Raising Orphans, Not Assassins

Vol. 1 - Chapter 25 - Sir, who are you? Can you predict how long you will live?

On the donkey cart, the man in the purple robe sitting next to the old driver suddenly had a silver short spear in his right hand. The spearhead glinted coldly in the sunlight, thrusting towards one of the three men.

The speed was incredibly fast, and the other four people on the cart only saw a flash of silver light. However, just as the purple-robed man's spear was about to strike, the man on horseback, as if having eyes on the back of his head, leaned to the side and narrowly avoided the attack.

The expression of the purple-robed man changed, no longer the gentle demeanor from before. His aura transformed, exuding a chilling, intense killing intent. Under this oppressive atmosphere, the donkey pulling the cart stopped, trembling, and a stream of foul-smelling yellow liquid trickled down its legs.

The donkey had been scared to the point of urinating.

Without hesitation, the purple-robed man stepped on the cart, leaping into the air and landing steadily on the horseback, continuously thrusting his silver short spear. The man who had dodged the first attack jumped from his horse and landed on the horse ahead.

At the same time, the other two men leaped into the air, brandishing bright steel knives, attacking the purple-robed man together. This sudden turn of events startled the four people on the donkey cart.

The purple-robed man parried their attacks with his silver spear, moving deftly on the horseback. The horse's back, bumpy and unstable, seemed as firm as solid ground under his feet.

"Clang! Clang!"

The silver spear clashed with the steel knives, sparks flying from their collisions.

"What's happening? Why are they fighting?" the blind boy asked anxiously, hearing the sound of weapons clashing.

No one responded to him. The old driver, terrified, jumped off the cart and retreated several steps. After a few steps, he looked back at his donkey cart, torn between fleeing and staying.

Seeing his two companions being held off by the purple-robed man, the third rider's hands flicked, sending several flying darts towards the purple-robed man. Noticing the incoming projectiles, the purple-robed man quickly pulled out another silver short spear from under his robe and deflected the darts with a few swift moves. One of the deflected darts hit the donkey in the head, causing it to collapse with a pained bray, twitch once, and then lay still.

In just a few breaths, the four had exchanged several blows.

The blind boy on the cart, hearing the clashing weapons, asked anxiously, "What's happening? What weapons are they using?"

The woman in the green robe and the man in the yellow shirt had already jumped off the cart and stood five meters away. The blind boy and the young man in the silver mask were the only ones left on the cart.

The man in the silver mask spoke, "The man in the purple robe is using two silver short spears. The other three, two are using knives, and one is using hidden weapons."

Upon hearing the situation, the blind boy's face changed dramatically. He muttered to himself, "Two silver spears... two silver spears..."

"It must be the Silver Spear, Zhao Wu, the gold-medal assassin from Fengyu Tower!"

Upon hearing the name Zhao Wu, the woman in the green robe and the man in the yellow shirt didn't hesitate. They turned and fled towards Jiangning County without looking back. Within a few steps, their shoes were covered in mud. The woman in green no longer cared about keeping her shoes clean, as if the name Zhao Wu, the Silver Spear, was synonymous with the grim reaper or a soul-harvesting demon.

The man in the silver mask glanced at the fleeing pair and added, "The other three men are dressed in yellow-brown clothes, with a copper coin embroidered on their chests."

"Hiss... They're from the Wan Jin Hall!" The blind boy immediately identified the three men's background.

While the two conversed, Zhao Wu, the Silver Spear in a purple robe, moved swiftly, his body agile to the extreme. He leaped over the heads of the two men wielding long knives.

Both men shouted and swung their steel knives with great force. In mid-air, Zhao Wu's feet lightly stepped on the two steel knives, using the momentum to propel himself forward.

The man on horseback, witnessing this, was filled with dread. Zhao Wu exerted his strength and threw the two silver spears. They shot towards the man who had been using hidden weapons like arrows.

The man cried out in surprise, unable to dodge, and the silver spears pierced through his chest and abdomen, killing him instantly. The galloping horse threw the corpse to the ground.

Zhao Wu lightly landed beside the corpse and pulled out the silver spears. The man's body twitched, and two streams of warm blood sprayed out, staining Zhao Wu's purple robe. The air filled with the scent of blood, but Zhao Wu's expression remained unchanged as he coldly eyed the remaining two men from the Wan Jin Hall.

The two men with steel knives looked at Zhao Wu in fear and uncertainty. The blind boy, smelling the blood in the air, turned pale and asked, "Is someone dead?"

"Who died?"

"The one from the Wan Jin Hall who used hidden weapons," the man in the silver mask replied, his voice tinged with excitement, as if watching the fight had satisfied his curiosity.

The blind boy sighed in relief. "Good, good. The men from the Wan Jin Hall aren't very strong."

"Why? Do you favor Zhao Wu, the Silver Spear?" the silver-masked man asked curiously.

The blind boy shook his head. "It's not about favoring; it's that the men from the Wan Jin Hall deserve their fate."

The two remaining men glared angrily at the blind boy. One of them shouted, "Aren't you going to help?"

The blind boy shivered and turned to the man in the silver mask with a look of terror.

The man in the silver mask tried to touch his nose, but his fingers only brushed against the mask. "It wasn't me," he said.

Zhao Wu, standing beside the corpse, frowned and looked at everyone present.

