I Am a Rune Engraver, Carrying a Knife Makes Perfect Sense-Chapter 17 - Go Find It, I Left It...

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After returning to East Street, Xu Shen didn’t head back to his repair shop. Instead, he navigated through a maze of dilapidated buildings, eventually arriving at a somewhat large courtyard.

The courtyard looked neglected and overgrown with weeds. In the center stood a shabby little house with peeling walls and a roof that seemed on the verge of collapse. It exuded an air of decay and abandonment.

In front of the house sat an old wooden chair, occupied by a hunched old man. He wore simple clothes and had his eyes closed, his face showing a serene, carefree expression. The old man lay there leisurely, holding an old radio in his hand.

Xu Shen pushed open the gate and walked in.

“Brat, you came empty-handed again? What do you want here?” the old man grumbled as soon as Xu Shen took a few steps inside. He opened his eyes, revealing a pair of dull, sightless orbs.

With surprising accuracy, he picked up a teacup from the table beside him and hurled it at Xu Shen.

The cup whistled through the air, aiming straight for Xu Shen’s face.

Xu Shen’s face darkened as he caught it mid-air.

*CRACK!*

The cup shattered in his hand.

“You old geezer, still alive?” Xu Shen grumbled as he walked over and sat down casually.

“I’ll outlive you yet,” the old man replied flatly.

Suddenly, he sniffed the air and sat up abruptly. His blind eyes seemed to fixate on Xu Shen with uncanny precision.

“You can’t even see—what are you pretending for?” Xu Shen retorted, flipping him off.

“You met that old fool?” the blind old man asked in a low voice.

Xu Shen’s mouth twitched. This guy looked older than Jiang Ruyue—how could he call him an “old fool”?

Still, it confirmed what Xu Shen suspected: these two definitely knew each other.

“So, who are you really? You’ve lived this long; surely you have a name,” Xu Shen asked.

He recalled how he had first met this old man while trying to survive on East Street. After getting into a fight over some goods, Xu Shen had fled and ended up here. The old man had found him and beaten him up before demanding monthly food deliveries in exchange for teaching him a few moves.

Those moves had been enough for Xu Shen to establish himself on East Street. Though he’d initially thought he’d found a master, he later realized that “a few moves” literally meant just three: a sucker punch, a stealth technique, and an ambush strike.

Despite their simplicity, those techniques had served him well—he’d never lost a fight since learning them. Out of gratitude, he continued bringing food to the old man each month.

Neither of them knew the other’s name. The old man called him “brat,” while Xu Shen referred to him as “old man.”

“I’m just a blind old man waiting to die,” the old man replied dismissively.

“Don’t give me that crap! Jiang Ruyue knows you—how can you claim to be just some ordinary geezer?” Xu Shen challenged.

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The more he looked at the old man, the more shocked he felt. As a cultivator now, Xu Shen could sense things he hadn’t before. The power within this blind old man was immense—far beyond anything he’d imagined. Though it wasn’t blood energy like his own, it was something similar.

If not for his cultivation in Nine Observations of the Nether Immortal and his Weapon Rune, Xu Shen wouldn’t have noticed the terrifying strength hidden within this frail-looking body.

The old man snorted. “That stubborn fool didn’t dare come see me himself but sent you instead. What did he say?”

“Nothing much—that’s why I’m here asking you,” Xu Shen replied with a shrug.

“Hmph...” The old man merely grunted before suddenly pointing at Xu Shen.

A powerful gust of wind shot from his fingertip, swirling violently as it hurtled toward Xu Shen’s forehead!

Xu Shen dodged instinctively, his body flickering to one side as blood trickled from his ear where the wind had grazed him.

“Are you insane?!” Xu Shen shouted angrily.

The old man remained silent as he spread his fingers wide. Each digit seemed to contain boundless power as five razor-sharp gusts of wind shot toward Xu Shen like arrows!

“Damn it!” Xu Shen cursed as his Weapon Rune flared to life on his hand. Blood energy surged through him as he punched forward with explosive force.

The five gusts shattered instantly under the impact!

Xu Shen charged at the old man, aiming a fierce punch at his chest!

BOOM!

The rocking chair beneath the old man exploded into splinters while the air around them rippled from the shockwave.

Xu Shen’s eyes gleamed with determination—this old man had blocked his full-strength punch with just two fingers!

“You little brat...” The old man’s expression showed surprise as his fingers trembled slightly. A torrent of power surged through them like a raging river before crashing into Xu Shen!

The force was overwhelming; Xu Shen couldn’t resist it and was sent flying backward until he crashed heavily onto the ground!

