Chapter 79 - Choice
Chapter 79: Choice
Zhao Jin walked to the youth’s side and said with a proud smile, “Apart from explosives, there’s also Clear Wind Illusory Smoke contained in the sleeve arrows. They were all concocted by the Great Zhou Spiritual Master’s residence. Even a strong cultivator would be dazed for a moment after taking in enough of it!”
The youth pondered and said, “If I had flown away immediately, I wouldn’t have fallen for this trap.”
Zhao Jin picked up the remnants of the arrow fragment from the ground. Under the sunlight, it reflected a blue light.
“The inside of the sleeve arrows are all coated with poison. If you fly away and are end up being hit by the fragments, you will still lose!” Zhao Jin laughed. “It’s just that your fate will be different! Of course, if you aren’t injured by the fragments during your flight, then you still have a chance.”
The youth was still unconvinced, “If I had my iron sword, the sword qi would be even sharper. You might not be able to win then!”
“How do you know that I still don’t have other tricks up my sleeve?” Zhao Jin wouldn’t lose in a war of words. He sneered, “You only have Sword-Qi to play around with. You have no idea what sort of tricks I have.”
“In 10 years, my Sword Qi will be able to flatten all the methods you can bring out!”
“Hehe, there’s no need for 10 years, you can be a corpse in 10 breaths!”
The two of them started to argue, but the youth was the loser after all, so it was futile to say anything.
Su Wen walked over and looked at the youth. He said angrily, “I was just trying to scare you. How can you attack me? Look at the state you’ve smashed my front door to!”
At this moment, the main gate of Su Wen’s mansion was almost completely destroyed.
The young man stared at him and before replying in a deep voice, “Who knows if you’re telling the truth?”
“Heh heh, then do you believe me when I say that I’m going to kill the abbot of Guiyuan Temple tomorrow?”
Guiyuan Temple was one of the Great Zhou’s top martial sects and its abbot was one of the experts standing at the pinnacle of cultivation in the world.
The youth shook his head, “They can’t be compared! That lady boss hasn’t cultivated. It’s as easy as breathing for you to kill her. Since you said so, I can’t let you do it!”
Su Wen sighed and said, “Follow me in. Also ask Ning Shuang to find someone to repair the door!”
Su Wen turned around and entered.
The young man however remained motionless.
Zhao Jin looked at the youth and said, “Go in. Do you want to die?”
The youth said angrily, “Just what are you all trying to do!”
Zhao Jin laughed in a sinister manner. “My young master has taken a fancy to you!”
The young man, who had been expressionless all this while, now revealed an expression of fear.
He had always heard rumors of how some of the rich and powerful had developed a taste of male youths….
Could it be…
He looked at Su Wen’s back with fear and then at the ferocious-looking Zhao Jin. “You… just kill me!”
“Hurry up and go in!”
Zhao Jin grabbed the youth and dragged him into the residence.
The three of them entered and Su Wen sat down while Zhao Jin and the young man remained standing in front of him.
Su Wen asked with a gentle smile, “What’s your name?”
He had no idea that this smile of his appeared utterly wretched in the young man’s eyes at the moment. The youth gritted his teeth before replying with some difficulty, “Chu… He…”
“How old are you?”
“29…”
“Are you married?”
“Kill me!” Chu He looked like he was ready to embrace death.
Su Wen waved his hand to placate him, “Don’t be so agitated. It’s all a misunderstanding. There’s no enmity between us, so why would I kill you?”
“A warrior can be killed but not humiliated! I only seek a swift death!”
Su Wen was stunned. “When did I humiliate you?”
Chu He blushed and didn’t know how to answer.
Su Wen looked at Zhao Jin and asked in doubt, “Did you insult him?”
Zhao Jin hurriedly shook his head. “No.”
“That’s right. Say, you smashed my gate, but I didn’t even say that you’re insulting me. How could it be my turn to humiliate you?”
Chu He looked at Zhao Jin. “But he said that you’ve taken a fancy to me. I’m a man. How… How…”
Su Wen roared in laughter at his words. “Hahaha, I didn’t expect you to have such a dirty mind despite your serious expression! I merely wanted to recruit you under my command. How could you think like that?”
Chu He said angrily, “Then why are you asking me if I’m married?”
Su Wen had an innocent look on his face. “I was just trying to express my concern and magnanimity. Who knew that your mind was so dirty?”
Zhao Jin also opened his mouth and mocked, “You brat, I couldn’t tell that you’re so cold on the outside, but so inwardly passionate. Tell me, did you leave your sword behind because you’ve taken a fancy to the boss of the fried vermicelli shop?”
“I didn’t!”
“If not, why did you throw the sword worth over 10,000 taels to the boss?”
Chu He shook his head and said, “I forged that sword myself. How can it be worth that much?”
His words were not wrong. If it was a normal blacksmith, even a rookie would not have forged a sword of such dastardly appearance.
With that, Chu He explained his origins.
He had grown up with his master. It could be said that in the first 28 years of his life, he had only lived with his master in a rural village.
He had to practice the sword everyday. The only opponent he faced was his master.
When he grew up, he began to fight against the ferocious beasts in the mountains.
That sword was forged on his own, using a block of metal his master gave him when he turned 15 years old.
In the following year, he entered the martial world under the orders of his master.
Following the list his master had given him, he had challenged people all the way until he arrived here.
At this point, Zhao Jin frowned. “In other words, you’re the one who continuously challenged the 18 swordsmen in Bing Province?”
“That’s right!”
Zhao Jin looked at Su Wen and said, “This brat picked eighteen famous swordsmen to challenge in Bing Province, but none of them could last more than a hundred moves! Among them, the one with the highest cultivation had already reached 7th Grade Earth Rank.”
“However, none of the challengers that this kid challenged have survived! There are already quite a number of deceased family members who are offering a bounty for this kid’s life!”
Chu He said, “My master said that my sword doesn’t have enough killing intent and the edge of my sword isn’t sharp. Only by grinding it all the way can I improve my Sword Dao! Every time I fight someone, I will tell them that it’s not an ordinary spar but a life-and-death battle, with no grudges after!”
Su Wen waved his hand and said, “I don’t care what your master says. I just want to know what you plan to do now.”
Chu He asked blankly, “What do you mean?”
“There’s no enmity between us. I’ll give you two choices. First, I’m short of manpower now. Be my subordinate and follow my orders. Second, compensate me for the damage of repairing the gate.”
“I choose the second!” Chu He said without hesitation, “How much money you need to repair this door will be on me. I’ll pay you when the time comes.”
Chu He remembered that the main gate in the village cost about 180 taels.
He had already thought it through. If there was really no other way, he would take his sword back and sell it. Ten thousand taels of silver should be sufficient to pay just about anything.
“You said it yourself.” Su Wen smiled.
“That’s true. I, Chu He, would never owe anyone anything.”
He was dead serious. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have thrown his treasured sword to the boss.
Su Wen clapped his hands and Ning Shuang handed him a pen and paper.
Su Wen wrote a contract. To put it simply, he wanted Chu He to compensate for the losses. Furthermore, they agreed that Chu He had to pay compensation within a month. If he couldn’t pay up, Su Wen would claim compensation in other methods.
After Chu He noticed it, he asked curiously, “Why do you need to set a deadline? Do you think that I won’t pay up?”
Su Wen sneered. “Who knows? There has to be a time limit, right? Don’t tell me I have to wait for you until I’m 100 years old?”
“Alright! I’ll do as you say!” Chu He pressed his hand on it as his signature!