Yan Liqiang knelt in front of the old man and directed the old man to tightly hold onto his shoulders. With the old man's upper body leaning against him, he carefully grabbed the old man's thigh and slowly stood up…
"Sir, are you alright? If you feel pain, just let me know…"
"Young man, you're such a kind soul. Sorry for troubling you…" The old man was touched.
"It's alright, it's alright. Let me bring you down the mountain…"
"Okay. The road is slippery and steep. Be careful, young man…"
"Don't you worry Sir…"
For Yan Liqiang, carrying an old man whose weight was not even seventy kilograms was a simple task. He did not even feel fatigue as he walked carefully down the mountain.
"Young man, where are you from…"
As they traveled down the mountain, the old man struck up a conversation with Yan Liqiang.
"I don't have a home. The four corners of the world is my home…" Yan Liqiang smiled sadly.
"You've been drifting about at such a young age. What about your parents…"
"They've passed away…"
"Ay, young man… You're such a fine looking gentleman. I did not know that you were facing such hardship." The old man let out a sigh.
"Hehe… There are a lot more out there who are more unfortunate than I am. At least I still have my limbs with me. I can stand on my own feet. Sometimes when I think about it, I realized that I shouldn't wish for too much!"
"Young man, you're quite optimistic. You're even more mature than me!"
"It's nothing. I'm simply trying to enjoy life. I can't drown myself in misery all day long can I? It'd annoy the people around me and cause suffering for myself anyways. We as humans must not dwell in the sorrows of our past. We should look forward and strive for a better tomorrow…"
"Yes! We must always strive for a better tomorrow when we're alive in this world!" the old man laughed, "Just look at me. I'm still a poor man with no family despite my age, but I will still gather herbs in the mountains every single day. It does not earn much, but those herbs can save lives. This is how I've managed to press on everyday!"
"Sir, is there nobody else living with you?"
"Nope. I live alone. Fate is what brings people together. You can't insist to get something that was destined to not be yours. It's futile…" The old man let out a sigh.
"Yes, it's all up to fate!"
It was a rare chance to come across a person that he could get along with, and Yan Liqiang was able to open up to the old man even though they did not share a close relationship. He finally was able to vent his frustrations ever since the day he had reincarnated into this world.
"Oh yes, I remember that the road you came from led to the Longhu Sect, you must be one of their disciples…"
"It was my intention to join the Longhu Sect, but I was rejected as my background was unknown…" Yan Liqiang let out a sigh..
"That's right. All the major sects will investigate the background of their disciples. They are usually wary of drifters like you with no clear background, as you might be a spy assigned to infiltrate their center. Sects like these would have enemies and people who are jealous of their wealth. To safeguard their secrets, each sect would usually have very high standards for their disciples, and would normally only accept disciples with good family backgrounds…"
Yan Liqiang remained silent. The old man's words reflected the despair he felt. The rules set by the major sects meant that he would never be able to join any of them in his quest to learn some advanced martial arts. His journey of vendetta was hopeless.
At that moment, a thought surfaced in Yan Liqiang's mind — in the worst case scenario, he could just go back to Pingxi Prefecture of Gan Province and try his best to get close to that corrupted official surnamed Ye. When the time was right, he would do what had to be done.
"Young man, don't give up just yet! Heaven never bars one's way. Even if you ran into a wall here, it does not mean that it's the end for you!"
Taking the old man's words as a form of consolation, Yan Liqiang smiled, "Thank you sir. I will never give up! Not until the end!"
As the two conversed, Yan Liqiang had already covered a distance of almost seven miles and was already halfway down the mountain.
"Ah!" The old man let out a sudden cry.
"What is it, sir?"
