Huangshan County was easily the most remote county under Mingshan Prefecture's jurisdiction. At the speed their carriage was going, it would probably take two full days to reach the prefectural city.
Before they realized it, most of the day had passed. There was a town twenty li ahead, and Ian Song planned to spend the night there.
"Rumble!"
A sudden clap of thunder rang out, and thick, heavy clouds blanketed the sky.
"Young master, looks like it's about to rain. We probably won't make it to the town. Let's find somewhere to take shelter!" suggested Chris Chen, who was driving the carriage.
"Alright, just stop wherever you see a place to shelter from the rain!"
Ian replied.
They pressed on through the mountain roads as raindrops began to fall from the sky. After struggling forward a bit more, Chris suddenly exclaimed, "Young master, there's a temple up ahead!"
"Alright, let's take shelter from the rain in the temple!"
Ian said.
Chris immediately drove the carriage toward the temple. As they got closer, he realized it was actually an abandoned ruin, and the rain was coming down harder and harder.
He drove the carriage into the temple compound and called for Ian to get down.
After getting out, Ian went inside to look around. It was indeed a ruined temple—aside from the main hall, nearly everything else had collapsed.
When he returned to the main hall, Chris had already unhitched the carriage from the horse and led it under the temple's eaves to shelter from the rain.
In less than fifteen minutes,
the drizzle had turned into a torrential downpour. The main hall had several leaky spots, but it was just barely enough to keep them dry.
The two of them built a fire, took out their dry rations, and roasted them to eat. Judging by the rain, it didn't look like it would stop anytime soon—they'd be spending the night in this ruined temple.
Sure enough,
The rain kept pouring for a full half hour without letting up, and night had completely fallen. The wind howled outside like ghosts wailing and wolves crying.
Finally,
After another half hour of rain, it finally stopped.
Ian and Chris chatted for a while, then laid out blankets by the fire to get ready for sleep.
Just then, the sound of hoofbeats came from outside the temple.
Moments later,
a group of people burst in.
There were seven of them, all with fierce faces and unsheathed long knives strapped to their backs.
However, none of them had cultivated inner qi.
"Someone beat us here!"
Before the seven had even stepped into the main hall, they spotted Ian and Chris—the fire was still burning, an obvious beacon in the night.
"Move aside and give us your spot by the fire!"
One of the men swept his gaze over Ian and Chris with obvious disdain, barking orders as if he owned the place.
"Scram!"
Sitting cross-legged on his blanket, Ian slowly stood up and spat out the word.
Hearing this, the man flew into a rage. "You brat, you're looking for trouble!"
With a shout, the man swung his fist at Ian.
"Bang!"
Ian kicked out, sending the man flying into the main hall's wall.
Immediately, the other six men drew their long knives and fixed their eyes on Ian.
"We mind our own business here. You'd better behave, or don't blame me for being rude!" As he spoke, Ian released the aura of a martial master, causing the six men's faces to change dramatically.
"Brat, I'll kill you!"
The man Ian had kicked got up from the ground, drew the long knife from his back, and was about to charge at Ian—only to be stopped by another, who barked, "Old Fifth, stand down!"
The man then stepped forward, bowed to Ian, and said, "Sir, it was our fault. Please allow us to rest in this temple."
Ian's expression softened a bit. "As long as you don't disturb me, do as you please."
"Thank you, sir!"
The man replied quickly, while another quietly reminded the kicked man that Ian was a martial master. Hearing this, Old Fifth's anger vanished instantly—against a martial master, even seven of them together wouldn't stand a chance.
The reason Ian didn't pursue the matter was because he noticed all seven men had negative Luck values—each worse than minus ten.
In other words, these seven were probably not far from death.
Since that was the case, why bother arguing with a bunch of dead men?
Soon, the seven knife-wielders lit another fire a short distance away and sat around eating and drinking. One of them brought Ian a packet of spiced beef, but he refused.
Before they knew it, another hour had passed—it was already midnight.
Suddenly,
The sound of footsteps came from outside the temple.
Ian, who was sitting cross-legged, snapped his eyes open. The seven knife-wielders also woke up, their hands going to their hilts.
Moments later,
A figure appeared at the entrance to the main hall—a woman with messy hair and a bundle on her back, soaked through from the rain. Her clothes clung tightly to her body, accentuating her curves and alluring figure.
Immediately, the seven knife-wielders' eyes became heated with desire.
Feeling their gazes, the woman seemed a bit timid, but finally mustered her courage and asked Ian, "Sir, may I come in and warm myself by the fire?"
Hearing this, Ian narrowed his eyes in surprise. He saw that the woman's Luck aura was blue, and her Luck points were over eighty.
"Go over there with them!"
Ian said coolly.
"Miss, come over here with us!"
The seven knife-wielders, who had been a bit disappointed, instantly cheered up when they heard Ian send the woman their way. One of them called out enthusiastically.
"Thank you, gentlemen!"
After a brief hesitation, the woman walked over to the seven men and warmed herself by their fire. When she brushed her hair aside to reveal her face, the knife-wielders were stunned—she was breathtakingly beautiful, almost enchanting. Just one look sent a rush of heat through their bodies.
If Ian weren't in the temple, some of them might have already tried something. But with a martial master present, they didn't dare act rashly and instead began chatting her up.
From their conversation, they learned the woman was from a village in a neighboring county. Her husband had died, and unable to bear her mother-in-law's abuse, she'd run away to return to her parents' home.
"So she's a widow!"
Learning this, the seven knife-wielders' eyes grew even hotter.
"Miss, have some wine to warm yourself up!"
One of the men handed his wine flask to the woman.
"Thank you, sir!"
The woman didn't refuse. She took the wine flask and had a drink. Then they offered her dry rations, which she accepted without hesitation.
A quarter of an hour later,
The woman blushed shyly and said to one of the knife-wielders, "Sir, I need to relieve myself, but I'm afraid of the dark. Could you accompany me?"
Hearing this, the man was overjoyed and nodded eagerly. "Yes! Yes, of course! I'll go with you!"
Watching from the side, Ian sighed inwardly. "They're thinking with the wrong head."
He'd heard everything the woman said, and it was full of inconsistencies—but not one of the knife-wielders suspected a thing.