Chaotic Times and Disasters: I Hunt Down Martial Arts Masters and Become a God

When Zhou Tie pushed open the gate of Fu Qing's courtyard with the military documents, Fu Qing was squatting under the jujube tree peeling walnuts for Song Yawei.

Song Yawei sat on a bamboo recliner, her belly already showing, and she was sewing a small shoe with a red base and yellow thread in her hands.

Zhou Tie placed the official document on the stone table. "It's from the military. The new city lord of Ironblood City is Xu Heng, who comes from the Jingjing Medicine Palace. He will take office in three days."

Fu Qing handed the walnut kernels to Song Yawei, wiped his hands on his pants, and picked up the official document to open it.

The document listed Xu Heng's resume: a steward of the Medicine Palace, a sixth-rank cultivator in medicine, who had served in the army twice and had practical combat experience, completely different from city lords like Duan Tieshan who came from military families.

"It was personally recommended by Marshal Tian."

Zhou Tie sat down across the stone table and poured himself a bowl of tea.

"The Medicine Palace and the military jointly appointed medical personnel. When Duan Tieshan was in office, the Iron Blood City Medical Center was practically non-existent, and wounded soldiers had to endure the pain. After Xu Heng arrived, the medical care of the border army was taken over by the disciples of the Medicine Palace. From now on, the brothers will not have to rely solely on wound medicine when they are injured."

Medicine Palace.

Fu Qing thought of Mr. Shen.

I'm going out for a bit.

Fu Qing took off his apron and draped it over the armrest of the recliner. Song Yawei looked up at him.

"It's almost dinner time, where to go?"

Fu Qing took the knife off the wall and tucked it into his waistband. "Go to the pharmacy and ask Mr. Shen about the medicine palace."

Zhou Tie also went back.

...

The door to Shen's Pharmacy was ajar. Old Master Shen was grinding medicine behind the counter. Fu Qing pushed the door open and went in. The old man looked up at him, his pestle still pounding medicine. "Is your wound hurting again?"

"The wound has healed long ago."

Fu Qing sat down on the stool in front of the counter. "Mr. Shen, I'd like to ask about the Medicine Palace."

Old Mr. Shen paused for a moment with his pestle, then continued pounding, muttering something under his breath.

"What's the point of asking about the Medicine Palace? It's all ancient history. I left the Medicine Palace more than 20 years ago, and I don't even know what the rules are like now."

"The new city lord, Xu Heng, is from the Medicine Palace."

"Xu Heng?"

Mr. Shen stopped pounding the medicine, took off his reading glasses, wiped them on his clothes, and put them back on.

"He was only a few years old when I left, and I didn't know him."

He continued grinding the herbs, but his movements were noticeably slower.

"However, it is novel that the Medicine Palace is willing to send someone to the border to serve as the city lord. In the past, the Medicine Palace only cared about treating patients and saving lives, and never got involved in military and political affairs."

Fu Qing leaned against the counter. "After Xu Heng arrives, the border army's medical care will be under the management of the Medicine Palace disciples. If you'd like, would you like to go and help out at the military medical station?"

Mr. Shen poured the ground medicine powder into a piece of kraft paper, folded it, tied it up, and then pushed the medicine packet in front of Fu Qing.

"Take this medicine to prevent miscarriage to your two wives."

He paused for a moment, then said, "I won't get involved in the affairs of the military medical institute. I've spent half my life in this little pharmacy, and I'm quite content."

Fu Qing did not force him. He knew that Mr. Shen had a past he was unwilling to talk about, but he also vaguely guessed that the past was related to the Dao of Medicine.

He thanked him, stood up, and took his leave. As he reached the door, Mr. Shen's voice came from behind him, "If Xu Heng asks about me, just say that Shen Cang is dead."

...

Three days later, Xu Heng took office. He was a thin man in his early thirties, wearing a dark blue official robe, with a jade plaque from the Medicine Palace hanging at his waist. The plaque was engraved with a Ganoderma lucidum.

He stood on the high platform of the training ground, followed by several young disciples dressed in the same Medicine Palace attire. Each of them was refined and elegant, standing out conspicuously among a group of burly border soldiers.

The inauguration ceremony was short, and Xu Heng spoke concisely and to the point, without any bureaucratic jargon.

He publicly announced the new military and political regulations of Ironblood City: the border army's medical care would be taken over by the disciples of the Medicine Palace, the military medical station would be expanded into the Medicine Clinic, and all wounded soldiers would have priority to receive Medicine treatment.

The border soldiers below the stage whispered among themselves. What was this "medicinal medicine"? Was it better than wound medicine? Could these skinny young men really treat knife wounds? Some crossed their arms, their faces full of distrust.

To Fu Qing's surprise, the new city lord met with him privately after the meeting.

"Commander Fu, I have read Commander Tian's battle report. You broke through from the fourth level of Body Tempering to the first level of Meridian Opening in just a few months. There has never been a precedent in the century-long history of the border army."

Fu Qing reiterated, "I am a born warrior; the more intense the battle, the faster my cultivation will improve."

Xu Heng stared at him for a while, but didn't ask any further questions.

"Three days later, Gongsun Du, the Confucian envoy from Yan Kingdom, will pass through Ironblood City on his way to Jingjing. I will host a banquet at the city lord's mansion, and all officers of the border army above the rank of centurion will be present."

"Confucianism and Taoism?"

