Chapter 51: Brothers (1/2)

[Volume 2 - Bloom of the Other Shore Flower]

Qianye slowly grasped the hand Sir Zhao had extended. Two fingers had been lopped off, and yet, he did not loosen his vice-like grip on something in his palm. From the gap of his missing fingers, it could be seen that it was a standard, approved medicine bottle, its label clearly indicating its contents as an ordinary drug for mental relaxation.

To anyone knowledgeable who saw it, this medicine bottle would not have been worth more than a couple of silver coins to them. This could have been the reason the killer gave up on the bottle.

However, Qianye knew what the medicine was used for.

This was the medicine Sir Zhao had bought on behalf of Qianye. It was used to soothe the symptoms whenever his blood of darkness acted up. The dispatching of goods had been delayed on the supplier’s end, and it was never delivered to Qianye.

However, it never occurred to Qianye that even at death’s door, even with his legs hacked off, Sir Zhao had never once forgotten about the bottle of medicine.

It was almost as if Qianye saw Sir Zhao standing up, handing over the bottle as he proudly stated, “What I, Zhao, have promised, will be delivered upon!”

The medicine was in his hands, but Qianye no longer needed it.

Qianye had fought for Sir Zhao for some time. Each time he participated in a wagered battle, all he reaped was a silver coin, while a bottle of medicine could be earned through three battles. Since a virtual battle was a display of technical skill, the remuneration was higher than a bloody battle.

In this abandoned land, people who did not fear death were everywhere, but few of those actually knew how to do battle.

This was the reality of the abandoned land. People constantly used their bodies as betting chips, but the reward for putting their lives on the line was not even worth a piece of bread thrown away by the upper continent’s Grand Households.

In the Evernight Continent that had no law or order to speak of, someone who kept his promises like Sir Zhao was unique. On the surface, Qianye was hired on an ad-hoc basis, but in reality, Sir Zhao privately saw him as a brother. This was the reason Qianye had always been willing to work with him, and even had protected him behind the scenes a couple of times.

With Sir Zhao around, other powers in the region would not dare enter Lighthouse Town, and the people in the town could at least live a life with a small degree of order.

Sir Zhao, the officer, and Qianye represented the black, white, and gray areas of the order maintained in Lighthouse Town respectively. Within the area subjected under Blackflow City’s jurisdiction, Lighthouse Town was just a tiny land of happiness, which was why the number of people living there was increasing. Even the rag-and-bone men would hurry over to spend the night there if the distance allowed it.

However, all their efforts had been futile in the face of an enormous organization like the expeditionary army, as everything had been crushed with just a twitch of their pinky finger.

Qianye inhaled deeply as he felt the presence of blood energy slowly bubbling up in his chest! He was powerless against the expeditionary forces, but he could etch a deep and eternal lesson into those accomplices and their lackeys!

Qianye said softly, “Sir Zhao, give it to me, I have received my reward.”

In a seemingly miraculous manner, Sir Zhao’s tightened fist unexpectedly loosened.

Qianye pocketed the medicine bottle, and glanced carefully around the room.

It had also been completely pillaged, with both flaps of the weapon cabinet gone, and its contents empty. This was within Qianye’s expectations, and he did not care for these ordinary firearms.

He left Sir Zhao’s room, and silently moved along the corridor.

While passing by one of the rooms, Qianye stopped briefly and retrieved the hunting gun from his back.

Voices travelled from the room, and one of them belonged to Tiger Yan.

“This time, it's all thanks to Sir Qi’s assistance that I’m able to sit in this position. Whatever requests Sir Qi has from today onwards, I, Tiger Yan, will brave through fire and water to ensure it’s fulfilled!”

Another rather wretchedly effeminate voice uttered, “This guy named Zhao and the other fellow called Qianye or something have no sense of appreciation, to have refused face when given! Are they taking our sire’s words as something casually thrown around? Hmph! What Sir Zhao, he’s just a local ruffian ringleader, yet he still dares to title himself as a sire.”

Tiger Yan, who similarly was a local ruffian, joined in on the laughter, though there was a note of embarrassment in it.

That condescending voice continued, “You people, to rely on and serve our sire as an underling is a fortune that many would never receive even if they cultivated their whole lives! So long as it’s our sire, even a casually tossed bone would be enough to sustain you for several years! However, should you have any ideas that you aren’t supposed to have, hehe, excuse the unpleasantries, but the outcome of this Zhao today will be your tomorrow!”

Tiger Yan hurriedly replied, “I won’t, I won’t! I will definitely serve the sir with all my heart! Lord Wang, it’s getting late, why not take a rest? If there’s any woman you fancy in the village, I will have someone bring her over to you!”

Lord Wang sighed and said, “In this place, only Min’er has some standard. It’s just a pity…

“She bit our sire. Sir ordered that she must suffer for her sin for a full seven days before she is allowed to die, and today is already the fifth night. She’s no longer in any humanly state, so let’s just get a replacement.”

The other person hesitated for a while before replying, “Alright.”

At this time, Qianye’s icy voice floated in from outside the room, “There’s no need for a replacement.”

“Who’s that?”