Chapter 1404: Chapter 143: Mie Feng Travels Together_4
Two hours later, Mie Feng awoke from her cultivation, exhaling turbid breath as she turned her gaze towards Ah Dai. She had just woken up, but Ah Dai had already noticed it. Though three hours had passed, the clone had been present for quite some time. To prevent Mie Feng from discovering his secret, Ah Dai retracted the clone into the Goris’s Desire the moment she woke up.
Standing up, Mie Feng addressed Ah Dai, "Are you afraid I’ll launch a sneak attack on you? Watching me like guarding against a thief. I’m well-rested now, we can go."
Ah Dai replied coldly, "Aren’t you a thief? Of course, I need to be cautious."
Mie Feng retorted furiously, "What did you say? I am an acquirer, not some petty thief."
Ah Dai snorted, "Acquirers are just another term for thieves. They’re all the same, what’s the difference. Now, where to?"
Taking a deep breath to calm her anger, Mie Feng said, "How would I know where to go? Don’t you want to destroy the Assassin’s Guild? There must be an order, right? Should we start with obliterating the Guild’s headquarters or its branch nests first?" She realized that against this young man with an icy expression, even her usual calm self was easily angered.
After thinking for a moment, Ah Dai answered, "If we directly destroy the headquarters of the Assassin’s Guild, the dispersed assassins will scatter like monkeys, which might cause greater harm and even lead to the rise of new Assassin’s Guilds. My aim is to eliminate all these filthy bastards completely. So, we should start with the branches. Guide me to the nearest branch of the Assassin’s Guild from here. By the way, do you know where we are now?"
Surprised, Mie Feng replied, "You don’t even know where you are? We are currently at the border of the Province of Light in the Empire of Huasheng and the Dark Province of the Empire of Sunset City. If we keep going west, we will soon enter the territory of the Empire of Sunset. You have been traveling northwest all along, coming through from the border area between Tian Gang Mountains and the Holy Church. If we’re talking about the nearest branch, then we need to go to the capital of the Dark Province, Dark City."
Ah Dai thought to himself that they were already close to entering the territory of the Empire of Sunset City. He had assumed he was within the Federation’s territory. It seemed that he had indeed covered quite some distance during those two days of dejection!
Seeing that Ah Dai had not reacted, Mie Feng continued, "It’s already evening now. I haven’t had a decent meal since I’ve been following you for so long. There happens to be a village not far ahead; we’ll stay there for the night and adjust our state. We can go to Dark City early tomorrow morning." Having said this, she headed westward along the riverbank.
Ah Dai caught up with Mie Feng’s steps and asked, "Have you been following me all this time? With your skills, you shouldn’t be able to keep up with me, and how did you manage to find me, to know which direction I came from?"
A sense of pride arose in Mie Feng’s heart as she thought, so you do admire me! "Speed has always been a thief’s forte. Your cultivation may be high, but I have my ways to keep up with you. As for how I found you, that is a secret of our Thief Guild." Ah Dai frowned and said, "Your secrets I can do without asking, but how can you go to the village ahead in your current attire?"
Mie Feng was taken aback and looked down at her black martial outfit. True, her attire was unmistakably that of a martial artist, which would surely attract unwanted trouble. However, in her pursuit of Ah Dai, she had abandoned all her travel gear and was left with only these clothes. With a tone of irritation, she said, "What’s wrong with my attire? I have no other clothes to change into."
Ah Dai drew in the air, opening his Space Barrier, and from inside it, he took out a set of civilian clothes and handed them to Mie Feng, "Wear this over your outfit. Although it’s a bit big, it should do for now."
Mie Feng took the clean civilian clothes, glanced at Ah Dai, and swiftly moved to the side to change. Her movements were extremely efficient, cutting off the excessively long parts of the clothing with a dagger. Although it looked somewhat awkward, she tightened the belt and made do. However, her stern face was unmistakable to the discerning eye as that of no ordinary person.
After about twenty minutes of walking, the two saw a village across a large river. The village was not large, with only about a hundred households by the looks of it. The wisps of smoke that Ah Dai had seen earlier were emanating from there. By the riverside, seven or eight women were washing clothes and chatting, presenting a scene of simple harmony. Mie Feng glanced at Ah Dai and said, "Let’s go to the opposite bank. I’m hungry."
Ah Dai asked, "Just like this, we’re crossing over? What if the people on the other side discover us?"
Mie Feng snorted coldly and said, "Are you still afraid of being discovered? With your love for killing, if they find out, can’t you just kill them all to silence them?"
Ah Dai became furious and retorted, "You’re the one who likes to kill. I only kill evildoers who deserve death."
