Martial Arrogance Dragon Soul-Chapter 255 - 244: Return to the Qin Residence

"It should be!"

Qin Qing’s eyes flickered.

But almost immediately, he retracted his gaze, pretending to have discovered nothing.

After that, he continued to move forward.

About a quarter of an hour later.

Qin Qing suddenly stopped.

Then—

He looked back again.

By now, Qin Qing was beside a stream.

The water babbled on.

The snow on the mountaintop was melting, turning into the clearest streams that flowed down the ravines, forming brooks at the mountain’s base.

The stream was very clear.

Qin Qing pretended to come to the water’s edge, scooped up some water, and drank a mouthful of the refreshing and sweet stream water.

It was invigorating, as if it was infused with the fragrance of the wild mountains.

Suddenly.

Qin Qing burst out in a sprint.

His speed was so fast, it was like a bolt of lightning!

And at that moment, on a rock beside the stream, a black bird was perched, seemingly hunting for fish in the water.

But Qin Qing instantly charged over and grabbed the black bird.

"Coo! Coo!"

The black bird had a goose-yellow beak and claws.

As soon as Qin Qing caught it, it began to struggle and call out frantically.

At the same time, an aura of spiritual power emanated from the bird’s body.

"It really is you!"

A smile crept onto the corners of Qin Qing’s lips.

It turned out that the one tracking him all this way wasn’t a person, but this black bird!

Who would use this black bird to track him?

Qin Qing pondered.

Was it Shangguan Yong?

Or the Lu Clan?

Or perhaps, the Seventh Prince and his entourage?

All possibilities existed.

Right now, Qin Qing could not ascertain the right answer.

However—

This did serve as a wakeup call for Qin Qing.

"Looks like I’ll need to find a way to disguise myself..."

Before, Qin Qing had indeed been careless, thinking that with a body-protecting talisman on him, he did not need to be too cautious.

"I have been too relaxed these past days!"

Qin Qing silently chided himself, considering the black bird a reminder.

However, this black bird was also a rather magical spiritual beast.

"It must be a type of beast specially trained for gathering intelligence."

Qin Qing had originally intended to kill the black bird on the spot.

But doing so might instead draw attention.

After some thought, Qin Qing proceeded to set up a spiritual array.

This spiritual array was not particularly complicated, and Qin Qing did not spend much time on it.

He used the array to trap the black bird within it, making it appear as if the bird was just resting on a tree.

The person controlling the black bird would not likely detect anything amiss for a short time.

What’s more, the spiritual array Qin Qing set up would vanish after an hour.

During this hour, it was very possible that the one tracking him would not notice anything strange.

After doing all this, Qin Qing immediately set out.

And this time, Qin Qing did not take the main road but quickly disappeared into the woods.

For a Great Martial Master in cultivation, moving through the forest was as easy as walking on flat ground.

Half an hour later, Qin Qing arrived at another city.

This city was naturally very familiar to him, for he was born here and grew up here until the age of eighteen.

In his short life of a few decades, this place held his happiest memories, as well as his most painful ones.

This was none other than Tianjue City.

When Qin Qing reappeared in Tianjue City, his appearance was completely unrecognizable.

At this moment, he looked like a completely different person.

He was dressed in a beast skin coat, his black hair was tied into several braids, a sheepskin wine flask hung at his waist, and he presented a rugged image, much like the men from the Northern Borderlands.

Walking on the streets of Tianjue City, everything was as he remembered.

Qin Qing couldn’t help but recall last year’s scene when he fought his way out of the Mu Residence and was heavily surrounded by the city guards.

The scene seemed vivid as if it had just happened.

However...

When Qin Qing passed by the Mu Residence, he saw the doors were firmly shut.

"Mu Hongtu has gone to Luochuan, now holding a position at the Imperial Court; he’s certainly brought honor to his ancestors!"

A trace of inexplicable mockery rose in Qin Qing’s heart.

