CHAPTER 49: CHAPTER 49 SHIFTING THE BATTLEFRONT_1

The man in the purple robe’s words seemed to scold the Mu Family’s Head and the Jiang Family’s Head, but he was actually saying it for Qin Feiyang to hear, to avoid affecting their relationship by making Qin Feiyang misunderstand that the Treasure Pavilion secretly copied Martial Arts Techniques.

At the same time, Qin Feiyang secretly let out a sigh of relief. He had thought that the Mu Family’s Head and the Jiang Family’s Head had come to cause trouble for him, but it turned out they just wanted to purchase the Martial Arts Technique, which was indeed a good opportunity to make money.

At that moment, Li Si walked into the room. Noticing the somewhat tense atmosphere, he handed the Qiankun Bag to Qin Feiyang, then stood silently to one side.

After checking the contents, Qin Feiyang put away the Qiankun Bag, stood up, and chuckled, "Family Head Mu, Family Head Jiang, that superior Martial Arts Technique is mine. If you genuinely want it, then according to the auction price, it’s one hundred and ten thousand Gold Coins each."

"Yours?"

"Really?"

The two men were taken aback. It wasn’t strange for them to be doubtful, as Qin Feiyang looked rather frail; how could such a person possess a superior Martial Arts Technique?

However, the man in purple furrowed his brow, his displeasure clearly written on his face.

Qin Feiyang smiled, "Of course. If you accept this price, I’ll begin copying them for you right now."

"Alright."

"I’ll give you one hundred and ten thousand Gold Coins right away."

Both men pulled out a Qiankun Bag and placed them on the tea table. They had clearly come prepared.

Qin Feiyang cupped his hands and said, "Pavilion Master, may I borrow your ink, brush, and bamboo slips?"

"Hmph."

The man in purple nodded curtly, his face expressionless.

Qin Feiyang pretended not to notice and went straight to the desk. He opened a blank bamboo slip, picked up a brush, and began copying with full concentration.

This kid really doesn’t know the first thing about courtesy, the man in purple sneered inwardly. He then looked at the Mu Family’s Head and the Jiang Family’s Head and asked, "Weren’t you two at the auction just now?"

The Jiang Family’s Head said, "I only received the news after the auction ended."

"Me too," the Mu Family’s Head nodded. It’s a good thing the owner of the Martial Arts Technique is still here, otherwise this trip would have been for nothing.

The man in purple looked at the large man in black and asked, "Li Si, who won it at the auction?"

The man in black replied respectfully, "Pavilion Master, it was the Ling Family."

The man in purple nodded in understanding.

「A moment later.」

Qin Feiyang finally finished copying.

As soon as he put down his brush, the Mu Family’s Head and the Jiang Family’s Head hurried over, their eyes scanning the characters on the bamboo slips, gradually gleaming with excitement.

Qin Feiyang said with a laugh, "There you go. You can take them."

"Thank you," the two men said, cupping their hands in thanks. Each grabbed a bamboo slip and then hurried away.

"Strange," Qin Feiyang murmured, watching the Jiang Family’s Head’s departing figure. He was filled with puzzlement and turned to the man in purple, asking, "Pavilion Master, don’t the great families of Black Bear City have any perfect Martial Arts Techniques?"

"HUMPH!"

The man in purple snorted coldly, returned to his chair, and ignored Qin Feiyang.

Qin Feiyang was momentarily stunned, then shook his head with a helpless smile. He walked up to the tea table, picked up one of the Qiankun Bags, briefly checked its contents, then took out twenty thousand Gold Coins and piled them on the floor. He chuckled, "Pavilion Master, this is your commission. Please accept it."

Seeing this, the man in purple immediately beamed. This kid is quite sensible. After all, this was the Treasure Pavilion, and Qin Feiyang conducting a private transaction with the Mu Family’s Head and the Jiang Family’s Head right in front of him was disrespectful to him, and even more so to the Treasure Pavilion. To put it bluntly, the Treasure Pavilion would lose out on a commission. This was what had displeased the man in purple earlier. But if Qin Feiyang paid the commission, then it was a different matter entirely.

"AHEM! AHEM!"

The man in purple cleared his throat.

Li Si understood instantly and quickly collected the twenty thousand Gold Coins.

With a hearty laugh, the man in purple said, "Brother Haotian, we’re all friends here. There’s no need for such formalities!"

Qin Feiyang replied, "Since there’s no need for formalities, then you should return the Gold Coins to me."

The smile froze on the man in purple’s face. He coughed dryly and said, "Black Bear City is just a small city. Perfect Martial Arts Techniques are rare even in large cities, so how could the families here possess them? Each of their families only has one type of superior Martial Arts Technique."

Qin Feiyang frowned. "It’s understandable that the Ling Family and Mu Family don’t have any, but the Jiang Family has the Grand Pavilion Master backing them. How come they don’t have any either?"

"Well..." The man in purple hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. "Although the Grand Pavilion Master is from the Jiang Family, there are all sorts of subtle relationships involved. In short, these are not matters for you or I to discuss."

Subtle? Qin Feiyang’s eyes flickered. The relationships within Lo Qingzhu’s family are truly complicated and confusing. This explanation does seem plausible.

There were three major families in Black Bear City: the Jiang Family, the Mu Family, and the Ling Family. The three families were engaged in open and covert struggles, their strengths relatively equal, so none could suppress the other two and dominate. This time, the Ling Family had obtained the Wild Bull Fist, meaning they now possessed two superior Martial Arts Techniques, and their overall strength would undoubtedly double. The Jiang Family and Mu Family naturally couldn’t sit idly by, so they rushed to the Treasure Pavilion to purchase the Wild Bull Fist. This way, they wouldn’t be left far behind by the Ling Family.

