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

Deep in the woods, in a clearing, a horse-drawn carriage lay overturned by the roadside.

The cart was still turning slowly with its wheels pointing skyward, the shaft was broken, and the horse had disappeared.

Four or five burly men with knives stood beside the carriage, and a middle-aged man dressed as a coachman lay on the ground, stabbed in the chest, no longer moving.

A young woman in a light blue dress was being dragged out by the hair by a burly man with a scarred face.

The woman struggled desperately, kicking and hitting him incessantly. The scarred man grabbed her and slammed her to the ground. The woman groaned, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.

Fu Qing squatted behind the tree and started counting heads.

Five bandits, all carrying standard-issue machetes.

The blade was brand new, with a neat edge. It was a genuine, high-quality steel knife, made in a blacksmith's shop, not the cobbled-together scrap metal of Black Wind Village.

The leader had a scar on his face that ran from his forehead across the bridge of his nose to his chin. He had triangular eyes, slightly bulging temples, and a faint smell of blood about him.

This is no ordinary person; it's a martial artist who has undergone body tempering, and their equipment is far superior to that of Black Wind Stronghold.

The scarred man loosened the woman's hair, bent down, and ripped open her collar.

The woman screamed and tried to push his hand away, but the scarred man slapped her across the face.

Several thugs nearby were laughing and joking. A tall, thin man carrying a knife stood by and watched, shouting for Scarface to hurry up and get things done.

The other two had already unloaded the luggage from the carriage, moved several wooden crates off, pried them open, and found medicinal herbs and several packets of loose silver inside.

After observing the figures of the group, Fu Qing gained a general understanding of their strength and immediately stepped out from behind the tree.

He wouldn't allow killing good people to steal points, but he felt no psychological pressure killing bad people.

Hearing the noise, all five bandits turned around at the same time. The two bandits who were rummaging through the luggage put down the wooden box they were holding and reached for the knife at their waist.

The tall man took the knife off his shoulder and held it horizontally in front of him. The scarred man loosened the woman's hair, straightened up, glanced at Fu Qing, and sneered.

"Where did this poor kid come from? I'm doing my job, what the hell are you trying to meddle in?"

The tall, thin bandit slammed his knife on the ground and gestured with his chin toward Fu Qing.

"Kid, if you know what's good for you, get lost or you'll lose your life for nothing."

Fu Qing glanced at the mess on the ground and looked at Scarface.

"Which mountain are you from?"

Scarface paused for a moment, then burst into laughter, laughing so hard he was doubled over.

"Listen to this kid, asking me which mountain I'm from, like I'm some kind of bandit."

He turned around, pointing the tip of his knife at Fu Qing. "Kid, I'm from Black Stone Ridge outside Ironblood City, ever heard of me?"

The tall, thin bandit laughed along, "Boss, this kid looks like he came from the mountains. He probably hasn't even been to Ironblood City. If you mention Blackstone Ridge to him, he'll never know anything about it."

"I haven't heard of it before, but that's okay."

Fu Qing walked toward Scarface, knife in hand.

Scarface's hand rested on the hilt of the knife, but before he could even draw it, Fu Qing was already in front of him.

The two were originally seven or eight steps apart, but Fu Qing covered the distance in just two steps.

Scarface flinched and instinctively stepped back, reaching for the knife at his waist. The blade had barely extended two inches when Fu Qing's fist slammed into his chest.

The fist slammed into Scarface's chest, tearing his shirt open at the back and sending him flying backward to crash into a pine tree three meters away.

He slid down the tree trunk, coughed up a mouthful of blood, his head lolled to the side, and he stopped moving.

System prompt:

[Killed Bandit Leader Scarface (Level 3 Body Tempering), Loot Points +216]

Fu Qing glanced at the prompt and smiled.

The remaining four bandits were completely dumbfounded.

The knife in the tall, thin man's hand fell to the ground, and the other three all took a step back, exchanging surprised glances.

One punch.

Just one punch.

Scarface was a martial artist at the second level of Body Tempering, and was considered a figure in Black Stone Ridge. He was killed by this young man with a single punch before he could even draw his sword.

