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

"Fu Qing?"

An Sheng frowned. "Is that the centurion who writes good poetry? I've heard his 'Song of Joining the Army,' it's quite good. What's his skill level?"

"Four levels of meridian opening."

Pei Qing didn't dare mention that Fu Qing was only at the third level of the Meridian Opening stage when he first attacked him, "but he..."

"Triple Meridian Opening?"

An Sheng interrupted him, turning to look at Han Duo, "You're at the fifth level of the Meridian Opening Realm, he's at the fourth, and you're at the fifth? How did he manage to beat you up like this?"

He pointed to the group of men in the back row with bruises and swelling on their faces, "And what happened to you guys?"

An older student standing next to Han Duo forced a smile and said, "The five of us went together, two at the fourth level of the Meridian Opening Realm and three at the fifth level, and the result was..."

"Five against one? Five against one and you got beaten up like this, and you still have the nerve to stand here in a line to greet me?"

An Sheng took a deep breath. "I'm fighting the Gu cultivators in the south, and you guys are fighting people at the Martial Academy, and you even lost? Five against one and you still lost?"

He looked at Pei Qing, "Aren't you usually quite talkative? Why are you silent now?"

Pei Qing's face flushed red, and he was on the verge of tears. "Senior Brother, he really is a monster. When I struck him with my palm, he didn't even turn his head. He just grabbed my hand with his other hand. He just squeezed it so lightly, and my bones almost broke—"

"I don't want to know how he pinched your bones."

An Sheng interrupted him, "I'll just ask you one question: how many days have you practiced with your swords in these past three months? How many times have you chopped at wooden stakes?"

"I wrote to you when I was in the south, telling you not to slack off, and you replied saying yes, but what happened?"

"I know Fu Qing too. He fought on the border for more than half a year, from Black Stone Ridge to Iron Blood City, from Di cavalry to Tongmai centurion. You guys are living a life of luxury in the martial academy, and you can't even beat him with one hand."

"Now that he's been thoroughly humiliated and lost all face, he still comes to me saying he's a monster? Shameful!"

The drill ground was completely silent.

Pei Qing lowered his head and dared not utter a sound. Several senior students in the back row all buried their heads in their chests, wishing they could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

An Sheng turned around, took a few steps, and stopped in the center of the training ground.

He remained silent for a long while with his back to everyone before finally speaking.

"In the end, I am the senior brother. You have lost face, and I have to pick it up for you. Otherwise, people will think that the scions of noble families in Jingjing are all good-for-nothings. I don't want to bear that kind of infamy, and neither do you."

He turned to look at Pei Qing. "Who's his next opponent?"

"The quarterfinals are over, but the semifinal opponents haven't been drawn yet."

Pei Qing looked up. "Senior Brother, are you going to participate in the competition?"

"I came back to compete in the big tournament."

An Sheng pulled out the riding whip and held it in his hand.

"Go tell Fu Qing that I will play against him in the semifinals, and tell him to recover from his injury. I want to have a fair fight with him."

Pei Qing grinned, "With Senior Brother making a move, this humble subject naturally..."

An Sheng turned and glared at him. Pei Qing shivered and lowered his head to deliver the message.

In preparation for the semi-finals the following day, Fu Qing was practicing his sword skills in a corner of the training ground.

The three techniques of slashing, chopping, and striking were executed in rotation, one strike after another, leaving deeper and deeper knife marks on the wooden stake.

Standing next to him was a chubby little boy with a round face and a round belly. He was dressed in a brocade robe that made him look like a rice dumpling. He was holding a bag of roasted chestnuts and peeling them while looking at them with great interest.

This chubby guy is called Yu Fu. He stuck to Fu Qing after yesterday's semi-final.

Fu Qing had just stepped off the stage when this chubby boy appeared out of nowhere, blocking his way with a box of wound medicine in his hands and a broad smile on his face.

"Brother Fu! I am Yu Fu, and my father is the Duke of Han! The very wealthy Duke of Han! I just witnessed you, a fourth-level Qi Refining cultivator, fight against a ninth-level Qi Refining cultivator, and with one strike, you made him cough up blood and admit defeat. I was completely impressed on the spot!"

"My admiration for you is as boundless as the surging river, as overflowing as the Yellow River!"

"Brother Fu, you have a full forehead and a square jaw, and your brows exude an aura of power and dominance; you are destined for greatness! I would like to befriend you; what do you say, Brother Fu?"

Fu Qing glanced at him, neither agreeing nor refusing.

The chubby boy didn't mind at all. He followed Fu Qing around all day, talking to himself. He watched Fu Qing practice his swordplay, brought his bowl over when Fu Qing ate, and followed Fu Qing to the pharmacy to have his medicine changed by Su Wen. He only retreated to the door after being given a cold glance by Su Wen.

He came again this afternoon, carrying not only roasted chestnuts but also a bag of candied fruit. He said he had stolen the imperial chef's recipe from his family's kitchen and insisted that Fu Qing try it.

Fu Qing was practicing his swordplay when a person suddenly walked in through the courtyard gate.

Pei Qing came alone today.

