《Martial Wild West》 Chapter 1 Chapter 01 [ It¡¯s been over a thousand years since the Central Plains were unified as one. That means that the Imperial lineage, which rules with an iron fist using their Imperial Forces and their superhuman martial arts, has reigned over this land for over a thousand years. That was more than enough time for the descendants of the hero that stood up for the peasants in their despair to be corrupted by power and authority. The will of Gaozu that founded a new empire to stop the tyranny of Emperor Qin Shi Huang has been tainted beyond recognition by the blood of the people and the disgusting greed of his descendants. The Emperor is an absolute authority that does not permit any opposition, and the Imperial Forces obediently enforce his will. And so the Empire has grown by absorbing unfathomable amounts of blood, becoming a horrendous monster. The powerful imperial authority built new roads, connecting and enriching cities. At night, the cities shine like the stars in the sky have descended to earth. Yet in the gutters of those tall buildings flow the blood, tears, and flesh of starving peasants. Countless hermits, martial artists, and warriors raised their swords, no longer able to stand such a sight. Their attempt at revolution was not at all surprising considering how they were raised by being told of Gaozu¡¯s mythical tales. Yet not a single one of those myriad people succeeded in defeating the Emperor and the Imperial Forces. In retrospect, that was an unavoidable fate. The Imperial Forces are trained in the strongest martial arts with the full backing of a country, and the Emperor was raised to be stronger than the Imperial Forces. It¡¯s impossible for such people to lose against a single person or a small group of people that had learned some ancient martial art at some mountain. Even if millions of weak peasants gathered into an army, the ten thousand men of the Imperial Forces could wipe them all out with just a few sword swings. This meant it was only natural that the martial sects of the central plains started mastering martial arts just to become a part of the Imperial Forces and get in the good graces of the Emperor. And in the end, countless peasants became exploited by wealthy merchants and power-hungry local officials. Most peasants¡ªfrom the moment they were born to the moment they were put in the ground¡ªnever got to obtain even a tiny plot of land to call their own. They were just fodder that had to dedicate their entire lives to enriching the ones that stood above them. Days of despair went by, people thinking that it had to be hell on earth, unti, one day¡­ a new land was discovered. It was a massive land that could be found by sailing east for weeks on a large ship into the endless ocean. It¡¯s a land with expansive plains and forests, tall mountains, deep ravines, a harsh wilderness, and calm rivers. And the plants, animals, monsters, and people are not that different from the great plains to boot. The Emperor was surprised that the business the previous emperor had backed was successful, but he felt nothing more than slight amusement. According to the records left by those who were present, the Emperor was emotionless when shown the plants, animals, people, gold, silver, and other goods brought from the new continent by the explorers. But that reaction was also fitting of the Iron Emperor of the empire that had stood for a thousand years yet only continued to grow stronger. However, the Emperor¡¯s reaction must have been a facade because he later awarded the explorers of the new continent with treasure and new ships along with an order to create a safe sea route between the Empire and the new continent. With massive support from the Emperor¡ªwho funded them to kill boredom¡ªthe explorers and the shipbuilding industry quickly went to work, soon completing a sea route and map. And so, on the new, massive ships, many imperials crossed the ocean. Most of the natives on the new continent lived in tribes no bigger than a hundred people, and they did not operate large farms, so there was an abundance of land with no claim, and the peasants saw it as the only chance they had to escape from the hands of cruel officials and merchants and obtain land of their own Over decades, millions of peasants crossed the ocean. The Emperor, instead of stopping them, created his own Imperial fleets to compete with merchants in ferrying people over to the new continent¡ªhe even made a decree that one would gain ownership of land they managed to cultivate. The Emperor thought it wasn¡¯t a big deal if a small handful of his hundreds of millions of subjects crossed the ocean. He was, in fact, happy that the people were going to build farms on their own without needing to expend Imperial resources. He figured that, in a few decades, either at the end of his rule or in his son¡¯s generation, when the land became ripe, he would send the cold-blooded Imperial Forces to take it all in his name. Yet, there was something that the Iron Emperor didn¡¯t see coming. ¡ªIt wasn¡¯t just helpless peasants that crossed the ocean. Warriors that were hiding in the shadows to avoid the Imperial Forces, eccentric hermits that had been biding their time in the mountains and valleys, the clans of ancient kings that were thought to have long disappeared¡ªpeople that had been hiding from the Emperor¡¯s power crossed the ocean as well, dreaming of a new world and new order. Of course, it wasn¡¯t just those with a good will that crossed the ocean. Criminals from the underbelly of cities, con artists who wanted to strike it rich in a new place, mad demon cultists that had mastered sinister, demonic martial arts, and other selfish, evil people made the sea voyage. Scholars were worried that a gathering of all those people would end up causing an explosion like pouring water into oil, predicting a tragedy where countless people would lose their lives. However, that ended up being an unnecessary concern. There were many factors, but in my personal opinion, the biggest reason was likely due to how massive the new continent was and how few people were present in contrast. ¡­I also know that there are myriad scholars writing about this subject these days, and I, a lowly writer, would like to throw my two cents into that mix. I believe that the Emperor¡¯s attempt at taking this land for himself will fail. More than a thousand years ago, they used to believe in the ideology where those who were inhuman were not worthy of being taught¡ªthat¡¯s why warriors of justice were the only ones who could rise to the occasion during the warring states period against the tyranny of Emperor Qin Shi Huang. After Gaozu defeated Emperor Qin Shi Huang, the new empire that was built was not what they expected. Unable to grow stronger under the watch and authority of the new, powerful empire, the warriors of justice had to wander the underground. But that new continent is a different place that is far from the Empire, the Emperor, and the Imperial Forces. It is overflowing with warriors of justice, sages, villains, and demon cultists. I could say that it feels like one regressed to the old martial realm from a thousand years past. All the different creeds, principles, selfishness, and greed clash to dominate each others¡¯ ambitions using all sorts of martial arts. The spark from that chaos will ignite the life of a new martial realm, and that life will have a much more sturdy and resilient body than what the Emperor expects. Without the oppression of the Empire, the battle for one¡¯s own belief will ignite a fire in the hearts of martial artists, and the embers of the new martial realm that will have surfaced after a thousand years will not be easily extinguished by the power of the Emperor and his Imperial Forces¡­ ] * * * Translator ¨C Ripperino Proofreader ¨C ilafy * * * The contents of the book after that page was too waterlogged to decipher. ¡°When was this written?