Chapter 82 Flowing Wine Cups on a Winding Stream

As night falls, underground hot springs revive, ice and snow melt, and streams flow, converging into creeks in the mountains.

Qin Ming chose a relatively open mountain forest, which would be convenient for him to take action. At this moment, he was already surrounded by Dai Shifeng and ten of his trusted men.

“They’re all here!” Dai Shifeng couldn’t help but whisper a reminder. The hall master had already approached with his beast, so why hadn’t the people from the city lord’s mansion appeared yet?

Qin Ming didn’t speak. At this stage, if he wanted to gain the full support of others, he definitely couldn’t hide it. He had to release his scarce value to the fullest extent!

Black raptors circled in the sky. Ge Qianxun looked down but did not immediately go down. He was observing the nearby mountains and forests with great caution.

As early spring arrived, the weather was no longer so cold. The young man standing on the back of the silver exotic bird, dressed in white robes that fluttered in the wind, looked quite handsome and refined.

He looked down and calmly asked, “How do you feel now that you’re in this position?”

“Being down-to-earth is good.” Qin Ming looked at this old friend.

The young man in white nodded and said, “You used to sit high in the clouds, but now you’ve fallen to the dust. You have quite a good attitude.”

Qin Ming remained expressionless and said, “You don’t need to put on this act for me. We all know each other’s true colors.”

“But you are not the same person you used to be. I’m speaking to you in a completely normal way. Is there anything wrong with that?” The sixteen or seventeen-year-old boy in white spoke calmly.

Qin Ming looked at him and said, “For the sake of our past friendship, and also because of someone else’s face, I advise you that everything is in the past. Don’t stir up any more trouble now, or it won’t be good for anyone.”

“Friendship? No need to say more. There’s no need to talk about face between you and us anymore.” The white-robed youth said with his hands behind his back, looking at the tall figure in the mountains.

“We loathe each other.” Qin Ming’s face turned cold.

“Yes, I also think that you’re becoming increasingly unpleasant to look at. Some of my old acquaintances have said that you’ve returned to where you belong.”

Qin Ming stopped being polite and said, “Since we have no relationship anymore, we won’t have any contact. What are you pretending for by coming here now? Are you trying to put on airs and show off your noble family background? I’ve seen you before, so get lost.”

The white-robed youth didn’t take it seriously and said, “Back then, when you went out, you were the center of attention, and even your mount was a mutated monster that had undergone four transformations. Now you’re actually wielding a giant hammer, ha!”

Qin Ming wasn’t angry; instead, he smiled faintly and said, “It seems I made you very uncomfortable back then. Does Wang Caiwei know you’re here? If she does, will she personally break your legs?”

“Shut up!” The white-robed youth stood on the back of the silver exotic bird, his voice cold and eerie. “It’s not enough for you to return to your current position. Only by disappearing completely and never reappearing will it be safer and better for all of us.”

“After listening to all that you’ve said, I’m already disgusted.” Qin Ming shook his head and threw the sledgehammer on the ground.

“Do you know what it means to be worlds apart? That’s the difference between our two worlds right now.” The young man, dressed in white as snow, stood with his hands behind his back on the back of a strange bird high in the sky, and indeed looked somewhat ethereal and otherworldly.

However, his words were quite unpleasant to hear, and his cold expression made people uncomfortable. He looked down and said, “Do you understand?”

“The difference is like heaven and earth, I understand that very well, but I’m afraid you don’t fully grasp it yourself. Let me help you.” Qin Ming took down the long bundle from behind him.

Then, he quickly drew back a heavy bow. There was nothing more to say. Now he drew the bow like a full moon, looked northwest, and as the bowstring trembled, an iron arrow whistled and shot straight into the sky!

When the white-robed youth saw him take out his bow, he urged the silver raptor to take off quickly. At the same time, he didn’t care much. He already knew that Qin Ming had been abandoned in a remote place for two years and hadn’t even taken a step on the path to rebirth. He had only recently started to improve. He had been delayed for too long. How strong could his archery skills be?

puff!

The silver bird was hit by an arrow, and the white-clad youth’s expression changed drastically. Although only one wing was injured, it affected his balance, and he began to sway.

With a whoosh, Qin Ming fired his second iron arrow. The silver bird’s feathers shattered, its abdomen stained with blood, and it lost the strength to take off. It hovered helplessly downwards, barely managing to avoid a direct fall.

On the other side, Ge Qianxun, the leader of Xinyi Hall, made the exact opposite choice, urging the black raptor to rush towards the ground.

“You’re quite experienced!” Qin Ming drew his bow, and the iron arrow shot out like a rainbow piercing the sun, instantly blasting the black bird’s head apart and killing it instantly.

In the sky, the white-robed youth’s expression changed completely. He realized that Qin Ming was capable of killing his flying mount with a single arrow, but was simply intentionally controlling the pace.

He looked down and saw a stretch of muddy water from the melted snow, the very spot where the silver bird was about to land.

On the other side, Ge Qianxun was well prepared. He controlled the black raptor’s wings, preventing them from folding, and glided towards the forest under his control.

