Wang Li was furious.
This was the first time she had ever been threatened by a slave.
The problem was, in a situation like this...
She truly didn't know what to do. If she dared to scream, Su Qing would absolutely crush the poison pill in his hand.
And then he would rush over to trade his life for hers.
Wang Li had never been in a real fight. Despite practicing Martial Arts for so long, she had never fought for her life.
Now, someone was suddenly ready to die to kill her. It was a wonder she could remain calm at all.
Wang Li sat on her chair, her face devoid of expression, locked in a standoff with Su Qing.
Su Qing waited as well, casually picking up a plain grass cake and starting to eat it.
Wang Li watched Su Qing eat the grass cake in bewilderment, but figured that someone who studied medicine shouldn't be judged by normal standards.
...
Gradually, the night deepened.
Su Qing smiled silently at Wang Li and said in a flippant tone, "Don't go screaming now."
"Otherwise, once I get out of the Wang Family estate, you'll be in for a world of trouble."
Su Qing backed away silently.
Then, in a flash, he bolted out the door.
He kicked off the nearest wall a few times and scrambled up.
He sprinted across the eaves and walls of the Wang Family compound.
He knew that he was on the west side of the Wang Family residence.
What he held wasn't poison at all. It was just a bluff to fool Wang Li.
The human traffickers had already taken his Small Poison Pills. Where would he get more poison?
So he frantically fled towards the west.
He didn't make much noise.
Surprisingly, the woman didn't shout for his capture.
This made Su Qing quite happy.
"The vast sky is for the birds to fly free."
'Damn that human trafficker. After I've mastered this Pile Skill, you just wait.'
Su Qing's heart still burned with anger toward that trafficker.
Su Qing left the Wang Family grounds very quickly.
The County City was dotted with lights at night.
The brightest lights seemed to be coming from near the river.
Su Qing walked a few steps.
Suddenly, a gust of wind blew past.
It was an unnatural chill that gave Su Qing goosebumps.
'A Demon Fiend?'
Su Qing tensed up.
He didn't turn around, but a glance from the corner of his eye confirmed the street was still full of people.
'Was it my imagination?'
Su Qing shrugged off the top half of his Wang Family slave uniform, tying it around his waist. Bare-chested, he began searching for a place to stay in the County City.
He wanted to find a place to stay for the night.
Su Qing was penniless. How could he afford to buy a place to live?
He didn't even know how to earn money.
'I hope this goes smoothly.'
Su Qing prayed silently. As long as he wasn't as unlucky as last time, when he'd stumbled right into a human trafficker's den, he'd be fine.
Gradually, Su Qing walked to the city gate.
The County City was divided into an Inner and Outer City.
The Inner City was generally home to the wealthy, while the outer city was for farmers and the like.
He noticed along the way that every house in the Inner City seemed to be occupied.
The lanterns burned particularly bright.
It was a bustling place, far more prosperous than Flood Village.
'What should I do?'
'Am I going to have to sleep on the street?'
Not knowing what else to do, Su Qing wandered toward the bustling road by the river.
The street was lined with colorful lanterns. More importantly, the second floors of the buildings were filled with young women striking seductive poses.
He could faintly hear their calls: "Come and play, young master..." and "My lord, why haven't you come to see your little servant today..."
Su Qing looked at the lively scene but didn't even consider going over for a closer look.
He needed a good night's rest. First thing in the morning, he would head to the outer city.
The Wang Family wouldn't go to great lengths to find a single slave.
'Just a single slave, after all.'
Wang Li didn't really care about him; she was merely curious.
He sighed.
Su Qing couldn't help but sigh. He was all alone, with no one to rely on and no attachments. 'If I die in this world,' he thought, 'my corpse will probably just be food for the flies.'
He leaned against an embankment by the river.
Without much precaution, Su Qing lay down to sleep.
In the Inner City, no one would bother a clean, bare-chested man. It wasn't likely he'd be snatched off the street and sold into slavery here.
But Su Qing wasn't thinking about that.
He just felt too tired. He was mentally exhausted, and weary of the rules of survival in this place.
