The First Sage of Military Strategists

Walking on the streets of Baiyun County, Han Qing felt a moment of disorientation as many memories surfaced in his mind.

From his departure to his return, although the time was not very long, he experienced a lot and his strength underwent a tremendous change. Although it was only two years, it felt like a very long time to him.

He stood in the crowd and cast a simple illusion spell, which greatly changed his appearance, making him look no different from an ordinary person in Baiyun County.

People were coming and going around him, but no one paid him much attention.

He first went back to his former adoptive parents' home and glanced around. The small courtyard had been expanded into a large mansion, but the two old people had already left.

Before he entered the Northern Ice Plains, he considered that he had made many enemies and that his two elders might be retaliated against. Therefore, he wrote a letter to Qi Wufeng asking him to send someone to take his two elders to Hengshan City.

He lingered in front of the house for a while, but then turned and headed towards the government office, not wanting to go inside.

Before long, he arrived at the government office, where two strong men were standing guard at the entrance.

Han Qing strode into the yamen, but the two men did not react.

With his current strength, it would be easy for him to deceive and distort the five senses of ordinary martial artists.

The eyes of the two people remained empty, and there was nothing unusual about them.

Han Qing walked through the government office, and the other people he encountered were like guards outside the gate, unable to see him.

This was the result he wanted; he didn't want to reveal his whereabouts to avoid causing trouble for his old friend.

As I said before, he now has too many enemies to face, not only the Han family and the Luo family, but also the Yin Yang Sect and others.

If these major powers were to find out that he had appeared in Baiyun County and met with some old friends, who knows how much trouble it would cause.

"Hiding our whereabouts is better for me and for everyone else!" Han Qingxin thought to himself.

While pondering this, he arrived at the yamen's training ground and was the first to hear a loud, energetic shout.

"The key to martial arts training lies in diligence and perseverance!"

"Keep your back straight and your steps steady!"

...

Yang Wu was standing in front of a large group of constables, explaining and demonstrating a set of boxing techniques to them.

Ma Er stood not far away, holding a bright yellow pear in his hand, tossing it back and forth, the pear bobbing up and down.

"Ma Er, still the same carefree and irresponsible person!"

Han Qing shook his head and watched carefully for a while until Yang Wu finished the drill and the servants dispersed.

By this time, it was already pitch black, and Yang Wu, Ma Er, and the others went back to their rooms to rest.

After a moment's thought, Han Qing went to Yang Wu's room and saw the latter sitting in a chair, quietly studying a martial art called the Burning Flame Skill.

He pondered deeply, but could not grasp the true meaning, and a confused expression appeared on his face.

With a thought, Han Qing silently sent a stream of magical energy into Yang Wu's mind, and the latter immediately fell into a deep sleep.

Han Qing then instilled a great deal of memories into his mind, which was a complete set of top-notch martial arts.

To prevent Yang Wu from being unable to understand, he added his own detailed explanations, trying to make it as easy to understand as possible, so that anyone who wasn't particularly bad at understanding could comprehend it.

"Master, this is all I can do to help," Han Qingxin said.

If all goes well, Yang Wu will follow his plan and practice each martial art one by one, and he may very well become a martial arts saint in the future.

Afterwards, Han Qing walked around the entire yamen.

All his old acquaintances who had some connection with him back then received the same "reward".

After doing all this, Han Qing did not linger in Baiyun County and turned to head out of the city.

"We're not from the same world after all," Han Qing murmured.

He wasn't someone who didn't cherish old friendships; he simply understood that he was in the eye of the storm, and given Yang Wu and the others' strength, it was best for them not to get too close to him. Otherwise, at the slightest sign of trouble, Yang Wu and the others would be utterly destroyed.

...

In a short while, he arrived outside Baiyun County and suddenly took flight, preparing to meet up with Yan Qiuling and the others.

However, after he had flown forward a short distance, a loud shout suddenly came from the dense forest below.

"Get down!"

The shout was extremely loud, no less than a thunderclap from a clear sky.

Before his eyes, a white column of energy shot into the sky, instantly engulfing Han Qing and then spreading throughout the area, turning the surroundings into a vast expanse of white.

Han Qing was startled. This white smoke was actually the true essence of martial arts. The moment he was enveloped, his thoughts almost froze, and his magical powers were suppressed within his body. If they left his body, they would collapse and dissipate.

Caught off guard, he plummeted toward the ground, but fortunately he managed to adjust his posture in mid-air and land standing up, without being too disheveled.

He steadied himself, his gaze sharpening as he locked onto a middle-aged man in brocade robes and a purple crown sitting on a large rock ahead.

His face was as if carved by a knife and axe, with distinct features, and he exuded an astonishing aura. His eyes were deep and unfathomable, like a javelin stuck in the ground.