Fu Qing recalled the cultivation systems besides martial arts that Mr. Shen had mentioned: the Way of Medicine, the Way of Gu, and the Way of Confucianism—this was already the third system he was about to come into contact with.

"Gongsun Du is a great Confucian scholar of the Imperial Academy of Yan State. His Confucian and Taoist cultivation is above the fourth rank. He is not someone to be trifled with. Confucian scholars are all quick-witted. You should avoid getting into conflicts with him."

Fu Qing was taken aback. "But I'm a centurion! I don't need to go, do I?"

Xu Heng looked at him in surprise, "Your waist pass hasn't come through yet? It'll probably be ready in the next day or two."

Fu Qing paused for a moment, then scratched his head and went out.

...

Gongsun Du's arrival in Ironblood City was much more impressive than Fu Qing had anticipated, with three carriages and a dozen or so attendants and disciples, all dressed in Confucian robes and wearing jade pendants at their waists.

The carriage curtain was lifted, and Gongsun Du stepped down. He was over forty years old, with a thin face and slightly graying temples. His demeanor was completely different from that of a military general.

Xu Heng personally greeted them at the city gate, and the two exchanged a few pleasantries before walking side by side into the city lord's mansion.

That evening, the welcoming banquet was held in the main hall of the city lord's mansion. There were three rows of long tables in the main hall, with the middle row for the main guests and the left and right rows for the accompanying guests.

Gongsun Du sat in the head seat for guests, with three young disciples standing behind him.

Xu Heng sat in the main seat, with officers of the border army above the rank of centurion lined up on either side.

Fu Qing sat next to Zhou Tie and noticed a young man standing behind Gongsun Du.

The man was about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with a fair complexion. The material of his scholar's robe was better than that of his fellow disciples, and the jade pendant hanging from his waist was also larger than others.

From the moment he took his seat, this man's gaze kept drifting diagonally upwards, and a cold smile appeared on his lips as he swept over the border generals present.

Seeing him look over, Zhou Tie whispered from the side, "Gao Jing, Gongsun Du's prized student, a seventh-rank Confucian scholar in the 'Qijia Realm,' he despises soldiers the most."

Fu Qing nodded and didn't look at him again.

...

After a few rounds of drinks, Gongsun Du chatted with Xu Heng about the border trade between Jing and Yan and their observations along the way. The atmosphere was fairly harmonious.

At this moment, with Gongsun Du's tacit approval, Gao Jing stood up, took a wine cup, and strolled to the center of the tent.

"Generals."

Gao Jing glanced around, a faint smile playing on his lips.

"My name is Gao Jing, a disciple of Master Gongsun, and a seventh-rank Confucian and Taoist. I accompanied Master Gongsun on this mission to Jingguo. What I have seen and heard along the way has deeply impressed me. Jingguo is a nation founded on military strength, and its border soldiers are brave and skilled in battle. I admire them greatly..."

"However, martial arts are ultimately crude. If any of you have sons or nephews, it would be best to send them to an academy to study literature..."

He put down his wine glass, put his hands behind his back, and began a long speech.

From the Confucian and Taoist nine-rank system to the power of speaking eloquently and having one's words carry the weight of law, from the mystery of the righteous spirit to the legends of Confucian and Taoist sages changing the world, he repeatedly mentioned that "Confucianism and Taoism cultivate the ultimate principles of heaven and earth, unlike some crude methods that only know how to temper one's body and bones."

Zhou Tie gritted his teeth, barely suppressing his rage to go up and kill someone. The other border generals also had ashen faces.

Gao Jing became more and more enthusiastic as he spoke, and walked to the center of the main hall, tapping the ground with his toes.

"In Yan Kingdom, only the most dull-witted people learn martial arts, while truly talented children all consider it an honor to enter Confucianism or Taoism."

"Even if you master martial arts to the highest level, you are still just a body of flesh and blood. But if you cultivate Confucianism and Taoism to a high level, you can change the course of history with a single word and alter the course of history with a single stroke. This is the difference between heaven and earth."

The moment the words "as different as heaven and earth" were uttered, the entire main hall felt as if it had been doused with a bucket of ice water.

The faces of several centurions were as black as the bottom of a pot. One of them, with a thick beard, couldn't help but take a step forward, and the person next to him quickly grabbed his sleeve.

No one dared to cause trouble. Gongsun Du was a guest, and Xu Heng was the new city lord. It was not their place to speak in this situation. If they caused a scene, things would get out of hand.

Fu Qing turned her head and whispered in Zhou Tie's ear, her voice extremely low.

"Brother Zhou, this guy's got such a sharp tongue, he probably didn't cultivate literature, he just trained his tongue. I wonder how many enemies he could verbally kill on the battlefield?"

Zhou Tie was holding a wine glass to calm his nerves when he heard this. He almost spat out a mouthful of wine from his nose and coughed several times while covering his mouth.

"Cough cough..."

The bearded man next to him slammed his chopsticks on the table and covered his mouth with his sleeve, pretending to wipe it.

The generals who overheard all turned their heads away; one slumped over the table, his shoulders shaking, while another looked up at the roof beam, pretending he hadn't heard anything.

Gao Jing slowly turned around, his gaze fixed on Fu Qing. The main hall suddenly fell silent as everyone followed Gao Jing's gaze to Fu Qing.

"What did the general just say to the person next to him?"