Mu Hongtu, being a person of humble origin, might have achieved even greater heights if born into slightly better circumstances. Or, given the right opportunities in times of chaos, he could have been a formidable warlord.

Having passed the Mu Residence, it wasn’t long before he arrived at the Qin Residence.

The Qin Residence, with its white walls and green tiles, looked just as it always had.

But now, the Qin Residence was much quieter than in previous years.

Above the door beam, the same white lanterns were still hanging.

At one side of the door, a candle stand and some offerings were placed on the ground.

They must have been for summoning the soul of Qin Lie.

In Tianjue, there is such a custom that when someone dies outside the city, their soul needs to be summoned, or else the soul cannot find its way home. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Qin Qing stood at the doorway, gazing into the entrance, losing himself for a moment.

It wasn’t due to Qin Lie’s death that he was distracted.

For Qin Qing, Qin Lie’s death was entirely a result of his own wrongdoings.

The reason he was distracted was that he recalled the past, the happy memories he had shared here with his father and mother.

Later, after his parents had left, he and his younger sister had grown up together in this very yard, depending on each other for survival.

"It seems that after all, there are still some inescapable sentiments tied to the Qin Residence..."

A wave of inexplicable sadness surged in Qin Qing’s heart.

Qin Residence, can I return?

Can the bygone days return?

"Who is this guest?"

Just as Qin Qing was lost in his thoughts, someone approached from the side.

Qin Qing felt a slight stir in his heart as the person coming over in a straw coat was none other than his fourth uncle, Qin Ye.

"You... Why do you look so familiar to me?"

Before Qin Qing could answer, Qin Ye spoke again.

He looked at Qin Qing, furrowing his brows as if Qin Qing looked familiar, as though he had seen him somewhere before.

Qin Qing slightly furrowed his brows. He didn’t speak and planned to leave right away.

"Wait!"

Qin Ye quickly stepped forward.

Qin Qing could have left right away, but he stopped and stayed put instead.

Perhaps he still held a sliver of sentiment towards the Qin Residence, or perhaps his fourth uncle, Qin Ye, had never treated him poorly.

"You are Little Qing..."

Qin Ye lowered his voice,

especially when he uttered the name "Little Qing," he nearly choked the words in his throat.

Qin Qing turned around to look at Qin Ye.

He saw a glimmer of hope and closeness in Qin Ye’s eyes.

"It is really you!"

Qin Ye’s excitement was evident, and after looking around to see that nothing was amiss, he pulled Qin Qing into the Qin Residence.

"Fourth uncle. It’s me!"

Once inside a room, Qin Qing dropped the pretense and revealed his identity to Qin Ye.

"It’s really you! Little Qing, I knew it was you..." Qin Ye nodded, taking a good look at Qin Qing up and down.

"Fourth uncle, to avoid some unnecessary trouble, I deliberately disguised myself. But I didn’t expect that Fourth Uncle would still recognize me instantly!" Qin Qing said with a helpless smile.

"That’s because I’m your fourth uncle!" Qin Ye laughed: "Actually, if you weren’t standing at the doorstep of the Qin Residence, or if you weren’t staring at the Qin Residence’s sign, I definitely wouldn’t have resisted you!"

Qin Ye laughed again, then said: "Do you know? Little Qing, the look you had at the doorway earlier, it was very much like when you were little, that’s why I was able to recognize you. If I had seen you on the street, I wouldn’t have dared to connect your present appearance with the past."

Qin Qing couldn’t help but laugh as well.

Indeed, how could a stranger be standing at the doorstep of the Qin Residence?

Moreover, just now when he was looking at the sign of the Qin Residence, he was indeed recalling his childhood, and perhaps that was precisely when his fourth uncle recognized him.

"Uncle, how is the Qin Residence now?" Qin Qing asked again.

Qin Ye shook his head helplessly.

"It has declined!" Qin Ye said with a bitter smile, "Originally, with Qin Lie emerging, we all thought the Qin Residence would rise. The old ancestor was spirited, and even more so was Qin Zhen, who wanted to turn the Qin Residence into the leading family of Tianjue City. But unexpectedly, Qin Lie..."

