Chapter 65 - 47: Ambushing the Weird
After leaving the Lin Mansion, Lin Yan rented a horse from the stables at the city gate and rode toward Sanshan County.
Just a few miles out of the city, Lin Yan pulled on the reins and looked at a partially overturned flatbed cart up ahead.
"Young man, could you please help me lift this?"
A middle-aged man was propping up the tilted side of the cart with his body, keeping the cargo from falling off. The moment he saw Lin Yan, he hurriedly called out for help.
"Alright."
Lin Yan nodded, dismounted, and walked toward the man.
One step, two steps, three steps.
When he was still about five feet from the man, Lin Yan suddenly drew the long saber at his waist and slashed out violently!
A chilling flash of steel!
The man’s expression changed in an instant. His body, supposedly pinned by the cart, slipped out as slick as an eel. At the same time, his right hand shot out, pulling a long spear from beneath the cart.
The long saber missed its mark, striking the cart. With a loud CRACK, the vehicle split in two, and its cargo tumbled to the ground.
"How did you figure it out?"
Ma Xingjian’s previous demeanor vanished, replaced by a cold, sinister gaze fixed on Lin Yan.
Since his cover was blown, he dropped the act.
But he was still puzzled. The setup wasn’t brilliant, but it wasn’t terrible, either. Most importantly, he understood Lin Yan’s background.
’He comes from an ordinary background and has only practiced Martial Arts for about a year. Forget experience out in the world, he’s probably barely fought anyone. How could a greenhorn like him see through it at a glance?’
"Figure out what?"
Lin Yan stood with his saber in hand, his expression calm. "You were trapped by the cart. I was just helping you get free."
Ma Xingjian’s mouth twitched. ’Help me get free? Is that any way to help someone?’
That slash had clearly been aimed at his head. If he hadn’t dodged, he would be the one split in two right now, not the cart.
Ma Xingjian didn’t press the issue. He knew the kid wouldn’t tell him anyway.
"It doesn’t matter. You can act tough now. I’ll get the answer out of you right before you die."
He had been targeting Lin Yan for days and had wanted to make his move inside the city. But Lin Yan never took the back alleys. Even though a shortcut with fewer people existed between the Martial Arts Hall and his home, the kid would rather take the longer route on the main road. This had left Ma Xingjian waiting in vain in those alleys on several occasions.
Then, this morning, he had seen Lin Yan heading for the city gate with a bundle and realized he was leaving town. So, he had rushed ahead to set up an ambush outside the city.
He was short on time, so the trap wasn’t perfect. It would have been great if Lin Yan had fallen for it, but it didn’t matter that he hadn’t. It would just cost him a little more time.
"I’ve answered your question. Now you answer one of mine. I have no quarrel with you, so why are you ambushing me here?"
Lin Yan looked at his opponent. ’As for my enemies... besides Cheng Zonghan, all the others are dead.’
’This man must be a Third-Time Skin Smoothing Martial Artist; otherwise, he wouldn’t have dared to ambush me. But Cheng Zonghan doesn’t have the status to hire a Third-Time Skin Smoothing Martial Artist to deal with me.’
"Don’t worry. I’ll tell you the answer right before you die."
Ma Xingjian didn’t plan to drag this out. This was a county road, and someone could appear at any moment. The spear in his hand trembled, its tip blurring into a constellation of cold stars as he thrust at Lin Yan!
Lin Yan raised his saber in a horizontal sweep, and the two weapons clashed.
CLANG!
Amid the ringing of steel, Lin Yan glanced down to see a chip the size of a rice grain had appeared on his blade.
Seeing the chip in Lin Yan’s long saber, Ma Xingjian smiled. His second thrust followed instantly.
This thrust was faster and more ruthless, the trembling spear tip a blur that threatened all of Lin Yan’s vital points.
Lin Yan swung his saber to parry.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
After a few more exchanges.
SNAP!
With a sharp crack, the long saber in Lin Yan’s hand snapped in two. The top half of the blade flew off and stuck into the ground.
Ma Xingjian stared at the broken half-saber in Lin Yan’s hand, stunned for a moment before bursting into derisive laughter. His eyes were full of ridicule. "Of course. For someone from a poor family like you, reaching the Third-Time of Skin Smoothing must be thanks to your ancestors’ good deeds. Where would you get the spare money to have a good saber forged? This piece of junk, you probably just bought it from some random blacksmith, didn’t you?"
’A weapon is half a Martial Artist’s life. Any Martial Artist who has spent years out in the world and fought in life-or-death battles knows the importance of their weapon. Only a poor greenhorn like Lin Yan would be too stingy to pay for a quality blade.’
’The heavens are truly unfair, letting someone like this break through to the Third-Time of Skin Smoothing.’
Lin Yan looked down at the broken saber in his hand, his expression unchanging. ’This blade was just a decoy. It was never meant to compare to expensive, forged weapons.’
’I only used the saber first to probe his strength.’
But he deliberately put on an expression of sudden realization. "I have no quarrel with you, yet you mock me so. There can only be one explanation: you’re jealous of my Martial Arts talent. You’re attacking me out of jealousy."
His face was a picture of certainty, as if he had just unraveled the whole truth.
"Jealousy?"
Ma Xingjian sneered. While that was indeed part of the reason he’d chosen Lin Yan as his target, he would never admit it.
"Me, jealous of you? That’s the biggest joke I’ve ever heard."
Masking his true feelings with a loud laugh, Ma Xingjian retorted, "Fine, I’ll let you die knowing the truth. I’m killing you to frame the Four Seas Gang. It’ll force your master and the Yang Family Martial Arts Hall to side with the Inspection Bureau."
Originally, Ma Xingjian had no intention of revealing the truth. He wasn’t the type who couldn’t keep a secret. But seeing Lin Yan’s smug certainty, his firm belief that this was all about jealousy, made Ma Xingjian unable to resist refuting him. He had to make Lin Yan understand that he wasn’t being killed for his talent, but purely because he was a Martial Arts Academy Disciple of the Yang Family.
"Frame the Four Seas Gang?"
Lin Yan frowned, his mind turning to the recent situation in the city. Rumor had it that the Four Seas Gang and the Inspection Bureau were now openly hostile to one another.