"Han Yi!"

Han Qing tensed up. He had heard this person's name countless times from other people, and he had also seen him a few times in his memory before. There was no mistake.

Speaking of which, this is his biological father. However, the original owner of this body had hardly ever met him since childhood. In addition, now that he is on the opposite side of the imperial court and has transmigrated from another world, there is even less of a father-son relationship between them.

In his mind, Han Yi could only be described as an extremely special enemy.

At this moment, the two faced each other, and he sensed an extremely strong killing intent emanating from Han Yi.

"You truly are a half-saint. You are not even twenty years old yet you possess such strength. Your talent, if not unparalleled in the world, is certainly among the top three. It was not in vain that I personally went to ambush and kill you!"

Upon hearing Han Yi acknowledge his identity, Han Qing felt a strong sense of life-or-death crisis.

He understood that with his current combat strength, he was no match for Han Yi, who was the number one fighter in the Great Yu Dynasty. Looking across the world, there were very few people who could defeat him, perhaps only the leader of the Mohist school.

While he was distracted, two figures flew over from not far away; they were Yan Qiuling and Zhou Xiaoru.

The two people were nearby and rushed over as soon as they heard the commotion.

Under the watchful eye of the Dharma, the two also looked solemn as they saw the martial arts essence enveloping the area.

They could vaguely see the shadows of gods and Buddhas appearing and disappearing amidst the plumes of white smoke.

"It's Han Yi!" Yan Qiuling also pointed out the identity of the newcomer. "Han Yi's martial arts essence is extremely domineering, with a sense of 'I am the only one who is supreme in heaven and earth.' The gods and Buddhas that his martial arts essence manifests are all wearing shackles, which shows how great his ambition is and how crazy his nature is!"

Upon hearing Yan Qiuling's words, Han Yi glanced at her, his expression unchanged, as if he didn't care about Yan Qiuling and Zhou Xiaoru at all. His gaze eventually settled on Han Qing.

"Colluding with the demon race, receiving imperial favor yet betraying the court—you are such a traitor, you deserve to die!"

Upon hearing this, Han Qing shouted, "The will of the people is the will of Heaven, not the will of the Emperor. The Emperor of Yu is incompetent, and the Han and Luo families are acting arrogantly and domineeringly, causing the people of the world to live in misery. I, Han Qing, will certainly not be loyal to such a Yu Dynasty."

"Nonsense! I only spared your life because I thought your talent was exceptional and it would be a waste to kill you. Now I'll give you a choice: bind your hands and come back to the capital with me, and I won't kill you today!" Han Yi's tone was sharp, and a murderous aura emanated from his body, causing the birds and beasts in the surrounding dense forest to be terrified and lie prostrate on the ground, not daring to move.

Yan Qiuling suddenly sneered, "Han Yi, if you were here in your true form, it would be one thing to spout such nonsense, but now you are just an avatar. The three of us working together are not afraid of you!"

"Hmm? A clone?"

Han Qing was startled; Yan Qiuling's words had awakened him.

Actually, as soon as Han Yi appeared, he felt that something was wrong.

He is strong, and his aura is also very fierce, but I always feel that he is still a bit behind the number one fighter in the Great Yu Dynasty.

If it is a clone, then everything makes sense.

"Han Qing, there's no need to fear him. There are all sorts of strange martial arts in the world. I've long heard that there are secret methods in the imperial palace treasury that can help people create clones. Seeing this today, I can confirm it. Since it's a clone, its combat power is definitely not as good as the original. If the three of us join forces, we might have a chance to destroy this clone of his." Yan Qiuling said loudly again.

"You witch are quite knowledgeable, but I can kill all three of you with just one clone." Han Yi shouted sharply, his eyes flashing with a sharp light, like thunder and lightning.

Han Qing had no intention of negotiating with him any further. He was unsure whether Han Yi was stalling for time, or whether there were other experts from the Han and Luo families or the imperial court nearby. If the situation dragged on, the situation would become extremely dangerous once these experts arrived.

With this in mind, Han Qing made a sudden move. He stomped his foot and soared into the sky, grabbing at Han Yi below from a distance.

In an instant, a gale howled, and a vast surge of magical power erupted from his body, echoing between heaven and earth, drawing upon the power of the world.

Many trees nearby were uprooted, and huge rocks were swept up by the strong wind and crashed down on Han Yi from all directions.

The moment Han Qing made his move, Zhou Xiaoru and Yan Qiuling, who were standing nearby, also acted without hesitation.

With a wave of his folding fan, Zhou Xiaoru unleashed a flute of perfectly round, lustrous, and full-bodied golden characters from his body. These characters quickly intertwined and formed an article above his head. The article then vanished abruptly, drawing upon the power of heaven and earth. As a result, countless golden blades shot towards Han Yi.