Seeing Ah Dai’s angry expression, Mie Feng couldn’t help but recall the death of her fourth uncle and said hatefully, "What are you getting angry about? My uncle merely wanted to test your skills and you killed him. Isn’t that a bloodthirstiness? She clenched her fists tightly; every time she thought of her kindly uncle turning into a mummified corpse under Ah Dai’s Sword of Hades, her heart was filled with immense hatred.
Ah Dai’s expression returned to calm and he spoke indifferently, "He wasn’t just trying to test my skills, but also my Sword of Hades. Don’t you know that once the Sword of Hades is unsheathed, it must draw blood before it’s sheathed again. Moreover, the actions you took that day, abducting Elves from the Elf Clan, were already deserving of death. If I had my current power back then, maybe I would have killed you all. Do you know? Out of the eighteen Elves you took, only two survived; the rest chose to take their own lives because they were desecrated by those scoundrels from the Empire of Sunset. Although you didn’t kill anyone, can you say that you have no part in the death of those Elves? Is your uncle’s life valuable, while Elves deserve to die? I don’t want to argue with you about this; right and wrong will be judged by the heavens. Follow me." After finishing his words, Ah Dai flicked his fingers and produced a gust of Strong Wind. Under the force of the powerful True Qi, an invisible fighting spirit spanned a hundred meters, striking a small tree on the opposite bank. Ah Dai flicked his fingers a few more times, and with a crackling sound, the tree fell to the ground. The sudden noise immediately attracted the attention of the villagers by the river. Seizing the opportunity, Ah Dai pulled Mie Feng as they both soared into the sky and dashed lightning-fast toward the other side of the river. With Ah Dai’s profound cultivation, crossing this distance was effortless without the need to catch his breath, flying straight across. Light Body Art was also Mie Feng’s specialty; with a light step on the surface of the river for leverage, she followed Ah Dai to the opposite bank.
Touched down on solid ground, Mie Feng’s heart was still pondering over the words Ah Dai had just spoken. He was right, the Assassin’s Guild might not directly kill people, but their actions were indeed deserving of death. But emotionally, how could she let her uncle die in vain?
Ah Dai glanced at the silent Mie Feng and took the lead towards the nearby village. Due to the earlier breaking of the small tree, no one had noticed them crossing the river.
The small village was built along the river, with patches of farmland by the water where some farmers were diligently tilling the land. Looking at these honest and ordinary folks, Ah Dai’s icy features softened. He strode forward, approached a middle-aged villager who was working, and said, "Hello, uncle, we are just passing by, quite tired and out of provisions. Could we stay in your village for the night?"
The villager put down his hoe and sized up Ah Dai in front of him. Aside from being tall, Ah Dai was no different from ordinary people. His simple and honest appearance immediately won the villager’s favor, and with a hearty laugh, the villager said, "When traveling, you should prepare more. Seems like you’ve run out of everything and can’t continue your journey, right? We people of Hak Village are the most hospitable. Wait for me a moment, let me finish my work here, and then I’ll take you to the village. My place isn’t big, but it can accommodate a few more people."
Ah Dai was delighted and said, "Uncle, you’re tilling the land, right? Let me help you." Without waiting for the middle-aged villager’s refusal, he took the hoe from his hand. Following the traces the villager had made before, Ah Dai began to till. The middle-aged man’s eyes showed a hint of appreciation as he smiled and said, "Young man, it’s not right to trouble you like this. Let me do it."
Ah Dai flashed a smile at the middle-aged man and said, "Uncle, we young people do have some strength; I can manage by myself. You rest a while."
Mie Feng, not far away, watched Ah Dai hoeing the ground time after time and a complex emotion surged within her. His martial arts were so profound, and yet he willingly did the most menial peasant work; what kind of person was he, really?
Seeing he could not win over Ah Dai, the middle-aged villager let him be and told Ah Dai about the area he was responsible for, starting up a conversation with him as well.
Ah Dai didn’t use his True Qi, relying solely on the strength of his body to wield the hoe. Even so, with his robust physique, he was much faster than the villagers. Throughout the work, Ah Dai never looked back at Mie Feng. Through chatting with the villager, Ah Dai learned that this middle-aged uncle was named Harry, a common villager of Hak Village. Hak Village belonged to the Province of Light of the Empire of Huasheng; the villagers here lived a self-sufficient life, with little contact with the outside world. Since the village was remotely located, officials from the Province of Light rarely came to collect taxes, allowing the villagers to live comfortably. They would start their work at sunrise and rest at sunset, experiencing a carefree life.
The hoe flew continuously in Ah Dai’s hands, and the earth was turned aside by its touch; in a short while, the patch of land Harry was supposed to till was complete. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Ah Dai returned the hoe to Harry and said, "Uncle, I haven’t really done this kind of work before, if I haven’t done it well, please don’t take it amiss."
