Eternal Swordmaster
Chapter 235 - 228 Unthinkable Part 2

Chapter 235: Chapter 228 Unthinkable Part 2

"Don’t worry, the Master Ruyi I’ve hired isn’t just for show," said the plump merchant casually.

"Indeed, with Master Ruyi here, we shouldn’t have any problems," the other leaders also relaxed a bit.

"Daddy."

Suddenly, a young girl ran up to the side of the sphere cart. She was in her late teens, dressed in a white dress that highlighted her slim waist and slightly bulging breasts.

A pair of clean and slender legs shone from beneath the hem of her dress, complemented by high-quality white deer skin boots trimmed with fluffy fox fur, which added to her lively and cute charm.

The girl, looking exhausted, climbed onto the sphere cart.

"How much longer until the next rest stop, Dad? Qiuqiu is a bit tired..."

The spherical merchant’s face softened instantly, revealing a kind smile.

"We’re almost there, just a bit further ahead," the other leaders said with a smile as they watched the father and daughter.

Ma Yuan, as the leader of this group, had the most experience, as it was his third trip to Central Prefecture.

Previously, a round trip would take almost five years.

Back then, he was just an ordinary mountain boy, fat and with unattractive features, but after resolving to make something of himself, he chanced upon learning Martial Arts. It was during one such adventure that he started this job of leading caravans.

But a five-year trip was too lengthy. Moreover, his unattractive appearance and obesity made it difficult to find a suitable partner.

However, during one trip, he came across a young lady from a well-to-do family, who was both destitute and on the brink of death due to illness.

Smitten with her at first sight, he spent all his wealth to save her from the clutches of death.

The young miss, moved by his actions, bore him a son and a daughter before passing away. His son, who grew up and learned martial arts, died young in a fight, leaving only his daughter, Ma Qiuqiu, as his treasured child.

But there was one big thing about his daughter that troubled him—she was too naive and kind-hearted.

"Daddy, do we have any cheese left? I’m hungry again, I’ve been getting thinner lately, and I want to eat more cheese to put on some weight," Ma Qiuqiu started making excuses to ask for food again.

During travels like these, cheese and dried fruit were precious food items that the group could not do without. Even he would only eat them occasionally to balance nutrition and prevent sickness. Back home they weren’t expensive, but on the Yang Path, they could be worth their weight in gold.

Seeing the little one’s demeanor, Ma Yuan knew she must be trying to use her kind heart to get food for the refugees behind them. But as the leader of the team, he wasn’t a philanthropist with unlimited resources; their supplies were limited...

The father and daughter had a lengthy discussion about values and ethics. In the end, Ma Yuan, unable to resist his daughter’s wheedling, scolded her with a cold face but a soft heart and still gave her some cheese.

Ma Qiuqiu left cheerfully. Sure enough, Ma Yuan watched through a crack in the cart as she headed straight to the refugee group behind them. He couldn’t help but let out a deep sigh.

"Why the sigh, Brother Ma? A daughter with a kind heart and charming youth is more likely to attract people wanting to protect her. Finding a suitable gentleman for her in the future will be a simple matter," another leader said with a laugh.

"Easier said than done," Ma Yuan shook his head, "I just fear that her simple nature will lead her to be used by others."

"Isn’t she still protected by old Ma, with all his shrewdness?" they all laughed.

Ma Yuan was at a loss for words, and he joined in the laughter resignedly.

**************

After leaving the sphere cart, Ma Qiuqiu took some cheese and headed straight toward the group of over a hundred people behind her.

"Miss Qiuqiu is here again?" Many of the refugees looked at her kindly.

Everyone liked this

"Sister Qiuqiu~~" Several children ran over, calling out to her, their eyes filled with longing as they saw the cheese she was holding.

"Qiuqiu, you’ve brought something again, that’s really..."

Ma Qiuqiu handed out a small piece of cheese to each person she encountered. In the endless sea of clouds, nearing the edge of the Mortal Realm, these items were almost lifesaving treasures. No one wanted to eat them; they saved them to eat a little bit each day.

The refugees were organized into different small groups for the convenience of the leaders managing them, roughly four to five people per group. Ma Qiuqiu distributed a bit to each group and, before she knew it, she had reached the middle to the back of the line.

In the nineteenth group were two young sturdy men, a mother and child, and a down-and-out middle-aged scholar.

The mother, with a child just a few years old, kept coughing by herself.

Both sturdy men had ashen faces, clearly suffering from internal injuries.

The middle-aged scholar looked troubled, his hair flecked with white, and there was a faint smell of something decaying coming from him.

They all moved slowly with the group, and when they saw the young girl coming toward them, their eyes brightened.

"Miss Qiuqiu."

The two sturdy men approached her, and one couldn’t help but cough, blood leaking from the corner of his mouth, indicating his serious injury.

"Here, this is for you," Ma Qiuqiu immediately showed a look of compassion and actively handed over the portion of cheese, giving them a larger share this time.

"Thank you, Miss Qiuqiu," the two men said, their faces filled with gratitude.

She then generously gave some cheese to the mother and child and finally approached the destitute middle-aged scholar, cautiously handing over his portion of cheese.

