I have a martial arts panel.

"Going into town with Uncle Gang to escort the trucks?"

Xu Ning glanced at Guo Ye.

"Yes," Guo Ye explained, "By tomorrow, the harvest of medicinal herbs for these three months will be finished. The day after tomorrow, my uncle will set off to transport the herbs to Kangyun County and complete the transaction with the herbal medicine shops there."

"Every time we transport goods, my uncle would find a few skilled men to accompany us," Guo Ye continued. "His recruitment criteria were either mastery of external martial arts or at least the second level of the mortal realm of internal martial arts. Now that you have mastered the Gale Blade Technique, you meet the requirements, so I thought of you."

"so……"

Xu Ning understood.

As Tao Jinglu previously stated, external martial arts have an advantage over internal martial arts in the early stages of combat.

A minor mastery of external martial arts is stronger than the first level of the mortal realm, while a major mastery of external martial arts should be roughly equivalent to the second level of the mortal realm. Tao Yungang's recruitment standards should be based on this.

However, this is just a comparison between the two. Generally speaking, those who have cultivated internal strength usually have also achieved a minor level of mastery in external skills. People like Xu Ning, who have achieved great mastery in external skills without cultivating internal strength, are rare.

"Oh, right, I haven't told you about the payment yet," Guo Ye added. "The round trip will take five days, and I'll pay you fifty taels of silver."

"Fifty taels of silver?"

Xu Ning was quite surprised; there were so many.

Don't be fooled by the fact that you made three hundred taels from the dried grass before; that was largely by chance.

These fifty taels were earned through sheer ability.

"You think that's too much?"

Guo Ye smiled and said, "Fifty taels sounds like a lot, but it's not excessive. We're very likely to encounter bandits on our way to the county town, and if we really fight them, there's a risk involved."

"But don't worry, my uncle is going with us. He is at the third level of the Mortal Realm, and his Gale Blade Technique is highly proficient. Even if we encounter bandits, he should be safe."

Guo Ye added.

Xu Ning didn't respond immediately. After pondering for a moment, he nodded: "I'll go with you."

Tao Yungang was leading the team for this escort mission, so the safety was relatively guaranteed, and the compensation was also generous.

Furthermore, as a martial artist, making money inevitably involves some risks, which is something I will have to face in the future.

"Alright, I'll tell my uncle when I get back." Guo Ye waved his hand, stood up, and said, "Okay, I'm leaving now. My sister and brother-in-law will be back soon."

According to seniority, Guo Ye should call Tao Yunchuan "Uncle," as he and Tao Yungang are of the same generation.

However, since he had a close relationship with Xu Ning, he addressed her according to her status.

"Go back and practice your swordsmanship properly."

Xu Ning reminded him.

"I've got it."

Guo Ye responded.

"Uncle Ye, see you later."

"See you later."

……

The day after tomorrow, Xu Ning got up early and headed to Tao Yungang's house.

Xu Ning had already told Tao Yunchuan and Xu Lian about the matter of arranging goods for Tao Yungang.

Upon learning that Tao Yungang, an expert at the Inner Realm, would personally lead the team, the two were reassured and agreed to let Xu Ning go.

At this time, just as dawn was breaking, Xu Ning carried a knife to Tao Yungang's house.

Because of his business in medicinal herbs, Tao Yungang's family was considered wealthy in the entire Taojiazhuang village.

His house is very large and looks quite impressive.

The gate to the courtyard was wide open. Xu Ning walked in and saw that the spacious courtyard had been filled with goods, with several donkeys pulling carts.

Apart from that, I haven't seen anyone else.

"Xu Ning, you're here so early?"

Guo Ye came out of the house.

"Are you going on this delivery trip too?"

Xu Ning asked.

"I'll go too."

Guo Ye nodded.

"Your skills are so mediocre, are they even up to par?"

Xu Ning countered with a question.

"I'm different from you; I'm here to do business," Guo Ye said. "You can guarantee my safety."

"Is that Xu Ning?"

Just then, another person came out of the house.

The man looked to be in his forties, the same age as the previous instructor, Tao Yunmeng.

He was strong and muscular, with piercing eyes, and looked quite fierce.

"Uncle Gang".

Xu Ning greeted him.

These two men are Guo Ye's uncle, Tao Yungang.

They knew each other before because of Guo Ye.

"Good lad, you've mastered the Gale Blade Technique, but I've never heard you mention it before."

