Chapter 233 : What a Rip-off
Chapter 233: What a Rip-off
Chen Ming did not participate in the discussion, only listened quietly from the side. Seeing Du Rusong promise to raise a bounty to First Grade, he felt quite impressed with his decisiveness.
The Six Doors Authority had strict regulations on bounty rewards. Even a First Grade Inspector could not simply raise them at will—unless he was willing to convert his own merit points into a reward of the corresponding grade and add it on top.
In other words, even if Du Rusong managed to capture Xie Jianqiu this time, it would still be a wasted effort, perhaps even costing him extra.
After all, his subordinates also had to share the merit. It was impossible for him to monopolize it alone.
From their conversation, Chen Ming learned that Tao Zhiquan had a mortal enemy, a fugitive wanted by the Six Doors Authority. Du Rusong promised to raise his enemy’s bounty to First Grade, which would surely draw out more First Grade experts to act. Naturally, the chances of capturing this person would greatly increase.
Even this Divine Constable himself could not capture that enemy—just what sort of character was he?
Tao Zhiquan began analyzing,
“I have studied this person’s record. He was born into poverty, and in his youth had a stroke of fortune, obtaining the inheritance of a peerless cultivation art. Unfortunately, he started practicing martial arts too late. After barely breaking through to First Grade, his cultivation never advanced further.
“Until a few years ago, when he somehow acquired a harvesting dual cultivation technique. At first, he only targeted ordinary women, draining countless victims. Later, he grew bolder and even set his eyes on aristocratic young ladies. Once his deeds were exposed, he was captured by Lord Xu.
“This man had already been imprisoned for half a year. After escaping, he was relentlessly hunted down, exhausting himself greatly. Later, he was injured by Lord Li, very likely wounding his foundation. If you were in his position, My Lord, what would you do?”
Du Rusong replied,
“Naturally, I would find a place to restore my foundation as quickly as possible. The best method would be to capture a few women of profound cultivation and drain them. That is the fastest way.”
“Exactly.”
“Then, are we to wait until women go missing somewhere and then pursue the trail?”
With a confident expression, Tao Zhiquan said,
“I believe this man has always acted cautiously. He would not randomly abduct women. He will definitely choose a place where no one would notice.”
Du Rusong said gravely,
“Elder Tao, stop keeping us in suspense. Why don’t you just say it directly?”
Tao Zhiquan said,
“My Lord, have you noticed that in recent years, within Xia Prefecture, more than a dozen aristocratic young ladies have gone missing? After Xie Jianqiu was captured, only ten were rescued. As for the others, he vehemently denied abducting them.”
Du Rusong’s eyes glinted,
“You mean to say those missing women were hidden elsewhere by him?”
“It must be so.”
“Even if your guess is correct, how can we know where he hid them?”
Tao Zhiquan said,
“My Lord, have you ever heard? On this Dan River, there is a group of river bandits. Their leader is suspected of being Third Grade. They occasionally plunder passing merchant ships, but their harm has not been severe, their notoriety not great, so the Inspector of this prefecture never bothered to wipe them out.
“If I am not mistaken, this bandit leader is most likely connected to Xie Jianqiu. Perhaps he is even a disciple taken in secret.”
Du Rusong asked doubtfully,
“Elder Tao, why are you so certain that this group of river bandits is connected to Xie Jianqiu?”
Stroking his graying goatee, Tao Zhiquan said,
“As it happens, a few months ago, I traveled to Jiangzhou with my granddaughter, taking this very Dan River route. I exchanged a couple of moves with that bandit leader. At the time, I already felt his Gang Yuan was unusual. Thinking back now, it must have been Xie Jianqiu’s unique martial art—the Icy Whirlforce.
“Moreover, according to testimonies from those close to Xie Jianqiu, this man comes to Qingtian County every half year, claiming to visit a friend. But isn’t that too frequent? Based on these two clues, this old man has concluded that Xie Jianqiu is most likely hiding among those river bandits.”
After hearing this, Du Rusong no longer had any doubts.
“Elder Tao truly is meticulous, discerning the subtle from the slightest trace. No wonder you are famed as a Divine Constable. You must already know where those bandits are hiding, do you not?”
Tao Zhiquan said,
“That, I’m afraid, can only be learned by asking some local hoodlums.”
Du Rusong immediately issued orders to his four subordinates,
“Good. I’m entrusting this matter to you. Move swiftly.”
Then, he looked at the low-profile Chen Ming,
“You stay with us here and wait.”
“Yes, My Lord.”
Chen Ming lowered his head in acknowledgment.
He felt that Du Rusong would never let him out of his sight.
…
They waited for several hours.
Du Rusong had changed into plain clothes and was meditating upon a large boulder.
Chen Ming stood under a tree not far away, checking his panel.
As for Tao Zhiquan, he had gone off alone to gather information. Chen Ming actually wanted to follow and observe how an old hand of the martial world inquired about news, but Du Rusong would never allow it, so he kept quiet.
At this moment, he still needed about one million experience points to directly break through to Second Grade.
In these past days, he had been using the silver ornament Xia Mudan gave him to disguise himself as a woman, roaming Xia Prefecture City to challenge young Third Grade experts, harvesting abundant gains.
He had to admit, even in this world, beautiful women always received preferential treatment. He had crafted his disguise after a certain celebrity from his previous life, using the name “Ye Qingmei.” One could say he was carrying himself with immense arrogance.
