Chapter 17

Prev List Next

Yu let out a sigh of relief after hearing the shaking voice, believing Fang Xing to finally be scared. As far as Yu was concerned, Fang Xing"s reckless behaviors would have gotten the two of them into much more trouble if it wasn"t for his interference, after all.

"Of course it"s not allowed according to sect rules... but those are just the rules. If a talented A-Ranked disciple has been robbed of their belongings, someone from the sect will intervene. Now, if we as D-Ranked disciples were to be robbed, who do you think would actually care?

Even if we were robbed, the elders would only think it"s some small grudge we have towards each other, nothing important enough for them to actually care. There was even a time when a newly recruited s.h.i.+di was beaten to death only for the elders to declare it to be an accident. Do you know what happened to the murderer? He was only sentenced to one year in the Punishments Hall…."

Fang Xing"s eyes lit up even more. In contrast to Yu, this fact only made Fang Xing grow more excited.

"This sect is just… so understanding!"

However, Fang Xing was not stupid enough to act blindly. He knew that his mastery of only tier one didn"t leave him in a strong enough position to prey on the other disciples; he"d need careful evaluation as well to make up for it.

Yu hurriedly wanted to get back to their cottages as soon as possible. There was an unwritten rule that a disciple would be safe once they were back at their own districts, and such robberies would only happen outside of them.

It was fortunate that they had gotten there quite early and not many disciples had received their Spirit Stones. With this, not many people were loitering about searching for easy targets.

Just as Yu and Fang Xing walked past a mountain stream to the side of a bamboo forest -- only a few blocks away the safety of their living quarters -- three men came into view. The group included the feeble disciple and the beefy man Fang Xing had verbally abused just moments ago, all three seeming to be waiting for someone.

"These b.a.s.t.a.r.ds are waiting to get their *sses kicked for real this time, huh?" Fang Xing cracked his knuckles and muttered to himself, immediately understanding the situation.

"Isn"t that s.h.i.+xiong Yu? Aren"t you up early today!" a fourth man coldly spoke just as Yu was about to stop Fang Xing from his impulsive actions.

Yu turned around with a bitter expression after hearing that cold voice, his face at odds with his own polite greeting, "Good morning, s.h.i.+xiong Liu. I wish s.h.i.+xiong a good fortune...."

Walking out of the shadows of the bamboo forest was a man in his twenties. A grin was settled on the man"s face in the shape of a false smile, and Fang Xing could see that he was within the second tier. The man"s eyes were filled with disdain and ridicule, his gaze sweeping past Fang Xing to land on Yu instead. "Where"s your contribution this time?"

Once the feeble man and his friends saw someone else blocking Fang Xing and Yu"s path, they stopped as well. They had mistaken the newcomer as a friend of the pair before noticing the terrified look on the plump Taoist"s face.

"Haha, s.h.i.+di Tzu, looks like we don"t even need to get our hands dirty; they"ve already gotten themselves someone more difficult to deal with," the beefy man laughed as he patted the feeble disciple"s shoulder.

"Now this is what I call karma!" All three of them laughed while looking over towards Fang Xing and Yu.

Yu"s face was full of despair as he faced s.h.i.+xiong Liu, his words nearly begging, "Please, dear s.h.i.+xiong Liu. I have given you every Spirit Stone I earned from working at the Miscellaneous Department for the past three months…. Please, have mercy on me and let me keep the Stone from the sect distributions. I"ve already sent you a Stone just a few days ago…."

Not satisfied with Yu"s answer, s.h.i.+xiong Liu gave him another chance to correct himself, "Are you haggling with me?"

"I would not dare to…. Please, have mercy…." Yu hastily continued to plead, trying to appease s.h.i.+xiong Liu.

s.h.i.+xiong Liu"s pupils dilated, seeming finally satisfied with Yu"s answer. "Good. Yes, those were the rules before, but rules can always be changed," he spoke before looking towards Fang Xing next to Yu, clearing his throat before he continued. "It was just you before, but now I see you"ve gotten yourself a little monkey tag-along. The Spirit Stone contributions must now also double; I expect two Stones every three months from you from now on."

