Wuxia: Starting Off With 60 Years of Inner Strength

Chapter 52: Chapter 52: The Great Mister

Jiang Ran and Qingyi weren’t intimately familiar with the Flying Feather Needles, but they were no strangers to them, either.

This was especially true for Qingyi... Back outside the teahouse, Cheng Jimo had used them against him in their fight. Qingyi had even been struck by one.

Seeing them now, it was impossible not to recognize them.

Jiang Ran gazed at the silver needle with a complex expression. His mind involuntarily flashed back to the night before last—to Cheng Jimo’s dazed and distracted state.

...and the serene look on his face as he stepped into the Wan family’s grand courtyard.

"Flying Feather Needles, why are they here?"

Qingyi couldn’t help but ask.

Jiang Ran was silent for a moment, then asked:

"Back then, outside the teahouse... was Li Feiyun the one who ordered the kidnapping of Shopkeeper Wan’s wife?"

"Yes."

Qingyi nodded. "Shopkeeper Wan and the gang leader have been at odds for a long time. The leader wants the Shopkeeper’s immense fortune... but Shopkeeper Wan refuses to hand it over. Conflict was inevitable."

Jiang Ran tapped his forehead lightly and gave a wry laugh.

"I overlooked the most obvious thing."

He let out a slow breath. Then, as if he’d been prepared for this all along, he pulled a few small bottles from his robes and handed them to Qingyi.

"Be careful. Get into the kitchen and mix the contents of these bottles into the wine."

"One drop per jar is all you need. Remember, don’t use too much. This should be enough."

Qingyi glanced at Jiang Ran.

"Is Cheng Jimo in trouble?"

"I don’t know."

Jiang Ran shook his head. "We’ll see... Let’s just finish the task at hand."

"Alright."

Qingyi nodded and tucked the small bottles into his robes.

He didn’t doubt Jiang Ran’s ability at all.

A man who could create a poison like the Four Seasons Pill had to be an expert in the art.

"This won’t be difficult. Leave it to me."

With that, he turned and left.

Jiang Ran raised an eyebrow.

’Not difficult... is it?’

Shaking his head slightly, Jiang Ran stopped dwelling on it. He pulled his gaze away from the Flying Feather Needle, turned, and walked out of the room.

He returned to the main hall. Before he could even find his seat, he heard someone shout at the top of their lungs:

"The Hall Master of Sanfen Hall is here!"

"Rong Lie?"

"So he really did come."

"The Sunset Gang and the Qinghe Gang are gone. Now, within Cangzhou Prefecture, his Sanfen Hall reigns supreme."

"The man is cunning. He keeps his true power hidden, and then in the blink of an eye, he accomplishes something like this... But if he’s that powerful, why did he pretend to be part of a three-way standoff for all those years?"

"I heard that not long ago, Sanfen Hall and the Sunset Gang were fighting over the Qinghe Gang’s territory. To think that was all just a show."

From within the crowd, Jiang Ran watched Rong Lie as well.

The man appeared to be in his forties, dressed in a sapphire-blue robe, his hair combed with meticulous care.

Yet, as he walked, his expression was somber and melancholic.

Looking at the man’s face, Jiang Ran could more or less understand his mood.

When the Qinghe Gang was wiped out, rumors flew throughout Cangzhou Prefecture, but no one suspected him.

After all, if he had the power to wipe out the Qinghe Gang overnight, why would he have struggled against both them and the Sunset Gang for so long?

Who could have imagined that in the blink of an eye, the Sunset Gang would be gone too?

Now, people couldn’t help but be suspicious.

After all, with the two major gangs annihilated, it was obvious who stood to gain the most.

But Rong Lie was suffering.

He hadn’t been the one to do it.

He didn’t even know what was happening...

Not only was he clueless, but a deep fear had taken root in his heart.

Someone who could wipe out the Qinghe Gang in a single night, and then do the same to the Sunset Gang... just what kind of entity were they dealing with?

