Zuo Qingshuang's words completely shattered what little wishful thinking remained in Lu Guiyan's heart.
Before he died, Qi Wuwang had said those two were to be taken to Autumn Moon Nunnery.
And Autumn Moon Nunnery happened to lie squarely along their route to Feixue City.
No matter how they looked at it, they couldn't bypass it.
Of course, they could change their route immediately, but doing so would multiply their journey several times over, perhaps even more than tenfold, and the entire detour would still be within the Fierce Tiger Gang's territory.
It simply introduced far too many variables.
Lu Guiyan could not—and dared not—make such a reckless call.
Therefore, they had to pass through Autumn Moon Nunnery, no matter what.
"Still, it isn't entirely bad news," Fang Shuwen said with a chuckle upon seeing Lu Guiyan's expression.
"The Seven Great Sects have agreed to gather at Autumn Moon Nunnery. We can just tag along for the excitement.
"With the Seven Great Sects joining forces, even if there really is some three-headed, six-armed old fiend lurking there, they won't be able to stir up much trouble."
The name of the Eastern Domain's Seven Great Sects was not unearned.
They represented the pinnacle of power throughout the Eastern Domain's jianghu, and none of them were pushovers.
Lu Guiyan nodded gently at his words. Under the circumstances, this truly was their best option.
Hearing them talk, Zuo Qingshuang grew curious about what had transpired. After all, Fang Shuwen hadn't yet explained why he had shown up here.
In just a few brief sentences, Fang Shuwen summarized their situation as concisely as possible.
Zhou Qingmei looked at him with an even stranger gaze... He possessed such formidable martial arts, yet he ran around acting as an escort for others. What on earth went on inside this guy's head all day?
Though Zuo Qingshuang was also a bit surprised, her brow soon furrowed. "Qin the Fourth?
"I've crossed paths with him a few times. The Fierce Tiger Gang and my Zhujige Pavilion are neighbors, but who would have thought they'd dare lay a hand on people from Feixue City?
"There must be something bizarre behind this..."
Fang Shuwen nodded; he thought the same.
Yet everything was like viewing flowers through fog. Whatever the real reason behind it was, they had no answers for now.
Tong Tianba was a brute, and Qi Wuwang worked strictly for coin. Neither of them had provided any valuable information.
To find a breakthrough clue, they would likely have to confront Qin Hu directly.
Yet how could the Fierce Tiger Gang's headquarters be so easy to breach?
Though Fang Shuwen was confident he could come and go as he pleased, Lu Guiyan dared not take such risks lightly.
"In fact, Young Hero Fang could simply present the Zhuji Token," Zuo Qingshuang said with a smile.
"Our Zhujige Pavilion still holds some prestige in the jianghu, after all. The Fierce Tiger Gang wouldn't dare refuse to show us face."
This was sheer modesty. As one of the Seven Great Sects, Zhujige Pavilion was far beyond anything the Fierce Tiger Gang could compare to.
Lu Guiyan froze and turned to look at Fang Shuwen.
A Zhuji Token carried, to some degree, the weight and stance of Zhujige Pavilion itself. Fang Shuwen actually possessed such a precious thing?
Fang Shuwen casually produced the Zhuji Token. "Is this thing really that useful?"
Zuo Qingshuang didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Of course. This token represents Zhujige Pavilion. Unless the Fierce Tiger Gang wants to declare war on us, they... will not dare disregard it.
"Naturally, with Young Hero Fang's martial arts, you have no reason to fear the Fierce Tiger Gang either."
Fang Shuwen clicked his tongue, realizing he had underestimated Zhujige Pavilion's parting gift after all.
Lu Guiyan's heart, however, stirred with shock.
She knew Fang Shuwen was extraordinary, but the Fierce Tiger Gang was hardly a soft target. Qin Hu was a master in his own right, and the four... no, now three remaining hall masters each possessed exceptional skills, to say nothing of their numerous strange and capable subordinates.