Startled, Yu began to beg even more desperately, "s.h.i.+xiong Liu, please don"t do this. s.h.i.+di Fang joined the outer court only a few days ago. Please, let him go… just for me…"

"For you? Who do you think you are?" Before Yu was able to realize what had just happened, s.h.i.+xiong Liu had already landed a slap to his fat face. "I think I"m already quite reasonable to allow you to keep one Stone between the two of you. If you continue on like this, you"ll be left with none."

Yu"s face swelled up immediately after receiving the blow. After Yu handed s.h.i.+xiong Liu his Spirit Stone, he guilty looked towards Fang Xing, instructing him to do the same without causing any more trouble.

"s.h.i.+xiong Zhu, why didn"t you tell me you were friends with such a good man like s.h.i.+xiong Liu? You should have introduced me earlier!"

Fang Xing had acted like a bystander the entire time until the moment s.h.i.+xiong Liu"s gaze crossed with his. Fang Xing was all smiles, and without a hint of hesitation he took out his Spirit Stone. "With only one look I could already tell that s.h.i.+xiong Liu here is not only extremely powerful but also a very good man of his words. I am new to the outer court, so it would actually be my utmost pleasure to gift you with this Spirit Stone as a sign of my admiration. Please do kindly take this."

Seeing the bright red Spirit Stone handed over so easily left s.h.i.+xiong Liu surprised.

Fang Xing"s manners before now had been closer to those of a mountain bandit"s than a disciple of a well-respected sect, but Liu was extremely contented by this offering. He believed that Fang Xing must have mistaken him for someone of importance within the sect and wanted to get on his good side for protection.

Seeing this turn of events, Tzu -- the feeble disciple -- and his friends had determined that this kid just had a dirty mouth. Watching him so easily bow down to someone that was stronger, they decided that once this s.h.i.+xiong Liu was gone, they"d take whatever was remaining on the pair.

The honest appearance of the baby-faced Fang Xing made it seem even more innocent than usual; it was hard for anyone to question his sincerity.

"This little s.h.i.+di here understands a lot more than you, s.h.i.+di Yu. You should have introduced me to your good s.h.i.+di here earlier, too!" In stark contrast to his callous expression, s.h.i.+xiong Liu let out a heartfelt smile towards Fang Xing. "Haha, don"t worry, little s.h.i.+di; with my protection, no one will be able to bully you here." He smiled wider, about to grab the Spirit Stone without a trace of politeness.

As his fingertips were within reach of the Stone, Fang Xing suddenly let out a s.h.i.+ver and dropped the Stone to the ground.

"Ahh-- Can"t let the Stone break…" Fang Xing jumped as he bent down to pick up the Stone in a hurry.

"Never heard of someone breaking a Spirit Stone by dropping it; he must be really new…" Liu thought to himself while waiting for Fang Xing to pick up the Stone for him, sneering at the sight.

The three men looking from afar loathed Fang Xing even more after such a clumsy display, but this was only because they had yet to notice the changing expression on Yu"s face.

"s.h.i.+xiong Liu, please kindly accept my offering to you…." Fang Xing stood back up, his wrist shooting forward with an abrupt thrust.

Just as s.h.i.+xiong Liu was about to reply, he felt something cold on his abdomen. Without any delay, Liu"s Spirit s.h.i.+eld had subconsciously tried to deflect something to no avail and, before he even knew what it was, Fang Xing had pulled a s.h.i.+ny dagger out of Liu"s stomach while taking a strange step back. With another leap, Fang Xing then landed a small yet fierce fist to Liu"s torso.

"UGHHHH--" Unable to straighten his waist, s.h.i.+xiong Liu was covered in a cold sweat.

The second blow Fang Xing landed not only shattered Liu"s Spirit s.h.i.+eld but also landed in the exact same location as the dagger wound. Liu"s pain was beyond what words could describe.

The shocked expressions of the three onlookers had changed to resemble Yu"s shortly after they realized what was happening. It affected the feeble disciple so much that he almost dropped to the ground, as if the person being stabbed was not s.h.i.+xiong Liu, but him instead.was not s.h.i.+xiong Liu, but him instead.

Prev List Next