In an instant, the old man appeared before him again—standing tall despite his frail appearance—with hands clasped behind his back. An oppressive aura radiated from him like an invisible weight pressing down on everything around him.

“What have you been cultivating?” he asked quietly.

Xu Shen chuckled coldly as he got back on his feet, brushing off the dust with an air of mystery. “Want to know? Go find it—I left it...”

SMACK!

The old man slapped him upside the head hard enough to make stars dance in his vision.

“Stop dodging my questions! Where did you get that body-strengthening technique?” he demanded sternly. “That kind of thing disappeared ages ago except for one family—it’s not even in Xinhuo Pavilion.”

Xu Shen blinked in surprise—he’d thought the old man had figured something out about him already. His blood energy was indeed connected to his cultivation technique but primarily stemmed from his Weapon Rune.

“That’s my secret—why would I tell you?” Xu Shen replied coolly.

The old man snorted derisively. “Fine—keep your secrets. But don’t come crying when trouble comes knocking.”

“And don’t drag me into it either.”

With that said, he turned and disappeared into the house without another word.

Xu Shen frowned—something about today felt off with this old man.

“What kind of trouble?” Xu Shen asked as he followed him inside.

“I told you already: body-strengthening techniques are exclusive to one family—it’s their foundation.”

“Now that another like you has appeared... what do you think they’ll do? Recruit you or kill you?”

The old man reclined on a tattered sofa with a mocking smile. “Your so-called ‘opportunity’ means nothing to them—they’ll just accuse you of theft.”

Xu Shen sat down heavily nearby—his mind racing with questions about this mysterious family and their connection to body cultivation techniques.

“Who are you really? How do you know so much?” he pressed further. “And what’s your relationship with Jiang Ruyue?”

“Wo Nen Die,” the old man replied cryptically. (tln : its old chinese slang, supposed to be mean “Im so badass u fucker” something like that.  The phrase “我能屌啊” (Wǒ néng diǎo a)) 

“What? Is your surname Wo?” Xu Shen pondered aloud.

The old man sighed in exasperation. “Kids these days don’t get jokes from years ago... no sense of humor anymore...”

Xu Shen bristled at being teased at such a critical moment but held his tongue as the old man continued speaking more seriously:

“I’m from Jiang Ruyue’s era—just older than him by a few years—is that enough for now?”

“As for my name... I’m not ready to share it yet.”

He waved dismissively as if ending further discussion on that topic.

“So what about this family? And your power earlier...” Xu Shen asked quietly while watching him closely.

“The family is named Cheng...” A flicker of emotion crossed the old man’s face before he continued: “If you ever encounter someone named Cheng with immense physical strength... steer clear until you’re stronger.”

“Otherwise... well... let’s just say losing your life wouldn’t be surprising.”

He shook his head sadly before adding: “As for me... my cultivation technique also focuses on strengthening the body.”

Xu Shen fell silent—he suspected what might have happened long ago between this enigmatic figure and the Cheng family...

“Were they hunting you down back then? Is that why you ended up here?” Xu Shen ventured cautiously.

“Ridiculous! Even blindfolded with mountains on my back—I remain undefeated!” The old man shot him an indignant glare.

“So what realm are you at then?”

“Flame Mastery!” he declared proudly.

“...?”

Why was he so proud of being at Flame Mastery level? Uncle Wang had already reached Spirit Passage! (tln : flame mastery is level 3 , and spirit passage is level 4)

Xu Shen felt conflicted—the old man seemed full of contradictions—and wasn’t sure which parts were true anymore...

But one thing was clear: there was deep animosity between him and this Cheng family despite how well-hidden it might be beneath casual words...

Xu Shen instinctively wanted to run away from potential trouble but hesitated when considering how likely it was that someone from Cheng would come looking for him eventually...

“Jiang Ruyue may be ugly but has good intentions—sending you here hoping I’d pass down my legacy.”

“But even if he hadn’t sent you—I’d planned on teaching you anyway,” said the old man suddenly serious again...

“My cultivation technique isn’t something extra—it’s neither rune nor method,” he explained proudly...

“What is it then?” asked Xu Shen genuinely curious now...

“In ancient times before spiritual energy resurgence—there were legends...”

“People could split space barehanded—or shatter skies with one sword stroke.”

“Stop right there—isn’t that just cultivation fantasy?” interrupted Xu Shen skeptically...

“You know nothing! Listen up!” barked back angrily before continuing:

“In those days too existed runes known now as ancient ones—but alongside them were others focusing solely on physical training—methods honing combat skills above all else!”

“This group practiced an even older unknown combat art!”

“And that’s what I’ll teach YOU!”

“The Battle Art!”

tln : cool blind uncle , but can we stop using old internet meme slang please. especially chinese one. 🙁