Had he appeared as a man, he would have long been beaten to death. But posing as a woman, not only did no one truly press him too hard, he even gained a crowd of admirers, both male and female.
It was a pity. If only he had a few more days, he could accumulate enough points to step into Second Grade.
At this moment, under Du Rusong’s nose, he naturally dared not allocate points.
A First Grade expert was of the Divine Soul Realm, their divine sense extremely keen. If his cultivation suddenly skyrocketed, it would be impossible not to arouse suspicion.
As Chen Ming pondered how to amass that last million experience points, he saw Zhu Wanlin and the others return, dragging two captives along.
Zhu Wanlin reported,
“My Lord, we have found out. These two are accomplices of those river bandits, responsible for fencing stolen goods. They say the bandits’ lair is not actually on the Dan River.”
Du Rusong opened his eyes,
“Then where is it?”
“In Jiangzhou territory, a place called Huanshou Mountain. It is over a hundred li from here.”
Just then, Tao Zhiquan also returned. Upon hearing Zhu Wanlin’s words, he said,
“I know that place. It is surrounded on three sides by water, filled with reeds. Hide a boat among them, and it becomes nearly impossible to find.”
Du Rusong rose to his feet,
“There’s no time to lose. Since we know their lair, let’s move.”
And so, the seven of them continued on, with the two captives leading the way.
Who knew what methods Zhu Wanlin had used to make those two obediently comply.
…
Before nightfall, they had reached Huanshou Mountain. For ordinary people, the reed marshes were a great obstacle, but for Third Grade experts, they posed no difficulty at all.
“Who goes there?”
As soon as they stepped onto the island, a loud shout rang out.
Immediately, Zhu Wanlin and the other four unleashed a massacre. Like slicing melons and chopping vegetables, they slew everyone they encountered, leaving no survivors.
Even Chen Ming frowned slightly. When it came to ruthlessness, he could not compare with them.
“So this is the martial world…”
Beside him, Tao Zhiquan had produced a dry tobacco pipe at some point, puffing away as he sighed. Whether he meant it for Chen Ming’s ears was unclear.
“Found you!”
With hands clasped behind his back, Du Rusong seemed to sense something. Without any visible movement, his body was lifted by an invisible force. He soared over their heads and sped toward the mountainside.
“This man’s strength should be above Ruan Caihong’s.”
Chen Ming judged silently. Of course, he meant Ruan Caihong without the Demonic Sword.
Tao Zhiquan said,
“Let’s go. A battle between First Grade experts isn’t something you see every day. Such opportunities are rare indeed.”
“Yes, Senior.”
Chen Ming answered and followed behind him up the mountain.
Before long, he reached a large cave entrance. A voice, filled with both fury and indignation, echoed out:
“Du Rusong, don’t bully others too much! Were I not injured, how could you be my match?”
Du Rusong roared with laughter,
“Hahaha… save those words for the King of Hell!”
By the time Chen Ming and Tao Zhiquan entered, Zhu Wanlin and the others had nearly finished clearing the mountain of bandits, joining them inside almost simultaneously.
The cave was vast. Du Rusong, wielding a black-gold saber, was suppressing Xie Jianqiu so thoroughly that he could barely fight back.
Off to the side, seven or eight onlookers stood. Among them were several young women, their expressions vacant, their clothing disheveled—clearly the abducted aristocratic daughters.
There was also a middle-aged man watching the battle nervously.
Tao Zhiquan pointed,
“That is the bandit leader.”
Zhu Wanlin immediately charged,
“He’s mine! Take my spear!”
The middle-aged man drew his sword and clashed with him.
Chen Ming saw that Xie Jianqiu was already on the brink of defeat. Within ten moves, he would surely fall under Du Rusong’s blade. He felt puzzled.
At this rate, the matter would be resolved swiftly.
But what about the fatal disaster foretold by the Tortoiseshell’s prophecy?
By all accounts, Du Rusong had no reason to kill him. From the looks of it, he had no intention of borrowing someone else’s blade either.
At that moment, as he was about to be struck down, Xie Jianqiu cried out,
“Du Rusong, do you want a spot to enter the Secret Realm?”
Du Rusong laughed coldly,
“Trying to trick me? Such ploys are useless against this official.”
“Catch!”
Xie Jianqiu suddenly flung something.
Du Rusong did not reach out, but caught it on his saber. Upon closer inspection, it was a golden token engraved with intricate patterns. His eyes flashed with surprise.
This token seemed genuine.
“Who would have thought this trip would bring such a surprise! But to think you can buy your life with this… how naive. Even if I kill you, the spot is still mine!”
Just as he was about to strike, the golden token erupted with brilliant light, stunning him.
Xie Jianqiu shouted,
“Here and now is the opportunity to enter the Secret Realm. Will you kill me—or seize it?”
Without hesitation, Du Rusong snatched the token and vanished on the spot.
A chance to enter the Secret Realm was a rare stroke of fortune. His choice was no surprise.
But—
The six remaining people turned to see Xie Jianqiu’s gaze sweep over them. Instantly, it was as if they had fallen into an icy abyss, their limbs turning cold.
With Du Rusong gone into the Secret Realm, it meant the six of them had to face Xie Jianqiu, a First Grade expert.
The situation had suddenly shifted.