Chapter Twenty-Nine: A Hero Saves the Beauty

The smoke quickly dissipated, revealing the man in black who had been holding his breath and dared not make a move. When he saw the smoke clear but did not see Qin Xiaotian, he realized that his opponent had already passed him and given chase. After checking his own body and finding no signs of poisoning, he cursed under his breath and hurried after them. However, he was the weakest of the three, while Qin Xiaotian was the strongest. Although his elder brother's skill was only slightly inferior to Qin Xiaotian's, he was carrying someone, and the gap between himself and Qin Xiaotian was growing. Meanwhile, Qin Xiaotian was steadily closing in on the man in black ahead.

After they had all left, a figure appeared at the spot where the fight had just occurred. He crouched down to inspect a shallow pit on the ground, then sniffed the lingering scent in the air and murmured, "I didn’t expect that what Qin Xiaotian threw contained gunpowder. The formula is a little different from what’s on Earth, and both its purity and power are much weaker—about on par with the gunpowder of the Yuan Dynasty." This person was Li Xingyu, who had been secretly following them. He had actually overtaken them during their fight, but upon hearing the explosion and seeing the smoke, he had circled back. With his speed, a short delay meant little—he could easily catch up.

He had learned some of the martial arts and lightness skills collected by the Mu family. With his innate cultivation, he had mastered the basics of these arts. This discovery made Li Xingyu even more interested in the Wanfa Sect, for based on all the information he had gathered, there were no firearms or gunpowder in this world, and he had never seen any related records. Many inventions arise not strictly based on the level of civilization, but from chance. For example, gunpowder was invented in China long ago when its technology was still backward, and although Europe’s technology would later far surpass that era, Europe did not invent gunpowder independently for nearly a thousand years afterward.

When Li Xingyu caught up to them again, he found Qin Xiaotian fighting the two men in black. Although outnumbered, Qin Xiaotian’s higher cultivation allowed him to hold his ground for the time being. He wasn’t worried, for he had already thought to alert his sect. Though they were some distance from the sect, as long as he could hold out, he could expect reinforcements. Thus, he focused on defense, making sure one of the men in black could not slip away with Chen Jingrou.

“Big brother, this isn’t working. This kid’s tough. Why don’t I hold him off while you go?”
“No use. He’s got too many tricks up his sleeve. We have to join forces, stop him from using his gadgets, and defeat him quickly if we want to get away. Besides, after fighting so long, he’s seen our faces. If we let him go, he’ll surely figure out where we’re from by our martial arts, which would ruin our master’s plan.”

Li Xingyu, who had been preparing to intervene, changed his mind after hearing this exchange. He realized Qin Xiaotian would soon be captured and wanted to follow them to uncover their plans.

Chen Jingrou had already regained consciousness. She hadn’t inhaled much of the smoke and, with some inner strength of her own, woke quickly. But she was completely immobilized and unable to speak. The man in black had sealed her meridians with his energy, halting her own internal force. When she woke in his arms and cried out, he stuffed a foul-smelling rag into her mouth and, after putting her down, bound her tightly.

After her initial confusion subsided, she realized she had been kidnapped by those two contemptible men in black. She had no idea why, but surmised that Qin Xiaotian must have given chase after discovering her abduction. Watching Qin Xiaotian fight the men in black not far away, Chen Jingrou found herself thinking he wasn’t so bad after all. Previously, she had hoped he’d be less formidable so she could teach him a lesson, but now she wished he were ten or even a hundred times stronger to quickly defeat her captors and rescue her. Her urgency wasn’t only due to her peril or her desire for revenge, but also because the rag in her mouth was filthy and stank unbearably. The smell was numbing her nose, and with her mouth forced open, her saliva soaked the rag and trickled down her throat, making her gag with disgust, yet she was powerless to stop it. “Qin Xiaotian, you useless wretch, hurry up and deal with those bastards and rescue me! Are you holding back on purpose to make me suffer more? Once I’m free, I won’t let you off!” Tears of grievance filled her eyes as she seethed inwardly.

Of course, Qin Xiaotian was not deliberately holding back, nor could he suddenly become ten or a hundred times stronger as she wished. The men in black, having seen his call for help, were growing anxious and attacked him with even greater ferocity. It didn’t take long for them to observe his lack of fighting experience, and with their relentless assault, Qin Xiaotian soon revealed a fatal opening. The elder of the two took a punch in exchange for landing a kick on Qin Xiaotian’s lower dantian, scattering his rapidly circulating internal force and robbing him of his ability to resist.

Seeing Qin Xiaotian incapacitated, the younger man in black, still aggrieved from an earlier humiliation, wanted to finish him off with a sword. But his elder brother stopped him. “We’re still on Wanfa Sect’s territory, and he’s the Sect Master’s favorite disciple. As long as he’s alive, he’ll make a useful hostage if Wanfa’s people catch up.”

The young man, evidently obedient to his brother, sealed Qin Xiaotian’s energy, kicked him twice for good measure, and tied him up. Lacking another rag, he simply threatened Qin Xiaotian not to cry out, warning that if he did, his tongue would be cut out. Qin Xiaotian saw the seriousness in his eyes and dared not make a sound, understanding all too well the wisdom of yielding in adversity.

The two men in black had to keep Chen Jingrou unharmed for their exchange with the Xiaoyao Sect, but they had no such qualms about Qin Xiaotian—even if he was the treasured disciple of the Wanfa Sect Master. Poor Qin Xiaotian, who had followed Chen Jingrou so doggedly and now sought to play the hero, ended up captured himself.

Chen Jingrou, seeing that Qin Xiaotian had not only failed to rescue her but had been captured as well, was plunged into despair. Whatever faint goodwill she had just felt for him vanished, replaced by bitter resentment: “I knew you were a useless pretty boy, dumb as a pig. If this is Wanfa Sect’s territory, couldn’t you have called for help sooner? Please, if you’re incapable, don’t show off—and if you must, don’t drag me down with you! You’re going to be the death of me!” Perhaps this is a trait common to all spoiled women: never considering their own faults, but always blaming others, and once a prejudice has taken root, it is hard to change.

Angry, she instinctively clenched her teeth. With her mouth stuffed, she couldn’t actually bite down, but the motion squeezed out a flood of saliva from the rag, which, because she was lying on her back, trickled into her throat, making her gag even more and increasing her resentment toward Qin Xiaotian. Why should she have to endure this filthy, disgusting rag while he didn’t? If she could speak, she would certainly have protested. Perhaps even she did not realize whether her animosity toward Qin Xiaotian was only because of his persistence or because her father wanted her to marry him. Perhaps it was because...

(Apologies, everyone, today’s update is late due to some matters, but I will strive to update three chapters tonight as thanks for your support. Please continue to follow, collect, and recommend!)

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