Chapter 39

In the stronghold of the mountain city, Bai Xiaosheng sat casually in a dilapidated temple, holding a book in his hand. The book was inscribed with four large characters: "White Cloud Sword Technique." This secret manual was one that Bai Xiaosheng had chosen from the Transmission Hall.

The White Cloud Sword Technique was similar to the Hengshan Sword Technique, with a graceful and agile sword style, yet it had its unique aspects. The Hengshan Sword Technique emphasized speed, whereas the White Cloud Sword Technique did not focus on speed but rather on versatility, combining reality and illusion to strike enemies unseen, much like the elusive white clouds, making it hard to grasp.

The Transmission Hall had many sword techniques, at least five hundred if not eight hundred. It was impossible for Bai Xiaosheng to read them all. When selecting a manual, he only gave a cursory glance, and upon seeing the White Cloud Sword Technique, he chose it.

In his view, he had simplified his techniques, but to advance further, he needed to complicate them. Since the White Cloud Sword Technique emphasized versatility, it was suitable for him at this stage.

"Brother Bai..." A beggar in his forties entered the room and called out loudly, "Brother Bai, I've taken care of the matter you entrusted to me."

This man was named Pei Ji. Like Bai Xiaosheng, he had joined the Beggar Sect later in life. However, unlike Bai Xiaosheng, Pei Ji was not a martial artist before joining; he was a scholar. He joined the Beggar Sect after his family suffered persecution, using the sect to seek revenge for his family. Later, after learning martial arts, he developed an interest in the martial world and remained in the Beggar Sect.

He had been in the sect for thirteen years and was a fifth-bag disciple. Normally, after the local leader left, he would have become the new leader. Unfortunately, his martial skills were not strong, and he lacked a reputation, so he was overshadowed by the new arrival, Bai Xiaosheng.

In this regard, Pei Ji was more magnanimous than the average Beggar Sect disciple. He did not make things difficult for Bai Xiaosheng but instead helped him quickly gain control of the local Beggar Sect and thoroughly investigated the distribution of different forces in the area.

Among these forces, Bai Xiaosheng had him select the most malevolent ones to demonstrate his authority upon arrival.

Taking the paper Pei Ji handed him, Bai Xiaosheng read it carefully. When he saw the three large characters "Yun Family Manor," his brows furrowed involuntarily. But he soon laughed. The Yun Family Manor, where almost everyone practiced martial arts, was essentially just a group of farmers. It was not impressive at all. Even when he left the manor, there were few who could match him, but after leaving, he realized he was not as strong as he thought.

Thus, the martial skills of the people in the manor could be imagined to be quite poor.

"Thirteen Bandits? What kind of force is this?" Bai Xiaosheng asked, puzzled, looking at the name of a malevolent force on the paper.

Pei Ji smiled and said, "Brother Bai, you've been away from home for three years. The Thirteen Bandits are a group of bandits that emerged in the past three years. They are only thirteen in number, but they are ruthless and leave no survivors. They are the most ferocious bandits in the area around the mountain city in the past three years. The government has sent troops to suppress them, but they have failed to find the bandits' hideout. A few days ago, the Thirteen Bandits carried out a major raid, attacking a manor in the southern part of the city and killing over two hundred people, including the elderly, women, and children."

Hearing this, Bai Xiaosheng frowned and asked, "These bandits are so vicious. Why hasn't our Beggar Sect taken action to eliminate them?"

Pei Ji smiled bitterly and said, "Brother Bai, it's not that we haven't tried. We attempted twice. The first time, we cornered the Thirteen Bandits, but they were too fierce and managed to break through, even injuring over a dozen of our brothers. The second time, we were outsmarted and suffered a major defeat at their hands."

"Are the Thirteen Bandits very skilled in martial arts?"

"Not really. They seem to know some kind of formation that allows them to combine their strength, similar to our Beggar Sect's Dog Beating Formation, making them very difficult to deal with."

Nodding, Bai Xiaosheng did not ask further. He pointed to the malevolent forces on the paper and said, "These forces that cause trouble in the area are all targets for our Beggar Sect to eliminate. I give you three days to remove the three small forces in this mountain city. Then, contact the other major forces, and we will deal with the other malevolent forces together. What do you think?"

Looking at Pei Ji, he saw him carefully considering Bai Xiaosheng's words. After a moment, he nodded and said, "Brother Bai, your plan is very detailed. These small forces are no match for our Beggar Sect, and three days are enough. However, I'm afraid the others won't step forward."

Smiling, Bai Xiaosheng said, "If they won't step forward, we will force them to. In these three days, while you eliminate these three forces, also spread the word that all sects and schools have decided to join forces to bring peace to the people. I believe, under the pressure of public opinion, they will make a decision."

