Chapter 192: The Weapon Master's Favor (2)

The old man's smile froze. He glared at Quiet And Steadfast and said somewhat unhappily, "I… I'm just helping you guys out of a sense of obligation."

Shen Jingbin had come to the same realization. No matter what, the old man was still an NPC; him helping them for free would never happen. "Old man, stop making us guess. Please tell us your conditions."

Seeing as his ruse had failed, the old man sighed and said, "In all my years of guarding the Ice Extermination Cavern, apart from wanting to gather some Shadow Snaring Water, the only other thing I've wanted was to obtain parts from the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake's body. However, as you guys have seen, the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake isn't something I can handle on my own…"

"Oh, so you tricked us into coming down here with you!" Morning Glory Chime cut in.

The old man's face flushed. "How have I tricked you guys? I've been here in seclusion for all these years and only revealed myself to point you in the right direction when I noticed you were the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs. I more or less know what's going on outside, and I know that taking on the Shinra Sect is impossible for you guys unless you have one or two Divine Weapons. It just so happens that Shadow Snaring Water is one of the main components in forging a Divine Weapon. That was why I appeared before you and shared what I knew. Isn't this a win-win situation for everyone? As for the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake, that was me testing your skills in advance. You can forget about defeating the Shinra Sect if you can't even handle the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake."

"You sure know how to tell stories," Morning Glory Chime didn't buy his story at all.

The old man couldn't be bothered to deal with her. Instead, he turned to rest of them and said, "I wasn't able to gather the materials on the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake's body, so I could only rely on you guys. Speaking of the Silver Moon Silk Robe, you don't need those materials to upgrade it. How about this, you give me the parts you've collected from the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake, and I'll help refine all of your weapons," After saying that, the four of them heard the system's notification.

"Congratulations, you have triggered the hidden quest 'The Weapon Master's Favor'. Will you accept this quest? Yes/No. (Trigger condition: Battle alongside Weapon Master Zhang Wudi and successfully slay the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake. Hint: Only the Lead Disciples from the six great sects can trigger the appearance of Weapon Master Wudi. Once Weapon Master Wudi has made an appearance, all players will be able to see him. Dear players, please treasure this opportunity.)"

The four of them were overjoyed and accepted the quest as they exchanged glances with one another.

"Hidden Quest: 'Favour of the Weapon Master' — Hand over the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake (0/1). Description: Submit the materials collected from the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake to Zhang Wudi. The materials may be shared amongst party members."

Pure Crane took them out from his backpack and stuffed everything into Zhang Wudi's hands. Zhang Wudi's face lit up with happiness as he accepted them. "Good good. Here, hand me your weapons. Lass, hand me your Silver Moon Silk Robe as well."

"Why aren't you helping us refine our clothes as well!" Morning Glory Chime asked.

"It's not that I don't want to help you, it's that your clothes can't be refined."

Quiet And Steadfast took out his dagger and handed it to Zhang Wudi. As he did so, a glint flashed across eyes, and he said, "Old man, we won't have anything to use if we hand you our weapons. The world has been thrown into chaos now, making it very dangerous for us if we lack weapons."

Zhang Wudi fell into contemplation for a few moments before he nodded his head and said, "That does seem to be the case… How about this, I still have some weapons I made as practice; you guys can use them for now."

"What about my shirt…" Shen Jingbin said.

"I’ll replace it, I'll replace it!"

Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast looked at each other and smiled.

You’re so treacherous.

You’re not so bad yourself.

In the end, all four of them received a weapon from Zhang Wudi. Shen Jingbin even received a piece of equipment with pretty good stats. Also, though Zhang Wudi said he'd made them for practice, the stats of these weapons weren't any worse than their original weapons. In other words, they'd snagged a bargain.

After taking their things, Zhang Wudi called forth the Dragon Mouth Catfish to send them back out. He told them he wouldn't be accompanying them out because he was hiding in the Shadow Snaring Pool. He'd let them know once he was done with their items.

The four of them waved goodbye before they climbed onto the fish's back and it swam towards the surface.

Shen Jingbin felt a wave of murderous intent just as the Dragon Mouth Catfish was about to break the water's surface. Quiet And Steadfast had felt it as well, so almost at the same time, the two of them dug their feet into the fish's back. Shen Jingbin dragged Morning Glory Chime backwards, while Quiet And Steadfast dragged Pure Crane backwards before the two of them then leapt out of the water and up into the air.

The instant they leapt out of the water, they spotted a wave of menacing sword qi flying straight towards the Dragon Mouth Catfish from the shore!

When the Dragon Mouth Catfish was hit, it immediately kicked up a huge spray of water before it sunk back into the water, leaving behind a pool of water that was dyed red with blood. The four of them landed on the ground as lingering fear tugged at their hearts.

They would've been hit by that wave of sword qi if they'd just been a beat slower!

"You've finally surfaced," A malevolent voice suddenly spoke out.

Shen Jingbin lifted her gaze and looked over…

It was Nine Ballads.