Even with martial arts as profound as Fang Shuwen's, could he truly stand against so many adversaries?
Yet judging by Zuo Qingshuang's words, could Fang Shuwen single-handedly tear through the entire Fierce Tiger Gang?
Had she still underestimated him?
Lu Guiyan had no idea what Fang Shuwen had done at Zhujige Pavilion...
Had she known that the Black Fiend Cult, which had run rampant thirty years ago, had been cleanly wiped out by his punches and kicks, she wouldn't have been so lacking in confidence now.
Of course, no one could blame her. After all, the world of an overpowered anomaly was beyond her comprehension.
With idle chatter out of the way, Autumn Moon Nunnery had to be visited one way or another. Zuo Qingshuang did not mind traveling with Fang Shuwen and the others, so the matter was settled.
Lu Guiyan assigned sentries while the rest brought out provisions to heat over the fire.
With nothing else to do, Fang Shuwen sat by a crack in the dilapidated kiln, watching the raindrops patter softly outside.
Each autumn rain brought a deeper chill, and the temperature had been plunging rapidly over recent days.
A delicate fragrance drifted over. Fang Shuwen turned and saw Zhou Qingmei sitting down beside him.
He smiled faintly. "You smell so nice, I'm almost not used to it."
Zhou Qingmei rolled her eyes at him in mock annoyance. "Did you think I was still the savage running through the woods with you for half a month?"
Back then, to evade the Black Fiend Cult's eyes and ears, the two had lived like wild savages in the forest for half a month.
It had been a truly disheveled time, and even a girl as pretty as Zhou Qingmei had ended up filthy and smelling foul.
"After you left, my father sent a letter to the sect.
"They're all safe. I already wrote back telling them to return to Julu City.
"By the way, the silver owed to you has been prepared. When you return to Julu City, you can go straight to the Zhou estate to collect it."
Fang Shuwen smiled. "I never worried Master Zhou would default on his debt."
"..."
Zhou Qingmei gave him an incredulous look, then suddenly noticed a sword strapped to his back. Curious, she asked, "Where did that sword come from?"
"There was a man in the Fierce Tiger Gang named Xu Yuqing."
Fang Shuwen unstrapped the sword and handed it to her.
"I killed him. Seeing that the sword was pretty decent, I kept it, thinking I could fetch a good price for it. But it turned out the dealers were all swindlers... Offering two taels of silver for a sword of this quality? How could I let them have their way?"
He had taken the blade hoping for a tidy sum, only to encounter cheapskates trying to take advantage of him. Fang Shuwen wasn't short on money now, so he naturally refused to take such a loss and simply kept it with him.
Zhou Qingmei took the sword and gripped the hilt, drawing the blade three inches from its scabbard. The cold, clear glint reflected in her eyes. Near the crossguard, two bold characters were engraved—Windshock.
Her eyes lit up slightly. "It really is a fine blade."
"Where's your sword?"
Fang Shuwen noticed she wasn't carrying one.
"I left it at Zhujige Pavilion to have my fellow disciples help reforge it."
"What about Zhang Fang's?"
"Sent to the Sword-Nurturing Pool in the back mountains," Zhou Qingmei explained.
"The Still Water Sword was an apprenticeship gift from Martial Uncle, just like my Jade Bamboo Sword."
"So you don't have a sword to use right now?"
Fang Shuwen gave a helpless sigh. "Then you can have this one."
"All right,"
Zhou Qingmei agreed without hesitation.
Fang Shuwen paused, stunned. Not even a shred of modesty?
He had genuinely meant to give it to her rather than just making polite small talk, but couldn't she have at least feigned reluctance and declined once or twice?
Yet seeing Zhou Qingmei gazing with undisguised delight at the Windshock Sword in her hands, he couldn't help but smile too. It seemed this wasn't bad after all.
Chapter 65