Let Me Explain, Fairy
Chapter 1018 - 633: Master and Disciple Reunited

Chapter 1018: Chapter 633: Master and Disciple Reunited

Past noon, the scorching sun baked the earth, as a caravan traversed the endless Sea of Yellow Sands.

The heavily laden carts sank several inches into the sand, yet the camels and specially designed wheels allowed the caravan to continue at a steady pace, though slowly.

This is the infamous Darkflow Sea of the Tengtada Desert. Without the official roads repaired by The Imperial Court, every step carries the risk of sinking into the deadly quicksand, but the harsh environment also means there are no border patrols or Bureau of Supervision officers here.

Ever since the Marquis closed the border market with Tatar Chao twenty years ago, this place naturally became one of the smuggling routes to Tatar Chao.

Every year, numerous merchant associations use this route to transport various goods to Desert North.

As one of the leaders active here for decades, Chao Hanbiao was well-versed with this route. Wrapped in a black scarf, he rode at the head of the caravan, his gaze scanning the over twenty varied carts behind him, and shook his head faintly.

The so-called eagle head is not the leader of the caravan but an intermediary for smugglers.

The Tartar People have a great demand for goods from Dayan. Spices, refined salt, tobacco, tea, and silk can fetch two to three times the profit once transported there.

This profit tempts small caravans to participate, but they lack the means to enter the trade. His task is to gather small caravans, lead them safely to the Tartar People, find buyers for their goods, and take a commission.

This time, the caravan he led was composed of newcomers running the route for the first time. Their qualifications were poor, and they were poorly coordinated. After leaving Zhenxi Prefecture City, they progressed intermittently for over half a month and were still wandering in the Darkflow Sea.

Slightly sighing to himself, Chao Hanbiao reached into his robe to take out a crumpled map. Just as he squinted under the blazing sun to scrutinize it momentarily, the faint sound of hoofbeats came from behind him.

Upon hearing the sound, Chao Hanbiao immediately clenched the map in his hand and placed his hand on the waist knife at his side.

This map was his lifeline, containing various routes he had compiled over the years. If it fell into others’ hands, his role as the eagle head would be unnecessary.

Turning his gaze, he saw a dark-skinned youth riding towards him. Stashing the map back into his robe, Chao Hanbiao’s eyes underneath the black scarf appeared somewhat stern:

"Shopkeeper Bai, what’s the matter?"

The dark-skinned youth’s forehead was beaded with dense sweat due to the sunlight, wiping it off as he spoke softly:

"Master Chao, we’ve been traveling for more than half a day, and the brothers in the back say they can’t hold on much longer. The camels need feeding and rest as well."

Upon hearing this, Chao Hanbiao frowned subtly under the scarf, glanced at the exhausted-looking caravan men behind him, and coldly replied:

"At this pace, we won’t get out of this Darkflow Sea even in a month. Do you want to die here?"

The dark-skinned youth appeared slightly embarrassed, pondered for a moment, then pointed to a spot twenty paces ahead of the caravan.

There, seven or eight silhouettes were walking in parallel.

The dark-skinned youth spoke softly:

"Master Chao, we’ve already lost seven or eight camel slaves. If more die, relying only on the few we have left, it will be even more difficult to continue."

The Darkflow Sea is littered with quicksand, and the camel slaves are the ones who bear the burden of scouting ahead for the caravan.

Ordinary animals are hard to train, and Demonic Beasts are too expensive; using humans to scout is actually more cost-effective.

Hearing this, a sliver of hesitation flashed in Chao Hanbiao’s eyes.

Though large quicksand areas in the Darkflow Sea don’t undergo major changes, there are unexpected incidents every year.

If all the camel slaves were to die, it could pose a real problem, as they’d need them for the return journey. Purchasing new slaves in Tatar Chao would cost far more than in Zhenxi Prefecture.

Sighing out a hot breath, Chao Hanbiao tugged on the reins to halt his horse, pointed westward, and announced to the caravan:

"The scorching sun will drain your strength resting in the sand. There’s an oasis about ten miles from here; we’ll rest there."

The dark-skinned youth silently noted down this information, as intelligence about oases was rare. Meanwhile, the entire caravan began to cheer and change direction, speeding up noticeably now they knew they could rest.

The dark-skinned youth continued to flatteringly engage Chao Hanbiao in conversation, though without success. Chao Hanbiao remained vigilant and disclosed no valuable information until the caravan reached the oasis, adhering to the principle that teaching the student too much can starve the master.

Finding his attempts fruitless, the dark-skinned youth eventually rose with a smile, bowed respectfully to the resting Chao Hanbiao:

About to leave, he seemed to recall something and asked out of curiosity:

"By the way, Master Chao, with your familiarity with this route, why not form your own caravan? Wouldn’t that be faster money than being the eagle head?"

Hearing this, Chao Hanbiao slowly opened his eyes and gave a vague response:

"Run the route a few more times, kid, and you’ll naturally understand."

The dark-skinned youth frowned slightly, then smilingly took out a silver note worth a hundred taels, leaned forward, and offered it with both hands:

"I hope Master Chao can provide some guidance."