¡± said the man who was crouched and shifting through the book. The man flapped the book around before nonchalantly tossing it to the ground. The book landed on the chest of a corpse lying face-up. The pool of blood on the corpse¡¯s chest started to drench the remaining parts of the book that were intact. ¡°Stupid writer. The dream is to lay in a comfortable bed, munching on snacks while reading a martial arts novel. Liu Bang¡¯s Han dynasty* was normally only supposed to last 500 years. The only reason why his empire lasted longer than a thousand years is because of that damn martial realm and martial arts, so why are you romanticizing that?¡± the man ranted to the dead, squinting as he turned his head, blinded by the sunset. The sun shone its last rays for the day, dipping below the wide horizon far off in the distance of the wide plains. The long, faint trails of clouds showed a diverse spread of colors with the sun shining through them. There was also diversity in the corpses laying around the man. Men, women, and old men. There were about seven or eight bodies limp on the ground, each with at least one massive wound. There was a tilted wagon with one broken wheel. Judging by how the contents of the wagon were in a mess and how there were no dead horses, it was likely the act of bandits. The squatting man squinted his eyes at the corpses that were losing body heat before slowly getting up. He headed towards the pile of clothes near the wagon, rummaging through to see if there was anything useful. Unfortunately, there was nothing for him, but he did spot a few clothes for a small child. Seeing how the body of a child was nowhere to be found, the child was likely kidnapped by the bandits¡ªeither to raise as one of their own or sell off at a bargain. ¡°¡­That¡¯s a shame,¡± the man mumbled. He donned the rice hat he was holding in his left hand, spit on the ground, and whistled a quick, short note. His horse, Cao Cao, slowly clopped over, hearing his whistle. The man adjusted the sword hanging on his hips before jumping up on the horse in a fluid motion. Once he was on the saddle, he tapped the side of the horse with his feet. Understanding its owner¡¯s action, Cao Cao neighed once before dashing and leaving the scene. A man rode on his horse through the crimson desert. Dry air mixed with sand blew on the man¡¯s clothes and hat. The man¡¯s body wavered along with the movement of the horse. Leaving behind corpses of those that had died not that long ago, he rode into the sunset. It was a late evening on the new continent. Chapter 2 - High Noon Chapter 02 Light chatter filled the tavern. The tavern was a two-story-tall courtyard house. On the first floor were a wide variety of people¡ªfolks eating dinner, men drinking booze, and gamblers twiddling with their dominoes on the corner table. Amidst those people, a middle-aged man with a beer belly who appeared like the owner buzzed around, carrying bowls of noodles, bottles of alcohol, and snacks. A man wearing a rice hat entered the tavern through its beaded curtain. He was an outsider. The people eating and drinking sneakily took glances at him. The man had a sword on his waist, meaning he was a martial artist. But on the new continent, everyone and their mothers carried swords and spears around and called themselves martial artists, so that was nothing special. The man stopped in his tracks, sensing the eyes on him. Seeing the man standing still, the tavern keeper walked over to him and spoke while wiping his hands on the towel around his waist, ¡°You must be an outsider. Welcome.¡± The man raised the front tip of his rice hat with a finger and stared at the tavern keeper. The tavern keeper continued on while looking the man in the eyes, ¡°Will you be staying the night?¡±¡°It was self-defense.¡± ¡°I also need a meal.¡± The tavern keeper nodded his head, ¡°That¡¯ll be ten w¨¦n*.¡± TN: W¨¦n was a currency denomination during Imperial China. Not saying a word, the man pulled out ten w¨¦n and handed it over. The tavern keeper took the money and spoke while walking over to the kitchen, ¡°Sit wherever you like. I¡¯ll bring the noodles out soon.¡± After walking to a table in a corner of the tavern, the man undid his sword and scabbard from his waist and leaned it against the table before taking his rice hat off. Once people realized that he was not going to cause trouble, the silent tavern quickly became lively again. The man, Zhang Qian, put boths his hands on the table and slowly looked over the people in the tarven while sitting comfortably. Most of the people in the tavern were local villagers or nearby farmers. There were a few people like him that had swords leaning against their tables. In western, coastal cities and villages, there were more self-proclaimed martial artists than civilians, but there, in a region a bit far away, there were more farmers than swordsmen. The few swordsmen present seemed nothing more than some random nobodies that were carrying a weapon for self-defense. There were quite a lot of guests, but it seemed the tavern keeper was the only one working. Most taverns had at least one or two waiters, but none could be seen, and it didn¡¯t appear like the tavern keeper had a wife or children. Qian was led to believe that it¡¯d be a while before his noodles were ready. ¡°Fucking hell! You son of bitch! You just cheated, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°What? Cheat? What are you on about? You¡¯re just a lousy gambler! ¡± The men playing dominoes in the corner started raising their voices. A man stood up and accused the man sitting behind Qian of cheating, and then the two started arguing, saying they¡¯d kill each other. It must have been a common scene because the people in the tavern either shook their heads or giggled while drinking. Even the tavern keeper, who had peaked his head out from the kitchen to see, smirked and went back in. Seeing how no one was anxious or nervous, they were probably going to end it as just a verbal argument. Despite that, Qian¡¯s eyes were locked on the two men. To be more precise, he started focusing on them after hearing the voice of the man that was sitting behind him. ¡°Fuck you! Then how does it make sense that you¡¯ve been winning all day while I¡¯ve done nothing but lose!¡± ¡°Like I said, isn¡¯t that just because you suck? Other than you, everyone else won a lot!¡± ¡°What did you say, asshole?¡± The man that was making the accusation finally couldn¡¯t hold it back anymore and pushed the other man with both of his hands. The other man ended up stumbling a few steps back before grunting. ¡°Do you really wanna go?¡± ¡°Yeah, you fucker! Did you think I was a sucker just because I kept letting you get away with it?¡± The two men grabbed each other by the collar, shaking each other and shouting nonsensical swearing. Due to the commotion, Qian, who was watching them, got a good look at the other man¡¯s face. A faint smile appeared on Qian¡¯s face, ¡°So that son of bitch was here,¡± he mumbled to himself. Qian stopped watching their kerfuffle and walked over to them. Meanwhile, the others at the table where the fight was happening giggled, not interested in stopping the men swearing violently in each others¡¯ faces. ¡°Oi,¡± Qian said. The two men looked over at Qian. The man that was making the accusation had a look that said, ¡®Who¡¯s this motherfucker?¡¯, but the other man went pale from shock. ¡°¡­What do you want?¡± The man making the accusation asked. Zhang Qian shook his head and said, ¡°Not you.¡± * * * Translator ¨C Ripperino Proofreader ¨C ilafy * * * The spooked man¡¯s eyes darted around the room back and forth. Eventually, he meekly smiled, saying ¡°¡­Brother Zhang, I can¡¯t believe we¡¯re meeting here of all places.¡± ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s been two months. Have you been well?¡± The man Qian had business with let go of the other guy¡¯s collar and slowly took a step back. Confused, the man that had made the accusation just let him slip out. ¡°Well. I mean. I, uh, I¡¯ve been well. Uhm, what about you, Brother Zhang?¡± Qian shook his head while smiling. He said, ¡°I haven¡¯t been well. Yet, for some reason, you guys always seem to tell me that you¡¯ve been well.