Chapter 9: Chapter 9

The following day.

Gao Qi came to see Zhao Jiu and told him to prepare himself. They will depart tomorrow.

Zhao Jiu asked in confusion, “Uncle Gao, where are we going? Why are we going there? You should at least tell me what I am supposed to do.”

“It is nothing complicated. You merely need to escort Young Miss Liu home.”

After saying that, Gao Qi handed him several Banknotes.

“Thank you for protecting the young lady. This is the deposit.”

Zhao Jiu had nothing more to say. Even if he had wanted to object, the words would never have escaped his mouth.

When the client paid this readily, with such a generous patron, he was naturally ready to serve with absolute loyalty.

He converted the three hundred taels in Banknotes into 3,000 God of Wealth Points.

“Open the Panel.”

Host: Zhao Jiu

Cultivation Rank: Fifth Rank

Martial Arts:

Chasing the Stars and Pursuing the Moon (Perfected)

Taiqing Yuxu Scripture (Sixth Level)

Heavenly Origin Saber Art (Proficient)

Secret Arts:

Tang Sect Arcana: Thousand Flowers and Myriad Stamens

Disguise Technique

Turtle-Breathing Technique

God of Wealth Points: 8,100

“Good. With provisions in hand, there is no need to panic,” Zhao Jiu muttered to himself.

Escorting Liu Rouwei home could not possibly be a simple matter.

She was merely returning home, not traveling as the President of the United States. Did she truly need a Sixth Rank expert on one side and a Fifth Rank expert on the other?

With that thought in mind, Zhao Jiu purchased two bottles of White Jade Flesh-Regeneration Pills and three bottles of Foundation-Nourishing Pills.

As he watched his God of Wealth Points decrease by three thousand, his heart practically bled.

However, there was nothing he could do about it.

Every increase in strength meant another measure of security.

The day passed in the blink of an eye.

When Zhao Jiu stepped outside the following morning, two carriages and two horses had already been waiting for some time.

Before long, Liu Rouwei emerged, followed by Chunzhu and Gao Qi. The three walked toward the first carriage.

Gao Qi hurried forward and lifted the curtain for Liu Rouwei. Only after the two women were seated securely did he climb onto the driver’s bench.

“Depart!” he called.

Without another word, Zhao Jiu immediately claimed the second carriage for himself.

Regardless of whether the journey was long, he had just spent an entire month riding on horseback. His backside had suffered quite enough!

The other three did not put on airs either. Xiong Wu and Song Fu voluntarily mounted the horses, while Zhou Yun drove the second carriage behind Gao Qi’s.

The party of seven traveled west.

More than ten days passed before they finally reached the Taihang Mountains.

Bypassing Shimen was one thing, but what kind of lunacy was plunging headfirst into the Taihang Mountains?

Zhao Jiu could not understand it.

Still, considering the money he had been paid, whatever the client said was naturally correct!

They found a ruined temple and stopped to rest their horses and prepare food.

As the firelight flickered, the sky gradually darkened. The mountain wind grew stronger, heralding an approaching storm.

Zhao Jiu sat beside the fire, chewing on a piece of flatbread and occasionally taking a sip of water.

Something about the atmosphere was wrong.

It was an assassin’s intuition.

The Taihang Mountains were vast, so encountering no other travelers was understandable. However, they had not seen anyone at the foot of the mountains either.

It was the golden season of autumn. Surely there should have been villagers climbing the mountain to gather medicinal herbs or dig for wild vegetables.

Zhao Jiu refused to believe that ordinary families could support themselves entirely through farming and weaving.

Besides, people always said that those who lived beside a mountain relied upon the mountain for their livelihood.

Yet with such an enormous mountain before them, were the locals content merely to stare at it?

Something was wrong.

It was not merely ten parts wrong—it was twelve parts wrong.

After finishing his flatbread, Zhao Jiu ignored the others’ idle conversation and silently entered the forest.

He scouted more than four li from the temple, growing increasingly vigilant as he went.

Within an area spanning over four li, he had not seen a single bird.

At that moment, the mountain rain finally began to fall.

Amid the rumbling thunder, Zhao Jiu leaped into the crown of a tree and surveyed the dense forest through the rain.

Understanding dawned upon him.

He dropped from the tree, pushed off hard with both feet, and accelerated instantly toward the thickest part of the woods.

Through the heavy rain, his figure was almost impossible to see.

A man standing beneath a distant tree appeared to sense that something was wrong.

The instant he turned his head, a Throwing Knife buried itself in his throat.

He tried to cry out, but a second Throwing Knife was already flying toward him.

