A D-Rank Adventurer's Bizarre Reincarnation

Chapter 11 - Auntie Ying Yue

"Ugh, w-what just happened?"

Zheng Jin said, groaning as he slowly rose from a makeshift bed made up of big tree leaves and grass. As far as he can remember, he was just passing out from the battle he had with the Dark-eyed Shadow Wolf when he remembered something-...someone approaching him.

"My injuries...what happened to my wounds?!"

The first thing he noticed was that he was covered all over with a torn cloth, embedded with little blue flowers, might he add, which he could only guess is a sorry attempt for bandages. The one that did this might be inexperienced.

After looking at the bandages, he eventually thought that he was in no position to criticize his rescuer since he or she just saved his life. And after all, it seems like the stranger succeeded in saving his life. But that's the question he was wondering since he woke up...why?

Why would someone save his life? He thought that he was despised in the sect and not only that, he apparently did not have any relatives or even friends for that matter. So, who could it be?

Though he wondered the answer, he would not be able to find out for now because that rescuer of his wasn't anywhere to be found.

It was an adventurer's unbroken etiquette to always pay back their debts, but he could not do so if he didn't even know who saved him.

"Sigh, I guess I'll have to find out later...For now though, I'll have to take care of some things first."

Zheng Jin eventually thought to leave the issue for now, because whoever it is who saved him did not want to be found out by him.

With that thought, Zheng Jin suddenly removed the cloth bandages and checked his body. It was indeed strange. He could not feel anything "off" or painful in his body. If anything, he actually felt better than before!

"Damn...how long was I out?"

Zheng Jin initially guessed that he was out of consciousness for a long time, but he eventually thought otherwise, as the wounds that he had, did not leave a single scar on his body! He could only guess that his rescuer was a godly healer...or maybe he or she had a treasure of some sort that healed him. But then again, why would they?

Before Zheng Jin's head hurt from thinking about this matter, he suddenly remembered something and opened his status window.

‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡

Name: Zheng Jin

Class : Level 5 Mortal Realm Cultivator

Strength : F+

Agility : F+

Speed : F+

Vitality : E-

Intelligence : D-

Endurance : E+

? : ?

Skills

°God's Generosity

Exp:3/5

°Puke Blood 1★

Level 10/10 •Max

Attributes

°Expert Trapmaster 3★

Level 10/10 •Max

‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡

Just like he thought, he earned points for the [God's Generosity]. Not only that, his vitality and endurance also increased two ranks over!

His fight with the Dark-eyed Shadow Wolf really was a blessing in disguise. He might have sustained a lot of injuries but who knew that someone would heal him right after? Not only that, but he also gained a whopping three points for his skill!

This proves that the stronger the enemy he killed, the greater the points gained would be. But even knowing this, he couldn't just go in head first to every strong enemy he encountered.

Actually, he was quite disappointed with himself, now that he thought about it. He had to admit that he let his guard down for a bit in this forest, as he had been fighting weaker opponents the first few days he went in, not even thinking of the possibility that a dangerous demon beast such as the Dark-eyed Shadow Wolf would be lurking in that area of the forest.

One more thing is that he trusted a book too much. He wouldn't have to fight the Dark-eyed Shadow Wolf if he had no prior injuries slowing him down in the first place. Thus, he made a mental note not to trust anything completely, especially books that were written from way back then. His luck was the thing that saved him this time, not his strength, nor his skill. And he hated that.

Since he was still alive anyway, Zheng Jin decided to just let this be a lesson to him. He wasn't given a second chance just to die again, and being a bit more cautious wouldn't hurt, lest he would like to die like an i***t for the second time...

"Enough about that...hmm, what should I do?

After a minute of contemplation, Zheng Jin wondered what he should do next. He planned to keep on training in the forest as long as he can before...but now, he was in a dilemma. Continuing his training could be dangerous, as there could be awakened mortal demon beasts everywhere in the forest right now. Fighting demon beasts in a higher realm of cultivation was not something he could do right now. Unless...

He thought for a second, then suddenly came up with something.

"That's right! I have that ability!"

What Zheng Jin was talking about, is that he was now an [Expert Trapmaster]. Using this ability, he did not need to confront the demon beasts directly. This ability is extremely advantageous for this terrain and Zheng Jin finally noticed its worth this time. Maybe the god really did have some generosity after all...

"This is great. I'll stay in this forest for quite some time after all..."

