dkrc Chapter 213 - 165: The Opportunity Secured (2)
Chapter 213 - 165: The Opportunity Secured (2)
Heiye set Fang Qingyuan and the others down. He hunched over, moved in front of Fang Qingyuan, and bared his fangs at the newcomer.
"Who are you? Why are you blocking our path?"
The newcomer was a Female Cultivator. She wore a smile and was dressed in a rather conservative black silk dress. Though she appeared to be in her thirties, she had a full, slender, and utterly alluring figure, with a face that was both charming and beautiful.
And yet, her eyes were like drops of black lacquer, dark and sparkling. As she looked toward Fang Qingyuan’s group, her gaze held a chilling coldness that completely betrayed the smile on her face.
Her crimson lips were so vivid they looked as if they might bleed. Fang Qingyuan stared for a moment, only to feel an immense sense of dread emanating from them. He quickly turned his head away, not daring to look again.
"You killed my dogs, and you think you can just walk away? That doesn’t seem right, does it?"
"Your dogs? So what if we killed them? State your name and backing, and we can discuss this!"
Heiye’s words, full of the bravado of the martial world, left the woman opposite silent for a moment. After a long pause, she finally spoke.
"Shangguan Ke of the Shangguan Family from Black Wind Valley. If I’m not mistaken, you must be from the Beast Taming Sect, correct?"
Heiye grinned, revealing two massive fangs as he spoke to Shangguan Ke.
"That’s right. We’re from the Beast Taming Huo Family. Our Elder Huo and your Shangguan Ancestor are acquainted. It seems we’ve mistaken friends for foes—it’s all a misunderstanding."
As Heiye and Shangguan Ke spoke, the Rat-faced and Dragon-faced cultivators hurried over. They came to Shangguan Ke’s side and immediately fell to their knees, awaiting her judgment.
Shangguan Ke shot the pair a glance and asked,
"Where are the others?"
"They’re all dead."
Shangguan Ke sighed lightly and said,
"Dead is dead. As long as you two are here, I can always pull another team together. If you two had died as well, *that* would have been a real headache for me."
After saying this, Shangguan Ke looked at Heiye and said,
"Since it’s a misunderstanding, I won’t pursue the matter. However, shouldn’t you return the items you took?"
Hearing this, Fang Qingyuan’s heart clenched. ’If I return those items,’ he thought, ’my Foundation Establishment Opportunity will vanish. It will all have been for nothing.’
’I can’t just hand them over. In fact, I need to figure out how to get the remaining two black daggers—the Rat and the Dragon—from Shangguan Ke.’
’But a Golden Core Cultivator is speaking. Is there any room for a mere Qi Cultivation Cultivator like me to say anything?’
Bringing Heiye here had been Fang Qingyuan’s best decision by far. After Shangguan Ke spoke, Heiye actually looked over at Fang Qingyuan, gesturing for him to step forward and speak.
’At this point, there’s no other choice but to tell the truth. Trying to play tricks in front of a Golden Core Cultivator would likely backfire spectacularly.’
So Fang Qingyuan began to speak,
"Elder Shangguan, my name is Fang Qingyuan, a disciple of the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect. Eight years ago, I went to Cliff City to purchase some goods. Unexpectedly, I was targeted by your subordinates, the Chicken-faced and Snake-faced Cultivators..."
Fang Qingyuan recounted the entire sequence of events, from beginning to end. He concluded by explaining that the black daggers were his Foundation Establishment Opportunity. When he finished, Shangguan Ke turned to the Dragon-faced cultivator beside her and asked,
"Did this happen back then?"
The Dragon-faced cultivator buried his head even lower, then spoke.
"Something like that did happen back then. The Chicken-faced and Snake-faced ones were recruited later. After they were killed, the Pig-faced one wanted to get revenge, but I stopped him."
Shangguan Ke nodded slightly and began to explain,
"Among my subordinates, only these two here know my identity. The others are disposable, recruited as needed. They are a lawless bunch, so their attack on you was also a misunderstanding."
Heiye had just used the word "misunderstanding" to smooth things over, and now Shangguan Ke was throwing it right back. She clearly still held a grudge. It made sense; she had lost subordinates she had put effort into training, and she was pained by the loss.
After saying this, Shangguan Ke asked again,
"What’s the story with those black daggers?"
The Dragon-faced cultivator answered in a muffled voice,
"Ten years ago, we intercepted a shipment. Inside was a set of these Magical Artifacts. They allow the bearers to sense each other’s location. I thought they were useful, so I distributed them among the men for communication. I never expected that two years later, this person would take the Chicken and Snake daggers. Any Cultivators recruited after that didn’t get one."
’So that’s how it was.’ Fang Qingyuan realized. ’In that case, these black daggers aren’t particularly precious. If I had just revealed my identity and found the Dragon-faced cultivator, I might have even been able to buy them.’
But Fang Qingyuan’s thinking had been completely off track. His preconceptions had gotten the better of him. All for the sake of these Magical Artifacts, he had sought out Situ Jingyu and Heiye, and in doing so, had nearly wiped out this group of Tribulation Cultivators who had run rampant for years.
Hearing this, Fang Qingyuan felt incredibly awkward. ’I’m so used to being overly cautious that I never even considered just communicating,’ he thought. ’And that Pig-faced one... why did he have to attack on sight? Now he’s not just dead, he dragged a whole group down with him.’
Shangguan Ke’s expression was also somber. After a moment, she said,
"In that case, give him the remaining two. Let’s grant his wish."
After the Dragon-faced and Rat-faced cultivators took two black daggers from their storage bags and handed them to Fang Qingyuan, Shangguan Ke addressed him again.
"However, by doing this, you now owe me a favor. Once you reach Foundation Establishment, if a time comes when I need you, you must do one thing for me."
With the items in hand, Fang Qingyuan naturally nodded in agreement. ’Whatever happens in the future, I’ll just agree for now,’ he thought. ’When the time comes, I can just make an excuse. It’s not like Shangguan Ke can chase me all the way to the Southern Border, can she?’
Seeing Fang Qingyuan agree, Shangguan Ke didn’t care whether he was being sincere or just placating her. She turned directly to Heiye and said,
"Alright, now that this is settled, leave the other things behind. I won’t see you out."
Hearing this, Heiye was clearly reluctant. He opened his mouth to protest.