Chapter 44: Passerby
Volume 2 – Bloom of the Other Shore Flower, Chapter 44: Passerby
“She went to a few weapon shops and bought quite a lot of ammo. It sums up to about all of her dividend from her last mission, but that’s about it. There haven’t been any unusual movements otherwise.”
Sky Snake pondered for a moment before saying, “Dispatch some more men and watch her closely! You go too, Luo Xiong. If she shows any signs of interfering, you must delay her and keep her inside the city!”
Sky Snake was profoundly wary of this female hunter as well. He had even sent one of his four elite subordinates, Luo Xiong to handle her.
A heated gleam flashed across Flying Bird’s eyes as he suddenly said, “Why don’t you let me watch her! I like this job!”
Sky Snake’s face darkened, and he yelled, “No! We cannot touch her yet, or that Old 2 will fight us as if his life depends on it!”
Flying Bird licked his lips and let out a cruel smile, saying, “That old fool is only rank five. I seriously do not understand what you’re so wary about! He has destroyed so many of our good deals already. In my opinion, we should’ve killed him a long time ago!”
Sky Snake’s face was dark as he said slowly, “Eventually we will do just that, but it doesn’t have to be now. Old Liao, how did the communication with the hunters go?”
Old Liao was a lean, old man, whose thin and long eyes always reminded people of a poisonous snake. He said unhurriedly, “It went very well! I found a person whom you most definitely will be interested in.”
Old Liao called someone from outside the hall, and a man covered in a mantle from head to toe entered the hall and stood in front of Sky Snake. He unveiled his hood to reveal a young and handsome face.
Even in front of Sky Snake, the man did not appear to be flustered or cowered in the slightest. He said calmly, “I am Li Lunzhe. A rank three hunter with rank four origin power.”
Sky Snake’s eyes lit up, and he stood up on the spot and said, “I’ve heard of you! You are one of the strongest hunters of the younger generation! Tell me, what do you want?”
Li Lunzhe forced out a few words through the gaps of his teeth, “I can help you hunt down Qianye. The condition is that you will pass Yu Yingnan to me after the deed is done!”
Flying Bird immediately let out a heavy snort at the side.
While staring at Li Lunzhe, Sky Snake suddenly smiled and said, “I cannot promise you this.”
Li Lunzhe’s expression immediately changed.
After staring at him for a moment, Sky Snake finally said, “However, I can promise you that after that brat is dead and II capture Yu Yingnan, I’ll let you enjoy her for three days.”
Li Lunzhe clenched his teeth and said, “Alright, it’s a deal then!’
“Old Liao, give him a few men as well.”
“No need. I work alone.” Li Lunzhe said coldly.
“Good! This isn’t bad!” Sky Snake smiled. In the wilderness, the optimal candidate to hunt down a hunter is, of course, still a hunter.
Moments later, Black Wolf, Flying Bird and Li Lunzhe departed one after another. Right now, It was still earlier than the average get up time, so it was naturally even further away from daybreak.
Sky Snake paced back and forth inside the hall. Despite carefully thinking all of his arrangements through from beginning to the end, he could not find any omissions to remedy or any errors to correct. However, for some reason, there was an uneasiness inside his heart that just wouldn’t go away.
Old Liao had been observing Sky Snake’s body language for a long time, and it was at this moment he said, “Chief, one might say that we’re using a sledgehammer on a nut, striking down on that little brat like a thunderbolt.”
Sky Snake’s expression loosened a little as he nodded in agreement. Qianye was incredibly young, and he was only a rank three Fighter. In order to deal with a little brat, he had sent out three rank four experts in a row, two of which were not your average rank four Fighters, and members of his four elite subordinates no less. No matter how powerful that brat was, there was no way he could be more experienced than the veterans who had fought a hundred battles in their lives.
As Old Liao said this was most definitely a thunderous strike. One might even say that the measures taken were overblown.
Sky Snake returned to his bedroom upstairs to sleep just a while longer. This night’s sleep was even more tiring than not sleeping at all, and his headache was pounding like a hammer. After he lied down on the bed, Sky Snake quickly became very drowsy, but because he was plagued by thousands of thoughts that came in succession, he just wasn’t able to fall into a deep slumber.
Right now, outside Darkblood City, Qianye had already found a mountain cave that was leeward of the wind, and had built a bonfire for himself. He sat in front of the bonfire, and the hind legs of a wild boar were just about to be fully roasted. Flame tongues licked at the grease and caused soft hissing sounds. Thin smoke rose in spirals and assailed the nostrils with an exotic aroma.
Suddenly, footsteps rang from outside the cave, and a tall, young man crawled into the cave just like that.
“Smells good!” he said the second he came in.
Qianye continued to turn the roasting boar leg and glanced at the newcomer without batting an eyelid. Naturally, the fact that he dared to light a bonfire at this place meant that he wasn’t utterly defenseless. He could guarantee that no one could see any light or smell any odor from outside the cave.
However, he had heard the young man’s footsteps only after he had walked all the way to the cave entrance. This meant that none of the traps or mechanisms he had set up nearby had worked, and that even his footsteps were likely revealed intentionally by the young man after he had gotten close to Qianye.
The young man took two steps and reached the bonfire, sitting down at the location opposite of Qianye. He appeared to be very graceful and content while he stretched his two long legs.
“I’m William, Von William.” He introduced himself without the slightest shyness.
The young man had a narrow forehead, high cheekbones, and golden hair. It was a face in the style of a classic viking. His facial features were incredibly handsome, and his gray-blue eyes gave off a very focused and sincere feeling when he was looking someone in the eye. The smile on his face never seemed to wear off, and his short mustache added a mature charm to his young looks.
