CHAPTER 41: CHAPTER 41 UNFAVORABLE START_1

"Where there’s a fight, there’s bound to be unexpected treasure."

Qin Feiyang’s eyes sparkled. For him, at this moment, nothing was more alluring than money.

"GRRR."

The Wolf King sniffed the air vigorously and growled at Qin Feiyang, appearing quite agitated.

"Brother Wolf, have you found something?" Qin Feiyang asked in surprise.

The Wolf King nodded, then broke into a silent run towards the valley entrance.

Qin Feiyang had great confidence in the Wolf King’s sense of smell, so he quickly followed.

Inside the valley, two young men, around eighteen or nineteen years old, were locked in a fierce battle.

The flash of sabers and glint of swords painted a scene of intense combat! Gusts of wind howled, sweeping in all directions!

Their eyes were solely fixed on each other, completely oblivious to the man and wolf that had snuck into the valley and were now observing them from behind a large rock.

"Their skills aren’t that impressive," Qin Feiyang concluded after a moment’s observation.

Both were Nine-Star Martial Artists, and their weapons were of comparable quality, making it an evenly matched fight. If they continued, mutual destruction was almost certain.

But what on earth could have driven these two to fight to the death here? he wondered. He scanned the surroundings with suspicion.

His gaze suddenly locked onto a small mound to his left.

On top of the mound bloomed a vibrant flower. The flower was entirely pink, about the size of a baby’s fist. It emitted puffs of pink mist and a captivating, intoxicating aroma.

"Why does it look so familiar?" Qin Feiyang mumbled.

Suddenly, realization dawned.

That’s the Euphoria Flower! It’s the main ingredient for crafting the Euphoria Pill! The Euphoria Pill, renowned for its potent effects in nourishing male vitality and kidney essence, is highly sought after by men. Particularly by those wealthy and powerful figures with multiple wives and concubines, who always keep a few pills on hand. Consequently, the Euphoria Pill fetches an incredibly high price. Its market value is typically over two hundred Gold Coins, a full hundred times more than a Qi Gathering Pill! And as the primary ingredient, the Euphoria Flower itself is naturally quite valuable. A single flower can sell for at least one hundred Gold Coins!

To stumble upon a Euphoria Flower right after arriving... It seems I made the right choice coming to Black Bear City, Qin Feiyang chuckled inwardly. Getting my hands on this Euphoria Flower would be like acquiring fifty Qi Gathering Pills in one go! This is truly an unexpected, massive haul!

"Brother Wolf, let’s go!" Qin Feiyang grinned, and in a few quick bounds, he dashed towards the small mound.

"Someone else?"

The two young men were startled to see Qin Feiyang suddenly pop out.

"You dare!"

"Stop!"

Immediately following their shouts, the two, now united against a common foe, raised their weapons and charged at Qin Feiyang!

SWOOSH!

But just then, the Wolf King darted like lightning, positioning itself in front of the two men. It bared its fangs and glared at them with fierce, menacing eyes.

"You damn wolf pup, you’re courting death!"

Yet, the two men didn’t stop. They redirected their attack towards the Wolf King, their sharp swords and broadswords radiating a terrifying killing intent.

The Wolf King, however, looked at them with disdain.

Just as the sword and broadsword were about to strike, it opened its gaping maw, revealing rows of menacing fangs. Then, with a savage chomp, it bit clean through both incredibly hard weapons!

The two men were instantly dumbfounded.

It can even bite through swords forged from black iron? Its fangs... they’re far too terrifying! This is definitely no ordinary wolf!

Run! The thought flashed through both men’s minds simultaneously, and they turned to flee outside.

Qin Feiyang said, "Brother Wolf, stop them."

"AWOOO!"

The Wolf King let out a great howl, swiftly caught up to the two men, and blocked their path at the exit.

The pair instantly fell into despair. They didn’t dare to move a muscle!

Wolves are not only savage but also incredibly cold-blooded creatures. Anyone who can be on ’brotherly’ terms with a wolf is definitely no saint! What rotten luck! Not only did we fail to get the Euphoria Flower, but we also ran into this bizarre duo. We’ll probably lose our lives here today.

Qin Feiyang uprooted the Euphoria Flower, roots and all, placed it in his Qiankun Bag, then turned to the two men with a grin. "Well, originally, I wasn’t planning on making things difficult for you. But who told you to attack me first, eh? How about this: leave all your Gold Coins, and I’ll let you go."

"What?"

"All our Gold Coins?"

The two men’s faces instantly turned as sour as bitter gourds.

Qin Feiyang chuckled. "Is that too little? In that case, you might as well leave your Qiankun Bags behind too."

"No, no, no!"

"We’ll give them to you!"

The two men hastily shook their heads, took out their Qiankun Bags, and poured out a large pile of Gold Coins.

The coins gleamed brightly, more than a hundred of them, an incredibly alluring sight.

The smile on Qin Feiyang’s face grew even wider.

This Black Bear City is truly a place of auspicious talents and favorable terrain! Even mere Nine-Star Martial Artists like these possess so many Gold Coins. At this rate, it seems it won’t take long to gather a thousand Gold Coins!

"Brother Wolf, let them go. After all, we’re good people; we must be true to our word," Qin Feiyang said with a grin.

Hearing this, the two young men almost coughed up a mouthful of old blood.

Good people? He stole our Euphoria Flower, plundered all our assets, and he calls himself a good person? Even bandits aren’t usually this rapacious! We’ve seen shameless people before, but never anyone *this* shameless!

But the two, though furious, dared not voice their anger. Lowering their heads, they fled for their lives.

As Qin Feiyang walked over to the pile of Gold Coins, he suddenly thought of something and called out, "Wait!"

"Sir, what else do you want?" one of them asked, his voice trembling.

