Chapter 464: The First Meeting
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
Meng Qi remained still, unfazed by all of the people going in and out of the tent. Though any of them could be the one to leave with news meant for Wolf King, he did not impatiently follow those who appeared to be more suspicious or terrifying.
He believed in one point: Wolf King had aroused public anger throughout the verdant plains of the North. Even if the n.o.bles and prestigious shamans were hardly concerned about his menacing forays, Narisu would be torn to pieces if victims like Agula, who was of more humble beginnings, and young warriors that did not fear the brutality of the Wolf King banded together. Thus, he would only leave the duty of correspondence with Wolf King to the most trusted of his minions to avoid scrutiny, lest he suffer the condemnation of the hoi polloi. He wouldn’t to risk any chance of allowing his secrets to slip!
Of course, this was all under the a.s.sumption that Narisu was indeed gathering intelligence on Wolf King’s behalf.
Meng Qi waited patiently without any sign of frustration like a silent predator. All who entered the tent, even tribesmen that had left the tent in a rush, were examined in his mind to the most minute detail. They were all Narisu’s ordinary henchmen, none of which could be considered his closest aide.
It was an overcast winter day as the sun hid behind obscuring clouds. The people entering the tent gradually dwindled after an hour. Snow piled up on top of the tent, covering Meng Qi in a chilly blanket.
A figure crossed Meng Qi’s line of sight. The person was wearing a coat made of wolf’s fur and lowered his head to look inconspicuous as he exited the tent. The man exhaled heavily, steamy puffs of breath hung in the cold winter air. He headed in the direction of Old Wuen’s tent as if he was planning to get a drink.
By Agula and Te Muer’s accounts, this was Narisu’s most trusted aide. One whom they called Mono-Ear. The man had once angered a great warrior resulting in both his ears being cut off.
Meng Qi glanced over to the top of the tent next to his and happened to meet Te Muer’s eye. Te Muer nodded knowingly, indicating that he would follow Mono-Ear. Meng Qi would remain on guard.
The warriors of the gra.s.slands have mostly started out as hunters. Te Muer slid down from the tent soundlessly and followed after Mono-Ear.
After some time, Meng Qi’s gaze suddenly came into focus. He watched Narisu secretly leave his tent from the back. He might not have recognized the man to be Narisu if not for his futile attempt in hiding his signature braid.
The genuine Qi within him stirred, melting the frozen snow that blanketed him. Like an ordinary clump of falling snow, he slid off the tent and traced Narisu’s steps.
Narisu first went to the place where the smaller tribes flocked and selected a horse. He then headed for an area of seedier locale with piling corpses of dead beasts and filth, where reluctant slaves and those who sold their bodies for a living lurked.
His abnormal behavior upon the receipt of unfavorable news that might pique the displeasure of Wolf King suggested that Narisu was indeed involved with him… Meng Qi followed him from a distance, changing his appearance and outfit every now and then. He paid close attention to everyone who came into contact with Narisu.
Narisu walked until he stopped outside his own tent!
He had deliberately led them in circles. Was Mono-Ear the true messenger? Or could there be others who left Narisu’s tent when Meng Qi was being led by the nose around the compound like a mule? How could the messenger be found then?
Alarmed, he was about to search for Te Muer when a sudden something hit him. He quietly slipped back into his hiding spot.
Narisu couldn’t have guessed that there would be several people watching him. This sort of multi-layered trick to mislead people was likely to fail.
Narisu had expected his sudden return to his tent would throw his followers off, forcing them to relent and abandon their surveillance. The stakeout of his tent would be called off while they hunted for the messenger elsewhere.
Narisu remained in his tent for sometime. One would have thought there would not be anyone present within the folds of the tent, save for Narisu, until out came another man.
Wearing a hat made of wolf’s fur and wrapped in a thickly lined coat, the man appeared to be the most ordinary of the herders of the meadows. But there was a clear feature of his face that was impossible to be concealed; his left eye was missing.