He wanted, just once, to experience the wonderful feeling of peace from his past life.
So, Su Qing let down his guard.
He fell into a deep sleep.
...
Early the next morning, Su Qing awoke, feeling a bit damp.
He realized he was no longer living in the Wang Family estate.
"Time to get up."
Su Qing got up with a grin.
The night's sleep had restored his spirits.
He went towards the city gate.
Leaving the city gate was easy. Su Qing was soon out of the County City's Inner City.
He arrived in the outer city.
The outer city was clearly different.
It was much dirtier and messier, even at the city gate.
The clothes of many of the common folk were patched and mended.
Green bricks still paved the main road.
The further Su Qing walked, the road turned from brick to stone.
And then, it became a dirt road.
「Not long after.」
Su Qing spotted a small, dilapidated hut.
The hut was tiny, less than ten square meters.
It was in shambles, without even a door, and thick with dust inside.
Obviously, no one lived there.
Half the roof was caved in.
It was so rundown that even the children playing nearby didn't use it as a makeshift fort, which showed just how decrepit it was.
'This is the place.'
After tidying up a little, Su Qing sat on the floor.
Realm: Third-class [First Layer Cyan Snake Posture: Entry Level (46/500)]
'Second Layer Cyan Snake Posture... I hope I can successfully synthesize it.'
Su Qing grew excited. He had already reached the Third-class Realm without even advancing the First Layer Cyan Snake Posture to the next stage. 'What would the effects of the Second Layer be?'
'Now that I'm out here, I'm not short on food, but I'm short on money and Martial Arts.'
'And I'm short on strength.'
Su Qing silently thought for a while.
Then he stood up and began practicing the Cyan Snake Posture right where he was.
Because his strength had improved from practicing the Cyan Snake Posture, the first hour of practice was a breeze.
'Persistence is victory.'
Free from the interference of the Wang Family and Wang Li, Su Qing relied on his Chaotic Life Body. Aside from the basic necessities of eating, drinking, relieving himself, and sleeping, he spent all his time practicing the Cyan Snake Posture.
「Nightfall.」
Firelight flickered inside the small, broken-down hut.
Su Qing continued to practice the Cyan Snake Posture.
Realm: Third-class [First Layer Cyan Snake Posture: Entry Level (67/500)]
Today alone, he had consumed three grass cakes.
That was normally a three-day supply.
Su Qing had eaten them all.
When he got thirsty, he would go to a nearby stream. The water quality was excellent, but Su Qing still filtered it through several layers of his clothing before drinking.
He was afraid of getting sick.
One couldn't be careless, even when practicing Martial Arts.
...
'Tomorrow morning I'll bathe, then look for some herbs that can clear heat and detoxify so I can synthesize them.'
'I need to at least change my appearance drastically.'
Su Qing was happy to find he was starting to build muscle and was no longer so scrawny.
His Cyan Snake Posture had improved by another point.
[First Layer Cyan Snake Posture: Entry Level (68/500)]
Su Qing stared at the firewood he had lit, feeling a dreamlike sense of disbelief.
The dream of being free again.
'Replicate the First Layer Cyan Snake Posture.'
After so many replications, Su Qing quickly felt mentally exhausted and leaned against the wall, dozing off.
Two more days.
Then he could try to synthesize the Second Layer Cyan Snake Posture.
He could try tomorrow if he was impatient, but synthesizing Second Layer items—even something as simple as a grass cake—had a chance of failure.
Su Qing prepared for the worst and decided to wait patiently. This way, even if the synthesis failed, his losses would be minimal.
While he was dozing.
Su Qing felt something was not right.
It seemed to have gotten chilly.
Opening his eyes, Su Qing saw that his campfire was about to go out.
"Shit!"
Su Qing hurriedly added more firewood, shielding it from the draft.
His heart hammered in his chest with tension.
'There's a Demon Fiend.'
'Trying to extinguish the flame means this Demon Fiend is afraid of fire.'
Right now, Su Qing's only thought was to protect the fire. As he huddled closer to the flames, the eerie chill from before slowly faded away.
...