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Ah Niu had learned about killing someone by borrowing a knife from books, but he had never used the tactic before.
He had always abided by the principle of not offending others unless he was offended first.
Xie Laizi lived in the last house at the entrance to the mountain in the village, right by the foot of the mountain. Having such a person as Wang Haikun's informant was definitely not a good thing.
Qin Niu's strength had grown powerful now; he could even take down Black Bear and would inevitably go hunting in the mountains in the future.
He was not afraid of Wang Haikun with his current strength, but the brother behind Wang Haikun was someone he was very wary of.
Although he did not know what position Wang Haikun's brother held in the Black Tiger Gang, being able to join the gang meant that, given two or three years, one's strength could completely transform. Whether it was cultivation techniques or martial arts, or even weapons and armor, there was an opportunity to obtain them.
And this was only one aspect.
What was truly terrifying was the Black Tiger Gang behind him.
It was not only the largest official power in the region but also a giant beast with experts as numerous as the clouds, far more terrifying than the Yan Family by a thousandfold, even ten thousandfold.
If Qin Niu provoked such an existence, the troubles would be endless.
If things went poorly, he could be wiped out without a trace.
His current strength was at best enough to kill Wang Haikun; he certainly had no ability to confront any member of the Black Tiger Gang.
Therefore, his strategy was to be as forbearing as possible and avoid direct conflict with Wang Haikun.
As long as he could gain three to five years' time, he could quietly cultivate in the mountain village. By then, both his cultivation level and Termite would be strong enough that he could act without fear.
The smartest move right now was to use Wang Haikun to get rid of Xie Laizi.
Don't be fooled by his age of sixteen; in terms of cunning strategies, Wang Haikun and Xie Laizi combined were no match for him.
"Not talking, huh?"
Wang Haikun usually acted without any regard for laws or morals in the village, and now Qin Niu dared to hem and haw in front of him, hiding something from him.
He could not tolerate this.
Ah Niu's eyes glared fiercely, emitting a terrifying light.
Bang!
He punched a table directly.
In an instant, the poor little wooden table shattered into seven or eight pieces, completely falling apart.
To ordinary people, the power of this punch was frightening.
But in Qin Niu's eyes, he had roughly gauged Wang Haikun's level of cultivation.
At most, it was within 40/100 at the Mortal Realm Onefold.
Possibly, it was around 35 to 37.
It is said that Black Tiger Fist is the famous core technique of the Black Tiger Gang, and at a certain level, one can clench their fists into energy and shatter giant rocks as easily as tofu pudding, as if playing.
Wang Haikun's Black Tiger Fist must have been taught to him by his brother.
Now that he displayed it, its power was only enough to intimidate ordinary people, which was simply a disgrace to the martial art.
Either Wang Haikun's talent was poor, and he was lazy and hardly practiced, or his brother's status in the Black Tiger Gang was not high, and he had only learned some basics.
"Aiyo, Lord Haikun, Lord Haikun, don't get angry! I'll talk, I'll talk. I only heard about this from the village gossips, and it might not be accurate. I just overheard them saying... that Xie Laizi often visits your home when you're not in!"
Qin Niu was 'scared' to death by that punch.
He hurriedly confessed the truth.
"What does that mean?"
Wang Haikun was one of those brute force without much strategy, the muscular and fierce type of person.
Though cunning and suspicious, his mind was far inferior to Qin Niu's.
He obviously hadn't caught on yet.
"I dare not say it, even if you beat me to death I wouldn't dare speak!"
He shook his head like a rattle drum.
The more Qin Niu acted this way, the more Wang Haikun took the bait, believing without a doubt.
"Then I'll beat you to death!"
Wang Haikun threw a fist towards Qin Niu.
Bang!
Qin Niu took the punch and felt as if his chest had been struck by a giant hammer. He was sent flying and fell to the ground.
"Hmph, didn't expect you to be so tough, kid!"
Wang Haikun had only used fifty percent of his strength in that punch; he certainly didn't want to actually kill someone and get into trouble.
The moment his fist hit Qin Niu's chest, he could feel the tight and solid pectorals under his clothing.
He didn't know that Qin Niu's cultivation had already surpassed his.
It was the kind of top-notch physique that seems skinny when clothed but muscular once undressed.
If Qin Niu took off his clothes, his eight-pack abs would be very noticeable, and the two slabs of muscle on his chest would be particularly large.
