Chapter 33

Standing in the courtyard, Qin Fengming took a deep breath and tightly held the letter containing the secret that his mother had given him. Through the five-foot-high fence, he saw that more than a dozen feet away, two figures were still fiercely battling.

Qin Fengming reached back with his right hand, and the precious sword was already in his grasp. With a flicker of his body, he dashed towards the two figures in the distance.

Since he had come to this place, Qin Fengming naturally did not want to miss the opportunity to engage with a skilled opponent.

In just a few steps, Qin Fengming had already stood beside the two figures who were still fighting. After a brief moment of recognition, he swung his sword and swiftly slashed at one of the tall figures.

The two figures who were already engaged in combat had already noticed Qin Fengming's sudden appearance.

Fifth Senior Brother was overjoyed, though he had not clearly seen who the newcomer was, his tall and robust figure immediately identified him as his junior brother, Qin Fengming.

Initially, he had clearly told Qin Fengming that he would be responsible for drawing the attention of the crowd, while Qin Fengming would be responsible for entering the room to find the jade box. Now that his junior brother had appeared, it meant that the jade box was undoubtedly in his possession.

Wang Qi was startled when he suddenly saw someone appear. His second brother had already led several chieftains to the mountain gate, so it was clear that the newcomer must also be an attacker on the bandit stronghold. With a flicker of his body, he wanted to withdraw from the battle.

After the struggle with the black-clothed figure, he had already realized that the opponent's martial arts were extremely high. With his strength alone, he could only match the opponent, and it would be difficult to determine a winner in a short time. Now that the opponent had another helper, it was clearly disadvantageous for him.

After a few fierce attacks, without waiting for Qin Fengming to launch his offensive, he leaped out of the battle.

"Rogues, how dare you come to my stronghold so boldly! None of you will leave here alive." As he spoke, he raised his hand, and a loud whistle sounded. Instantly, within a radius of a few hundred feet, cries of battle arose. Under the light of lanterns and torches, no fewer than twenty or thirty people appeared.

Seeing that Wang Qi's second brother had already rushed to the mountain gate more than ten miles away, and yet there were still so many skilled fighters left here, Qin Fengming and Fifth Senior Brother exchanged glances and were greatly alarmed.

It was clear that the Tiancang Mountain had been prepared.

This was not the time to dwell on the matter. After exchanging glances, Qin Fengming and Fifth Senior Brother understood each other. Their bodies flickered, and instead of retreating, they advanced directly towards Wang Qi.

This battle would not follow any martial code. Qin Fengming and Fifth Senior Brother had already decided to use their best skills and combine their strength to quickly kill the person in front of them.

Seeing that the two opponents were so fierce, and that they could remain so calm even when about to be surrounded, Wang Qi was startled and had to face the attacks of the two skilled fighters.

As soon as they made contact, Wang Qi was already at a great disadvantage. Qin Fengming's sword skills had greatly improved, and with his full effort, he could already match Wang Qi without any disadvantage. With the addition of Fifth Senior Brother's abilities, Wang Qi was immediately in a difficult situation.

"Brothers, quickly come forward and capture these two." The crowd rushing towards the battlefield was already less than fifty feet away. In his fear, Wang Qi shouted loudly, trying to disrupt the rhythm of the two opponents' attacks.

Although it was Qin Fengming's first real engagement with a skilled opponent, he had no fear. He knew that there could be no hesitation, and his sword moved without any pause. Fifth Senior Brother, with his greater experience, showed no emotional fluctuation.

A storm of sword strikes and blade flashes poured around Wang Qi, making him feel overwhelmed.

"Thud!" With a dull sound of a sword piercing flesh, a cry of pain echoed. A figure suddenly fell to the ground, rolling rapidly and rolling several feet away in a pitiful state.

As Qin Fengming was about to rush towards the fallen figure, he suddenly heard a series of cracking sounds around him. His body moved swiftly, and he shot into the air.

"Whoosh! Whoosh!~" As Qin Fengming's body shot up, several whistling sounds shot past his feet.

"Be careful, let's retreat." Qin Fengming had just landed when he heard Fifth Senior Brother's urgent voice nearby.

Hearing this, Qin Fengming knew that it was no longer possible to kill Wang Qi, as many figures had already appeared around them. Seeing Wang Qi fall, those with hidden weapons had quickly shot them out.

With Fifth Senior Brother's shout, he attacked the two people rushing towards them.