Thinking about it now, he had no time to sit by and stay idle. He needed strength the most, and this forest will give him exactly just that. But first things first, he needed to prepare. His weapon was now broken, and he needed to buy a new and better one. For this, there was an establishment in Goldenridge City that sells all kinds of weapons. Luckily, he had a ton of demon beast cores saved up, which he collected from the Five-tailed Crimson Rats.

The only thing that made his heart ache was that he couldn't take the Dark-eyed Shadow Wolf's core. He then cursed himself for falling unconscious before he collected it. Who knows how much that core was compared to the Five-tailed Crimson Rats? He had no choice but to let it go eventually...

"Now then, I'll just have to go back for a bit. I should prepare a bit more this time..."

After knowing just how much of a danger the demon beasts was to him, it would be wise to prepare himself a bit more than he did now before going back.

After looking back for a bit in the makeshift bed he was in, he was about to leave when he thought of something to do before he left. He picked up his broken sword and carved something on the nearest tree beside him.

He thought of the possibility that the one who left him the message before was also the one who saved him, so what better way to communicate than by a tree carving, the stranger's favorite medium of communication?

After he finished writing his message, a small smile formed in Zheng Jin's face as he walked away and finally left the forest...

...

...

...

Walking around for a few minutes, Zheng Jin noticed that the stranger already took him near the forest's entrance, which was very convenient for him. He wouldn't have to travel for a long time after all.

After traveling just a small distance from where he was, he finally arrived at the gates of Goldenridge City. He was greeted by the uninterested looks of the city guards and the smell of food emanating from the city's restaurants, making his stomach rumble out of hunger. Zheng Jin hadn't eaten in days, so he might as well use a bit of the spirit crystals he earned from the demon beasts' cores for eating. He had yet to taste this world's cuisine after all.

Before he could do anything, however, he needed to sell the cores he had on him. He then went to a nearby store that displayed a wide variety of demon beast cores and then took out all the cores he had. But before he went in, he straightened his clothes and fixed his hair, as if getting himself ready for something.

"Hello, young master...how may I-"

"Enough talking. I'm here to sell some cores!"

Before the shopkeeper finished his sentence, the boy wearing a robe from the Golden Dragon Sect interrupted him.

Zheng Jin planned to play the "high and mighty" role beforehand simply because he did not know for how much these cores really sold for. He eventually decided on using his status as a disciple of the Golden Dragon Sect to deter the shopkeeper from cheating the price of the cores.

Zheng Jin's blunt attitude startled the shopkeeper. The thoughts of the boy being a gullible young master vanished from his mind as he immediately cut to the chase.

"Very well, young master. What core do you wish to sell?"

"These."

With a short reply, Zheng Jin put the cores on the table in front of him, the sheer number of it shocking the shopkeeper.

"For how long have you been collecting all these cores young master? The numbers must be-"

"The total number of cores is 57. How much is all of it?"

Cutting the small talk, Zheng Jin asked the shopkeeper and looked at him with eyes that the shopkeeper could have sworn, saw right through him. Any pretense of him cheating Zheng Jin was gone then, as he could not afford to offend a disciple of the Golden Dragon Sect.

"Hahaha, okay young master. You don't have to stare like that anymore. I'll give you a fair price..."

With that, the shopkeeper looked at the cores and made his assessment.

"From what I see, these cores are from Five-tailed Crimson Rats, am I right? If so, I can give you 48 spirit crystals for each, with a total of 2,736 spirit crystals for all of them."

"Fine then."

After hearing the price, Zheng Jin did not argue to increase it. It was because he had seen a similar core on display and its price was at 60 spirit crystals. A little bit over 48 spirit crystals but was acceptable nonetheless. The shopkeeper needed to make some money too, after all.

After they both decided the price, the shopkeeper took out two sparkling white cards and seven gray cards, with 36 small, shining crystals and put them in the table.

"So this is a spirit crystal..."

Upon seeing this world's currency, he can't help but be nostalgic from the gold coins he had back then. He had to adjust to using these spirit crystals now though. The white and grey cards, as he read from a book, "contains" the spirit crystals within them, with the white ones containing a thousand spirit crystals and the gray ones, had a hundred. As to how they did it, he guessed that there might be spatial magic involved.

"Well then, young master...If you ever get another demon core, don't forget to sell them to me! I'll always give you a fair price!"

Before Zheng Jin left, the shopkeeper did not forget to recommend his shop to Zheng Jin, as he felt that the boy would have more for him to buy later on. He actually liked how this one behaved, as he initially thought that Zheng Jin would haggle the price higher than what he had offered. Who knew that although this boy was so blunt and straightforward to him, he also knew how trading actually works!

