Chapter 68: The Merchant

  In the wilderness, it was already a heavy snowfall, but in some place underground, it was even more unbearable than a scorching summer day. A river of molten lava rushing through the canyon was the source of heat and also the source of light. Above the canyon, over twenty zhang high, there was a long iron chain bridge. The entire bridge was made up of iron plates and chains. Heaven knows how long this bridge had endured the scorching heat, until it turned into a dark black color, looking exceptionally heavy and ancient.

  Leopold was sprawled beside the gorge, his body twisted in a strange posture, his right hand straining backward to grasp the hilt of the long sword that had been driven into the ground and through his calf. From an anatomical standpoint, if he kept his calf still, he wouldn't be able to exert any force even if he grasped the hilt, unless he was willing to abandon the leg altogether.

  "Damn it..." Leopold muttered a low curse, then hung his head in despair and lay down again. In the faint light, it was clear that Leopold's wound had turned black, an ominous color for any injury.

  Just then, the sound of horseshoes came faintly from the pit, and soon the horseshoes sounded more urgent. In an instant, a horse carriage rushed out of the tunnel and galloped towards the iron chain bridge. However, there was a huge boulder blocking the way at the head of the bridge. The wooden man on the carriage pulled hard on the reins, and the direction of the carriage changed abruptly. Amidst the horses' panicked and desperate neighs, the carriage leaped into the air and plunged straight down into the gorge.

  Then, one after another, the carriages rushed out of the ground hole and plunged into the arms of the lava river without hesitation. Extremely gorgeous and extremely pure fire-red waves burst forth one after another, and the scene was surprisingly magnificent.

  As the last carriage hurtled towards the gorge, Han Jin lightly jumped off from above, watching as the carriage plummeted down, then shifted his gaze to Leopold and smiled: "Miss me?"

  "You... you're crazy!" Leopold knew the origin of those carriages, because Han Jin had discussed it with him in detail before he left: "Lord Desmark will never let you go."

  "Let him come then." Han Jin smiled and walked around the giant stone, heading straight for the bridge.

  "If you want revenge against Mario, revenge against me, it's already enough!" Leopold yelled like a madman: "Why don't you let me go?!"

  "Because I'm a good person." Han Jin paused, saying lightly: "When I was in trouble, if someone gave me a drop of water, I would repay him with a clear spring. Of course, hatred is the same."

  Leopold fell silent, staring at Han's back with a terrified gaze.

  Han Jin walked to the middle of the bridge, grabbed a hanging iron chain, and with a forceful jerk, the chain shot up into the air. Han Jin quietly watched the other end of the chain, and when it started falling back down, he quickly grasped it firmly in his hand.

  The other end of the iron chain was wearing a piece of horse meat weighing about five or six catties. The lava river is a natural oven, and it's not difficult to figure out where and how long to roast the horse meat to cook it through, just try a few times to master it.

  Han Jin smelled the aroma of horse meat and smiled with satisfaction: "Just right!"

  Leopold clenched his lips tightly and suddenly lowered his head with force, every time he did this, he would taste that unbearable, maddening pain.

  Han Jin carried the horse meat over to Leopold: "Will you trade places with me today?"

  "No, no, I didn't do anything, nothing at all..." Leopold's face had already turned iron-gray.

  "That's good." Han Jin tore off a piece of horse meat with his hand, stuffed it into his mouth, and chewed silently. After hesitating for a moment, he tore off another piece about the size of his thumb, bent down, and handed it to Leopold: "Have some?"

  Leopold's eyes bulged out, as if they were about to roll out of their sockets. After a long, long time, an extra fire attribute magic crystal appeared in his hand. Leopold threw the crystal to the ground and reached out to grab the horse meat.

  Han Jin suddenly withdrew his hand: "Five magic crystals."

  "What?! You want to exchange this small piece of horse meat for five magic crystals?!" Leopold almost fainted, he roared: "Why don't you go rob instead?!"

  "What do you think I'm doing?" Han Jin smiled and said.

  Leopold was speechless for a moment before pleading, "Can't we just use the old price? Please, I don't have many magic crystals left."

  Han Jin smiled and put the piece in his mouth. He then took out a leather pouch, tilted his head back and drank a mouthful, saying softly: "Want some water?"

  Leopold's throat was violently twitching, but he gritted his teeth and refused to open his mouth. The fact was that all of his magic crystals had been 'bought' by Han Jin. Five magic crystals could only be exchanged for a small piece of horse meat, and he really couldn't afford it.

  "Alright, hand over all your magic crystals and I'll treat you to a hearty meal before letting you go." Han Jin said softly.

  Leopold turned his head to one side, he didn't believe it at all.

  "Actually, I could have used other methods, but I didn't. I've been trying my best to avoid hurting you, do you know why?"

  Leopold wanted to throw his head back and laugh maniacally, he also wanted to shout loudly, pinning himself here with a sword, isn't that harm?

  "Because I'm a person who fears loneliness." Han Jin himself replied: "You see, you've always been afraid that I'll kill you, so you try every means to please me. When there's nothing going on, you always accompany me and chat with me, or tell me stories about yourself and your family... Haha... This is exactly what I want. Otherwise, if I were alone hiding here, how boring would it be? You've worked hard, making me very happy and moved. I'm telling the truth, if you do as I say, I'll let you go immediately."

  After hearing this, Leopold's eyeballs kept rolling, as if thinking about something.

  "Your time is running out." Han Jin smiled: "This time, they set a trap for me. Among those carriages, only two or three were loaded with goods. If I'm not mistaken, they should have caught up by now. Now you need to give me an answer, are you agreeing or disagreeing?"

  "Are you really not going to kill me?" Leopold looked at Han Jin.

  "No more time." Han Jin sighed and pulled out the long sword from his waist, holding it above his head.

  "I agree... I agree..." Leopold screamed, seeing the killing intent in Han Jin's eyes, and he also got excited, determined not to hand over the remaining magic crystal, which would not harm him much anyway, so he might as well take a gamble.

  "Oh?" Han Jin put down his long sword.

  With a crash, nearly a hundred magic crystals fell to the ground. Leopold said sorrowfully, "I only have this much left."

  Han Jin put all the magic crystals in the spatial ring, then threw a large piece of horse meat and a water-filled leather bag in front of Leopold, turned around and walked towards the bridge.

  "Hey...... Sir, don't go yet, let me go!" Leopold exclaimed in surprise and delight.

  "They're almost here." Han Jin said calmly, then his body moved swiftly, and after a few leaps, he had already rushed across the iron chain bridge.