¡± ¡°¡­Did you find my friends?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. You¡¯re the last one.¡± The man took another step back. He stuttered, ¡°Th-the thing is¡­ I, uh, actually said let¡¯s not do it. I mean, think about it. Why would I want to con a martial artist with dominoes? We¡¯d get stabbed with a sword if we got caught.¡± ¡°Yet you guys still did it.¡± After hearing Qian¡¯s answer, the man stared at Qian with a blank face before bursting out in loud laughter. The man then quickly turned around and tried to run away, but the moment he turned around, he felt a burly hand grab the back of his head¡ªand then that burly hand proceeded to slam his face directly into the domino table. ¡°Ugh!¡± With the collision of the man¡¯s forehead against it, the coins and dominos on the table rattled. The people around started moving away in shock. The man that had his face slammed into the table felt his head ring with pain. He struggled to move his arms and legs around, but the hand holding him down felt like a boulder, not budging even a little bit. ¡°I p-promise that I said we shouldn¡¯t do it! Besides, it was you that sat there until you lost all of your money! We weren¡¯t going to stop you if you had decided to just stand up at any point! I¡¯m serious! Please, go easy on me!¡± Qian silently grabbed the man¡¯s left hand, put it on top of the table, and pulled out the domino hiding in his sleeves; then, Qian shoved the domino into the man¡¯s face and whispered to him, ¡°That doesn¡¯t change the fact that you used tricks while gambling. Now stop fucking around, Yang Gweng. Where is my money?¡± The man named Yang Gweng, seeing the rage in Qian¡¯s eyes, gulped before answering, ¡°Well¡­ I, uh, used it to pay the Martial Alliance¡¯s bounty.¡± ¡°What the fuck? You used it to pay the bounty?¡± Gweng trembled in fear as he saw Qian¡¯s face get red in anger, ¡°Wh-what was I supposed to do? There¡¯s a branch of the Martial Alliance here. I needed to be able to come to the tavern to eat¡­¡± Qian raised Gweng¡¯s head and grabbed him by the collar, ¡°So you¡¯re saying you don¡¯t have any money on you?¡± ¡°T-that¡¯s not it. I have some money I won here¡­ So let that¡­¡± Gweng looked over to the coins on the table. Seeing that, Qian tossed Gweng aside and went over to the spot Gweng was sitting and started pocketing the coins laying there. The man that¡¯d accused Gweng of cheating, the people that were gambling with them, and all the other guests in the tavern watched in a daze. They could tell that Gweng had gotten caught after cheating in a game before, but even taking that into consideration, Qian¡¯s actions seemed harsh. ¡°W-wait. Hold it right there!¡± shouted the man that had been swearing at Gweng, snapping out of his daze, ¡°Stop! All of that is money he earned with dirty tricks! That¡¯s my money!¡± Qian glanced over at the shouting man and proceeded to continue picking up the coins, ¡°That¡¯s not my problem. You can get your money from him later.¡± The man shouted, ¡°What the fuck did you say?¡± his face red with anger. He put out both his hands in front of him, attempting to push Qian like he had pushed Gweng. But the moment the man tried to push Qian, Qian pulled at his hand while side stepping. ¡°Oof!¡± Qian said. The man tumbled forwards from being pulled¡ªhe must not have learned any martial arts because he planted his face directly into the ground. Not caring if he was fine or not, Qian returned to the table to collect Gweng¡¯s money. Having quickly grabbed all of the coins, Qian put them in his bag before grabbing Gweng by the collar again. ¡°Uh! Wh-why are you doing this, Brother Zhang?!¡± ¡°What do you mean ¡®why¡¯? It¡¯s because this is far from enough.¡± ¡°B-but¡­ I don¡¯t have anything else¡­¡± Gweng sheepishly smiled and showed his empty hands, trying to convince Qian it was true. It was like he was telling Qian to search him if Qian didn¡¯t believe him. Qian was seriously considering stripping Gweng down when¡­ ¡°Motherfucker!¡± the man that¡¯d fallen to the ground shouted before he stood up while holding his nose, glaring at Qian. Blood was oozing from his nose, dripping through the fingers, ¡°Look what you did to my fucking nose! You¡¯re dead meat!¡± Seeing the pitiful sight, Qian smirked and said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry for hurting you, but I lost far more than just chump change to him¡­¡± Qian trailed off because the man that seemed like was going to charge at him instead turned around and fled the tavern. Staring dumbfounded at the man running away, Qian let out a small laugh before looking over at Gweng. ¡°What¡¯s up with that fool?¡± ¡°W-well¡­ His name is Jin YangSuk¡ª¡± Qian cut off Gweng and shook his head, ¡°I don¡¯t care. So what are you gonna do?¡± ¡°What? Huh? Do what?¡± Qian tightened his grip on Gweng¡¯s clothes, ¡°Do you want to figure out a way to repay me somehow, or do you want your dantian shattered?¡± he threatened. Gweng¡¯s left eye and two hands trembled in fear, ¡°Wh-what good would dispersing what little ki I have do for you, Brother Zhang?¡± Despite the pathetic, trembling voice, Qian felt no pity, instead, he clenched his fistuntil it was as hard as rock and brought it close to Gweng¡¯s face. Nervously looking back and forth between Qian and Qian¡¯s fist, Gweng let out a deep sigh and slumped his head down. ¡°¡­Let me go first. I have something in my pocket.¡± As soon as Qian let go, Gweng opened up his shirt and reached deep into it before he tore apart a hidden pocket that held a lump of cloth. Slowly and carefully, he unwrapped the cloth and revealed a tiny jade ring. Gweng stared at the ring one last time before letting out a sigh and handing it over to Qian, ¡°¡­It¡¯s, uh, something I got at New Sichuan. It¡¯s real jade, so as long as you find the right seller, it should fetch a good price,¡± he told Qian. Qian took the ring and looked around before putting it in his inner pocket. ¡°S-so does that suffice?¡± ¡°Yeah. I think that¡¯s good enough,¡± Qian said while laughing lightly. Qian¡¯s gaze went from the awkwardly laughing Gweng to the tavern keeper standing outside the kitchen. Not giving a single fuck about the looks people were giving him, Qian spoke to the confused tavern keeper, ¡°So, when are my noodles going to be ready?¡± Chapter 3 Chapter 03 Even though he looked like he wanted to run away after having his money and jade ring taken away, Yang Gweng sat down in front of Zhang Qian while eating his noodles and talked to him like nothing had happened. ¡°Brother Zhang, you shouldn¡¯t be eating noodles right now.¡± Qian just kept eating his noodles without answering. The way he was chewing with puffed cheeks after sucking in a bunch of noodles really made them look delicious. Yang Gweng swallowed his saliva and continued, ¡°Hey, Brother Zhang. I¡¯m telling you right now because we¡¯ve eaten and played with tiles together before, but you¡¯d better leave this tavern right now.¡± Zhang Qian didn¡¯t respond. Instead, he kept nibbling his noodles before drinking the soup. Qian then put down the bowl and finished swallowing everything inside his mouth before taking a sip of the tea placed next to him. It was only after he had finished that he finally looked at Yang Gweng. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°¡­Do you remember the guy who ran away earlier?¡± ¡°Jin YangSuk?¡± Yang Gweng scratched his chin, ¡°You didn¡¯t look like the type, but you remembered him perfectly. Anyway, that dude is a pretty dangerous guy.¡± ¡°Even though he was losing money to a scammer like you?¡± Yang Gweng cleared his throat upon hearing Zhang Qian¡¯s slander, ¡°That¡¯s too harsh, can¡¯t you call me by something better than a scammer?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll call you a thief if you don¡¯t like that.¡± ¡°Come on! Don¡¯t you remember what I told you earlier? I¡¯ve already paid the bounty from the Martial Alliance.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t make your victims disappear.