Chapter 1 The Beginning

The red sun was rising, and smoke curled from the chimneys of Nanliang City.

Behind Yangxiao Hall, beneath the rising smoke, An Qisheng held a letter in his hand, his brow slightly furrowed.

"The people from the Qin Tian Jian (Imperial Observatory) are gone? How can it be such a coincidence?"

This letter contained information that Bai Xian'er had gathered through the intelligence channels of the Great Sun Demon Sect.

If he hadn't performed the Soul-Seizing大法 (Great Art) on Bai Xian'er several times to confirm that he had 100% control over her, he would have thought this was fake.

What conspiracy does this Six Doors have?

He was somewhat vigilant in his heart.

"Dongmen Ruo and Zhao Yanyan actually both had two fingers cut off…"

An Qisheng's eyes flickered.

Just traveling together for half a day, and even disciples of great sects were affected. This gave him a new understanding of the overbearing nature of the Six Doors, or rather, the Great Feng Dynasty.

Thinking this, An Qisheng's heart stirred, and the letter in his palm turned into dust, falling into the dirt.

"Old Daoist, I'm here again to freeload a meal."

From afar, Yun Dongliu's voice carried over.

An Qisheng looked up and saw Yun Dongliu walking into the backyard, carrying a wine pot.

"Hero Yun is up early today."

An Qisheng smiled slightly.

These past few days, Yun Dongliu had been searching for traces of the Demon Sect in Nanliang City at night, so he rarely woke up so early.

"The work is almost done, so naturally I wake up early."

Yun Dongliu put down the wine pot, smiled slightly, and was in a very good mood.

An Qisheng naturally understood.

Nanliang City wasn't large. In these few days, aside from Bai Xian'er who had already retreated, almost all of the Demon Sect's strongholds in Nanliang City had been uprooted by Yun Dongliu.

At the stone table, after the two of them drank a few cups together,

An Qisheng slowly opened his mouth:

"Hero Yun, I, the old Daoist, want to go on a long journey. I'll have to trouble you to look after these two little ones at home."

"Daoist, this is?"

Yun Dongliu raised an eyebrow slightly.

"These past few days, I must thank Hero Yun for driving away those who came to cause trouble for me."

An Qisheng sighed softly.

Some things couldn't be hidden from everyone after all.

In these days, all those who had come for the Soul-Seizing 魔功 (Demonic Art) had, after a period of aimless searching, turned their attention to him.

The fact that Kong San had practiced the Soul-Seizing 魔功 (Demonic Art) was already known to many.

Naturally, he, the only survivor, stood out.

There was nothing he could do. Who told him to be alive?

However, he didn't care.

Having these few extra months to cultivate was enough.

A truly peaceful life could never be achieved by hiding. Although he had no intention of making enemies with anyone, if anyone came looking for trouble, he wouldn't mind sending them on their way early.

In the original timeline, Kong San was still able to break through the encirclement. He was now much stronger than Kong San, so how could he truly be afraid?

"Daoist, you're mistaken."

Yun Dongliu shook his wine cup gently:

"Although those people are blinded by greed, they ultimately shouldn't have died like that. The reason why Yun Mou (this one) stopped them wasn't for you, Daoist."

Having seen An Qisheng's hand, he naturally knew that even if all the martial artists in Nanliang City were to attack together,

The most likely outcome was that they would be killed in large numbers by this unremarkable old Daoist, who would then leave calmly.

"Hero Yun is honest enough."

An Qisheng smiled and then said:

"Since Hero Yun already knows something, I, the old Daoist, won't hide it. Kong San was killed by me, and the Soul-Seizing 魔功 (Demonic Art) is also on me."

Crack~

Yun Dongliu's wrist trembled, and he crushed the wine cup.

Even though he had already guessed it, he was still shocked.

The person that thousands of martial artists were searching for was actually right in front of him?

"Does Hero Yun want to fight me?"

An Qisheng looked at Yun Dongliu with a smile that was not a smile.

"Except for members of the Demon Sect, Yun Mou's (this one's) blade is never lightly drawn."

Yun Dongliu looked at An Qisheng with a solemn expression:

"Daoist, I have three questions."

An Qisheng waved his hand: "Please ask."

"First question, has Daoist ever killed innocents?"

Yun Dongliu lowered his eyebrows.

An Qisheng thought about it. In both his past and present lives, he had never killed an innocent person: "Never."

"Second question, has Daoist joined the Six Hells Demon Sect?"

Yun Dongliu's eyes flickered.

"I, the old Daoist, am alone and do not belong to any sect."

An Qisheng's answer was even more straightforward.

Whether in his past life, the Xuan Star, or the Jiu Fu Realm, he had never joined any sect or organization.

"Third question…"

Yun Dongliu relaxed his body, picked up the wine pot, and took a small sip:

"You and I have only known each other for a few days. Why would Daoist entrust these two little ones to me?"

An Qisheng smiled slightly, especially sincerely:

"Because you are a good person."

Having been in the Jiu Fu Realm for several months, the only people he truly trusted besides the two little ones were Yun Dongliu.

Even Bai Xian'er, who had been subjected to his Soul-Seizing 大法 (Great Art), was not as trustworthy as Yun Dongliu.

Because, this was a truly good person.

At least, in the first half of his life, he was a good person worthy of the name.

"A good person…"

Yun Dongliu chewed over the words, and a trace of emotion rose in his heart.

He only felt that this old Daoist, whom he had only known for a few days, understood him incredibly well.