Yan Qiuling's attack was also extremely fierce, and she went all out from the start. The dark clouds above her head rolled, with hundreds of silver lightning bolts flashing within them, turning into silver snakes that slithered through the air and pounced on Han Yi, who was not far away.

In an instant, Han Yi was surrounded by surging killing intent, and all space to dodge was sealed off from all sides.

Faced with this situation, Han Yi remained calm, without the slightest fear, his eyes serene like a deep pool.

"drink!"

He suddenly uttered a single word, like a thunderclap from a clear sky, which exploded in the air, drowning out all other sounds and making Han Qing's eardrums ache.

With this shout, the white mist surrounding Han Yi suddenly became hundreds of times denser, surging in all directions and covering an area of ​​thirty miles in just an instant.

Han Qing's surging magical energy outside his body dissipated instantly upon colliding with the white mist, as did Yan Qiuling and the others. This caused both the golden blades and the moving lightning to vanish in an instant.

Without the power of heaven and earth to be invoked by the power of the Dharma, magic naturally cannot take shape.

"What a magnificent and profound martial arts essence!"

Han Qing frowned. Every move Han Yi made was refreshing his understanding of martial arts masters.

His gaze swept across the scene, and everywhere in the white mist, there were illusory images of gods and Buddhas, just like the Heavenly Court. However, these gods and Buddhas were all bound by chains and could not be free.

"To capture all the gods and Buddhas under heaven, I am the Heavenly Emperor. Han Yi's martial arts true meaning can manifest such a scene. His ambition is truly boundless. He really doesn't take anyone seriously." Zhou Xiaoru flew backward, quickly retreating from the range of Han Yi's martial arts true meaning. He looked back and saw the shadows of all the gods and Buddhas under heaven. He couldn't help but sigh.

Seeing that the spell had failed, Han Qing immediately changed tactics.

With a thought, the Cloud Dragon Banner and the Crimson Thunder Pearl appeared beside him. Then, he activated the Ceasefire Sutra, pouring a large amount of magical power into these two magical treasures.

In an instant, the Cloud Dragon Banner fluttered, and the clouds surged, enveloping this area. The Crimson Thunder Pearl suddenly shone brightly, and bolts of lightning shot out from it. With the support of the clouds, these lightning bolts rapidly grew larger, transforming into thick bolts of lightning that suddenly struck down at Han Yi below.

This time, Han Qing was using almost all his strength to activate the two magical treasures.

Although these streaks of lightning were still suppressed by the true intent of martial arts, they had not completely dissipated, and their residual power was still terrifying, almost illuminating the entire surrounding area.

Boom!

Directly below, Han Yi did not dodge and was suddenly swallowed by the streaks of crimson lightning. His surroundings were completely transformed into a domain of lightning, and many trees turned to ashes in an instant.

Upon seeing this, Zhou Xiaoru had just begun to wonder if Han Yi was dead? Such a terrifying magical attack, even if he were Han Yi, he might not be able to withstand it. However, in the next instant, a figure rose from the ground like a black lightning bolt, rushing straight towards Han Qing above.

Han Qing's gaze sharpened as he saw that Han Yi's appearance had undergone a dramatic change. A pair of fleshy wings had sprouted from his back, and his entire body was covered in shiny black scales. Overall, he looked as if he were wearing heavy armor, and his aura became even more surging.

"I've heard that when a Martial Saint's strength reaches a certain level, he can change his form, transforming into a dragon or a tiger, and undergoing countless transformations. Seeing this today, I can confirm it's true." Zhou Xiaoru, who was watching this scene from the side, was shocked.

He had only read similar records in ancient books before, but had never seen such a person in the real world, because such people were extremely rare. Martial Saints were already as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns, and opening hundreds of acupoints was even more difficult than ascending to heaven.

Seeing Han Yi charge forward, many thoughts flashed through Han Qing's mind, and his body was already covered with a layer of pitch-black demonic armor.

"Since magic spells are ineffective and magical artifacts are not powerful enough, let's settle this with close combat!"

Han Qing initially didn't want to engage in close combat. He thought that since Han Yi couldn't fly, he could fly in the sky and attack from a distance with magic, making him invincible. Now it seems that this idea was too simplistic. Han Yi was stronger and had more tricks up his sleeve than he had imagined.

In that instant, the two collided. Han Qing activated his Void Fist and suddenly threw a punch at Han Yi below. At the same time, Han Yi also made a move and threw a punch as well.

Their fists collided suddenly, and a tremendous, muffled thud echoed through the heavens and earth. Invisible ripples spread outwards from the clashing fists, crushing vegetation and turning rocks to dust in their wake. (End of Chapter)