Chapter 260: No Years in the Mountains

Lin Chao sighed inwardly.

In this world, human life is as cheap as mustard.

If Liu Guafu is dead, she is dead; it wouldn't even cause a stir at the magistrate's office.

"Yesterday, Liu Xiang took a kitchen knife and snuck into Deacon Wang's home, and the result... sigh."

Liu Feng let out a sigh, feeling the sadness of a rabbit dying for a fox.

Lin Chao knew Liu Xiang; he was a thirty-five-year-old man who seemed to have feelings for Liu Guafu.

He was very introverted, taciturn, worked very hard at gathering herbs, had no bad habits, and had been working hard to save money, all just to save enough to take a wife.

"Xu Ye, don't tell anyone I told you this."

"Alright."

Lin Chao left, sighed slightly in his heart, and then returned to normal.

Avenge Liu Guafu?

He was not Liu Xiang.

However, he did have a bit of a grudge against Deacon Wang.

Back when he left this place, Deacon Wang had overcharged him by one large coin, a fact he had kept in mind ever since.

But the Medicine Gang was a behemoth to him now.

He could not afford to offend them and could only act as if nothing had happened.

Half an hour later.

Lin Chao arrived at the Medicine Gang's stronghold in Liu Family Village.

Deacon Wang sat on a chair with a bandage wrapped around his left arm; he looked at Xu Ling with a look of surprise in his eyes: "You have become a martial artist?"

"Yes," Lin Chao said, "Deacon Wang, according to the Medicine Gang's rules, as I am now, I am allowed to go to Lianshan and other places to gather herbs, right?"

The Medicine Gang was, after all, the local power here, and the mountains here had all been claimed by them.

All herb gatherers in these mountains could only receive a meager wage for their labor each day.

If Lin Chao avoided the mountains occupied by the Medicine Gang and went to places like Lianshan to gather herbs, the herbs he gathered would belong entirely to him.

Ordinary herb gatherers, however, could not go to other mountains to gather herbs and claim them as their own.

For one, the Medicine Gang did not allow it; if discovered, the light punishment was having their legs broken, and the heavy punishment was being beaten to death.

Secondly, those mountains were not cleared of large wild beasts by the Medicine Gang, and incidents of beasts eating people often occurred, which was very dangerous for these villagers.

Martial artists counted as a privileged class.

Moreover, even if Lin Chao had left the Lei Family Martial Hall, he had, after all, come from the Lei Family Martial Hall. The Medicine Gang would also be wary of the Lei Family Martial Hall.

"You may," Deacon Wang glanced at Lin Chao sideways, "The herbs you gather will be purchased by our Medicine Gang at market price."

In recent months, the price of herbs had been rising steadily.

Naturally, the more herbs, the better.

"No problem," Lin Chao agreed.

"Xu Ling, would you be willing to join our Medicine Gang and become a guest elder?" At this moment, Deacon Wang extended an invitation.

"No."

Lin Chao refused.

He hadn't even entered the inner courtyard of the Lei Family Martial Hall, so why would he join the Medicine Gang?

Deacon Wang looked at Lin Chao and said nothing more.

A month ago, he had impatiently told Lin Chao to get lost.

This was the change in status brought about by strength.

Lin Chao did not care about these things.

To him, strength was merely a means of self-preservation.

His lifespan was endless, and he had few worries.

The only problem might be that his strength was too weak, leading to an accidental death.

There are no years in the mountains.

Lin Chao went into the mountains to gather herbs every day.

He sold most of the herbs to the Medicine Gang.

Of course, a portion was intercepted by him.

Especially the herbs for refining the Wang Tongshou Nine Refining Prescription; he kept them all to refine into medicinal liquid for his own consumption.

Originally, it would have taken about five months to break through to the second stage of Blood Refining, but after consuming the medicinal liquid, Lin Chao reached the second stage of Blood Refining in just two months.

This day, Lin Chao went to town, preparing to purchase some more supplies.

"Greetings, Xu Ye." The man in the bun shop showed a look of awe on his face.

In a small town like this, every martial artist was a person of status and influence.

"Give me two baskets of buns," Lin Chao sat down.