"No need for silver, I only take what’s due from my cut."

Chao Hanbiao embraced his waist knife, leaning against his camel without any other action, glancing at him with an indifferent tone: "You have ambition, so I’ll give you a tip: this trade earns a lot, but the saying goes, walking by the river often will wet your shoes."

The dark-skinned youth paused, contemplatively murmuring:

"Master Chao, do you mean...."

"What you’re doing now is competing with powerful entities for business. Though small, your caravan’s profits add up and lower their selling prices. If you run into them in this desolate area.... hehe."

"Surely they wouldn’t notice our meager profits?"

"The powerful entities might not, but their underlings could. Don’t overreach, take what’s good, then withdraw."

After saying that, Chao Hanbiao waved his hand, signaling the youth to leave.

Just as the dark-skinned youth was about to speak, a piercing scream suddenly shattered the quiet Sky Dome, drawing everyone’s gaze in the caravan.

A snow-white wolf lay basking by the oasis lake, its eyes half-closed, while beside it, a sturdy man was cut in half and lay lifeless, blood seeping from his clean severed wound.

A Wolf Demon!

Chao Hanbiao sprang up with his knife, his eyes fixed on the Wolf Demon with suspicion.

He was well-acquainted with the Demonic Beasts of this Darkflow Sea, but he had never seen this pure white Wolf Demon before.

As he pondered, the caravan guards beside him drew their Simple Knives, with a few swift ones darting toward the Wolf Demon.

These men were battle-hardened, had killed many, both human and beast, yet what happened next gripped every heart present.

Those three men charging at the White Wolf collided with an invisible web, their burly frames instantly sliced into a mesh of pieces, tumbling to the sand in deathly silence.

"....."

The battle cry instantly became silence.

Everyone stared at the napping White Wolf, no one daring to make a move.

Chao Hanbiao and the dark-skinned youth exchanged a glance, simultaneously starting to back away.

This White Wolf was a demon, and a terrifying Great Demon at that.

Seeing their retreat, the other hundred or so people present began making subtle motions. Some quietly retreated, others tried to lead their camels away with the goods, the rustle of movement inevitably breaking the quiet of the oasis.

Then,

those making noise were directly shattered.

This sudden bloodshed extinguished any remaining resistance among the battle-hardened men.

Flee.

Abandon the goods. Make no sound. Flee silently.

Unfortunately,

when one man reached the edge of the oasis, he suddenly shattered without warning.

Flesh piled into small mounds on the sand, red and white seeping into the yellow grains.

The hundred or so people froze like sculptures, not daring to move an inch.

Time passed, the desert’s setting sun cast long shadows.

When the sun finally dipped below the horizon, the White Wolf lazily rose to its feet, leisurely walking to the clear oasis lake and lapping up two mouthfuls of water under the watchful eyes of the crowd.

Just as the caravan hoped the wolf would depart, after drinking, the snow-white wolf slowly lay back down, continuing its nap.

Stars revealed themselves, the crescent moon hung high. In the midst of the caravan’s despair, a playful female voice suddenly echoed over the oasis:

"Finally found you, not easy... eh? What’s with these people?"

With the voice, an elegant woman dressed in a black gown gracefully descended beside the oasis.

Seeing the woman’s beauty, a hint of amazement involuntarily appeared in the dark-skinned youth’s mind, but more was the joy of survival. Instinctively he wanted to ask for help, but before he could speak, the woman’s next words carried annoyance:

"Who allowed you to look at me with those disgusting eyes? Truly annoying."

With that, the ten or so burly men who had been looking at her exploded into a mist of blood.

No trace of their bodies remained.

After that, Tian Ye looked at the men who had bowed their heads, then turned her gaze to the Qilin Wolf.

Unnoticed,

the Qilin Wolf had already stood up, its wolf eyes gleaming with a cold light, silver lines weaving across its snowy fur.

Seeing this, Tian Ye appeared slightly intrigued. Approaching with a light step, she raised a delicate hand, shaking a pendant given by the Goddess in front of its eyes, with a playful smile:

"Big dog, why are you angry? I’m here to take you to your master."

To her surprise, the Qilin Wolf remained on guard even after seeing the pendant, its aura continuously intensifying.

With a fleeting thought, Tian Ye crossed her arms, dangling the gem’s chain on her forefinger, gently tapping her cheek, fluttering her pretty eyes, then curling her lips in a smile:

"This pendant isn’t counterfeit, so it’s not angry with me. The only nearby entity capable of making it so vigilant and aware of me must be one person...."

With that,

a trace of pathological excitement shimmered in Tian Ye’s azure-gold eyes. Slowly turning her gaze, she followed the Qilin Wolf’s sight into the air.

There, a woman dressed in white like an immortal stood quietly, her pale golden eyes devoid of emotion, her wide skirts dancing in the moonlight.

They exchanged a glance,

Tian Ye, with a mischievous smile, waved at her, smile blooming sweetly:

"Master, after all this time apart, how could you greet me with the Qi Machine Lock the moment we meet?"