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

More than a month later, the army had covered most of the distance and set up camp when it was already dark.

The army marched south for more than a month, and the terrain along the way gradually changed from plains to hills, and then from hills to rolling mountains.

After entering the border of Vietnam, the Yasukuni army truly understood what the "Ten Thousand Mountains" meant.

The mountains here are not just a few isolated peaks, but rather a dense, layered sea of ​​mountains, with only narrow valleys and forest paths between them, making it extremely difficult for a large army to deploy.

Even more troublesome is the miasma. Every morning, a pale green poisonous miasma rises from the valley. Ordinary soldiers who inhale it will experience dizziness and vomiting at best, and fall into a coma at worst.

The physicians of the Medicine Palace worked day and night to refine medicinal energy to dispel the miasma, and Suwen and Suxue could only sleep for one or two hours each day.

Fu Qing's vanguard battalion was the spearhead of the entire army, responsible for clearing paths through mountains, building bridges over rivers, scouting enemy positions, and clearing obstacles.

The camp of 5,000 men was divided into five thousand-man squads, each commanded by An Sheng and four other centurions.

An Sheng lived up to his name as the vanguard, always leading the way on every march, and the blood bar on his silver spear was never dry.

Of the other four centurions, one is Zhao Laotie, an old soldier transferred from the border army. He is taciturn but his soldiers are the most reliable. Another is Sun Bufan, who graduated from the same martial arts academy. He has a sharp swordsmanship. The third is He Shan, a cavalry general transferred from Tian Jingming's command. He is an expert in both horsemanship and archery.

The last one is Liu Wentong, who comes from a family of generals. Three generations of his family fought in the southern border region and were most familiar with the terrain and Gu cultivation methods of the Yue Kingdom.

But Liu Wentong was also the one who was most dissatisfied with Fu Qing among the five centurions.

When the army set up camp outside Woye City, Fu Qing convened a meeting of five centurions in the central command tent.

Liu Wentong hadn't even glanced at Fu Qing since entering the tent; he leaned against the tent wall with his arms crossed.

"General Fu, I have a question. It's true that you fought against the Di cavalry in the north and handled cases in Quzhou..."

"But the Southern Frontier is not the Northern Border. You haven't seen the methods of the Yue Kingdom's Gu cultivators. I'm not confident about entrusting these five thousand brothers of the Vanguard Battalion to you. If there's anything you don't understand, I can help you..."

"Commander Liu".

Fu Qing interrupted him, her tone flat, "Are you trying to say that I got in through connections and don't have any real skills?"

"I did not say that."

"You said it, and you don't just think that way, Zhao Laotie, don't you also think that I'm too young and unreliable? Sun Bufan, don't you also think that my achievements in the secret realm were just luck? He Shan, what about you?"

Zhao Laotie was silent for a while, then rubbed his rough hands on his knees.

"I have served in the border army for many years and the youngest general I have ever met is quite old. General Fu's age is indeed a bit questionable, but I do not judge people by their age, but by their abilities."

Sun Bufan was quite frank, "Brother Fu, your reputation is legendary. To be honest, this is the first time I've ever seen someone as young as you at the Qi Refining Realm!"

"But leading troops into battle is a completely different matter from fighting in a boxing ring. The lives of five thousand men are in your hands. If you bring the boxing ring tactics to the battlefield, I'm afraid the brothers will die unjustly."

Helan Shan slowly took a sip of tea and said only one sentence, "This subordinate will obey orders."

Fu Qing glanced at everyone. "You all have your own ideas, which I understand, but now I am the commander! You have to listen to me. If you think I'm not qualified, come and challenge me to a duel."

Liu Wentong sneered, but said nothing more.

...

After the meeting, Fu Qing instructed the five centurions to arrange for their respective troops to cook and set up sentry posts. He then led An Sheng on a tour of the camp's perimeter to confirm that both visible and hidden sentries were in place before returning to his tent.

The curtain was lifted, and Suwen sat inside, with two earthenware bowls and a small dish of pickled vegetables in front of her. Her medicine box was placed at her feet, and she was holding a well-worn pharmacopoeia in her hand.

The earthenware bowl contained freshly heated dry rations porridge mixed with some minced meat, a standard ration for soldiers.

"I haven't taken my medicine today."

She placed the pills next to the ceramic bowl.

Fu Qing sat down across from the table, picked up the pills, chewed them, and swallowed them. Then he picked up the ceramic bowl, ate a couple of mouthfuls of porridge, and added a piece of pickled vegetable.

Suwen also picked up her bowl. She ate quietly, almost without making a sound. Her chopsticks moved with precision and simplicity, and she didn't complain about the taste, just like her personality.

The two ate face to face without saying a word, while outside the tent came the shouts of soldiers and the occasional snorts of horses.

...

The next morning, just as Fu Qing was preparing to break camp and set off, Liu Wentong crossed his arms and spoke up.

"General Fu, I thought about it all night, but I still don't feel at ease. Some of the five thousand brothers in the vanguard battalion are veterans transferred from Commander Tian's side, and some are soldiers I've led all the way from the southern border. You can't risk their lives to test your hand..."

"I have a suggestion: if you can prove your abilities, I will entrust my life to you."

"How can you prove it?"

Liu Wentong drew the long sword from his waist and planted it in the ground; the blade gleamed coldly in the morning light.

"We're both at the first level of Qi Refining. If you exchange a few blows with me and win, no one in the Vanguard Battalion will dare to say another word. If you lose—"

"He won't lose."

An Sheng slammed his silver spear on the ground. "Commander Liu, do you know what you're doing?"

"An Sheng, no need to say anything more."

Fu Qing raised his hand to stop An Sheng, and drew his cold iron sword. "Commander Liu, how do you intend to compete?"

"Three moves. If I can force you to take a step back within three moves, I will win. If you win, my life is yours. From now on, if you say go east, I will never go west."

Fu Qing chuckled lightly, "Granted."

The area was already surrounded by soldiers from the vanguard battalion.

Several centurions halted the troops that were breaking camp, and everyone was looking in their direction.

Liu Wentong took a deep breath, gripped the knife with both hands, and stepped out with the steady gait he had developed since childhood in his military family. He then slashed out with his knife.

He used all his cultivation at the first level of the罡气 (罡气 is a type of internal energy cultivation) for this strike, the blade cleaving through the air with a powerful and heavy force.

Fu Qing remained calm, raised his hand, and met the attack with his sword. The moment the two swords collided, Liu Wentong felt as if his sword had struck a mountain. His tiger's mouth trembled violently, and his long sword flew out of his hand and stuck in the mud several feet away.

He was so shocked that he stumbled back several steps and fell to the ground with a thud, while Fu Qing stood still without moving.

"Hehe... One move!"

An Sheng held up one finger.

Liu Wentong looked down at his empty hands and the bloody gash on his palms, remained silent for a long time, then stood up, walked to Fu Qing, knelt on one knee, and clasped his hands in a fist salute.

"General Fu, I, Liu Wentong, am convinced! From now on, I will obey your orders without question."

A rare seriousness appeared on Zhao Laotie's rough face. He stepped forward, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and

"In all my years serving in the border army, I've seen no fewer than dozens of generals, some of whom could cleave a mortal across the land with a single stroke, but you are the only one I've ever seen who could stand still without flinching!"

"mighty!"

"General Fu!"

The surrounding soldiers erupted in a long-suppressed cheer.

Some people raised their sword sheaths above their heads, some patted their shields, and some shouted at the top of their lungs, "General Fu is mighty!"

Fu Qing sheathed the Cold Iron Blade.

"Break camp and reach Woye City within five days!"