This was a far cry from the other "young masters" from the sect that haggle the prices with him to the point of his bankruptcy. Only the heavens knew how happy he was to finally find an ideal customer such as this...

...

After leaving the demon beast core shop, he went straight to the city's weapon pavilion. The building's exterior really was extravagant, with a huge sign written on it.

THOUSAND SUNS WEAPON PAVILION

After looking at the sign, Zheng Jin walked in and looked at all the swords on display. He trained in swords for almost his whole life, thus he had no plan to replace it anytime soon.

After looking around for quite some time, he noticed that the swords already had prices on them. It ranged from 500 spirit crystals to 150,000 spirit crystals!

Of all the weapons displayed here, he wondered why three weapons; a sword, an axe, and a mace, would have the highest prices in the store, with the sword being the highest, at 150,000 spirit crystals.

As he was wondering, however, he was interrupted by a greeting from a lady behind him. The lady looked fairly young, about 20-25 years old, with very long, black hair that draped down to her waist. She wore a spotless white robe which accentuated her curves, giving her a "mature" kind of charm that most men would die for.

"Hello there, are you interested in buying the Burning Bloodsword?"

The lady asked Zheng Jin, clasping her hands expectantly. This sword had been sitting in her weapon pavilion for way too long, and maybe this young master who was ogling at it would finally take it off her hands.

"No. But may I ask why is it that expensive?"

Zheng Jin's answer suddenly dampened the lady's mood. Though seeing that the boy was polite at the very least, she decided to just answer his question.

"Expensive? That, it is not. This sword was forged by a tier three blacksmith and the materials that it was made out of was very expensive too! Not only that, a core of a Blazing Bloodfiend, a peak-level spirit enforcer demon beast, was used in forging it. Not only does it have a spirit of its own, but it also possesses several martial skills of the Blazing Bloodfiend! Sigh, I originally intended to sell it for 300,000 spirit crystals, but it has been at my shop for years now..."

"But why? You almost ran out of breath describing how great it is, how come there was no one that bought it yet?"

With how the lady described the sword, Zheng Jin wondered why no one hadn't taken it from the pavilion yet.

"Hah you cheeky brat, who said no one tried to buy it?! There was just no one it would listen to! This sword actually burned a lot of cultivators that wanted it so badly that it had made a very bad reputation for itself..."

The lady's reply confused Zheng Jin. Surely she didn't mean that the sword "lives" when she said that it had a spirit...right?

"You mean, it chooses who wields it? Do you mean that the sword is actually alive?"

The lady then rolled her eyes and replied.

"What rock have you been living under, boy? From the robe that you have been wearing, I thought a disciple of a sect would at least know these things!"

The lady then shook her head as she continued.

"Listen...the sword is not alive, it just has a bit of the spirit and consciousness from the Blazing Bloodfiend's core; an essence is what I would call it. That's why the sword could choose whoever wields it. As for being actually alive, only a fool would think so!"

This knowledge surprised Zheng Jin, to say the least. This style of forging almost sounds like a lesser type soul-binding to him, which was a very deplorable spell back in his old world.

"Ah, is that so. Thank you for telling me then."

With Zheng Jin's short reply, the lady felt irritated. Was the boy listening or had she been spouting her words for nothing?

"Nevermind the sword, what are you doing here anyway? If you don't plan on buying anything, just get out!"

"Ah, I'm actually looking for swords. Two, to be exact."

Hearing Zheng Jin's request, the lady just sighed and led Zheng Jin to a room where she kept most of her swords.

Among all the swords that were there, two swords immediately stood out from the rest for Zheng Jin. He then took hold of each one, then proceeded to weigh them in each hand.

"One heavy and one light...perfect."

Zheng Jin finally found the best swords that he could on this shop. Now, he could use the sword technique that he painstakingly created from back then.

"What are you doing with those swords, boy? Don't tell me you are planning to kill a chicken with those things?"

The lady then let out a chuckle as she stared at Zheng Jin. The boy actually thought to use two swords! Although there have been some people that used two swords in fighting before, she just saw it as impractical.

After all, why use two swords if it costs a greater amount of concentration to pull off? As opposed to just using one weapon at a time, a combatant's reaction time would slow down if they had to control two weapons at a time. In her eyes, people that use two swords at the same time are just idiots...

"How much are they?"

Zheng Jin ignored the lady's remarks as he simply asked for a price. Hopefully he'll be able to afford it.

"5000 spirit crystals for the two of those."

The lady then replied hurriedly, the prospect of making a sale exciting her.

"Can't you go any lower?"

