Chapter 109: The Vanishing History

Seeing that Jiang Qin had established his authority in the hearts of the Jiang Family members in just a short while, Steward Jiang beside him was suddenly overwhelmed with emotion, as if a figure overlapped with the present Jiang Qin.

The ancestor who founded the Jiang Family of Dijing—Jiang Kaishan.

Back then, the ancestor had likewise relied on strength and means far surpassing his peers, and amid wolves on every side, he had secured the Jiang Family's foothold in Dijing and ushered in unprecedented glory.

And now, what the young master has displayed has already far surpassed the ancestor!

Jiang Hanhan noticed the steward's strangeness and asked in confusion:

"Grandpa Jiang, why are your eyes red? Are you feeling unwell?"

"No, Miss, I just... recalled some past events."

"Alright."

The residence was utterly silent; only the sound of breathing could be heard.

Jiang Qin turned to look at Fang Hong and the other five. "That last remark was also meant for you. Following me will be very dangerous. I have already seen too many people die. If any of you harbor thoughts of climbing the ranks and getting rich through me, or of throwing your weight around behind me, I advise you to withdraw on your own."

"If you choose to follow behind me, death shall be your constant companion."

Having said this, he did not wait for the five to reply and walked straight toward the interior of the residence.

"Brother, wait for me!"

"I'll take you to your courtyard."

The Jiang Family's housing was also particular; although there was no division between branch and main family, the treatment still differed.

Ordinary disciples could only have a small courtyard.

Family elites like Jiang Tao could be allocated a two-courtyard residence.

And Jiang Qin's quarters could not be worse than his—a three-courtyard residence, and the best among the three-courtyard ones at that.

It had been personally chosen by Shen Shuyun when she returned from Tianyun Shi.

Unfortunately, by the time Jiang Qin arrived in Dijing, she had already gone far away to the Frontier to defend the country.

"Brother, this is it."

"Qingyou Ju—it's considered the best among the three-courtyard residences, and the closest to the main courtyard."

Jiang Hanhan pushed open the courtyard's main gate, then stepped aside.

The courtyard was clean and tidy; one could tell it was tended to often.

A jujube tree was planted beside the courtyard wall.

On the left was a pond and a pavilion, with fish still swimming in the pond.

The moment he stepped inside, Jiang Qin sensed the surrounding Spirit Energy growing much denser. Presumably some method had been used to gather Spirit Energy, allowing a Martial Artist's cultivation speed to increase considerably—but for him, its effect was already negligible.

Jiang Hanhan led him on a tour of the courtyard.

"Brother, see if anything's missing. I'll have someone send it over later."

"Mm... help me find some books."

"Books? What kind of books?"

"Any books—the older the better. Ancient ones are best, and historical records are best of all."

After returning from Cangling Jie, Jiang Qin had already formed some guesses, and combined with what Xu Yanran had said in the Holy City, his suspicions were further confirmed. So he prepared to verify them.

Though Jiang Hanhan didn't understand, she still agreed.

Then she turned and left Qingyou Ju.

In less than half an hour, people came one after another to deliver the books Jiang Qin needed, piling them into a mountain of books on the stone table beneath the jujube tree.

All were ancient books; some were even rare surviving copies.

This world was different from the one Jiang Qin had lived in in his previous life. Martial arts had flourished from beginning to end. Even in ancient times, military generals had always outranked civil officials, and there had never been incidents of civil officials or eunuchs wreaking havoc on the state.

Therefore, the state's control over ancient books was not strict, and many people merely bought them for collection.

So for the Jiang Family, obtaining these ancient books was no difficult task.

Jiang Qin sat beside the stone table, picked up one of the ancient kingdom's historical records, and began flipping through it rapidly.

He only needed a glance to commit the densely packed characters to memory.

In less than half a minute he could finish reading a thick book.

For instance, this historical record described a kingdom called Dajing, which was the predecessor of Huaguo.

Dajing was a kingdom established by nomadic peoples after defeating the Han people. It lasted a total of 268 years. Because later emperors recklessly started wars, declaring war on several kingdoms simultaneously, and because popular grievances had long been accumulating, it ultimately led to its downfall. Another hundred years passed before the present Huaguo came into being.

This Dajing was the Qing Dynasty in the world Jiang Qin had once lived in.

Although this world had Martial Artists, and history differed slightly, the overall historical trajectory of the two worlds was not far apart; in many places they were even identical.

2,250 years ago, Qin Shi Huang completed the unification of all under heaven and established the Qin Dynasty.

At the Qin Dynasty's most glorious moment, it boasted a million Ancient Martial Artists, with Black Armored Profound Soldiers capable of taking on a hundred alone. It was called the strongest nation on Lanxing at the time by people today.

After the Qin Dynasty was established, the First Emperor pursued longevity and frantically recruited alchemists.

In the end, he was killed by Pill Poison, ending his legendary life.

Thereafter, the legendary Overlord emerged. Entering the Emperor's Register with the bearing of a king, he was called "the strongest person in Huaguo's several thousand years of history!"

According to the historical record, when the Overlord threw a full-strength punch, he could split mountains, shatter seas... and suppress all evil.

One man could hold off a hundred thousand Ancient Martial Artists!

In the end, he died at the scheming of the founder of the Han Dynasty.

As time passed, the sun outside the courtyard wall gradually set.

During this period, Steward Jiang came once to deliver a meal.

Seeing Jiang Qin consulting ancient books, he did not disturb him. After placing the meal on the stone table and at the same time taking out a Space Ring and setting it on the table, he quietly took his leave.

The books on the stone table dwindled one by one.

The stack of books by Jiang Qin's feet grew taller and taller, and his knowledge was rapidly enriched.

Night descended, and darkness replaced daylight as the world's dominant melody.

Silence—deathly stillness—echoed through the courtyard.

A candle on the stone table cast its glow, illuminating the dense, tiny characters on the pages of a book.

Finally.

Jiang Qin had discovered a problem with this world's history. He set down the ancient book in his hands, his brows tightly furrowed, and murmured softly:

"Three thousand years… Even the oldest books only record history up to three thousand years ago. Beyond that, it's a complete blank—without the slightest trace to be found. But that's impossible… Perhaps the method of recording was different, but it's impossible that not even a single record exists."

It felt as if the history before three thousand years ago had been deliberately erased.

Then… what exactly happened in that blank stretch of history?

Whether Lanxing or Cangling Jie, both are dominated by the 'Human Race.'

The more prosperous the Human Race's fortune, the stronger the world becomes.

And the Human Race of Cangling Jie possesses a four-thousand-year history. Although the gods transformed the humans into Fierce Beasts, the essence of their souls remains 'human'—that cannot change.

But the Human Race of Lanxing is far more than four thousand years old.

Since the general trajectory of historical development is roughly the same, Jiang Qin believes the historical course of ten thousand or a hundred thousand years ago should not differ by much either.

Based on memories from his previous life:

The earliest civilization of ancient humans can be traced back two million years.

Homo sapiens can be traced back three hundred thousand years.

Then, with such a vast accumulation of time, logically speaking, fortune should be extremely prosperous. So why was the Heavenly Dao of Lanxing invaded by Cangling Jie, whose history is less than ten thousand years?

The key is that it still occupies a disadvantaged position in the resistance.

A false world… erased history… Then what does the true world look like?