Chapter 1 Opening

Xu Jingming opened his eyes and saw a simple room. Inside, on the bed, a one-eyed man was snoring loudly.

"This is my rented house!" Xu Jingming was shocked. At this moment, his body was shrouded in a hazy light. Any player would be enveloped in light when they logged in; the natives couldn't see players at this time.

Only after the light dissipated could the natives see the players.

Three seconds after logging in, the light faded. With a flip of his hand, Xu Jingming held a flying knife in his left hand and placed it on the one-eyed man's neck.

"Bang." He slapped the one-eyed man.

The sleeping one-eyed man was awakened by the slap! He was a bit dazed.

What's going on? Where am I? Is it day or night?

The one-eyed man regained consciousness and saw Xu Jingming in front of him and the cold flying knife against his neck!

"Hero, spare my life! Just tell me what you want," the one-eyed man said immediately.

"Why are you in my house?" Xu Jingming said.

"I, I saw that this house hadn't been entered or exited for several days, so I came in to take a look," the one-eyed man said ingratiatingly. "I also have no place to live, so I temporarily slept here at night. Please spare me, hero."

"Did you take my silver?" Xu Jingming stared at him.

"No, I didn't find it," the one-eyed man replied, his heart stirring. This old house has hidden silver?

Only then did Xu Jingming retract the flying knife. "Get out!"

The one-eyed man sat up with a smile. "I'm getting out, I'm getting out." As he sat up, his hand suddenly lashed out from the blanket, a cold light streaking towards Xu Jingming. But as he struck, his eyes widened, and a bloody hole appeared in his throat! He hadn't even seen Xu Jingming make a move.

"A rascal dares to attack me?" Xu Jingming shook his head. In his eyes, the attack of an ordinary thug was as slow as a snail. After killing the thug, Xu Jingming examined the body and immediately walked out of the house.

It was night, and a crescent moon hung high in the night sky.

Xu Jingming walked into the small courtyard. The courtyard was filled with firewood. The woodpile was quite heavy. Xu Jingming gently lifted it from below with one hand, requiring more than a thousand pounds of force. He immediately saw a package pressed under the woodpile.

"The silver is still here." Xu Jingming nodded slightly.

"The rules of this Blood Rain World are harsh. When players log off and disappear, they can carry other items, but not gold or silver," Xu Jingming sighed. The value of gold and silver in the Blood Rain World was extremely high.

Therefore, silver notes, gold, and silver could not be carried offline.

To log off, one had to hide silver notes and other valuables! Carelessness could easily lead to theft.

"There's no need to activate the 'Smart AFK' function for this little bit of silver," Xu Jingming thought to himself.

Smart AFK meant that the physical body remained in the Blood Rain World, controlled by 'intelligence'! In terms of rationality and logic, the intelligence was no less than a player's. But in combat, the intelligence was much weaker, with fixed routines! And it could only exert the strength of a third-rate expert at most.

In some special situations, such as needing to be online for a long time but having real-world matters to deal with, 'Smart AFK' was needed.

The Smart AFK service was charged, costing 100,000 cosmic dollars annually.

So expensive!

Xu Jingming returned to the house, wrapped the thug's body up, and carried it away under the cover of darkness. The place he rented was just an ordinary old residence, and the surrounding security was very poor. He threw the body into the ruins a mile away, where corpses were often dumped, and officials would come to clean them up.

…

In the morning, Xu Jingming was eating breakfast at a street-side shop.

Many poor people passing by looked enviously at the steaming shop, but those who could afford to eat in restaurants, tea houses, and breakfast shops were all rich! A large meat bun cost one knife coin, which could buy one or two pounds of rice. It was much more cost-effective to eat at home.

"Lanyue City is a big city, but the people's livelihood is still so difficult, with the government and gangs squeezing the common people together," Xu Jingming lamented inwardly. The current era of the Blood Rain World was one of imperial decline and chaos.

The city was already considered orderly; outside the city was truly lawless, with bandits rampant and human life as cheap as grass.

"It's about time; I should go to the Fei family." Xu Jingming placed five knife coins on the table and got up to leave. A waiter immediately collected the knife coins and began to clean the table.

A moment later.

In front of the Fei family mansion, Xu Jingming arrived with a gun case on his back. A servant led him in. "Guard Jing, Miss has already instructed us to wait here. Please rest in the front hall first; Miss will come to see you all later."

Xu Jingming nodded and followed him to the front hall.

