The Smiling, Proud Wanderer: From the Moment He Picked Up Qu Feiyan

Diagonally opposite Liu Zhengfeng's residence, on the second floor of a teahouse.

In the private room by the window, an ordinary-looking middle-aged man was slowly skimming the foam from his cup with the lid, but his gaze was fixed on the deep mansion outside the window, beyond the steam.

He had been sitting here all morning, and the tea had been refilled three times, going from hot to lukewarm, and then to completely cold.

Ma Bao was in a bad mood.

As a notorious bandit in the northern frontier more than a decade ago, "Lightning Whip" Ma Bao's patience and stealth skills were beyond question. After joining the Songshan Sect, he took these skills to the extreme, doing many dirty and shady jobs for Zuo Lengchan.

However, this time, he felt as if he had punched cotton.

Following Lu Bai's orders, he came to Hengyang to secretly investigate and confirm the person Liu Zhengfeng was meeting in secret.

It's been ten days.

For ten whole days, Liu Zhengfeng in his eyes did not seem like someone who would meet with others in secret or keep hidden secrets. Every day he instructed his disciples and taught his children, sometimes went to a familiar teahouse in the city to listen to storytelling, and occasionally practiced swordsmanship in his own backyard. His life was regular and rigid.

Forget about having secret meetings with female entertainers, he hadn't even seen Liu Zhengfeng interact with a single stranger whose behavior was suspicious.

This gradually aroused a sense of doubt in Ma Bao's mind.

He stroked the soft whip wrapped around his waist, the cold touch calming his chaotic thoughts slightly.

On this trip, Lu Bai specifically instructed him "not to alarm the people in Hengyang," implying that he also distrusted Shen An and wanted him to do the final verification.

The doubt wasn't about Shen An's stance; that kid was well-known, grew up in Songshan, and was far more trustworthy than himself. The doubt lay in his abilities, and a fear that information might leak from him.

Could it be that I came alone and could have leaked any information?

Was it that Shen An was incompetent and investigated in the wrong direction? Or was he deliberately using false information to appease his sect?

Ma Bao's brows furrowed. It shouldn't be that bad; it's only been ten days. He was probably just unlucky and happened to avoid it.

What Ma Bao didn't know was that the key person he was looking for wasn't even in Hengyang City.

Hundreds of miles away from Hengyang, in a small town in Ganzhou Prefecture, the latest gossip about the "Light-Music Fairy" was being vividly and engagingly told by a storyteller. Below the stage, a plainly dressed, pretty young woman listened with great interest, occasionally whispering comments to a helpless-looking old man beside her.

"Grandpa, listen! This version says that Fairy Qingyin is actually the Holy Maiden of the Demonic Sect, and that Dugu Qiubai betrayed the righteous sect for her sake! This version is much more interesting than the one from yesterday!" Qu Feiyan grabbed Qu Yang's sleeve and shook it excitedly.

Qu Yang's eye twitched. What kind of unofficial history is this... Dugu Qiubai was clearly a person from the Song Dynasty hundreds of years ago, while Shen An's fabricated "Light Music Fairy" was only about a person from a hundred years ago. How did they end up falling in love in the story...?

Qu Yang could only sigh helplessly as he watched his granddaughter having so much fun. Ever since she got involved in Shen An's "fun" plan, Qu Feiyan had been dragging him all over Hubei and Jiangxi provinces, ostensibly to help Shen An complete the plan, but in reality, she was just listening to gossip and spreading new versions of rumors, having so much fun that she forgot all about home.

As for his meeting with Brother Liu, a meeting of kindred spirits... Qu Yang glanced at his granddaughter's sparkling eyes again, and thought, "Fine, let it be a few days' delay."

"There's no point in staying here any longer," Ma Bao sighed inwardly. He finished his tea in one gulp, turned around, and went downstairs, intending to find another place to kill time.

As soon as he reached the stairwell, the bustling noise of the lobby hit him, and a few keywords made him instinctively stop in his tracks.

"Hundred Refinements Workshop", "Light Sound Sword", "Tian Boguang"...

