Chapter 64 - Xue Niang's First Lesson

"Heh... let’s go stir up some trouble." Unbound Bodhisattva smiled but his gaze grew cold.

Xue Niang followed his gaze but she didn't see anyone in the alley behind them.

Xue Qiming ruffled her hair, his eyes narrowing into a slit as he smiled.

"Didn’t you want to learn martial arts? Today will be your first lesson."

He took Xue Niang’s tiny hand and led her into the alley.

The alley was deep, stretched out of sight, and seemed empty. Xue Qiming confidently led Xue Niang straight down it. After walking for a bit, they faintly heard voices from deeper in the alley. The conversation was intermittent, and only fragments could navigate the alley to reach them.

The two of them had not walked long when faint voices emerged from the depths of the narrow alley.

"...You go on ahead. I’ll catch up later... it’s fine... just make sure the information is kept safe..."

The conversation was fragmented and indistinct, with only scattered phrases reaching their ears.

After a short while, three men emerged from deeper in the alley. Although their leader was missing, it was clear that they were the same Northern Qiang men who sat at an adjacent table during their meal.

When the three saw Xue Qiming with a little girl, they hesitated but didn’t say anything. As they passed him, one turned, flashed a sharp-toothed smile, and rammed his shoulder into Xue Qiming.

Unbound Bodhisattva glanced sideways at the three as they left the alley, looking innocent. He scratched his head and continued leading Xue Niang further inside.

Before long, they encountered the leader of the Northern Qiang group, who was also heading out. He opened his mouth in surprise upon seeing Xue Qiming walk right up to him. "Huh? You came quickly. No matter, it saves me the trouble of looking for you."

"Is that so? Well, it makes things convenient for both of us." Xue Qiming scratched the back of his head with a genuine smile on his face.

"Heh... You're quite bold." The man sneered. "Why were you inquiring about the Qihuang Society?"

"It’s not a big deal," Xue Qiming said honestly, "I just wanted to beat them down."

"You Ruen Dynasty mongrels are all the same. All bark, no bite!" The man pulled his hands from his wide sleeves, revealing a pair of Emei thorns. The two weapons were about ten inches long, sharp ends gleaming wickedly.

The Northern Qiang man lowered his head slightly, his voice cold and emotionless as he threatened, "I’ve killed too many Ruen Dynasty mutts with mouths like yours. I might as well kill another."

"Hmm... you have a bad attitude. You should work on that in the future," Xue Qiming earnestly suggested to the man.

"Are you scared? What's with all the nonsense?" The man scraped his Emei thorns against the alley wall, sending sparks flying. "I apologize, by your Ruen Dynasty customs, I haven’t introduced myself."

"Qihuang Society, Tongluo-ranker, Ye Mingsha." His tone was measured, as if to ensure Xue Qiming could hear him clearly.

"What!?" Xue Qiming’s face changed dramatically as he pointed at the Qihuang Society member. "You, you’re... Ye Mingsha!?"

Ye Mingsha seemed pleased with Xue Qiming’s reaction, a cold smile curling on his lips.

"What’s wrong? Have you heard of me? Begging for mercy won't help—"

"Could it be... you’re the legendary bat excrement!?" Xue Qiming took two steps back, as if witnessing something extraordinary.

Xue Niang looked puzzled and tugged at Xue Qiming’s sleeve. "What does Ye Mingsha have to do with bat excrement?"

Xue Qiming stole a glance at the Northern Qiang man blocking the alley ahead of them. His face had darkened considerably, like something had defecated on him. Xue Qiming explained, "Don’t say it so loudly. He already has a terrible attitude, so he’ll get mad if he hears... Ye Mingsha is actually a fancy term for bat excrement... It’s gross..."

Ye Mingsha could no longer hold back hearing their whispered conversation. "You’re courting death!" he shouted and lunged at Xue Qiming, aiming both thorns straight at his chest!

Xue Qiming swiftly scooped up Xue Niang with one arm and he jumped aside to dodge. He made sure to keep up his barrage of verbal harassment.

"See, see, I told you, you have a terrible attitude. Just a few words set you off... You really need to fix that—"

"Vermin! Die!" Ye Mingsha was utterly enraged and attacked again after his initial strike was dodged.

Xue Qiming, held the girl with one arm, and used his remaining hand to parry Ye Mingsha's attacks. Amidst all this, he even took a moment to tidy Xue Niang’s hair, which had gotten messed up during their dodging.

"Is this the level of a Tongluo-ranker from the Qihuang Society... merely a Martial Master?" Xue Qiming smirked. "Reaching this level at your age doesn't count for much... And with that temper of yours, you'll never achieve much more in the future..."

Ye Mingsha didn’t respond. He was beginning to pant, while Xue Qiming remained unruffled. Seeing how Xue Qiming still had the mind to tease him and talk to that little girl while fending him off with one hand, Ye Mingsha grew anxious.

He realized he had miscalculated. He hadn't expected to run into such a formidable opponent. He needed to devise a plan, or else he would definitely be finished here today. Messy thoughts churned in Ye Mingsha's mind as his eyes scanned the surroundings. Suddenly, he fixed his eyes on the girl in Xue Qiming's arms. He narrowed his eyes, and a cold smile once again curled up at the corners of his lips.

Ye Mingsha kicked off from the alley wall, leaping into the air.

His two thorns came together as he dove down toward the cocky man's head.

Xue Qiming quickly sidestepped to avoid the attack, but as he ducked, he saw one of the thorns spun in Ye Mingsha's hand, slashing upwards from below!

Xue Qiming hastily pulled his head back, the Emei thorn narrowly grazing the tip of his nose!

His chest suddenly tightened... Xue Niang’s small hand, which had been holding onto the front of his shirt, suddenly clenched.

Xue Qiming glanced down and panicked! Ye Mingsha's other thorn was speeding toward Xue Niang!

Sssht—

The sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh echoed in the alley.

Ye Mingsha looked up and his smile faded away completely.

Xue Qiming was staring at him with an icy gaze.

A thorn was buried in Xue Qiming's right arm and blood trickled from the wound.

Half smiling, Xue Qiming tilted his head and asked, "What were you trying to do just now?"

That voice sounded like it came from an ancient glacier.

"I... you..." Ye Mingsha opened his mouth but was frozen under Xue Qiming's forbidding stare.

A chill ran down his spine, and it felt like he had fallen into an icy abyss.

"I told you... you need to work on your attitude," Xue Qiming said before the Tongluo-ranker could muster the courage to speak, "But there's no need..."

Ye Mingsha saw a large hand cover the skies over his face. He felt as though an iron clamp had gripped him, followed by an overwhelming force pressing down from above!

"It's too late for you."

Boom!

A loud crash resounded, and the ground shook violently!

The low walls on both sides of the alley crumbled, and dust rolled through the air.

As the dust settled, Xue Qiming stood with his back to Xue Niang.

At his feet, Ye Mingsha's head was buried deep into the ground, his limbs no longer twitching.

The ground was covered with deep cracks.

"Here's your first lesson," Xue Qiming intoned.

"If you can kill an enemy in one blow, don’t give them a second."