The night passed without incident.
By the time Ning Qingzhu finally came down from her room, it was already past ten in the morning. The other three were downstairs eating breakfast.
“Why did you wake up so late? Come eat breakfast,” Old Chen said with a smile.
Although he was chiding her, his tone held no real blame. In fact, a portion of breakfast had been set aside for her on the table, covered with a bowl to keep it warm.
“I went to sleep a bit late last night,” Ning Qingzhu said apologetically.
“It's normal to have trouble adjusting when you first arrive in a new place,” Qiu Zhiya spoke up.
“However, we have serious business to attend to today. You need to pull yourself together.”
“Oh, okay.”
Qiu Zhiya finished the last pastry on her plate, set down her chopsticks, and pulled a bounty poster from her robes.
“I picked this up this morning. Take a look.”
With that, she laid the bounty poster on the table so everyone could see its contents. On the paper was a portrait of a middle-aged man, with the reward amount written next to it.
“Five hundred liang of silver!” Ning Qingzhu leaned in to look, crying out in shock when she saw the reward amount.
The others also gasped in unison. Five hundred liang of silver just for one person's bounty! That was five hundred liang, after all!
Uncle Chen didn't look at the five hundred liang of silver. Instead, he stared at the man in the portrait. The man had a smiling face, giving off a friendly, approachable vibe that contrasted sharply with the glaring bounty next to it.
“Who is this person?” Xu Qing asked, voicing the question on everyone's mind.
Qiu Zhiya shook her head. “This bounty poster was just put up this morning. I'm not the only one who took it; others have as well.”
“It's not an exclusive contract. Whoever brings in his head gets the reward.”
Her meaning was clear. This man was highly dangerous, but there were also many people hunting him down. Most importantly, there was only one bounty of five hundred liang.
Once they left Jinling City, their path would lead straight to the northern border. Not only was the distance vast, but there would also be no rest stops along the way.
Therefore, they had to stock up on all their provisions at once, and this five hundred liang bounty would be more than enough.
The others had no objections, knowing she was right.
Seeing this, she nodded and continued, “The target's information is rather vague. In short, he's a flower-thief who recently struck the magistrate's residence.”
“In a fit of rage, the magistrate joined hands with several other families to issue this bounty. They specifically emphasized that if he is captured alive, the reward will double.”
Doubled! Wouldn't that turn five hundred liang into a thousand?!
At this thought, everyone felt a sudden surge of motivation. This was a thousand liang of silver! No wonder so many people were willing to take the job without even knowing the target's background.
“So, our plan from here is simple. I'll search for the target based on the clues, while Xu Qing monitors the other bounty hunters who took the job.”
Xu Qing nodded.
After arranging the tasks, Qiu Zhiya turned her gaze to Old Chen and Ning Qingzhu.
“You two... gather what rumors and information you can around the city,” she said after a moment's thought.
Old Chen nodded in agreement, but Ning Qingzhu was somewhat reluctant. She wanted to deal with the flower-thief like them; gathering information sounded incredibly boring.
Ignoring Ning Qingzhu's reluctant expression, Qiu Zhiya continued, “Alright, that's the plan, then.”
“We'll meet back here at nine tonight.”
Once everything was settled, Qiu Zhiya and Xu Qing departed.
Ning Qingzhu pouted as she watched them leave. Sensing her minor frustration, Old Chen chuckled softly.
“Little Qing, do you know where to go to gather information?”
Ning Qingzhu shook her head.
Old Chen stroked his beard and smiled. “I do. Follow me.”
Seeing how confident Old Chen was, Ning Qingzhu followed him half-skeptically. After walking for about the time it takes half an incense stick to burn, they ended up at an old, run-down teahouse.
As soon as they stepped inside, Old Chen ordered two cups of tea and a small plate of peanuts and melon seeds.
Then, he sat down in a completely relaxed, leisurely manner.
Ning Qingzhu was utterly dumbfounded. How was this gathering information? It looked like they were just here to drink tea!
“Sit down, Little Qing. Don't just stand there,” Old Chen gestured.
Feeling helpless, Ning Qingzhu had no choice but to sit down.
“Uncle Chen, we're supposed to be gathering information, not drinking tea,” Ning Qingzhu whispered.
“In the jianghu, it is common knowledge that the places where information flows most freely are either teahouses or taverns,” Old Chen chuckled.
“As the saying goes: with wine, truth is bared; with hot tea down the throat, tongues loosen.”
Ning Qingzhu nodded, half-comprehending. Holding her teacup, she took a couple of sips, but her ears were already perked up, listening intently to the conversations around them.
Unfortunately, although there were many people talking, at least half of them were just bragging.
Just as she was focusing all her attention on eavesdropping, a crisp crack of a gavel suddenly rang out.
