Fuluo decided that day to deliver the substandard Spirit Stones they had collected to Zhong Shenxiu, hoping to inquire about the whereabouts of the "Double Axe Mercenary Group."
Running into Laurent and Solomon on the way was purely coincidental. What currently preoccupied her was the hesitant, stuttering manner of the pair, suggesting some hidden secret. Had she been tricked in this transaction?
Xia Luo couldn't quite figure it out. She had wanted to press for answers then, but Laurent and Solomon seemed unwilling to discuss the matter and made an excuse to leave.
Why were those two acting so strangely?
Xia Luo spent the entire journey pondering this question, and before she knew it, she had arrived at the entrance of Zhong Shenxiu's small courtyard.
She gently knocked on the door, and this time it was Robin who opened it.
"Y-you!" Seeing Robin, a memory of their first encounter seemed to resurface in Xia Luo's mind.
"What is it?" Robin asked coolly, as if she had never met Xia Luo before.
"I've come to deliver these stones!" Xia Luo said, retrieving the sample Spirit Stone from her magic ring.
Robin asked no further questions and gestured for the group to follow her inside.
Xia Luo and the subordinates behind her entered the courtyard, inevitably looking around again. They all froze when they saw Angelia furiously sparring with Reese, seemingly hacking away at him.
"Doesn't she look a lot like our Captain?"
This thought crossed the minds of Xia Luo's subordinates, especially when they watched Angelia’s long sword send Reese tumbling and scrambling across the ground; the feeling was intense.
The reason was simple: when Xia Luo sparred with them, her subordinates, she fought with the same desperate intensity!
Angelia noticed Xia Luo and the others then. Although her movements slowed slightly, she showed no sign of stopping. She was currently racing against time to train Reese, pushing herself to the point of forgetting to eat or sleep.
"Wait here for a moment!" Robin instructed coolly, then went inside to report to Zhong Shenxiu.
Xia Luo and her group complied obediently, standing still.
"Hey, why is there another shack out there? I don't remember seeing one last time we came," Fern noted, spotting the small shed Zhong Shenxiu and Robin had recently erected.
"That's odd, why is there a forging furnace inside that shack?" someone else chimed in.
As the group chatted idly, Zhong Shenxiu and Robin emerged from the room.
"Have you collected the stones yet?" Zhong Shenxiu got straight to the point.
Xia Luo nodded and brought out the basket of stones they had gathered over the past few days, asking with a touch of anxiety, "Are these them?"
What kind of person was Zhong Shenxiu? He barely needed to look to discern Spirit Stones; just placing them before him was enough for him to know everything in his heart!
It had to be said that Xia Luo and her group had decent capabilities; at least all the stones they found were indeed substandard Spirit Stones, with no truly high-quality ones mixed in.
Xia Luo expected Zhong Shenxiu to answer with a simple "yes" or "no," but what he said instead left her speechless.
Zhong Shenxiu smacked his lips and stated very plainly, "Isn't this basket of yours a bit small?"
Ugh, this was too small? This was the largest basket sold on the market! If it weren't so big, they wouldn't have spent so much time gathering them!
Xia Luo felt incredibly awkward and managed to squeeze out a sentence after a long pause: "This... is not small!"
Zhong Shenxiu said no more, instead exchanging a meaningful look with Robin. Robin understood immediately and walked over, effortlessly tucking the entire basket of substandard Spirit Stones into her magic ring.
Xia Luo looked stunned, surprised by Robin's swift action. Before they could react, the basket of stones had vanished from its spot!
"Alright, since you say so, I won't make things difficult for you anymore!" Zhong Shenxiu said with an outwardly calm face, though he was inwardly delighted.
The tension Xia Luo had been holding finally eased. She had expected Zhong Shenxiu to impose some difficult condition, not be so easy to deal with. Could he really be that agreeable?
"You want to know the whereabouts of the 'Double Axe Mercenary Group,' right?" Zhong Shenxiu's tone carried a hint of feigned ignorance.
Xia Luo nodded, saying concurrently, "We hope you can tell us."
A faint smile touched the corner of Zhong Shenxiu's lips. He said coolly, "Dead!"
Xia Luo and her subordinates' pupils all constricted. They all thought they had misheard!
"That... could you say that again?" Xia Luo asked weakly.
"Dead!!" This time, Zhong Shenxiu replied decisively.
"You mean they are all dead?" Xia Luo still couldn't quite believe it.
"All dead!"
How... how could this be?
Although she had entertained this possibility before, Xia Luo was still greatly shocked to receive definite confirmation!
"How did they die?" Xia Luo asked again, having calmed herself slightly.
"Why should I tell you?" Zhong Shenxiu shot back with this unexpected response.
This question completely baffled Xia Luo and her subordinates, who stared at him as if he were a stranger.
"You... didn't you promise? We collect one basket of these stones, and then you tell us the whereabouts of the 'Double Axe Mercenary Group'?" Xia Luo asked, forcing herself to remain composed.