And now that both of those gangs were gone, what would become of his Sanfen Hall?

How could they possibly escape the same fate?

Sooner or later, that hidden hand would make a casual wave and erase his Sanfen Hall from existence, too.

It wouldn’t just be a matter of losing territory and influence—he wouldn’t even be able to save his own life.

Once he realized that, it was no wonder he was filled with dread.

Jiang Ran’s gaze lingered on him for a moment. Just as he was about to look away, he saw an old man in simple linen robes, a writing brush in hand, step in front of Rong Lie.

Licking the tip of his brush, he opened a notebook and asked casually:

"Hall Master Rong, what methods did you use to wipe out the Qinghe Gang and the Sunset Gang?"

A hush fell over the hall.

Jiang Ran was surprised, too. Everyone was playing dumb about the situation; no one dared to actually approach Rong Lie and ask him directly.

’Who is this old man? How can he be so brazen?’

As he was wondering this, he heard someone mutter:

"It’s the Great Master."

"The Great Master is here."

"What a grand event. Shopkeeper Wan must have a lot of pull."

"I heard the Great Master doesn’t show up to give people face. He goes wherever his mood takes him."

"If I could just get a word of guidance from him..."

Jiang Ran was surprised. He hadn’t expected the little old man to be so famous.

Just as he was about to ask someone who the old man was, he saw Dao Wuming and Li Tianxin pushing through the crowd.

The moment he saw Jiang Ran, Li Tianxin went straight to his side, positioning himself behind him like a tail.

Dao Wuming, meanwhile, offered a slight fist-and-palm salute.

"Brother Jiang, you were gone for quite a while. Brother Li and I were just about to come looking for you."

Jiang Ran smiled.

"Brother Dao, do you happen to know this ’Great Master’?"

Dao Wuming seemed to pause at the question, then raised an eyebrow.

"That old rascal... wherever there’s a commotion, you’ll find him."

"Oh?"

From his tone, Jiang Ran got the feeling that the two of them were quite familiar with each other.

Then Li Tianxin’s voice reached his ears, though his tone was a bit cold.

"In the Jianghu, Jianghu People call him ’a stunning stroke.’ He calls himself the Great Master."

"He’s a very troublesome person... and worse, he loves trouble."

"Wherever there’s trouble, you can be sure he’ll be there."

"Then he records the whole messy affair, sorts out the cause and effect, compiles it into a book, and retells the story to patrons in taverns and teahouses."

"Many of the stories you hear from storytellers in teahouses and taverns originally came from him."

"But it’s hard to say how much is truth and how much is fiction."

Jiang Ran had a flash of understanding. ’So he’s a storyteller who gathers his material on-site.’

’Or maybe... like a war correspondent?’

’It was actually quite interesting,’ he thought. ’To think someone like that exists in the Jianghu.’

Meanwhile, the Great Master was still hounding Rong Lie, pressing him for the details.

Rong Lie’s face was ashen. He had repeated countless times that he was not the one who had destroyed the Qinghe Gang and the Sunset Gang.

But the Great Master didn’t believe him, and neither did anyone else.

Rong Lie tried to walk around him. The Great Master didn’t stop him, but shadowed his every step, making it clear he wasn’t going anywhere until he got his story.

If it had been anyone else pestering him so shamelessly, Rong Lie would have resorted to force.

The problem was, the Great Master was a powerful martial artist.

He probably couldn’t win a fight against him. And if he ended up pinned to the ground getting thrashed by the Great Master, he’d become a complete laughingstock.

In the end, Rong Lie’s face turned a shade of livid purple, but all he could do was grit his teeth and endure it.

Jiang Ran shook his head. The Great Master was certainly an interesting character, but he was also undeniably irritating.

Ignoring the commotion around Rong Lie, the three of them returned to their original seats. They had just sat down when they heard another loud announcement:

"Shopkeeper Wan is here!"