Hu~

He suddenly stood up, clasped his fist in salute, and said calmly:

"While life remains, I will be here."

"Good!"

An Qisheng raised his head and drank the wine in one gulp.

As the cup fell, he had already disappeared.

........

Seven crimson moons shone in the sky, the night a mix of black and red, an indescribable bizarre splendor.

On the official road in the night, a carriage traveled alone.

"Cough cough!"

Inside the carriage, Huangfu's face was pale, and he coughed lightly twice, bloodstains spreading from the corners of his mouth.

He had truly severed his heart meridian; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to deceive a great master like Xue Chaoyang.

However, although his heart was aching and his body was weak, Huangfu felt very at ease in his heart.

Although the price he had paid was great, he had finally escaped that place of trouble.

"Sir, you're awake?"

The middle-aged man driving the carriage breathed a sigh of relief: "You were too risky. If you weren't careful, you would have committed suicide."

"If it were someone else, they naturally wouldn't be able to grasp this degree, but who is your master?"

Huangfu struggled to get up and sit in a meditative posture. After swallowing a pill, a trace of color returned to his face:

"Eleven years ago, I, Huang Mou (this one), escaped this calamity using this method."

"Why did you have to do this? With Master Xue around, how dangerous could an unformed demon be?"

The coachman shook his head slightly.

Although he had followed Huangfu for many years, he still couldn't understand his master's cautiousness.

Being cautious wasn't like this.

"What do you know?"

Huangfu slowly exhaled a mouthful of foul air, and the pain in his heart eased slightly:

"You and I have studied with our master since we were young. Although you don't understand the art of Qi Observation and couldn't become our master's disciple, don't you understand your fellow disciples?

My talent isn't as good as my senior brothers, and my appearance doesn't please our master. How could I have risen to this point?

Isn't it because I'm cautious enough?"

"This time, the Supervisor will probably not spare you! Eleven years ago, the Supervisor hung you up and whipped you for ten days and nights. Have you forgotten?"

The coachman shook his head repeatedly.

"Gui Xiaoer, shut your mouth!"

Huangfu's face twitched, and his heart ached with anger, nearly causing him to spit out another mouthful of blood:

"Don't you think, if you hadn't been assigned to me by our master, how could you have lived to this day?"

"You're right, you're always right."

The coachman sighed:

"If it was only you being hung up and whipped, I suppose I wouldn't care."

"You don't understand."

Huangfu took a deep breath, and the true qi in his body surged, protecting the severed heart meridian:

"The King is too impatient. In recent years, our master has been depressed all day because he had disagreements with the King. After the Nantian Mountain hunt, which was supposed to conquer three kingdoms in one battle, the King changed…

He wants to be fast, but some things should be a long-term plan. He should have laid the foundation for future generations, but he wants to achieve a thousand-year plan in one morning…"

Huangfu was very worried in his heart.

The Great Feng's stride was too great, and the problem was not just the martial world.

The officials in the court, the numerous regional governors, countless gentry and landlords, and even the Great Feng's millions of elite troops, which were the best in the world, were the real problems that the Great Feng needed to face.

In recent years, the weather had been good, and there were no foreign enemies at the borders, yet many people had starved to death in these years of harvest.

Great Feng, Great Feng…

The coachman listened quietly, occasionally flicking his whip to urge the horses on.

He was the only one in the world who knew that Huangfu was not a truly useless person. On the contrary, his vision and art of Qi Observation were truly inherited from Han Changgong, the Supervisor of the Qin Tian Jian (Imperial Observatory).

Otherwise, could he have survived so many battles to this day just by being timid?

Unfortunately, he was too cautious. Besides his master, Han Changgong, he was the only one who had ever heard these words.

Huangfu rambled on for a long time before sighing again:

"The Embroidered Uniform Guard, the Eastern Depot, and the Six Doors have become increasingly powerful in recent years, and their actions have become more and more cruel. Even if they can always find plausible reasons, they will eventually arouse public anger in the martial world…"

"You may not know, but Xue Chaoyang's slow-moving actions this time are brewing…"

Even now, Huangfu couldn't believe it.

Xue Chaoyang had actually become so bold as to openly harm martial artists.

Had he forgotten what the status of those martial artists was based on?

The Huangjue Temple, the Jishen Sect, the Baiyue Manor, the Zhengang Dao, the Great Dragon Gate, and the Six Hells Demon Sect were all great sects with peerless Grandmasters on the Weaponry Index (a list of the most powerful martial artists and weapons).

In addition, there were also many experts in large sects such as the Righteousness Sect, the Beggar Gang, the Twelve Linked Forts, the Jade Cicada Temple, and the Sword Tomb.

If they truly rose up and attacked, not to mention overthrowing the court, they could completely kill the officials in many cities!

If that happened, and foreign enemies invaded, the court's decrees wouldn't even leave the capital!

"Sir, you've missed a point."

The coachman suddenly interrupted him: "Do you think the King hasn't considered these things? Perhaps, the court has trump cards that you don't know about."

"I hope so…"

Huangfu didn't say anything more and closed his eyes to repair his damaged heart meridian.

This time, his self-severing of his heart meridian was not only to escape a place of trouble, but also to express his disapproval of Xue Chaoyang's actions.

"Hee~"

At this time, the coachman suddenly stopped the carriage.

He looked up and saw a person standing with his hands behind his back on the official road not far away, the night wind blowing his wide robe.

It seemed that he had been waiting for a long time.