Chapter 93: The Wicked Way to Win

Lei Yingfeng’s concern was well founded.

When the men and women of the martial world returned to their own lands, they would surely spread the word far and wide that Lei Jianqin had been promised to Chu Feng. Once such talk began, it would travel from one mouth to ten, from ten to a hundred. Setting the wider world aside, at the very least the warriors of the Nine Mountains and Eighteen Veins would soon all know of it.

For Chu Feng, such a matter would have little effect; it would only raise his standing again and again. But for Lei Jianqin, a young woman’s reputation would be deeply affected.

In the end, if Lei Jianqin failed to marry Chu Feng, where would her face be? Where would the face of the Wind-Thunder Martial Hall be? And if she were to marry another man in the future, it would no longer be as easy as before.

Chu Feng naturally understood this as well.

“Miss Lei, I am truly sorry.”

He immediately apologized to Lei Jianqin, saying, “When those martial artists were still here, I should have told the truth about my strange illness. By delaying until now, I have greatly harmed your reputation. I am truly sorry.”

“Young Master Chu, it is nothing. I do not blame you.”

Lei Jianqin shook her head. “You did not say it then because you were thinking of my feelings. I understand your difficulty.”

“Thank you for your understanding.”

Chu Feng clasped his fists to her, sincerely grateful for her generosity.

As for Lei Jianqin, Chu Feng felt that she was young and beautiful, a year older than he, and in the way she carried herself and treated others, she had a little of the bearing of an elder martial sister. Her temperament was also excellent, without the slightest air of a pampered young lady. Yet Chu Feng felt no romantic affection for her, nor had he ever thought to use her to secure a future in martial arts through the Wind-Thunder Martial Hall.

For some reason, as this thought rose in his mind, the image of a girl suddenly surfaced there. She had bright eyes and white teeth, brows and features like a painting, and wore a snow-white dress that seemed made of frost and snow. She was smiling as she looked at him. That girl who could make one’s heart leap at a glance was none other than Mu Qiaoxue.

“Heh heh, Qinqin, it is rare indeed that you do not mind this. It is I who have been a little narrow-minded.” Lei Yingfeng sighed, then went on, “Besides, what kind of man is Chu Feng? He is a renowned figure among the younger generation of warriors in the Nine Mountains and Eighteen Veins. And it is not as though he were unwilling to accept this match; it is only that he suffers from a strange illness and has no heart to speak of matters of love and marriage.”

As he spoke, Lei Yingfeng asked again, “By the way, did that Second Miss Mu say how your strange illness ought to be treated? As long as there is a way to cure it, even if it costs mountains of gold and silver, I, Lei Yingfeng, will have you healed!”

“Second Miss Mu is still thinking of a solution. In a few days I will ask her again,” Chu Feng said at once, steering the matter away.

At the mention of mountains of gold and silver, he suddenly remembered an important matter and thought, I nearly forgot.

“By the way, Hall Master Lei, since you mentioned mountains of gold and silver, when I entered the Wind-Thunder Grotto this time and pursued Liu Run into its depths, I accidentally discovered a mountain of gold.”

“What?”

All of them were greatly startled.

“Nephew Chu, you discovered a mountain of gold in the Wind-Thunder Grotto?” Han Mo asked again.

“That’s right. If I am not mistaken, it really was a mountain of gold.”

And so Chu Feng recounted in detail how, while chasing Liu Run deep into the heart of the Wind-Thunder Grotto, he had stumbled upon the gold mountain by sheer chance.

“This is truly beyond expectation. To think such a thing as a mountain of gold would exist in the Wind-Thunder Grotto! By Young Master Chu’s account, that mountain is very likely an entire mountain of gold,” Fan Shang said, nodding.

“The Wind-Thunder Grotto has always been a place of extreme danger. Especially now that the Thunderfused Beasts have appeared, it has become even more perilous. We know far too little about the grotto, and the depths within it are even more shrouded in mystery,” Han Mo added.

“Since there is a gold mountain in the Wind-Thunder Grotto, then good. We will assemble men at once and go there to investigate it thoroughly,” Lei Yingfeng decided immediately.

“Hall Master Lei, do you still need me to come along and help?” Chu Feng asked.

