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

The next morning, as soon as Fu Qing stepped out of the east wing, he saw Ling Moxie admiring the flowers in the courtyard.

She stood in front of a clump of golden chrysanthemums, holding a freshly picked chrysanthemum in her hand, while Qingluan stood beside her with a tea tray.

Hearing footsteps, she gently placed the flower petals in her hand on the tea tray that Qingluan was carrying, and wiped her fingers.

"Did General Fu sleep well last night?"

Ling Moxie turned around, a smile playing on her lips, her gaze falling on the bandage wrapped around Fu Qing's neck.

"I heard that a thief broke into the manor last night. The guards searched all night, turning the entire Jun family mansion upside down, but they still couldn't catch the thief."

"The princess is certainly well-informed."

"When staying in someone else's house, it's always good to be a little more careful. I sent someone to check on that archer who died by the wall."

Ling Moxie walked to the stone table, sat down, and picked up her teacup.

"His name is Jun Shisan. He is the most outstanding archer in the collateral branch of the Jun family. His rapid-fire archery skills are unmatched among his peers. With his cultivation at the seventh level of the Meridian Opening Realm, he is also a well-known figure in the Jun family's guard team."

"Last night, someone shattered my heart meridian with three blows, broke several ribs, and wrecked my internal organs."

She took a sip of tea. "General Fu's cultivation level is the sixth level of the Meridian Opening Realm. He was able to kill an enemy of a higher level and escape unscathed. It seems the rumors are true."

Fu Qing, clutching his wound, sat down opposite him at the stone table, picked up the teapot, and took a large gulp. "What does Your Highness wish to say?"

Ling Moxie stopped smiling and looked up at Fu Qing.

"General Fu, the Jun family owes me an explanation for my mother's death. I will help you retrieve the imperial seal, and in return, you will help me destroy the Jun family."

The air in the courtyard was quiet for a moment, and a bird fluttered away from the old locust tree.

"More than two hundred years ago, when my father had just ascended the throne, the Jun family sent my mother into the palace in order to curry favor with the new emperor. The Jun family said that this was 'serving the country loyally' and that it was an honor for their ancestors for their daughter to serve His Majesty."

She picked up her teacup and put it down again. "She didn't have a good time in the palace. Women in the harem without a family to support them are like meat on a chopping board. After the Jun family sent her to the palace, they never cared about her again, not even sending a letter of greeting."

"After she gave birth to me, her health deteriorated day by day. When I was very young, she held my hand and said her last words, 'Don't hate your father, hate the Jun family instead.'"

Qingluan replaced Ling Moxie's cup of hot tea, and Ling Moxie continued speaking.

"In the eyes of the Jun family, I am nothing more than a royal decoration—no, not even a decoration. At least a decoration is worth some money, but I am worthless in their eyes."

"Over the years, the Jun family has been abusing their power in Quzhou by relying on their status as maternal relatives. I have watched them enjoy their glory in Jingjing for so many years, and they have never come back even once."

"They invited me to celebrate their birthday not because they miss me, but because the Emperor has been consolidating local power, and the Jun family wants to use me as a shield."

She put down her teacup and looked at Fu Qing. "I want the Jun family to pay the price. I don't need to wipe them out, but Jun Tianhao must die. Once he falls, the Jun family will fall too. You investigate your case, and I'll take my revenge. We each get what we want, how about it!"

Fu Qing looked at Ling Moxie quietly. There was neither anger nor sadness on her face.

He nodded. "Okay, I need to go to the basement again tonight. I was discovered by the archers before I could get in last night. I can't take action without solid evidence, as I have to consider the consequences. I need someone to distract the guards."

Ling Moxie tilted her head slightly. "Qingluan, listen to General Fu tonight."

...

That evening, Qingluan changed into a black outfit and walked out of Ling Moxie's room.

She usually wore a maid's dress and had her hair in two buns, looking like a well-behaved girl of seventeen or eighteen.

But at this moment, she tied her hair into a ponytail, revealing her first-level Qi cultivation without any concealment.

Fu Qing looked her up and down, somewhat surprised. "Are all the princess's maids at the Qi Refining Realm?"

"Qingluan is the princess's personal bodyguard. She has been with the princess since she was a child. It is not safe for the princess in the palace. She always needs someone to protect her."

Qingluan smiled, pursing her lips, and tugged at the wrist guard on her wrist.

"General Fu, don't worry, none of those guards will see you tonight."

Fu Qing smiled and said, "Thank you for your trouble."

...

child time.