Qianye lowered his gaze and painted the roasting boar leg with condiments one last time while saying, “You can call me Qianye. Your name is a little strange. You are not from the Empire, are you?”
William smiled and said, “I come from a very small country to the west of the Empire, and I have settled and studied at the Empire since a young age. My foster father at the Empire is named Von, so my surname took after his.”
A gleam flashed across Qianye’s eyes, and he said, “You are from the upper continent?”
William raised his eyebrows with slight astonishment, “You are very perceptive, my friend. That is right, I did come from the upper continent.”
Qianye no longer said anything and took the fully-roasted wild boar leg down from the bonfire. He cut the leg in half and passed half of it to William. William was overjoyed by the gift, and without bothering with pleasantries he immediately accepted it and chowed down.
While watching him eat, Qianye’s fingers trembled indiscernibly for just an instant. William’s ears moved slightly, but he continued to eat happily without raising his head.
Qianye no longer looked at him. He put another boar leg onto the fire and sprinkled condiments and alcohol on it. He began roasting again.
Both men had quite the appetite, and like a tornado, they quickly gobbled down the two wild boar legs that added up to a fifty whole kilograms.
William patted his belly with a fulfilled look on his face, smiling, “I haven’t eaten myself this full for several months!”
“It isn’t easy to find food in the wasteland.” Qianye expressed his agreement.
“Oh no, food comes by easy, but tasty food isn’t easy to find. You don’t mind if I rest here for a night, do you?” William asked while smiling.
Qianye opened his arms and said, “Of course not. Please help yourself. I am about to sleep myself.”
William put his backpack down on the floor to use it as a pillow, placing it at the side of the bonfire that was near the cave entrance. He then lied down on the floor and instantly fell into a deep slumber.
Qianye stared at the leaping flames and zoned out for a bit. He then shifted backward and leaned half his body on the cave wall. He closed his eyes, slowed his breathing, slowly revolved a mind incantation, and entered a state of hypnagogia.
This was a state between wakefulness and deep slumber. It was a sleeping art used specifically by the special forces of the army. It was suited for resting at the battlefield or in a dangerous environment, enabling the user to regain wakefulness at a moment’s notice.
The night was very quiet. There were only the occasional crackling sounds of the bonfire.
The silence was unnatural. During the night, the wasteland belonged to nocturnal beasts and low-ranking dark races. Travellers who dared to pass the night here would have to be prepared to face at least one or two surprise attacks. However, it had been unusually peaceful this night, and even the usual howls and roars almost never sounded.
At five am sharp, William suddenly opened his eyes and let out a yawn, saying, “What a good night’s sleep!”
The second William moved, Qianye immediately opened his eyes.
William stood up, stretched his limbs and moved his body for a bit. He then let out a brilliant, sunlit smile and said, “Thank you for the reception!”
“I did nothing.” Qianye shrugged and said.
William crouched closer and patted Qianye’s shoulder, saying, “Alright, I should be leaving. Should the occasion arise, we shall meet each other again in the future! Speaking of which, I saw a few people along the road who seemed to be coming after you. Be careful!”
“I will!” Qianye’s cloak-wrapped body continued to lean against the cave wall. He merely lifted his head slightly in response.
William’s eyes glanced once at Qianye, while his mouth formed a deep, meaningful smile. He then raised his backpack and waved his hands, walking out of the mountain cave and never turning back.
Qianye did not move from his spot until he could no longer hear William’s footsteps. It was only then he let out a soft sigh and suddenly felt cold sweat pouring all over his body!
Qianye touched the spot on his shoulder where William had patted him, and put his hand in front of his nose, inhaling deeply. He immediately smelled an indiscernible, hot aura that could not be anything but dark origin power. Judging from its attribute, it probably came from a werewolf’s territory.
The young man who called himself William had immeasurable power. Qianye knew that William was suspicious from the second he stepped into the mountain cave, but he hadn’t been able to discern anything until the very last moment when he intentionally left behind that strand of aura. This meant that William was so much more powerful than him that they were not at the same level at all.
Aside from that, Qianye had also noticed a corner of a tattoo etched on William’s neck while he was eating the wild boar leg.
It was a majestic and precipitous mountain peak. Both the shape and angles perfectly matched with that one image etched deeply inside Qianye’s memory. The tattoo wasn’t just any normal tattoo, but rather a totem that represented both faith and power.
The Summit of Peaks was an incredibly powerful and mysterious werewolf tribe in the upper continent. It was said that every one of their members was a terrifying existences who sat at the top of the food chain.
Why would a member of the Summit of Peaks suddenly appear near Darkblood City? When he related this appearance with that of the mysterious, black-robed person who had appeared suddenly that day, Qianye had a vague feeling that a gigantic storm was forming on this boulder-filled land, and that if he was careless and became sucked into it, he would most definitely die a horrible death.
It was only when William had truly left that Qianye finally became assured that he had escaped a disaster. If this William held any ill intentions toward him at all, he could easily tear Qianye to shreds with a single blow. No tricks or techniques were of any use before absolute power.
Before he left, William had said that some people were following Qianye. These were probably the men Sky Snake had sent over, so Sky Snake’s reactions were within his predictions at least.
Qianye extinguished the flames and made some small arrangements inside the cave. He then withdrew a part of the traps outside the cave before leaving the place.
Half a day later, a group of men dressed as adventurers appeared in front of the cave entrance. The leader of the group was none other than Black Wolf. He was a tracking expert of the wasteland, and he had actually managed to trace Qianye all the way to this cave.