At Wang Jing's sudden move, Chen Ping'an and Gu Can were left dumbfounded.
"Forget it, Brother Wang Jing, let's not go looking for trouble."
Holding a bulging money pouch, Zheng Dafeng wore an intriguing expression. "This hothead Wang Jing is in for a world of hurt. He probably won't even know what hits him when he dies."
The young lord wearing a high crown and a green jade pendant walked away proudly with the tall woman, looking like an unmatched pair of immortals.
In their eyes, country rustics fighting and brawling over fragile, pathetic pride were mindless spectacles not even worth a single glance, lest it dirty their eyes.
"Let me go! Let me go!" Facing the little boy in the scarlet robe who was struggling desperately, Wang Jing released his grip, and the Xu family of Clearwind City quickly caught the child.
Xu's chest heaved with anger. She stretched out her delicate, mutton-fat jade hand, wanting to do something to the youth...
Zheng Dafeng barked, "The boy doesn't know any better, but did you folks from Clearwind City come here to hunt for treasures or to make enemies?!"
Xu paused, withdrew her hovering hand, her bright eyes shifting as if weighing the pros and cons. Finally, she hurried away with the cursing little boy.
The tall old man followed closely behind, the little girl sitting on his shoulders turning grim. Her small hand formed the shape of a blade, making a slight horizontal cutting gesture.
The hunched old man holding a large white bowl swept his gaze over the three of them, finally letting it linger on Gu Can, making Gu Can's hair stand on end...
With the outsiders all gone, Wang Jing was bewildered. None of this was what he wanted; it was all the doing of this rebellious system, which seemed to harbor an intense hatred for that little boy and girl!
At that moment, the system chimed: "Ding! A task has been assigned to you: destroy the Dao hearts of the boy and the girl!"
Wang Jing muttered inwardly, "Stop messing around! Do you think I don't have enough trouble already? Aren't the grudges deep enough? Why pick a fight with kids? Anyone with eyes can see those people are not to be trifled with!"
Feeling controlled by the system like a puppet on a string, Wang Jing grew flustered and said to Chen Ping'an and Gu Can, "I'm in a bad mood. I want to walk alone."
……
……
Wang Jing walked mechanically to the side of the stream, dropped heavily to the ground, and began listlessly tossing stones into the water.
Several arrows tore through the air, whistling straight toward him.
Sensing danger, Wang Jing twisted his body to dodge. An arrow brushed past his cheek, leaving a shallow scratch on the right side of his face.
"Lu Zhengchun, what the hell do you want!"
The newcomers were Lu Zhengchun and Lu Zhengyang, the two sons of Old Master Lu. Behind them were five fierce archers raised by the Lu family, all with short blades hanging at their waists.
Wang Jing recognized them because he often went to the Lu residence to deliver "spirit fish" to Old Master Lu. But the two brothers could not stand Wang Jing because he was too close to Liu Xianyang, with whom they had a deep feud.
Lu Zhengchun sneered, "You muddy-legged bumpkin from the Mud Bottle Alley, blind as a bat, you actually offended the immortals from the mountains of Clearwind City! Up, hack him to pieces with stray blades, and throw him into the stream to feed the fish!"
"Ding! Unlocked the Wood-Fetus Realm (Second Realm of Martial Artist), preparing to show off for you!"
Before Wang Jing could comprehend the changes in his body, a cold short blade slashed diagonally toward him!
Leaning to the side, Wang Jing evaded the blade and threw a heavy punch, sending this Lu family servant tumbling straight into the Dragon's Whisker Stream.
Two more short blades followed in succession. Wang Jing ducked to the ground and unleashed a powerful, low sweeping kick like the autumn wind scattering fallen leaves. The two servants were tripped and stumbled to the ground, their short blades and arrows scattering everywhere.
Thwip! Thwip! Two arrows cut through the air.
Wang Jing charged head-on against the arrows, fierce as a tiger. In his eyes, those arrows were slow—so very slow!
Leaning backward, he easily dodged them. Pushing off with his right foot, his body leaped high into the air, and with a double flying kick, he dispatched the remaining two servants.
The two Lu brothers fled in a panic. Was this muddy-legged bumpkin really this fierce?!
Wang Jing picked up two stones, weighed them in his hand, and channeled true qi into his palms before hurling them out. The fleeing brothers were struck in the backs by the stones and slammed face-first onto the ground with loud thuds.
Wang Jing leaped over to them as the brothers' endless wails and pleas for mercy echoed.
