Wife, you didn't really drug me, did you?

After bidding farewell to Peng Yingyu and Yuan Sanjia, Chen Jie mounted his old horse and left Xiangyang. He passed through Xiangyang and Shiyan, and arrived in Xunyang, Shaanxi. This time, he had entered Li Siqi's territory.

Upon arriving here, Chen Jie witnessed firsthand what a truly miserable existence looked like. Xunyang Prefecture was incredibly desolate, with low, thatched huts along the way and land that was half barren and half cultivated.

Once they reached the checkpoints, Li Siqi's soldiers were incredibly ruthless, directly exploiting itinerant merchants like them.

First, they searched Chen Jie and found nothing of value on him. Then they started issuing tickets little by little, and finally they probably stole Chen Jie's old horse.

No wonder Chen Jie recently heard rumors from the Ministry of Commerce that there were people in Shaanxi who would rather starve than leave. He initially thought it was because the area was desolate, but now it seems that the problem lies not in the desolation, but in the soldiers who are causing trouble.

With such exploitation, what small merchant would dare to do business in Li Siqi's territory?

Chen Jie thought to himself that he had no intention of arguing with a group of vicious soldiers, nor did he intend to teach them a lesson or uphold justice for the people. Chen Jie was not a saint and would not concern himself with other people's territory. However, when the army from Huangzhou Prefecture arrived, these damned guys would be wiped out without hesitation. That was Chen Jie's idea.

And so Chen Jie continued on his way. Fortunately, he was lucky and soon encountered a group of bandits.

The bandits surrounded Chen Jie, intending to rob him. Chen Jie generally had no liking for bandits and was about to go on a killing spree, but before he could kill anyone, one of the bandits came out and said to their leader, "Boss, this man looks like a traveling merchant. He must have been robbed clean by those soldiers."

"He's a pitiful person too!"

The bandit leader said pitifully, then casually tossed Chen Jie a dark, grimy vegetable bun, saying, "Eat up, let's get going. This Shaanxi region is not peaceful. You'd better find a caravan, or you'll die a violent death in the street."

Hearing the bandit leader's words, Chen Jie looked surprised. How come this bandit was different from what he had imagined?

Chen Jie didn't speak, he just nodded, and the bandits then turned their horses around and left.

Chen Jie thought he would never meet them again, but unexpectedly he encountered the group of people again on the way. At this time, the group of people were arguing with the government soldiers. It turned out that the government soldiers had come to collect taxes from them, but the bandits could not pay, so the government soldiers confronted the bandits.

After talking with them, Chen Jie learned that the bandits here were not real bandits at all, but just a group of people who couldn't afford to eat and had no choice but to hide in the mountains.

He cleared land on the mountain, intending to grow crops that the imperial court did not tax, in order to feed his people.

Unexpectedly, the matter was leaked, and then the government troops arrived. The government troops leader looked at the bandit leader and his men and said, "We can't control you ruling the mountains, but you can't avoid paying taxes when you clear land for farming."

"Let me give you a piece of advice: your taxes are all handed over directly to the Prince's mansion, which is used to support the Prince's elite troops, the Canglang Army."

"I don't care if you occupy the mountain and become kings, but if you dare to touch the food supplies of the prince's elite troops, I'm telling you, I will annihilate you!"

After hearing what the soldiers said, the bandits dared not speak out in anger and could only obediently hand over the grain, while the soldiers left satisfied.

Seeing the soldiers leave, the women in the village finally couldn't hold back any longer. One of them, a feisty woman, rushed out, plopped down on the ground, and wailed, "Heaven is truly blind! We couldn't hide from you down the mountain, and even after becoming bandits, we still can't escape you! Heaven, who will save us!"

Hearing the women weeping, the bandit leader, who was in charge, could only beat his chest and stamp his feet helplessly. In the eyes of these people, we were probably just some big maggots!

Seeing the bandit leader like this, the others also sighed. Who would have thought that being a bandit would lead to being bullied like this? It's truly tragic, tragic, tragic!

Chen Jie witnessed all of this but did not think of helping. He knew that even if he stepped forward and defeated the soldiers, it would be of no use, because he could only save them temporarily, not forever.

The only way to completely change this tragedy is to kill Li Siqi on the battlefield and then lead a large army to attack the area, thus rescuing the people there.

Having figured all this out, Chen Jie left the place and continued to observe along the way. Chen Jie also noticed a major characteristic of Li Siqi's territory: the army was aggressive and warlike.

Li Siqi's Canglang Army was indeed very powerful, but it sacrificed the livelihoods of the people of Shaanxi and Shanxi. With the resources of two provinces supporting an army, how could that army not be strong?

