Urban Martial Saint

”Hehehe...” Ye Qing chuckled dryly. He felt a little bad for taking advantage of Old Wang Ba earlier, so he decided not to argue about the small details with him.

”Eighth Master, please have a seat, have a seat.” Ye Qing invited Old Wang Ba inside and said, ”Eighth Master, things on this side are almost settled, and I’ve managed to rescue all the Yelu family members. Now, you should tell me about Zi Yu!”

At these words, Old Wang Ba instantly put on a heartbroken expression and said, ”Alas, these socks of mine have been with me for over ten years. You don’t know, back when I was poor and didn’t have a blanket, I used these socks to cover my belly button to keep warm at night. Now, they’re gone just like that. Oh, my heart!”

Ye Qing knew Old Wang Ba well enough to understand that this old fellow was trying to extort him. However, for the information about Huangfu Ziyu, Ye Qing decided to tolerate it. Just a pair of socks? Talking as if they were a quilt, I’ll compensate you with a hundred pairs first!

Ye Qing took out a wad of money and handed it over. ”Eighth Master, here’s one thousand yuan. Take it and buy whatever kind you like. Buy a hundred pairs, wear one and throw one away. How about that?”

”What do you mean by this?” Old Wang Ba immediately looked displeased, took the money from Ye Qing, and said, ”I’ve worn these socks for over ten years. Do you know what sentiment is? Can sentiment be bought with money?”

Seeing the situation, it seemed he wasn’t satisfied. Ye Qing took out a larger bundle of money and said, ”Eighth Master, how about ten thousand?”

”Ahem, what can I say about you.” Old Wang Ba accepted Ye Qing’s ten thousand yuan and said, ”Do you know what it means to have socks worn for over ten years? And they were worn by the only heir of the Iron Calculation Sect. In the future, they’re antiques when put out there. What antique can you buy with eleven thousand yuan? Even an ancient eunuch’s chamber pot is worth more than that.”

”Then how much do you want?” Ye Qing was exasperated, there was no normal conversation to be had with this old fellow.

Old Wang Ba looked at Ye Qing and slowly held up one finger.

”One hundred thousand?” Ye Qing gasped.

”NO!” Old Wang Ba stylishly spat out an English word, ”One million!”

Ye Qing was instantly unhappy, ”Damn, even if your socks are made of gold thread and encrusted with diamonds, they wouldn’t fetch that price. One million, why don’t you just go rob someone?”

”Just say whether you’ll give it or not!” Old Wang Ba stood up straight away, ready to leave.

Seeing Old Wang Ba like this, Ye Qing lost his temper. He hurriedly held onto Old Wang Ba and said, ”Okay, Eighth Master, let’s talk nicely. You want a million, I’ll give it to you, alright? However, let me be clear. Once I give you the money, you have to answer all my questions, deal?”

”As long as there’s money, you can ask anything!” Old Wang Ba said with a smug smile.

Looking at the lewd expression on Old Wang Ba’s face, Ye Qing suddenly felt he was at a loss. He knew very well that with Old Wang Ba’s temperament, if he doesn’t want to tell something, even if offered a billion, one wouldn’t be able to pry the information out. This time he explicitly intended to share this information, whether Ye Qing paid or not. But, this old guy shamelessly squeezed over a million out of him. Ah, earning a reputation for shamelessness wasn’t for nothing!

Ye Qing said, ”I can give you a million, but I don’t have that much spare cash on me right now. Why don’t you tell me these matters first, and I’ll give you the money later?”

”That’s not possible!” Old Wang Ba shook his head resolutely and said, ”No spare cash is no problem. You have a card, right? Swiping a card is fine too. If not, a cheque will work. I take all forms of payment.”

Ye Qing was utterly speechless. The shamelessness of this old guy was indeed unrivaled.

Helpless, Ye Qing had to write Old Wang Ba a cheque for one million. The old guy beamed with happiness as he accepted the cheque, carefully folded it, placed it in his pocket, and then looked at Ye Qing, ”Alright, ask away.”

Ye Qing could barely contain himself and immediately asked, ”Where is Zi Yu now!”

Old Wang Ba replied promptly, ”In the Meng District, seventy kilometers north of Humeng City at Dragon Burial Mountain!”

Ye Qing knew that Humeng City was the heart of the Meng District, always personally guarded by Great General Helian Tiehua. He hadn’t expected Huangfu Ziyu to be in such a place. But what was she doing there? Why hadn’t she contacted him all this time?

”What is she doing there?” Ye Qing asked Old Wang Ba, ”Has someone imprisoned her there?”

”Nonsense, everyone here is from the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance. Although the Huangfu Household withdrew from the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance early on, there’s still some kinship ties even if they aren’t present. Helian Tiehua is a person who values relationships strongly, how could he act against the descendants of the Seven Great Families?” Old Wang Ba gave Ye Qing a glance and said, ”There are mainly two things for her here. The most important to her is to protect her brother and sister. As for the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance, the most crucial matter is the second thing!”

”She has a brother and a sister?” Ye Qing’s eyes widened. Wasn’t it said earlier that Huangfu Ziyu was the only one left of the Huangfu Household? How could there be other heirs? When did Huangfu Ziyu have a brother and sister?”

