Why do I have so many masters?

"Fortunately, you extracted yourself from this affair in time. The one who shouldn't have a headache now is that person. However, even so, during this period, you should be extra careful and not get involved in this matter again. Who knows what that desperate person might do?"

Having spoken, he shook his head, seemingly with a sigh, yet he felt as though he had stirred up the temperaments of both Xue Qinshuang, waved his hand, and changed the subject, laughing:

"Let's not talk about it anymore, let's not bring up such depressing matters."

"Anfeng, you should be happy that you were able to escape this situation."

"Speaking of which, you two have been here for a long time, yet I've never seen you both go all out. I'm actually quite interested."

Upon hearing this, Chuan Lian nodded repeatedly, truly sighed, and said:

"Brother Wang's martial arts are truly the only ones I've seen in my life."

Meng Yuexue looked at Wang Anfeng, then at the very 'beautiful' Xue Qinshuang, also with a twinkle in her eyes, seemingly very interested, she said:

"Yes, Big Brother Wang, do you still want me to hold your sword scabbard?"

Xue Qinshuang looked at the interested crowd, then back at Wang Anfeng, who showed no change in expression. Watching the young man draw his longsword from behind amidst the cheering of many friends, he pointed it diagonally at the ground. Around him, Qi Force stirred but he did not make a move, closed his folding fan, and gently tapped it against his palm, saying:

"Forget it, I'm not in the mood to fight today."

"We'll put this battle on account for now."

"We'll talk about it later."

............

After a day or two, the matter of the Fire Refining Sect had fermented and gradually swept through the entire Fufeng County City.

At the same time, Wang Anfeng's reputation also began to rise.

Almost everyone was convinced that in the next issuance of the rankings, Wang Anfeng would surely be listed on the Terrestrial Fiend List, ranking among the top hundred martial artists in the entire Great Qin.

The number of people coming to visit him suddenly increased.

Not lacking were the young masters from noble clans within Fufeng County, bringing heavy gifts. Often, there were also beautiful clan young ladies following beside their brothers, curiously sizing him up, then bowing gracefully. Mere words were enough to make their faces flush with shyness, a feast for the eyes.

The original wooden hut was bustling with visitors, and today, even the Murong clan from the city, with Young Master Murong Tong leading, brought several people over for a visit.

But Wang Anfeng was not here.

In front of the Fire Refining Sect's business premises.

The bluestone floor, cold autumn dew heavy.

Yet an old woman was sitting on the ground, already aged with chicken-skin and crane hair, wearing plain white, lying on the ground, crying incessantly.

The brawny man guarding the door was also helpless, constantly explaining, and again handed over a bag full of silver coins.

The old woman slapped the bag of money to the ground with a palm, making a clattering sound.

Her eyes red, crying out:

"What do I need your stinking money for? I just want my dear grandson..."

"I want the person, sob sob sob..."

Not far away at a tea stall, a Jianghu man frowned and said:

"Why is this old woman still persisting here endlessly..."

"I see that the Fire Refining Sect hasn't been holding back any silver coins."

As the tea master served good tea, he sighed and said:

"What's the use of money when the person is gone..."

"Everyone knows that working in a Jianghu sect is risky, just like escort running—higher pay, higher risk."

"As for others, who want money but not life, that's their choice."

"But this old woman and her granddaughter relied on each other. The girl went into the Fire Refining Sect to earn money for her grandmother's medical treatment, always keeping it from her grandmother, saving money every day, only coming here to eat some free tea to fill her stomach."

"The other day she came here for tea, saying she was about to save enough money.

"I thought this girl would make it through, alas, alas..."

The Jianghu man was also silent.

Even having wandered Jianghu for many years, his heart felt heavy at this moment; he took a sip of tea, listening to the cries beside his ear, he slammed the teacup down on the table, spit out a mouthful, and said:

"This Jianghu, damn it, it's really messed up!"

From behind his table, a voice called out.

"Shopkeeper, time to settle the bill."

The young man in a blue shirt stood up, his wooden sword strapped to his back. People around him recognized the rising young martial artist, voices of surprise rang out, one after another. They rushed to talk to this guardian of letters but were also a bit intimidated. Amid the deep autumn, the lively scene continued.