Single Eye, Narisu’s other trusted aide!
Meng Qi followed after him calmly through many twists and turns.
Believing that he had shaken off his tailers, Single Eye suddenly ran and sped out of Gegengol.
Pure white snow blanketed the entire gra.s.sland. Imprints of footsteps, heavy and light, dotted the snow well into the distance. Footsteps would inevitably be left even if Single Eye had used his Body Movements techniques.
Meng Qi followed from a distance. He simply had to trace Single Eye’s footsteps before the falling snowflakes covered them.
He would also step into the depression of the footsteps Single Eye left behind with each step. This would allow his pursuit to be undetectable should Single Eye retrace his steps, or any other pursuers who might have followed behind him
There was no room for negligence or sloppiness in the hunt of the Wolf King who slipped around quietly and hide like the wind. Wolf King might have had his messengers watched and followed before he met with them.
“He is leaving Gegengol… I thought that messages would be relayed through different layers or perhaps by carrier hawks…” Meng Qi frowned. “Could Wolf King be nearby?”
He grew even more alert at the possible prospect of meeting his long-awaited foe. No hints or traces of evidence, minute or detailed, went unnoticed throughout the journey.
He suddenly crinkled his nose. A very faint whiff of the odor of blood was drifting through the air!
He quickened his pace and glided over the snow like a gust of wind whizzing forward, speeding up a relatively easy slope.
The top of the slope was still a blanket of pure white snow. The wide lake was covered in a thick layer of ice and reflected the vast sky above. Everything felt so vast that it gave rise to an inexplicable sense of reverence for the earth.
A man was laying next to the lake. From his appearance, Meng Qi could tell that it was Single Eye. The snow that had yet to freeze next to him had been stained red.
He cautiously ran over and tipped Single Eye over with his toe.
A look of disbelief was etched into Single Eye’s expression and right eye. His throat had been crushed, rendering his flesh a b.l.o.o.d.y mess.
There were no other wounds on his body.
“Wolf King!” A familiar feeling made Meng Qi tense up, his hand already gripping the handle of his sword. The veins popping on his head clearly indicated his thoughts.
Wolf King was actually nearby!
But why did he kill Single Eye? Did he sense that danger was approaching? Gripping the handle of his sword, Meng Qi s.h.i.+vered. Even as he felt pumped with the desire to fight, he was full of questions.
It was unlikely that Wolf King had noticed him considering how much distance he had put between himself and Single Eye!
Or could it be that his sense of danger had become so acute?
Just then, Meng Qi smelled a faint fragrance in the air. It seemed to be the smell of musk and orchid, a smell that drifted in the air for a long time.
He unsheathed his sword and gently picked up a fragrance sachet from Single Eye’s chest with the tip. The sachet was intricately sewn and produced a rich fragrance.
“Looks like a custom-made spice. Did Single Eye’s lover make this?” Meng Qi was surprised at first. He then realized that the fragrance had also latched onto him and wouldn’t fade for a long time!
Had Meng Qi not reached the Spotless realm, he wouldn’t have noticed the strangeness of this fragrance.
Realization suddenly dawned on him. He finally knew why Wolf King had killed Single Eye. For a person who was adept at hiding his breath, being tainted with this fragrance was akin to exposing himself!
Perhaps he thought that Single Eye had betrayed him and was trying to use this fragrance to stab him in the back!
Now the question was whether or not Single Eye had done this on purpose?
The spices in this sachet had been specially selected. Whether or not Single Eye was doing this on purpose, the one who sent him this sachet was harboring ulterior motives!
This was a pleasant surprise for Meng Qi. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to distinguish the intricacies of the fragrance floating in the wind.
Wisps of the fragrance pa.s.sed his nostrils, the distinction in them as clear as day. Meng Qi opened his eyes in alarm and ran west. There was still a faint scent drifting from that direction!
He no longer worried about leaving his traces behind. He completely unleashed his Body Movements and ran full speed ahead, chasing after the fragrance!
