Chapter 3

"Zhao brother, you..."

The young hero in the yellow robe, his face also pale, watched as the Zhao-named hero staggered, feeling dizzy himself.

The Zhao-named hero turned his head and saw several companions with pale, almost greenish faces.

The youngest of the Ye family, the one with the lowest cultivation, had the greenest face, almost like grass. He choked, unable to speak, and fell to the ground.

The rest also collapsed.

The young hero in the yellow robe glanced at Qin Xianyu, then at the Zhao-named hero, with a self-mocking expression, and said bitterly, "We capsized in a shallow ditch, lost our lives in a small mountain valley."

Black blood dripped from the corner of the young hero in the yellow robe's mouth, and he said bitterly, "Since cultivating inner strength, I have roamed the martial world without incident. Who would have thought I would die in a small mountain valley, at the hands of a medicine boy? If this were to be known, it would be a laughingstock for a hundred years. Alas, after our deaths, the martial world will surely decline..."

They were among the most outstanding in the martial world, and their deaths in this nameless mountain would weaken the momentum of the younger generation. Even if it did not affect future generations, it would certainly weaken the current martial world.

He sighed and fell to the ground.

The Zhao-named hero, with the most robust inner strength, held on the longest. His hair stood on end, his qi surged, and his hair tie snapped. His eyes were bloodshot, and he gritted his teeth, shouting fiercely, "I refuse to accept it! I am not willing!"

"Immortal Grass."

Qin Xianyu propped himself up, leaning against a tree, holding his almost split shoulder, cold sweat pouring down his face. But he still managed to force a smile and said, "In the previous dynasty, a Liu-named Taoist was obsessed with alchemy. One day, he opened the furnace, took the elixir himself, and died. The chickens and dogs in his house ate the scattered elixir and died as well."

"This Taoist was a member of the royal family, so history only records that he achieved Dao, refined elixirs, and ascended to immortality, along with the chickens and dogs."

"This highly toxic herb is beautifully named 'Immortal Grass.'"

Qin Xianyu looked at him and said, "Perhaps this is just a blessing from the royal family, hoping that this predecessor would ascend to immortality after death. Perhaps it is truly a divine herb, and after you, the heroes, take it, you might really ascend to heaven. If you become immortals in the future, don't forget to come down and help your old friends."

Qin Xianyu spoke very seriously, without a hint of sarcasm.

But that was the greatest sarcasm.

The Zhao-named hero spat out a mouthful of blood and shouted angrily, "It's impossible. I have practiced martial arts since childhood and am also well-versed in medical and toxicology texts. I have never heard of any 'Immortal Grass.'"

Qin Xianyu said calmly, "This is a rare herb, not recorded in ordinary texts. It is only briefly mentioned in Daoist scriptures, but my father has seen it and recognized it."

The Zhao-named hero felt increasingly dizzy. He struggled and shouted fiercely, "Why are you fine? Why didn't you die? You clearly drank the soup. I noticed you didn't take anything, let alone any antidote."

Qin Xianyu raised his hand and said, "I accidentally brushed against a tree."

He showed the back of his hand to the Zhao-named hero, believing that with his deep martial arts skills, his eyesight was also good.

The Zhao-named hero immediately saw the green moss in the gaps of his fingernails. He could no longer hold on, took a step, and fell to the ground. His last thought was...

So... he detoxified this way... and probably poisoned us this way...

The Zhao-named hero was extremely unwilling. He clutched the edge of his clothes tightly, refusing to let go.

Seeing the clearly leading Zhao-named hero fall to the ground, Qin Xianyu sighed with relief, smiled bitterly, held his shoulder, and slowly adjusted his breathing. He took two herbs from the almost broken medicine basket, chewed them in his mouth.

After a long time, the darkness in front of his eyes gradually faded. He supported himself against the tree, gritted his teeth, and stood up, heading to where the bluebird had fallen.

He parted the grass, but there was nothing!

He climbed the tree with one hand, but there was still nothing!

He called out hoarsely, but there was still nothing!

He searched for a long time, until it was almost dusk, but still could not find the bluebird.

Perhaps... it was taken away by something?

Although it was on the outskirts, there were many mountain cats and monkeys. The bluebird...

Qin Xianyu thought, the pain in his shoulder becoming more intense, as if it were splitting. He moved his body and suddenly fell, almost unable to get up.

No skilled hunter would spend the night in such a mountain.

They might be torn open by some fierce beast or wild bird before they even fell asleep.

"Still can't find it..."

Qin Xianyu sighed bitterly, his teeth almost aching from clenching. He finally managed to stand up and walked back.

When he reached the bodies of the young heroes, Qin Xianyu paused.

For ordinary people, dead bodies were very taboo.

But since these people died at his hands, what was there to be taboo about?

He approached and picked up the sharp sword of the young hero in the yellow robe, weighed it, found it heavy, and put it aside. Then he turned the body over and found several dozen silver taels in his pocket.

One tael of silver was worth a hundred coins.

About thirty taels here was equivalent to three thousand silver coins, a huge sum for Qin Xianyu.

But he did not feel much joy. He searched the body and found a book.

He looked closely and saw that the book was titled: "Guanliu Sword Technique."

This was a martial arts secret manual.

Qin Xianyu suddenly gripped the manual tightly, his eyes showing a strange expression. He put the manual in his pocket and went to the others, searching them thoroughly.

Qin Xianyu counted and found a total of 170 taels of silver and four martial arts secret manuals.