¡± Yang Gweng shrugged his shoulders, raising both of his hands, ¡°A portion of the bounty is supposed to be used to compensate them. That should be enough since I¡¯ve never taken anything from the poor and innocent people.¡± ¡°Who do you think you are, Hong Gil Dong?¡± ¡°¡­Who is Hong Gil Dong?¡± ¡°The master of Chivalrous Robbers,¡± Zhang Qian responded while bringing his cup of tea to his mouth. ¡°¡­Chivalrous Robbers?¡± #Hong Gil Dong of Chivalrous Robbers is a famous Korean story about a righteous thief during 15th century. This suggests Zhang Qian has the memory of a korean person living after 15th century. ¡°Do you think you could recognize him if I told you in more detail?¡± Yang Gweng smiled slightly, ¡°No, I don¡¯t, I¡¯m not too educated.¡± Zhang Qian stared at Yang Gweng for a while without saying anything; then opened his mouth, ¡°So why is he dangerous?¡± Yang Gweng picked up a cup of tea placed upside down at the corner of the table, and then poured the tea into it and started speaking, ¡°Jin Yang Suk is nothing special. He didn¡¯t learn any martial arts, and he isn¡¯t rich, either. Moreover, he isn¡¯t even smart since he didn¡¯t receive much education, so he is just a doormat.¡± ¡°So, how is the doormat dangerous?¡± Qian asked. Gweng took a sip of the tea he¡¯d just poured, ¡°The doormat is just a doormat. However, the problem is the fact that the doormat has an older brother, and a pretty skilled one at that.¡± Upon hearing Yang Gweng¡¯s words, Zhang Qian snickered and picked up his chopsticks once again, ¡°I¡¯m pretty good at martial arts too.¡± ¡°Ah, I¡¯m well aware of that. There¡¯s nobody in Hermit Valley who doesn¡¯t know how painful your punches are. Everyone used to say your sword had to be a decoration before they saw you drawing it.¡± Zhang Qian put down his hand that was holding the chopsticks upon hearing that, ¡°What¡¯s the problem, then? Stop beating around the bush and tell me already, shithead.¡± ¡°¡­The doormat¡¯s skilled older brother is a problem, but the sect he belongs to is even more problematic¡ªit¡¯s an evil sect called the Dogma Sect.¡± Zhang Qian wrinkled his eyes, ¡°Didn¡¯t you tell me there was a Martial Alliance¡¯s branch office around here? How can an evil sect even exist?¡± Yang Gweng responded with a silly snicker, ¡°Are you curious?¡± Zhang Qian also snickered. He showed Gweng his clenched left fist. Yang Gweng¡¯s face became slightly white upon seeing his fist. * * * Translator ¨C Kyangi Proofreader ¨C ilafy * * * ¡°Uh, well. I¡¯ll tell you, so put down that fist. Of course, they aren¡¯t an evil sect on the outside. They aren¡¯t a bunch of homeless vagrants, after all. Apparently, there¡¯s some connection between their boss and the Martial Alliance¡¯s branch manager, which is why they won¡¯t interfere with them as long as they don¡¯t cross the line. The doormat¡¯s older brother, Jin ChungSuk, is the most skilled person there.¡± ¡°And you were extorting his brother.¡± Yang Gweng shrugged his shoulders once again, ¡°I told you, they won¡¯t cross the line. What happened earlier also happened yesterday, and it would¡¯ve happened again tomorrow if Brother Zhang wasn¡¯t here.¡± ¡°The Martial Alliance is really doing a great job.¡± ¡°It looks like the residents here agree with you. They seem to have a lot of complaints since they easily talked to me all about them even though I¡¯m just an outsider.¡± Zhang Qian looked away from Yang Gweng and took his chopsticks, ¡°Then stop talking to me and go chat with some more residents.¡± ¡°¡­That would be troublesome.¡± Zhang Qian wondered what Gweng was going on about, then realized the situation after looking at the table Yang Gweng had been sitting at. The people who had been happily gambling with Yang Gweng were glaring at him as if they wanted to kill him¡ªit must¡¯ve been because he had provoked Jin YangSuk and used some dirty tricks. Moreover, a few residents were leaving the tavern in fear. As Zhang Qian watched them while nibbling on the remaining noodles, the tavern¡¯s owner came up to him with a smile and spoke to him. ¡°Dear guest¡­¡± Zhang Qian looked up at the owner. When he looked closely, the owner¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t just stiff, he was also shivering. ¡°I¡¯ll refund the cost of the noodles and lodging, so please leave my tavern.¡± Upon seeing that, Yang Gweng seemed to be thinking that it couldn¡¯t be helped as he smiled, ¡°Well, since it came to this, let¡¯s leave before the Dogma Sect guys get here, We¡¯ll both end up dead if they show up¡± However, Zhang Qian finished eating his noodles and lifted the bowl to drink the soup despite having heard his words. After gulping the soup down completely, Qian put the empty bowl on the table and burped, ¡°I think we will be okay.¡± ¡°¡­Do you think you are a master from the Imperial Forces or something? There are apparently about twenty people in the Dogma Sect. What can you even do?¡± ¡°You should¡¯ve run away already instead of talking to me if you were planning on running. It¡¯s already too late.¡± The tavern¡¯s owner became dumbfounded upon hearing that, and a low and deep voice could be heard from the other side of the curtain covering the tavern¡¯s door. ¡°That¡¯s right, it¡¯s already too late to run away.¡± It felt like the sound of blood leaving the bodies of Yang Gweng and the tavern¡¯s owner could be heard, and the owner of the voice entered the tavern. The tavern¡¯s floor started making a cracking sound as the tough-looking man¡¯s heavy body stepped on it. Upon entering the tavern, the tough-looking man looked at Qian after taking a glance at the tavern¡¯s owner and Gweng. After staring at Qian, who was calmly drinking his tea, for a moment, he looked around, ¡°Is that them?¡± ¡°Eh¡­ That¡¯s right, brother. They tricked me to take my money and then broke my nose like this when I complained. Please punish them.¡± ¡°¡­Your money?¡± Jin YangSuk, who came up from behind the man, hurriedly corrected himself. ¡°Eh, they were taking people¡¯s money, and my money was just a small portion of it.¡± The tough-looking man stared at YangSuk, who was pathetically stuttering, then looked back at Gweng and Qian. ¡°Everyone, leave.¡± Qian could tell the man wasn¡¯t talking to him as everyone in the tavern hurriedly ran outside. The tavern¡¯s owner, who was about to follow the people, hesitated upon reaching the man¡¯s side, ¡°Err, I bought a new table recently¡­¡± The man glared silently at the tavern¡¯s owner, and the owner hurriedly ran through the curtain in surprise. Gweng, who looked anxious, secretly stood up, trying to mix himself into the crowd to leave. ¡°Sit down if you don¡¯t want to be the first one to die.¡± Upon hearing Zhang Qian¡¯s dry voice, Gweng sat down like nothing had happened and responded while lifting his cup of tea, ¡°Hmm? What are you talking about, Brother Zhang? I¡¯m still sitting here.¡± Zhang Qian just snickered while meeting the man¡¯s eyes. As soon as everyone left the tavern, seven or eight menacing men entered the tavern at once and surrounded Qian and Gweng, who were sitting in a corner. The man who was still glaring at Zhang Qian started speaking while walking up to him slowly, ¡°Nice to meet you, friends. My name is Jin ChungSuk. I¡¯m a humble troubleshooter of this village, although there¡¯s not much work for me in this peaceful town, so I¡¯ve been just enjoying my idleness.¡± He stopped in front of the table where Zhang Qian and Yang Gweng were sitting. ¡°However, it looks like I finally got to work today.¡± Qian didn¡¯t respond¡ªhe just stared at Jin ChungSuk with displeased eyes and drank his tea. ChungSuk¡¯s eyebrows squirmed, and Gweng, who was watching them, stood up quickly and put his hands together in greeting. ¡°Ha, haha. I think there was some misunderstanding. Nice to meet you, my name is Yang Gweng. I arrived in this village a few days ago, and I¡¯ve already heard countless rumors about your righteousness, so I¡¯ve been dying to meet you, the warrior of justice. The way we happened to meet here must have been destiny! Ah, and this person here is Brother Zhang, and he only recently arrived in this town¡­¡± However, Gweng stopped talking as ChungSuk pointed at him with his right index finger. While he was flustered by the sudden finger-pointing, ChungSuk opened his mouth. ¡°Swindler.