”Not only does she have a brother and sister, but also an uncle!” Old Wang Ba said, ”Her uncle, whom you have met, was once the Right Protector of the Sha Men, Blood-Sealed Throat!”

”What the heck!” Ye Qing was completely baffled. He had indeed seen the Right Protector of the Sha Men. This person was also involved with Ning Qianshu’s apprentice, wanting to use Sha Men against the Xihang Shen Family. How could he possibly be Huangfu Ziyu’s uncle? Moreover, wasn’t he the one who kidnapped Huangfu Ziyu back then? What on earth is going on?”

”Can’t figure it out, can you?” Old Wang Ba chuckled and said, ”Actually, the existence of these two people has to do with Huangfu Ziyu’s second task here in Humeng City. Do you know what her second task is?”

”What is it?” Ye Qing could barely contain himself, wanting to press a knife against Old Wang Ba’s throat to force him to speak quickly. This old guy was taking his sweet time, hardly saying anything even with so many words.

Old Wang Ba said, ”You should know that among the seven weapons used to open the Heaven Earth Man Three Gates, the most powerful and mysterious one is the Sun Shooting Bow!”

”Of course!” Ye Qing nodded and said, ”It’s said that this Sun Shooting Bow has always been controlled by the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance. Each time before the Heaven Earth Man Three Gates open, the people of the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance take out the Sun Shooting Bow. But what’s the issue with that?”

”Your understanding is incorrect,” Old Wang Ba shook his head. ”It is not that the people of the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance take out the Sun Shooting Bow before the Heaven Earth Man Three Gates open. Rather, the Sun Shooting Bow only makes an appearance as the Heaven Earth Man Three Gates are about to open!”

”Is there a difference?” Ye Qing asked, puzzled.

”The subject is different, haven’t you studied language?” Old Wang Ba said. ”Put simply, the people of the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance cannot control the Sun Shooting Bow at all. Every time the Heaven Earth Man Three Gates open, the Sun Shooting Bow appears. But once the Heaven Earth Man Three Gates close, the Sun Shooting Bow returns to being uncontrolled!”

”Huh?” Ye Qing was greatly surprised; he had never heard of this perspective. This makes the Sun Shooting Bow seem extremely mystical, doesn’t it?

”The Sun Shooting Bow is similar to the Heaven Earth Man Tri-Map from the Twelve Green Halls. The Heaven Earth Man Tri-Map only reveals pattern textures showing the location of the Heaven Earth Man Three Gates when those gates are about to open. Similarly, the Sun Shooting Bow only reappears when the Heaven Earth Man Three Gates are about to open,” Old Wang Ba said.

”So it isn’t the people of the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance who control the Sun Shooting Bow!” Ye Qing said. ”Every time the Sun Shooting Bow appears, it is masterless and can be contended for by anyone.”

”And that’s exactly the point,” Old Wang Ba said. ”The people of the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance noticed this characteristic of the Sun Shooting Bow, so they began to try to control it. However, the Sun Shooting Bow is a Famed Instrument left behind by the Great Sage Guiguzi of the Taoist Sect, far beyond the control of the people from the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance. Under such circumstances, how could they control the Sun Shooting Bow?”

”Indeed, how can they control it?” Ye Qing couldn’t help but ask.

”Hahaha...” Old Wang Ba laughed and said, ”It’s actually not that difficult. Although the Sun Shooting Bow only appears when the Heaven Earth Man Three Gates are opened, its location is fixed, specifically seventy kilometers north of Humeng City at Dragon Burial Mountain.”

Ye Qing took a deep breath and said, ”So, Great General Helian Tiehua personally guards this place, keeping watch over the Sun Shooting Bow?”

”Wrong!” Old Wang Ba shook his head. ”No matter how strong Great General Helian Tiehua is, he is still just one man. Among the Five Unmatches of the World, whose skills are inferior to his? Not to mention, there is Heavenly Master Lin Xuan Yue from the Twelve Green Halls, whose skills are definitely on par with the Five Uniques. If it were only Helian Tiehua stationed here, he wouldn’t be able to hold the Sun Shooting Bow at all!”

”Then how do they control the Sun Shooting Bow?” Ye Qing asked, puzzled.

”This is the crux I want to tell you about,” Old Wang Ba said. ”Precisely because of these reasons, the people of the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance realized that to control the Sun Shooting Bow, they had to employ some special methods. At that time, the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance also had some extraordinarily talented individuals. They used special secret techniques to construct a large tomb, sealing the location where the Sun Shooting Bow appears every time within this tomb.”

”A tomb?” Ye Qing was baffled, not understanding how a tomb could defend against outsiders.

”And the way to open this tomb is quite marvelous...” Old Wang Ba smiled and stared at Ye Qing. ”The method of opening this tomb is the same as for the Yelu Family Ancestral Tomb.”

”Huh?” Ye Qing was taken aback and exclaimed, ”Also using blood to open it?”

Old Wang Ba smiled and nodded, saying, ”Accurately speaking, it requires the combined blood of the Seven Great Families to open it!”