I'm here in the martial arts world just to find love.

If heroes and powerful figures from all over the world were to gather in the capital, although they could not interfere in the affairs of the court, they should still be able to promote the fate of the Great Liang Dynasty to some extent.

Of course, this was merely Jiang Chao's speculation based on Yao Yao's previous remarks about the changes in the nation's fortunes.

How the situation will evolve remains to be seen and requires further verification.

After all, luck is a mysterious and unpredictable thing.

Perhaps only those highly skilled practitioners who have deeply cultivated this art can truly understand its mysteries.

"Alright."

To Jiang Chao's surprise, Bi Sheng did not refuse his invitation. After a moment's hesitation, he readily agreed.

This surprised Jiang Chao.

They had only known each other for a short time and were not familiar with each other, so why would Bi Sheng trust him so much?

Or was their original goal to go to the capital?

Jiang Chao simply voiced his doubts.

Bi Sheng smiled and replied:

"Brother Jiang, you may not know this, but although the five of us are traveling together to explore the martial world, we have no fixed destination. For some time now, we have been doing as we please, going wherever the road takes us. After all, the martial world is so vast, where can't we go?"

Xiao Qiushui, Dong Jiajia, and the other two nodded in agreement.

They were young people, even though most ordinary families at their age would already be married, have children, and manage household chores.

But they are different.

They considered themselves to be people of the martial arts world.

They are unwilling to be bound by these worldly ideas.

This is one of the reasons why the five of them traveled together in the martial arts world.

"Did any of you receive support from your families when you went on your travels?"

Jiang Chao asked with a smile.

Bi Sheng nodded. "I persuaded my father and got his permission before I started traveling."

Dong Jiajia said shyly, "I ran away from home secretly."

Liu Yu'er exclaimed, uncertainly saying, "I... before I came out, I talked to my brother, and he promised to help me persuade my father. Although it's not appropriate for a girl to go out and make a living in the public eye, my family runs a martial arts school, and three generations of our family have practiced martial arts. My father should agree... right?"

Xiao Qiushui pulled out a folding fan from somewhere, and this flamboyant young man waved the fan, saying with considerable pride:

"Although I am the second young master of the Xiao family, my family is large and prosperous. One more or one less of me will not make a difference. Therefore, I can go wherever I want without needing anyone's permission."

Li Qingyue said in a clear, cold voice:

"My father sent me out to collect illustrations of extraordinary weapons from all over the world, to provide ideas for my Li family's blacksmith shop to forge powerful and magical artifacts, and to travel the world at the same time."

After hearing what the five people said, Jiang Chao and the others were not surprised at all.

Most young people of this age who are ambitious, have aspirations, and have ideas are like this.

Unless one is an orphan, going on a journey usually requires either secretly sneaking out when the family isn't looking, or having the support and encouragement of the family.

The former is more common, followed by the latter.

For example, Jiang Chao and his group of five, including Jiang Chao himself, were all like this.

"In that case, let's set off. This place is still nearly a thousand miles from the capital. If we ride at full speed, it may take a few days. If we are slower and there are delays on the road, it may take ten days to half a month to arrive."

Jiang Chao suggested.

The crowd agreed, noting that Chenjia Village was practically an empty village, and there was no point in staying there.

Two days later.

Guanzhong Pazhai, on the tower.

The leader of the bandits was a burly man with broad shoulders and a powerful build. He wielded a large silver-ringed sword and exuded an imposing aura, with a fierce and menacing presence surrounding him.

"Where did this bunch of brats come from, daring to trespass on my village? They're asking for trouble!"

"Shoot the arrows!"

As the burly man with the thick beard roared, a hail of arrows whistled through the air.

shhhhh--

Bi Sheng took the lead, wielding a twelve-foot-long staff, blocking and parrying the arrows coming his way.

At the same time, Dong Jiajia and the others also made their moves. This Dong family girl was agile and quickly stepped onto the wooden tower.

He brandished his longsword, and with a flash of light, he aimed straight for the burly man's face.

The burly man with a thick beard snorted coldly and swung his broadsword.

clang!

Dong Jiajia let out a muffled groan and flew backward.

"Sister Jiajia, I'm here to help you!"

With a sharp cry, Liu Yu'er shook her arms, and a silver light flew out from her sleeves. Several needles and threads flew out and stuck into the tower wall. The woman gently pulled with her slender fingers, and the needles and threads straightened, forming a large net that caught Dong Jiajia who was flying backward.

Xiao Qiushui used her fan as a sword, slashing through the air, and a sharp sword aura slashed straight towards the tower.

"boom!"

The tower collapsed with a crash, and the burly man with a thick beard on the tower reacted quickly the moment the blade fell. He stomped his feet heavily, used the momentum to leap up, and slashed out with his blade in mid-air.

A thick blade of light slashed through the sky. Xiao Qiushui's expression was solemn. He held his fan in both hands, his body surging with energy as he tried his best to defend himself.

Click!

The blade, imbued with a murderous aura, was incredibly powerful; in an instant, it cleaved Xiao Qiushui's folding fan in two.

Xiao Qiushui had already withdrawn when she sensed something was wrong.

However, the remaining power of the blade's aura did not diminish, and it continued to slash towards Xiao Qiushui.

If Xiao Qiushui were to be struck by this mid-air slash, she would either die or be seriously injured.

At this critical moment, Li Qingyue, who had been observing the situation quietly, flicked her fingers to her waist, and several armor plates flew out, blocking Xiao Qiushui's path.

That was the scale armor she wore close to her body, forged from ten thousand-fold refined black iron, indestructible and impervious to ordinary swords and blades, enough to withstand this slash that came down from mid-air.

"clang!"

With a loud bang and sparks flying, Xiao Qiushui was unharmed and darted several feet away.

"Little kid, you're quite interesting."

The burly man, standing on a wooden stake and carrying a silver-ringed broadsword, laughed heartily and praised:

"Where do you little brats come from? Why don't you join my ranks and I'll give you a little boss position, wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Xiao Qiushui snorted coldly, "You, a bandit who rules the mountains, dare to associate with us?"

The burly man flew into a rage, "You little brat, you don't know what's good for you! Don't blame me for being impolite!"

"Brothers, stop watching! Get them! Let's teach these kids a lesson. Do they really think just anyone can run wild in our village?"

As soon as the burly man finished speaking, a battle cry rang out from inside the village gate.

The gates of the village swung open, and a group of burly men rushed out.

These burly men all exuded a fierce aura. Although most of them did not have any energy fluctuations, they appeared extraordinary because of this fierce aura.

Bi Sheng's eyes were solemn. He had encountered several villages on the road earlier, all of which had been looted. None of the villagers had escaped unscathed; some were dead, and others were injured. It was a shocking sight.

Upon inquiring, they learned that one or two groups of bandits had suddenly appeared in the vicinity. They were extremely fierce and brutal, burning, killing, and looting wherever they went, committing all sorts of evil deeds.

But every time they robbed and plundered, they would leave survivors, seemingly waiting for chivalrous people to step in and wipe them all out.

Upon learning of this news, Bi Sheng and his four companions were filled with righteous indignation and naturally would not stand idly by. They immediately set off together to investigate the bandit's hideout.

Meanwhile, Jiang Chao and his group, who had traveled with them to the capital, set off for another group of mountain bandits.

"Let's retreat!"

Bi Sheng finally made the decision to lead everyone away from the area and temporarily avoid the limelight.

However, the bandit leader was so troublesome that even the five of them were no match for him. Now, the enemy had a large number of people, and each of them possessed a strange and malevolent aura, as if they had collectively encountered some kind of extraordinary event, which was extremely bizarre.