"Ridiculous. This isn't someplace where you could bargain for weapons!"

Zheng Jin was just about to say something when the lady suddenly smiled and added:

"Unless, of course, you are confident with your skills."

These words confused Zheng Jin. He then replied,

"What do you mean?"

The lady kept on smiling as she led Zheng Jin to another room, this one devoid of any weapons, but one. A simple sword, made out of pig iron was placed in a table nearby. Also, a wide platform was in the middle of the room, for what purpose, Zheng Jin did not know.

"If you can surprise me with your skills in swordsmanship, I'll consider giving you the swords for half the price!"

This revelation made Zheng Jin ecstatic. Who knew that this lady was a musclehead, wanting a fight just for a discount. He won't let this opportunity pass, however, as he could afford the two swords once it is reduced to just half of what it was.

"Well, I'm not really expecting you to do that. Why don't you just buy a-"

"I'll do it."

Just as the lady was about to recommend a cheaper sword, Zheng Jin replied. Although she does indeed give out discounts for ones that could compete with her in swordsmanship, she did not expect Zheng Jin to agree. After all, many people in this city even avoided her, as those that requested discounts from her came out of the shop battered and bruised.

With that, the lady smiled and replied to Zheng Jin.

"Since you wanted to do this, don't worry. I won't use my cultivation when fighting you."

Since the fight was strictly for swordsmanship only, neither party can use their spirit energy.

This relieved Zheng Jin for a bit, as he could already tell that the lady was on a higher realm of cultivation than him. So much that he could even feel the foreign energy emanating from the lady even if he hadn't possessed the capability to do so yet.

After telling Zheng Jin that, the lady took the sword from the table, and went on to the platform. She then took off her charming front and replaced it with a serious look on her face.

"Well then, let's not waste any precious time, shall we?"

With that, the lady beckoned Zheng Jin to strike first, even letting him use the two swords he picked out from earlier.

With the lady's serious attitude, Zheng Jin couldn't help but quip with a smile on his face.

"Don't you think it's unusual to have a room like this for fighting your customers? The people might get the wrong idea you know?"

Following Zheng Jin's statement, the lady was quite irritated. Is she not allowed to have a hobby of her own?

"Enough, are you going or not?!"

"Haha, alright then. Here I go!"

In just a second, Zheng Jin took on a very bizzarre-looking stance. Just like from before when he fought the Dark-eyed Shadow Wolf, he placed a sword horizontally on his left, but the difference was that he now had two swords. The other sword was then placed with the edge of the blade facing backwards on his right side.

The sight of this really confused the lady. Is this boy alright in the head?

Then without wasting another second, Zheng Jin ran towards the lady. Right after he closed the distance, Zheng Jin suddenly jumped and spun like a hurricane in the air, startling the lady.

As soon as the first sword made contact, the lady revealed a surprised expression on her face. It was not only because she was surprised by the irregularity of Zheng Jin's attack, but because of how light it actually was.

But she wasn't ready for what happened next, as her sword was suddenly brushed aside once the second sword clashed with it. The lady, however, was quick to react as she parried the Zheng Jin's third strike. After doing so, the lady couldn't help but ask Zheng Jin:

"You're using swords with different weights?"

The lady was right. Zheng Jin's sword technique relied on the difference of the weight of the swords, which is mainly used to cause confusion to the enemy. Wielding such swords also gave him both speed and power, making him a very dangerous opponent once he gets his hands on them.

This style of swordsmanship was something he achieved by training for years. If it wasn't for the fact that he was born with a laughable amount of mana before, he could have used this fighting style to the fullest...

"Yeah. But what's the matter? Have I surprised you enough yet?"

Zheng Jin's reply irritated the lady. This boy actually dared to taunt her!

"Hah, don't get too cocky. It's my turn next, so get ready..."

Before Zheng Jin could reply, the lady suddenly burst forward, charging at Zheng Jin head-on with her sword. This style of fighting really was unusual for a gentle "lady" like her, Zheng Jin thought.

"Hah, you actually blocked that!"

The one more surprised of the two, however, was Zheng Jin. He didn't expect that the lady's charge was not just for show! As opposed to what he was expecting earlier that the lady would have a more elegant style of fighting...the lady was actually very forceful and aggressive!

What Zheng Jin did was not actually a block, but rather, he redirected the sword's trajectory with his the flat of his blade. He was about to counterattack, but then he was taken aback by the lady's power as her sword landed on the floor, leaving a small crater on it...Luckily, he did not dare to block that. If he did, he had no doubt that he and his sword would have been split into two by now!

