Immortal Refiner

Li Qing let out a furious roar, his figure surging forward like a ferocious tiger. He moved with incredible speed, covering the distance to the village entrance in just a dozen breaths.

He leaped into the air, his body twisting as he bounded up the small hill.

In the distance, he saw about two or three dozen Marauders, their faces twisted with malice, charging toward Crouching Ox Village with their sharp horse-slaying sabers.

As this small band of Marauders neared the massive blue Crouching Ox Boulder, Li Qing’s Vital Energy erupted, and he launched himself from the hilltop.

”Die!”

At that moment, Li Qing was like a tiger descending the mountain, his momentum reaching its peak.

Bang!

The lead Marauder didn’t even have time to react before his head exploded like a ripe melon.

The grimacing smiles on the faces of the Marauders behind him froze instantly.

”A Martial Artist! There’s a Martial Artist!”

”Charge him down! Quick, trample him to death!”

During their invasion of Maple Country, they had learned firsthand just how formidable and terrifying Martial Artists were. Each one was a battlefield meat grinder, and only overwhelming numbers could hope to defeat them.

Clearly, these Marauders from various tribes across the grasslands had developed a set of tactics for dealing with Martial Artists.

The marauders quickly formed a battle formation and urged their horses forward at breakneck speed, charging directly at Li Qing.

This formation was meticulously designed. Five cavalrymen comprised the battle line, charging in a 1-3-1 formation specifically tailored to counter Martial Artists. It relied on speed and momentum to neutralize the Martial Artist’s terrifying killing power.

No matter how powerful a Martial Artist might be, they only had two hands. Even if they could obliterate the lead cavalryman, the remaining four would still crash into the Martial Artist with thunderous force, crushing their opponent.

Unfortunately, this tactic might have worked against other Martial Artists.

But Li Qing, known as the Fierce Tiger, was not only a formidable Inner Strength Martial Artist with exceptional martial prowess and a brutal physique, but he also kept a tiger of monstrous proportions.

”Roar!”

Fan Tong had followed Li Qing down the mountain. Its aura was even more imposing than Li Qing’s, its tiger’s might shaking the entire hillside.

The horses ridden by the marauders were immediately struck as if by lightning. Their hooves faltered, and they dared not charge forward.

This was a colossal tiger, far larger than an ordinary one. Its roar unleashed a primal, life-level pressure that instantly halted the horses’ advance.

”A tiger! It’s a tiger!”

”Damn it, the horses won’t obey!”

”Hold formation!”

Seeing this, Li Qing sneered and immediately activated the Golden Body Technique, instantly hardening his skin.

Then, with a tiger pouncing on its prey, he charged alone into the small group of cavalry, transforming into a terrifying meat grinder.

Boom!

His Vital Energy erupted, and with the Shadow-Seeking Footwork beneath his feet, his speed was lightning-fast, his agile form elusive.

Any Marauder who came near him was instantly killed by his fists and kicks. Each strike carried terrifying force, fueled by genuine Inner Strength!

Every blast of his Internal Strength possessed terrifying penetrating power, easily piercing through ordinary armor and directly harming the flesh.

In a matter of moments, over a dozen Marauders from the grasslands had fallen from their horses, dead.

Several others, along with their mounts, were killed outright by Li Qing’s strikes. The horses’ heads were crushed, leaving gaping holes.

Fear quickly spread among the remaining Marauders. Faced with this monster-like Martial Artist, they had lost all will to continue fighting.

But Li Qing had no intention of letting them escape. With a roar, he unleashed his Vital Energy once more.

In the next instant, he drew the Peerless Hammer from his back and unleashed a speed even faster than that of a galloping horse.

Boom!

The Peerless Hammer swept across the battlefield, cleaving through the Marauders in its path. Not a single one survived.

Repeating this maneuver, Li Qing annihilated the entire cavalry force that had attacked Crouching Ox Village. They were utterly and completely wiped out.

By this point, Li Qing was drenched in blood, his hair disheveled, making him look like a demon from the depths of hell.

Drip!

A drop of blood dripped from the Peerless Hammer, finally snapping Li Qing out of his bloodlust.

He slowly turned, his gaze fixed on the direction his family had fled.

”Sigh... I’ll hold this ridge for three days. Hopefully, it will buy you enough time to escape.”

He had abandoned the idea of reuniting with his family in this world. Now that he knew they were doing reasonably well, there was no need to interfere.

After all, he was already considered dead in their eyes. If that was the case, it was best to remain strangers in the Jianghu.

Having made his decision, Li Qing remained at Crouching Ox Ridge.

He dragged the horse he had killed with a single punch to the ground and used a Marauder’s blade to skin and debone the grassland steed.

That night, a roaring campfire blazed on Crouching Ox Ridge. Li Qing sat alone, roasting horse meat over the flames and eating it with relish.

Fan Tong, never one to be idle, had already started devouring a horse, eating with gusto.

The campfire blazed brightly, and the two skinned horse legs Li Qing had propped up over the flames roasted in the intense heat, releasing a unique, savory aroma.

Li Qing, not particularly skilled in cooking, haphazardly sprinkled some seasonings over the meat. He kept these seasonings in the cellar of the World of Eternal Night, readily available whenever he needed them.

Picking up a skewer of horse meat roasting by the fire, Li Qing took an expectant bite.

