Chapter 43

Xiaofeng followed the Taoist all the way.

For over twenty days, apart from water and a few moldy steamed buns he had, he had eaten nothing else. He had not been lazy, nor had he slept soundly... because he was afraid. Afraid that when he fell into a deep sleep, the Taoist would quietly leave; afraid that when he woke up, the only chance in his life to take revenge would be gone... So he kept a close eye on the Taoist, like a lone wolf staring at a dying prey, watching intently...

Twenty days, even an adult could not endure such physical and mental torture. But miraculously, little Xiaofeng held on, just as his will was about to collapse —

Finally, he followed the Taoist to a Taoist temple.

His goal achieved, Xiaofeng fainted as if relieved.

**********

In a daze, the faces of his parents and sister kept appearing before his eyes. He kept running towards them, waving to call them to wait for him... but they laughed and walked further away, not seeing him, forgetting him, leaving little Xiaofeng alone, running desperately, chasing helplessly... but it was all in vain, watching his parents and sister gradually disappear...

Little Xiaofeng felt so powerless, shouting desperately but making no sound; chasing desperately but unable to move; waving desperately but unseen... It was too late, they were gone, Xiaofeng didn't even have time to call out "Father," "Mother," or "Sister," or even... say "I'm sorry" before they — disappeared...

Completely disappeared.

When he woke up, he was in a rather dry and clean little room. There was no one around.

Xiaofeng confirmed that the Taoist was indeed practicing in this temple. His heart was at ease, no longer fearing the Taoist would disappear.

So, he got up and went out.

No matter if it was a temple or a monastery, there must be a kitchen. Xiaofeng, who had been defeated by hunger for days, put down his biggest worry.

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The sky was clear and the clouds were white, just another good day.

Our little Taoist, Qingxuan, was leisurely reading a book in his courtyard on a reclining chair.

What he was reading was the "Wulin Zashilu" (Martial Arts Miscellany) that he had bought from Jiao San, the fourth-rank clerk of "Sihai Pavilion," with an additional small note — "Shenwu Edition."

Qingxuan had bought one issue of the "Shenwu Edition" of the "Wulin Zashilu," spending all his monthly allowance. He then borrowed 10 taels of silver from his third senior brother to pay for the 50 low-level secret manuals.

"Beiming Yuzhuo of the Beiming Family, at the age of eleven, broke through to the Creation Realm, becoming the youngest postnatal expert in fifty years... Eleven years old and already at the Creation Realm? I am now eight and a half, almost nine, and my 'Twelve Meridians' are naturally unblocked, which makes me a child prodigy, right? But I am still only at the sixth level of the 'Body Tempering Realm' — this kid, even with naturally unblocked meridians, shouldn't be advancing so quickly? No wonder he is from a noble family, where rare treasures are as common as rice and flour, and money can create experts... Damn, comparing people to people, it's infuriating, can't even live... This bastard will die young, yes..."

"The 'Iron Eagle' Yi Tieqing of the 'Twelve Flying Eagles' stronghold, turned from darkness to light, submitted to the court, and became a gold medal headman, serving in Zhongzhou... Haha, I didn't expect this world to have the drama of amnesty and banditry."

"The 'Shadow Following Saber' Sui Zhengfeng successfully challenged the 'Guanghu Fast Saber' Zheng Guangning, advancing to the 53rd place on the 'Dijue List,' while Zheng Guangning died from severe injuries... Including this, in just half a year, the experts on the 'Dijue List' have changed by seven or eight new faces, it seems that Jiao San's new issue of the 'Dijue List' will have good sales."

"The Purple Turban Bandits committed another major crime, robbing 800,000 taels of 'Beast-Driving Treasure Silver' from the Yunzhou government at the foot of West Wolf Mountain, with 273 people responsible for the escort, all of whom were killed, including the deputy head of 'Weiyuan Escort Agency' 'Sky-Splitting Palm' Xian Ying, 'Roaring Forest Tiger' Su Zhi, silver medal constable Liu Chengzong, and other high-ranking imperial guards and first-class escorts of the 'Weiyuan Escort Agency,' none of whom survived..."