“No need this time. You have slain all the Thunderfused Beasts along the way, and the newly born ones have not yet matured. They pose no threat to us. What we do need is for you to draw a map by hand and indicate, as clearly as possible, the location of that gold mountain.” Lei Yingfeng said, “Also, stay at the Wind-Thunder Martial Hall for the next few days. In a little while, your Uncle Han will bring you some things to help raise your martial strength.”

“Very well, then I will not be polite.”

Chu Feng nodded.

As for the Wind-Thunder Martial Hall’s repayment, whether it was opening its sacred grounds of training or providing all manner of cultivation resources, Chu Feng accepted it all without hesitation. With the sole exception of Lei Jianqin herself, he welcomed anything that came his way. After all, he had rendered meritorious service and was receiving reward for it; there was nothing for him to feel uneasy about.

To Chu Feng, only by obtaining as many superior cultivation resources as possible could his martial strength advance by leaps and bounds. Then, when the day of the decisive battle arrived, he would have a far greater chance of exterminating the Xiong family of the House of Fear.

Chu Feng thought that Xiong Wu had already witnessed his strength and knew that he could no longer be underestimated. After returning in disgrace to the House of Fear, Xiong Wu would most likely discuss various plans with his father and elder brother so that they might seek every possible assurance for the decisive battle.

...

Inside the meeting hall of the Xiong family in the House of Fear.

After returning, Xiong Wu had already thrown a major fit. He was still seething now as he recounted the events of his trip to the Wind-Thunder Martial Hall to his father, Xiong Zhan, and his elder brother, Xiong Wei.

This time, Xiong Wu had gone to the Wind-Thunder Martial Hall for two reasons. First, he wished to understand the causes and consequences of the chaos surrounding Liu Shenghua. Second, he wanted to take the opportunity to find out Chu Feng’s current strength and situation, and to see what attitude the Wind-Thunder Martial Hall held toward Chu Feng.

“Alas! That useless Liu Shenghua could not even handle such a small matter! A piece of trash like that is not worth pitying even in death! If he had been capable and succeeded in rebellion, our House of Fear could not only have restored its ties with the Wind-Thunder Martial Hall, but even seized the chance to surpass it and become the third greatest power in the Nine Mountains and Eighteen Veins!” Xiong Zhan sighed and shook his head after hearing Xiong Wu’s account, regarding Liu Shenghua as a worthless wretch who deserved to die. At the same time, he frowned in wonder. “What kind of extraordinary encounter did Chu Feng stumble upon to reach the sixth level of Body Refinement? Such rapid advancement is not something an ordinary person could achieve.”

Xiong Wu’s face was full of displeasure. “After entering the Wind-Thunder Grotto, Chu Feng did not die inside. Instead, he ran into an immense stroke of fortune! First he successfully dispelled the Wind-Thunder Calamity, then he subdued a Thunderfused King Beast. It was precisely because of that beast’s aid in battle that he was able to turn the tide alone, defeat the five hall masters in rebellion, and even capture the mastermind Liu Shenghua and bring him to heel. In one stroke, he became famous!”

“A Thunderfused King Beast? Second Brother, did you see this beast? What did it look like, and just how powerful was it?” Xiong Wei immediately asked.

“No. I only heard about it. That Thunderfused King Beast is kept inside Chu Feng’s storage bag. Most people have not seen what it looks like, and only know that it is exceedingly formidable,” Xiong Wu said. “Apart from the Thunderfused King Beast, Chu Feng also has two powerful puppets, and his own strength is not to be underestimated either. The footwork he uses is extremely mysterious, and its power is beyond what the Wind Sect’s footwork of the Wind-Thunder Martial Hall can compare with. It seems to be some kind of nameless advanced martial art.”

Even now, Xiong Wu was still savoring the memory of Chu Feng’s movement on the third floor: in just a few steps, as though strolling through his own garden, he had emerged with the ease of a casual walk. Then a fierce gale had burst forth all at once, instantly shredding a rosewood chair into splinters. What terrifying force that had been.

“It seems that Chu Feng is becoming harder and harder to deal with,” Xiong Wei said with genuine feeling.

