Sneaking Back

Liu Jingming fell silent. Only after a while did he tentatively venture, "You need more money?" "More money?" Wu Youren laughed again at the words, but his eyes held only deep disdain. He was not a magnanimous person, and Lei Lixing's past actions could be described as trying to send him to his death without any exaggeration. No, it was worse than that—the man had simply disregarded whether he lived or died, treating him as nothing more than an ant. Wu Youren truly had been insignificant back then, but such naked contempt still grated on him deeply. A mere three thousand dollars to wipe the slate clean... Was there no end to the insults? Seeing him remain silent for so long, Liu Jingming could only urge him again, "Youren, we can't let the Liang people laugh at us." "Tch," Wu Youren scoffed. "Not going after him for trouble is already me looking at the bigger picture." "Why can't he take a page from Shi Linyuan's book and vanish from my sight completely?" Shi Linyuan had come to Red Pine as an alternate candidate alongside Liu Jingming. After getting rebuffed hard by Wu Youren, he had very tactfully made himself scarce. Wu Youren had an even greater grudge against that guy, but at least the fellow had the right attitude. Wasn't he always boasting of his superior wit and cunning? If nothing else, he at least knew how to read the room. Liu Jingming pondered for a moment before speaking. "Shi Linyuan is scared to death of you. He's frantically pulling strings right now trying to transfer out of the academy." Wu Youren falling into the water back then had been directly related to that guy; even if he hadn't laid a hand on him, he had at least been the one plotting it. "Him? Transfer?" Wu Youren snorted disdainfully, not even bothering to say more. Even if Shi Linyuan had the connections and was willing to spend the money, with Red Pine currently facing a severe Guizu crisis, could any student actually manage a transfer? Liu Jingming nodded and added, "Haicheng Martial Academy is providing paired support to Red Pine... to fight the Guizu!" "What does that have to do with me?" Wu Youren retorted bluntly, then asked, "Did you really not take any money?" "I borrowed five hundred dollars to scrape together enough for a sword," Liu Jingming replied sullenly. "Interest-free." "That counts," Wu Youren nodded. "If you spoke up for him like this and didn't even get anything out of it... I'd be even angrier!" Calling it a loan was one thing, but making it interest-free was already quite generous, especially given the situation Red Pine students were in—anyone in the know understood. If a student kicked the bucket, that money was down the drain for good. Liu Jingming was somewhat surprised to hear this. "I took a private perk to lobby you, and you're not mad?" Their priorities weren't the same, and Wu Youren couldn't be bothered to explain. "I'm just glad you didn't ask to borrow money from me." He didn't mind lending the guy money, but if a habit of dependency formed over time, that wasn't something he wanted to see. More importantly, the son of a matrilocal husband still had some backbone—that meant they could still get along! Hearing this, Liu Jingming gathered his courage and ventured, "Youren, then name your price?" Wu Youren thought it over before speaking in a low voice. "Ten Guizu relics... and no resentment crystals!" "Holy crap!" Liu Jingming gasped, utterly dumbfounded. Although he had arrived at Red Pine later, his style differed from Wu Youren's, and his pockets were deeper. Especially after selling the "Spring Delight" honey, he had interacted with many people and picked up quite a bit of information. For instance, while he had never traded Guizu relics, he knew the market rates. "That's not bargaining at all—that's more than ten times the price!" Wu Youren gave a soft snort. "I never intended to name a price to begin with. He can just get lost!" It wasn't that he was being extortionate; rather, deep down, he rejected any contact with those people. Haicheng Martial Academy stepping up its cooperation with Red Pine meant Lei Lixing might have to take the field. If their past feud was turned over, there would surely be follow-ups, and who knew what requests might land on his head. Wu Youren felt his current life was quite good. Though it had its share of frustrations, he could keep striving forward. If random, messy entanglements intruded, his rhythm could easily spiral out of control. Besides, he had experienced firsthand what the cohort of hostages was capable of. Therefore, his current attitude was that not meeting was far better than meeting; each keeping to their own peace was best. "You..." Liu Jingming didn't dare push any further. Wu Youren truly stood out the most in the Martial Academy among all the hostages from Jin. After being away for so long, he had even been brought back on Grand Instructor Hong Yan's motorcycle! More importantly, Wu Youren had treated him with plenty of consideration, despite having very little history between them before. Liu Jingming sighed. "I suspect he won't agree." Wu Youren replied nonchalantly, "Remember to ask for two for yourself while you're at it... I'll buy them from you at a high price." "Holy shit!" Liu Jingming was completely at a loss for words. The next evening, a female knight arrived on a motorcycle and handed Wu Youren a palm-sized box. With an expressionless face, she said, "Since you don't have other equipment, you can connect it to your watch to view. Twelve sets of materials in total." "This cannot be copied, or it will self-destruct. Keep it safe. I'll be taking it back later... Take care of yourself!" An external hard drive? Wu Youren found it hard to comprehend what level of technology this world actually possessed. He turned the box over in his hands for a long time. Apart from three ports, the rest was tightly sealed. Prying it open wouldn't be hard, but he wouldn't be able to explain himself afterward! After