The Purple Turban Bandits are becoming increasingly rampant, even daring to rob the 'Beast-Driving Treasure Silver.'

The 'Beast-Driving Treasure Silver' is special silver allocated by the court to recruit brave warriors and martial artists to drive away strange beasts and expand the living space for the people in remote border areas.

Especially in Yunzhou, the 'Beast-Driving Treasure Silver' is extremely precious.

Yunzhou has thirteen counties, more than half of which border the Kunwu Mountains, which are home to many strange beasts that frequently attack humans. The 'Beast-Driving Treasure Silver' is used to attract martial experts from all over to come and exterminate these beasts. Yunzhou is located in a remote area, and the martial arts sects there are not very strong. Moreover, a hundred years ago, the influential Kunwu Sect was mysteriously wiped out, further exacerbating the instability in the region, especially in the three counties in the southwestern part of the Kunwu Mountains, which are now almost completely out of the court's control, occupied by southern barbarians, bandits, and black society organizations, leaving the people homeless and suffering.

This time, the court allocated silver, not only to clear the strange beasts in the border areas and protect human safety, but also to show its determination to recruit brave warriors to subdue the three counties and bring them back under court control.

Unfortunately, the plan was not well concealed, and they were ambushed by the bandits, resulting in 800,000 taels of silver falling into enemy hands. In the future, the Purple Turban Bandits, as a major black society organization, will likely become even more rampant.

"Master said that the Kunwu Mountains, which the Purple Turban Bandits occupy, are the ancestral grounds of our Kunwu Sect. These bandits are closely related to the destruction of our sect, and even to the massacre of our family. Now it seems that these bandits are not easy to deal with. The news says that 'Sky-Splitting Palm' Xian Ying and 'Roaring Forest Tiger' Su Zhi are famous postnatal experts in Yunzhou, with 'Sky-Splitting Palm' Xian Ying being a Dizong Realm expert, almost making it to the 'Dijue List.' Even the silver medal constables are peak postnatal experts, yet they couldn't even escape, all dying. It seems the responsibility of reclaiming the mountain is a long and arduous one. It's necessary to investigate the strength of the Purple Turban Bandits again..."

Qingxuan, after practicing martial arts every day, would repeatedly read various books, enjoying the peace and quiet.

With the help of silver, Jiao San's efficiency was extremely high, and within less than two months, he collected 50 low-level martial arts secret manuals, nearly ten of which were white-level martial arts, which Qingxuan found very satisfying.

The 50 low-level martial arts manuals brought Qingxuan an additional 13 skill points, bringing his total to 28.

Spending 10 taels of silver for 13 skill points was a very profitable deal for Qingxuan, but it took nearly two months, which made him somewhat restless.

The benefits of low-level martial arts were far less than those of high-level martial arts. But where could he find high-level martial arts?

Thinking about it made him frustrated, and he couldn't focus on reading.

When there was nothing to do, and no one to bother him, it was actually quite boring.

Yunxuan and Yunming, the two little troublemakers, had long been taken back by their fourth senior sister.

With the sect competition approaching, these two little rascals were causing trouble everywhere and were forcibly taken away by their fourth senior sister to be disciplined. In reality, they were just kept from going out until the competition was over, to avoid making their master upset.

With a snap, he closed the book.

Qingxuan stretched lazily and slowly performed the latest version of the [Taiji Peiyuan Gong].

After nearly two months of focused cultivation, Qingxuan not only easily broke through the fourth level of the 'Body Tempering Realm' but also broke through to the fifth level half a month ago, officially entering the sixth level.

After practicing the [Qingyun Thirty-Six Swords], now known as the [Qingyun Thirty-Six Swords], to the 'Mastery' level, Qingxuan had at least some basic combat ability and shifted his focus back to cultivating internal energy.