"Brother, your strategy is excellent. I'll go and make the arrangements right away." Pei Ji said with heartfelt admiration, took the list back from Bai Xiaosheng, and quickly left. Bai Xiaosheng also put away the secret manual, got up, and left the dilapidated temple, heading west toward the city.

The Bai Family Manor in the western part of the city was where Bai Xiaosheng grew up. He had been away for over three years, and upon returning, everything was still familiar. This was probably one of the advantages of the ancient times. If it were in the modern era, after being away for three years, things would likely have changed significantly.

Here, everyone maintained their traditions. When he arrived at the Bai Family Manor in the afternoon, it was the time when everyone was practicing martial arts. As soon as he entered the manor, Bai Xiaosheng saw a large man training a few children on a small field.

Seeing the master, Bai Xiaosheng smiled and called out from a distance, "Is that Big Bucket Yun Tong over there..."

On the field, Yun Tong, who was instructing the children, paused. "Big Bucket" was a nickname he hadn't heard in a long time, and the only one who would call him that... Yun Tong turned around in surprise, looking at the familiar yet somewhat unfamiliar young man, and shouted, "Ha... I wondered who it was, it's Little Bucket back!"

"Big Bucket, it's been three years. Have you improved?" Bai Xiaosheng laughed. The nickname "Little Bucket" hadn't been used for three years, and hearing it now made his heart warm.

Yun Tong laughed and quickly approached, running a few steps to Bai Xiaosheng and throwing a punch, saying, "Let me see if you, Little Bucket, have improved."

Raising his hand, Bai Xiaosheng caught Yun Tong's punch. His internal energy surged, and a powerful force pushed Yun Tong back, causing him to stagger a few steps.

Yun Tong rubbed his slightly numb fist and exclaimed, "Kid, your internal energy has improved so much?" His tone was full of surprise. Internal energy was the hardest to cultivate, and besides being limited by the cultivation method, there were many other restrictions. In short, to improve internal energy, one had to practice diligently.

Both of them practiced the same cultivation method, but Yun Tong was nearly twenty years older than Bai Xiaosheng. However, Bai Xiaosheng's internal energy was clearly on a different level.

"Ha... Uncle Tong, I'm a genius!" Bai Xiaosheng laughed proudly. Indeed, he was a genius. In terms of techniques, he had the help of the system, which didn't show his talent as much, but in internal energy, the system could help him very little. Of course, it wasn't entirely useless. For example, the six months he spent in the world of "Smiling, Proud Wanderer" only took a little over two months in reality.

In total, he had practiced for four months more than the current time. However, in the cultivation of internal energy, four months was almost negligible. Thus, Bai Xiaosheng's talent naturally stood out, much like the slow-witted Guo Jing, who reached the initial stage of internal energy cultivation in just two years, shocking the Seven Freaks of the South.

After chatting for a while, Yun Tong remembered the children who were watching them curiously and said to Bai Xiaosheng, "Xiaosheng, go home and see your brother and sister-in-law. They have a surprise for you."

Bai Xiaosheng was curious and asked, "Surprise? What kind of surprise?"

Yun Tong smiled mysteriously and said, "You'll see when you get home." With that, he walked over to the children, put on a serious face, and began to scold them. Bai Xiaosheng, filled with curiosity, headed home.

Soon, he arrived at the small courtyard. Looking at the familiar house, Bai Xiaosheng was flooded with memories. Slowly, he raised his hand to push the door open, but suddenly, he heard loud wailing from inside the courtyard, which made him pause.

"Your parents have a surprise for you!"

Yun Tong's words echoed in his mind. He widened his eyes and muttered to himself, "Could I have a younger brother or sister?"

He was surprised! His parents were already in their late years when they had him, which would be considered late childbearing in modern times. It wasn't that they didn't want children earlier; they just couldn't conceive until they had Bai Xiaosheng.

Being able to have him was already a great satisfaction for his parents. For the next eighteen years, his mother's belly remained unchanged, making Bai Xiaosheng think he would be an only child.

Now, the thought of having a younger brother or sister made his expression very strange—his mother was over forty and could still give birth, which was truly remarkable!

Taking a deep breath, Bai Xiaosheng pushed the old wooden door open with force. He immediately saw his mother sitting in the courtyard, washing clothes, and a small baby wrapped on her back.

The baby was crying, and his mother wiped her hands and turned to pick up the child. She saw Bai Xiaosheng, and their eyes met.

"Mother..." Bai Xiaosheng's voice choked, his throat moving as if the two words weighed a thousand pounds. Despite his effort to shout loudly, his voice was like a mosquito's buzz. Although his voice was small, his mother heard it. She stood up quickly, ran to Bai Xiaosheng, and grabbed him, saying, "Is it Xiaosheng...?"

"Mother..."

Bai Xiaosheng called out again, this time clearly, and both of them had red, teary eyes. They hugged tightly, and the baby behind his mother cried even louder.