Qin Ye paused there, glanced at Qin Qing, and did not continue.

Qin Qing nodded slightly, he knew Qin Ye meant Qin Lie died by his own hands.

"However... the reason for Qin Lie’s death, well, that was something he brought upon himself," Qin Ye said with a bitter laugh before asking Qin Qing, "Little Qing, how are you doing now? I heard... last year you took first place in the annual assessment of the Great Qian Martial Institute?"

"Yes!" Qin Qing nodded, "I never expected that you, uncle, would know about this too!"

"How could only I know? Now the whole Tianjue City is aware. When you left Tianjue City, everyone said the Qin Residence had lost its insight."

"Now, you have become the top disciple of the Great Qian Martial Institute, while Qin Lie has died! The Qin Residence has become the joke of Tianjue City, its decline was inevitable!"

Qin Ye sighed with a sense of helplessness, feeling the decline like the setting of the sun.

Qin Qing nodded slightly; in fact, he had already foreseen the current state of the Qin Residence.

The Qin Residence is now in decline, and it probably won’t be long before it falls completely.

"How about your second uncle and Qin Tong, are they all right?" Qin Ye asked.

"Yes... they are all fine," Qin Qing nodded.

"As long as they are fine... If there is a chance in the future, let them come back," Qin Ye said again.

"Yes! They will!" Qin Qing agreed, "In fact, the second uncle and the others have been thinking of returning to Tianjue, it’s just... what they want to return to is not the Qin Residence of the past..."

"I understand what you mean!" Qin Ye nodded, not letting Qin Qing continue, some things are better left unsaid, as everyone understands, and speaking more can make things worse, "Little Qing, when you left the Qin Residence last year, your Uncle did not choose to leave with you and your second uncle... it was because your fourth mother was ill, and she was already seriously sick at that time. I just wanted to provide her with a more stable environment so that she could get timely treatment."

"That’s why your Uncle did not leave with you. I hope you do not blame your Uncle..."

Qin Ye’s eyes were filled with deep guilt as he looked at Qin Qing.

"Uncle, I don’t blame you!"

Qin Qing shook his head; he could understand his uncle’s decision, as his aunt indeed had a serious illness last year.

If it had been someone else in his uncle’s situation, they probably would have stayed too.

Moreover, in Qin Qing’s memory, his uncle had always taken good care of him and his sister. He remembered once in the middle of the night when his sister’s Fire Disease flared up, they had run out of Ping Stone Powder, and it was his uncle who went in the middle of the night to knock on the apothecary’s door and bought Ping Stone Powder for his sister.

And his aunt had always been kind to him and Xiao Shuang as well.

In fact, in the Qin Residence, there were many people like his uncle, who although had not been exceptionally good to Qin Qing in the past, they were not bad either.

It was just that they, too, were helpless and could only choose to stay in the Qin Residence.

"How is Qin Zhen now?" Qin Qing asked again.

"He... is not doing well. All he can think about now is revenge... but..." Qin Ye laughed helplessly.

Obviously, in Qin Ye’s eyes, Qin Zhen’s desire for revenge was akin to a fool’s dream.

With Qin Qing’s current strength, even the old ancestor of the Qin Family, Qin Wujian, would not be able to do anything to him.

The possibility of Qin Zhen taking revenge was simply nonexistent...

"Little Qing, if possible, I hope you can return soon," Qin Ye added.

"Return soon?" Qin Qing narrowed his eyes slightly, pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "We will, we will all return. It shouldn’t take too long..."

Qin Qing also looked forward to that day when he, his father, Xiao Shuang, and other members of the Qin Family who left Tianjue, all returned to Tianjue City, to the Qin Residence.

At that moment they set foot in the Qin Residence; it would know that there were roots there that could not be cut away.

But even then, the Qin Family would never be the same as it was in the past.

A new Qin Family would rise in Tianjue, and it would rise throughout the entire Great Qian...