A thought struck him, and instead of leaving, he sat down again in an inconspicuous corner of the lobby, ordered a pot of the cheapest coarse tea, and listened intently.

"Have you heard? That 'Fairy's Sword' from the Hundred Refinements Workshop in Hengyang was stolen by Tian Boguang!" a reckless man shouted. "It's hilarious! He bragged like a ton of bricks, but he couldn't even keep an eye on his own door!"

"Exactly!" someone chimed in, lowering their voice and feigning mystery. "In my opinion, this is all a staged drama by Hundred Refinements Workshop! They don't have any of that damn fairy sword fragments at all. With the sword-testing competition about to start, they had nothing to offer, so they deliberately claimed it was stolen to save face!"

This man was one of Yan Shiqi's lackeys, sent to Hengyang to gather information and spread rumors.

This statement immediately drew laughter, but it was just laughter; few people believed it.

"I've heard of Bailianfang's reputation in Changsha. They wouldn't ruin their own brand like this."

"That's not right." A clear voice rang out, and everyone looked in the direction of the voice to see a young man dressed in fine clothes. "I've heard of Bai Lian Fang's reputation in Changsha. They would never resort to such means to ruin their own reputation."

This man was none other than Young Master Zhou, who had come all the way from Changsha. He had traveled a long and arduous journey in order to catch a glimpse of the "remains of the fairy," only to be disappointed when he came up empty-handed. He was quite frustrated.

Fortunately, he discovered that even without the wreckage, the sheer number of events and dramatic stories unfolding in the city made the trip worthwhile. He even became a regular at the teahouse lobby, engaging in lively discussions with various figures from the martial arts world.

"Hey, who knows if it's true or not? Anyway, Hengyang City is getting more and more lively these days." A tea drinker with a local accent said slowly, "You haven't seen how many unfamiliar faces have flooded into the city these past few days. All sorts of people, from all walks of life, there are big shots like Young Master Zhou waiting to buy swords. And there are quite a few like me, just here to watch the excitement."

Ma Bao listened from the shadows, growing increasingly suspicious.

Bailianfang? Isn't that the business Shen An was in charge of in Hengyang?

He actually caused such a huge commotion? And he even got involved with the notorious womanizer Tian Boguang?

Ma Bao wasn't interested in these business matters, but the name "Tian Boguang" sent a chill down his spine.

It's true that rivals are enemies, but they also know each other inside and out. He had met Tian Boguang once before, and even someone as arrogant as him had to admit that the man's lightness skill and unpredictable movements were admirable. Why would someone like that steal a broken sword that was completely useless to him?

There must be something fishy going on behind this.

After quietly paying for the tea, he left the teahouse, deciding to keep an eye on Liu Zhengfeng's side while also listening to what Bailianfang and Shen An were up to.

As the tea drinker had said, Hengyang City has indeed become the center of a huge vortex.

On the official road at the foot of Huiyan Peak, carriages and horses thronged, and people flowed in droves. People from all walks of life, speaking various accents, mingled together, making this usually quiet ancient town noisy and restless.

The inn was fully booked, and the restaurant was packed.

All the topics revolved around the three words "Light-Sound Sword".

There were young heroes who shared a common hatred for the enemy, and they cursed Tian Boguang for being shameless and despicable, and for blaspheming the fairy. They vowed to rid the people of this scourge.

Some were gloating, convinced that Bailianfang had shot itself in the foot, and were waiting to see the show. For example, Yan Shiqi, along with a few trusted confidants, mingled in the crowd, and their greatest pleasure each day was to spread rumors detrimental to Bailianfang in various taverns.

Some were skeptical, finding the story more dramatic and exciting than any storyteller's tale, and were simply onlookers who enjoyed the spectacle.

What began as a small ripple has now become a sweeping force across Hubei and Hunan provinces.

The instigator of this storm, Shen An, seemed to have vanished from the face of the earth.

The inner courtyard of the Hundred Refinements Workshop where he was located had become unusually quiet since he learned three days ago that his sword had been stolen.

Even the sounds of reading aloud and playing the piano in the morning, and the sound of swords cutting through the wind in the afternoon, have stopped.