Thinking through all this, Qin Feiyang was filled with emotion. He felt a wave of emotion. He never imagined that a Martial Arts Technique he once looked down upon could actually alter the power balance in Black Bear City. This just went to show how vast the difference was between Yan Province and the Imperial Capital.

He didn’t linger any longer. Qin Feiyang bid them farewell, then left the VIP room and headed for the first floor.

This trip was definitely worth it. Firstly, he had made a fortune. Apart from the over one hundred thousand Gold Coins worth of Qi Gathering Pills, he now had an additional two hundred thousand Gold Coins in savings. Secondly, he realized that the value of Martial Arts Techniques far exceeded his initial estimations. He had originally thought a superior Martial Arts Technique would fetch a few tens of thousands of Gold Coins at most, but it sold for one hundred and ten thousand. In that case, wouldn’t a perfect Martial Arts Technique sell for millions, or even more? It was like finding an unexpected path forward when all seemed lost. Now he would never have to worry about Gold Coins anymore.

「Outside.」

Jiang Wei and Mu Fei were still clamoring.

Neither the Jiang Family’s Head nor the Mu Family’s Head had left. After learning the cause of the incident from their sons, they too were furious on the spot. To dare bully their sons, this person surnamed Jian was truly audacious!

"Father, he’s out!"

"Father, that’s him! He almost killed me!"

Jiang Wei and Mu Fei suddenly pointed at the entrance of the Treasure Pavilion, their eyes filled with intense, cold light.

"How is it him?"

The Jiang Family’s Head and the Mu Family’s Head looked over, their eyes widening in astonishment.

Just now in the VIP room, the man in purple had only called him Brother Haotian, without mentioning Qin Feiyang’s surname. Li Si hadn’t either. Jiang Wei and Mu Fei only knew that the person who bullied them was surnamed Jian. Therefore, it was only now that the Mu Family’s Head and the Jiang Family’s Head realized that this person surnamed Jian was the one who had sold them the Martial Arts Technique.

"Father, you must teach him a good lesson!"

"That’s right! If we don’t give this kind of person a taste of his own medicine, he’ll never know his place!"

Jiang Wei and Mu Fei, completely oblivious to the strange expressions on their fathers’ faces, looked at Qin Feiyang smugly, as if to say, Go on, act arrogant now, kid. You’re dead meat!

Qin Feiyang walked out of the Treasure Pavilion and stood on the steps. After glancing at the two youths, he turned to the Mu Family’s Head and the Jiang Family’s Head and asked with a frown, "Family Heads, what is the meaning of this?"

The Jiang Family’s Head asked, "May I ask for your esteemed name, young friend?"

"Jian Haotian," Qin Feiyang replied.

So it really is the same person, the Mu Family’s Head and Jiang Family’s Head thought, exchanging glances, their expressions somewhat troubled.

The Mu Family’s Head asked, "Young friend, could you please tell us how the conflict between you and my son started?"

"I just accidentally bumped into Mu Fei, and he started cursing loudly and even threatened to kill me," Qin Feiyang explained. "As for Jiang Wei, he brought a group of servants over. After hearing I was a friend of Lo Qingzhu, he ordered his servants to beat me savagely. Family Heads, I just want to ask, they acted so arrogantly in broad daylight—is there no law in Black Bear City?"

Qin Feiyang stared at the two Family Heads, his tone sharp and accusatory.

Jiang Wei shouted angrily, "Nonsense! It was because you claimed to be my father that I had my servants beat you!"

The Jiang Family’s Head’s expression turned cold.

"Jiang Family’s Head, I didn’t say that. Mu Fei did," Qin Feiyang said, pointing to the surrounding crowd. "I even denied it at the time. If you don’t believe me, you can ask everyone here."

Seeing his righteous and confident demeanor, the faces of the onlookers were filled with suppressed laughter.

The Jiang Family’s Head became furious, turning his anger towards the Mu Family’s Head, and shouted, "Is this the fine son you’ve raised? If you’re incapable of teaching him properly, just say the word, and I’ll help you teach him!"

The Mu Family’s Head retorted with a sneer, "Old Dog Jiang, your son is no saint either! What right do you have to criticize mine?"

"Old Thief Mu, say that again if you dare!"

"I’ve said it. What can you do about it?"

"Fine, you have guts! At the hunting competition a month from now, I’ll make your Mu Family pay!"

"Don’t be so smug. It’s still uncertain who will embarrass whom in the end!"

"Mu Fei, come back with me!"

"Jiang Wei, we’re going home!"

After a loud argument, the two Family Heads berated Jiang Wei and Mu Fei respectively, then turned and left in a huff.

Jiang Wei and Mu Fei stood there dumbfounded.

What just happened? Weren’t they here to settle scores with Jian Haotian? How did the two old men end up arguing with each other? And after arguing, they just left?

"What are you still dawdling for?"

"Believe it or not, I’ll thrash you right here on the street!"

Both Family Heads turned simultaneously and glared fiercely at Jiang Wei and Mu Fei.

The two youths no longer dared to linger and hurriedly followed. The two Martial Ancestors they had brought with them certainly didn’t dare to object and quickly turned to follow.

"Huh?" Qin Feiyang was taken aback.

The surrounding crowd also took a long time to recover from their surprise. It’s over, just like that? They were all expecting Jian Haotian to be taught a lesson and were waiting for a good show, but it ended so anticlimactically. Wasn’t that just ridiculous?

Everyone turned to look at Qin Feiyang. With just a few words, he had diverted the conflict, causing the two Family Heads to fight amongst themselves, while he, the instigator, was completely ignored. How could this kid be so clever? Jian Haotian? How is it that they’d never heard of this name in Black Bear City?