But sacrificing people's livelihood for military strength is always an unwise move. Now the people would rather become bandits in the mountains than be obedient subjects. In a few years, won't they rise up in rebellion?

Therefore, if Li Siqi continues with such aggressive military campaigns, he will only be courting death.

Having figured all this out, Chen Jie stopped waiting and arrived in Xunyang City that same day. The city's merchants were also quite desolate. A street that should have been bustling was quiet and deserted, with very few shops in sight.

There were only a few noodle vendors, but a group of officials came along the way. A dozen or so of them sat down to eat noodles and ordered a lot of wine and meat. After they finished eating, they just patted their butts and left. If you dared to ask for money, they would give you a good beating.

That was incredibly brutal and inhumane.

No wonder no shops dare to open; they're all being ruined by these unruly soldiers.

Chen Jie stayed in the city for two days, then joined a merchant caravan and became a groom transporting supplies.

This caravan must have some connections; they've hired a lot of bodyguards and prepared several large carts, heading towards Qinghai.

After asking around, Chen Jie realized that this company was truly powerful; this group of people were actually going to Qinghai to transport salt.

In this era of salt and iron monopolies, the fact that this trading company was able to obtain the right to buy and sell salt clearly made it different.

And so, Chen Jie, disguised as a coachman, followed the group, driving a flatbed horse-drawn cart at the back of the procession, leisurely heading straight for Qinghai.

Kunlun is located deep in Qinghai, so this trip was convenient.

They didn't encounter any difficulties along the way, which clearly indicated that the caravan had a powerful background. In addition, the caravan had nearly thirty martial arts escorts, making them quite formidable. The smaller bandits along the way didn't dare to provoke them.

The group headed straight for Qinghai. After five or six days of travel, the convoy left Shaanxi and headed directly for Qinghai. There were noticeably fewer cities in Qinghai.

At that time, Qinghai was still mainly desert and grassland.

The group continued along Qinghai Road, their destination being the salt lake in front of Qinghai.

As the group was moving forward, someone suddenly shouted, "Hey, look!"

The shout startled the caravan members, who looked up and saw a group of people chasing a girl who looked to be only ten years old on the grassland not far away. The girl appeared to be injured.

The pursuers were a group of strong, burly men, but despite their strength, they were very cautious around the ten-year-old child in front of them.

One moment it's arrows being fired, the next it's an encirclement.

Finally, the group managed to surround the ten-year-old child.

Seeing this, Chen Jie did not act rashly, but instead watched the group of people and the child.

At the same time, he strained his ears to listen carefully to what the group of people were saying, and soon he was able to hear their voices.

After Chen Jie reached the third level of the Fusion God realm, he learned a special way to use his domain: by straightening it, he could extend it to a great length. While this extended domain couldn't control everything within it like a true Martial God's domain, it could transmit sound. This allowed him to clearly hear what others were saying.

Chen Jie then used this technique to find out what these people were saying.

"Little Immortal, you should come back with us, so that our brothers won't hurt you again."

At this moment, the little girl said coldly, "Jiang Feng, you are my Immortal Venerable's personal guard, why do you betray me?"

"Little Immortal, I'm just following the Eastern King's orders. Please don't make things difficult for us. Come back with us, and we promise we won't hurt you, okay?"

"You're dreaming! You bunch of traitors! I'd rather die than go back to the Immortal Realm with you! I'm going to Wudang Mountain to find Master Zhang and have him help me deal with you!"

As the little girl spoke, the guard Jiang Feng's gaze sharpened and he said, "Little Immortal Venerable, don't be so stubborn as to refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit."

The Little Immortal Venerable looked at Jiang Feng and said, "Your Jiang family is also a prominent clan among the immortals. Do you really want to do something against the will of the immortals and gods?"

Jiang Feng said, "My Jiang family has been the guardians of immortals for generations. We should not do such a rebellious thing, but the Eastern King has been very kind to me. I have no choice but to do this for him. Please forgive me, Little Immortal."

As he spoke, Jiang Feng asked the people around him to disperse, then raised his hand, and a powerful force flowed through his body. Seeing this, Chen Jie's eyes narrowed slightly. "Second stage of the Fusion God Realm!" As expected of someone from the Immortal Realm, even a casual person like him possesses such powerful strength.

That's right, Chen Jie heard their entire conversation. Chen Jie didn't expect to be so lucky, encountering a member of the Immortal Clan as soon as he arrived, and a Lesser Immortal Venerable at that.

