Chapter Fifteen: Encountering Bandits

Early the next morning, Yuan Hou was already waiting at the entrance of the inn. At this hour, dawn had just broken, and only a sparse trickle of people came and went. With nothing to occupy him, Yuan Hou stood idly at the threshold, letting his gaze drift. He lingered over the women who passed by, sizing them up with greedy eyes, while he merely curled his lip in disdain at the men. His demeanor was that of a careless rogue.

Just then, Lei Yan descended slowly from the upper floor of the inn, with Qing Ling, draped in gauzy attire, following closely behind. Yuan Hou’s eyes lit up at once, his gaze shamelessly sweeping up Qing Ling’s slender, fair legs, roving upward with bold intent.

Lei Yan spotted Yuan Hou as soon as he reached the ground floor, and Yuan Hou’s gaze filled him with disgust. He hadn’t expected Yuan Hou to be not only craven and self-serving, but also a lecher. Glancing back at Qing Ling, Lei Yan could only sigh inwardly. Qing Ling was growing more beautiful by the day—her ink-black hair tied neatly behind her head, her delicate lips and rosy cheeks brimming with youthful vitality. Such beauty, radiant with youth, inevitably set the imagination adrift.

Stepping forward, Lei Yan positioned himself to block Yuan Hou’s line of sight, cupped his hands, and said, “Brother Yuan, are all the preparations complete?”

Yuan Hou’s eyes, obstructed by Lei Yan, finally lifted to meet his gaze. But upon seeing the pallor on Lei Yan’s face, he was secretly startled. “What’s wrong with this boy? He looks even weaker than yesterday!” He could not know that Lei Yan had lost a drop of vital essence the day before, and before he could recover, had lost another today—this was only the beginning. Still, when it came to making money, Yuan Hou quickly collected himself and grinned, “Brother Lei, I’ve already prepared three fine horses. Has the person you’re bringing arrived?”

Lei Yan turned and gestured towards Qing Ling, saying, “This is my woman.” Then, to Qing Ling, “This is Yuan Hou, who will accompany us to northern Qingzhou.”

As soon as introductions were made, Yuan Hou broke into a broad smile, slinging his arm around Lei Yan’s shoulder. “Well, brother, who would have thought you’d have a woman at your age? I must say, I’m impressed!”

“A nest of snakes and rats,” Qing Ling muttered coldly behind Lei Yan. Though she was furious at the introduction, she had no grounds for protest—after all, she had agreed to give herself to Lei Yan.

“Enough, Brother Yuan. I think I’d better eat something before we set off,” Lei Yan said, shaking off Yuan Hou’s arm and calling out to the inn’s server, “Waiter, bring me ten pounds of beef—no, bring me the best food and drink you have!”

He hadn’t eaten the day before, and having lost two drops of vital essence, he desperately needed sustenance.

Before long, the server returned with a spread of fine food and wine. Lei Yan waved his hand, “Please, help yourselves. I won’t stand on ceremony.”

Yuan Hou immediately stood, filling a cup of wine for Qing Ling and gesturing invitingly. He poured himself a cup as well, but before he could drink, he watched Lei Yan devour the food with reckless abandon—one hand clutching a duck neck, the other a chicken leg, stuffing his mouth as if he had been starving for days.

Qing Ling and Yuan Hou gaped at Lei Yan. They’d seen people eat sloppily, but never with such desperation. Qing Ling merely tore off a small piece of her steamed bun, and Yuan Hou had only sipped his wine—the dishes remained untouched. Yet Lei Yan swept through the food like a whirlwind, and after clearing the table, wiped his greasy mouth and, still unsatisfied, grabbed the last steamed bun and gnawed at it.

“Waiter, clear this and bring another round!” Lei Yan called, munching on the bun.

“This is terrifying, truly terrifying. Is he even human?” Yuan Hou stared at Lei Yan in disbelief. “Brother Lei, how did you get so hungry?”

“Pig,” Qing Ling muttered, continuing to nibble delicately at her bun.

Lei Yan only chuckled. “I can’t help it—I’m just too hungry.”

Once the three had eaten their fill, Lei Yan packed away a heap of food in his enchanted vessel. Mounting the horses Yuan Hou had prepared, they set off straight for the Poison Miasma Forest.

The horses galloped swiftly along the road. Lei Yan appeared haggard—after days of hard travel and constantly feeding the flower sprite his vital essence, he was growing weaker, his complexion ever more wan. Fortunately, he kept cultivating during their rest breaks; otherwise, the mere jolting of the ride would have claimed his life. Yuan Hou, by contrast, was in high spirits. He hummed tunes, watched Qing Ling bounce on horseback, and felt this venture was more delightful than he could have wished. Every so often, thoughts of waiting for the right moment to have his way with Qing Ling crossed his mind, especially as Lei Yan grew visibly weaker and seemed less and less a threat.