"Young man, I've forgotten something. My keys, I think I left them at the place where you ran into me earlier. Without the keys I won't be able to go home…" The old man said in an embarrassed tone, "Young man… Can you… Can you head back and help me look for the keys…"
"Sir… About that… Why don't we just break the lock? I'll get you a new one…"
The old man let out a sigh, and with a tone full of sorrow he said, "My late wife bought the key. She said that if there's a lock and a door, then there's a home. The lock came with a pair of keys, and I have been using it for years now. It's very meaningful to me, and I don't wish to damage it…"
For any other person, it would already be a charity for them to be bringing the old man down the mountain. Nine out of ten of them would definitely be disinclined to help the old man retrieve his keys. But after listening to the old man's words, Yan Liqiang merely nodded, "Alright sir. I'll leave you here while I head back and look for the keys."
With that, Yan Liqiang set the old man down on a rock by a tree at the side of the road. After asking the old man about the shape and any other characteristics of the keys, he backtracked his way up the mountain road.
Before Yan Liqiang was even fifty meters away from the old man, the old man cried, "Snake! Snake!"
Yan Liqiang turned around and spotted a snake with a triangular-shaped head, and white stripes dotted its black body that was two meters long. The snake slithered out from a bush not too far away from the tree, extending its tongue as it approached the old man.
Alarmed, the immobile old man threw dirt and tiny pieces of stone at the snake, hoping to drive it away.
Yan Liqiang was shocked as well. Without hesitating, he snapped a branch from a nearby tree and dashed toward the old man.
Maybe it was because of the stones that were thrown by the old man, or Yan Liqiang's movement, but the snake was scared away and it disappeared back into a bush at the side of the road.
As he parted the bush with the branch in his hand, Yan Liqiang could no longer spot the snake. The snake had already disappeared into the gulley and mountain streams hidden behind the bush.
When Yan Liqiang turned around, he could see that the old man's face was completely pale, and fear lingered on his face.
"Sir, what was that snake just now?"
"That was a black-scaled snake. Even a single bite can be fatal!"
"Are there a lot of snakes on Mount Longhu?"
"Of course! The 'Long' of Mount Longhu refers to the snake population on this mountain. There were a lot of vile beasts and poisonous creatures in this mountain, but their populations were drastically reduced when the Longhu Sect was formed. Many of them were either driven away or slain by the people from the Longhu Sect. However, a large population of venomous snakes remained on this mountain. I would not be afraid of such snakes if my legs were in good condition. But with how I am now…"
After listening to the old man's words, Yan Liqiang studied the thick forest surrounding them and looked at the old man's injured leg. He then knelt in front of the old man. "Sir, here, I'll carry you up the mountain. I can take care of you if you're with me. I can't be at ease if I leave you alone here. What if the snake comes back after I'm gone? I'll be committing a grave sin…"
"Sorry for troubling you…"
Yan Liqiang did not see the weird smile on the old man's face as he knelt in front of him.
Yan Liqiang began to ascend the mountain once again after carrying the old man on his back.
Yan Liqiang would've been exhausted after carrying a person up and down the mountain had he not practiced Muscle Tendon Changing and Marrow Cleansing before. Despite that, his back was dripping with sweat, and his clothes were already soaked. Even his face was a shade of red.
After carrying the old man up the mountain for almost seven miles, Yan Liqiang had finally reached the spot where he had run into the old man. He found a key in a nearby bush where he had found the old man.
After returning the keys to the old man, Yan Liqiang proceeded to carry him down the mountain.
As they arrived at the foot of the mountain, a man with a scar on his forehead appeared and blocked their path.
The man waved his hand, and a group of eight other men appeared from the side of the roof. They surrounded Yan Liqiang and stared at him with cold gazes.
The clothes the men wore were similar to the ones that Wu Tao's thugs were wearing that were killed by Yan Liqiang.
Yan Liqiang's heart raced as the men appeared, but he was able to keep up a calm appearance while carrying the old man on his back. "Are you guys trying to rob me? This is the Longhu Sect's territory. Aren't you a little too shameless?"
"You can stop with the act, asshole!" the man with the scar sneered coldly, "You did quite a number on our guys…"