Chapter 65: Unexpected Surprise

"I'm sorry." Fifteen minutes later, Qin Feng knelt on the ground, sincerely repenting. "I spoke arrogantly just now. Please, senior, forgive my insolence and let us go."

Qin Feng was defeated swiftly. Under the assault of over a dozen Vajra strongmen, he was quickly overwhelmed and beaten to a pulp. His blade attacks barely fazed the Vajra strongmen, yet a few punches from them were enough to make him collapse. He was knocked unconscious almost instantly, without exchanging more than a few blows.

Qin Feng had initially hoped his three sworn brothers would come to his aid, but when he secretly looked up, to his astonishment, his three brothers were all hanging from trees! Qin Feng had never encountered such powerful straw figures. He immediately conceded defeat and meekly prostrated himself on the ground, begging for mercy. He knelt without the slightest psychological burden, knowing that he would forget everything once he descended the mountain anyway!

"Weren't you quite arrogant just now? Looking down on us Sages of Agriculture?" Zhao Xing asked indifferently.

"Senior, I was blind and spoke without thinking. I am truly ridiculous. Please, with your great generosity, do not concern yourself with my petty remarks," Qin Feng pleaded repeatedly.

"Yes, indeed! The role of a Sage of Agriculture benefits countless people, fighting against nature for their sake. We hold the utmost respect for it in our hearts."

"Senior, he was just out of his mind. Please don't take it to heart."

"That ganoderma lucidum rightfully belongs to a virtuous person like you, senior!"

The other three, still hanging, were also thoroughly subdued. They hadn't even seen Zhao Xing himself, yet a few straw figures had dispatched them. How could they not be convinced? As for calling him "senior," they had no psychological burden whatsoever. Sages of Agriculture typically had little combat power. To be able to defeat them with straw figure techniques—how powerful must this person be? They must have encountered an old official who had been cultivating for a long time.

"You can be released, but do you have any money?"

"Put all your valuables on the ground, then you can leave."

Zhao Xing couldn't be bothered to prolong the interaction with them. In any case, they would forget everything once they left the mountain, so there was no need to worry about retaliation.

"Yes, yes, yes!" Qin Feng immediately stood up and emptied everything from his pockets. He had no silver, but he did have several second-tier talismans and a box of second-tier pills. The other three had similar findings.

Zhao Xing instructed the straw figures to transport the items away. Then, seeing Qin Feng beginning to remove his soft armor, he immediately said, "You poor wretches... I don't want your swords or soft armor. Scram."

The standard-issue weapons and armor of the Lakeside City Martial Division all bore identifying marks. They couldn't be sold. Taking them back to melt them down for materials would drastically reduce their value and be a hassle.

"Thank you, senior! Thank you, senior!" Qin Feng and the others expressed their profuse gratitude and quickly scurried away.

Fang Jie, Zhou Gang, and the others, witnessing these sudden developments, felt as if the tide had turned dramatically. They had been on the verge of being secretly harmed by those villains, but unexpectedly, a master suddenly appeared and rescued them.

"Zhou Gang, Garrison Guard of the Lakeside City Martial Division, thanks you for your assistance, senior." Zhou Gang bowed to his surroundings.

"Fang Jie, Garrison Guard of the Lakeside City Martial Division, thanks you for your assistance, senior." Fang Jie also bowed.

Several Vajra strongmen approached them. Then, a voice carried on the wind: "Don't just thank me with words. Hand over anything valuable you have."

Since Zhao Xing had intervened, there was no reason for him to come away empty-handed. Regardless of whether they were good or bad, righteous or evil, anyone passing by Zhao the Sage of Agriculture would have to shed a few feathers.

"This..." Fang Jie and Zhou Gang exchanged a surprised glance.

"What's wrong? Is your life less valuable than those material possessions?"

"No, no, senior, you misunderstand." Zhou Gang said with a wry smile, pulling out a box of pills and some talismans from his robe. "It's just that we Garrison Guards are quite poor and don't have much money. I'm afraid these items can hardly repay your life-saving kindness."

