you regardless. I swear I will never forget this grace!" Duan Hecheng pleaded desperately.