In the front hall, a tall man was sitting there, leisurely enjoying tea. When he saw Xu Jingming being led in, the tall man immediately stood up happily and said enthusiastically with a smile, "I am Luo Baichuan."

"Jing Ming." Xu Jingming also cupped his hands.

"Brother Jing Ming is also invited to be a guard?" Luo Baichuan said with a smile, noticing the gun case on Xu Jingming's back.

"Yes." Xu Jingming nodded.

Luo Baichuan said enthusiastically, "Brother Jing Ming, please sit down quickly. We will be working together from now on. I was previously in the Black Axe Gang…" Luo Baichuan liked to make friends and kept talking to Xu Jingming, almost revealing everything about himself.

Xu Jingming also chatted simply, mostly listening to Luo Baichuan talk.

After chatting for half an hour.

Finally, two women walked in. One was still a girl, and the other was a stern, cold woman.

"Hello, Brother Luo! Hello, Brother Jing!" The girl walked in, saw Xu Jingming and Luo Baichuan, and smiled brightly. "Let me introduce you. The one next to me is our Flying Sword Hall's Senior Sister Qiu Tong. I will have to trouble the three of you for this trip to the Imperial Capital!"

"We will naturally do our best," Luo Baichuan said immediately. Xu Jingming and Qiu Tong also cupped their hands in response.

"This trip to the Imperial Capital is a long and dangerous one. So our Fei family is very cautious in selecting guards. The three of you were specially invited by me; the other guards were chosen by my father," the girl, Fei Xinlan, said as she sat down, not hiding anything.

Xu Jingming and the other three chatted with the young miss. Soon, the butler, Zhang Bo, arrived.

"The three of you," Butler Zhang Bo said, "to go to the Imperial Capital, you need to verify your identity plaques along the way! Especially in the Imperial Capital, the identity checks are strict. Do the three of you… have registered household registrations? If not, I will take you to the government office now to register and get your identity plaques."

"I've registered," Qiu Tong said softly.

"I also registered half a year ago," Luo Baichuan said with a smile. "Without an identity plaque, you can't even deposit silver in the bank; you have to register."

Xu Jingming stood up. "I haven't registered."

"Guard Jing, please come with me quickly," Butler Zhang Bo said. "I'll take you there; you can register in the morning."

Xu Jingming nodded.

Identity plaques were equivalent to ID cards on Blue Star! During the most stable period of the Blood Rain World's imperial rule, every citizen had to register and receive an identity plaque. Without an identity plaque, it was impossible to go to other places.

Of course, management was now lax in various places, and the government's control was very weak. Most of the common people outside the city hadn't registered, and even most of the common people in the city hadn't registered their household registrations.

…

On the street.

Butler Zhang Bo, Xu Jingming, and two servants were walking together.

"Guard Jing, I heard that during the battle with Elder Feng of the Flowery Moon Gang, you blocked many of his moves?" Zhang Bo asked with a smile.

"I was still at a disadvantage," Xu Jingming said.

"It seems you're close to the level of a first-rate expert," Zhang Bo said with a smile. "The master knows about your matter and has specifically ordered that your employment fee be increased to 100 taels per month."

Xu Jingming was quite grateful. "Thank you, Master Fei, thank you, Butler Zhang."

Although he had now reached the level of a first-rate expert, he was indeed inferior to Elder Feng of the Flowery Moon Gang when they fought! Based on his performance at that time, the Fei family had increased his fee so much… they were indeed very conscientious employers.

Xu Jingming couldn't say, "I've already reached the level of a first-rate expert."

Because in the Blood Rain World, the 'level of a first-rate expert' was very vague! After all, the natives didn't have panels and couldn't see their actual combat bonuses! They could only determine their approximate level based on actual combat.

If Xu Jingming wanted to prove that he was a first-rate expert, he also needed to prove it through actual combat!

******

Because the Fei family's butler, Zhang Bo, was there, the government office was very efficient and quickly registered Xu Jingming's household registration. The government also kept a record, and the waist tag was carved with precious 'black jade stone'.

Waist tags also had material distinctions. Ordinary ones were made of wood or bamboo, better ones were made of stone, even better ones were made of metal, and above that were some precious materials.

Black jade stone was a type of jade, jet-black with a luster, and even more warm and moist with frequent handling.

On this waist tag, Xu Jingming's appearance was drawn with a few strokes. At least it could confirm the approximate face shape and features.