The man in the silver mask turned his head to the old man standing nearby who hadn't left. The old man's face was pale, and his legs were trembling. He shook his head and said, "It... it wasn't me either..."

The atmosphere suddenly grew tense, and everyone exchanged uneasy glances.

At that moment, Zhao Wu suddenly lunged forward, but then he was flung back like a kite with its string cut. He tumbled on the ground a few times, tapped his feet rapidly, and managed to put some distance between him and the others before vomiting a mouthful of blood.

Where Zhao Wu had been standing, there was now a new figure. The man was burly, wearing a short yellow hemp shirt, revealing a hairy chest, and was looking at everyone with a smile.

The blind boy, unable to see, quickly asked, "What's happening?"

"The guy who asked you for a fortune earlier seems to be a helper from the Wan Jin Hall. He walked without a sound and just hit Zhao Wu so hard he spat blood," the man in the silver mask explained, narrating the situation to the blind boy.

"Walking without a sound... one hit and spitting blood..." The blind boy thought for a moment, then suddenly shuddered and asked in a deep voice, "Is that man bare-chested, burly, and smiling?"

"Yes."

"Damn, it's the Twelfth Master of the Wan Jin Hall, Smiling Cat Xu Xiaolin! Zhao Wu is doomed," the blind boy declared with certainty. After speaking, his face turned dark, and he muttered quietly, "Bad luck, bad luck, why did I have to run into this guy as soon as I came down the mountain..."

The blind boy reached into his pocket, pulling out three copper coins, and quickly shook them in his hand, mumbling incantations as he did so.

Zhao Wu, who had been struck and was now pale as a sheet, showed a look of despair upon hearing the name Smiling Cat Xu Xiaolin.

"This can't be... why are you here?" he asked.

Xu Xiaolin, still smiling, replied, "Why shouldn't I be here?"

"Qing Xuzi is choosing a successor; no one said I couldn't come."

Zhao Wu stared at Xu Xiaolin, recalling all the strange things that had happened earlier. How could a foolproof sneak attack be avoided by a mere third-grade martial artist? Combined with Xu Xiaolin's presence, it was clear the enemy was well-prepared.

Zhao Wu trembled and looked at Xu Xiaolin with terror. "You're here to kill me?"

"Oh? You're smart! It seems your Fengyu Tower assassins have figured it out," Xu Xiaolin said, still smiling.

Zhao Wu's chest heaved rapidly, his face contorted. Gritting his teeth, he asked, "So it's true... But why?"

Xu Xiaolin's smile remained as he replied, "Blame it on your Fengyu Tower being too conspicuous."

After saying that, Xu Xiaolin looked at the blind boy and teased, "Blind boy, have you figured it out? Will you survive today?"

Compared to Zhao Wu, who had been left with half his life after taking a blow, Xu Xiaolin seemed more interested in the blind boy. Despite being blind, the boy had accurately identified Xu Xiaolin's identity, proving he was no ordinary person.

The blind boy had just finished shaking the copper coins for the last time. He touched the patterns on the coins, discerning the final changes in the divination. He let out a sigh of relief and murmured quietly, "Good, good, a narrow escape!"

Xu Xiaolin, hearing the boy's muttering, burst into laughter. "Well, then you're doomed. Didn't I tell you that the divination readings should be interpreted in reverse?"

"This means certain death!"

Upon hearing this, the blind boy's face turned deathly pale.

The man in the silver mask, still seated on the donkey cart, curiously asked, "What grade is Zhao Wu?"

The blind boy glanced in his direction and replied, "Mid-second grade."

"And what about this Smiling Cat, Xu Xiaolin?"

"Second-grade peak."

"Is the difference that big?" The man in the silver mask seemed unaware of the martial world's intricacies and asked with a puzzled expression.

The blind boy's mouth twitched slightly. "If it were someone else, Zhao Wu might have a chance. But against Smiling Cat Xu Xiaolin, who is renowned for his lightness skill, there's no way he'll survive."

"His steps are silent because he's mastered a second-grade lightness skill to perfection. It's so flawless that it's almost unbeatable! Except for first-grade experts who can sense his movements, no one below that level can escape him."

The blind boy's expression darkened. "If you're not a first-grade expert specializing in lightness skills, catching up to him is nearly impossible."

"Oh? That impressive?" The man in the silver mask appeared genuinely surprised, his interest piqued. "What's the name of this sinister lightness skill?"

"It's called 'Cat Steps,' created by a lama from the Western Regions. Xu Xiaolin earned the nickname Smiling Cat because of it."

On the donkey cart, the blind boy and the man in the silver mask continued chatting as if they had nothing to worry about, completely ignoring Xu Xiaolin.

Xu Xiaolin's expression darkened, and he sneered, "You seem to know quite a lot."

The man in the silver mask glanced at Xu Xiaolin, noticing the smile frozen on his face, and suddenly realized, "Ah, I see now! His smile comes from that constant smirk on his face, right?"

"Indeed," the blind boy responded in a scholarly tone.

Upon hearing this, Xu Xiaolin's face twitched. Whether he smiled or not, he was caught in an awkward position. He glared coldly at the man in the silver mask. "Who are you?"

"Have you also calculated whether you'll survive?"

The man in the silver mask chuckled, slightly bowed, and said, "I am who I am,and I'm not ashamed, name's Donghua."