Why do I have so many masters?-Chapter 671 - 3 Not Entering the Imperial Court (1/1) (Organizing outline, taking half-day leave (clasping hands))
Although Jiangnan Road is named after rivers, it actually features both mountains and rivers. The mountains here are not as rugged as those in the north; they are much more delicate, thus overshadowed by the fame of the rivers.
Not far from Wanling City, there was a medium-sized mountain fortress deep in the mountains. The leader of the fortress, relying on his martial arts, often robbed merchants for silver coins to make a living without a real trade.
However, since they were within the territory of the Great Qin County City, they dared not overdo it. Usually, they only seized some property and let the merchants pass unharmed, enabling them a safe journey through the hundred miles of mountains without harm from wild beasts. Thus, the merchants had not exposed this fortress.
Perhaps some had indeed resented him excessively and reported to the county official, but firstly, there were no homicides involved; secondly, the mountainous distance posed a danger of fighting ferocious bandits, which was a thankless trouble. So, they had been living quietly on their mountain.
Until a few days ago.
A gang of mountain bandits, who had eaten vegetables for over ten days and had greenish eyes, finally encountered a group of several people. The carriage looked expensive, occupied by a dandy who was swaggering as though the words 'fat sheep' were written on his forehead.
However, seated next to the old man who was driving the carriage was a burly giant, which somewhat unnerved them.
The people deliberated for a long while, and the fortress leader finally gritted his teeth, stamped his foot, spat out, and led a group out of the bushes to surround the carriage.
Before they could even swing their sabers, they heard a rustling sound.
Turning their heads, they saw a ring of burly men in armor and atop great horses approaching from farther out. They all had expressions cold as ice, surrounding them once more, with spears hanging by the horses' sides and unsupported sabers quietly lifted.
The sound of armor clashing almost made them tremble and urinate right there, and just as the leading burly man was about to speak, the usually crude fortress leader threw down his saber and knelt on the ground with fierce intensity.
Later, it was said that the great village chief had once stayed in an even larger bandit stronghold, which stated that just by hearing that one word from the burly man, they could practically prepare to slit their own throats in advance.
What word was it that frightened the great village chief so much?
A skinny youth named Mo Xiaoqi stirred the pot with all his might. In the pot, rice porridge, greens, and venison were bubbling. He sprinkled a handful of salt into it, making the aroma even more tempting.
Mo Xiaoqi nodded in satisfaction, then with some effort, he took the iron pot off the stove, his back and waist aching.
He initially liked cooking and thought about going down the mountain to become a chef, but he was worried that the fools in the fortress might starve to jerky without him, so he never left. However, in recent days, he had started to detest and get irritated by cooking.
A meal for nearly three hundred people!
Three hundred people!
They could eat what used to be half a month's provisions in one day...
Are these humans? They're downright three hundred pigs!
After eating, they wouldn't even need to wash the plates, as they'd be cleaner than when bought.
But though he slandered in his heart, he truly did not dare to speak it out loud. Including the fortress leader, none of the ninety-seven people in the entire fortress dared to speak. They could only discuss the cruel intensity of the daily vocal training that almost made him cry out loud.
Their fights were almost entirely with real knives and spears.
As ferocious as a group of wild beasts, he suspected that just two or three of them could slaughter their entire fortress, not even leaving a chicken behind.
And that seemingly amiable young man, on the second day after he forcefully settled in the fortress, dropped his weapons, and relying solely on his fists, brutally knocked down all three hundred men, leaving none standing.
Every spectator felt their legs tremble that day.
He fought throughout the afternoon, and at the end, three hundred armored men knelt before the youth. It was a matter completely unrelated to him, yet it excessively excited him, leaving him unable to sleep properly all night.
The sound of the wind, strong winds, echoed in his ears repeatedly.
It was as if he were possessed.
He shook his head and knocked the iron pot with the large copper spoon. Outside the door, including the fortress leader, everyone from the fortress waited silently, except for two who usually took care of the latrines and were kicked out. Now, they were all here.
One by one, they shed the energetic attire of Jianghu folks, donned ordinary black tunics, carried the large pots directly, and walked into the fortress.
Mo Xiaoqi held a serving spoon in one hand and stood at the kitchen door, deeply sighing.
In the entire fortress, even the favorite axe of the fortress leader, weighing one hundred thirty-seven pounds, had been melted down into several large iron pots. Was this still a fortress? It had been virtually coerced into becoming a mere cooking squad of a fortress.