If he remembered correctly, Yuan Sanjia told him that the person who went to Wudang to find Master Zhang was a person called Immortal Venerable.

Little Immortal Venerable, Immortal Realm, Qinghai, Kunlun, it all matches up!

It seems this little immortal has quite a background.

Just then, he saw that the little immortal also got into a fighting stance. Chen Jie was shocked for several seconds because this person's strength had actually reached the Furnace Realm.

This is a ten-year-old girl, about the same age as Rui Rui, but she just made a move and she's already at the Furnace Realm. What kind of strength is that?

As Chen Jie was thinking, he saw the little immortal make the first move.

"The God of Spring is enraged!"

Phew...cough cough...

Chen Jie was just there to watch the show, but he was shocked to find that the little immortal had used the same Spring God's Wrath that he was familiar with. At that moment, Chen Jie's eyes widened.

"Is this really necessary?"

Immediately afterward, a deity riding a water buffalo and holding a willow whip suddenly appeared behind the Little Immortal Venerable. Upon seeing this deity, Chen Jie fell silent; this scene was all too familiar.

But then the little immortal didn't stop, and the next moment he said, "Summer God's Wrath!"

boom!
Another loud bang, followed by a statue suddenly appearing behind the Little Immortal Venerable. At this moment, Chen Jie saw a familiar scene again: a bare-chested man wielding a snake with both hands, flames rising!

It's definitely Zhu Rong, the god of fire!

Chen Jie's eyes brightened, and then he saw the Little Immortal Venerable suddenly clasp his hands together and say, "The Spring God merges with the Summer God."

woohoo...

The God of Spring entered Zhurong's body, and instantly the God of Fire's body grew rapidly, eventually becoming over five zhang tall. Then, the Little Immortal Venerable roared: "Zhurong Divine Fire Palm!"

The familiar move was unleashed as a massive fiery palm slammed towards Jiang Feng.

Seeing this, Chen Jie fell silent. Zhu Rong Divine Fire Palm, as expected, Yuan Sanjia hadn't lied to him. This Four Seasons Celestial Phenomenon Technique really was in the fairyland.

But why did this little immortal only use two palm strikes?

As Chen Jie was pondering this, he saw Jiang Feng make his move. Jiang Feng suddenly drew his sword and slashed it through the air. With a whoosh, the incoming Zhu Rong Divine Fire Palm instantly shattered.

Although the Four Seasons Celestial Phenomenon Technique is very powerful, it cannot be compensated for by any difference in strength.

Jiang Feng was very strong, having already reached the second stage of the Fusion God realm, so he only needed to use one sword against the Little Immortal Venerable.

Seeing his palm strike so easily destroyed, the Little Immortal Venerable was furious and said, "Jiang Feng, take another palm strike from me!"

But Jiang Feng said, "Little Immortal Venerable, stop making trouble and come back with me."

"not going back!"

The little immortal roared angrily, and immediately clashed palms with Jiang Feng. With a loud bang, she was sent flying.

The direction she was thrown was right towards the salt field.

The bodyguards here were terrified. They were all ordinary bodyguards at the Transformation Realm, Iron Bone Realm, or Willow Tendon Realm. The most powerful bodyguard leader was only at the Wolf Smoke Realm. When they saw Little Immortal Venerable fighting with Jiang Feng, it was as if they were seeing a god.

At this moment, the little deity was actually knocked towards their side, and they immediately panicked. As the saying goes, when gods fight, mortals suffer. They could not withstand the attacks of the little deity and the guard-like divine general.

Just as things were getting chaotic, the little immortal forcibly turned around and headed in a direction far away from the salt team.

One must not spread one's fighting to mortals. Following this ironclad rule of the immortal realm, the little immortal forcibly created distance and then fled.

Seeing that the little immortal was far away from them, the salt team breathed a sigh of relief. The old镖头 said at this time, "Hurry up, there are immortals fighting here. If we get involved, we won't be able to save our lives. Run!"

As they spoke, they began packing their things, and the group immediately set off to escape. The vehicles were all ready. The old镖头 (bodyguard/escort) then said, "Is everything ready? Hurry up, hurry up, don't dawdle."

"Head镖师, everything is ready."

"Okay, I'll take attendance. Once everyone's here, we'll leave."

The old镖头 (bodyguard/escort) called out names one by one, and soon he called out Chen Jie's alias: "Yu Sanliu, Yu Sanliu... Where is Yu Sanliu? Find him quickly."

"Ah~ Oh no,镖头 (镖头 is a term used to describe someone who has been in danger), Yu Sanliu has disappeared." (End of Chapter)