On the driver’s seat at the front of the carriage, Song Gaoli turned his head to look at the small bamboo basket placed by the cabin door.
"So that's why you brought a live ewe on this trip—it was for this little thing."
"This is a tiger, you know. It looks small now, but it’ll eat people when it grows up. It’s dangerous."
Song Qiming held a rope in his hand, leading the tethered ewe as it walked alongside the carriage.
"If we raise it from a cub, it shouldn't harm its own family. If it gets too dangerous when it's older, we’ll just build a big iron cage to keep it in."
Seeing that the tiny creature wasn't moving, Song Gaoli reached out and scooped it into his arms.
The little white tiger, startled awake, couldn't even open its eyes. It could only feebly bat at Song Gaoli's hand with its two small front paws.
"I have to say, this fur is really warm. Its belly is toasty."
Song Qiming reached over to give it a pat. "Don't mess with it. It’s only three days old and very weak."
Song Gaoli placed the cub back and casually ran his fingers over the tiger skin lining the bamboo basket.
It was smooth and glossy, the tiger stripes looking incredibly majestic and beautiful.
It really paid to know martial arts and how to hunt; you could get things like this without spending a penny.
Meanwhile, Phantom, the Second Hall Master of the Life-Seizing Sect, had arrived in Kaikang City with ten elites.
After meeting up with Rakshasa Ghost, the two began to discuss how to deal with Song Jinzhao.
Rakshasa Ghost shared the information he had gathered in Kaikang City during this time with Phantom.
"The portrait provided by the sect for the mission only shows Song Jinzhao's face. According to what I’ve gathered, they went to the Kaikang City yamen to report the incident after the killings."
"There are five of them in total: two males and two females, all only in their teens, plus a two-year-old baby boy."
"I have examined the five bodies of our people. Two were killed by a longsword, and one of them was also poisoned."
"The other three were killed by a spear. It should be the work of the same person—the technique was clean, decisive, and extremely heavy-handed."
"Especially Huangquan Ghost. His body was covered in wounds, his limbs were all broken, and the spearhead was driven directly through the top of his head, shattering the skull. The battle must have been intense, but he was likely suppressed the entire time. I suspect Song Jinzhao was the one who did it."
The hand Phantom used to grip his teacup was hauntingly white, as if it had not seen sunlight for years.
The blue veins on the back of his hand were clearly visible, and something resembling insects seemed to be crawling beneath the skin, looking incredibly eerie.
"Based on the start date of Anyang Academy, they should already be on the road. We’ll strike in Kaikang. I don't want to waste time on a mission worth a mere five thousand taels."
The masked Rakshasa Ghost cast a fleeting glance at the other's arrogant expression. "Huangquan Ghost was killed. This is no longer just a five-thousand-tael transaction; it concerns the reputation of the Life-Seizing Sect. We must not underestimate the enemy."
Phantom’s sharp fingernails pierced his palm. Blood dripped into the teacup, and several tiny nematodes began to swim in the liquid.
Their bodies arched repeatedly, looking as though they might leap out of the water at any moment.
"That was because Huangquan Ghost was incompetent and only knew how to use brute force. I will make Song Jinzhao wish she were dead."
The moment Rakshasa Ghost saw the nematodes, he instinctively leaned back, his scarred face hidden beneath the mask filled with loathing.
If it weren't for the Sect Leader’s orders, he would never have wanted to go on a mission with Phantom. He felt as though the man even had bugs in his mouth when he spoke.
As the carriage continued its journey, the closer the four got to Kaikang City, the more their vigilance grew.
Song Gaoli blew a breath onto the polished, gleaming tip of a crossbow bolt and wiped away the moisture with the hem of his robe.
"I have a bad feeling about this."
Song Qiming glanced at him speechlessly and held up five fingers. "Since we left Xining City, you’ve said that phrase no less than fifty times in three days. I’m almost tired of hearing it."
Song Gaoli shook his head with a heavy heart. "I just feel a chill down my back, like someone is watching us."
Song Qiming tried to reassure him. "When a person is too tense, they start seeing ghosts. If someone were following us, Sister would definitely be the first to notice. Since she hasn't said anything, it means we're fine."