With his cultivation, his appetite had also grown much larger.

"Coming right up."

Soon, two baskets of steaming hot buns were brought over.

The price of two baskets of buns was very cheap, worth only the price of two catties of rice.

It was just that the flour was not as refined.

"Xu Ye, have you heard about the great battle between the leader of the Green Feather Gang and the leader of the Ax Mountain Gang?" At this moment, a shifty-eyed man at the table next to him asked.

His name is Huang Ergou, an idler who spends his days hanging around the streets.

According to Lin Chao's past life terminology, a street loafer.

"I don't know." Lin Chao shook his head.

"The duel happened a month ago; at the time, the fighting was earth-shattering and evenly matched.

I heard the two of them fought for three full days without a winner being decided," Huang Ergou said with great excitement, beaming.

Lin Chao chuckled.

This was a bit of an exaggeration.

Given the Qi-blood and stamina of a Martial Master, being able to fight for the duration of one incense stick is already extraordinary.

"Who won in the end?"

Lin Chao had a premonition that the leader of the Green Feather Gang must have won.

"The leader of the Green Feather Gang won!

Xu Ye, do you know?

At the final moment, the Green Feather Gang leader, Qing Kun, took out a weapon called a Holy Light Firearm. With a light wave, a flash of fire erupted from the Holy Light Firearm, and the Ax Mountain Gang leader, Liu Fu, died."

"A firearm?"

Lin Chao was slightly stunned; he thought his ears had deceived him.

The Great Xing Dynasty has firearms now?

According to Huang Ergou's description, this firearm should be the same thing as the firearm he imagined.

However, this was also normal.

Lin Chao felt a secret apprehension in his heart.

What he feared more was that this firearm was named the Holy Light Firearm, which was clearly a product of the Holy Light Sect.

The current Yangyue Prefecture is still under the rule of the Great Xing.

Yet someone is using the rebels' weapons directly; it seems Yangyue Prefecture has been deeply infiltrated by the rebels.

Lin Chao decided he should quickly improve his strength.

In these chaotic times, strength is the foundation.

Eight months later.

Lin Chao finished the medicinal liquid and closed his eyes.

"The most important thing for a Martial Master is the resonance of Qi-blood to achieve unity and coordination."

Lin Chao practiced the Thunder Cloud Leg Technique.

The Thunder Cloud Leg Technique that Lei Zhan gave him later was incomplete and had flaws.

Although Lin Chao could not create his own Qi-blood cultivation technique yet, he had no problem perfecting this one based on its foundation.

"Finally... I've reached the Martial Master realm."

Lin Chao let out a breath.

The Martial Master realm is considered a person of status and reputation even in Yangyue Prefecture.

If he joined the Medicine Gang now, he could directly become a Hall Master.

"Still too weak."

A Martial Master is only a match for a hundred men; he couldn't even beat Lin Ping back then.

"I need to break through to the Refining Strength realm."

The Martial Arts of this world are divided into the three realms of Blood Refining, Martial Master (Body Refining), Refining Strength, No Leak, and Innate, among others.

The Prefecture Master of Yangyue Prefecture is at the Refining Strength realm.

"Unfortunately, the subsequent techniques for Refining Strength are in the hands of Master Lei.

Once I settle down and reach the peak of the Martial Master realm, I will go to Yangyue Prefecture and find a way to obtain the subsequent techniques."

Lin Chao had a vague feeling that once he broke through to Refining Strength, even without the subsequent techniques, as long as he could observe the battles of higher-level experts, he would be able to create the subsequent parts of the Thunder Cloud Leg Technique himself.

Of course, this was just his speculation.

According to the inquiries he had made over these days and his own insights from practicing,

he knew that in this world, the Innate realm and everything below it were two different worlds.

The No Leak Realm can still be considered a martial artist.

The Innate realm, however, can be called divine means.

Time flew by.

Xiao Jing was now four years old and extremely cute.

Lin Chao took Xiao Jing to a steamed bun shop in the small town and ordered a bowl of porridge.

The steamed bun shop no longer sold steamed buns; they had switched to selling porridge.

