3 Chapter 3: Secret Deal

Li Xiu shook his head and dispelled the uncontrollable thoughts in his mind, then came to his senses and stared at the person in the distance.

Time passed and Li Xiu's arms became numb, but the person remained unchanged, motionless. The person he was waiting for did not come either.

To be honest, Li Xiu had some respect for this person, as any normal person would have left after waiting for so long, or at least shown some signs of impatience.

Although the man has been standing still like a statue for a long time, his patience and determination are evident.

But Li Xiu can't wait any longer, not because he lacks patience, but because his physical condition is not good. Originally, he had worked all day in a noodle shop and had planned to go home to rest after being caught in the cool breeze and rain.

However, he inexplicably ended up in this place and had spent a long time looking for a way out of the bamboo forest.

Although he hadn't felt very tired before, lying down made him feel sleepy, hungry and tired all at once, and Li Xiu found it difficult to hold out.

He wouldn't be able to leave the bamboo forest before dark, and that would be a terrible situation.

Even though he would have to go around the person in the distance, and even though there was a chance that he might take the wrong direction, and the previous rush might have been in vain, he had no choice at this point.

But just as Li Xiu was about to stand up, the scene in front of him changed.

A thin man in a black cloak and grass hat, his face covered by a scarf, came quickly with his hands tucked into his cloak.

The man first turned around to see if anyone was following him, then turned his head to casually look around to see if there was an ambush.

Li Xiu quickly lay down again, shrinking his body to avoid being noticed by the man's gaze. The arrival of this man had made Li Xiu's desire to leave fade away.

The two men stood facing each other, both looking unusual. If they were discovered, it would not end well. It was best to hide for a while and wait for the two men to leave.

"Ha ha, the visitor is Brother Zhang."

After seeing the figure appear in the distance, Wu Wei smiled a few times and greeted him.

Zhang Fengshan's face was pale and his eye sockets were sunken. He looked like a sick seedling suffering from the cold, but his eyes were cold and gloomy, his expression was serious, and he looked like someone who should not be approached.

"Don't say anything else, I don't have much time."

After Zhang Fengshan approached and stopped, he waved his hand and directly stopped the few polite words in Wu Wei's mouth.

"Wu Wei, did you bring the Pour Rain Sword manual?"

Wu Wei chuckled and came straight to the point, pulling out a silk-wrapped sword manual from his chest and showing it to Zhang Fengshan.

Zhang Fengshan's face flickered with excitement and he almost reached out to grab it.

"Hey, Brother Zhang, this..."

Although Wu Wei still had a smile on his face, he immediately retracted the sword manual and raised his sword in a defensive stance.

"I brought what you asked for, but have you received the agreed upon item for the exchange?"

Zhang Fengshan's expression froze and he withdrew his hand, his eyes narrowing as he studied the sword-wielding man in front of him.

Wu Wei, also known as Rain Sword Wu Wei, was rumoured to be a courier who travelled between the north and south of the river in his younger years. His martial arts skills were average, but he had stumbled upon great wealth on a courier mission when he discovered a mysterious, unnamed sword manual in a dilapidated temple.

Since that courier mission, Wu Wei's martial arts skills had skyrocketed, and he had become known as a formidable opponent. However, his personality had not changed, and he remained amiable and easy-going.

After washing his hands of the gold, Wu Wei spent more than a decade practising martial arts in seclusion, and by the time he reappeared in the martial arts world, he had reached the level of a second-class martial arts master.

Due to his fierce and fast sword technique, which was like a heavy rain that enveloped the enemy's body, he gained a considerable reputation as the Rain Sword.

According to Zhang Fengshan, this Pour Rain Sword technique is definitely one of the top techniques in the martial arts world. After all, Wu Wei was just a wild man who didn't have many good internal skills or techniques, yet he was able to become a second-tier martial artist with just this sword technique.

And this sword technique was exactly what Zhang Fengshan needed at the moment, because a great war was about to break out that would involve the entire martial arts world.

He had to prepare early because it was necessary to have the strength to handle wealth and status even in risky situations.

Wu Wei seemed unable to wait any longer and asked a few more questions.

Zhang Fengshan looked away, a hint of inexplicable emotion flickering in his eyes. He reached into the sleeve on the other side of his robe as if to take something out.

Wu Wei was on guard, ready to draw his sword at any moment, waiting expectantly.

The next moment, Zhang Fengshan pulled out a thin book from his sleeve. Seeing that it was not a cold spear or a hidden needle, Wu Wei could not help but breathe a sigh of relief, as if relieved that the transaction could continue.

However, Wu Wei's face immediately showed an unbridled greed that made him look even more desperate than Zhang Fengshan. "Brother Zhang, is this...?" His words contained a slight tremor, as if he was exaggerating.

Seeing Wu Wei's appearance, Zhang Fengshan's face showed contempt, and then he shook the thin book in his hand, attracting Wu Wei's attention and making him come to his senses.

Wu Wei, realising that he had appeared embarrassed in Zhang Fengshan's eyes, turned his attention back to the deal. He couldn't help but feel a sense of shame, so he bowed and spoke in a flattering tone: "Please forgive my earlier display, Brother Zhang. You possess such a precious treasure, yet you handle it with such composure as if it were an ordinary scripture. Your temperament truly surpasses my own."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Fengshan snorted coldly and sarcastically without mercy: "If you suspect it's fake, just say so clearly. Don't be mysterious here, it's really unattractive."

