Wen Leyang quickly stood out and diverted the topic with a smile. After all, in the village, only he had some relations with Qin Zhui, “Don’t be angry. Let’s talk this through. If you need my help in anything, just say the word.”
He would not marry Nineteen no matter what. However, to be fair, he did not have a bad impression of Nineteen. By the looks of things, Qin Zhui seemed to have some secret affair with Nineteen. If he could make Qin Zhui take Nineteen away as his wife, all the better.
Qin Zhui glanced and seemed to hesitate for a while before managing a nod. He treated that as an explanation to Wen Leyang. Then, he looked at Nineteen with a straight face, “If you lose, you can decide if you want to stick to the promise. But we must fight this battle. The one with the surname Qin must give himself an explanation!” He paused, then added, “Don’t worry, I only want to determine the victor, I won’t harm a single hair of yours.”
The Wen Bucao were at ease. The final additional sentence of Qin Zhui was irritating. As the only daughter of One Word Palace’s supreme leader, she would not take it lying down no matter what. Everyone was waiting for Nineteen to yell in anger, ‘Just do your worst and we’ll see if you can harm a hair of mine!’ and they would rush forward to fight.
Wen Leyang was kind-natured. He quickly stepped in between the two, worried that they would lash out the moment things got heated. However, Nineteen did not budge from her spot. She only shook her head at Qin Zhui, “I’m badly wounded and hadn’t recovered. I cannot fight with you. Even if I’m not wounded, this battle would be meaningless. Just leave.”
Qin Zhui exclaimed in surprise. The anger in his eyes was replaced by worry, “How bad are your wounds? Who harmed you?”
Suddenly, a naughtiness that was hard to detect flashed across Nineteen’s eyes. She pointed at Wen Leyang, “I was injured to save his lover. That’s why I was injured. Even my spear was snapped in two!”
Qin Zhui roared in anger. He turned and lashed out at Wen Leyang with his scabbard, “Why didn’t you save your lover? Why did she need Nineteen to rescue her?” However, this slash did not contain the magical power of Force-Hide, it was a pure brute force.
Of course, Wen Leyang could not be let himself be hit. His body swung like a phantom. He retreated and moved forward in the blink of an eye, evading the scabbard and returning to his spot.
A crisp bang could be heard and Qin Zhui shattered a green rock on the ground. Although there was no magical power, Qin Zhui’s strength alone was enough to shatter rocks. With the sturdiness of Wen Leyang’s body. he should not be knocked dead by this one blow, but he would not be able to prevent a bruised lump from appearing on his head.
Xiaoyi and Mumu bellowed in unison. One of them raised the big-muzzled weapon and the other summoned Ah Dan. They were about to attack.
However, a trace of easiness appeared in the four elders’ eyes. Although this Qin Zhui looked to be incomprehensible, he was a man. He showed restraint when he lashed out to vent his anger. He was not a person that should be killed.
Ah Dan had not jumped out but a cacophony of strange cries sounded from all directions. The Rainbow brothers liked Wen Leyang, though nobody knows why. They were roaring and brandishing their huge weapons, striking out at Qin Zhui from all directions like a meteor shower.
Qin Zhui’s eyes lit up. He howled, “Good!” He raised his knife to parry.
Wen Leyang could not let them break into a fight. He yelled in a loud voice. His body flitted in and out swiftly. He seemed to stop all seven fat men at the same time.
Qin Zhui’s eyes glowed brighter. He stared at Wen Leyang, “You realized another method too? Haha, Nice!”
Wen Leyang, however, looked at the seven fat men with a puzzled face, “You guys… aren’t sitting together while eating?” The seven fat men had emerged from seven directions.
A fat man whom he was unsure of his ranking and address smiled triumphantly, “If we’re all sitting on the same table, the food wouldn’t be enough!”
“Even if it were two or three tables, it still won’t be enough!”
“It’s fine if it’s on ordinary days. Today we’re having a feast, we must separate!”
“Wind Rain Rainbow had filled eight tables in total!”
“Wind Rain brothers were much weaker than us Rainbow brothers, both of them sat together at a table…”
One fat man opened his mouth and the remaining six were immediately invigorated. They all talked at once and continued the conversation. If nobody stopped them, they would have kept at it until tomorrow’s daybreak.
Wen Leyang was scared and ran away. He went back and stood in front of Qin Zhui.
Wen Leyang chuckled, “That was an accident, but thank goodness Nineteen was there!” As he said this, he then said with a low voice only audible to Qin Zhui, “Tell me about the two of you! I’ll think of some ways to help you!”
Qin Zhui was never one to be bashful. Although his volume was not loud, he did not lower his voice on purpose, “I have told you before in the Gold-Consuming Lair. I have a rival from a renowned sect. Before this, I was not her opponent. I had gone to the Gold-Consuming Lair to train in order to defeat her.”
Even Wen Leyang’s forehead was gleaming. He walked over and smiled with high spirits, “Your rival is the little girl from One Word Palace, am I right?”
Wen Leyang thought back to when he first met Qin Zhui. Ashe was wielding a knife and his cultivation base was formidable, he had mistaken him for a One Word Palace disciple. When he mentioned One Word Palace, Qin Zhui’s expression was very peculiar.
Qin Zhui nodded, natural and poised, “That’s right. The rival whom I mentioned, was Nineteen! One Word Palace was a learned family. I have fought her for who knows how many times before this, and have lost every single time…”
Everyone was listening intently to Qin Zhui’s words. Nobody noticed that on Nineteen’s face, a hint of smile secretly appeared as if she also reminisced about her childhood with Qin Zhui.
