Chapter 3: Bad Luck Strikes

The arrow tore through the sky.

Fast, accurate, and ruthless.

Seeing Dou Changsheng's eyes beneath the bamboo hat were focused and serious, not daring to have any slack.

His heart was already in his throat.

He had encountered many dangers since transmigrating, and Seeing Dou Changsheng had long since crawled out of the pampered life he had before, but he had never faced such danger as he did today.

Next, he had to slash the arrow with his sword. If he missed, then when the Iron-Armored Mad Lion Wang Xiong reacted and launched a counterattack, Seeing Dou Changsheng believed he would definitely die.

His future self, at twenty, was a Human List prodigy with Primordial internal Qi as thick as a great river. He himself only had one month of that cultivation. Of course, if he knew sword techniques, footwork, and had rich combat experience, it wouldn't be impossible to fight.

After all, the Iron-Armored Mad Lion Wang Xiong was very powerful, skilled in archery and horsemanship, and had steel muscles and iron bones, but in the end, he was only a Postnatal martial artist.

And his future self was a Human List prodigy. Even with only one month of cultivation, it was equivalent to ten times that of an ordinary person—several years of cultivation—plus the purity and quality of the Primordial internal Qi, which was far above Postnatal internal Qi. It was already very powerful.

But he couldn't help it; Dou Mouren was just a showpiece.

His ability to fight ordinary people could only be called street fighting; how could he be Wang Xiong's opponent?

Watching the arrow approach with focus, Seeing Dou Changsheng slowly lifted his rusty long sword and spat out Primordial internal Qi. He had intended to cut the arrow directly, but he hadn't expected that when the Primordial internal Qi touched the arrow,

The arrow began to dissipate inch by inch, and in an instant, it vanished into heaven and earth.

An arrow was completely shattered.

The power of Primordial internal Qi was now beyond doubt.

This scene caused Seeing Dou Changsheng's heart, which had been in his throat, to fall back to its original place.

His heart settled.

He laughed lightly and said, "You say."

"This Primordial internal Qi?"

"Is it real?"

"Is it fake?"

Wang Xiong, who had already pounced out and was about to grab the long bow with one hand, suddenly withdrew his arm. He used force under his feet again, and with a stomp, dust flew everywhere. Wang Xiong took the opportunity to rush toward a corner in the distance like a cheetah.

Even if picking up the long bow would only delay him slightly, Wang Xiong didn't dare to do it.

Although the arrow was made of wood, the arrowhead was specially made, not ordinary refined iron; it was mixed with refined gold, giving the arrow an armor-piercing effect. To ensure this time was foolproof, Wang Xiong had spent all his savings to buy this special long bow and armor-piercing arrows containing refined gold.

It was easily shattered by internal Qi; this was definitely Primordial internal Qi.

Wang Xiong moved with ease. After rushing into the corner, he immediately lifted a stone disk on the ground. A dark and deep tunnel appeared before his eyes, and Wang Xiong drilled directly into it.

Seeing Dou Changsheng watched the dust slowly dissipate, and Wang Xiong was nowhere to be seen. He looked around and could clearly see that the street was empty, without a single living person.

Such Jianghu conflicts were not common, but they weren't rare either.

This was the national condition; no one would go up to watch, because those who were truly red-eyed would kill indiscriminately.

However, they didn't dare to watch openly, but they could hide in various corners, or peek through a crack in a window. Seeing Dou Changsheng knew this well, because before today, he was also one of those watching Jianghu martial artists clash.

Seeing Dou Changsheng didn't dare to have any pause. He turned and walked toward the county government office, while slowly inserting the three-foot long sword into its scabbard.

Primordial internal Qi was even more powerful than he had imagined.

This was enough to prove that this was no ordinary Primordial internal Qi. His future self's main cultivation technique must be of a high grade.

Right now, what he lacked most was a cultivation technique—no, a reliable person to lead him to formally embark on cultivation.

Resentment couldn't help but rise in his heart. How did his first noble person, the Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe, fail him when it was his turn? He was seen through and identified by Wang Xiong, which meant he couldn't arrive in time. Otherwise, this would have been a good entry point, and he could have imitated his future self.

Finally, Seeing Dou Changsheng sighed in his heart and could only say that he was unlucky, hijacked by Wang Xiong as a scapegoat, which caused the same event to have a butterfly effect.

In reality, this was just comforting words. Seeing Dou Changsheng highly suspected that the other one was a simple script, while his own was a difficult script.

Look at this Iron-Armored Mad Lion Wang Xiong: cunning, ruthless, and highly skilled in martial arts. How could he look like a minor character who would just die after robbing official silver?

And in his future self's story, he was just a character who appeared and then died.

Seeing Dou Changsheng took a deep breath and then exhaled heavily, using this to calm the complex emotions in his heart.

Seeing Dou Changsheng hadn't reached the county government office when he was surrounded by a team of constables.

Along with the constables came the Embroidered Uniform Guards carrying long swords. They surrounded Seeing Dou Changsheng tightly, layer upon layer, and the street was blocked so tightly that not even water could pass through.