Lin Chao drank a bowl of porridge and savored it carefully.

On the street, a group of people wearing ragged clothes were walking by.

They were shouting slogans with fanatical expressions on their faces.

"All living beings suffer; the Holy Light shines upon us."

The people around them avoided their gaze when they saw the group.

"The Holy Light Sect is becoming more and more rampant; their believers even dare to parade in the streets."

"The sky over this Yangyue Prefecture is about to change."

Lin Chao's expression was calm.

He had now become a peak Martial Master.

As long as he obtained the cultivation method to break through to Refining Strength, he would be able to break through to Refining Strength at any time.

By then, there would be no one in the entire Yangyue Prefecture with a realm higher than his.

"Have you heard? The rebel army of the Holy Light Sect has already occupied Tianyang County."

"Tianyang County is only two or three hundred li away from us; we are in danger."

"If Yangyue Prefecture is breached, what will we do?"

"I heard someone came from the capital; it is the Whirlwind General Pang Yang, leading an army of thirty thousand to garrison Yangyue Prefecture, so there is no need to worry."

"It is actually the Whirlwind General! I heard he is a disciple of the Heavenly Strategy General; our Yangyue Prefecture is safe!"

The four Heavenly Strategy Generals are the pillars of the nation for Great Xing.

With them here, the common people feel very at ease.

"Uncle, I want to go to the prefecture to play; I heard there is a circus there." Beside him, Xu Xiaojing opened her eyes wide, a look of anticipation appearing on her face.

Lin Chao's eyes were deep: "Alright, we will go to Yangyue Prefecture tomorrow."

Currently, he has already reached the peak realm of a Martial Master.

To break through to Refining Strength, he needs to obtain the subsequent cultivation method.

He needs to make a trip to Yangyue Prefecture.

As for the current Yangyue Prefecture, it is indeed surging with undercurrents.

But as long as he keeps a low profile, there will be no problem in keeping himself safe.

After all, his peak Martial Master realm is different from others' peak Martial Master realms.

At worst, he can just find a cellar and hide inside.

A few days later.

Yangyue Prefecture.

Lin Chao looked at the towering city walls and walked inside while holding Xiao Jing.

On the city walls, the soldiers wearing iron armor were solemn and dignified, which was very different from the lazy soldiers Lin Chao saw a few years ago.

It seems that the Whirlwind General has already taken over Yangyue Prefecture.

It is just that he does not know if he can truly hold this city.

After paying ten wen and showing his proof of identity, Lin Chao entered Yangyue Prefecture.

Lin Chao secretly guessed that it seemed this Whirlwind General was very confident, not taking the Holy Light Sect seriously and regarding them as a rabble.

Otherwise, in the current situation, the city gates would likely have been heavily guarded long ago to prevent spies from entering.

Three days later, Lin Chao moved into a secluded courtyard.

This courtyard is not in the wealthy district, the price is cheap, and most importantly, it has a cellar.

The current Yangyue Prefecture is heavily guarded, and military formations frequently pass by.

As for the believers of the Holy Light Sect, they rarely appear.

Lin Chao has been in Yangyue Prefecture for a week, and Yangyue Prefecture is still the same as usual, with nothing major happening.

Although Lin Chao cannot create the path of Qi-Blood Martial Dao of this world himself, his methods of disguise are superb.

During these days, he changed into the faces of different people and purchased a lot of supplies in batches; with his careful and cautious personality, he was not discovered by anyone.

Time passed quickly, and the entire Yangyue Prefecture was in a tense atmosphere.

One day, as Lin Chao was teasing Xiao Jing, a knock on the door sounded outside.

"May I ask if this is Brother Xu Ling?"

Lin Chao raised an eyebrow.

Chen You?

He really came.

Lin Chao knew that as soon as the Whirlwind General arrived in Yangyue Prefecture, the Lei Family Martial Arts Hall immediately defected and attached themselves to him.

Chen You coming to find him now definitely means no good.

Thanks to 【Chuan Shuo Chuan Shuo】 for the thousand-coin reward; thanks to 【Qing Feng Fu Jia】 and 【Book Friend 20191229112003131】 for the tips.

(End of chapter)