Starting from the pharmacy, he grew into a martial saint among men.

Shi Potian's decisive blow sealed the deal.

Having received the money to buy his life, Chu Hong wanted to go to the blacksmith shop to make preparations.

But after taking only two steps, Xiao Yi grabbed him.

Chu Hong was puzzled, but seeing that Xiao Yi seemed to have something on his mind, he did not refuse and followed him.

In the tavern.

After several rounds of drinks and five courses of food,

Chu Hong patted his bulging belly and saw that Xiao Yi still seemed hesitant to speak.

He had no choice but to speak up: "Senior Brother Xiao, you're not a virgin anymore, why are you being so coy today?"

"Just say what you want to say, junior brother. I'll definitely help you if I can."

After a moment of silence, Xiao Yi sighed deeply, his tone heavy:

"Junior brother, this journey is fraught with danger. If I die, please take care of my mother for me..."

He didn't try to elicit sympathy or cry; he simply recounted his experiences, expressing his deep sorrow.

He was the most insignificant illegitimate son in the Xiao family, and his mother was a servant who was "favored" by the head of the family after drinking.

They were nameless and penniless, and lived in poverty.

He wanted to learn martial arts, pursue academic success in the martial arts examinations, and secure a proper status for his mother.

Unexpectedly, his physical constitution suffered an accident, and now he is left with only a wretched life.

Although he had reached the Ming Jin level, he was still looked down upon by the Xiao family.

Not long ago, the mother and son were kicked out of the family and left with no one to rely on.

He had a premonition that he was about to face great misfortune before he went on this trip.

Therefore, he made arrangements for his affairs in advance, entrusting his mother to Chu Hong, the only junior brother he trusted.

Chu Hong looked up at Xiao Yi and shook his head firmly:

"Senior Brother Xiao, you're dreaming! You think you can take advantage of me for the rest of your life?"

"Your own mother, you should take care of her yourself. I will not grant your request."

After saying that, Chu Hong took out ten taels of silver and pushed it over.

"Take this, go to Wutongfang and buy a small courtyard to properly settle your mother."

"My home happens to be in Wutongfang as well, so we can look out for each other in the future."

The world is becoming increasingly chaotic, and the prices of small courtyards in Wutongfang have risen considerably, but smaller courtyards can be bought for twenty or thirty taels of silver.

Looking into Chu Hong's resolute eyes, Xiao Yi's eyes welled up with tears, and he nodded emphatically:

"Okay! I'll take care of myself!"

Although that's what he said, Xiao Yi had already made up his mind.

If things really come to a desperate situation, he will protect Chu Hong even at the cost of his life.

Chu Hong returned home and told his parents about the escort mission.

Tears immediately streamed down the mother's face, and it took Chu Hong a long time to calm her down.

The father remained silent, shrouded in mist.

Even late into the night, Chu Hong could vaguely hear sobbing.

He felt a warmth in his heart, but could only sigh.

He couldn't make any promises to his parents; he would only do his best to find a way to survive when faced with dire circumstances.

-----------------

Meanwhile, inside the Chengfeng Martial Arts School.

Pang Hai sat at his desk, reading the message he had just received, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"The opportunity has arrived!"

"Chu Hong, Xiao Yi, if you keep hiding in the martial arts school, it will be really difficult for me to make a move."

"But now that you're going to risk your lives yourselves, I have no choice but to lend you a hand."

Chu Hong, Xiao Yi, and instructor Li Hu were the three people he most wanted to get rid of.

Chu Hong posed the greatest threat to him.

Given his hidden strength, he should have been able to capture the enemy easily with a single move.

However, as a prominent figure, his actions were always under scrutiny, to the point that he could only secretly entrust certain matters to his servants.

When he had free time, Chu Hong and the other man often stayed at the martial arts school and rarely went out, which meant he had almost no chance to make a move.

Otherwise, Chu Hong and Xiao Yi wouldn't be alive today.

But now, things are different.

He picked up his pen and wrote a letter, filled with boundless murderous intent.

The letter contained only one thing: to contact the higher-ups within the sect and inform them of the Wuyou Sect's influence in Huang'an County.

We must intercept and kill the caravan, with a focus on eliminating Chu Hong and Xiao Yi.

These two people might be the calamities the Holy One spoke of.

"This time, even the Heavenly King himself can't save you."

-----------------

Time flies like water.

On this day, the sky was overcast, and the autumn wind brought a chill.

Chu Hong, dressed in a close-fitting outfit, with a short knife at his waist and a simple bag on his back, went out.

He hadn't gone far when he heard his neighbors pointing at him and talking about him.

"Have you heard? That kid Chu Hong is going to Huang'an County to die."