Meanwhile, a few dozen steps away, a white-haired old person, alone and kneeling, continued to cry unabated, making the lively area seem all the more heated.

Wang Anfeng walked over, knelt down to level with the old person, handed over some food from his hand, and said softly:

"Old lady, please eat something...

The old woman slammed it down with her hand, her eyes, red from crying for a long time, said:

"I won't eat, I just want my dear grandson..."

"Sob sob sob..."

Wang Anfeng was silent, picked up the food, broke off the dirty part, and passed the clean portion back, struggling to speak:

"Grandma, the dead can't be brought back to life..."

"Conserve your grief."

The old lady wept loudly:

"Conserve grief at a time like this, I can't conserve grief!"

"Do you know, my dear granddaughter had prepared her dowry, in a few days, I was supposed to see her married, see her living a good life... woohoo..."

"Now, now it's all gone..."

"And the person who killed my dear granddaughter is still living a carefree life... Where are those heroes?! Where are they?! The patrol officers of Great Qin, where are they?!"

"My dear granddaughter believed in this world until her death, believed in heroes, believed in patrol officers, believed in all of you, woohoo... She believed in that world until her death..."

"But now what?"

"Where are they?!"

Wang Anfeng clenched his teeth slightly, but his expression became even more gentle, and he said:

"Grandma, how about we make a bet?"

"The murderer will definitely be caught."

"There are always heroes..."

Whether it was due to her advanced age, her energy not as good as before, or because Wang Anfeng seemed very convincing, gradually, the old woman ceased crying, clutched the tea snack like a lost soul, and departed.

Wang Anfeng slowly stood up, pursed his lips, and turned towards the Academy.

His right hand was raised.

Having exerted too much force just now, his fingernails had pierced the skin of his palm, and drops of fresh blood fell on the somewhat dirty tea snack.

In his mind, he recalled what Su Wenchang had said two days ago.

'You shouldn't get involved in this matter any longer. That murderer is now in pain from having his plans disrupted by you. The power of the Fire Refining Sect is also about to arrive; he must be busy erasing traces, unable to spare his hands to deal with you.'

'If you meddle further, it will be extremely dangerous.'

Wang Anfeng picked up the tea snack, put it in his mouth.

He strode away.@@novelbin@@

............

That night.

Wang Anfeng didn't go to Shaolin Temple, but instead, with a wooden sword on his back, he left his wooden hut directly.

Having walked dozens of steps, he was startled by a silhouette ahead.

The figure appeared to be humming a tune; sensing Wang Anfeng, the melody stopped, and with a light laugh, stepped out of the darkness, revealed under the moonlight. Although dressed as a man, her original features were recognizable; it was Xue Qinshuang.

Today, unlike other days, she was not holding a folding fan but instead bore a longsword on her back. She seemed to have anticipated Wang Anfeng's actions and said with a smile:

"Couldn't hold back anymore?"

Wang Anfeng pursed his lips and said:

"Miss Xue..."

Xue Qinshuang, with hands clasped behind her back, leisurely said:

"Are you trying to find an excuse to dissuade me, to make me go back?"

Caught in his intentions, Wang Anfeng opened his mouth but was unsure what better to say.

Xue Qinshuang stepped forward and said:

"Then, why not listen to my reason?"

Under the moonlight, Xue Qinshuang's brown eyes slightly glistened. She sized up the young man and softly laughed: Stay tuned with My Virtual Library Empire

"Do you carry the weight of those dead dozen or so lives on yourself?"

"Do you think that if it weren't for you, they might not have been involved, might not have died?"

"Thus, when Su Wenchang and the others were happy about delivering you from danger that day, were you feeling stifled inside? You even lost the mood to fight me..."

"So, you plan to avoid the daytime scrutiny and go secretly looking for that expert from the Fire Refining Sect at night? Do you want to get the last clue from him?"

Wang Anfeng fell silent for a while, then shook his head and said:

"No."

"In Jianghu, life is unpredictable, fortune and misfortune hard to foresee; anyone can die for a variety of reasons. How could I be so naive?"

"It's just that..."

Xue Qinshuang, curious, repeated:

"Just?"

Wang Anfeng focused and said:

"Just that I promised an old lady, wanted to get a clear understanding for her. That's all."

PS: Second update...