¡± ¡°P-pardon? S-swindler?¡± The index finger then moved to point at Zhang Qian. ¡°Thug.¡± Jin ChungSuk lowered his hand, then put his hands on his waist and arrogantly started speaking, ¡°You suddenly appeared in this peaceful village to extort the poor and innocent people. My younger brother was unable to ignore the situation and complained to you, yet you responded to him with your fists. You are truly the worst of the ruffians. As a righteous man, I can¡¯t overlook this situation, therefore, I¡¯ll arrest you and take you to the Martial Alliance¡¯s branch office. Since resistance will only result in you getting hurt, please do not resist.¡± His confident attitude and speech declaring them as guilty like a judge left Gweng speechless, as he could only distort his eyebrows. The men surrounding them drew their thick clubs as soon as ChungSuk finished talking and approached them. Gweng¡¯s face turned pale. He unconsciously swore, ¡°god damn it¡­¡± ¡°At least you aren¡¯t immediately trying to kill us or something.¡± The men narrowing their encirclement flinched upon hearing Zhang Qian¡¯s sudden voice. They instinctively looked at ChungSuk, as they didn¡¯t know what to do. ChunkSuk twisted his eyebrows in displeasure and glared at Qian. ¡°How could I kill people in a tavern in broad daylight?¡± ¡°Does that mean it¡¯s okay to bring a group to oppress people like this?¡± ChungSuk approached one step closer to the table Qian was sitting at, ¡°This is for the sake of arresting a thug threatening the village, so fellow residents of the martial arts world will also understand it.¡± ¡°But you scoundrels are the only fellow residents of the martial arts world here. Your ego is too huge.¡± Upon hearing Qian¡¯s sarcasm, ChungSuk came one step closer and spoke in a low voice, ¡°You must be really seeking death to keep talking back like that. I¡¯m going to rip that mouth apart before handing you over to the Martial Alliance if you don¡¯t stop now.¡± Qian just smirked, facing his threat, ¡°So you aren¡¯t going to leave me uninjured, huh?¡± ¡°You shouldn¡¯t think you can leave the village unscathed after doing that to my little brother¡¯s face. I¡¯m going to at least take your arm or your leg. Well, I can forgive you with the thing between your legs, if you want.¡± The scoundrels surrounding them smirked, finding ChungSuk¡¯s last words funny somehow¡ªone of them was even giggling and tapping on his own thigh with his club. Poor Gweng unconsciously narrowed his legs and gathered his hands upon seeing that. And Qian just stared at the pathetic scoundrels ChungSuk and Jin, who was smiling like a fool, and eventually started speaking, ¡°Don¡¯t people usually start being careful in this kind of situation in murim stories? Because I might be hiding something, you know. Maybe I¡¯m from the Imperial Forces, or I could be a hidden master. Aren¡¯t you worried about that at all?¡± ChungSuk¡¯s face turned stiff upon hearing that. ¡°Pardon? Imperial Forces? Are you from the Imperial Forces?¡± Qian responded with a blank expression. ¡°No, that¡¯s not the case.¡± ¡°¡­What¡¯s wrong with this crazy bastard? Are you kidding me? You must be really seeking death if you are pretending to be from the Imperial Forces¡­¡± At that instant, Qian bounced up from his chair without any sign, placed his hand on the table to jump over the table and kicked ChungSuk in the face.¡± Jin ChungSuk was knocked to the tavern¡¯s entrance despite his tough and huge build¡ªthe kick must¡¯ve contained a tremendous amount of strength. In his fainted state, his eyes had no focus, and his top and bottom front teeth were all broken with blood flowing in between, making him unsightly. The scoundrels inside the tavern and Yang Gweng looked at ChungSuk and Qian one after another with dumbfounded expressions. Bouncing off from kicking ChungSuk, Qian made a clean landing on the spot and faced their gazes with crooked eyes. ¡°Do you think the warriors of the Imperial Forces are the only experts out there?¡± Chapter 4 [Translator ¨C Kyangi ] [Proofreader ¨C ilafy ] Chapter 04 One of the Dogma sect¡¯s scoundrels who was looking back and forth between ChungSuk and Qian snapped out of it and shouted. ¡°Attack him!¡± If any of them had somewhat learned martial arts, they wouldn¡¯t have dared to attack him like that. However, their most skilled fighter, Jin ChungSuk, had already fainted, and the scoundrels had never trained their eyes to recognize Qian¡¯s movements. ¡°Die, you son of a bitch!¡± The scoundrel who was closest to Qian swung his club at him. It was just a simple diagonal swing with no depth¡ªa movement strong enough to smash an average person¡¯s head. Qian easily dodged by stepping back with one foot and leaning slightly backward, he then raised his body back up and punched the scoundrel¡¯s chin with his right fist. With a smacking sound, the scoundrel became stiff and collapsed forward. Before the man even finished collapsing, Qian stepped past him and raised his right foot to smash it down on another scoundrel¡¯s face. At the same moment, he used the rebound of the blow to perform a roundhouse kick to the back on another one¡¯s chest. Surprised by his movements, one of the scoundrels reflexively jumped at Qian and raised his club. Qian quickly turned his body towards him, and quickly punched the scoundrel¡¯s wide-open flank. When he became unable to breath and halted his movement, Qian punched the man¡¯s face and raised his elbow while stepping to the right side, leaving the collapsing man behind. The end of his elbow met the solar plexus of another scoundrel, and the moment the man threw up, Qian had already moved away to graze another man¡¯s chin with a left roundhouse kick. Upon getting his chin grazed, the man¡¯s eyes lost focus, and he collapsed to the front. Qian regained his posture and walked towards the two remaining guys with casual steps. The two remaining scoundrels were just staring at Qian with their mouths agape after having witnessed the other scoundrels collapsing one after another so easily. Qian provocatively stood in front of them and checked their pathetic faces before punching each of them in the chin. Both men collapsed with a final sound of surprise. Qian, who had beaten up nine scoundrels, including ChungSuk, dusted off his hands and looked around. YangSuk was nowhere to be seen because he was clever enough to run away right after his older brother had lost. Qian snickered and turned around towards Gweng. Gweng¡¯s expression looked as foolish as the last scoundrel¡¯s had been before getting punched in the face. ¡°¡­You didn¡¯t get injured at all.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t learn martial arts to lose against such scoundrels.¡± Gweng looked down at the collapsed Dogma sect guys and stroked his chin, ¡°Still, I didn¡¯t know you were this strong¡­¡± ¡°If I was half as good with the tiles as martial arts, I wouldn¡¯t have lost money to your group.¡± Avoiding stepping on the scoundrels¡¯ bodies, Qian returned to his seat, attached the sword next to the table to his waist, and picked up the rice hat. ¡°Anyway, it was nice to see you again, and let¡¯s never meet ever again, scammer.¡± Gweng, who was deep in thought while stroking his chin, flinched upon hearing that and started smiling like a fool, ¡°No way, brother Zhang! Why are you saying goodbye? That¡¯s so heartless! Let¡¯s drink some more instead.¡± ¡°What the fuck, say what again? Do you want to hand over more money?¡± Yang Gweng shook his hand, ¡°No, no. That¡¯s not it. Are you really going to leave just like that?¡± Qian pointed outside the tavern¡¯s window with his cheek. The tavern¡¯s owner and the guests, who had run away were sneakily looking at them through the window; Gweng also recognized their faces. ¡°¡­Ah, indeed. We can¡¯t really keep drinking in this tavern anymore.