It was clear that the various government agencies in Junxian had received the news and immediately sent people to rush over.

Seeing Dou Changsheng directly untied the package he was carrying on his back, then held it high with one hand, and said in a deep voice, "This is the frontier army's military pay."

"It was taken by the Iron-Armored Mad Lion Wang Xiong, and now it has been recovered by me."

"I was just about to go to the county government office to deliver this item to the imperial court."

"I haven't opened the things in the package; they haven't moved at all. Now that I see you all, I can return them perfectly."

Seeing Dou Changsheng slowly lowered his arm and reached out his hand in a gesture of handing it over. A constable and an Embroidered Uniform Guard stepped forward at the same time. After the two looked at each other, the constable took a step back, letting the Embroidered Uniform Guard step forward. After the Embroidered Uniform Guard received the package, he didn't immediately inspect it, but slowly retreated and handed the item to a man wearing silver armor.

After the silver-armored man grabbed the package with his slender hand, he tore it to pieces. Gemstones the size of fingernails scattered from the package one after another.

The gemstones were bright red, like human blood, filled with an eerie color.

The silver-armored man flipped his hand, internal Qi spitting out like clouds, directly lifting the gemstones.

Surrounded by mist, the gemstones were like scarlet stars, beautiful and enchanting, dazzling and arrogant.

"It really is Pure Yang Blood. It seems the Shogunate really can't hold on anymore, actually having a Pure Yang Grandmaster cut himself to provide military pay for the frontier army."

"The Demon Prime Minister is ruining the country!"

"Hateful!"

The silver-armored man's anger erupted. In public, he scolded directly. The four sides were silent, no one dared to argue, and instead, everyone had looks of anger.

"This hero, thank you for returning the frontier army's military pay."

"It's just that I am about to set off immediately for Jianmen Pass to personally deliver this military pay and cannot entertain you, hero."

"Please forgive me, hero."

The silver-armored man cupped his hands to Seeing Dou Changsheng to express his apology. Seeing Dou Changsheng quickly said, "The frontier army is in trouble, affecting the world. My personal affairs are not important."

"Just give me a fast horse next."

Although Wang Xiong was powerful, as long as his horse was fast and he galloped, Wang Xiong's matter would be turned over.

The silver-armored man waved his hand and said directly, "Listen to the hero, give the hero a fast horse."

Just as the silver-armored man's words fell, an ethereal voice rang out from afar: "Wait!"

Seeing Dou Changsheng looked in the direction of the voice and could see an old man walking through the air, step by step. In the blink of an eye, he had arrived. He wore a black long gown that fluttered in the wind, and his eyes were like eagle eyes, filled with sharpness.

His nose was high, his white beard was long, and his appearance was very special. His sharp eyes stared fixedly at the silver-armored man, and he said in a deep voice, "Ling Qianxu!"

"I don't trust you."

"Although you are from the North, you have a resume as a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard in the capital. This time, the Iron-Armored Mad Lion Wang Xiong was accurately robbed of the military pay because there was a mole who leaked the news. It was only because someone intervened at the critical moment that the escort swordsman arranged by the Shogunate was killed."

"The commander of Jianmen Pass has already been persuaded by the Hu Ren, his heart wavering. If this military pay cannot be delivered on time to appease the frontier army's hearts, he will open the pass and let the Hu Ren in."

"The Hu Ren are brutal. If they enter the pass, it will definitely be a disaster for the people."

"But that Demon Prime Minister, for his own selfish interests, ignores justice and is actually framing the Great General at this moment."

"The most hateful thing is that someone, for the sake of power and rising to the top, would actually stop at nothing and choose to attach themselves to the Demon Prime Minister."

Ling Qianxu was furious and roared, "Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe, you suspect me?"

"I, Ling Qianxu, am from the North, and my relatives and friends are all here. If the Hu Ren enter the pass, my family's elders will definitely not escape."

"Do you think I am the kind of insane person who would sacrifice my whole clan for the sake of rising to the top?"

"Since the Great General was entrusted by the late Emperor to leave the capital and guard the North, the chaos in the North has gradually subsided. It has been peaceful for more than ten years. As long as they are people of the North, who is not grateful to the Great General?"

The Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe didn't look at Ling Qianxu, but looked at Seeing Dou Changsheng and said, "I have to trouble the little hero to work hard and escort the military pay to Jianmen Pass."

"Now that the Great General is imprisoned, the Shogunate is leaderless, and it is a time when people are lacking."

"I don't trust these people; I can only believe in little heroes like you from a famous family."

"Most people in the world would collude with the Demon Prime Minister, but the disciples of the Wang Clan of Xiangzhou would not."

"The Wang Clan of Xiangzhou is famous throughout the Nine Provinces for loyalty and courage, with the family-transmitted Three Primordials Return Qi Technique, cultivating loyalty, courage, and love."

"To be blunt, even if the little hero has dark thoughts, for the sake of the family's reputation, he will keep his word."

Seeing Dou Changsheng shook his head slowly and directly denied it, "I am surnamed Dou, named Changsheng, and have no relationship with the Wang Clan of Xiangzhou. The senior has recognized the wrong person."

