According to the map Wu Liuqi got from Maocai, there were three possible routes to reach the Xuanwu Kingdom.
One of them would land far from the kingdom itself, so Wu Liuqi immediately ruled that one out.
Of the remaining two, one passed through Treasure Island, and the other through the Nation of Abilities (Yineng Country). The latter route followed the coastline of the Nation of Abilities, then passed along the coast of the Great Li Kingdom before finally arriving at the Xuanwu Kingdom.
One of these routes was mainly over open sea. If anything went wrong out there, he'd be stranded in the vast ocean with no help—calling for the heavens or the earth would do no good. He'd simply be waiting to die.
So, Wu Liuqi chose the route along the coastline of the Nation of Abilities. At present, he had just landed there.
"Ugh!" Wu Liuqi clutched his stomach, his knees buckling as he collapsed to the ground. "I can't believe the mighty Wu Liuqi, the legendary assassin, actually forgot to bring food. Thank goodness I made it to the Nation of Abilities."
After lying on the ground for a while, he pulled himself up and started walking inland.
He needed to restock his supplies before he could resume his journey.
The coastline of the Nation of Abilities was a long stretch of sandy beach, and beyond it lay a small forest.
"Help! Somebody help me!" Deeper inside the forest, a young girl was being slowly surrounded by three burly men.
The one in the middle sneered, "Scream all you want. Even if you scream your throat raw, no one's coming to save you."
"Raw throat, raw throat—ha!" The men burst into laughter. "This place is so remote. What are the odds someone just happens to be passing by? If someone does pass by, I'll eat sh—"
Before he could finish, Wu Liuqi strolled out casually from behind a tree.
"Wow, you guys really know how to party," Wu Liuqi said with an exaggerated expression, glancing at them. Then he asked, "By the way, this forest is huge—do you know where I can find something to eat?"
The three thugs exchanged a look, then suddenly turned toward Wu Liuqi and shouted, "Kill him!"
"Hey! Why are you trying to kill me?!" Wu Liuqi yelled and turned to run.
As he ran, he tossed out his scissors and controlled them with his qi, launching a sudden attack.
The scissors moved with incredible speed. The thugs hadn't expected an attack, and for a brief moment, they froze.
But they quickly recovered.
In that instant, a metallic sheen appeared on their skin.
"We're not just some nobodies!" one of the thugs shouted.
But before he could finish, Wu Liuqi's scissors tore through their defenses, causing the metallic coating to fade instantly.
Fortunately, Wu Liuqi wasn't aiming to kill, so the attack stopped just short of being lethal.
"Thank you for saving me!" the girl ran over with a look of deep gratitude, grabbing Wu Liuqi's hand.
"No need, no need," Wu Liuqi said, but a mischievous smile crept across his face.
She was undeniably a pretty girl, and as a grown man… well, some things go without saying.
Gurgle!
Right then, Wu Liuqi's stomach let out a loud growl at the worst possible moment.
"Heehee!" The girl giggled at the sound.
Scratching his head awkwardly, Wu Liuqi said, "So… do you know where I can find food around here?"
She smiled. "Sure, come with me to my village. You can eat and rest there."
"What about them…" Wu Liuqi glanced at the three thugs lying on the ground.
"This is the Nation of Abilities. They all have some kind of power. Your attack didn't do lasting damage—they'll be fine," the girl said with a shake of her head. She looked at them with disgust. "They were trying to do that kind of thing to me. Leaving them here is already letting them off easy."
"Fair enough." Wu Liuqi sensed their life signs and found nothing serious, so he relaxed a bit.
"By the way, I haven't asked your name yet," he said.
"I'm Li Xingruo," she said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "And you? What's your name?"
"I'm Wu Liuqi," he answered proudly.
"Hmm, I'll just call you Aqi, then," she said with a smile. "Come on, Aqi, follow me."
Li Xingruo led Wu Liuqi to a small village nestled within the forest.
Though surrounded by trees, the village was peaceful—and all Wu Liuqi really cared about was a place to eat and rest. Whether it was hidden in a forest or not didn't matter to him.
"Xingruo, you were gone just a short while, and you've already brought back a handsome young man?" joked an elderly woman under a tree at the village entrance. Her sharp eyes had immediately noticed them, and her face lit up with interest.
"Grandma Hao, he's my savior," Li Xingruo said, blushing slightly and stamping her foot. She then explained everything that had happened.
"What did you say?!" An elderly man—probably a bit hot-tempered—suddenly stood up, enraged by her story.
He looked like he was about to grab his cane and storm off to fight the three thugs himself.
"Cough, cough, cough!" But then he started coughing violently.
Luckily, another old woman quickly patted his back to help him calm down.
Li Xingruo quickly said, "Alright, Grandpa Siqi, don't get so worked up. Aqi already dealt with them."
"Young man, I like you," Grandpa Siqi said as he walked up to Wu Liuqi and gave his shoulder a hearty pat. While no one else was looking, he shot Wu Liuqi a knowing look—one that only men would understand.
"Okay, Grandpa Siqi, enough talking. Aqi's still hungry—we're going now," Li Xingruo said and led Wu Liuqi to her home.
That night...
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