Chapter 7

In the wilderness bordering the frontier, the people who lived there revered martial arts and respected the strong, even the children were no exception.

The crowd around the packed arena was constantly cheering, praising Zhang Xiaofei's manly spirit. Only those adventurers who had long hovered on the brink of death could see the weakness and impracticality in the young man's heart, and a mocking look flashed in their eyes. They could tell that the youth was judging people by their appearance, boasting that he would let his opponent have three moves, which was simply overbearing. Even if he won this time, if he encountered a similar situation in the future, he might still end up in a dire situation.

Yin Xiaojiu stood there timidly and asked hesitantly, "Are you really going to let me have three moves?"

Zhang Xiaofei, seeing Yin Xiaojiu's frightened appearance, felt even more confident. He slapped his chest with his thick palm, making a "papa" sound, and said proudly, "This young master's word is as good as gold. I will definitely let you have three moves. You brat, come on."

Yin Xiaojiu took a deep breath, encouraging herself mentally. Then, she pushed off the ground with her toes, desperately controlling the meager amount of yuan qi in her meridians. As the sense of power spread throughout her body, she instantly charged at Zhang Xiaofei.

The distance of five or six meters was covered in an instant. Without any combat skills, Yin Xiaojiu punched straight at Zhang Xiaofei's nose.

"Slap..."

The crisp sound of a broken nose was heard clearly by the surrounding adventurers. As Zhang Xiaofei's body fell backward, Yin Xiaojiu kicked him hard in the abdomen.

"Grunt..."

The crowd, who had been cheering for Zhang Xiaofei, fell silent. It was as if the punch and kick had not landed on Zhang Xiaofei but had struck their hearts.

Yin Xiaojiu watched Zhang Xiaofei fly back several meters, sliding backward on his knees. A look of hesitation appeared on her delicate face, but she remembered the saying, "When he is sick, take his life." Even though she did not intend to kill Zhang Xiaofei, she still pounced like a nimble leopard.

Her punches and kicks landed on flesh, using all her strength. Yin Xiaojiu did not hold back, for she feared that if she did not hurt Zhang Xiaofei, he would get up and she would be the one to suffer.

At this moment, the arena was deathly silent. The faces of the crowd were filled with disbelief, and their eyes were wide with shock. It was as if they had been turned into living statues. The unexpected turn of events, which seemed to have already determined the outcome, felt like an invisible slap, stinging their faces and hearts.

A hundred meters away, a qilin carriage was parked quietly by the roadside. Four tall, middle-aged men in battle robes scanned the surroundings with cold expressions. A beautiful maid, dressed in silk, stood quietly by the window.

"Wen Yun..."

A ethereal female voice came from inside the luxurious carriage.

The maid's expression changed, and she quickly said respectfully, "Master, what do you need?"

Inside the carriage, a dignified and beautiful woman gazed at the arena a hundred meters away and said calmly, "That little girl is quite good. Stay in this Cold Mountain City and find out her background. When I return, if possible, take her with me."

"Yes!"

The maid looked back at the arena, her bright eyes filled with a mix of pity and envy.

At the edge of the arena, Ye Tong watched the one-sided battle, his eyes filled with admiration. Although he was very worried about Yin Xiaojiu, he did not stop the match. This was not a peaceful era, and everyone was struggling to survive. Even if he could take care of Yin Xiaojiu for a while, he could not do so forever. For her to live better in the future, she would have to rely on herself.

Moreover, in a match between children, even if they got hurt, it was unlikely to be fatal.

"Stop!"

A middle-aged woman in coarse clothes, with a plump figure, rushed onto the arena, followed by two fat-headed, angry-looking boys.

Yin Xiaojiu stopped her attack and turned to see the plump woman and the two angry boys. She immediately showed a look of fear and quickly retreated to the other side of the arena.

"Fat woman, if you dare to touch a single hair of hers, I can guarantee you won't leave the arena." Ye Tong jumped onto the arena and said, looking at the plump woman who was trying to rush toward Yin Xiaojiu.

"Brother Ye."

Yin Xiaojiu's eyes lit up, and the fear drained from her face like a receding tide.

Ye Tong turned to look at her and nodded in satisfaction, saying, "Well done. If anyone dares to bully you in the future, teach them a lesson. Even if you beat them to death or cripple them, I will protect you."

The plump woman stopped, looking at her son, who was curled up on the arena, twitching in pain. She glared at Ye Tong with hatred and shouted, "Where did you come from, you pig? This damn brat hurt my son so badly, this isn't over. Da Kui, Er Kui, beat them to death."