It also recorded that Xu Jingming's hometown was "Cross Slope Village, 100 li east of Lanyue City."

It also recorded his age and the date the waist tag was engraved.

"Identity waist tag." Xu Jingming held the black jade stone waist tag and sighed inwardly. The records were quite detailed. He immediately inserted it into his belt and carried it with him.

…

In the next few days, after receiving his first month's salary, Xu Jingming also went to the official bank to deposit silver! He deposited a total of "150 taels" of silver. Because the smallest denomination of official silver notes was "50 taels"! And there was a handling fee for depositing silver!

There was no way Xu Jingming could carry more than ten pounds of silver on the road to the Imperial Capital. It was much more convenient to deposit it as silver notes, and he wouldn't have to worry about robbery!

"Once we leave this time, I don't know when we'll be back," Master Fei said, looking at his old house with complex emotions.

Fei Xinlan was also very reluctant to leave.

She had grown up here since she was a child, and she had a lot of feelings for every plant and tree.

"Old Zhang, you and the others will have to take care of the Fei family's old house in the future," Master Fei said.

"Yes, Master," an old man responded, with some servants around him. The Fei family still kept some servants to maintain the entire old house for a long time. Of course, most of the other businesses had already been sold off.

"Let's go."

Master Fei and Fei Xinlan boarded a relatively plain-looking carriage, and two maids also entered the carriage to serve them.

"What a grand gesture. The guards' horses are all quite strong and handsome. They are all good horses." Xu Jingming was riding a steed. It was his first time riding a horse in the Blood Rain World, but he had tried it in other virtual worlds! After all, in the past month or so, in addition to trying to escape the Dark Abyss, he had also experienced many virtual worlds, but only superficially.

Riding a horse, fighting in the army, competing in arenas… He had tried many things. After achieving cellular control, riding a horse was also very easy.

The horse team quickly left the north gate.

"Lanyue City, we're leaving." Xu Jingming, Luo Baichuan, Qiu Tong, and many other guards looked back with reluctance. Many of them were leaving their hometowns, and once they went to the Imperial Capital, it would be difficult for them to return in this lifetime.

But for the sake of their future, for a brighter future, they were willing to go to the Imperial Capital.

"Lanyue City is the first city I came to in the Blood Rain World, and it's also nominally my hometown in the Blood Rain World," Xu Jingming also said with some emotion.

"Giddy up!"

Riding his horse and following the caravan, Xu Jingming no longer looked back and headed north.

…

After leaving the north gate, the caravan traveled along the official road.

The horses were excellent, and the carriages were luxury goods made by top craftsmen. They looked plain on the outside, but in reality, they were excellent in terms of cushioning and other aspects. Sitting in the carriage, after being cushioned, the vibration of the carriage was completely within a bearable range. Fei Xinlan also opened the curtains and curiously looked outside.

"I heard that it's very chaotic outside the city," Fei Xinlan whispered. In her life, she had only wandered around outside the city gate and had never gone to a farther place.

"There are government officials, Blood Rain Guards, many families, and gangs in the city, all of whom want stability in the city," Master Fei said with a smile. "But it's different outside the city. The outside is vast, bandits are as numerous as cattle, and human lives are really as cheap as grass."

Fei Xinlan nodded slightly.

"So people outside the city want to settle in the city," Master Fei also looked out the window. "We have to rush to the Imperial Capital. The journey is long, and this road will not be easy."

Fei Xinlan was very curious; not easy?

As a young lady who had never traveled far, she felt that everything outside was so new.

They set off in the morning and stopped in an open area on the road at noon to eat the food they brought.

"In one morning, we traveled more than 200 li and didn't encounter any bandits. Isn't it said that there are as many bandits as cattle outside the city?" Fei Xinlan muttered as she sat on the grass, eating delicate pastries.

Qiu Tong, who was sitting next to her, said calmly, "Junior Sister, the horses that the Fei family bought are all top-quality horses. Such a caravan… bandits know at a glance that they are not easy to mess with! Because slightly weaker forces can't afford to buy so many good horses, nor dare they be so ostentatious! Ordinary bandits don't dare to come and die."

"Good horses?" Fei Xinlan shook her head. "I heard that some famous horses in the world can travel 10,000 li a day. My family's horses are nothing."