¡± Qian smiled slightly upon hearing Gweng¡¯s murmur and went out the tavern¡¯s door. Gweng, who was looking out the window, quickly followed him. ¡°Aww, brother Zhang! Don¡¯t be like that. Let¡¯s go together. There are at least ten more of those Dogma sect guys, including their sect leader, ChungSuk¡¯s superior! Moreover, what do you think is the reason for why he is the sect leader despite being weaker than Jin ChungSuk? It¡¯s because he has connections with the Martial Alliance¡¯s branch here¡­¡± Qian stopped walking upon hearing him, and Gweng flinched as he almost rammed his face against Qian¡¯s back and came to a rest. ¡°What¡¯s up? Why did you stop?¡± Qian didn¡¯t respond, so Gweng had to stick his head over his shoulder to check the situation outside the tavern, where one sturdy, middle-aged man and five warriors that were each holding a sword were surrounding the tavern¡¯s entrance.Gweng silently stepped back into the tavern. The middle-aged man riding the horse was staring at Qian while rubbing his abundant mustache. While it seemed he was interested in Qian, YangSuk, who was next to him, was full of anxiety as he looked at Qian. The middle-aged man started speaking. ¡°You don¡¯t look disconcerted at all. Do you realize who I am?¡± He asked, and Qian pointed at the middle aged man¡¯s chest with his chin, crossing his arms. ¡°You must be the Martial Alliance¡¯s branch manager.¡± A small, metallic hexagon was attached to the middle-aged man¡¯s shirt¡ªit was the Martial Alliance¡¯s symbol that was distributed to the branch managers of each branch. The middle-aged man laughed lightly and continued. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m this village¡¯s Martial Alliance branch manager, and I received a report about your assault against my villagers.¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t just an assault! My older brother lost consciousness! He can¡¯t even eat properly anymore with his teeth broken!¡± Jin YangSuk, who was standing next to the branch manager. shouted. The branch manager looked at Qian with the intent to confirm his words. Translator ¨C Kyangi ¡°It was self-defense,¡± Qian bluntly responded with his arms still crossed. ¡°Self-defense?¡± The branch manager asked back, and Qian slightly shrugged his shoulders. ¡°What else can a nine versus one fight be called other than self-defense? And eight out of those nine were even holding a club.¡± ¡°But you are the only one who came out from the tavern.¡± ¡°Those nine were wusses.¡± The branch manager smiled in satisfaction for some reason and asked again. ¡°Did anyone die?¡± Qian didn¡¯t say anything and just slowly shook his head. The branch manager smiled even more broadly and nodded. Upon watching the scene, YangSuk¡¯s face became distorted as he shouted. ¡°Branch manager! What are you doing right now instead of arresting him? My brother is unconscious! He also broke my nose!¡± The branch manager¡¯s face became stiff upon hearing his shout and he looked at YangSuk. YangSuk¡¯s face was red with anger, yet he soon realized something upon receiving that gaze after a moment of confusion, and his face turned pale. The branch manager spoke to him, ¡°Nine people from the Dogma sect including ChungSuk have collapsed? Then tell me why I should keep putting up with you. ChungSuk and the sect leaders are the only ones who are anything close to being martial artists, and if only one of them is left, then I can easily win against him on my own while my subordinates handle the rest of the scoundrels.¡± ¡°Th-that¡¯s¡­O-once my older brother wakes up, h-he won¡¯t overlook¡­¡± ¡°The only thing he will see once he wakes up is going to be the bars of a cell.¡± The branch manager signaled with his chin to the warriors holding swords, and one of them unsheathed his sword and unraveled the rope he had around his waist to tie up Jin YangSuk. YangSuk could only stay dumbfounded as he was dragged away. The branch manager approached Qian without dismounting from his horse. ¡°Well, get away from there now since we need to arrest the scoundrels harming the village.¡± Since Qian had been watching the situation, he obediently stepped aside, walking away from the tavern¡¯s entrance towards the stake where his horse was tied to. While the Martial Alliance¡¯s warriors rushed into the tavern, the branch manager just watched Qian, who was untying the horse¡¯s reins. ¡°Are you planning to leave right away?¡± Qian didn¡¯t look back or respond, and the branch manager nodded on his own. ¡°That¡¯s a good idea. Even though it was self-defense, it will be bothersome if you keep staying in this village since the villagers will be anxious.¡± During the short time he spoke, the warriors had taken the fainted scoundrels out of the tavern, spreading them on the roadside. The branch manager confirmed ChungSuk¡¯s body, whose face was completely messed up, and asked Qian once again. ¡°Where did you learn martial arts? While ChungSuk isn¡¯t exactly an expert, he is pretty good at fighting.¡± Qian still didn¡¯t respond and mounted the horse¡¯s saddle. After pulling the reins of the neighing horse, he finally looked at the branch manager. Qian silently looked at him for a moment, then put on his rice hat and changed the horse¡¯s direction to the opposite side of where he¡¯d entered the village. ¡°¡­He isn¡¯t a talkative fellow.¡± The branch manager¡¯s expression became stiff once Qian turned around. He wanted to threaten him using the Martial Alliance branch manager¡¯s position, but he was reluctant since he could¡¯ve been an expert who wasn¡¯t scared of the Martial Alliance. In the end, the branch manager couldn¡¯t stop Qian from leaving. The manager spat on the ground and stared at Qian¡¯s back with displeasure. At that moment, Gweng ran out from the tavern and shouted. ¡°Brother Zhang! Let¡¯s go together. Brother Zhang! Don¡¯t leave me here alone!¡± After recklessly shouting like that, he flinched upon receiving the Martial Alliance warriors¡¯ and branch manager¡¯s gazes and quickly mounted his horse and started chasing after Qian. Quickly catching up to him, Gweng rode next to him and took a glance back. ¡°Damn it¡­ The Martial Alliance¡¯s branch manager is such an opportunist¡­¡± Qian didn¡¯t say anything. As they crossed the main road of the small pioneer village, the villagers cautiously watched them from their houses through their window or in front of their doors. Gweng met their gazes with a bitter expression, ¡°Oh, man, Brother Zhang solved the village¡¯s problem in the end, so they shouldn¡¯t be looking at us like that.¡± He turned his gaze towards Qian, ¡°Brother Zhang, do you know why the branch manager did that?¡± ¡°What do you mean ¡®why¡¯? He was just arresting criminals since he is from the Martial Alliance.¡± ¡°Villagers wouldn¡¯t have talked behind his back so much if he was the type to fulfill his duties. Brother Zhang, listen. I heard a rumor about the Martial Alliance¡¯s patroller around this area. It looks like that man was worrying about that and took the opportunity with brother Zhang to take action.¡± Qian was just riding on the swaying saddle without saying anything, but Gweng restlessly blabbered until they left the village. ¡°Which means he managed to hide his wrongdoing thanks to you, so he should be rewarding you for that. Giving some money or providing lodging is the correct thing to do, yet he just chased you away! I¡¯ve seriously never seen a decent person from the Martial Alliance. They are either lacking something or are opportunists just like that guy. I guess any decent man wouldn¡¯t join the Martial Alliance. That¡¯s why, brother Zhang, it might be sudden, but don¡¯t you want to work with m¡­¡± Gweng¡¯s horse stopped because Qian, who was riding ahead of him, had stopped. Gweng looked around to figure out why and realized they had already left the village and were facing a crossroad. One road was headed towards the north, while the other was towards the east, with a small wooden sign posted in the middle. ¡°¡­Why did you stop?¡± Qian looked at Yang Gweng. ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡°I-I wonder? Where are you going, Brother Zhang?