Ye Tong's eyes turned cold. As his left hand retreated into his sleeve, he crushed a black pill into powder. Just as the two fat-headed boys were about to pounce, he flicked his fingers, and the black powder turned into a flame. Although the flame only burned for a few breaths, it still made the two boys retreat in shock.

"Magic?"

Most of the people present showed expressions of surprise, even the plump woman was no exception.

In the crowd, an adventurer holding a long sword shook his head and said, "It's not magic, but a black poison that creates an illusion."

Black poison?

The crowd suddenly understood, and their expressions toward Ye Tong became strange.

Ye Tong, who had used poison in front of everyone, had no intention of hiding. He coldly said, "Kneel and apologize, and you can leave the arena alive. Otherwise, let your butcher husband come to collect your bodies."

"Hey... quite a mouth on you!"

A rough voice came from the back of the crowd. As people made way, the burly Zhang Butcher walked toward the arena, followed by a handsome young man and four servants.

Ye Tong's face was stern, and his gaze lingered on Zhang Butcher for a moment before focusing on the young man.

Tong Kaisan!

The third son of the Tong family in Cold Mountain City, a notorious rogue. He was devious and shameless, and any rules were meaningless to him. The bad deeds he had done in Cold Mountain City were countless. Ye Tong knew him mainly because this despicable man had visited the precious medicine shop multiple times to buy aphrodisiacs and poisons.

Tong Kaisan did not step onto the arena but stood with a strange smile, saying to Ye Tong, "So it's Little Master Ye. When did you start hanging out with street scum? Or... has the old master disappeared, and with your shackles gone, you've become a lustful pig, even seducing a little slave girl?"

Ye Tong remained silent for a moment and then said slowly, "The last batch of medicine, triple the amount."

Tong Kaisan's eyes lit up, and he coughed lightly, smiling, "Little Master Ye wants to be a hero and save the beauty. Who dares to interfere? Continue."

Ye Tong felt relieved. He was not afraid of Tong Kaisan but was wary of the Tong family behind him. This family had considerable power in Cold Mountain City, especially Tong Kaisan's father, who was a ruthless and highly skilled strongman. It was best not to provoke them unless necessary.

Zhang Butcher clenched his fists and then slowly relaxed them, inwardly cursing Tong Kaisan as an "ungrateful wolf cub," but he did not dare to question him outwardly. He could only look at Ye Tong and shout, "Boy, you're quite arrogant, aren't you? You dare to offend my wife? Are you tired of living?"

Ye Tong said, "This is an arena. Confidence comes from a strong fist. Beating the young and then bringing in the old is despicable, but I can accept it. If you want to fight, kneel down and apologize first. Otherwise..."

Zhang Butcher sneered, "Otherwise what? You, a half-grown pig, dare to threaten me?"

"Enough."

Ye Tong turned to look at the plump woman and the two boys.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

The plump woman and the two boys fell to the ground as soon as Ye Tong finished speaking. Their faces turned black, and they twitched on the ground.

Zhang Butcher's eyes widened in shock, and he shouted, "What's going on? What did you do to my wife?"

Ye Tong said calmly, "I have no experience in fighting, but I am skilled in poison. You have fifteen minutes. If you don't kneel and apologize within this time because of your pride, I can only congratulate you on being able to marry a new wife or have another big, fat son!"

"Poison?"

Zhang Butcher's face changed in horror.

The crowd around the arena also became restless, stepping back. Poison was a deadly threat to them, but the adventurers looked at Ye Tong with interest, not believing that such a young man could create a powerful poison.

Ye Tong said, "Think carefully. Whether you kneel and apologize or prepare to marry a new wife is entirely up to you. The people of Cold Mountain City will not despise you for not saving your wife."

What to do?

If he really knelt and apologized, he would lose face and have to live a miserable life in Cold Mountain City. But if he did not kneel, his wife would be poisoned to death, and the reputation of being a heartless person who let his wife die would be no better than kneeling and being humiliated.

Zhang Butcher turned his head with a pleading look toward Tong Kaisan. He had recently attached himself to Tong Kaisan and had not stopped making offerings.

Tong Kaisan rolled his eyes. Given his nature of turning his back on people even before he had finished pulling up his pants, he was not willing to care about the fate of Zhang Butcher's family. Ye Tong's offer could save him a lot of blue silver.

"Zhang Butcher, his poison is very powerful," Tong Kaisan said casually.

Hearing this, Zhang Butcher's eyes turned red with anger, hating Ye Tong and Tong Kaisan.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Zhang Butcher suddenly knelt before Ye Tong, gritting his teeth and said, "Little Master Ye, right? I apologize on behalf of my family. All the mistakes are ours. I hope you can be magnanimous and spare my wife and the others."