Lord Shenxiu

[Heavenly Show Points: 0 (55%)]

…

"One act of showing off, and I actually got more than half of the Heavenly Show Points? Another act and I could round it up?"

While running laps, Zhong Shenxiu checked the Heavenly Show System and couldn't help but feel delighted, "Indeed, the clichés that I overused in my previous life are still quite novel in this world, with great potential to be tapped..."

"And the effect here of showing one's strength seems even better than in the previous world. Could it be due to better quality of onlookers or because of the difference in worlds?"

Zhong Shenxiu had long secretly compared the human race in this world and found some differences from the previous world.

The biggest difference lay in the presence of cultivation and the popularity of martial skills.

Even the most basic martial arts in the military were considered top-notch secret techniques in the previous world.

His own fifth layer of the "Hundred-refined Martial Skills," even within Black Mountain Castle, could not claim to be invincible, as it was merely a set of exercises for strengthening muscles and flesh, not comparable to those who had activated True Qi.

"It seems I need to quickly master the Primordial Qi Gong... Even without Heavenly Show Points, I'm probably about to successfully cultivate this Daoist Skill..."

Heavenly Show Points were precious, and should be used wisely. Besides, if he couldn't quickly master the remaining chapters of the Profound Yin Soul, it would be a matter of life or death.

The military camp was large, but for Zhong Shenxiu, running ten laps was just his morning training.

When he returned to the camp, Huang Xie and Er Ha had already come to greet him, holding a leather cuirass and helmet in their hands, saying, "Mr. Su, we've retrieved your gear for you, so you don't have to make another trip to the warehouse..."

"Thank you!"

Zhong Shenxiu took the cuirass tanned from cowhide, put it on, and wore the helmet, giving him a fierce and vigorous look.

For ordinary martial artists, having or not having equipment indeed greatly affected their ability to perform.

However, since he was a criminal and the Quanrong people were a different race, both deemed to be guarded against, the gear was usually kept in the warehouse and only issued when needed.

This really made Zhong Shenxiu want to complain.

The only upside was that this was a world where cultivation was widespread, and since cultivation was a very personal affair, everyone had their own room, even if it was somewhat narrow and shabby…

He hung up the last Yanling Saber, completing his set of equipment.

If one were a squad leader, there would be knee pads, arm guards… Ordinary soldiers had to procure these themselves.

At the rank of squad leader, however, one would have the Hundred-refined Mysterious Armor.

Zhong Shenxiu knew well, a martial artist with immense strength, once armored in iron, would see their lethality increase several times over.

Not to mention, squad leaders had better inheritances and might even have the methods to cultivate True Qi.

"Let's go!"

He gave one last deep look at the camp gate, sneered coldly, and started on the road to Saizi Lake.

…

After the group had left, a person slowly emerged from the darkness, his face sullen as he stared in the direction Zhong Shenxiu had departed—it was Tian Bufen!

After being thoroughly embarrassed today, he certainly wasn't going to let Su Daoshi off easily.

"I had never thought of killing this man before," he said, furrowing his brow.

"But Saizi Lake was only suspected of being roamed by beasts—a somewhat dangerous place, yet not deadly. However, today I truly fell out with this man..."

The lower the social rank, the more they feared the so-called upper-class relations.

At this moment, Tian Bufen was truly afraid that the Su Family still harbored any remaining connections and would seek revenge once Su Daoshi escaped his predicament.

The more he thought about it, the more frightened he became, thus giving rise to a murderous intent!

"This matter is of great importance; the fewer people know about it, the better. It's best if it dies in my gut alone..."

Tian Bufen gritted his teeth, "This squad is composed of either criminals or ethnic minorities; no one would care if they died..."

With a light step, he followed from a distance.

...

Saizi Lake.

The lake resembled a silver mirror, embedded in the dim, yellow earth, with a small village nearby—one of the few civilian settlements near Black Mountain Castle.

As soon as Zhong Shenxiu and his group reached the entrance of the village, a thin, old man trembled his way over to greet them. It seemed he had been waiting for a long time and couldn't wait to bow reverently, "We have long awaited the Heavenly Soldiers!"

Judging by his appearance, with black eyes and hair, he was a genuine Yan Han person.

"There's no need for such formality, old man. According to military rules, we do not enter villages. Please, call someone to guide us to the site of the incident for patrol,"

A criminal named 'Xue San' in Zhong Shenxiu's squad said, cracking a smile.

He was the squad leader of this group, usually without airs and graces, and was accused of "vagrancy"—simply put, he was unemployed and idle. When Yan Han recruited soldiers, he was randomly picked up to fix... no, to sort out things in another world.

In fact, Zhong Shenxiu knew from reading Su Daoshi's memories that in the Second Yan Han Empire, the spirit of chivalry flourished. These people called themselves 'Rangers.' Although there were some who acted chivalrously, most were idle troublemakers, bullies, and villains, persistently unaddressed by the officials.

They would round up a batch now and then, essentially a makeshift solution.

This Xue San actually had a bit of a chivalrous heart, not causing trouble for the villagers, or there would have been inevitable chaos.

The old man agreed repeatedly and called a peasant-looking guide named 'Er Qi'—it was unclear if it was sequential order twenty-seven or born on the twenty-seventh.

Er Qi seemed about thirty years old but claimed to be only twenty. He had just married and was very familiar, leading Zhong Shenxiu and the other five to the lakeside, chatting along the way, "Our ancestors were also people of the Yan Han Empire. Sadly, this place was later occupied by an Earl, who appointed a slew of tax officials, utterly exploiting us. When the Heavenly Soldiers arrived, they finally saved us from desperation... I may not have seen it myself, but hearing it from my father and grandfather fills me with gratitude..."

The territory of the Second Yan Han Empire was much smaller than that of the former Yan Han Empire. This place in Heisting County used to be the territory of the Yan Han Empire, but the Second Empire had only managed to recover it and establish the Fufeng Protectorate a hundred years ago.

Arriving at the site, there was no need for Zhong Shenxiu and others to call out. Huang Xie, with his er ha nephew, was already sniffing around on the ground, a dog's head burrowing chaotically. He was close to kicking up the dirt with his hind legs.

"Woof woof..."

Er ha nephew buried his head into a depression, and after a long while, poked out and said, "There have definitely been beasts here, but I haven't smelled anything like this before—I'm not sure what breed..."

Being close to the Black Fog boundary, it was not surprising that birds and beasts could mutate into anything.

Zhong Shenxiu glanced at Huang Xie with a smile, "Mr. Huang, your nephew really has a knack for scent detection... I wonder what his name is..."

"Woof? Did I forget to mention?"

Huang Xie, looking slightly embarrassed, patted the dog's head and responded, "He's the second oldest at home, usually called Er Zaizi, doesn't have a proper name. Mr. Su, you're well-read, why not name him?"

"Excellent!" After asking more about it, Zhong Shenxiu pondered for a long time and said seriously, "Since he is the second in line and was born at the time when Er Ha swallowed the sun, let's call him… Er Ha!"