Chapter 178: Unexpected Encounter

Qi Donglai appeared to have just returned from the martial arts academy as he was still dressed in his gray training attire. He was holding something in his hand, which seemed like some food wrapped in paper. He turned into the street from the corner, completely oblivious to the fact that he was being watched by a pair of eyes from the second floor of an old tavern by the street.

Not everyone cultivated Muscle Tendon Changing and Marrow Cleansing. Hence, not everyone could sense the gaze of others.

It had been a long while since he was last seen. On top of severing his ties with Wang Haofei, Ye Xiao, and the others, Qi Donglai was completely lost among the group of new students from the martial arts academy which was filled with a multitude of talented individuals. Without any opportunities to stand out, even his name of was unheard of by many.

In Yan Liqiang’s eyes, the sight of Qi Donglai who only returned to the small house he rented at night was just somewhat sad and miserable.

After finishing off Wang Haofei, Mo Leng, and Ye Xiao, Yan Liqiang finally found time to finish off this most unremarkable yet most dangerous individual.

Qi Donglai was akin to a well-hidden venomous snake lurking in the dark. If it wasn’t for his previous experience, Yan Liqiang wouldn’t have expected such a character to be capable of bringing such terrible calamity upon him.

Spotting Qi Donglai turning into the alley by the street, Yan Liqiang turned around to call for the waiter and he paid his bills. He then slowly went downstairs and unhurriedly walked into the same alley.

The winding alley was narrow, secluded, and dim. Yan Liqiang didn’t even have to chase up toward the front. In a dark night like this, all he needed to do was listen with his ears and he would be able to precisely track Qi Donglai’s footsteps.

Over this period of time, Yan Liqiang had been constantly practicing both the eye and ear techniques from the Muscle Tendon Changing and Marrow Cleansing Manual’s external cultivation. He felt as though he was making constant progress every day. The sensitivities of his ears and eyes had significantly improved compared to two months ago.

The houses in the area where Qi Donglai stayed at were very run-down. This place wasn’t close to the martial arts academy either, unlike Three Yuan Street. It seemed like the cheaper rent here was the only reason why Qi Donglai would opt to live here.

In just a flash, Yan Liqiang heard Qi Donglai’s footsteps come to a halt. As soon as his footsteps ceased, Yan Liqiang also stopped in his tracks.

The sound of a door lock being unlocked rang out in the darkness, followed by the creaking sound of the door opening and then shutting…

A few seconds later, Yan Liqiang silently crept forward. After taking a turn in the alley, he saw lights being lit inside a rather old house. This must be where Qi Donglai lived.

Yan Liqiang waited for a few moments. When he was about to approach the house, he noticed a few more people carrying lanterns coming from the other end of the alley toward him. They were going to pass by Qi Donghai’s house, so he waited for a bit again. As soon as those people passed by, he quickly dashed out from the darkness after he ensured that the alley was empty on both sides. Arriving at the front of Qi Donglai’s house, he briefly scanned the surroundings, then made a leap. He kicked against the alley’s left wall and launched himself about a meter high into the air. Then he kicked the right wall and launched himself about another meter up into the air. After doing this a few more times in a row and raising his himself into the air, he grabbed onto the window sill which was more than five meters above the ground, then the eaves of the house. Like a huge bird, he nimbly hauled himself up the roof and stayed low.

There was a very small yard in the place that Qi Donglai was renting. The yard was piled with junk. Four roof-tiled houses surrounded the yard. Three of them were already extremely run-down and seemed to be leaky. Only one was still in livable condition, and the light he saw came from none other than the remaining habitable house.

Like a lizard, Yan Liqiang lowered his body and pressed his body against the roof as he tried to shift his body weight across his four limbs. He gently crawled on top of the house which was still brightly lit, then silently pried open one of the roof tiles. From the crack between the tiles beneath him, he observed the situation from above.

Due to the angle, he could only see Qi Donglai’s head and shoulders from a bird’s-eye view. Although he couldn’t get a clear view of Qi Donglai’s face, he was certain that the person down there was none other than Qi Donglai just by spotting the top of his head.

Qi Donglai was currently sitting before the desk inside the house as he wolfed down some salted vegetables and cold steamed buns.

Yan Liqiang scanned around again and verified that there were no other people except for Qi Donglai in the house.

That was great. He’d have nothing to worry about when he made his move.

Even prisoners were properly fed before they were beheaded so that they wouldn’t become hungry ghosts. Thus, Yan Liqiang wasn’t in a hurry right now. He was going to wait for Qi Donglai to finish his steamed buns.

Not sure if he was eating too fast or if the cold steamed buns were hard to swallow, but Qi Donglai suddenly choked on his second steamed bun. He forcefully pounded his chest a couple times before he stood up and quickly walked to the other table at the side. Picking up the teapot from the table, he lifted his head and glugged down the stream of water from the teapot…

‘COUGH! COUGH!’ He managed to swallow the steamed bun, but the fast stream of water choked him. He coughed so hard that he had to prop himself up with the table and the veins on his neck were popping out.