After nearly half a month on the road, they finally reached the edge of the Poison Miasma Forest.

“Stop!” Lei Yan commanded with a wave of his hand. With a chorus of neighs, the three halted. Lei Yan, somewhat unsteady, dismounted and walked to the roadside. Spotting clusters of bright red flowers, his gaze grew complicated. Though the leaves were small and the blossoms battered among the rocks, he recognized them at once—these were the Heartbreak Flowers his mother had loved. These little flowers seemed to struggle fiercely against the misfortunes of fate, yet held their heads high, unyielding.

“Heartbreak Flowers!” Qing Ling’s eyes lit up. With these, she could concoct a poison to strip cultivators of their powers, cripple warriors, and most importantly, cause a poison so virulent it could shatter one’s very soul. Such a rare ingredient was not to be missed. She leapt from her horse and rushed toward the flowers.

But just as she reached out, Lei Yan’s palm struck her hand away with a resounding slap. Qing Ling turned, glaring at him, but upon seeing the murderous intent in his eyes, she was startled. This was the second time she had seen such killing intent from him—the first had been in Ba’er Village when he saw Batu’s wife, and the second was now when she tried to pick these flowers.

“You can use any poison you like, except these flowers,” Lei Yan said coldly. These were his mother’s favorite, and he would not allow anyone to profane them under his watch.

“Hmph, you’re just afraid of the poison these flowers hold. If you forbid me, I want them all the more!” Qing Ling was stubborn by nature, and once she set her mind, no one could dissuade her.

“Do you really think I won’t kill you?” Lei Yan’s gaze was icy.

“Go ahead, kill me if you dare!” Qing Ling shouted. She didn’t believe for a moment that he would dare—setting aside the sect rules forbidding members from killing each other, she doubted he could pass her master’s scrutiny even if he tried.

“Courting death!” Lei Yan’s right hand shot out like a viper, seizing Qing Ling by the throat.

Qing Ling hadn’t expected him to act so swiftly. She clawed at his hand, but lacking any true energy, her strength was no greater than an ordinary girl’s. She could only struggle helplessly.

Yuan Hou, unsure what drama the pair were enacting, leapt from his horse to intervene. “Brother Lei, she’s your woman—you can’t treat her like this! She’s so young, it would be a shame for her to die!” Though he said this aloud, in his heart he thought, “If you don’t want her, give her to me—what a waste to kill her!”

In a matter of moments, Qing Ling’s face turned bright red, her vision swimming with blackness as if countless stars were spinning before her eyes. She even felt her soul begin to drift away.

With a grunt, Lei Yan abruptly released her. In the end, he could not bring himself to kill her. He wasn’t sure why, but since coming to this world, his temperament had changed. In his previous life, he would have killed Qing Ling without hesitation in such circumstances, but now, something stayed his hand. “I’ll say it again—these are the only flowers you cannot touch. Any other poison is yours to use.”

Freed, Qing Ling gasped for air, never having realized before how precious breath could be. The wrong Lei Yan had just committed against her welled up inside, and tears rolled down her cheeks in fat drops.

“Fine, I won’t use them! I’ll find something else to poison you with!” she sobbed.

“Miss Qing, don’t cry! If he won’t have you, I will. What’s so good about him anyway? Come with me—I promise you’ll live better than you do now,” Yuan Hou whispered, drawing closer. He no longer saw Lei Yan as a threat; were it not for needing him to cross the Poison Miasma Forest, he would have killed Lei Yan and taken Qing Ling for himself right then.

Though Yuan Hou spoke softly, Lei Yan heard every word. He and Qing Ling were not husband and wife, but he had introduced her as his woman. Now Yuan Hou’s words were a clear provocation, and Lei Yan’s dislike for him deepened, though not yet to the point of murder. Turning away, he went to rest. Even the small exertion of using his internal energy had left him spent.

“Get lost!” Qing Ling snapped, “You’re even worse than he is!”

Chastened, Yuan Hou slunk away, inwardly cursing. “Enjoy yourself now—once we’re through this forest, I’ll show you what I’m capable of!”

Just then, the ground gave a slight tremor, followed by a booming shout: “Halt—your money or your life!”

The journey had gone so smoothly that the group had nearly forgotten northern Qingzhou was rife with bandits and marauders. At the shout, all eyes turned toward its source.

A giant, as imposing as a mountain, leapt out from the roadside, raising a cloud of dust. His bald head gleamed without a single hair, and in each hand he gripped a massive axe as tall as a man, radiating an aura of menace. Bellowing, he strode toward the trio, each step sending a tremor through the earth.