Chapter 6

Chapter 5. What the hell is going on here? (5)

*Jinglang?*

Qingming struggled to lift his head. Then he saw something shiny in front of him.

*Huh?*

At the same time, the sound of someone tsking was heard.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. You’re still just a kid. How did you end up as a beggar?"

*Jinglang.*

*Jinglang.*

Coins started flying in.

"Looks like you got beaten up somewhere. I don’t know if you’ll survive this."

"The world is in chaos. Tsk, tsk, tsk. It’s pitiful."

Huh?

What’s going on here...

*Ah.*

I’m a beggar, right? I forgot for a moment.

To others, Qingming must look like a beggar. No, he was just a beggar, a young one who hadn’t even reached adulthood. A pitiful beggar who had been beaten up somewhere, his eyes swollen and bruised, with dried blood caked on his face.

Such a beggar was sprawled out on the street.

"Ugh. I can’t survive without help."

"A person can’t just walk by. A person can’t."

The young beggar, with his underdeveloped limbs, was dressed in rags, covered in dirt, and was dying. He wasn’t just pretending to die; he was really dying.

What could be a more perfect act of begging?

That’s why coins *jinglang* *jinglang* started flying in.

"Tsk, tsk."

"Never seen this beggar before. How did you end up here?"

The world must still be worth living in.

People heading to the market were tsking and throwing coins at him. Qingming’s eyes welled up with clear tears as he watched the coins fly in.

"Ah, crying. It’s pitiful."

"Buy some noodles with that."

Sympathy was pouring in. But the reason Qingming was crying wasn’t because he was moved by the situation.

'I, a disciple of the Great Huashan Sect, am receiving alms.'

How did I end up here?

Just a few days ago, he was a renowned swordsman, ready to fight the Heavenly Demon and determine the fate of the world. Before that, he was an elegant swordsman who roamed the world and discussed its affairs.

And now, he was reduced to begging. This was too much of a change!

'People have pride!'

If he took this money, he would really become a beggar. A noble swordsman of the Great Huashan Sect becoming a beggar, begging! This was really unacceptable.

A warrior never loses his pride, even if a sword is at his throat!

Qingming lifted his head, gritted his teeth, and shouted!

"Thank you! May you have good fortune, sir!"

Pride can freeze to death.

But he had to survive.

* * *

"Kerch!"

Qingming patted his bulging belly. His emaciated body, with only his belly sticking out, made him look like a tadpole.

"Does pride feed you? A living beggar is better than a dead warrior."

His small body was efficient.

Three buns from the market had filled his stomach to the brim, and he still had three coins jingling in his sleeve.

If this had been in the past, he would have walked past coins on the street without picking them up, but now they felt like the most precious treasures in the world.

'Money is so important.'

He remembered his senior brother, who would grab his head in frustration every month on payday, and the master who would rant about the importance of not being attached to wealth. If he could go back, he would punch that annoying mouth.

'My stomach is full.'

Thinking about the senior brother who had bent over from feeding useless half-retirees, while he himself was just showing off his sword skills, made Qingming’s eyes well up.

Anyway.

"I’m alive, at least."

Qingming scratched his head.

He had set out without a plan, but he had no idea how to get to Shaanxi.

'I underestimated the two thousand li.'

Qingming’s thoughts were still based on his past. Even though he knew his body and situation had changed, it wasn’t easy to adapt to a new standard overnight.

In the past, he could have traveled from Wuxian to Shaanxi in half a day and still have time to enjoy a drink at an inn at the foot of Huashan, but now, traveling to Huashan on foot was a matter of life and death.

He could somehow deal with bandits or wild animals, but hunger was a different story.

What he thought would be a simple journey had turned into a grand and dangerous expedition, making his head spin.

'But I can’t just beg my way to Shaanxi.'

Qingming scratched his head frantically.

"I need to find a way, but I need to know something first!"

If this had been in the past, he might not have known, but now, a hundred years had passed. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say he had no idea how the world worked. How could he find a way?

"Hey!"

It takes over two months for a normal person to get to Shaanxi. With this body, it wouldn’t be strange if it took half a year to get to Huashan.

"Hey!"

For Qingming, who needed to see Huashan with his own eyes as soon as possible, this was a frustrating situation. He needed to find a way, but nothing came to mind...

"Hey, you! Are you deaf?"

"Huh?"

Qingming turned his head.

'What?'

He had heard a sound, but he didn’t think it was for him. No one would bother to talk to a beggar.

Three beggars with fierce faces glared at him.

'What a bunch of beggars.'

This life seemed to be entangled with beggars in various ways.

"Me?"

"Me? Not you, me? Are you crazy, beggar?"

The fiercest beggar spat on the ground.