¡± Qian snickered. ¡°I don¡¯t work with people who use dirty tricks during gambles.¡± ¡°¡­I did tell them to stop. It¡¯s true! And you didn¡¯t even hear what work I was going to suggest.¡± Qian softly shook his head upon hearing his answer and turned his horse towards the east. ¡°Let¡¯s never meet each other again, scammer. I¡¯m going to smash your legs if you keep following me, so make the correct decision.¡± He galloped the horse and left. Having been left with the threat that his legs would get smashed, Gweng stayed speechless and just kept watching Qian¡¯s back and the horse¡¯s ass. Once Qian was far enough from him, he sighed deeply. ¡°¡­He really is playing hard to get. I wonder what his identity is. I just know that he hasn¡¯t always lived in the Hermit Valley. I should investigate him properly,¡± Yang Gweng murmured while stroking his chin, turned his horse towards the north, and sighed again. ¡°Shit, I got chased out of the village when the sun was setting. Damn it!¡± He was about to depart to the north, but he looked towards Qian, who was already far away, one last time. The setting sun was dying the eastern sky a dark blue, yet Qian and his horse were fearlessly running towards that dark world. Getting a strange feeling from that sight, Gweng also departed to the north, followed by the cloud of dust rising from the horse¡¯s hooves. Chapter 5 [Translator ¨C Ripperino ] [Proofreader ¨C ilafy ] Chapter 05 A campfire built from scraped-together dead branches let out a small, wavering light. Qian snapped a long, dead branch in half and threw it in the fire. With not a lot to burn, the fire was small, shaky, and not very bright. To have a fire that could burn all night, it was clear that Qian had to go find more wood elsewhere. But Qian didn¡¯t really care. The light was faint, but for someone who had mastered ki sense like him, it was enough light to see as if it were broad daylight. He¡¯d made the fire so his horse, Cao Cao, wouldn¡¯t get anxious and so he could boil tea. He sipped the slightly bitter tea from a tiny, metal cup. It wasn¡¯t very tasty, making him smack his lips. ¡°This tastes like shit.¡± Cao cao was laying on the floor, chewing on something. Hearing Qian¡¯s outburst, he looked over at Qian. Sensing Cao Cao¡¯s gaze, Qian looked back at his horse. ¡°What? Do you want it as well?¡± Cao cao looked at Qian like he was pathetic; he then neighed before laying fully down on the floor. Qian smacked his lips again as he said, ¡°I bet there¡¯s not a horse in the world that loves laying down more than you.¡± Cao cao neighed and scratched the ground with his nose like he understood Qian¡¯s jab. This kicked up some dust towards Qian¡¯s direction. ¡°Shit.¡± Qian waved away the dust. He sometimes thought that Cao Cao might be someone that had reincarnated like him because he was far too smart for an animal, but being reminded of his personal secret calmed Qian down. Reincarnation¡­ Buddhism describes it as the act of a dead being changing forms and being reborn. It was the hardest phenomenon to believe in that world of martial realms and a thousand-year empire, but it was also something he had to believe. The young man that had lived in an age where planes flew at the speed of sound and people voyaged to the moon had died in an accident and reincarnated into that land. Though, to be exact, he wasn¡¯t reborn on the new continent but in the central plains as the son of a wealthy family. ¡°Fucking hell.¡± Qian suppressed his emotions and sipped on his tea. He then frowned and spat out his tea, glaring at Cao Cao while dumping out his dust-mixed tea. Thinking it was funny, Cao Cao let out a happy neigh as if he really was a person. While laying down, Qian swore to himself that he¡¯d sell Cao Cao off one day and get himself a new horse. His eyes drifted away from the fire to somewhere far away. It was a night without any moon, so everything in the landscape looked like one large, dark lump. Contrasting that, the sparkling stars of the milky way filled the night sky with lights as if trying to claim that they were alive. The light was like treasure shining deep under water, making Qian want to jump into that sea of stars. But the distance between Qian and the stars was so far that his mind could understand it numerically, but his heart didn¡¯t feel like it was real¡ªeven though he knew that even if he spent all of his remaining life flying in a single direction towards the sky, he wouldn¡¯t even get close to one of those lights. Others might¡¯ve been saddened by that fact, but Qian at least didn¡¯t let himself get hung up on something he couldn¡¯t do anything about. Instead, he let out a deep breath and pulled his thin blanket up to his neck. It was time to sleep. Qian woke up in the morning and stretched his body by swinging his sword around lightly. He then cleaned up the fire, put away his bedding, pulled up the still laying down Cao Cao, and fastened the saddle on him. Cao Cao neighed in complaint, not wanting to be saddled, but he couldn¡¯t stop Qian. With things more or less ready, Qian took out a small, dry bread from his bag and started nibbling on it while getting on Cao Cao. He was a bit worried if he could get to a village by day¡¯s end. No matter how beautiful the night sky was, it didn¡¯t beat the comfy bed and warm meal of an inn. He hoped that he¡¯d find a big village if possible. He had to sell off the jade ring he¡¯d gotten from Gweng and find a job for money. ¡°I swear I¡¯m dead to myself if I play another game of dominoes,¡± Qian mumbled to himself while slowly riding Cao Cao. Having mastered a fair amount of martial arts, he was confident in his dexterity and eye sight, but for some reason, dominoes always got to him. You can¡¯t take all your opponent¡¯s money with just good eyes and sneaky hands. What¡¯s important is whether or not everyone except the sucker is in on it¡ªthat was the lesson he¡¯d learned after blowing all of his money. While pondering miscellaneous thoughts, Qian suddenly pulled on the reins. The sudden yank made Cao Cao shake his head in anger. ¡°Calm down, you rascal.¡± With his hearing that¡¯d become sensitive from ki and training, he had heard a faint scream¡ªit came from beyond the hill to the right. Qian quickly pulled Cao Cao¡¯s reins towards that direction. Cao Cao understood his owner¡¯s intent and started dashing furiously towards the hill, leaving behind a thick dust cloud. At the top of the hill, Qian and Cao Cao could see a stopped wagon, people on the ground, and bandits breaking and robbing the wagon in the distance. There was only one person that looked unharmed despite not looking like a bandit, but he was on his knees, begging to someone. The bandit towering above the man was standing proud and smiling wide with a sword in his hand. The man on his knees looked to desperately want to live because he went all the way down on the sandy ground to beg. Unfortunately, it didn¡¯t work, as the bandit¡¯s sword quickly swept through the man¡¯s neck. The bandit must have liked painting his sword with blood, as he still had a wide smile. With the final person murdered, the other bandits all raised their weapons high and chanted in joy. Watching them from atop the hill, Qian had a frown on his face. Translator ¨C Ripperino There were very few regions in the new continent that were under the complete influence of the Empire¡ªit was no more than three or four cities at best. As for the rest of land, public safety was taken care of by a sect in that region or warriors were dispatched through branches of the Martial Alliance. Naturally, there were plenty of bandits and villains that had no disregard for laws. The smart ones exploited peasants amidst normal people while the less than intelligent ones claimed their share in the plains and deserts. But because they were still people that were raised into the ethics of the thousand-year Empire, most of them hesitated to murder. And with the Martial Alliance prioritzing bounties on murderers, only very few mindlessly slaughtered people. Even with all that, there were always one or two guys with screws loose no matter where you went, there were murderers everywhere that didn¡¯t care about bounties or ethics¡ªeither they were crazy madmen that got off on murder, or they were a demon cultist that learned a demonic martial art. Oftentimes, the two went hand in hand. The bandit that was smiling suddenly turned his head towards Qian. The bandit¡¯s face was covered in grime, and his two eyes shone like glass beads while staring at Qian. The guy pointed at Qian with his sword and shouted something, and then the bandits that were rummaging through the corpses quickly got on each of their horses and started charging at Qian together while letting out a bizarre scream. A chilling smile appeared on Qian¡¯s face. ¡°So they wanna go.