"You!" Wu Wei's face quickly reddened and he glared at Zhang Fengshan with an angry expression, as if he was about to attack at the slightest provocation.

However, Zhang Fengshan quickly calmed Wu Wei's anger with a single move. It was like a raging wave snuffing out a small bonfire on the shore, so quickly that not even a hint of smoke was left behind.

Wu Wei's expression quickly changed, the anger disappearing, leaving only a look of surprise and excitement as Zhang Fengshan threw the thin book in his hand at him. "To be so casual with such a valuable object, aren't you afraid that I will take it and run away, Zhang Fengshan?"

Zhang Fengshan laughed at Wu Wei's words. "Wu Wei, how can you ask such a stupid question? If our strengths weren't equal, do you think today's transaction would have happened at all?"

The meaning behind these words was clear to both men, for they both knew that no one would exchange two precious treasures without being able to stand up to the other.

Zhang Fengshan gestured, and Wu Wei, who seemed unprepared to fight with his bare hands, also threw the Pour Rain Sword manual at Zhang Fengshan.

The two men then began to judge the authenticity of the two martial arts techniques with their own minds.

Wu Wei looked eagerly at the thin book in his hand. The pages were stained, but he did not care. That was normal. He would only have turned his face if Zhang Fengshan had given him an old-looking book.

It was well known in the martial arts world that over 20 years ago, the ancient martial arts book of the Kongtong sect had been stolen by the now missing Golden Haired Lion King Xie Xun, and three of the five Kongtong elders had been injured in the process.

Even now, this was still the most ''famous'' thing in the Jianghu for the Kongtong Sect, and Zhang Fengshan would not be foolish enough to deceive him about it.

In fact, what Wu Wei was holding in his hand was the city's martial art of the Kongtong Sect, one of the six great martial arts sects in the martial arts world - the Seven Harms Fist.

Since the creases on the Fist manual did not disappear, Wu Wei flipped through a few pages and felt a bit uncomfortable. Without thinking, he followed the creases and folded it again and again.

During this process, Wu Wei also furrowed his brow and looked at Zhang Fengshan several times.

"Truly, the easier something is to get, the less it is appreciated. It is truly frustrating to see this little brat's lack of appreciation for the blessings in front of him."

Now that the Fist Manual has been smoothed out, it is indeed easier to look at. Wu Wei finishes reading the Fist Manual in no time. On the other hand, Zhang Fengshan hasn't even finished half of the Sword Manual.

It is not that Wu Wei's understanding of martial arts is higher than Zhang Fengshan's, but rather that Wu Wei, who is a few years older than Zhang Fengshan, has a much lower understanding of martial arts than Zhang Fengshan.

After all, Wu Wei is just a wanderer, while Zhang Fengshan is a disciple of the prestigious Kongtong Sect, one of the six major martial arts sects in the martial arts world.

However, he also took a quick look at it and found no problems. As for the other subtleties, it is unlikely that there will be any mistakes.

Wu Wei, who had finished reading the martial arts manual early, took it in his arms, holding a sword in one hand and looking at Zhang Fengshan, whose eyes flickered, wondering what he was thinking.

In the distance, Li Xiu carefully switched to using one arm to support his body, but his eyes were not the same as before. They shone brightly as he looked at the two people in the distance and muttered something to himself.

"Stab him, stab him! Don't you have a sword? Look at the way he's reading so seriously, you should sneak up on him! Don't waste this great opportunity!"

At this moment, a small play was being performed in Li Xiu's mind. The greed of one person prompted them to draw their sword and stab, but the person being sneak attacked was unable to evade and was injured in a vital spot. In their anger before death, they made an extraordinary attack and both people died.

Meanwhile, blessed by fate, he slowly walked out, calmly picked up the two secret books, waved his sleeves, and left with the treasure.

In the future, he would be known as a master of martial arts. It's not that Li Xiu is naive and has wild fantasies, it's just that in this situation, how can you expect things to turn out well if you don't hope for it?

Besides, this outcome is a reasonable possibility that could actually happen.

After a while, Zhang Fengshan closed the Pour Rain Sword manual in his hand and took a deep breath, a hint of joy flashing across his face.

This sword technique is real, and as he expected, it is definitely not weaker than any other sword technique in the martial arts world.

Seeing that Wu Wei had already put away the fist manual, Zhang Fengshan's mouth turned up slightly with a faint hint of mockery.

Both men had finished their examination, and Wu Wei spoke first with a smile on his face: "From Brother Zhang's appearance, it seems you've already decided on your secret book. In that case, this matter is settled. You and I will settle our debts in the martial arts world later..."

With a bang, the sword was drawn!

At that moment, an unexpected change occurred, and Wu Wei's word 'see' was barely out of his mouth before he shouted loudly, echoing within a hundred paces.

"Who?"

"Who's there! Sneaking around, come out here!"

Wu Wei's eyes were sharp and his face was like ice, his whole body exuding a desire to kill as he looked in a certain direction beside him.