Longevity Martial Arts: Obtain Golden Affixes at the Start

The next day, before dawn, Hong Lang had already set off.

After a quick wash, he put on his wolfskin coat and went straight out the door.

After walking all the way to the edge of the forest, Hong Lang found a relatively flat open space.

The surrounding trees perfectly blocked the view from the outside world.

He pulled a booklet from his pocket; it was the "Lion's Roar Kung Fu" he had exchanged.

Turning to the first page, there was a diagram of the flow of Qi in the human body, with a mantra written in small regular script next to it: "Sink Qi to the Dantian, let the voice emanate from the lungs, use intention to control Qi, use Qi to propel the voice..."

Hong Lang began practicing according to the method in the manual.

"ha!"

The sound wasn't loud, but it echoed through the woods a few times, startling several birds on the treetops nearby into flight.

He pondered it repeatedly and practiced it dozens of times, trying to deepen his breath and open up his voice each time.

Gradually, the shout changed from "ha" to a more powerful "roar".

The surrounding leaves rustled from the sound waves, and the withered branches underfoot trembled slightly.

After practicing until sunrise, Hong Lang slowly finished his work and arrived at the county government office.

As soon as I stepped through the gate, I saw a familiar figure: Liu Zhong.

Almost everyone in the yamen had been replaced, even Chief Clerk Song was nowhere to be seen, only Liu Zhong was still sitting there steadily, and in the position of Chief Clerk.

Hong Lang was somewhat surprised. What methods did this guy use to persuade Mo Qiushui to keep him here?

Could it be because he was credited with surrendering?

"Hong, Magistrate Hong, good morning!" Liu Zhong greeted Hong Lang with a cupped hand.

"Good morning, Registrar Liu!" Hong Lang also cupped his hands in greeting.

Before long, the hunters arrived.

Hong Lang had Liu Zhong issue them official robes and waist tokens.

The hunters changed their clothes, looked at each other, and laughed.

"I never thought I'd be an official one day!" Wang Zhen tugged at his official uniform, touched the iron badge at his waist, and couldn't stop grinning.

Wang Bao walked around the courtyard twice, his boots making a "thump-thump" sound on the blue bricks: "Brother, look at these sleeves, so neat! From now on, we're government employees!"

Yuan Lang and the others stood aside, looking each other up and down, their smiles both honest and reserved, unsure of what to do with their hands.

A young man named Duan Wen touched his waist knife, his face flushed with excitement: "Brother Lang, we..."

Hong Lang straightened his official robes and said calmly, "Duan Wen, when on duty, you are addressed by your official rank."

Duan Wen quickly changed his tune: "County Commandant Hong, does this mean we've officially taken office? Should we go for a walk around the streets and let the merchants know that there's someone new in the county government?"

Hong Lang looked at the group of men and shook his head helplessly: "Walk around? Do you think this is a wedding procession? Stand still, I have something to say."

The hunters quickly stopped laughing and stood in a neat row, but their eyes still couldn't help but wander around.

Hong Lang paced back and forth for a couple of steps, his voice low but unusually calm: "You are constables now, not hunters."

If a hunter misses his shot, he can simply go home empty-handed. But if a constable messes up a case, he'll be punished with a beating or lose his job.

From this day forward, obey my orders. You are not allowed to arrest people without authorization, extort people, or bully others by abusing your power.

"If anyone commits this offense, not only will Magistrate Mo not spare him, but I'll be the first to kick him out. Those who deserve to be sent to the authorities will be sent to the authorities, and those who deserve to be flogged will be flogged. Do you all understand?"

"Understood!" they all replied in unison, their voices so loud that dust fell from the roof beams.

Liu Zhong stepped forward and said, "County Commandant Hong, these brothers have a good foundation, but they haven't been trained."

Should I first familiarize them with the rules of the yamen? Like how to stand in line, how to answer questions—these are all things that need to be learned gradually.

Hong Lang nodded: "Then I'll have to trouble Clerk Liu."

Liu Zhong quickly waved his hand: "No, no, I'm just a clerk running errands, temporarily taking over the position of chief clerk."

Hong Lang then turned to the hunters: "In a couple of days I will have someone come and teach you some basic martial arts. Although you are skilled at hunting, you are not dealing with wild animals, but with people, so the methods are different."

"Let's go, let's go to the backyard first. I'll arrange your accommodations as well. There are a few empty rooms behind the yamen. If you tidy them up, people can live there. Those who don't want to live in the yamen can go home. But you must be on duty at 5 a.m. every day. If you are late once, you will have three days' wages deducted."

Upon hearing about the deduction, Wang Bao's face immediately fell: "Xiao Lang, we haven't even received our monthly pay yet, and you're already deducting from our paychecks?"

Hong Lang laughed and said, "Then you'd better not be late."

After settling everyone in, Hong Lang had just stepped into the front yard when he heard a noisy argument coming from the back yard.

"Only twelve Blood Essence Pills a year? That's far too few! We fight and die for Prefect Mo, we can't be treated like this!"

Hong Lang paused, his brows furrowing slightly.

After a moment's hesitation, he turned and walked toward the backyard, with Liu Zhong following behind him.

Seven people were blocking Mo Qiushui's doorway in the backyard, each with a resentful expression. The leader was a strong man in his thirties. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an aggressive tone.

"Magistrate Mo, we've followed Prefect Mo all the way, risking our lives countless times. Is this all you're going to offer us?"

Liu Zhong leaned close to Hong Lang's ear and whispered, "These people are all disciples of the Black Wind Sect. The one in the lead is called Han Chong, and the group behind him are called Lai Ting, Yan Yu, Yu Hao, Jiang Shuo, Zhou Si, and Zhu Ang."

Mo Qiushui stood at the door with a solemn expression; the situation before her was indeed somewhat troublesome.

She knew the relationship between Mo Wentian and the Black Wind Sect better than anyone else.

Mo Wentian was not in a hurry to rebel. He wanted to accumulate strength for a few more years and then start an uprising after his foundation was solid.

But Fan Qingya didn't give him that chance. He issued an order to summon him to the prefecture, ostensibly for a meeting, but in reality, to trap him like a turtle in a jar.

With the arrow already on the bowstring, there was no choice but to release it. Only then did Mo Wentian agree to cooperate with the Black Wind Sect, each getting what they wanted.

Mo Wentian's confidence in raising an army this time did not come entirely from the treasured weapon given to him by the Black Wind Sect, but from his connections with the prefect.

A message came from the prefect: if he could take over Tianmu County, they would recognize him as the prefect.

Otherwise, even if Mo Wentian conquered Tianmu County, without the prefect's recognition, he would still be treated as a rebel and wiped out.

It was precisely because of this relationship that the Black Wind Sect dared to place their bets on Mo Wentian.

Similarly, once the Black Wind Sect manages to establish connections with the Prefect through this cooperation, they will definitely try to replace Mo Wentian.

The reason why the Black Wind Sect doesn't dare to act recklessly is precisely because it lacks this connection; it doesn't dare to confront the system.

However, if connections are established, the Black Wind Sect has far more people in Tianmu County than Mo Wentian does, and if they launch an attack, Mo Wentian will find it difficult to defend himself.

Both sides understand that the cooperation is only temporary, and in a few years, they may break off relations, at which point it will come down to who is more capable.

In short, neither side is easy to deal with.