"We’ve already given you all our Gold Coins! If you don’t believe us, you can check our Qiankun Bags!"

The two men, their faces masks of misery, looked as if they were about to drop to their knees.

Qin Feiyang chuckled. "Relax, don’t be so tense. I just want to ask if there’s anything else valuable around here."

"Valuable things?"

The two men exchanged a look, then began to think hard.

One of them said, "There are indeed quite a few valuable things around, but it all depends on opportune encounters—luck, basically."

Relying on luck is a bit iffy, Qin Feiyang thought. He then asked, "Is there anything readily available?"

"Sir, where in this world can you get something for nothing?" one of the men replied with a bitter laugh, the other echoing his sentiment.

Then, one of them suddenly spoke up, "I’ve thought of a place, but I don’t know if you’d dare to go."

"Where?" Qin Feiyang’s eyes lit up.

The man replied, "About two li south of here, there’s an herb field. It’s planted with all sorts of rare and exotic herbs. If you’re skilled enough, I guarantee you’ll make a fortune overnight."

"An herb field!" Qin Feiyang’s spirits soared. "How many plants are there?"

The man thought for a moment. "Probably several thousand. But it’s very dangerous there; I’d advise you not to go."

"Thanks! Perhaps we’ll meet again someday." Qin Feiyang chuckled, collected the Gold Coins, and then, with the Wolf King, dashed off towards the south.

"He’s really going? That’s an herb field belonging to the Elixir Palace! Does he have a death wish, or has he eaten a lion’s heart for courage?"

"Isn’t this better? If they anger the Elixir Palace, they’re as good as dead."

"So, you deliberately told him about it to send him to his doom!"

"Of course! Our Euphoria Flower and Gold Coins aren’t so easily taken. Still... that guy looks a bit familiar."

"Familiar? You’re right, he does... I remember now! Isn’t he that Qin Feiyang from the wanted posters?"

"Damn it! He’s worth ten thousand Gold Coins! Quick, after them! We can’t let him reach that herb field, or those tightwads at the Elixir Palace will get all the credit!"

The two young men hastily ran out of the valley.

But with their speed, how could they possibly catch up?

Qin Feiyang and the Wolf King had long since vanished without a trace.

「In a patch of forest.」

"Brother Wolf, herb fields like that usually belong to the Elixir Palace or are privately owned by some major families. We’ll need to be careful later," Qin Feiyang cautioned.

As a Prince, there were certain things he knew like the back of his hand. The moment he heard the words ’herb field,’ he’d already seen through those two men’s ulterior motives. But it didn’t matter. As long as he knew beforehand and took precautions, the danger wouldn’t be too great. Besides, one must seek fortune through danger; there’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world.

「An hour later.」

Qin Feiyang and the Wolf King climbed a mountain peak that was about a hundred zhang high.

Looking into the distance, he saw range upon range of mountains and lush, ancient trees!

Suddenly, Qin Feiyang’s gaze, sharp and gleaming, fixed on the deep mountains to his right.

About two hundred meters away, there was a tract of cultivated land. Neat rows of various exotic flowers and herbs grew there, swaying in the breeze, absorbing and emitting vibrant, misty light, as if beckoning to him.

That’s the herb field!

Nearby, a waterfall cascaded down, its ROARING sound audible even from a great distance.

The herb field itself was encircled by a clear stream, in which he could see fish swimming lazily.

"There really are a lot!" Qin Feiyang exclaimed, incredibly thrilled.

As a child, he had devoured books and consequently knew a fair amount about various rare and precious items. That herb field, apart from containing herbs for concocting the Body-refining Elixir and Qi Gathering Pill, also harbored several other quite valuable medicinal plants. He made a quick assessment: if he could loot this entire herb field, he would gain at least five thousand Gold Coins! However, he didn’t dare to act rashly. In the left corner of the herb field stood a small wooden lodge. On its balcony, an old man dressed in black was reclining on a chair, sipping wine and humming a tune, all while keeping an eye on the herb field. This man’s aura was profound and unfathomable; he was definitely no run-of-the-mill expert.

Qin Feiyang pondered for a moment. The strategy of luring the tiger from its mountain lair came to mind. He whispered, "Brother Wolf, let out a powerful howl and see if you can draw him over."

After saying that, he flattened himself in the tall grass.

"AWOOO..."

The Wolf King gathered its breath for a moment, then unleashed a deafening howl towards the herb field, a sound so powerful it seemed to shake the surroundings!

Then, the Wolf King also concealed itself, lying prone in the jungle.

"Hmm?"

The black-clad old man frowned, his gaze sweeping towards the mountaintop where the man and wolf were located.

"A mere wolf cub dares to raise a ruckus at *my* place? Truly courting death!"

Although he hadn’t seen the Wolf King, his killing intent was instantly palpable.

In the flick of a finger, a brilliant beam of light tore through the sky, blazing towards the mountaintop with terrifying destructive force.

"That’s Battle Intent!" Qin Feiyang’s face drained of color. "Brother Wolf, retreat! Quickly!"

He spun around and bolted towards the foot of the mountain without a backward glance.

The Wolf King, too, dared not delay for even an instant.

But before they could make it far down, the beam of Battle Intent slammed violently onto the mountaintop.

BOOM! With a tremendous explosion, the summit instantly disintegrated!

Innumerable boulders of varying sizes, pulverizing everything in their path, thundered down towards the man and the wolf!

CRASH! BANG! RUMBLE!

Qin Feiyang and the Wolf King immediately channeled their True Qi, continuously shattering the cascading rocks. Only after exerting tremendous effort did they finally manage to escape the immediate danger zone.

However, in the process, both were struck by several large rocks. They coughed up blood, the vital energy and blood within their bodies roiling violently.