After being wiped out by Fu Qing in a five-on-one battle last time, his reputation at the martial arts academy was completely ruined, and people would point fingers at him wherever he went.

He walked to a corner of the training ground and stood about seven or eight steps away from Fu Qing.

Fu Qing sheathed his sword, turned to look at Pei Qing, raised an eyebrow and smiled, "How many people did you bring this time?"

Pei Qing's face flushed red instantly. He clenched his fists and took a deep breath.

"I'm not here to fight, I'm here to deliver a message—the eldest brother is back, and he's telling you to wash yourself clean and wait to lose the next match."

"Senior Brother?"

Fu Qing turned to look at Yu Fu, who was peeling chestnuts beside her, and asked, "Who is the senior brother?"

Yu Fu tossed the chestnut shells in his hand onto the ground, wiped his mouth, and...

"Brother Fu, you don't know An Sheng? Hehe, then you've come to the right person. An Sheng is the eldest son of the An family in Jingjing, the senior disciple of the Martial Academy, at the seventh level of the Meridian Opening Realm, and wields a twelve-foot silver spear."

"The An family's spear technique is renowned among the aristocratic families of Jingjing, possessing three signature moves—the Python Turns Over, the Returning Spear, and the Dragon Turns Around—three moves that have never been defeated among their peers!"

"Last time during the autumn hunt, an instructor at the Qi Refining Realm sparred with him, but his Dragon Turn spear knocked his weapon away. However, that wasn't his most impressive feat—"

"What's most impressive is that he just returned from training on the southern border. He fought against the Gu cultivators of Yue Kingdom for more than half a year, killing people like chickens. Brother Fu is at the seventh level of the Meridian Opening Realm and has been tempered on the battlefield. This guy is not comparable to a good-for-nothing like Pei Qing."

"Yu Fu, what the hell are you saying!" Pei Qingzai was so angry that his face turned green.

Yu Fu completely ignored him and continued talking.

"An Sheng is different from Pei Qing. Pei Qing is just a scion of a noble family who coasts along, while An Sheng has actually fought to the death against the Gu cultivators in the south."

"Brother Fu, you said last time that you had killed no less than ten centurions at the Meridian Opening Realm on the battlefield. This one is probably about the same as the ones you've killed."

"How does he compare to Helian Yunshan?"

Who is Helian Yunshan?

"He was a royal guard in the Di Kingdom's Golden Tent, with six layers of meridians. He wielded a long spear, and I killed him with twelve slashes."

Yu Fu nearly dropped the chestnut in his hand. He opened his mouth, then chuckled.

"That's hard to say. An Sheng is at the seventh level, one level higher than Helian Yunshan. But Brother Fu, you're currently at the fourth level of the Meridian Opening Realm. You could kill a sixth-level cultivator when you were at the third level, so beating a seventh-level cultivator shouldn't be a problem when you're at the fourth level, right?"

Pei Qing couldn't stand it anymore, so he turned and left.

"Hey Fu, don't be so arrogant! My senior brother is different from me—he really can beat you to death!"

Fu Qing leaned his knife against the weapon rack and sat down on the stone bench.

Yu Fu immediately came over and pushed the candied fruit in front of him.

Fu Qing picked up a pill, popped it into his mouth, chewed it a couple of times, and asked, "What are the weaknesses in An Sheng's marksmanship?"

"Weakness? Hey, Brother Fu, you've stumped me."

Yu Fu scratched his head. "An Sheng has been at the Martial Academy for so many years, and he's fought quite a few people, but not a single one has survived to point out his weaknesses! You'd better be careful, sir!"

Fu Qing was startled and remained silent.

...

That evening, An Sheng practiced shooting alone on the training ground behind the martial arts academy, his silver spear twirling in the moonlight.

"Senior Brother."

Pei Qing's voice came from the side of the training field.

An Sheng leaned his gun against the weapon rack. "What did Fu Qing say?"

He accepted!

Pei Qing walked to the center of the training ground and placed the wine jug on the stone table.

"Senior Brother, be careful tomorrow. Fu Qing is a madman. I've heard that even when he was seriously injured, he was still able to rush up and slash twelve times, splitting Helian Yunshan in two. Helian Yunshan is at the sixth level of the Meridian Opening Realm."

"I didn't call you here to encourage myself."

An Sheng wiped the gun barrel. "You just said that he slashed Helian Yunshan twelve times in a row, each slash uninterrupted. If he were to connect those slashes, I might have some trouble, but as long as I prevent him from doing so, it'll be fine."

Pei Qing remained silent for a long while before asking, "Senior Brother, why did you stand up for me?"

"I'm standing up for you, but I'm not standing up for you either."

An Sheng leaned his gun against the weapon rack and sat down on the stone bench.

"You are my junior brother. If you lose face, it will also make me, as the senior brother, look bad. That's one thing. On the other hand, to be honest, you guys have been a bit lax lately. Getting a lesson from a master isn't necessarily a bad thing."

"But we still need to save face for the martial arts academy. If you've truly grasped the essence of martial arts, then practice diligently and don't let my words today go to waste."