David Bolton got a large cart, and, together with the fierce tiger and the delighted The Clerk, went into the city to deliver the good news and medicine, leaving the couple Edward Clark and his wife, who had hoped to meet the magistrate, extremely disappointed. However, thinking of Samuel Grant's promise, their mood improved considerably.

The Thompson Family was regretful that her own son could not benefit from the magistrate's prestige, and she lost her temper as soon as she got home.

“Sanlang, still not rested enough? We're out of firewood at home.”

Why didn't John Clark and James Clark go? Inside the house, Henry Clark frowned. He wanted to resist, but his hand touched the pass at his chest. He turned to look at the house he had lived in for over ten years, packed up his things, and got up to leave.

He glanced at the sharp-tongued The Thompson Family, took the hatchet and carrying pole, and walked out step by step.

That single glance left both The Thompson Family and Edward Clark stunned for a moment, then The Thompson Family immediately flew into a rage. “He actually didn't answer back—how bold!”

Henry Clark turned around and, before Edward Clark's anger could erupt, said, “The fierce tiger was hunted by me; everyone in the village can testify. Also, I want to go study.”

Edward Clark and his wife’s faces changed dramatically.

Henry Clark felt a surge of satisfaction and walked off into the distance. At this moment, many memories came to him: that night when he was six and fell ill, the unprecedented panic of Edward Clark and his wife—now that he thought about it, it was more likely they were worried about losing those five hundred coins...

He felt a bit uncomfortable, so he forcibly interrupted his own train of thought and smiled at a villager returning home.

The trees at the edge of the village couldn't be cut down—that was the rule—so he could only head toward the mountains.

After walking for more than half an hour, Henry Clark suddenly shuddered, then hurriedly hid behind a tree.

On a small hill ahead stood four people.

Three men in dark robes, armed with weapons, faced an unarmed Charles Clark.

The leader held a broadsword, glanced coldly at the flustered Henry Clark, and sneered, “Charles Clark, five years ago you fled far away under our pursuit, and now you return—what do you want? Are you looking to die here?”

The three men in dark robes slowly moved, subtly surrounding Charles Clark. Yet all of them looked wary, as if Charles Clark were a fierce tiger.

Charles Clark also glanced at Henry Clark, his face expressionless as he said, “Yet you all dare not go to Southern Zhou!”

The middle-aged man in the center’s eyes flashed with a strange light. “He’s in Southern Zhou too?”

Charles Clark's foot moved slightly.

The three men shouted in unison.

“Attack!”

The three of them darted forward, barely touching the ground.

Three broadswords moved at once, countless sharp gusts of blade wind sealing off every possible escape route for Charles Clark. Dead grass on the ground flew up, swirling in the air and turning to gray smoke.

This was...

This was the first time Henry Clark had witnessed such power.

He opened his mouth, stunned and then bewildered, but in truth, he was trying to think of a way out. He watched closely, wondering what would happen if he joined in. But in an instant, he felt dejected. According to his calculations, if he joined, he would only distract Charles Clark and be of no help at all.

Charles Clark suddenly punched into the air, and with a loud bang, the blade winds scattered chaotically.

Charles Clark suddenly turned left. The man on the left shouted fiercely, swinging his broadsword at the air.

That was the direction Charles Clark was heading.

But Charles Clark did not dodge.

Charles Clark!

Henry Clark knew that if he went up, he would only be throwing his life away, and might even drag Charles Clark down with him. But this middle-aged man was the person in the world who cared about him most.

Charles Clark punched straight ahead.

In his eyes, there was no broadsword—only...

Killing intent.

Clang!

Fist met broadsword, and the broadsword suddenly shattered, fragments flying everywhere, the sharp sound of them piercing the air filling his ears.

This... Henry Clark stared in shock, thinking, this is a broadsword—let alone a fist, even stomping on it with a foot wouldn’t break it. Yet Charles Clark shattered it with a single punch—what kind of skill was this?

Someone leapt up behind him and kicked, but Charles Clark seemed not to notice, his fist stubbornly driving forward.

The man, retreating rapidly, crossed his arms in front of his face to block.

Bang!

The sound of bones breaking rang out. The man was knocked back at high speed, his legs carving two deep grooves in the ground.

Charles Clark was also kicked from behind, but he held back the blood in his mouth and, using the momentum, rushed toward the nearby mountains.

As he sped away, he looked back and laughed loudly: “I’m off!”

That glance also swept over Henry Clark.

Charles Clark was never a man of many words, and certainly wouldn’t waste time talking to his enemies.

He was telling me to go!

To Chang’an!

Henry Clark crouched there, trembling. The best thing now would be to run away quickly, to avoid being silenced. But he was worried about Charles Clark. Though he couldn’t keep up, he wanted to stay and watch until Charles Clark safely disappeared into the mountains. As for being silenced... he glanced at the two men, his mind spinning with ways to act pitiful and escape disaster.

The two men chased after Charles Clark relentlessly and soon vanished into the mountains.

The remaining man lay about twenty paces from Henry Clark, both hands broken, his sternum apparently fractured in several places, yet his pale face only showed some annoyance, as if these injuries were nothing. He took a deep breath. “Boy, help me up, and fortune will smile on you.”

Henry Clark looked up, a bit flustered and a bit lost. After being called several times, he finally dragged himself over step by step.

The man, in his forties, smiled and said, “Come.”