63: Enemies meet on a narrow road

The mule cart jolted even more violently along the rugged mountain road; the wheels ground over loose stones, emitting a teeth-aching "creak."

This so-called "Peaceful Road" was a hundred times harder to travel than the official road last time. The path was narrow, flanked by dense, suffocating forests, with withered yellow branches reaching toward the sky like ghostly claws, blocking out almost all sunlight.

Zhao Rui was shaken dizzy inside the carriage, his face pale, yet for once, he did not complain a single word. He merely clutched his book box tightly, ears pricked, listening to every movement outside, like a frightened rabbit.

Su Ming continued to walk beside the cart. His breathing was steady and long, and every step landed on the soft, rotting leaves without making a sound. His mind was completely immersed in contemplating the Breath Concealment Art.

The faint glimmer in his Dantian no longer required deliberate searching; it was like a small lamp inside his body, moving with his thoughts. He was attempting to control the light of this lamp, causing the warm current of Yang Qi that originally dispersed around his body to slowly retract inward, like receding seawater, clinging tightly to his skin.

This process was extremely taxing, requiring ultimate focus.

After a long while, Su Ming slowly emerged from this sensation.

"Disciple, how does it feel? Do you feel your sense of presence fading, as if you're about to become a tree by the roadside?" Lin Yu's voice resonated in his mind, carrying a hint of examination.

"Far from it," Su Ming responded internally. "This flow of Qi is still very scattered, like smoke that cannot be grasped."

"Not bad, you have self-awareness. Continue practicing. When you can restrain this living Yang Qi until you are like a stone, only then will you have barely entered the introductory level of my 'The Way of Cautious Survival'."

Su Ming stopped dividing his attention, pouring all his mental energy into controlling his aura.

His perception also became exceptionally sharp with this focus. He could "hear" the different whistling sounds of the wind passing through the forest, "smell" the fishy scent of earthworms turning under the soil, and "feel" the muscles of a wild rabbit in the distance tensing up after being startled.

Just as the mule cart turned around a ridge, Su Ming's footsteps came to an abrupt halt.

A discordant noise had intruded into his "web."

It was not the sound of wind, nor the roar of a beast.

It was the sound of footsteps, rhythmic and deliberately hushed. One, two, three... there were at least five people. There were also the subtle sounds of metal rubbing against leather, and... a faint scent of humanity, mixed with the stench of sweat and cheap liquor.

He was very familiar with this scent.

"Master!" Su Ming called out in his mind.

"Northwest, about two hundred paces away! Five people, it's the bandits from last time. Drive the cart behind the rocks in the gully to the right!" Lin Yu's voice reached his mind the moment Su Ming called out to him.

A layer of cold sweat instantly broke out on Su Ming's back.

He reached out abruptly and pressed down on the shafts of the mule cart.

"Stop!"

His voice was not loud, but it carried an unquestionable calmness.

"What's wrong?" Old Man Qian was startled and instinctively pulled the reins.

Zhao Rui immediately poked his head out of the carriage and asked nervously, "What is it? Su Ming, is something wrong?"

Su Ming did not answer. He listened intently, his clear eyes fixed on the dense forest to the northwest. After a moment, he lowered his voice and spoke as quickly as possible, "Old Man Qian, drive the cart behind those rocks in the gully! Quickly! Don't make a sound!"

The faces of Old Man Qian and Zhao Rui turned pale in an instant.

The experience from last time flooded back into their minds instantly. Old Man Qian's hands were shaking like a sieve, but the instinct for survival made him obey immediately. Trembling, he drove the mule away from the small path and hid the cart behind a huge rock.

"Get off! Get down!" Su Ming hissed. He jumped off the mule cart first, pulled the still-dazed Zhao Rui, hid in the gap between the rocks and a thicket of thorns, and pressed him firmly to the ground.

Zhao Rui was trembling all over, his teeth chattering with a "clack-clack" sound. He wanted to say something, but was stopped by Su Ming's icy gaze. That gaze said: If you want to live, shut up.

Zhao Rui immediately clamped his hand over his mouth, his eyes wide with terror.