The silver was heavy in his pocket, but Qin Xianyu knew that the true wealth was these four martial arts secret manuals. These people were clearly not ordinary, but famous young heroes. These four manuals were likely top-notch techniques in the martial world.

In the past, if he had obtained such a fortune, even with his calm nature, he would have been excited for many days. But thinking of the bluebird not being there and the lives he had taken, his heart was filled with sorrow and no joy.

"These people's clothes are very valuable, and these swords are likely top-notch. But these things are not good to show others, as they will surely cause trouble."

Qin Xianyu knew how to make choices. These clothes and swords were clearly not to be taken. The silver was still useful, and the martial arts could be practiced in secret. The manuals could be hidden, but these clothes and swords could not be used. If he sold them, they would certainly attract attention.

He looked carefully, hid the swords under the tree, and after some thought, took one sword, discarding the scabbard, and walked away, thinking, "After I return, I will wrap the hilt with some old cloth. I doubt anyone will recognize this precious sword by its blade."

Just as Qin Xianyu was about to leave, a faint voice sounded.

"You are young, but you kill and rob, quite ruthless."

It was an old voice.

Suddenly hearing such an old voice in the deep forest, with the sky growing darker and having just poisoned several people, Qin Xianyu felt a chill. He stiffened and thought, "Could it be some evil spirit?"

A breeze blew, and the pain in his shoulder, which felt like it was splitting, seemed to lessen.

After the wind passed, an old Taoist appeared in front of Qin Xianyu.

The old man had white hair and a youthful face, with a ruddy complexion. He was tall, wearing a Taoist robe and holding a duster, exuding a sense of Daoist grace. However, his eyes were cold as he looked at Qin Xianyu.

"Tea... Master..." Qin Xianyu thought it was his deceased master, but upon closer inspection, this old Taoist was taller and more graceful than his master.

The old Taoist looked at him, then at the bodies, shook his head, and said, "You, a young boy, look calm and composed, but you are actually so ruthless. To kill for a bluebird?"

His words clearly carried a tone of rebuke.

Qin Xianyu wanted to explain but paused, surprised, and said, "How do you know about my bluebird? Were you watching all along?"

"Indeed." The old Taoist stroked his beard and said, "I watched you poison and kill."

Qin Xianyu was silent for a moment, then asked, "Why didn't you stop me from poisoning them?"

The old Taoist's face turned slightly red, but it was hard to tell because of his ruddy complexion. He grunted, "I didn't see how you poisoned them."

Qin Xianyu asked, "So you just watched me be bullied?"

The old Taoist was taken aback, "This..."

Qin Xianyu was quite angry and said, "If you didn't stop them from bullying me, why are you here now to uphold justice? If I hadn't poisoned them, I would be the one dead. Where were you then?"

The old Taoist was also quite angry and said, "You are just one life. If they wanted to kill you, let them. But by poisoning them, you killed many people!"

"You..."

The old Taoist was unreasonable. Qin Xianyu took a deep breath and asked, "May I ask, how old are you, Immortal?"

"What?"

"I want to kill you, but I am clearly not your match. But you are old and won't live much longer, while I still have a long life ahead. Why don't you stand still, not resist, and let me kill you with one sword?"

"This..."

The old Taoist thought, "That stubborn Guan Yun, how could he teach such a sharp-tongued disciple?" He grunted and said, "You were too ruthless, but since it was for self-defense, I won't punish you. However, you cannot keep these martial arts manuals. If you practice them, it would be disastrous."

Suddenly, a breeze blew, and Qin Xianyu fell to the ground, the pain in his shoulder almost making him faint. But after a moment, the pain disappeared.

Qin Xianyu moved his shoulder. Although it still hurt, the pain was much less.

He propped himself up and found that the martial arts manuals in his pocket were gone, leaving only a hundred taels of silver. Qin Xianyu smiled bitterly, realizing the old Taoist was after the manuals.

The old Taoist was gone. He got up, shook his head, and walked toward the temple, carrying the sword without a scabbard. He glanced back at the bodies and the place where the bluebird had fallen, sighed, and was about to leave.

Suddenly, Qin Xianyu paused, noticing that the corner of the Zhao-named hero's clothes was slightly bulging.

Under normal circumstances, it would not be noticeable, but the Zhao-named hero had clutched his clothes before dying, making the bulge more obvious.

Qin Xianyu had not noticed it earlier, but now, with the sky growing darker, the bulge was faintly glowing.

"This is..."

Qin Xianyu approached, used his sword to cut the clothes, and a bead rolled out, glowing faintly, about the size of a goose egg, with a pale golden color.

In addition, there was a very thin book, only a few pages. Qin Xianyu picked it up and saw the title: "Introduction to Sword Dao."

"The Zhao-named hero hid these manuals and the bead so carefully. Is this 'Introduction to Sword Dao' more valuable than the four manuals I had? Is this bead not just a decoration but a precious treasure?"

Qin Xianyu was thinking when he noticed the sky was getting dark.

If he stayed any longer, it would be completely dark, and he might not be able to leave. Without further thought, he put the few-page manual and the bead in his pocket and hurriedly left.

The area would soon be filled with night birds and fierce beasts. By morning, there would be no intact bodies, only blood and bones.

When Qin Xianyu returned to the temple, he found three people standing at the entrance.

It was an old man dressed as a steward and two servants.

The page with ads begins

The page with ads ends