"Uncle, I feel like I’ve seen you somewhere before?"

She looked at him quizzically.

The middle-aged scholar studied Ma Qiuqiu carefully and smiled. "It seems you’re the young lady who bought my furs."

With that reminder, Ma Qiuqiu suddenly remembered.

"So it’s you, Uncle!"

The scholar was none other than Lin Xin, who had joined the Yang Path team.

Unable to utilize his Cultivation Spiritual Energy, he took the Silver Coins he had acquired and chose to join the largest team,

Traversing the Yang Path meant you couldn’t cultivate, restore Spiritual Energy, and it would attract extremely dangerous, spirit-consuming Exotic Beasts. And the journey lasted five years.

By comparison, flying over the boundless sea of clouds above was the fastest method, but also the most dangerous.

Thus, the number of cultivators one might encounter on the Yang Path was the fewest. Under such dire risks, hardly any cultivator was willing to accompany mortals through the Yang Path. After all, asking a cultivator to go without absorbing Spiritual Energy or cultivating for five years was almost unimaginable.

Regardless, Lin Xin had no intention of using Spiritual Energy to avoid stimulating Illusions, and he couldn’t cultivate either, so he carelessly followed the team.

"This is yours, Uncle."

"Thank you." Lin Xin said with a smile as he nodded and accepted the offering. He really hadn’t prepared as thoroughly for the outing, and this cheese would solve his immediate problems.

Ma Qiuqiu also looked at him pityingly.

"What about your family?"

Lin Xin shook his head and stayed silent. He didn’t like lying to people; one lie required more lies to cover up. Starting from the first one, it would only get more exhausting.

So he simply kept quiet.

For some reason, Ma Qiuqiu’s look of pity intensified when he remained silent.

After a moment’s thought, Ma Qiuqiu took a small package from her bosom and handed it to him.

"Take this," she whispered.

"What’s this?"

Before she could answer, Lin Xin saw Ma Qiuqiu turn and run back outside.

He had actually prepared most of the things he needed, but he didn’t want to stand out too much, so he accepted Ma Qiuqiu’s donations just like everyone else.

After Ma Qiuqiu left, he opened the paper package to take a look.

Inside was a small piece of dried meat.

Shaking his head slightly, Lin Xin didn’t know what the young girl thought of him, but this act of kindness was truly precious.

"That little girl is so gullible. I just coughed a bit and smeared a bit of blood on my mouth, and I get more cheese than most people," two sturdy men were whispering nearby. Although their voices were low, Lin Xin could hear them clearly.

"I told you before, didn’t I? That girl’s brain doesn’t work right. Just a little act and you can deceive her. She’s green as grass," another man laughed,

"Just look at her, tender and juicy. Ever since she got slapped by that bastard, her internal injuries haven’t healed. It’s been half a year since I’ve been with a woman. Damn..." The rest of their words were obscenities.

Lin Xin stopped listening. That young lady was the leader of this team. These two men couldn’t lay a hand on her. They were only talking big. If they dared to act, out in these wilds where everyone relied on the leader, it would take minutes for them to be dealt with and their bodies disposed of.

Closing his eyes to conserve energy, he continued forward with the team.

In the following days, Ma Qiuqiu would occasionally bring him something.

Sometimes it was dried fruit, other times it was dried meat, or even pancakes.

She always managed to gather a circle of children around her.

Soon, they finally reached the first rest stop.

It was beside several gigantic white mushroom trees. These enormous mushroom trees had been hollowed out to create large caves, lined with furs for insulation and divided into numerous individual compartments, resembling an anthill with a narrow entrance.

The teams settled into the mushroom houses batch by batch, the leader occupied one, the rest separated among others, and the refugees stayed in several surrounding ones.

Right after settling in, a blizzard began outside.

******************

Inside a mushroom room, Lin Xin lay on the ground, looking out the window at the swirling snowstorm. Goose-feather-like snowflakes were falling down in a flurry.

A small charcoal brazier was lit within the mushroom room while over a dozen refugees lay or leaned haphazardly, mostly asleep. A woman was sobbing quietly as though recalling some sad memory.

A makeshift oil lamp fashioned from a tin can shone in a corner, emitting a faint glow.

"Hey, wake up, wake up," Lin Xin, who was about to go to sleep, heard someone whispering. It seemed to be a man.

"What is it?" a woman replied in a hushed tone.

"It’s time. What’s the plan for moving on? Do we meet up with them or keep grinding it out with this group?" the man hinted.

"Meet up with them. Start getting ready. Isn’t it still early?" the woman said impatiently.

"It’s early alright, I’ve agreed with a few brothers...heh heh heh...."

"Is it that dirty old San’s idea again?" the woman spat.

"It’s just grabbing a last benefit before leaving..." the man chuckled.

"Keep it clean. Behind that little girl is Ma Yuan. Make it swift."

"We’re leaving anyway, who cares about Ma Yuan or Niu Yuan. If it weren’t for this injury, I wouldn’t be afraid of a mere little leader," the man said with disdain. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it at Qidian (qidian.com), your support is the greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)