Qin Zhui’s master was a rogue cultivator who was neither famous nor powerful. But Qin Zhui had been unnaturally gifted since young and he had great natural endowments. Or else, he would not have fought at the level of Wen Leyang in the Gold-Consuming Lair.
Although rogue cultivators looked to be fierce and tough, unafraid of the heavens or the earth, their abilities are far weaker when compared to the Five Blessings. People like Giant Bull, Red Grandaunt, Ji Fei and Shui Jing were considered highly skilled among the rogue cultivators, but within the Five Blessings, they were at most at the level of the third-generation disciples. Back then, at Zhanyan Peak on Mount Emei, the First Seat of Ten Modes Monastery big monk Hope Aware cast his magical powers alone and blinded all the rogue cultivators, which almost took out their whole army.
When Wen Leyang entered the Gold-Consuming Lair, his abilities were not inferior to Taoist priest Qing Niao who was one of the best elites among the Five Blessings. He could even exchange a few blows with the supreme leader of the Five Blessings’ enlightened person Zi Que. Qin Zhui had relied solely on his cultivation and fought to a tie with Wen Leyang. It was definitely rare and commendable. If one did not include the line of Leyang from Painting Town, to say that Qin Zhui was the best elite among the rogue cultivators would not be an exaggeration.
Now, Qin Zhui had also realized ‘Hiding the Force with the blade’. His prowess improved tremendously again. With his age, he would make others die out of envy.
Nineteen and Qin Zhui had met by accident when they were small. They did not get along and were childish. They fought. After Qin Zhui was pounded until his nose was blue and face was swollen, he looked prettier…
Qin Zhui was naturally unwilling to submit when he lost. He made a promise and went back to train. Not long after they fought another time, and he lost again. He made another promise, continued to fight, and lost again…
Whether it was freezing or raining, the two had never missed a fighting date. Nineteen was the beloved only daughter of One Word Palace’s supreme leader, the method of practice she was trained in was much stronger compared to a rogue cultivator. Qin Zhui had never won even once in ten years.
When he said this, Qin Zhui suddenly smiled, “If it wasn’t for Nineteen, I would never have been able to train until the level I am at now. Every time I lost, I would go back and train strenuously. When I was young I would think to myself, a lifetime is such a long time, I am bound to win at least once! Hehe, when I reached seventeen or eighteen, I suddenly understood. Although a lifetime is a long time, there was something I could wait no longer!”
The two children had been fighting since young, they no longer had the dissatisfaction they had for each other. Nineteen was a bright-minded young girl. She did not understand it when she was little, but she understood when she grew older. The method that Qin Zhui was refining and the One Word Palace magical power, which she inherited were never on the same level. However, with every match, Qin Zhui had managed to make the gap smaller and even showed signs of catching up with her. This natural endowment was enough to make Nineteen, who was intelligent without seeming so, impressed. The friendship between the childhood playmates eventually turned into the adoration of a teenage boy and girl… Of course, one had almost trashed the other.
Qin Zhui was rough now, he was even less meticulous then. When he was eighteen, after a match, he was pounded and lay flat on the ground, unable to stand. He laid on his back and looked at Nineteen. This angle was extremely familiar to him. Sometimes he even felt unaccustomed to look at her while standing. He smiled suddenly, “Come with me!”
Nineteen was startled. You could not even stand up and you want me to go with you? She blushed and shook her head, but she did not completely turn him down, “Wait till you defeat me, then we shall talk!”
Qin Zhui was overjoyed. He jumped up from the ground with a strength that came from nowhere. He laughed and said, “Alright, wait for me for five years! After five years, you’ll definitely lose!” After he said this, he turned and ran.
Nineteen had already extended her hand for him to hold, but Qin Zhui had run away. The lady’s thoughts were, “If he wins, he can marry her. If he loses, they could still hold hands.”
Within the next five years, Qin Zhui had traveled all over the world to train for the first three years. Finally, two years ago, he unintentionally found the Gold-Consuming Lair, the best place for him to train in the Force.
The rule about defeating her which Nineteen had set then was not out of recklessness. Nineteen thoughts were meticulous. She knew that Qin Zhui was a rogue cultivator. Even if they liked each other, her father and two uncles in One Word Palace would never consent to this. However, if Qin Zhu could defeat her with his own strength, that would be another story. The Five Blessings right path think highly of themselves, but they would recruit any young talents regardless of their backgrounds.
Relying on her method of practice and cultivation base, Nineteen was firmly the first person among her peers in the One Word Palace. If Qin Zhui could defeat her, her father might just agree to this marriage…
At the edge of the Gold-Consuming Lair, to repay Wen Leyang’s favor of enlightening him, Qin Zhui had guarded the Prohibition of the great river to prevent the giant pangolin from escaping. He even volunteered to chase after Taoist priest San Tong who had kidnapped Leyang Wen. Then, he fought a tough battle at the City God Temple of Shanghai. After he settled everything, he went to One Word Palace to look for Nineteen.
Naturally, he did not find Nineteen there. The heads of One Word Palace were not there either. Qin Zhui had unintentionally heard from a normal disciple that Nineteen had stayed behind on Nine Peaks Mountain to marry someone, someone which he knew.
Qin Zhui was dumbfounded and anxious.