"Please spare me, Lord Haikun! Uncle Xie specifically visits when you're not at home; I dare not say what he's after. I can only warn you to guard against fire in the backyard of your home."
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Qin Niu took the punch as part of a ruse to play the victim.
In order to convince a cunning and suspicious person like Wang Haikun, it wouldn't be easy unless some real pain was involved.
"Be careful your backyard doesn't catch fire?"
Wang Haikun's big, bell-like eyes rolled, and then it seemed something occurred to him.
His expression turned extremely dark in an instant.
"You damn bastard dare to covet my wife? You must be tired of living!"
Wang Haikun didn't pay any more attention to Qin Niu, who was sitting on the ground clutching his chest, his face a mix of pain and fear, and quickly left instead.
It was bad enough that Xie Laizi provided him with false information, but to dare covet his wife, as long as Wang Haikun was 60% sure it was true, given his temper, he would stop at nothing to kill Xie Laizi.
"Haikun, what's got you so fired up? Ah Niu is an orphan and quite pitiable; don't pick on the kid. Come on, let's go to my house for a couple of drinks, top-quality brew I usually don't bring out for guests. You and I are clan, I can't be stingy with you."
Wang Furen was indeed there to get Qin Niu out of a tight spot.
Wang Haikun half-heartedly followed him to his house, and they probably started drinking.
Qin Niu got up as if nothing had happened.
Yet his eyes were extremely cold.
Another fire needed to be set!
He left the house carrying a chopper, rope, and carrying pole, ready to make a trip up the mountain.
He had to chop a bundle of firewood to bring back home and check on the termite nest by the way.
With Wang Haikun at Wang Furen's house next door, he wouldn't be foolish enough to fuss with bear meat at this time.
After drinking a bellyful of bear blood in the morning, his body was brimming with strength, and he didn't feel hungry at all.
He checked his cultivation level.
Mortal Realm Onefold 38.5/100.
So terrifying!
From drinking the bear blood last night until now, his cultivation had surged by 0.9, and it was still rapidly increasing.
The nourishing effect of the bear blood was truly frightening.
Qin Niu saw several children playing by the road in the village.
"Brother Ah Niu, come play with us!"
The kids were quite fond of Qin Niu.
Because before Old Man Liu passed away, Qin Niu often taught them new games and would spend time playing with them when he could.
"I need to go up the mountain to chop wood! Er Dan, come here a sec."
A seven or eight-year-old kid with a pigtail sticking straight up immediately scampered over to follow Qin Niu.
"Brother Ah Niu, what's up? Are you taking me up the mountain to chop wood and pick wild fruit?"
Er Dan asked excitedly.
"There are tigers and evil wolves in the mountains that eat people; I dare not take you into the mountains. If something happens, your dad would flay my skin alive." Qin Niu was most impressed by Er Dan's fearless nature.
Out of all the kids, he had the most courage.
Er Dan was mischievous, peeking at women bathing, throwing feces into others' wells... he had done it all and his father had hung him from the rafters and thrashed him with thorny branches.
But the kid had thick skin; the day after being beaten, he stealthily peed into the teapot of a village family's house.
That incident ended up costing his father ten wen money in compensation, naturally followed by another severe beating.
"You go to Xie Laizi's house and tell him, just say Lord Kun went to Qin Niu's house and found nothing, he's looking to settle scores with him, so he better watch out!"
Qin Niu whispered into Er Dan's ear.
"Keep this to yourself, don't tell anyone. Next time I go into the city, I'll buy you some sweets."
"Heehee, alright, alright! Leave it to me, don't worry!"
Er Dan never doubted Qin Niu's promises.
Because Qin Niu had never broken a promise to them.
Such good news made Er Dan beam with joy, and he dashed off toward the mountain path.
"Er Dan, where are you off to?"
"None of your business, I'll be right back!"
Er Dan ran off without looking back.
Qin Niu just smiled. Although Er Dan was naughty and reckless, he always got the job done when entrusted with something.
He could also keep a secret.
As the saying goes, you can tell a person's future from their childhood.
With such traits, Er Dan most likely wouldn't end up too badly in the future.
Everything was within Qin Niu's calculations; even if Xie Laizi didn't die today, he was bound for misfortune soon enough.
And with Xie Laizi's limited wisdom, it was unlikely he could discern the trap within the trap.