Chaotic World of Martial Arts: I Have a Spirit Pearl of Desire

Whoosh!

Chen You tightened the reins, and the carriage came to a steady stop not far from the salt gang.

His eyes were originally cold, and his blood and qi were slightly stirred. He was already prepared to kill a few people to establish his authority.

To his utter surprise, before the car had even come to a complete stop, Gao He had already come to greet him.

The fierce-looking leader of the Salt Gang wore a warm smile and politely bowed, saying, "Young heroes, I am Gao He, the leader of the Salt Gang. We are resting here. May I ask where you two are headed? If you don't mind, would you like to come and have some hot soup? We brought some sheep and just cooked some offal soup, which tastes very delicious."

This sudden display of friendliness caught Chen You off guard.

As the saying goes, one cannot hit a smiling face. Since the other party greeted him with a smile and was very polite, Chen You couldn't find a reason to suddenly kill someone to establish his authority.

Seeing this, Tang Yan's beautiful eyes flashed with surprise. She secretly nudged Chen You with her elbow, as if asking what to do next.

Since the other party had spoken in this way, Chen You didn't beat around the bush and asked directly, "My friend and I are going to Snake Island. You're going to Snake Island too, right?"

Gao He didn't hide anything and nodded, saying, "That's right, I know a little about the route here. If you two agree, we can go together."

This has left Chen You completely stumped.

Shouldn't normal people be a bit arrogant? After all, if they join, wouldn't they be afraid of being robbed if there's something good?

"Would you like to let us join together?"

Tang Yan looked at Gao He with some confusion and said.

Gao He smiled slightly, cupped his hands and said, "Gentlemen, I, Gao He, am ugly and people say I am fierce. In fact, I like to make friends with like-minded people. I see that you two have kind faces and are gentlemen, so I have no problem with us going together."

Tang Yan nodded slightly, looked at Chen You, and cast an inquiring glance at him.

Chen You shrugged: "Thanks for leading the way."

"Gentlemen, I've just finished cooking some mutton soup. Have some to warm yourself up. The area around here is a bit damp, so some mutton soup will make you feel better..." Gao He's smile grew even more gentle as he gestured to the side, appearing extremely polite.

Thank you.

Seeing this, Chen You jumped off the carriage.

Seeing Chen You get out of the carriage, Gao He turned to one of his underlings and instructed him, "Go and lead the young hero's horse properly, feed it some of the best feed, and take good care of it."

"Yes, boss." The underling hurriedly ran forward to take the horse reins.

"Thank you." Chen You nodded slightly.

He didn't know whether the other party was just being ingratiating or genuinely wanted to make friends.

However, it must be said that although Gao He has a fierce appearance and is covered in scars, he is extremely smooth and shrewd in dealing with people and things, and there is not a single fault to be found in him.

Soon, Gao He led Chen You and Tang Yan to the campfire.

Inside the large iron pot, the milky white mutton soup was bubbling and boiling, its enticing aroma wafting in the breeze.

Gao He personally picked up a large ladle, ladled out two large bowls of steaming hot, thick mutton soup, and respectfully handed them over.

Chen You took the large bowl and sat down by the campfire.

"What's your name, brother?" Gao He asked with a smile as he picked up his soup bowl.

"My name is Chen You, and this is my friend Tang Yan," Chen You introduced naturally.

Gao He blew on the steam rising from his bowl, a shrewd glint in his eyes: "Brother Chen, judging from the direction you two are heading, it seems you're also after the treasure of Snake Island, aren't you?"

"That's right." Chen You didn't hide anything and admitted it directly.

"Well, since we all share the same goal, I hope we can cooperate if we do find the treasure."

Gao He thought for a moment, his expression becoming slightly serious. He lowered his voice and said, "As far as I know, this commotion is quite significant. Besides our Salt Gang, experts from other major sects have arrived, and even the Imperial Guard has come after hearing the news. In a one-on-one fight, we might easily become stepping stones for others."

Upon hearing this, Chen You nodded and said, "I've heard about it. We can cooperate!"

"Great! That's satisfying!" Gao Heyi slapped his thigh and laughed heartily. "Come on, good brother, let's eat meat and drink soup from big bowls!"

Chen You picked up the large bowl and took a sip. The rich and delicious broth warmed him from his stomach. The mutton soup was indeed exceptional.

Seeing that Chen You had drunk some, Tang Yan also tentatively took a few sips, and her tense nerves relaxed a lot.

Then, while eating meat and drinking soup, the two chatted about the terrain near Snake Island, the movements of various forces, and past anecdotes of the martial arts world. For a time, they seemed to get along very well.

After eating and drinking their fill, the Salt Gang packed up their belongings and continued their journey.