He smashed the teapot that he had just drunk from onto the floor. With a loud clang, it shattered into hundreds of fragments.

“Wait for it… Someday, I will make you all kneel before me! Don’t get so cocky now, Yan Liqiang. I will make you regret this in the future…!” Qi Donglai growled like a stray wolf.

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There were still some cold steamed buns left uneaten on the table. However, it seemed like Qi Donglai was no longer interested in eating. He weakly plopped himself down on the chair, gasping for air for a moment before he gradually recovered.

Yan Liqiang’s gaze slowly turned cold too as he watched Qi Donglai. This guy was indeed a mentally twisted venomous snake.

Yan Liqiang was just about to roll down from the roof and quickly enter the house to finish Qi Donglai off in a flash. He had planned to make it seem as though Qi Donglai had committed suicide, but he suddenly heard a strange noise from nearby. It sounded just like the rustle of a fluttering flag in the air, except that it was even softer. However, there were no flag poles near this area, and the wind wasn’t strong. Therefore, the rustling noise wasn’t from a fluttering flag, but from someone’s clothes. This was the sign of an expert. Even Yan Liqiang couldn’t reach such a level yet.

If it wasn’t for his superior hearing abilities compared to average people and the fact that he was just close by, he wouldn’t have been able to hear it.

The oil lamp in the room below flickered, and then another person appeared inside Qi Donglai’s house.

Yan Liqiang was startled. At the sight of that person’s appearance, Yan Liqiang reflexively held his breath. He squinted his eyes at the same time and averted his gaze from that person to the ground at the side to avoid being sensed.

From that person’s attire, he seemed to be wearing a bailiff’s uniform and a hat. Although his face was concealed, Yan Liqiang could tell that he had very broad shoulders.

Yan Liqiang never expected such an expert to be hidden within the Law Enforcement Office of Pingxi City.

“Master…!” Qi Donglai, who was sitting on the chair, instantly sprung up like a spring and hurriedly bowed to that person at his appearance.

The person scanned the house. When he noticed the shattered teapot on the floor, he lifted his hand and brought it down on Qi Donglai’s face without any hesitation, drawing blood from the corner of his mouth. “How many times do I have to tell you to learn how to control your emotions? What can you possibly achieve if you can’t even control your own emotions?”

The voice was hoarse and deep. It was a totally unfamiliar voice to Yan Liqiang.

“My bad…” Qi Donglai wiped the blood away from the corner of his mouth and meekly lowered his head.

“Do you still remember Yan Liqiang whom I told you to keep a close eye on last time?”

“Yes, I do. Didn’t you ask me to keep an eye on him at all times? Ever since something terrible happened to the Wang Clan’s young master and the Prefectural Governor’s young lord, he hasn’t been coming to the martial arts academy for a very long time so…”

“Forget about the things in the past. I actually received news on my side that the Old Master from the Lu Clan was prepared to pair Lu Beixin up with Yan Liqiang, and Wang Haofei had only approached Lu Beixin because he wanted to give her to Ye Xiao. I ordered you to keep a close eye on Yan Liqiang because I wanted you to use Yan Liqiang as a stepping stone to get closer to both Wang Haofei and Ye Xiao so that you could eventually become the confidant to the Prefectural Governor’s young lord in the end. I didn’t expect for so many things to happen in Pingxi City over these few days. Both Wang Haofei and Ye Xiao are actually dead. All our efforts from before have been wasted…”

“Oh, the Old Master from the Lu Clan wanted to pair Lu Beixin and Yan Liqiang up together…?” Qi Donglai’s tone of voice was filled with jealousy. He seemed to be quite surprised as this was the first time he had heard of such information.

“Yes.” The person dressed in bailiff uniform nodded.

“Why have you come to see me today, Master…?”

“How’s your progress with that fatal consecutive kick technique I taught you?”

“I managed to train it up to the fifth layer recently…”

“Good. Keep it up. This technique gets more powerful toward the end. By the time you advance into a Martial Warrior, I will teach you the rest!”

“Got it!”

“Did Yan Liqiang return to your martial arts academy today?”

“Yes, I heard so!”

“Yan Liqiang has been appointed by Sun Bingchen as his personal attendant. His status is completely different now. I have a task for you — find a way to approach Yan Liqiang no matter what! It would be best if you can become his friend like last time. Do you think you can do that?”

“Huh…?!” Qi Donglai was flabbergasted and seemed to be in a difficult position. “Master… I thoroughly offended Yan Liqiang during the incident with the Hong Clan from last time. He loathes me now and has broken off all ties with me. How am I going to earn his trust again at this point in time…?”

“For the sake of our sacred sect, this is nothing. Yan Liqiang is merely a young boy, and the mentality of a young boy is always changeable. It won’t be difficult as long as we can find a way to make you become his friend again!”