It struck him directly between the eyebrows.

Zhao Jiu rushed forward and caught the dead man before he could fall backward.

After searching the body, he discovered a whistle.

It appeared that the man had not been alone in the forest.

Back inside the ruined temple, everyone stared in confusion when Zhao Jiu returned drenched from head to toe.

“We should leave. The forest is full of assassins. Let me make one thing clear: when our lives are at stake, I may not be able to protect anyone else.”

The three from the manor looked helpless when they heard this, while the other three sitting beside the fire each fell into their own thoughts.

Money could always be earned again.

If they lost their lives, no amount of money would matter.

No one wasted time arguing.

They extinguished the fire and headed for the door.

However, two black-clad men had already crept up outside the ruined temple.

The instant the two sides encountered each other, several Hidden Weapons shot through the air.

Before the two men could even draw their sabers, blood sprayed from their throats.

“Move!” Xiong Wu shouted.

He threw a punch, stopping two assassins who had leaped down from the roof. Several more punches followed, knocking multiple attackers to the ground.

He then hurried to his horse, mounted in several quick strides, and followed the others.

The convoy raced for several hours before they saw a man standing in the road ahead, cradling a saber in his arms.

At the front of the group, Song Fu pulled on the reins and brought her horse to a halt. She flipped from the saddle and immediately attacked with her sword.

The Saber-Bearing Man reacted swiftly. He retreated three steps to evade the attack, drew his saber, and began fighting Song Fu.

Amid the rain, saber and sword collided in a chaotic flurry.

Even after twenty exchanges, neither side had gained the advantage.

Song Fu was the first to retreat.

“Friend, even if you wish to stop us, you cannot. There are still others behind me. We are all merely working for money. Why not part ways here?”

The Saber-Bearing Man considered her words and found them reasonable.

There was no need to fight to the death over a little money.

He cupped his hands in farewell, then vanished into the forest after several leaps.

The party continued onward.

Inside the carriage, the two young women were deeply confused.

This was nothing like the Jianghu they had imagined.

Should the two sides not have fought an intense battle before laughing heartily, clasping hands, and becoming friends?

However, the real Jianghu was nothing like the Jianghu of stories.

If someone possessed wealth, power, and influence, why would they willingly brave the wind and rain while living with blood on the edge of their blades?

Anyone who chose such a life had to understand one simple principle.

If someone only told you to rub against the entrance and you chose to push all the way inside, that became your own problem. The police would not care who had taken off their clothes first.

The carriages continued without stopping.

Before darkness fell, they finally found a farmstead.

Zhao Jiu had no idea how Gao Qi negotiated with its residents, but the entire party was allowed to stay there.

Later that night, Liu Rouwei and Chunzhu approached Zhao Jiu.

With puzzled expressions, they asked him a question he considered exceptionally foolish: Why had the Saber-Bearing Man first blocked their path and then allowed them to leave?

Zhao Jiu sat beside the fire and smiled bitterly.

Out of respect for his client, he reluctantly explained, “There are many things in life that people have no choice about. For example, if a First Rank expert blocked my path, I would turn around and run as well.”

“Weighing the advantages and disadvantages is simply human nature. If you cannot afford something, you do not buy it.”

The two women clearly did not understand the intricacies of his explanation.

Yet Zhao Jiu could not simply tell them, “I am afraid of dying!”

It was hardly something to be proud of.

Moreover, with beautiful women standing before him, he truly could not bring himself to say, “I cannot perform.”

He spent more than half an hour explaining the matter in roundabout ways.

In the end, the only conclusion they reached was this:

“You are simply incapable.”

Zhao Jiu was so furious that he nearly struck them.

I treated you like valued clients, yet you treated me like a fool!

At midnight, Zhao Jiu sat on the roof above the rear courtyard, keeping watch.

The assassins had probably intended to attack at night. However, Zhao Jiu had killed one of their men, forcing them to launch their assault ahead of schedule.

Now that the group had just survived an attack, both people and horses were exhausted.

A second assault would have a far greater chance of success.

The assassins would undoubtedly come.

At the Third Watch, the night was as dark as ink.

Sure enough, the Saber-Bearing Man appeared in the rear courtyard.

When he saw Zhao Jiu sitting on the roof and staring down at him, he smiled.

“Why not let me earn a share of the money as well?”

“That will not do. You would be cutting into my livelihood,” Zhao Jiu replied.

“Then let our skills determine who is superior.”

With that, the man drew his saber, leaped onto the roof—and promptly fell back down.

“Sorry,” Zhao Jiu said. “I just advanced to the Fourth Rank.”