At this moment, the man with a harpoon suddenly felt an upsurge of blood and had the urge to confront Leo. However, when he noticed the beautiful martial artist accompanying Leo, he dismissed the impractical idea.
“Sir, the two Golden Cicada Nets are our livelihood. Can we…” The harpoon man’s words abruptly came to a halt as he saw a purple dagger suddenly appear in Leo’s hand. What could one say in such a situation?
The harpoon man had no choice but to order his men to hand over the Golden Cicada Nets to Leo. Now, things had taken a turn for the worse. They had lost two months’ worth of hard-earned loot, not to mention their tools for living.
Once the harpoon man and his group left, Leo and Master Jennifer mounted their saber-toothed tiger and continued their journey. Leo opened the harpoon man’s backpack, which indeed contained many valuable items.
Four Icefire Fruits, six wild ginseng plants, thirty Red Blood Grass, over twenty Detoxifying Herb, and more than fifty Essence-Building Pills. In just two months, they had accumulated so much loot; no wonder these people enjoyed robbing others.
After two hours, the effect of the talisman faded, and the saber-toothed tiger turned back into a piece of useless paper. They had no choice but to continue on foot.
As the sun set, darkness crept in, and they hadn’t reached their destination yet. It was already nighttime.
The mountains at night appeared especially mysterious, with occasional terrifying roars of wild beasts.
Leo and Master Jennifer had to halt their journey and find a sheltered spot. They lit a campfire to ward off the chill of the evening.
For dinner, they had roasted a plump wild rabbit over the campfire. Leo, with his culinary skills, had cooked it to a golden brown, filling the air with an enticing aroma.
Leo broke off a rabbit leg and handed it to Master Jennifer, asking, “Should we be able to reach that East Town by tomorrow?”
Master Jennifer accepted the rabbit leg and nodded, “We should.”
In fact, if Master Jennifer had guided Leo along the shortest route, they could have reached the East Town tonight. However, the extended journey made them forget their course. Moreover, the risk of getting lost in the dark, with wild beasts lurking about, prompted them to spend the night in the mountains.
Leo munched on the rabbit meat and inquired, “Back at the inn, Henry mentioned that the East Town is controlled by a martial family. Do you know anything about them?”
Master Jennifer thought for a moment and replied, “The name ‘East Town’ is derived from the family that controls the town, the East Family. The East Family is an ancient martial family.”
“How ancient?” Leo was curious.
“My master mentioned it once. The East Family has existed for at least over a thousand years.”
“Over a thousand years?” Leo was surprised. Even a dynasty rarely lasted for over three hundred years, and some fell after just a decade. For a martial family to endure for over a thousand years was an extraordinary feat.
Master Jennifer decided to educate Leo about the world of martial arts. She continued, “For regular people to become martial cultivators, they must possess martial roots in their bodies, which come in five types: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.”
“This East Family possesses the innate fire attribute martial roots, which happen to be associated with alchemy. That’s why the East Family excels in alchemy. The quality of their elixirs often surpasses those created by dedicated alchemists, so martial cultivators are willing to pay a high price for their elixirs. In addition to their alchemical talents, the East Family is known for its formidable combat prowess, making it rare for anyone to cause trouble in the Eastern Town.”
As Master Jennifer shared this information, Leo gained a deeper understanding of this mystical world of martial arts.
Just as Leo was about to grab another piece of rabbit meat, his pupils suddenly contracted. He gazed into the darkness ahead.
Observing Leo’s unusual expression, Master Jennifer couldn’t help but ask, “What’s wrong?”
Leo didn’t say a word but pointed ahead with his hand.
Master Jennifer turned to look, with only dim moonlight to illuminate the surroundings. She could make out things within ten meters, but beyond that, it was pitch black.
Faintly, they could hear the distant howling of wolves.
Leo’s vision exceeded Master Jennifer’s, and he said in a low voice, “Someone is coming in our direction.”
Shortly after Leo spoke, Master Jennifer heard the sound of approaching footsteps. It wasn’t just one person; there were several.
“Hurry up and chase her down! We can’t let her escape!”
In the dark of night, a man’s shouts echoed.
About a minute or two later, a figure appeared before Leo and Master Jennifer.
It was a woman dressed in a purple gown. She had a baby face with rosy lips and delicate, almost translucent skin.
Her most striking feature was her clear, lively eyes. If eyes could speak, it would be in the language of her eyes.
“I’m so tired…” The woman rested her hands on her knees, panting heavily. She occasionally looked behind her as she caught her breath.
After catching her breath, she glanced at Leo and Master Jennifer, who were seated by the campfire. However, her gaze was quickly drawn to the tantalizing aroma of rabbit meat cooking on the rack.
“It smells so good; it must be delicious.” The woman displayed an adorable longing.
Sensing that this unexpectedly lovely and cute woman didn’t harbor any ill intentions, Leo plucked a rabbit leg from the rack and offered it to her, saying, “Go ahead, have some.”
The woman hesitated briefly before extending her hand to accept the rabbit leg Leo offered. She then took a bite, her cherry lips parting to savor the rabbit meat.
At that moment, the sound of footsteps grew louder and more numerous. In no time, five people appeared at the campfire.
Leading them was a young man in black attire with a golden flame emblem embroidered on the left side of his chest.
Beside the young man was a cold and proud-looking elder, similarly dressed in black with the same emblem on his left chest.
Judging by the aura emanating from the old man, he was at least a mid-level Grand Martial Master.
Behind the old man were three men dressed in black, with cold and stern expressions.
Seeing the emblem on their clothing, Master Jennifer raised an eyebrow and whispered to Leo, “They are members of the Fiery Blaze Sect.”
Upon hearing that they were from the Fiery Blaze Sect, Leo’s eyes flashed with a cold light.
This was Leo’s first encounter with Fiery Blaze Sect members since the incident with the Nine Guards. Given that the Nine Guards had met their demise at his hands, he harbored no good feelings toward Fiery Blaze Sect.
“Thief, you can’t escape this time!” The young man in black pants and panting breath called out menacingly to the woman in purple.