"I don’t know where you crawled from, but who gave you permission to beg here?"

Permission to beg?

"Since you’re still young, I’ll spare your life. Hand over everything in your hands and sleeves and get lost."

The coins in his sleeve, and in his hand...

Qingming looked at his hand. He was holding a half-eaten, cold bun.

"Really, you have no conscience. You beggars."

Take this? This? Eat the liver of a flea!

"You beggars!"

The only insult a beggar could give another beggar was "beggar." It led to a very beggar-like situation where cursing someone felt like spitting on your own face... Stop being beggars!

"Wait a moment."

Qingming gently placed the bun aside.

He stood up, stretched his arms and legs a few times, took a step forward, and then a step back, repeating the process several times.

The beggars, watching him, narrowed their eyes.

"What are you doing?"

"Ah, just a moment. I’ll be done soon."

Qingming stretched his arms and legs a few more times, nodded, and turned around.

"It’s not perfect, but it should be enough."

Now he had a sense of distance and had adapted to his short limbs.

So!

"You must feel very wronged, but I have a strong dislike for beggars."

"…What?"

"What can you do? That’s how the world works. Accept it without complaint."

"What is this kid saying?"

Qingming cracked his neck a few times.

"By the way, my body is weak, so I can’t hit hard. You’ll have to take a lot of hits."

"This is really—"

At that moment, Qingming lunged forward like a hawk and punched the face of the nearest beggar.

*Smack!*

The perfect force, generated by a smooth rotation of his bent waist, was perfectly transferred to his fist. A child’s punch hit a man’s face, sounding like a well-seasoned bamboo stick.

*Thud.*

The beggar, struck by an overwhelming blow, fell to the ground without a sound.

Qingming trembled as he watched the scene.

"I’m—"

*Smack!*

A kick to the side hit another beggar.

"I am the Plum Sword Sage of the Great Huashan Sect! You beggars!"

It was the moment when the pent-up frustration since his reincarnation exploded.

* * *

"…Sir."

"Who calls a beggar sir?"

"Great beggar…?"

"Do you want to die?"

The beggars, with their heads bowed, groaned.

'Where did such a monster come from?'

'It hurts so much.'

It took Qingming only the time it takes to drink a cup of tea to subdue the beggars. While it would be surprising for a child to take down three strong adults in a short time, by Qingming’s standards, it was a very pitiful result.

'I’m going to get sick from this.'

Subduing these beggars didn’t even require inner strength. In his past body, he could have flattened them with a single finger, even without inner strength.

But now, he had to run, kick, and roll to subdue them. He had to punch them repeatedly, hitting their eyes thirty-eight times, making them wail.

'I should have beaten that Zong Ba or whatever his name was like this.'

Thinking about him made Qingming shudder.

If only he had known his limbs were short! If only he had the endurance to take hits, he could have beaten him like a dog on a hot day!

He had left for Huashan in a hurry without taking revenge, but one day, he would catch that beggar like a mouse.

"Attention."

"Yes!"

The three beggars jumped up. Sweat trickled down their dirty faces. They all watched Qingming carefully.

'He’s just a weak, skinny beggar.'

'This doesn’t make sense.'

It was incomprehensible.

Small, weak, and thin.

He looked like he would die if he fell over. But when they fought, he was like a ghost. Their punches didn’t even touch his clothes.

He wasn’t particularly fast or strong, yet the outcome was incomprehensible.

"Hey."

"Yes!"

"Give your orders! Sir! No, great beggar! Ah, no…"

What did it matter if he understood or not? Thoughts are far, but fists are near. The important thing was that this young beggar’s punches hurt to the bone.

Qingming looked at the beggars and spoke.

"Just asking, do you know a way to get to Shaanxi quickly?"

The beggars looked at each other and smiled confidently. Qingming felt a glimmer of hope.

"Haha. You’re asking the obvious."

"Oh? You know?"

"Would we be beggars if we knew? You should ask the right people."

"…"

Qingming sighed deeply, looking at the beggars with doubt.

It wasn’t their fault. The problem was that he was in a situation where he had to ask a beggar for help.

"Alright. Go."

"Thank you!"

"May you live a long life!"

The beggars bowed deeply and turned to run. Or, tried to run.

"Wait."

Qingming’s voice stopped them.

"Yes?"

"You can go, but you need to leave what you’re holding and in your pockets."

"…"

"If you die, it’s one coin and one punch… no, ten punches. One punch won’t even hurt."

Realizing he was serious, the beggars reluctantly handed over the coins from their pockets.

"Hey. You."

"Yes?"

"Take out what’s in your inner pocket. Before I strip you."

"…"

It was a horrific scene, a beggar being robbed, too terrible to watch.