This Wang Clan of Xiangzhou was probably that great Wang Clan.

Sure enough, his good brother had a simple script, just fighting evil ghosts and showing courage, and was appreciated by the Wang Clan, then married the eldest daughter. How could one look at it? It was extremely magical.

Shouldn't this eldest daughter have already had a marriage contract?

The Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe was stunned. He hadn't expected that he would recognize the wrong person. One must know that the Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe roamed the Jianghu, relying on this pair of eyes, which were as sharp and accurate as an eagle's, to earn the name Black Eagle.

But that Primordial internal Qi, he had seen it more than once when he roamed Xiangzhou. It was exactly the Three Primordials Return Qi Technique; this absolutely couldn't be wrong.

At this age, to be able to cultivate to the Primordial realm—if he wasn't from a great clan, could he be a loose cultivator?

Many things are not that you don't admit it, and it isn't so.

In a flash, the Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe figured it out. This was a core disciple of the Wang Clan of Xiangzhou who had come to support the Great General.

The Great General was unjustly imprisoned, which not only shocked Great Jin, but Southern Chen, Western Qin, and Eastern Qi were all discussing it.

The Wang Clan of Xiangzhou didn't dare to take the initiative to send the clan's elders to support the Great General and openly oppose the imperial court, but they had delegated a core disciple of the clan to come and support the Great General under an assumed name.

This couldn't help but make the Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe feel warm in his heart. After the Great General was imprisoned, there were too many people adding insult to injury, and too few people who could support the Great General.

Under twenty years old and already cultivated to the Primordial realm—this was a true prodigy with hopes of challenging the Human List. This was the true pillar of the Wang Clan of Xiangzhou, and they had actually taken the initiative to send him to participate in such a dangerous thing, which was enough to show the Wang Clan of Xiangzhou's importance.

The Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe was moved, his eye sockets were already moist, and his eyes were filled with hot tears. Only a little bit more and he would have been in tears. Finally, the Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe restrained himself, his tone no longer as hard as it was at the beginning, and he said gently, "Yes, this old man recognized the wrong person."

"But what does the little hero think?"

Seeing Dou Changsheng shook his head directly and said, "This junior's skills are not refined, I don't understand sword techniques, nor do I understand fists and kicks. It's just that this bit of Primordial internal Qi is not bad. If I escort the military pay, I will just be a burden to the senior."

"So please, senior, choose someone else!"

What kind of joke was this?

He, this two-handed sword, was already too late to escape the vortex of the storm; how could he dare to take the initiative to rush into it?

This was a contest between the Hu Ren and Great Jin, and it was also because the Great General of the North had achieved too much merit, causing the Emperor to fear him. The elite troops and frontier army in the North under his command numbered no less than two hundred thousand, all of whom were veteran soldiers who had fought the Hu Ren for years.

After the new Emperor ascended the throne, he hadn't slept peacefully for a single day.

This time, when the Great General of the North was imprisoned, Seeing Dou Changsheng had heard rumors more than once that the Shogunate was going to rebel, contact the Hu Ren in the North, and raise five hundred thousand troops to move south.

At this time, it wasn't just Wang Xiong; people ten times, a hundred times more powerful than Wang Xiong would appear.

Seeing Dou Changsheng chose to refuse, and the Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe's smile became even more brilliant.

That's the taste, that's exactly the taste.

This time the Great General's imprisonment happened too quickly, resulting in this Wang Clan disciple—no, Seeing Dou Changsheng—now only knowing the Wang Clan's masterpiece. The Three Primordials Return Qi Technique was the main cultivation technique, and its characteristics were too obvious to cover up. There was no other way, but sword techniques and fists and kicks had to be covered up.

Otherwise, you learned the Three Primordials Return Qi Technique and used the Wang Clan's sword technique, and you say you aren't a Wang Clan member? Who would believe that?

The Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe took the initiative to say, "I have cultivated for decades. Although my aptitude is dull and I have no great achievements, I have walked in the Shogunate and watched many cultivation techniques."

"Now I have a Primordial Sword Art that I am willing to teach the little hero."

"Just consider it the reward for the little hero recovering the military pay and escorting it this time."

The Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe naturally knew that Seeing Dou Changsheng would agree. Now he was just deliberately pretending to be forced.

After he was exposed, it would be easy to shirk responsibility and not implicate the family. He could say, "Look, this was all forced; I didn't want to do it originally."

So, watching Seeing Dou Changsheng still shaking his head, the Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe stepped forward directly, grabbed Seeing Dou Changsheng's shoulder, picked up the military pay, and walked toward the city gate together.

Feeling Seeing Dou Changsheng's resistance, the Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe smiled.

Look at this strength.

It's not even as good as a rabbit's.

One must know that this is a Primordial martial artist. If he really resisted, how could he coerce him?

He was crying to death. The Wang Clan disciple is truly a good person.

The Black Hei Hei Ying Zunzhe was moved to tears and couldn't help but pat Seeing Dou Changsheng's shoulder and say, "Sir!"

"Truly a peerless national scholar!" ===== CHAPTER 4 =====