Lian Li nodded. The two of them bypassed the front courtyard and went to the backyard, where they turned up a small chest in a secluded little room.
Lian Li was just about to open it when he suddenly thought of something. He took out a treated face mask and put it on, then took out some specially made thick layers of gauze to wrap around his eyes, providing protection while still allowing him to vaguely see the scene outside through the fabric.
Seeing Yun Huizhou still standing beside him, he waved his hand and said, “If you’re not going to use any protection, stand further back so you don’t get caught by any traps.”
Yun Huizhou found it amusing to see him being so vigilant just to open a chest.
This kid clearly had no experience in the Jianghu and was ignorant of many things, yet he was excessively cautious at times. However, being cautious was not a bad thing.
Still, the boy’s behavior made him, the Senior Brother who was supposed to be guiding him through the Jianghu, seem a bit too careless by comparison.
While he was thinking this, Lian Li was already opening the treasure chest.
The moment the chest opened, a thin layer of mist sprayed directly toward Lian Li’s face.
Lian Li, fully armed and intentionally holding his breath: “…”
Yun Huizhou stood there, dumbfounded.
Lian Li turned his head to look at Yun Huizhou, his eyes full of smugness. “See? I told you I had foresight.”
Yun Huizhou gave a dry cough and said, “I don’t usually open treasure chests like this. That trick wouldn’t work on me.”
“Then how do you usually open them?” Lian Li stood up and produced a cattail leaf fan from somewhere, fanning the mist away from them.
Yun Huizhou stood his ground and drew his saber, saying to Lian Li, “Stand back a bit.”
Lian Li took two steps to the side, clearing the space. “Let’s see your performance.”
Yun Huizhou held his saber and didn’t even approach the chest. He simply swung his blade.
In that instant, Lian Li felt as if he saw saber qi manifesting into substance.
Crack.
When he looked at the treasure chest again, it had been split in two, yet the contents inside were completely undamaged.
Meanwhile, Yun Huizhou himself remained in a safe spot five meters away.
Lian Li: “…”
Using such powerful saber qi just to open a treasure chest?!
Fine, you’re the martial arts expert, you call the shots.
Lian Li found a bag and poured all the gold, silver, and jewels from the chest into it, leaving the broken box behind.
He handed the bag to Yun Huizhou to carry, then took a small packet of medicinal powder from a hidden pocket in his belt and sprinkled it into the bag of treasures.
The two watched as the powder did not change color. Once they were certain there were no other poisons on the valuables, they felt relieved.
There wasn’t actually much in this small chest, and it wasn’t very convenient to carry, but after searching the entire fortress, they found that this was all the wealth there was.
The rest was grain the bandits had plundered from the villages below.
They couldn’t touch the grain; it had to be returned to the villagers. The only things they could take were the items in this small chest.
The fortress was currently a mess, and it wasn’t something the two of them could clean up alone. However, Lian Li didn’t want to stay here waiting for the people from the Martial Arts Alliance.
Yun Huizhou didn’t seem inclined to make a decision yet, so Lian Li thought for a moment and said, “Let’s head down first. Those who escaped earlier should have reached the village by now. The villagers will likely know the situation up here soon and will probably come up to check later.”
“Then let’s go,” Yun Huizhou said.
Just as the two walked out of the fortress carrying the small bag, they saw someone flying toward them from a distance using Lightness Skill.
As soon as the person landed, Yun Huizhou’s voice rang out: “It’s the Martial Arts Alliance.”
Lian Li’s lip twitched. For some reason, this scene felt familiar.
The fight was over, the business was done, and now the authorities had arrived.
This strange thought only circled his mind for a moment. There was no Martial Arts Alliance branch in the small town; the nearest one was in a nearby city. It indeed took them some time to get here.
The fact that they could arrive at this hour meant they must have rushed over without stopping the moment they received the news.
Following the first person’s landing, three more martial artists in uniform appeared.
There were men and women; Lian Li didn’t recognize any of them, but he could identify their status by their clothing—they were all from the Martial Arts Alliance.
The leading manager cupped his fists toward the two of them, a smile on his face. “Young Hero Lian, Young Hero Yun. I am from the Yucheng branch of the Martial Arts Alliance, surnamed Li. After the branch received Young Hero Yun’s message, they dispatched me with twenty men to handle this matter.”
Yun Huizhou and Lian Li simultaneously raised their hands in a “please” gesture toward Manager Li.
They looked extremely polite, but only the two of them knew that now that the cleanup crew had arrived, they just wanted to slip away quickly and avoid being stuck with the chores.
Manager Li’s smile stiffened slightly. He clearly didn’t understand their intentions, so he could only nod with a smile and walk toward the fortress.
The three younger members of the Martial Arts Alliance who followed him did not go inside immediately.
One of them, a young girl who looked about the same age as Lian Li, walked up to him in a few quick steps and stared at him intently.
There was no malice in the girl’s eyes, only intense curiosity.
Lian Li instinctively touched his face and asked, “Why are you staring at me?”
Seeing this, Yun Huizhou reached out and pulled Lian Li behind him, blocking the girl’s gaze.
He was much taller than the girl, and standing there, he projected an immediate sense of pressure.
The girl, however, wasn’t afraid at all. She stepped around Yun Huizhou and continued to stare at Lian Li.
Lian Li: “If you keep looking, I’m going to start charging!”
As he spoke, he reached out his hand toward the girl, palm up, looking like he was ready to collect money.
The girl beamed and actually took two copper coins out of her purse, placing them in Lian Li’s hand.
She smiled and said, “Can I look now? If it’s not enough, I have more.”
She shook her purse gently, and the clinking sound inside was clearly the sound of money.
Lian Li shamelessly continued to hold out his hand. “Then give it all to me. Give it all to me and I’ll let you look.”
The girl hadn’t expected him to ask for everything the moment he opened his mouth. Her smile froze on her face.
After snapping out of it, she immediately tied the purse back to her waist and stepped back, muttering, “I didn’t expect this. To think he’d have such a personality… he’s so different from the others on the ranking.”
Lian Li hadn’t intended to care when the girl backed away, but when he heard something about a “ranking,” he instinctively reached out and grabbed the girl’s sleeve. “What ranking did you just mention?”
Being suddenly grabbed by the sleeve, the girl’s face showed a hint of embarrassment and annoyance. “Let go of me!”
Lian Li: “Explain yourself clearly, and then I’ll let go.”
The girl looked up at Lian Li, a hint of confusion in her eyes, followed by a smile that was somewhat meaningful. She said, “Don’t you know? The matter of you wearing women’s clothing in Fengyi City to take Sister Su Fu’s place on the viewing stand has already spread throughout the Jianghu.”
“An artist painted your appearance at that time. Based on the descriptions of the young heroes present and the reactions the artist observed from others seeing you, you have now been placed on the Beauty Ranking.”