"Heh." Zhao Xing took a look and couldn't help but chuckle at their poverty. All they had were four low-grade pills for restoring vitality and two low-grade Swift Travel Talismans for conserving energy on journeys. They were hardly worth anything. The valuable items were their weapons and armor, but Zhao Xing found those difficult to take. He no longer had the heart to extort these poor wretches and was about to leave.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing the cold chuckle, Fang Jie thought the senior was displeased and immediately said, "We two might have another way to repay you, senior."

"Oh?" Zhao Xing immediately paused, curious to hear what they had to say.

Fang Jie and Zhou Gang exchanged a glance. Then, Fang Jie said, "Earlier, we passed by a cave that contained a spiritual marvel. I remember its location and can lead you there, senior."

"Is this spiritual marvel difficult to acquire?"

Zhou Gang replied, "To be frank, senior, the cave is a lair of a fierce beast. We knew we couldn't defeat it, which is why we left, intending to return once our strength had increased."

Zhao Xing asked, "Do you know what kind of fierce beast it is?"

Fang Jie replied somewhat awkwardly, "Our strength is meager, and the beast's roar was terrifying, so we didn't dare go inside to investigate."

Zhao Xing fell silent. Zhou Gang was at the fifth stage of Qi Condensation, and Fang Jie at the sixth. For them to be scared out of their wits—how powerful must that beast be?

"It must be at least above the eighth stage of Qi Condensation, possibly even the ninth."

"But if I'm afraid of this and afraid of that, I might as well not climb this mountain."

"In any case, with straw figures scouting ahead, there's no harm in taking a look." After a moment of contemplation, he made his decision.

"It seems there are benefits to being a good person," Zhao Xing chuckled softly. "Saving your lives was merely a spontaneous act. If I truly obtain the spiritual marvel from that cave, I certainly won't mistreat you."

"However, let me make one thing clear beforehand: if you don't lead me there, so be it. But if you harbor any ulterior motives or are concealing anything, don't blame me for turning this good deed into a bad one."

Zhou Gang and Fang Jie's hearts tensed. "We would never dare deceive you," they affirmed.

"Lead the way."

Zhao Xing remained seated comfortably in his rattan chair. Two miles away, Zhou Gang and Fang Jie, accompanied by straw figures, were clearing the path. He only trusted things partially. Even with Zhou Gang and Fang Jie's solemn assurances, he never fully believed them, much less revealed himself or approached closely.

After about forty-five minutes of travel, the mountain path grew increasingly steep. The surrounding forest was dense, requiring them to hack their way through with blades. Just as Zhao Xing was beginning to lose patience, Zhou Gang, who was ahead, whispered to a straw figure, "Senior, it's just up ahead." Fang Jie pushed aside some leaves, and Zhao Xing, looking through his scout straw figure, saw that there was indeed a cave ahead.

"Senior, our hearts are racing, and we can already sense the spiritual marvel. Can you sense it too?" Zhou Gang asked cautiously.

"Mm, you haven't lied to me." Zhao Xing naturally sensed it too. Even though he was farther away than Zhou Gang and Fang Jie, his cultivation was stronger, and his perception was sharper.

"Senior, we don't expect any reward. It would be a great fortune just to repay your life-saving kindness," Zhou Gang said. His intention was clear: he didn't want to remain there.

Zhao Xing understood. "You two don't need to overthink it. I always keep my word. Since we've arrived, I have some healing salve here. Find a secluded spot and attend to your injuries first."

Zhou Gang and Fang Jie realized this meant he wouldn't let them leave, fearing they might leak information. They had no choice but to agree. Thankfully, the mysterious person didn't make things difficult for them and even ordered a straw figure to bring them the salve, which made them relax. For now, it seemed this senior's temperament wasn't one to turn hostile without cause.

Zhao Xing dispatched two straw figures to keep an eye on Zhou Gang and Fang Jie, while he himself took a detour to observe from the opposite side of the cave entrance. "Thump-thump, thump-thump." The closer he got, the faster his heart beat. Zhao Xing understood: this spiritual marvel was at least of mid-grade, perhaps even stronger than Pure Essence Vermilion Fruit!

"First, I'll send a scout straw figure to investigate."