—Smack!
Ning Qingzhu was startled and instinctively looked toward the storyteller on the elevated platform.
In a slow, resonant voice, he began to spin a tale of the jianghu. His voice rose and fell in perfect cadence, drawing in the surrounding crowd, who listened with rapt attention.
“Hah! Everyone says that the jianghu is currently in a state of upheaval, teeming with countless heroes and martial masters. But who among you knows of the four legendary figures who once stood at the very pinnacle of the martial world back in those days?”
Smack! The gavel fell, and the hearts of everyone present skipped a beat.
The storyteller slowly chanted:
“In martial arts, none can surpass Jiu Gu; in poisons, none can rival Li Lu.”
“A lone-robed figure walks the desolate valley; a ghost-masked face dominates the jianghu.”
“This is a poem born of their legendary deeds, passed down through the generations, celebrating them as the Four Supremes of the World!”
“The Four Supremes of the World...” Ning Qingzhu murmured to herself, momentarily lost in thought. To share dominion over the entire jianghu among only four people—what an incredibly imposing concept.
The storyteller took a sip of tea and continued, “'In martial arts, none can surpass Jiu Gu' refers to the supreme martial fanatic, Du Jiugu!”
“His martial skills reached the absolute peak. Whether it was the long spear, the saber, or the battleaxe, he wielded them to absolute perfection. Any weapon in his hands could be unleashed to its ultimate potential!”
The patrons in the teahouse marvelled. To master a hundred different weapons to such an extreme level—just how powerful must he be?!
Smack! The gavel cracked, instantly silencing the excited patrons.
“'In poisons, none can rival Li Lu' refers to the greatest poison master under heaven. Hailing from the mysterious Poison Valley, he is peerless in all manner of lethal toxins, truly capable of taking lives without leaving a trace.”
Uncle Chen raised his teacup and took a gentle sip. This kind of person was undoubtedly the most troublesome to deal with. Invisible, formless poisons were impossible to guard against.
“'A lone-robed figure walks the desolate valley.' The 'lone-robed' refers to Chu Hanyi, the only woman among the Four Supremes of the World.”
Hearing this, the patrons immediately began to murmur and debate.
“A woman? How could she possibly be one of the Four Supremes?”
“Exactly! There's no way it should be her turn!”
“If you ask me, this list must be a sham.”
Listening to the doubts of the patrons, Ning Qingzhu's face flushed red with anger. Hmph, what's wrong with being a woman? I could take on everyone in this teahouse by myself!
The storyteller gave a light cough and continued, “Chu Hanyi's reputation was actually quite ordinary at first—until that one incident took place.”
He deliberately paused here, instantly ramping up the anticipation in the room to its peak.
“That year, Chu Hanyi acquired a legendary sword. It is said she offered rare and priceless treasures to commission Luban to forge it. That blade could slice through water without interrupting its flow, and it killed without leaving a trace of blood.”
“Precisely because of this peerless sword, nearly every famous figure in the jianghu set out to hunt her down. And on that fateful day, she was cornered in a desolate valley by over a dozen master martial artists.”
At this point, he picked up his teacup and took another sip. This pause gripped Ning Qingzhu's heart so tightly that her knuckles turned white from clutching her own teacup.
At last, having finished his tea, he resumed the tale.
“That battle was exceptionally brutal. It is said that woodcutters on the mountains several li away could smell the stench of blood wafting in the air. Nearly half of those masters were slain by her in that desolate valley, which became their burial ground.”
“In the end, Chu Hanyi had walked in clad in white, but she emerged drenched in blood. That blood-soaked robe made her look like a bride in red, scaring the wits out of those who had come to gather news.”
“Since then, a saying spread through the jianghu: 'A single robe, a single soul, bathing half the martial world in blood.'"
As the story ended, the rowdy patrons who had been jeering earlier fell completely silent. One person against over a dozen, and she still slaughtered half of them.
Was she even human?
“That is so amazing!!” Ning Qingzhu clenched her fists in excitement, her eyes brimming with pure admiration.
In the future, she would absolutely become just like Chu Hanyi, sweeping aside all obstacles, invincible and unmatched!
Old Chen was also deeply moved. The jianghu was truly a place of crouching tigers and hidden dragons; one could not survive here without some real skill.
Smack! The gavel struck once more, louder this time, its sound reverberating through the entire hall.
The storyteller's expression turned solemn. Feeling the gazes focused upon him from below, he took a deep breath. This dramatic posture successfully piqued the curiosity of all the patrons.
“Listen closely, everyone. Next, I shall tell you of the final figure, who is also the most mysterious and unique existence of them all.”
“The Ghost-Masked God of Slaughter.”
Rate on N.U.
