Republic of China era: A hundred-year-old still practicing martial arts? Is that right?

The three of them traveled at a fast pace, leaving Qingyuan County and heading northwest for more than ten miles before stopping in front of an abandoned mountain god temple.

Zhou Bingkun was carried by Lin Ji for a long time, and his legs were still a little weak when he landed. He leaned against the broken wall and panted for a long time before he could catch his breath.

He looked at the two men before him, one holding a gun with unwavering composure, the other carrying a gun with quiet sternness, and felt both gratitude and awe.

He straightened his torn Zhongshan suit, took two steps forward, and bowed deeply to Lin Ji:

"Thank you so much for saving my life, senior. I owe you my life. I am deeply grateful and will do my utmost to serve you in the future."

Lin Ji smiled, said nothing, and slowly wiped his face with his hand.

His previously aged and loose skin tightened instantly, the deep wrinkles on his face faded, and his hunched back straightened up again.

The firelight illuminated his face, revealing sharp, angular features and clear, bright eyes—the very image depicted on the wanted poster, drawn countless times.

It's just that it has less ferocity than the portrait, and more composure and calmness.

Zhou Bingkun's pupils contracted sharply, and he pointed at Lin Ji, his voice trembling:

"You! You are... Lin Ji? That old man Lin from Jiangcheng?"

Zhou Bingkun had initially thought it was some reclusive master passing through Qingyuan County who couldn't stand the foreigners' behavior and was trying to help them out of injustice. He never expected that the person who saved him was Lin Ji, the "bandit" who was now wanted throughout the region and had a reward of five thousand silver dollars.

But then I thought, who else could be the one who could break through more than a dozen foreign guns with a single gun and pierce through the iron body of a foreigner, except for this legendary figure who challenged the consulates of two countries?

"The official notice says you are a bandit..." Zhou Bingkun paused, not continuing, but instead bowed deeply again, his waist bent even lower than before. After a moment, he said:

"Only today do I understand what it means to have justice in the hearts of the people. Mr. Lin, you saved not only me, but also all the people of Qingyuan County."

Lin Ji waved his hand, indicating that he didn't need to be so polite:

"It was nothing, just a small favor. Tell me, what's been going on in the provincial capital lately? Who are these foreigners in metal suits?"

When serious matters were mentioned, Zhou Bingkun immediately became serious:

"These men are a test unit recently transferred from the British Consulate in the UK, codenamed 'Iron Body'."

"What you're wearing is called an exoskeleton armor. It's said that when ordinary people wear it, their strength and stability can match those of a martial artist with internal energy. When combined with a new type of rapid-fire gun, its combat power is extremely strong. Recently, a lot of them have been transferred from the provincial capital. On the surface, they are helping to promote the ban on martial arts, but in reality, they are specifically designed to deal with people in the martial arts world."

He paused, his expression darkening further, his tone becoming increasingly serious:

"It's not just the Iron Body Team. Recently, a group of very strange people has appeared around the provincial capital. They are said to have come from Southeast Asia and practice some kind of strange arts. The leader is a small old man who is about five feet tall. He carries a large black pottery urn all day long and goes into the urn whenever he has nothing to do. No one has ever seen his real face."

"He had more than a dozen men under his command. They were extremely ruthless and did not use foreign guns or practice proper martial arts. They specialized in using hooks, iron chains, and fog bullets that could release pungent smoke."

"These people don't rob or kill; they specifically target lone, wild martial artists. Once they catch one, they take him away, leaving no trace of him, dead or alive. In the past two weeks, more than a dozen scattered martial artists around the provincial capital have gone missing. The governor's mansion has investigated for a long time but hasn't found a single clue."

Lin Ji gently tapped the shaft of the Mountain and River Stabilizing Spear with his fingertips, his brows slightly furrowed.

Southeast Asian magic tricks: the old man carrying a jar, the hook and iron chain...

The methods sound sinister, almost like the evil magic of Japan.

In order to implement the ban on weapons, Great Britain is willing to spend a lot of money. When it doesn't have enough exoskeletons on the technology side, it even hooks up with unorthodox practitioners.

Li Shuwen, who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke up, his voice low and deep:

"It's a Southeast Asian sorcery that caused trouble in the Fujian and Guangdong areas in the early years of the Republic of China. It relies on the life force and martial veins to refine urns. It's extremely evil. They capture martial artists to extract their martial veins and refine them into urns to enhance their evil power. I never expected that they would actually get involved with foreigners."

Lin Ji glanced at him sideways. This hero from the north had traveled all over the country and was indeed very knowledgeable; he even recognized such unorthodox and evil arts.

"It seems this trip to the provincial capital is more lively than expected," Lin Ji said casually, but his eyes darkened slightly.

He had thought it was just the ban on weapons and the trouble with foreign gun teams, but now, he had everything: exoskeletons and Southeast Asian sorcery.

The mountain god temple was quiet for a moment, with only the night wind blowing in through the broken windows, carrying withered leaves that rattled against the broken glass.

After resting for about half an hour, estimating that the pursuers in the city wouldn't catch up so quickly, Lin Ji stood up:

"Let's go, I'll take you a little further ahead, and we'll part ways at the fork in the road ahead, so that the foreigners won't turn back and follow the route back to us."

Zhou Bingkun quickly expressed his gratitude.

The three of them walked along the path for several more miles until they reached a fork in the road.

Ahead lies a mountain road leading to a neighboring county, remote and difficult to traverse; to the northwest lies the official road leading directly to the provincial capital.

Lin Ji stopped in his tracks:

"That's all for now, Commander Zhou. You're not going back to Qingyuan County. What are your plans now?"

Zhou Bingkun gazed at the deep night in the distance, gave a bitter smile, and sighed:

"What other plans can I have? In this chaotic world, we're neither officials nor ordinary citizens. Just surviving is a blessing. I'll go to a neighboring county to find an old colleague to hide with for a while and see how things develop. I can't just stand by and watch the foreigners turn this world into a mess. I have to do something."

He paused, then looked at Lin Ji, his tone solemn:

"Old Master Lin, please take good care of yourself. The provincial capital is now a den of dragons and tigers, with foreigners everywhere and that group of evil Southeast Asian cultivators hiding in the shadows. You must be extra careful in your actions."

Lin Ji nodded: "Take care of yourself too. In chaotic times, as long as you're alive, there's hope."

Zhou Bingkun clasped his hands in a fist salute again, gave Lin Ji a deep look, and then turned and walked towards the mountain path.

In the darkness of night, his figure appeared somewhat lonely, yet his steps were steady as he gradually disappeared into the depths of the mountains and forests.

Lin Ji stood at the intersection, watching his back disappear before turning around and walking in another direction with Li Shuwen.

They had to detour back to Qingyuan County to pick up Su Wanning, who was still at the inn, before continuing north to the provincial capital.

On the way, Li Shuwen suddenly spoke, his voice somewhat scattered by the night wind:

"Don't be too surprised by the Nanyang urn sorcery. The British will use any underhanded means to crush Chinese martial arts. There are even more things you can't imagine when you get to the provincial capital."

Lin Ji chuckled and bounced the gun barrel on his shoulder:

"Perfect. I want to see how many tricks they have up their sleeve. We'll deal with whatever comes our way."

The autumn wind swept across the official road, carrying yellow leaves, and the night was so dark it was impossible to see through.

Despite the growing turmoil and lurking dangers ahead, Lin Ji's pace did not slow down in the slightest.

With a gun and a heart full of courage, even if it's a den of dragons and tigers, I'll just charge in.