Before this, Xiong Wei had already been at the eighth level of Body Refinement. At that time, Chu Feng had merely been at the first level, and perhaps not even truly at that level. Yet in less than two months, Chu Feng’s strength had reached the sixth level of Body Refinement, leaving the father and son of the Xiong family only one step away through the seventh level.

The gap between the two sides was growing smaller and smaller.

“Father, this ‘colt’ named Chu Feng can no longer be allowed to grow like this! In my opinion, why not have me and Big Brother make a move together and quietly get rid of him? We need not bother with any promised decisive battle. That so-called duel is not fair in the first place and is far too disadvantageous to us!” Xiong Wu said.

As for the matter of the promised decisive battle, the House of Fear and the Xiong family truly had not foreseen it. They had never expected events to develop in this way.

Back when Chu Feng was still with the Mu family of Heavenly Mechanism, he had only been at the fourth level of Body Refinement. Though he had certainly made great progress from before, the Xiong father and sons still did not take him seriously. Thus the duel was agreed upon, and they allowed Chu Feng, that little cat, to grow for more than four months, thinking that no matter how he grew, he could not amount to much.

Who could have imagined that, as he grew, that little cat of Chu Feng’s would become a fierce tiger, alarming the Xiong father and sons greatly.

“No.”

Xiong Zhan shook his head. “First, you brothers may not even have the opportunity to kill Chu Feng. He is not the same weakling he once was. If either of you should make a mistake, I do not want to see it. Second, even if you do kill Chu Feng, will the Mu family of Heavenly Mechanism and the Wind-Thunder Martial Hall simply let it go? If those two join hands and come at us, the House of Fear will collapse and be destroyed at once! Our Xiong family would not survive either!”

“Father’s warning is correct,” Xiong Wei and Xiong Wu said in unison. “Still, we must come up with some way to ensure victory and add a little more certainty to the decisive battle.”

By this point, none of the three members of the Xiong family were as arrogant as before. They all knew that Chu Feng had astonishing growth potential and could not be underestimated.

“There is a way, though it will require paying a price.”

As Xiong Zhan spoke, a fierce gleam flashed in his eyes. “The three of us father and sons will cultivate the Six Desires Yin Art. Once we have mastered this inner skill, killing a mere Chu Feng will be nothing at all.”

At those words, Xiong Wei and Xiong Wu both changed color.

“Father, the Six Desires Yin Art is a sinister technique left behind by the Bandit Killer, and it is also the House of Fear’s greatest treasure. To cultivate this evil art, one must first reach the eighth level of Body Refinement, and Second Brother is still one level short. Moreover, the cultivator must first abstain from desire, then indulge desire when reaching the middle stage of cultivation. That ordeal would be terribly hard to endure. If one cannot survive the trial of desire, not only will the art remain unmastered, it may even turn upon the practitioner and cause backlash. Would that not be making matters worse through cleverness?”

Xiong Wei’s face was full of worry, and he was somewhat opposed to his father’s suggestion.

“That is easy enough. Later we will take one hundred thousand gold to the Rare Treasures Pavilion in the Outer Town of Heng Mountain and buy some heavenly materials and earthly treasures, so that Wu’er may reach the eighth level of Body Refinement as soon as possible. As for the method of first abstaining and then indulging during cultivation, there is nothing to say: one simply grits one’s teeth and endures it!” Xiong Zhan said with resolve.

“Exactly! Big Brother, in order to ensure that Chu Feng is definitely slain later and that there will be no future trouble, what is there to fear in enduring a little trial of desire now?” Xiong Wu said loudly. “However, during the early stage of cultivation we can endure abstinence, but once we enter the middle stage and must indulge desire, we will need a great many women. Where are we to find them?”

“That is easy too! Eight or ten women are nothing to gather, and even dozens are not difficult. Have a few chiefs go out for a trip; buy what can be bought, and seize by force what cannot. Preparing merely several dozen women would be as easy as grabbing chickens and ducks,” Xiong Wei said, narrowing his eyes.

“Good! What Wei’er says is right!” Xiong Zhan nodded. “No time should be wasted. We will begin at once. First, buy some heavenly materials and earthly treasures to help Wu’er break through to the eighth level of Body Refinement. Then prepare several dozen women. After that, we may begin cultivating the Six Desires Yin Art.”

Thus the three members of the Xiong family briefly discussed the matter and reached agreement in a single strike.