Gao He was very outgoing and simply sat on the left side of Chen You's carriage, chatting casually along the way.

As for Tang Yan, she quietly stayed in the carriage and rested with her eyes closed.

"Brother Chen, I've met quite a few people heading to Snake Island along the way, but this is the first time I've seen just the two of you. There are far too few of you." Gao He stuffed a blade of grass into his mouth and looked at Chen You with some curiosity.

"Is that so?" Chen You held the reins in one hand, his tone indifferent. "I believe that quality is more important than quantity."

Gao He was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter: "Haha, it seems that Brother Chen and Miss Tang are both outstanding individuals, their strength must be extremely formidable!"

"Of course." Chen You shrugged indifferently.

Gao He's expression turned serious, and he continued, "That's wonderful! According to the information my men have gathered, Snake Island is far from peaceful; it's home to many precious beasts!! Even... rare demonic plants!!"

"Oh? For example?" Chen You raised an eyebrow, showing some interest.

"For example, the Black Jade Poison Dragon, its essence and blood can strengthen qi and blood, and its scales can be used to make precious armor; and the Seven-Leaf Vermilion Fruit Tree, which is a typical demonic plant, will actively use its branches to hunt down living people who come near, but the vermilion fruit it produces can help people break through bottlenecks!" Gao He gave examples incessantly.

Listening to the descriptions of these magical beasts and plants, Chen You nodded slightly: "Hmm, they do sound very dangerous."

"Boss, there are corpses ahead! Quite a few..."

Just then, a sharp shout suddenly came from ahead.

Xu Youliang, the deputy leader of the Salt Gang, who was in charge of leading the way at the front of the group, tightened the reins and shouted to the rear with a solemn expression.

Chen You and Gao He exchanged a glance, then quickly jumped off the carriage and rushed forward.

At the desolate intersection ahead, more than twenty corpses lay scattered about.

The corpses had long since begun to rot and stink, emitting a foul odor.

Chen You stepped forward and examined them closely. He found that without exception, all of these people had had their throats slit or their hearts pierced with a single blow. The wounds were clean and sharp, indicating that they had all been killed with a single blow, without even a chance to resist.

The deceased were dressed in different clothes, indicating that they were a group of martial arts practitioners heading towards Snake Island, but they died tragically on the way.

The stench of blood and decay in the air instantly froze the previously harmonious atmosphere within the group.

Gao He stepped forward and crouched down, carefully examining the wounds on the corpses. His brows furrowed tightly: "It's the Thousand-Faced Blade Master, Ma Qiandao!!"

"Do you know him?" Chen You asked from the side.

"Indeed, this man is one of the infamous 'Ten Villains' of the martial arts world!" Gao He stood up, dusted off his hands, and explained solemnly, "Rumor has it that Ma Qiandao is extremely cruel and bloodthirsty, skilled in disguise, and elusive. He enjoys ambushing and killing fellow martial arts practitioners who are searching for treasure, and his methods are extremely ruthless and domineering."

Chen You didn't know much about the grudges and figures in the martial arts world, so he listened quietly.

Gao He pointed to the smooth, mirror-like cut on the corpse's neck and continued, "Ma Qiandao's strikes are extremely fast, aiming for a single, fatal blow. Brother Chen, look at these wounds; they were all fatal with a single cut, even the angles of the cuts are exactly the same. Clearly, these people didn't even have a chance to fight before he finished them off."

Chen You nodded slightly, then asked curiously, "What is his cultivation level?"

"It is said that he has a fifth-grade cultivation level," Gao He replied in a deep voice.

"Fifth rank... that's the Ten Great Evils?" Chen You raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise in his voice.

He thought that someone who could be called one of the "Ten Great Evils" must be a monster of the eighth or ninth rank, but he didn't expect him to be only a fifth rank.

"Ahem, Young Master Chen, you are unaware of this." Gao He coughed awkwardly twice and explained, "The ranking of these 'Ten Villains' is not based on how invincible their martial arts are, but on how many people they have killed and how many inhumane atrocities they have committed... Ma Qiandao has at least several hundred lives on his hands."

"I see. Judging from the degree of decay of these corpses, they have been dead for some time." Chen You withdrew his gaze thoughtfully.

"Yes, I guess he killed him a few days ago." Gao He sighed, waving his hand to dispel the stench in front of him. "Young Master Chen, there's nothing to see with a dead body. Let's keep going."

"it is good."

Gao He then arranged for two of his men to carry the bodies to the roadside bushes and bury them briefly to avoid disturbing the convoy.

Soon, the team regrouped and set off again, continuing their journey in a grand and imposing manner.