Though the distinctive trait of Facing Wind in Air was spinning in mid-air, it didn’t mean that it wasn’t suitable for long-distance sprinting. Meng Qi’s figure seemed to flutter as he ran, as if he was an immortal. He wasn’t slow at all. If the skill was considered a weak one, how could Xuan Bei have escaped all the way into the Central Plains back then?
The fragrance gradually became fainter as Wolf King seemed to be doing his best to get rid of the scent. But Meng Qi could feel him more and more clearly. It was as if he could see a figure running away in his mind if he closed his eyes.
He must catch up to Wolf King before the fragrance faded entirely!
The snow had been falling for a long time and had covered many of the tracks. Like a ghost, Wolf King didn’t leave any tracks that Meng Qi could discover with short notice. It was as if he was chasing after the air. If not for the fragrance dotting the air, and that feeling that drew him to Wolf King, he would’ve suspected that he was going in the wrong direction.
A cold gust of wind swept him, blowing away the last traces of the fragrance. Meng Qi could only continue his tracking based on his vague intuition.
The snow was imprinted with a series of footsteps. Oddly, he saw only his own!
In his mind, he saw a tall and slender figure running without stopping, all the while revealing a faint killing intention. If the figure wasn’t worried about ambushes, he would’ve returned and killed him!
Tempering his soul and overcoming his anxiety, Meng Qi felt like he was meeting more obstacles the more he chased. If his heart was as calm as still water, he felt that he would resemble the earliest of hunters.
The snow was getting heavier and snowflakes were getting in his eyes, but he could sense himself getting closer and closer. He gradually extended his hand to grip his sword based on the rhythm of the wind. He was about to thrust his sword into the source of the feeling, following the traction of the energy.
Suddenly, as if night had fallen, the traction of the energy snapped, and he lost all senses of Wolf King!
“He had another trick up his sleeve? Why didn’t he use it earlier?” Meng Qi was on high alert to prevent Wolf King from ambus.h.i.+ng him.
He inspected the tracks, slowing down his catching up to Wolf King. If he hadn’t been there to identify them himself, he wouldn’t have been able to find the clues left by Wolf King at all.
He continued his chase for some time. At such a speed, the tracks in front had already disappeared by the time he got there.
He exhaled. He had to admit that he had lost track of Wolf King.
He had to admit that Wolf King had a unique talent and ability in losing pursuers.
“I’m afraid he’ll have to pay a certain price for cutting off the traction of energy. Otherwise, he would’ve used it after first coming into contact with the fragrance.” Meng Qi determined his current location, trying to find a way to return to Gegengol.
Under the vast sky, the gra.s.slands seemed boundless. Pure white snow blanketed the ground, turning the surroundings into a monotonous scenery. He was nearly lost but, fortunately, had a good sense of direction. Combining various information, his mind gradually outlined the route he had taken after leaving Gegengol. He first went north, then south…
“Hey! If I keep going east, I’ll reach Gegengol!” Meng Qi was surprised. Did he chase after Wolf King in circles?
“That’s not right.” He narrowed his eyes. “Did Wolf King lead me around in a semi-circle? Did he not want to leave Gegengol?”
If Wolf King’s line of thought wasn’t as he had suspected, his best choice would have been to go northwest, deep into the gra.s.sland. Why did he make a detour?
“He wants to seek revenge… Did he think Narisu betrayed him?” Meng Qi was shocked. He didn’t dare delay. He picked up his sword and instantly ran east.
Just as he was about to enter the tent area of Gegengol, Meng Qi saw Te Muer.
Te Muer instantly went up to him when he saw him. “Did you find anything?”
“He’s nearby but I lost track of him,” Meng Qi replied honestly.
Te Muer sighed. “Cunning prey is often able to escape, but hunters can’t allow themselves to feel discouraged. As long as you have enough patience and remain calm, you’ll be able to catch your prey.”
“True.” Meng Qi nodded.
This was a way of tempering his Kung Fu, willpower, and spirit.