"I did say that, and I have fulfilled my promise!" After a brief pause, Zhong Shenxiu continued, "But I never said I would tell you the cause of their deaths!"
How... how could this be?
Xia Luo now somewhat understood the hidden meaning behind Laurent and Solomon's strange expressions. She hadn't expected that the entire basket of stones she and her men had worked so hard to gather would only yield a single sentence.
Heavens! This was too unfair!
"Kid, stop playing word games with us! Tell us quickly how the 'Double Axe Mercenary Group' died, or don't blame us for being rude!" Fern stepped forward from behind Xia Luo and moved as if to grab Zhong Shenxiu.
After all, their "Cloud Splitter Mercenary Group" was somewhat well-known; how could they allow themselves to be played with like this? To be honest, Fern had long been unable to tolerate Zhong Shenxiu's self-important demeanor; he was just releasing it now.
For some unknown reason, Xia Luo didn't stop Fern, perhaps believing that Fern would use restraint in his attack!
However, they overlooked one person: Robin!
To dare attempt to lay hands on Zhong Shenxiu right in front of her was tantamount to a public challenge to her!
Just as Fern's hand stretched out, still some distance from Zhong Shenxiu, Robin flashed forward, positioning herself in front, and reached out to meet his hand.
This time, she didn't simply swat Fern away. Instead, she employed the clavicle-locking technique from the 'Nine Yin White Bone Claw,' twisting, pulling, and locking, pinning Fern directly to the ground. Her movement was fluid and precise, leaving no room for anyone to react.
"Ouch!" Fern's face was pressed against the ground, and he mumbled indistinctly.
Robin's small hand felt like a steel vise, firmly gripping his collarbone, threatening immediate bone-shattering injury if he dared move recklessly!
Xia Luo froze, utterly stunned by the scene unfolding before her. An adult man subdued by a little girl who appeared to be only a few years old—who would ever believe that if it got out?
Let alone whether people would believe it, even those witnessing it found it hard to accept!
What exactly happened just now? What sort of dark magic did this little girl use?
Since Fern was in front, and he was significantly larger than Robin, Xia Luo and her subordinates hadn't clearly seen the preceding action. By the time they snapped back to attention, Fern was already kissing the earth!
"I advise you not to make any sudden moves, or your subordinate might suffer!" Zhong Shenxiu said with a smirk, acting as if he were merely an observer.
As if responding to Zhong Shenxiu's words, Robin subtly increased the pressure. Fern immediately grimaced in pain. Though he tried to endure it, the agonizing, soul-piercing pain made life unbearable! The clavicle-locking technique of the 'Nine Yin White Bone Claw' was far beyond ordinary grappling; it was a method designed to inflict suffering beyond endurance!
Xia Luo stared blankly at Zhong Shenxiu, the look of shock still etched on her face!
"As you can see, your subordinate struck first!" Zhong Shenxiu adopted an innocent pose.
"I apologize for Fern's rashness. Can you release him?" If a peaceful resolution was possible, Xia Luo typically avoided force.
However, Zhong Shenxiu showed no immediate sign of releasing Fern. After pondering for a moment, he unexpectedly said, "Woman, do you want to strike another deal with me?"
What? Xia Luo nearly cried out in shock this time.
One transaction had already made her feel cheated and taken advantage of, yet Zhong Shenxiu was proposing another request.
"What kind of deal?" Xia Luo asked, unable to hide her annoyance.
"If you help me collect just one more basket of these stones, not only will I release him, but I will also tell you the cause of the 'Double Axe Mercenary Group's' death. How about that?" As Zhong Shenxiu said this, a wicked look crossed his face. Unbeknownst to him, hearing this made Xia Luo nearly erupt in fury.
"And if we refuse to accept?" Xia Luo asked coolly; she disliked being threatened.
To Xia Luo's surprise, Zhong Shenxiu exchanged a look with Robin, and Robin actually let Fern go!
Xia Luo looked at Zhong Shenxiu, confused, unsure what scheme he was hatching. At this moment, Zhong Shenxiu added, "Then let's try a different deal, one you might find easier to accept!"
A different deal? Xia Luo's expression faltered, and she immediately asked offhandedly, "What deal?"
"We are short of a sparring partner here. I think your strength is quite good. If you agree to spend half an hour every day for the next five days acting as our sparring partner, I will tell you the final details of how the 'Double Axe Mercenary Group' perished. What do you say?"
Xia Luo fell into thought. She felt this deal was somewhat acceptable; at least it wouldn't require her subordinates to labor again. Moreover, only half an hour daily for five days seemed manageable.
She had to spend some time on her own rigorous training every day anyway, so being a sparring partner for them wouldn't be so bad! Furthermore, Zhong Shenxiu had just voluntarily released Fern, which made Xia Luo feel this arrangement was acceptable!
"Fine. I agree!"
Little did she know, her sparring partners would also include Robin! To know what happens next, please log into [URL] for more chapters. Support the author, support genuine reading!