He sighed deeply with a sense of desolation and looked up.
Far away on the clothesline, a row of trousers fluttered in the wind, grotesquely transforming the Hall of Righteousness into an absurd spectacle.
The trousers of those who had returned that day were all hung there.
Including those from their usually proclaimed wise and martial village chief.
A faint smell of urine.
His included.
The youth sighed, his face full of melancholy.
The fortress leader, with both hands on the handle of an iron pot, walked into the place where those "lords" practiced their cultivation daily. He actually couldn't quite understand why these formidable martial artists, who already seemed enormously powerful — as far as he could tell, nearly every one of them was better than him.
And he was an Eighth Rank Martial Artist.
Otherwise, the soldiers from the surrounding county city wouldn't find him troublesome, reluctant to clash with him to the death. But each individual in this group was better than him, not just a dozen, but all three hundred of them.
Damn it.
Three hundred—this was truly hellish.
He grimaced, walking up to a large open area which originally wasn't there. Since they were unwilling to engage in the "big business" that their peers talked about, their fortress' purse had always been slender — how could they afford to spend money on such impressive yet useless endeavors?
It was that old man with a head full of white hair, looking unstable even when standing, who expressionlessly pulled out that sword capable of splitting a person in two, and had forcibly cleaved out this area within an hour.
As he drew nearer, he unconsciously slowed his pace, his breathing even more so suppressed to an extreme low. On that flat ground, three hundred armored soldiers sat cross-legged, with a young man in a green shirt at the forefront.
He wondered if it was his imagination.
All he seemed to hear by his ear was a single breath. In a trance, it felt as if a fierce beast was coiled in front of him, this breathing being the beast's breath, rhythmic in every inhalation and exhalation.
The young man at the front opened his eyes.
It was as if the breathing of Heaven and Earth abruptly ceased. Three hundred pairs of eyes opened, and then uniformly and precisely, armed with sabers, they stood up. The clashing of heavy armor produced a grave and piercing sound. The connection between their shoulder pads and breastplates was adorned with red tassels.
Upon rising, the tassels fluttered like flowing flames.
Fierce as fire.
The Great Village Chief's breath involuntarily stuck in his throat, which felt parched.
Yuchi Jie sat cross-legged on the rooftop, cradling a wooden bowl filled with snacks. Not any top-quality cakes, but rather sliced and air-dried fruits which still tasted fairly good.
He looked down at the three hundred armored soldiers below, still somewhat in a daze.
The first day he saw these men, he almost cried. The armor they wore, he had never seen before, yet it felt eerily familiar.
New novel 𝓬hapters are published on ƒreewebɳovel.com.
This was the Divine Martial Mansion.
Only in Great Qin, fierce like fire.
What exactly happened that day, he now knew. But why the killing of the head of the Wen Family, which should have shaken the world, did not spread far and wide, he didn't know.
After that, Wang Anfeng defeated the arrogance of those from Divine Martial with his bare fists. And now, he himself had been practicing with them for about seven or eight days.
Recalling the day when three hundred men in iron armor knelt on the ground, his blood still boiled, and he murmured softly:
"Within the mansion, strategists plan, at the frontier, warriors clang their weapons. Favor of Heaven, advantage of Earth, harmony among men. Strike Yan, and say it can be done. Today, the pavilions are set, another day, the swords will cross mountains and rivers. The great harmony under Heaven, the wind song of reigning over lands. Controlling the realm, come to celebrate."
"Divine Martial Mansion."
Looking down at Wang Anfeng, he murmured:
"At this time, your identity has already been exposed to the Former Emperor, now there are only two paths you can take. Are you planning to enter the Imperial Court to hold office, to integrate the forces of the former Divine Martial Mansion into the Duke's estate, or…"
Wang Anfeng shook his head, as Mei Wangsheng, who came in disguise to meet him, somewhat disappointedly clasped his hands. Wang Anfeng put his hand on Mei Wangsheng's clasped hands, looked into his eyes, and calmly said,
"Not entering the Imperial Court."
Mei Wangsheng was slightly shocked.
The calm voice continued.
"In Jianghu, to restart the Divine Martial Mansion."
PS: Only one chapter today, sorry, just entered a new volume, need to revise the outline and framework, considering it's been at least a month since I last took a break, I hope you all understand…