Old Man Qian also scrambled over. The three of them, plus the mule, held their breath, curled up in the narrow rock crevice, their hearts pounding wildly.

Old Man Qian gently stroked the mule's neck. The equally restless mule felt its Master's soothing touch and slowly calmed down.

Soon, the sound of footsteps approached from afar.

"Damn it! This godforsaken place is so damn hard to walk!" a rough, grating voice cursed.

"Shut up!" another gloomy voice replied—it was the Scar-faced man. "Keep your eyes peeled! Don't let the government soldiers get close without us seeing them!"

Hearing this voice, Zhao Rui, hiding behind the rock, stiffened, the fear almost suffocating him.

He stared fixedly at Su Ming's profile.

Su Ming lay on the ground, motionless, his face pressed against the cold earth, eyes slightly closed, as if he had merged with the surrounding soil and rocks. That composure was a world apart from the terror he felt at this moment.

Zhao Rui, not knowing where he found the strength, also mimicked Su Ming, burying his face in the fallen leaves, desperately suppressing the whimpers in his throat.

The figures of five bandits appeared on the small path, all carrying gleaming weapons in their hands. They scanned their surroundings vigilantly, their gazes as sharp as falcons.

One of the bandits walked near where they were hiding, stopped, and unbuckled his belt.

"I'm taking a piss."

A stream of heat poured onto a tree root not far away, making a "hissing" sound.

The hearts of the three of them were in their throats. Zhao Rui could even smell the pungent stench of urine, and his stomach churned violently.

The Scar-faced man urged impatiently, "Hurry up! What are you dawdling for!"

The bandit who was urinating pulled up his pants and muttered, "Bad luck!"

As he turned, he kicked a stone. The stone rolled over with a "rumble" and stopped right in front of Su Ming's fingertips.

Su Ming's body remained motionless, not even his eyelids twitched.

The bandits walked away, cursing, and the sound of their footsteps gradually faded at the other end of the forest.

A long silence.

Who knows how much time passed. Not until the birds began to sing in the forest again did Old Man Qian collapse to the ground, as if his bones had been removed, panting heavily.

"Gone... are they gone?"

Su Ming slowly raised his head, listened intently for a moment, and then nodded gently, "They're gone."

Zhao Rui finally loosened his hand from his mouth, collapsing on the ground as if completely drained, his clothes soaked through with cold sweat on his back. He raised his head and looked at Su Ming, his eyes filled with extreme complexity. There was the relief of surviving a disaster, the lingering fear, but even more, a sense of reliance and conviction that he himself could not clearly articulate.

Old Man Qian stood up tremblingly, walked to Su Ming, his lips quivering, "Xiao Ming... how... how did you know they were coming?"

Su Ming stood up, brushed the dust off his body, and calmly offered an excuse he had long prepared, "When I was young, I hunted in the mountains with my second brother and learned a little bit about listening to the wind and distinguishing positions. The sound of the wind just now wasn't right; it didn't sound like it came from the forest."

This explanation was half-true and half-false, but it was enough to get by.

Old Man Qian nodded as if he understood, his eyes filled with awe as he looked at Su Ming.

"Crisis averted. The second lesson of practical application for 'The Way of Cautious Survival', passed with full marks!" Lin Yu let out a long sigh of relief. "Disciple, your on-the-spot reaction and crisis management ability already show one-tenth of your Master's style. Not bad, not bad."

Zhao Rui also crawled up. He walked to Su Ming's side, opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but couldn't utter a single word. In the end, he just lowered his head and squeezed out two words in a barely audible, muddled voice.

"...Thanks."

Su Ming glanced at him and said nothing.

For the rest of the journey, no one dared to be the slightest bit lax.

Not until evening did the silhouette of a towering city wall finally appear on the horizon, and only then did the three of them finally let their hanging hearts settle completely.

The official road paved with bluestone, the pedestrians coming and going, the hustle and bustle of traffic... all this earthly warmth felt incredibly intimate and safe at this moment.

They had finally arrived again: Qingshi Town.