Tao Yun walked up and patted Xu Ning on the shoulder: "You're much better than that bastard Guo Ye."

"Uncle, what are you doing..."

Guo Ye pursed his lips, his expression somewhat helpless.

"Wait a moment, the others will be here soon."

Tao Yungang said.

Just as Tao Yungang said, after a short while, five more people arrived.

They all looked older than Xu Ning, with the youngest being in his twenties and the oldest being about the same age as Tao Yungang.

They were either carrying knives or long spears; they were probably all from Taojiazhuang.

Once everyone had arrived, Tao Yun walked up to them.

"Everyone's here, let's get ready to go."

Tao Yungang looked at the group and said, "Before we set off, I'll give you your payment for this trip."

As he spoke, Tao Yungang took out six fifty-tael silver notes and placed them in the hands of Xu Ning and the other six people.

Xu Ning was quite surprised.

Wages are usually settled after the fact, and it's very rare for someone like Tao Yungang to be paid.

Guo Ye seemed to notice Xu Ning's confusion and explained in Xu Ning's ear: "It's rare for everyone to come to the city, so my uncle gave us the payment in advance so that it would be convenient for everyone to go to the city to buy some things they like."

Xu Ning suddenly understood and nodded silently.

The others who received the money also clasped their hands in thanks. Everyone seemed to be used to it, and it was obvious that this was not the first time they had accompanied Tao Yungang as a escort.

"Alright, let's get ready to go."

Tao Yungang began to make arrangements: "There are four cars in total, and there are eight of us. Yunquan and I will be in the first car, Xu Ning and Guo Ye, you two will be in the second car, and the rest of you can arrange yourselves."

Guo Ye had virtually no ability to protect himself, and Xu Ning had no experience as a first-time escort, so they were both assigned to stand behind Tao Yungang.

Soon, the group boarded the donkey cart loaded with goods, left Taojiazhuang, and headed towards Kangyun County.

"It's really desolate..."

Once you leave Taojiazhuang, the population becomes sparse.

The world was in chaos, and apart from a few powerful martial arts masters, everyone lived in close-knit communities.

Guo Ye and Xu Ning sat together, chatting casually.

At the speed of this donkey cart, it would take almost a day to travel from Taojiazhuang to Kangyun County, which is not a short distance.

Soon, two hours passed, and the sun was blazing overhead.

Even in late autumn, the sun remains scorching.

On the desolate mountain path, a few people ate flatbread and drank water, making do with their lunch.

"Eat quickly, everyone, and cheer up." Tao Yun had just stuffed a large pancake into his mouth when he said, "There's a high chance of bandits appearing on the mountain road ahead."

"Bandits?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Ning and the others perked up.

Everyone tensed up, looking up at the hillsides on both sides of the road.

The hillside is slightly steep and the mountain is very high, with dense trees growing in between. If someone were to suddenly come down from the mountain, it would indeed be a very dangerous situation.

"Watch out for loose stones."

Tao Yungang reminded him.

During the journey, loose rocks also slid down the mountain.

However, the pebbles are not large, so they can all be easily avoided.

Although he was an expert in the Inner Realm, Tao Yungang was still somewhat wary.

This section of road is the easiest place to be robbed.

However, this time everyone seemed to be quite lucky. They passed through the mountains on both sides for more than half an hour without encountering anyone blocking their way.

"I was on edge the whole time, I'm so glad you're alright."

After passing the dangerous section of road, Guo Ye breathed a sigh of relief.

Xu Ning didn't reply, but just turned around and looked at the valley that was getting further and further away.

Under the blazing sun and autumn wind, the shadows of the trees swayed, and weeds grew in abundance, creating a desolate scene.

However, just after Xu Ning and his group passed through the valley, a dozen or so figures dressed as bandits appeared on the hillside.

The leader was a bald, burly man.

He was wearing a sleeveless short-sleeved shirt, his arms were muscular, and his face was full of fat; he was clearly not a simple character.

Beside the bald, burly man, a man with a missing arm and a hooked nose stared coldly at the spot where Xu Ning and his group had disappeared, his eyes filled with murderous intent.

"Is that the leader Tao Yungang?"

The bald, burly man asked the man with the missing arm.

"That's him. The dark-skinned kid with shifty eyes behind him is his nephew, named Guo Ye."

The man with the missing arm had a hoarse voice, filled with barely suppressed hatred.