Most importantly, he was very close to the ground.

Even so, when Qin Ming’s second iron arrow came, he was flustered and lost control of the black raptor’s wings in his attempt to dodge the arrow. He and his dead flying mount plunged headlong into the dense forest.

Ge Qianxun’s subsequent actions surprised Qin Ming once again. He was dressed in black clothes that resembled bat wings, abandoned the carcass of the raptor, glided at low altitude, and crashed headfirst into the dense forest.

Fortunately, he was very close to the ground, and with the sunlight protecting him, he was not hurt. He broke many tree branches, but he managed to land safely.

On the other side, the white-clad youth controlled the silver mythical bird, attempting to change direction and fly towards the nearby mountain peak.

However, Qin Ming was now in control of the entire rhythm. He shot an arrow that pierced the root of the strange bird’s right wing, helping it to correct its direction.

“You…” The white-robed youth panicked. This was in the sky, and the flying mount was shaking incessantly, even about to tumble.

He could no longer remain calm, dared not stand with his hands behind his back and act superior, and directly lay down on the back of the silver bird, hugged its neck, and urged, “Be steady, land quickly.”

Qin Ming fired two more arrows, perfectly controlling the rhythm and helping the silver raptor choose its landing spot. When it was not too far from the ground, he fired the last arrow, which pierced its skull with a hiss.

“Ah…” the white-robed youth cried out, and then, along with his dead flying mount, he crashed into the muddy swamp by the river with a splash.

Even though he tried his best to protect himself with the light of the heavens, he was still thrown around and felt dizzy and his internal organs were aching. Now he was covered in mud, his white clothes were filthy, and his handsome face was covered in mud.

“Ah…” he screamed, not because he was seriously injured, but mainly because he was angry. What a mess he looked like now.

“The difference is like heaven and earth, do you understand?” Qin Ming asked him from afar.

“Cui Chonghe, no, Qin Ming!” Although he hadn’t vomited blood from the fall, the white-clad youth was seeing stars and looked utterly disheveled, and he was furious.

In the past, he and his like-minded friends enjoyed refined pursuits, often meeting in the mountains and forests to compose poems and drink wine by the fire spring in the pine forest, displaying their carefree spirit.

Now, he has fallen into the mountains and forests, turning into a mud figure, experiencing a different kind of “winding stream party”.

With a bang, Qin Ming shot and shattered the hairpin on the dirty-clothed boy’s head with an arrow, leaving him disheveled and his so-called noble demeanor completely gone.

After landing safely in the mountains, Ge Qianxun breathed a sigh of relief; it had been incredibly dangerous.

Dai Shifeng led ten trusted confidants to the scene immediately.

“Old Dai, why aren’t you going…”

“Master, you are surrounded!” Dai Shifeng said solemnly.

Ge Qianxun wanted to pick at his ears. He was sure he hadn’t misheard. What was going on? His men had surrounded him?

“Dai Shifeng, are you crazy?” he shouted angrily.

Dai Shifeng said in a deep voice, “Former hall master, you’ve gone mad!”

Ge Qianxun was truly going crazy. This deputy not only led people to surround him, but also called him the former hall master. This was a blatant rebellion to seize power!

“Former hall master, you have betrayed the Hall of Faith and Righteousness. Do you still know the meaning of the words ‘faith and righteousness’?” Dai Shifeng shouted.

Ge Qianxun was furious. He hadn’t even taught the other party a lesson, but instead, he was being accused of a serious crime. Was there no law?

“You dare to rebel!” Ge Qianxun slowly stretched his limbs, preparing to clean house first, kill Dai Shifeng, and then make other decisions.

Dai Shifeng’s voice was even louder than his, saying, “Ge Qianxun, you embezzled the private property of Xinyi Hall and tried to run away with the day gold. You are the traitor who caused trouble. Moreover, you are a notorious gold thief who infiltrated my Xinyi Hall with ulterior motives. You have been stealing power for many years and ruining the foundation of my hall. Your crimes are unforgivable!”

“Old Dai, you’re really wasting your talents being my deputy, but you don’t have much of a chance anymore. I’ll get rid of you first!” Ge Qianxun said fiercely. He didn’t want to put any more accusations on the other party. Right now, physical elimination was more effective than anything else.

Qin Ming walked over and said, “Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt has its debtor. Ge Qianxun, let me settle some scores with you first!”

“There’s no grudge between us, only the bills promised by the employer,” Ge Qianxun said, staring at him.

“You stole the secret manual from the Sun family, didn’t you? And you killed Old Man Sun. Now you’re even making things difficult for that old lady and her grandson. I’ve learned the Sun family’s hammer technique, so I can barely be considered one of the inheritors of that manual. Today, I’m here specifically to seek revenge on you for the Sun family’s blood debt.” Qin Ming approached, wielding a large hammer.

Ge Qianxun was cautious by nature. Seeing how powerful his opponent was, he didn’t care about the opponent’s true strength. He disappeared into the forest with a whoosh and was about to escape.

However, his expression changed the next moment. The boy was incredibly fast, like a ghost blocking his way, and swung his hammer to smash him down.