"Sigh, the Jiang family finally saw a glimmer of hope, but unexpectedly..."

"Why are you sighing? If you ask me, I'd rather you were dead. You didn't see the Chu family's attitude a while ago; they were practically looking down on everyone."

"Stop talking, stop talking! Aren't you afraid that Chu Hong will cause you trouble?"

"What are you afraid of? He wouldn't dare hit me, would he? Am I wrong? Let me tell you..."

Chu Hong gave those people a cold stare, which frightened the group of neighbors into silence.

No one can control these kinds of things. No matter when, there will always be people who can't stand you and can't bear to see you doing well.

For those people, they will only be happy if you are always under their thumb.

When you are in a subordinate position, they will look down on you, continue to suppress and ridicule you, and wish that you would never be able to stand up again.

Arrive at Dawei Escort Agency.

Inside the courtyard, the镖队's transport wagons were fully loaded and ready to depart.

The carriages of the thirteen carriages were wrapped tightly in thick cloth, and it was unknown what treasures they contained.

However, Chu Hong observed that the wheels of the loaded carriage had sunk into the ground, leaving deep marks.

Each carriage was guarded by elite bodyguards, the security was tight, and the atmosphere was tense.

What surprised Chu Hong the most was that there were actually two people accompanying him in the group.

An old man with a pipe in his mouth, his face full of wrinkles but full of energy, and a lively young girl in green with a pretty face.

After making a few inquiries, Chu Hong learned that the two men seemed to be brought by Shi Potian.

It seems the grandfather and grandson are returning to their roots.

The old man seemed to hear people talking about them in secret.

He glanced indifferently at Chu Hong and sneered, "As a bodyguard, where are your rules? Hmm?!"

The girl then turned her head and glared at Chu Hong.

Chu Hong's gaze sharpened slightly, and he clasped his hands in apology to the two of them.

Then, without making a sound, he distanced himself and returned to his assigned position.

Before long, Shi Potian boarded the specially prepared carriage and ordered in a deep voice, "Let's go!"

The caravan set off immediately, everyone focused their attention and hurried on their journey, the only sounds being the dull thud of wheels and hooves.

Chu Hong and Xiao Yi traveled with the team, both carefully observing their surroundings in case of a surprise attack.

Although this area outside Yunxi County had just been cleaned up by the county government.

However, it was hard to guarantee that no one had laid an ambush or plotted against them, so even though they were still within the county, no one looked relaxed.

The closer you get to Huang'an County, the more refugees you see on the road.

Although the distance between the two counties was not far, these refugees were all dressed in rags, emaciated, and with lifeless eyes.

I don't know what happened.

Occasionally, Chu Hong could see pools of dark blood on the roadside, but no bones were visible.

It's unclear whether the conflict occurred between the refugees or they were snatched away by wild beasts in the mountains.

As dusk fell, the setting sun was about to disappear behind the hillside.

The group arrived at the dilapidated temple again.

After discussing with other refugees who had also settled there, they cleared out a large area to rest.

Shi Yi quickly arranged for people to explore the surrounding area, and the others also had their own tasks, so everything was in good order.

Chu Hong gathered some firewood, and seeing that there was nothing else to do, he found a corner to practice his stance and boxing.

It wasn't that he was deliberately showing off, but rather that if he didn't move for a day, he felt like his body was rusting and he felt uncomfortable.

Shi Yi saw Chu Hong's actions from afar, his eyes full of approval.

Some newcomers in the team were confused, but after Shi Yi mentioned and praised Chu Hong's performance at the martial arts exchange meeting, they understood.

Everyone's eyes widened immediately.

So, he was Chu Hong!

The man who trampled the Qin family underfoot.

In an instant, everyone's eyes burned with fervor, and there was no trace of blame left.

The girl in green walked silently to Chu Hong's side.

She sat on the grass with her knees drawn up to her chest, her gaze fixed on Chu Hong.

"Hey, are you this diligent every day?"

Her voice was very pleasant, carrying a hint of curiosity.

Chu Hong glanced at her and simply gave a faint "hmm".

Without saying anything more, he had no interest in speaking to the girl.

The gossip I shared this morning was simply out of curiosity because of the unusual situation these two people were in.

With danger lurking ahead, he has no energy left to deal with such irrelevant people.

"What are you pretending for? What's there for a Ming Jin to pretend about?"

Seeing that Chu Hong ignored her, the girl in green pouted and spoke to herself.

"Qingqing, come back and don't disturb their martial arts practice."

The old man sat on a large rock and casually called out to his granddaughter.

But his eyes were fixed on Xiao Yi's direction, lost in thought:

"This...this...this kind of inherent talent, could it be...?"