Fu Qing and Qing Luan sneaked to the backyard rockery one after the other. There were almost twice as many guards tonight as last night, clearly indicating that the Jun family had increased their vigilance because of what happened last night.

There were at least three guards at the Gangqi Realm patrolling around the artificial hill.

Fu Qing lowered his voice.

"Remember not to linger in the fight, just draw them away."

Qingluan nodded, crouched down and went around to the other side of the artificial hill, then kicked over a large flowerpot on the flower stand.

With a loud crash, the flowerpot shattered on the ground.

"who!"

The three Qi Refining Realm guards simultaneously drew their swords and rushed towards the direction from which the sound came.

The Azure Phoenix swept past the artificial hill like a gust of wind, leaped onto the roof, and was quickly pursued by the three guards, disappearing into the darkness.

Taking advantage of the gap, Fu Qing rushed into the courtyard and found a rockery. He went over to look around, moved the stone slab under the rockery, and went into the basement.

The basement was dark, so Fu Qing didn't light the tinderbox. If there were any traps or mechanisms in the basement, the light would only trigger them.

He relied on the night vision ability brought by the eighth level of the Meridian Opening Realm to grope his way forward in the dark, with wooden boxes stacked neatly from the ground all the way to the ceiling.

He opened the wooden boxes one by one—calligraphy and paintings, gold and silver utensils, swords in excellent condition, as well as several boxes of account books and several boxes of silk.

Each wooden crate was sealed with a cinnabar stamp, the mark on the stamp now blurred and indistinct.

He searched the underground vault but couldn't find the treasure seal. Time seemed to pass exceptionally slowly in the vault.

He estimated that Qingluan had stalled for long enough, and those people would realize something was wrong and return soon. He couldn't stay any longer, so he immediately decided to give up.

He turned and walked out. As he reached the door, still pondering where the treasure seal might be hidden, his shoulder accidentally bumped into a large porcelain vase on the right side of the doorway.

The porcelain vase was taller than the man himself, and its body was painted with blue and white landscapes. It looked to weigh at least several hundred kilograms.

Fu Qing was startled and instinctively reached out to catch it, but the bottle did not fall over.

His hand rested on the neck of the bottle, and he felt resistance coming from the bottom of the bottle, which was fixed to the base!

He tried to lift it up, but couldn't. He then gripped the bottle with both hands and twisted it to the right, making a soft click at the bottom.

"A simple mechanism, yet very practical."

Fu Qing was overjoyed. As the bottle was turned, a floor tile directly below the doorway slowly slid to the side, revealing a hidden compartment about one foot square.

A mahogany box lay in the hidden compartment, its lid undecorated, covered only by a thin layer of dust.

Fu Qing picked up the box and opened the lid. Inside was a square seal about the size of a fist, with a coiled dragon on the knob, its body spiraling into the shape of an exquisite pagoda.

The seal face is engraved with nine ancient seal characters, exactly the same as the rubbing that Ling Yushu gave him.

He held the seal in his hand, turning it over and over to examine it twice, confirming that it was genuine. Then... he put the seal back in the box, placed the box back into the hidden compartment, and pushed the floor tiles back into their original positions.

Taking back the seal would be a good way to get things done, but then the Jun family could claim that the seal was given to them by the Qu family and that they were unaware of it, thus shifting all the blame onto the Qu family.

Simply taking back the seal wouldn't make the Jun family pay the price; what he needed was solid evidence so that the Jun family couldn't deny it.

The best way to do this is not to secretly take the seal, but to search it out in the Jun family's basement in front of everyone.

Fu Qing exited the basement and closed the stone slab again. Qingluan then flipped down from the roof.

"It's been a long time since I played. It's a pity these people realized I was distracting them and stopped chasing me."

Fu Qing chuckled, "I'll take you to the battlefield another day."

The two quietly returned to their respective rooms.

...

At daybreak, Fu Qing went directly to the Quzhou garrison camp, placed the gold medal on the table, and...

"By imperial decree, investigate the case and dispatch 500 elite soldiers to surround the Jun family residence."

Upon seeing the four characters "As if I were personally present" on the gold plaque, the garrison commander immediately mustered his troops.

Five hundred elite soldiers marched in a grand procession toward the Jun family mansion, startling the people along the street who scattered and fled. Some people peeked out of the windows but quickly retreated back inside. The Jun family mansion was completely surrounded.

Jun Tianxiao stood at the door, his face ashen. "General Fu, the Jun family is related to the imperial family. What do you mean by leading troops to surround them?"