”Hmm... a bit sour,” he commented, wrinkling his brow slightly. The unfamiliar taste was a bit jarring.

Having lived two lifetimes, this was his first time eating horse meat. He hadn’t expected it to have a sour flavor!

The meat was firm yet tender, with a surprisingly pleasant texture. However, the sourness might not be to everyone’s liking.

”It’s passable. With enough strong seasoning, the sourness can be masked.”

With that, Li Qing pulled off a horse leg that had been roasting for a long time and began tearing into it, savoring the seasonings.

In no time, Li Qing, his mouth slick with grease, had devoured the entire leg with gusto.

Having just fought a fierce battle, Li Qing was exhausted. As an Inner Strength Martial Artist, his appetite was enormous. After finishing one horse leg, he still felt unsatisfied and began gnawing on a second.

Thus, with the cool autumn breeze caressing his skin, Li Qing endured three long days of vigil on Crouching Ox Ridge.

During this time, two more groups of Marauders came to investigate. In total, nearly 120 Marauders were utterly annihilated by Li Qing alone.

Taking advantage of Crouching Ox Ridge’s terrain and Fan Tong’s fearsome presence, the Marauders were slaughtered one after another, with no chance of survival.

The Marauders’ forces in the entire Green Stone Town region numbered no more than 300 at their peak. With half their forces decimated on Crouching Ox Ridge, even the most dim-witted Marauder would realize something was amiss.

As for Li Qing, he finally grew tired of horse meat after three days. Without hesitation, he turned and left, no longer willing to linger.

Gazing at the familiar village, Li Qing was overwhelmed by mixed emotions. He sighed and finally made a decision.

”Very well, I’ll take one last look at them. It might be the last time I ever see them.”

And so, Li Qing followed the tracks left behind on the road.

As he walked, Li Qing erased all traces left by the fleeing villagers of Crouching Ox Village—footprints, wheel tracks—leaving the path completely clean to avoid detection by the Marauders.

After three days of pursuit, Li Qing finally spotted the villagers hiding deep within a secluded mountain forest.

He drove Fan Tong away, instructing it to hide in the woods for a while to avoid startling the villagers.

Under the cover of night, Li Qing concealed himself, his feet moving silently through the forest with Shadow-Seeking Footwork, making not a sound.

Finally, he found his family.

Exhaustion was etched on their faces after days of travel.

Now that they were certain they had escaped the Marauders, all four members of the family were fast asleep, unaware of Li Qing’s presence.

A rare tenderness softened Li Qing’s gaze. He watched them for a long moment before taking out four silver ingots, each worth thirty taels of silver!

Under the cover of darkness, Li Qing slipped one ingot into each of their bags.

He didn’t give them more, fearing that displaying too much wealth might attract disaster.

But one hundred and twenty taels of silver would be more than enough to ensure they could live comfortably for the rest of their lives, no matter where they went.

After finishing, Li Qing was about to leave when he suddenly heard his mother’s breathing become erratic.

Madam Li opened her eyes in the darkness and stared at the figure—familiar yet strange—and couldn’t help but call out:

”Er Niu, is that you? Er Niu?!”

Having wandered alone for so many years, Li Qing’s nose stung at the sound, and he almost rushed forward to reveal himself.

But his first instinct was to activate the Shadow-Seeking Footwork, disappearing from the spot without a trace, as if he had never been there at all.

Madam Li’s voice naturally woke the others. Li Daniu asked urgently, ”Mother, what’s wrong? Why did you suddenly call out for Er Niu?”

”No, it’s just... I thought I saw Er Niu. It looked just like him. He’s grown up now, and he probably looks like that.” Madam Li said dreamily.

Hearing this, Father Li and Li Daniu exchanged glances, sensing unease in each other’s eyes. They suspected Madam Li might be hallucinating.

It was entirely possible. After traveling for so long and enduring such immense pressure, such a thing was bound to happen.

”Mother, there’s no one there. Just get some rest. We have to travel tomorrow.”

”That’s right,” Father Li added. ”The Village Chief said we should be able to pass through the Small Jade Ridge via this dense forest path in a few days and reach the south.”

The next moment, a soft gasp broke the silence.

”Oh! What’s this? Who put this in my bag?”

Li Qing’s elder sister-in-law immediately lowered her voice, staring in disbelief at the silver ingot in her bundle. She had never seen such a large one in her life.

Li Qing’s elder brother and father rushed over to examine it, their eyes widening in surprise.

Such a large ingot definitely didn’t belong to their family. How could it have ended up in their daughter-in-law’s bag?!

”I have one too!” Madam Li exclaimed.

Soon, the family began checking their other belongings. They discovered a total of four silver ingots—an astonishing amount of wealth.

They had been worried about how they would make a living in the south, even considering selling their last ox. But these four ingots had solved their immediate financial crisis.

”It’s Er Niu! It must be Er Niu! I knew it was him, Old Man! I knew that person earlier was Er Niu!” Madam Li said excitedly.

The other three exchanged glances, disbelief etched on their faces. They couldn’t explain the origin of the four silver ingots.

Could it really be Li Qing back?

Regardless, they decided to keep this windfall a closely guarded secret, never revealing a word to outsiders.

Meanwhile, Li Qing, having left the money for his family, plunged into the vast mountain forest.

He whistled, and with Fan Tong at his side, he vanished from the area.

(End of the Chapter)

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