"Damn it woman, didn't you say that spirit energy was not allowed?"

Zheng Jin could not help but shout out to the lady. He did not expect that a lady with a considerably small frame would have this much strength at all!

"What's the matter? Would you like to stop now?"

As the lady said that, she mimicked Zheng Jin's smile earlier, not missing the chance to get back at him. This brat actually dared to taunt her...for that, he was a hundred years too early to do so! What Zheng Jin did not know was that she had not been using her spirit energy at all. She enjoyed doing this, seeing different kinds of swordsmanship for what it is, without any help from spirit energy.

"Tch, what a brute auntie..."

"Wha-what did you just say?!"

Zheng Jin did not expect that the lady would actually hear him as he said that about as loud as a whisper. He might have awakened a demon with his words just now...

What followed was extremely horrendous, as each strikes from the lady contained a hint of killing intent, sending Zheng Jin's feet off the ground every single time.

...

...

...

"What a surprise, you actually lasted this long..."

The lady said as she appraised Zheng Jin, genuinely surprised that he managed to keep up with her for a full hour. Not only that, she couldn't even find an opening to land a clean strike on him!

But although Zheng Jin had indeed done lasted for this long, his appearance was now a far cry from what it was an hour ago. He was now out of breath and his clothes were bedraggled. He really lacked the endurance to continue, unlike the lady who did not shed even a single drop of sweat.

"You really don't know how to hold back...You do know that your physique is a realm higher than mine, right?"

Though he was tired and his muscles are now sore, Zheng Jin didn't miss the chance to tease the unexpectedly brutish lady. The woman really was a musclehead, even showing a somehow creepy face of ecstasy every time their blades crossed.

"Hmph...whatever, boy. Since you can't continue anymore, come back again when you can last more than an hour."

After saying that, the lady just shrugged and put down her sword, leaving Zheng Jin confused as to what is happening.

"Wait, how about the swords? Do I get them at half price after all?"

"Sigh, yes, yes. Just give me 2,500 spirit crystals and get out of here already..."

After the lady's approval, Zheng Jin finally sheathed the two swords. He then asked her with a smile on his face.

"Did I surprise you at least?"

Zheng Jin's audacity really pushed her limits. But if she's being honest, his swordsmanship really provided her something that she did not know before. The way that he integrated unpredictability and cunningness in handling his sword amazed her. This experience opened her eyes...she really did have more to learn after all...

"You did enough. Who taught you how to use those swords anyway?"

The lady asked with genuine curiosity. If she was able to meet the master that taught this boy, it would make her trip to this mundane city worth it!

"I made the style myself actually. Would you like me to teach you?"

Zheng Jin said jokingly. But he did make this style of swordsmanship on his own, making it his most prized possession in his old world, even more so than the precious and expensive items he had back then.

"Stop being full of yourself boy. If you don't want to tell me who it was, just say it already! And before you go, don't forget to pay me!"

LIstening to the lady's reply. Zheng Jin decided not to argue and paid her with the spirit crystals. But before he handed the cards over, Zheng Jin thought about something.

"Wait, auntie. Since I did really well just now, don't you think I deserve a smaller price? How does 2000 spirit crystals sound?"

Thinking that he could milk this situation further, Zheng Jin tried to get an even smaller price. The nerve of this boy really angered the lady to death, even going as far to keep on calling her auntie! She wasn't that old yet, was she?

"Ah, just get out of here before I pick up my sword again! And don't you dare call me auntie one more time...my name is Ying Yue. You better remember it!"

Ying Yue then crossed her arms as if she was expecting that her name will ring any bells from Zheng Jin.

"Whatever you say, auntie."

Zheng Jin said in an almost inaudible voice.

"Tch, why you-"

Just as Zheng Jin was feeling annoyed that he couldn't lower the price any lower, a feeling of dread suddenly washed over him as he looked at the slowly darkening face of Ying Yue, him feeling the storm that brewed ahead.

"I'm only joking sister Yue. Don't be so uptight haha."

Attempting to diffuse the tension, Zheng Jin finally called her by her name. With this, Ying Yue's face suddenly brightened, then replied in a somehow fake sounding annoyed tone.

"Who told you to be casual with me? Call me Sister Ying instead!"

"Uh, is that so? Well then, I hope to see you soon Sister Ying."

With that, Zheng Jin finally bid his farewell. Being involved with such an unstable auntie was like crossing a rickety old bridge. One wrong step might make him croak early.

...

As Zheng Jin was departing, Ying Yue smiled as she had a few thoughts to herself. Maybe staying in this city won't be boring after all...