Standing straight and tall, Wang Jing looked down at the dirt-covered Lu brothers. "What's the backing of that Clearwind City?"
Struck dumb with fear, the brothers kept their mouths shut, knowing that saying it out loud would leave them without a burial place.
Wang Jing said coldly, "Fine! If you two won't talk, that's fine too. I'll just kill you first, and then go ask your old man, Old Master Lu!"
At that moment, heaven and earth came to a standstill, and Qi Jingchun's figure materialized.
"Wang Jing, enough!"
Mimicking an ancient scholar, Wang Jing cupped his hands in a salute. "Master Qi, they were going to kill me."
Qi Jingchun said, "Wang Jing, you are intelligent, skilled in business, and smooth in your dealings with people. Why did you proactively provoke Clearwind City?"
Wang Jing remained silent...
Qi Jingchun stared fixedly at Wang Jing, his gaze burning like a torch, as if trying to see right through him.
After a long while, Qi Jingchun sighed. "You must not meddle in the karma of the small town, otherwise you will surely die!"
"Thank you for the warning, Master Qi."
Qi Jingchun looked off into the distance. "If I let you go back, who knows what trouble you might stir up. So, stay here for now."
Before Qi Jingchun's voice faded, a white halo formed beneath Wang Jing's feet, and a faint white barrier of light materialized around the walls of the surrounding space.
"This spell is called 'Drawing a Circle as a Prison'. Stay here for a while and reflect."
"What should I do if my enemies come to kill me?!"
"With me guarding this place, they wouldn't dare!"
"What if I starve or freeze to death?"
"I will notify Chen Ping'an to bring you clothes and food."
"Master Qi, when will you let me out?"
Qi Jingchun raised his head to look at the sky and uttered an inexplicable phrase: "When heaven and earth are no longer, you will be free..."
With those words, Qi Jingchun's figure dissolved like smoke.
The frozen Lu brothers and their retinue of servants also vanished without a trace, reappearing with the ability to move only at the gates of the Lu residence. Staring at each other in shock, they screamed bloody murder, thinking they had run into ghosts!
By the stream, unwilling to give up, Wang Jing sought help from the system. But the usually lawless and arrogant system had also wilted completely. "Ding! System updating, please wait..."
"Damn it! You drop the ball at the critical moment! I shouldn't have been cheap and bought this pirated, rebellious system while I was alive. You cause trouble and then play dead on me, is that it..."
At that moment, footsteps sounded. Wang Jing looked over with guarded eyes, only to see Liu Xianyang and Ruan Xiu approaching.
Liu Xianyang asked, "Brother Wang Jing, why are you standing around like a fool?"
Bound by the spell, Wang Jing let out a deep sigh. "I have sufferings I can't put into words."
He recounted the whole sequence of events to the two of them, though he kept mum about the system.
Ruan Xiu furrowed her delicate brows and spoke up. "Master Qi truly did it for your own good. As for Clearwind City... how should I put it? Their influence and strength depend on who you compare them to, but they are very close to Sun-Primal Mountain, and the ancestors of both families have a great relationship."
Wang Jing asked, "What Sun-Primal Mountain? You mean that burly old man and the little girl?"
Ruan Xiu nodded. "That old man isn't human; he's a mountain-guarding ape and a consultant for Sun-Primal Mountain. That little girl is called Tao Zi, and she's the precious granddaughter of Tao Kui, the ancestor of Sun-Primal Mountain. Sun-Primal Mountain mostly has Sword Cultivators, and their strength cannot be underestimated in the Eastern Treasured Plains."
Liu Xianyang said in surprise, "Ruan Xiu, I always thought you only knew how to eat and had the strength for blacksmithing. How do you know so much? Did Master Ruan tell you all this? Why didn't he tell me?"
Ruan Xiu angrily retorted, "Liu Xianyang, do you believe I'll beat you to death?!"
Wang Jing suffered inwardly, unable to voice his misery. "I'm totally screwed... System, you've really led me to a miserable end!"
"Liu Xianyang, hurry and go call Chen Ping'an over. I have something to tell him."
With a bitter expression, Liu Xianyang said, "Big brother, do you think I can go? You think I haven't wanted to come play with you these past few days? I'm in the exact same situation as you—both of us are grounded, just in different-sized places. Master Ruan said I'm not allowed to cross the Covered Bridge!"
Ruan Xiu said, "Chen Ping'an is fine, you don't need to worry. The town has its own rules. Outsiders come here mainly to trade for opportunities and wouldn't dare commit murder, or they'll be expelled..."