¡± Qian drew the sword on his waist, and the long blade shone brightly. He then lightly kicked Cao Cao, and his horse purred loudly before rushing down the hill. Fifteen bandits and Qian charged towards each other. Like typical bandits, they must not have trained in making formations because they ran at him together in a horizontal line. Thanks to that, Qian only had two directly in front of him. When Qian and the two bandits crossed each other, two heads flew into the air. Qian immediately grabbed the reins and turned Cao Cao around. Despite normally acting like a mule, the horse circled around smoothly like a premium car. ¡°What the fuck? That motherfucker killed SangYeon and Gumoon!¡± ¡°Fuck! Kill him! Chop his head off!¡± The bandits that rumbled past Qian turned their horses around while shouting in anger. Because each of them had different turning speeds, they ended up coincidentally charging at Qian one at a time. And one by one, their heads went flying from Qian¡¯s sword. After the fifth guy¡¯s head was cut off, one guy held his sword with his mouth and jumped off his saddle at Qian, but Qian just grabbed him with his left hand and threw him aside and cut him. Slashed from the chest to his thigh, the guy rolled to the ground while spurting blood. Seeing their comrades killed so easily, the rest of the bandits stopped their horses in shock. ¡°We fucked up! He¡¯s a martial expert!¡± ¡°Shit! Why is someone like that here?!¡± One guy turned his head and shouted at the bandit standing alone near the wagon, ¡°Boss! Help us, boss!¡± But if that guy really wanted to live, he shouldn¡¯t have turned his eyes away from Qian because Qian closed the distance in an instant and cut him diagonally. ¡°Fuck! Run!¡± The bandits all ran in fear in the direction of their boss. They must have had some confidence in their boss¡¯s skills, seeing how they didn¡¯t try and flee just anywhere they could. Qian didn¡¯t bother chasing them, stopping Cao Cao for a moment to watch the bandits run towards their boss. The boss of the bandits glared at Qian with killing intent, and he noticed that Qian didn¡¯t have a single drop of blood on him¡ªother than the blood dripping down the side of his blade. The boss looked away from the sword and locked eyes with Qian. Unlike his nonchalant face, Qian¡¯s eyes were cold and harsh like steel. The boss smiled, ¡°Are you with the Martial Alliance?¡± ¡°Nope,¡± Qian answered, stopping Cao Cao. The boss put on a thicker smile at Qian¡¯s reply, ¡°I see. Then you must be a warrior of justice in passing. Well, why don¡¯t you continue passing, then?¡± Qian put on a bitter smile at the man¡¯s mocking tone, ¡°Are you nuts? You want me to just go when you swung your swords at me first?¡± ¡°That was unavoidable. As you can see, that¡¯s our job.¡± ¡°Killing people and picking up money is your job. I didn¡¯t know you were such a grand son of a bitch.¡± The boss retorted with open arms, ¡°What about it? It¡¯s been a hundred years already since the new continent was pioneered, and who ended up taking control during that time? It¡¯s the people with power. The Martial Alliance backed by the Empire, ancient noble clans of old kings, scheming merchant unions, etc etc etc. And in the last hundred years, they¡¯ve done nothing but profit by taking advantage of people setting roots on the new continent.¡± The boss licked his teeth while smiling. His rotten, yellow teeth were atrocious to look at, ¡°I¡¯m only contributing to that. I can call it a job because that¡¯s what they¡¯d call their actions as well.¡± Qian frowned from listening to the bullshit and looked over at the fallen bodies. One of them was a dead young woman leaned against the wagon. She must have been a warrior, as she was holding a sword. Her bosoms were exposed, but it wasn¡¯t clear if it was because they¡¯d rummaged through her clothes or because they¡¯d wanted to play with her. For some reason, Qian thought that the hazy, dried-out eyes of the body were staring directly at him. Qian jumped off his horse and walked until he was about six meters away from the boss. ¡°You asked me if I was with the Martial Alliance,¡± Qian said while giving his sword a shake and slowly putting it back in its scabbard. Seeing Qian¡¯s actions made the boss smile ear to ear in excitement. ¡°That must mean you have a bounty,¡± Qian said. ¡°Yeah! That¡¯s right! I do have a bounty on my head! And I bet it¡¯d jump higher once my recent actions are revealed!¡± The excited boss started breathing loudly. He grabbed his sword with both hands, bringing the sword to his waist and flattening the blade horizontally; he then widened his legs and crouched his body¡ªit was like he was gathering power for an explosion. Qian loosened his grip on his sword, thinking about how funny the situation was. As the Han Empire¡¯s Imperial Forces became the strongest martial organization under the heavens, martial arts had developed towards killing your opponent as fast as possible. Because of that, the martial arts of reality were much different than the martial arts he knew¡ªalbeit what he knew was from novels he¡¯d read. Stuff like movement techniques, thousand-mile hearing technique, sound telepathy, and kinesis¡ªmartial arts that could be used in daily life¡ªeither had only the most basic principles or didn¡¯t exist at all. Martial arts was entirely focused on killing your opponent as fast and easy as possible. As a result, this is what it looked like when two martial arts experts beyond a certain level encountered each other. The boss¡¯s eyes started changing into a dark red color, his spread-out legs started ballooning like they were going to burst, his crouched body twitched with power that seemed like it was ready to explode at any moment, and in his ki-imbued sword hand, a dark red light shone. In contrast, Qian looked calm¡ªhe just had his right foot a step forward and his left foot perpendicular to his right foot. Qian¡¯s left hand held his scabbard while his right hand lightly held the handle of the sword. Because his rice hat was slightly tilted down, the bandits could only see his scruffy, bearded chin. Despite there being over a dozen men and horses present, it was quiet. There wasn¡¯t any wind, wild animals, or insects. Even the fauna was remaining silent. One of the bandits that had been nervously watching the two sniffled loudly. And at that precise moment, two flashes of light passed each other. ¡°¡­You¡¯re fast,¡± The boss quietly mumbled. The boss and Qian were then standing with their backs facing each other. Despite having heard the boss¡¯s mumbling, Qian didn¡¯t reply, and except for the slight cut on his hat, he was unscathed. Meanwhile, the boss of the bandits fell, his body coming apart in two at the waist. Qian watched the bandits panic through the slit that¡¯d opened up on his hat. The bandits tried to turn their horses and escape, but Qian was faster than them, cutting them open and spilling their guts. Having taken care of all the bandits, Qian shook his sword and looked at the field of corpses he had cultivated. He then whistled, and Cao Cao clopped over. It was a harsh contract to the warhorse-like performance he¡¯d exhibited just moments ago. Seeing Cao Cao¡¯s muted face made Qian smirk. But right as he was about to get up on the saddle, he heard a dying voice from the wagon.