106: A one-year agreement

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

Qin Feng was practicing Wind Spirit Illusion Steps in the Green Bamboo Courtyard. His figure was like light smoke, leaving behind a series of afterimages in the small space. His understanding of this Earth Rank movement technique had deepened once more. Just as he was finishing his exercise to regulate his breathing, a familiar scent with a faint hint of flowers approached.

Opening his eyes, he saw that Su Yuetang had stood in the courtyard at some unknown time. She seemed to have just finished her secluded cultivation, and her aura was more condensed and powerful than before. A faint sense of heat circulated around her body; it was clear that she had successfully mastered the basics of the Fire-Fierce Divine Palm, and her cultivation had also improved.

However, at this moment, her charming Peach Blossom eyes held a trace of slight anger and worry.

"I heard that while I was in seclusion, you took that suicidal job from the Four Seas Merchant Guild?" Su Yuetang got straight to the point, her tone carrying a hint of interrogation.

Qin Feng rubbed his nose and admitted frankly, "Yes. It happened suddenly, and I didn't have time to report to Lord Su. Please forgive me."

"Sigh," Su Yuetang sighed softly and walked up to him, her beautiful eyes looking directly at him. "The five spirit flower is good, but it's not worth risking your life like this. Those Wokou are savage by nature, moving like the wind on the sea with strange methods. If you were to encounter that Wokou Martial King, you..."

Her words paused, and a complex, difficult-to-explain emotion flashed in her eyes, as if she had recalled some unpleasant past. Her tone carried a trace of hard-to-detect bitterness and self-deprecation. "It reminds me of that damn ex-husband of mine, Eldest Young Master Bai... Back then, when he was about to Breakthrough to Martial King, he mentioned it casually the night before, and the next day the Family sent over two high-quality king breaking pill for him to choose from."

Her gaze refocused on Qin Feng, filled with a mixture of heartache and helplessness. "You silly younger brother, for the sake of a mere set of Materials for a king breaking pill, you have to lick blood from a blade and fight for your life... As expected, the gap between the great Family clans and ordinary disciples is like the distance between clouds and mud."

She quickly suppressed that moment of loss of composure, and her tone became firm. "How about this: I will send Vice Lord Zhao Mang to go with you this time. Although he is an Early Stage Martial King, his Foundation is solid and he is experienced. With him supporting you from the side, it will be much safer."

Qin Feng felt a warmth in his heart, knowing Su Yuetang truly cared for him, but he still wanted to refuse. "Lord Su, this... the Four Seas Merchant Guild only invited me, and..."

"No more buts!" Su Yuetang interrupted him, her tone carrying an indisputable decisiveness. Her Peach Blossom eyes shimmered as she looked steadily at Qin Feng, her voice suddenly dropping, carrying a rare, heart-striking tenderness. "The transfer order has already been issued. Qin Feng, your life is far more important to me, your elder sister, than that batch of cargo."

She paused, her tone regaining some of its usual laziness, yet remaining serious. "Remember, if the task is impossible, prioritize saving your life. If the goods are lost, so be it. The Hundred Flowers Pavilion will handle the compensation."

"...Thank you, Lord Su." A warm current surged through Qin Feng's heart as he solemnly cupped his fists. He would remember this sentiment of protection.

Su Yuetang waved her hand, gave a few more instructions regarding Zhao Mang's situation and matters to note at sea, and then turned to leave, leaving behind a faint, lingering fragrance.

That night, Qin Feng sat cross-legged in the quiet room, waiting for the zi hour information refresh. Most of the information refreshed over the past few days had been street gossip, which wasn't very helpful for his current situation. He only hoped that tonight there would be some useful information about the Wokou or the sea routes.

Just as the zi hour was approaching and his mind was calm, an extremely faint fluctuation, almost merging with the shadows, silently appeared in the corner of the quiet room.

Qin Feng suddenly opened his eyes, and the qingming sword appeared in his hand instantly. The tip of the sword pointed directly at that shadow as he barked, "Who?!"

The shadow rippled like water, and a slender, cold, and elegant figure slowly emerged. It was Ji Ruxue. She was still wearing her black tight-fitting clothes suitable for action, her face cold. However, the way she looked at Qin Feng had a bit less of her previous aloofness and a bit more complexity.

"It's me," she spoke coldly.

Qin Feng breathed a sigh of relief and sheathed his sword, somewhat surprised. "Why are you here? You appeared so silently, you gave me a start. How is your Senior Sister's situation?"

"Thank you for your Medicinal Pill." Ji Ruxue walked up to him, her tone calm. "My Senior Sister has already taken the Medicinal Pill. The toxicity has been suppressed, and her injuries are stable. She just hasn't woken up yet and needs time to recover. She should be... out of danger now."

Qin Feng nodded. "That's good."

Ji Ruxue was silent for a moment, then took out a pre-prepared contract scroll made of special material from her bosom and handed it to Qin Feng.

"I came this time to repay you." Her voice still had no ups and downs, but the content left Qin Feng stunned. "Sign it. I intend to protect you personally for one year. With this, I will repay the 100,000 gold coins, as well as the favor of you saving me and giving the medicine."

Qin Feng looked at the contract scroll emitting a faint energy fluctuation, then at Ji Ruxue's cold eyes that were so serious they contained no Impurities. For a moment, he didn't know how to respond.

"This..."

A sixteen-year-old Peak Grand Martial Master and a Gold Medal Assassin of the Blood-Filled Tower actively offering to provide personal protection for a year? The value of this reward, in some sense, far exceeded 100,000 gold coins and those favors!

Seeing Qin Feng's hesitation, Ji Ruxue added, her tone carrying the directness and honesty unique to an assassin, "Within one year, as long as it does not violate my bottom line or morality, I will be responsible for your safety. Anyone who threatens you is my target. After one year, we are even."

Qin Feng looked at her and suddenly smiled. He took the contract scroll but didn't sign it immediately. Instead, he asked, "Do you know that I have accepted a mission from the Four Seas Merchant Guild and will be going out to sea in seven days to deal with a group of Wokou with a Martial King leader?"

There was no fluctuation in Ji Ruxue's eyes, as if what she heard was as ordinary as what to eat for dinner. "I know. That's why I'm here."

Qin Feng's heart settled. With the Early Stage Martial King Zhao Mang sent by Su Yuetang, plus Ji Ruxue, a Peak Grand Martial Master who excelled in concealment and assassination, the certainty of this sea mission had undoubtedly increased by several degrees!

Perhaps this journey to seize the five spirit flower would be smoother than he had anticipated.

He no longer hesitated. He squeezed out a drop of fresh blood from his fingertip and let it fall onto the contract scroll. A flash of bloody light appeared, and the contract was established!

"Then, for the next year, I'll be in your care, Sister Xue," Qin Feng said with a smile, cupping his hands.

Ji Ruxue nodded slightly, and her figure slowly merged into the shadows again, leaving only a cold sentence echoing in the quiet room:

"It is my duty."