Chapter 7 – Swearing a Great Oath (1/2)
With the silver recovered, the couple was pleasantly surprised. The sister-in-law even ignored the pain from her face and stuffed the bag of silver into her clothes in a hurry.
The three scoundrels looked at one another speechlessly with faces of admiration. That was quite a lot of silver, enough for them to squander for quite some time, yet it had actually been tossed aside so easily. Originally, they had only felt fear, but there was now much more respect in their gazes towards Li Qingshan’s back.
Previously, they had thought a real man who kept his debts of gratitude and revenge so clearly distinguished was only something storytellers had cooked up. They had never thought they would actually be able to witness someone like that. He was able to do this despite being at such a young age, so he would definitely become a great man in the future. Their feelings of despisal towards Li Qingshan due to his young age had completely vanished now.
Li Qingshan strode at the front. As the sun set in the west, the green mountains stood alone. He felt extremely relaxed and at ease, as if an invisible burden had been lifted from his shoulders. Energy filled his body out of nowhere such that even his exhaustion disappeared. He could vaguely feel that if he practised the Ox Demon’s Strength of Fist right now, it would definitely flow much smoother than usual.
In reality, this was not a mere feeling. Whether it be abilities of daoism or regular martial arts, it had to conform with the practitioner’s mood. The Ox Demon’s Fist of Strength was a cultivation method of being unencumbered. It required a clear mind, requiring him to advance courageously and diligently.
Li Qingshan had settled this debt in a satisfying manner, so it no longer cast a shade over his heart. Evidently, it had coincided with key aspects of the cultivation method.
Returning to his house, Li Qingshan looked at the three scoundrels with shining eyes. “Thank you for earlier.” If it were not for the pressure from the three scoundrels, his elder brother and sister-in-law would have never yielded so easily. If they began to use violence with the stick and the knife, there really would not have been anything he could have done. He might have ended up suffering instead.
He came to a realisation. He had never thought that his trip would be so successful, and he also understood the benefit that came with a numerical advantage. Even the Ox Demon King needed six sworn siblings, let alone him! Of course, the three scoundrels were not worthy of becoming his sworn brothers.1
The three scoundrels replied hastily, “How can you say that, big brother? You are the bigger man, not bickering with us. We cannot thank you enough. Patch-haired Liu, that ungrateful wretch, deserved far more than just death. When we followed him in the past, we were so offensive…”
With Li Qingshan’s word of honour, the three scoundrels all felt at ease. Ideas began to spring forth in their heads, and they all began to fawn over him. They became emotional to the point that they went on to say they basically wanted to burn a few blades of grass with him and become sworn brothers.
Across both of his lives, Li Qingshan had never been sucked up to and spoken so highly of like this. Although it all came from the mouths of three scoundrels he looked down on, he could not help but feel flattered and proud of himself. However, becoming sworn brothers was impossible. After averting their requests in a perfunctory manner, he sent them off.
The black ox that crouched to one side asked, “Why didn’t you agree? They’re willing to follow you as their leader. You can form your own group, and the village will only become safer and safer to you. If anything happens, there’ll be people who’ll report to you as well.”
Within small villages, strength in numbers was key. Most of the time, people would tend to avoid harassing families with more siblings. As a matter of fact, these siblings could go and harass others.
Li Qingshan said proudly and boldly, “Even if the friends that I, Li Qingshan, make are not the outstanding heroes and figures of the world, they will be men with backbone who value their bonds and ties of friendship. How can I be associated with people like them?” His voice was resonant, such that it disturbed a few roosting crows, making them fly around among the trees.
The black ox remained silent. It looked at how high-spirited and enthusiastic Li Qingshan was and sank into its thoughts.
Li Qingshan felt embarrassed. He rubbed the back of his head. “Brother ox, you must be laughing at my bold and boastful words, but that’s how I feel inside. I’ve only told you as well.”
The black ox pulled out a gourd of alcohol from somewhere once again and tossed it to Li Qingshan. “If you’re even afraid of saying some bold words, you might as well go back to farming. What other bold things do you want to say? Let’s hear it.”
Li Qingshan removed the stopper deftly, tilted his back, and gulped down a few mouthfuls. He casually wiped his mouth and grinned. “I want to travel through all corners of the world, across the entire universe! I want to taste all of the delicacies and drink all of the finest alcohol the world has to offer! I want to practise the fiercest abilities, fight the strongest foes, and sleep with the most beautiful women! Only then will this life not be a waste! Brother ox, do you think my dream can come true?”
“Definitely!”