"You're talking about those that can travel 10,000 li a day. You can't find a single one in the entire Lanyue City! One is worth 10,000 taels of silver," Qiu Tong said. Suddenly, she saw a group of people emerging from the forest in the distance. Qiu Tong smiled, "Junior Sister, didn't you say there were no bandits? The bandits are here!"

Xu Jingming, Luo Baichuan, and the other guards all looked into the distance.

"Bandits?" Master Fei was very calm. When he was building his family business alone, he had already experienced great storms.

In the distance, there were as many as several hundred people, holding bows and arrows. The leader was a red-clothed man who was dressed quite coquettishly.

The red-clothed man spoke, his voice resounding around, "What a fine caravan. These steeds are all good horses. I wonder if the master of the caravan can take pity on us? Give us some silver taels. Our hundreds of brothers haven't had a full meal in several days."

"I'll give you ten taels of silver. Get lost quickly," Butler Zhang Bo shouted.

"Ten taels of silver?" The red-clothed man laughed dumbly. "Is the master of the caravan joking? At least 300 taels of silver! That's the least. This little bit of silver must be nothing to the master of the caravan…"

"Guard Jing, Guard Luo, Guard Qiu, Guard Fan, Guard Yu, the five of you, kill them off," Butler Zhang Bo then ordered.

Hearing this, Xu Jingming instantly pulled out the two-section spear behind him, and with a twist, it was locked in place.

Luo Baichuan also took out two hand axes from behind.

Qiu Tong instantly drew her sword.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh!

Among the guards, five figures rushed out at the same time, like five arrows heading straight for the bandit group.

"Entry-level experts." The red-clothed man's pupils shrank when he saw this. He could determine that each of them was at the entry-level based on their running speed.

"Fire the arrows." The red-clothed man ordered.

Immediately, fifty bandits fired arrows at the same time! Other bandits also held throwing weapons. To have formed a bandit group of this size and still be alive today, they naturally had some strength.

Under the arrows and throwing weapons, five figures charged into the bandit group, and the bandits fell like grass. Many bandits were thrown into the air, flying seven or eight meters high.

"What?" Watching this scene, the red-clothed man was shocked. "These five people are all at least second-rate experts."

As the bandit leader, he was a second-rate expert himself and believed that with the cooperation of his gang members, he could threaten some third-rate experts. But 'second-rate experts' were much stronger than third-rate experts in terms of environmental control and actual combat.

"They sent five people at random, and they are so powerful?" The red-clothed man shouted loudly, "Retreat!"

He turned into a red stream of light and fled the fastest! Hundreds of bandits fled in panic, scattering in all directions.

The five great guards then stopped and began to return.

"What do you think of these five newly recruited guards?" Master Fei watched from afar and smiled softly.

The silver-haired old man beside him nodded slightly, "The other four can be considered second-rate experts, but Guard Jing's spearmanship is quite extraordinary. The invisible spear intent envelops all directions, making the enemy terrified. It seems that he has reached the level of a first-rate expert."

"The level of a first-rate expert?" Master Fei's eyes lit up.

"I can feel that kind of pressure," the silver-haired old man nodded. "Master Fei has hired a good helper this time."

Master Fei laughed heartily and was in a very good mood.

The first-rate experts beside him were all Blood Rain Guard experts sent by his son. The other guards were all at the second-rate level, and now it seemed that he had one more first-rate expert.

First-rate experts were very rare in the Blood Rain World. If they were willing to join a gang, they would be figures like elders or guest ministers of the Flowery Moon Gang. They could easily become rich! Very few were willing to be guards for others.

Generally, it had to be wealthy families or truly prominent figures who could command some first-rate experts. For example, Master Fei's eldest son.

"In any case, with one more first-rate expert, the journey will be smoother," the silver-haired old man said.

Master Fei nodded slightly, "With this Guard Jing around my daughter, I can rest assured. Remember, the safety of my daughter Xinlan is the first priority on this trip. I'm an old man with one foot in the coffin. Everything is for my daughter's safety."

"Don't worry, Master," the silver-haired old man nodded. "We have already arranged for three great experts to be by Miss's side, and now we have Guard Jing as well."

Master Fei nodded.

In fact, he didn't know whether listening to his son and going to the Imperial Capital was right or wrong!

After all, the journey was long, and even if the guards were very strong, he was worried that something would go wrong on the way. He was an old man; it didn't matter if he died, but his daughter was still young.

…

After defeating the bandit group, the Fei family's caravan quickly embarked on its journey again, heading north towards the Imperial Capital.