At this moment, if they wanted to escape, they had to break through the encirclement before the crowd could fully surround them. Any hesitation, and once the twenty or thirty people were close, it would be as difficult as climbing to the sky.

Qin Fengming would not risk his life. He used his agility and moved even faster than Fifth Senior Brother towards a direction with only one person.

"Crack! Ah~" With a loud sound, a flying dart struck the left shoulder of the figure blocking his path. In a flash, Qin Fengming had leaped out of the encirclement and disappeared into the darkness of the night.

When Qin Fengming carefully returned to the place where he had hidden the horses, a man in black was already sitting in the mountain hollow.

"Fifth Senior Brother?" Upon seeing him, Qin Fengming was greatly surprised and let out a soft exclamation.

"Hehe, yes. For your first mission, you performed exceptionally well. Wang Qi is indeed a renowned figure, and his skills are formidable. If it weren't for our combined efforts, it would have been difficult to injure him. The jade box, I assume you have it?"

"Of course, here is the jade box, Fifth Senior Brother, please take a look." Seeing that it was indeed his senior brother, Qin Fengming, though surprised, did not hesitate. With a wave of his hand, he took out the jade box from Wang Qi's room and handed it to his senior brother.

"Hmm, good. This is indeed our target. Junior Brother, I will take the jade box back to the sect first. You can return slowly on your own."

After inspecting it, Fifth Senior Brother said with a pleased expression. Without any delay, he bowed to Qin Fengming, and his figure disappeared into the dark mountains.

Seeing his senior brother leave, Qin Fengming did not dare to linger. He led the horse and, following the path he had memorized during the day, quietly left the Tiancang Mountain area under the cover of the night.

This mission was very beneficial to Qin Fengming. The experience he gained was invaluable and would be crucial for his future growth.

As for the discovery of the jade box's theft by Wang Qi and the others of Tiancang Mountain and their subsequent actions, Qin Fengming no longer cared. Since Fifth Senior Brother had said everything was arranged, he had no further concerns. As for the two traitors from the Luoxia Valley branch, Fifth Senior Brother would handle them appropriately.

By the time it was bright, Qin Fengming was already forty or fifty miles away from Tiancang Mountain.

Since there was no need to rush back to the sect, Qin Fengming decided to use this time to return home and visit his parents, to satisfy his longing.

Hao Bai City was adjacent to Qijia City, where the Qin family village was located. With a fast horse, it would take five days to get there. However, with the urgency of returning home, Qin Fengming spurred his horse to full speed. By the evening of the fourth day, he had already reached Tenglong Town, thirty miles from the Qin family village, and planned to stay overnight and return home the next morning.

Qin Fengming was familiar with Tenglong Town. He entered the town and went straight to the largest inn, Fulin Inn.

Handing the horse to the stable boy, Qin Fengming went up to the second floor of the inn and found a table near the window to sit down.

He ordered a few dishes and ate while enjoying the street view, feeling many emotions.

Thinking back to when he was a naive teenager five or six years ago, he was now a martial artist capable of carrying out missions alone. The changes were unexpected.

Suddenly, a commotion came from the street below, mixed with the shouts of a man and the cries of a woman.

As Qin Fengming was puzzled, a group of people came bustling from the distance. The two people at the front were pushing pedestrians, causing the street to become noisy.

From the second floor, Qin Fengming could see the group clearly. There were seven or eight burly men, with open chests and tilted hats. The two in front were clearing the way, while the two in the middle were carrying a young girl, her hair disheveled, crying and struggling.

The group noisily headed towards the east of Tenglong Town. The pedestrians pointed and whispered, but no one stepped forward to stop them.

Qin Fengming was confused and did not understand what was happening. At this moment, the diners upstairs began to discuss.

"Look, the Zhang family is up to no good again. I wonder which girl is the victim this time?"

"I heard it's a mother and daughter from out of town who came here to visit relatives. Unfortunately, they were spotted by the Zhang family's young master, who was immediately smitten. When they refused his proposal, he became furious and had the girl kidnapped to the Zhang residence. Another life is ruined."

"Shh, be careful. Don't let the Zhang family's people hear you, or you'll get into trouble."

...

Hearing this, Qin Fengming instantly understood. It was the Zhang family's young master, a local bully, causing trouble again.

Five years ago, when Qin Fengming and his father came to Tenglong Town to get medicine for his grandfather's leg injury, they had been beaten by the Zhang family's young master for no reason. The scene was still vivid in his mind. Now, hearing about this injustice, Qin Fengming couldn't help but sneer coldly.