pondering it for a while, he decided: better stick to proper business! From that moment on, his life fell into a regular routine. Exercising, tending the vegetables, and cooking were all finished in the morning; he took a midday nap, and in the afternoon, he studied the materials on his watch. Once it got dark, he would run through several sets of fist forms before turning in at a set hour. If Cynthia or anyone else came to visit, he would see them off before nightfall. This continued for ten days, and Wu Youren noticed that the people from the Life-and-Death Knot still hadn't come knocking on his door. That night, a fine drizzle fell, and he slipped away in the middle of the night. This time he truly didn't bring much, not even his longsword, wearing only a snug outfit. Around his waist, however, was a bulging array: a small dagger, ghost-destroying mines, a pistol, and the like. He also carried that mid-length scimitar. He did not leave the academy through the main gate, instead scaling directly over the wall. The wall was over three meters high, which wasn't too difficult to climb, but there were alarm bells and night-patrol guards nearby, carrying a certain amount of risk. After clearing Red Pine, Wu Youren sprinted full tilt toward the mountains while remaining acutely vigilant of his surroundings. He had worried a bit too much, though. While there were indeed significantly more martial artists from outside now, none of them liked operating in the rain. Autumn had already arrived; with every autumn rain came a drop in temperature, making the nocturnal wasteland feel somewhat bleaker. Nights like this were also favored by the Guizu, so the various factions had plenty of martial artists on watch. However, they all clustered together, and small groups of two or three would voluntarily gather near the main contingents. It took Wu Youren two hours to run to the foot of the mountain, and another ten minutes to tiptoe his way up the ridge. Releasing his perception fully, he noticed quite a few more soldiers around—as well as martial artists from outside the military. Sure enough... he sighed inwardly. The tightened security was very likely meant to guard against him coming back to retrieve his stash. Of course, his guess might not be accurate, but he had no intention of verifying the truth. Fortunately, he had anticipated this possibility beforehand. Still on the ridge, he made his way to a spot over two kilometers from the cave and produced two small discs. These were remote detonators he had crafted himself—extremely crude, but being functional was enough. He pressed the small stud on one disc, followed immediately by the second. From deep within the mountains in the distance, two explosions sounded! The noise was not very loud, as he had used only a tiny amount of powder. Yet even amidst the rustling of the rainy night, the two detonations were clearly audible. Immediately, at least five knights reacted, all turning their attention toward that flank. The explosions... were actually a minor matter; the critical issue was that the Guizu aura in the mountains had become agitated! "What's happening?" one knight called out. "In the middle of the night, another incident?" "Who knows?" another knight replied. "Probably just a coincidence?" "It can't be a coincidence. The blasts weren't loud and weren't ghost-destroying mines. It's likely the methods of those barbarians." "I'm fucking warning you, watch your mouth... Who the fuck are you calling barbarians?" "Heh, fuck, you think I'm scared of you? Step up and fight me one-on-one if you have the guts!" There was also a clearer-headed person. "Stop fighting. The explosive force might be weak, but the Guizu aura's reaction is pretty big. What's going on?" "Heh, are you sure the disturbance in the Guizu aura has anything to do with those two blasts?" A minor explosion causing such a massive reaction in the Guizu aura seemed almost impossible—it went against common knowledge. Yet Wu Youren, who was currently infiltrating in silence, knew full well that such a possibility existed! The two remote blast points were traps he had set up specifically for this moment. He hadn't been certain whether he would be spotted when retrieving his stash—the insecurity of being a hostage was engraved into his very bones. So he had designed the two blast points to draw away attention. However, these two blast points weren't solely for retrieving his treasure; they also had to aid him in combat against the Guizu. Wu Youren rarely set traps with a single purpose; that was far too inefficient. Most of his traps were meant to guard against both humans and Guizu, and even against... his own side! Any normal person would think his mentality was somewhat perverse. Yet there was really no helping it. As a hostage, if he didn't become a bit twisted, who would? As for the disturbance in the Guizu aura? That was entirely natural: he had packed ghost-dispelling powder into those two small explosive devices! With the ghost-dispelling powder scattering in the blast, it would be strange if the Guizu aura didn't react violently! Just as the guards' attention was completely drawn away, a figure darted like a specter, silently slipping into the mountains. Some twenty minutes later, the figure slipped out quietly once again. Wu Youren had already dug up his primary wealth; as for the rest... abandoning it didn't matter. Yet on the verge of leaving, curiosity got the better of him: What had happened here? If he headed back now and everything went smoothly, it was still well before dawn, leaving him with at least two hours to spare. Why not listen in and see what had been happening lately? He silently drew closer to a familiar presence—a military knight he had dealt with multiple times before. As luck would have it, it happened to be that very knight's turn to speak. He said calmly, "Investigate today's matter thoroughly... and everyone keep the matter of the Teli Tribe in mind as well!"