Fu Qing gave them no time to react, sweeping his ghost-head broadsword across the battlefield. The two bandits closest to him didn't even have time to raise their swords before they fell down almost simultaneously.

System notifications sounded repeatedly:

Killing a bandit (Level 1 Body Tempering) grants +58 Plunder Points.

Killing a bandit (Level 1 Body Tempering) grants +63 Plunder Points.

Fu Qing glanced at the panel—his first level of Body Tempering only had fifty or sixty points, a fraction of what a third level Body Tempering would have.

It seems that the difference in plunder points is significant for each level of cultivation.

The remaining two turned and ran. The tall, thin guy had already run more than ten steps when he tripped over a tree root and almost fell. He continued running, tumbling and crawling, wishing he had two more legs.

The other, slightly heavier one, had only run a few steps when he tripped over his dropped knife and fell, crawling desperately forward on the snow.

Fu Qing walked over and killed the one on the ground with a single stroke.

System notification: Killed a bandit (Level 1 Body Tempering), Plunder Points +55.

The tall, thin bandit had already run more than twenty meters away and was about to disappear into the woods.

Fu Qing bent down, picked up the fallen machete from the ground, and swung it at the back of the tall, thin man. The machete spun three times in the air before piercing the back of the tall, thin bandit. The tall, thin man flailed wildly in the air and collapsed to the ground.

System notification: [Killed a bandit (Level 2 Body Tempering), Plunder Points +137]

The open space fell silent, with five corpses lying haphazardly.

After tucking the ghost-head broadsword back into his waistband, Fu Qing walked to the overturned carriage.

The woman was leaning against the carriage wheel, clutching her clothes and trembling all over.

She looked to be in her early twenties, wearing a light blue long dress made of fine cotton fabric that only middle-class families in the city could afford.

"Can you stand up?" Fu Qing looked down at her.

The woman raised her head, trembled, and then spoke.

"Thank you... thank you so much for saving my life."

She strained against the carriage wheel, but her legs gave way and she sat back down.

She looked down at her feet, which were swollen like steamed buns, and her cloth shoes were bulging out of shape.

Fu Qing squatted down and reached out to pinch her foot. The bone wasn't broken; it was just a sprained tendon.

"It's not broken, you can walk again after resting for a couple of days."

The woman nodded, her face covered in cold sweat from the pain, but she gritted her teeth and remained silent.

Fu Qing grabbed the carriage shaft with one hand and lifted it up, flipping the entire carriage over by himself. The shaft broke, but the carriage bed was still usable.

He moved the driver's body to the side of the road, covered it with some dry branches, and then turned around.

"What's your name?" he asked the woman.

"Shen Yao".

The woman helped herself to her feet, wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth with her sleeve, and asked, "May I ask your honorable name, benefactor?"

"Fu Qing".

He walked over to the horses left behind by the bandits and tied the reins to the back of the carriage.

"If you send someone to collect your body once you get to Ironblood City, will your family be able to find this place?"

Shen Yao nodded, then shook her head.

"My father is the owner of Shen's Pharmacy, a business that has been run for three generations in Ironblood City. This time, he's out of town collecting medicinal herbs... Old Liu, the coachman, is an old colleague of ours; he's worked for us for twenty years..."

At this point, she choked up and lowered her head.

Fu Qing didn't ask any more questions. He searched the scene and found that the bandits didn't have anything valuable on them. The only thing that was missing was a wooden plaque hanging from Scarface's waist, which had the words "Black Stone" engraved on it.

He tucked the wooden sign into his pocket and led the carriage out of the woods.

On the official road, Song Yawei and Song Nini were still squatting behind the bushes.

Song Nini pushed aside the leaves of the bushes and strained to look into the woods, muttering, "Why isn't my brother-in-law coming out yet?"

Song Yawei's expression remained relatively calm, but she still frowned.

As Fu Qing led the carriage out of the woods, Song Nini jumped up.

"Brother-in-law!"

She ran over and saw Shen Yao in the carriage. Shen Yao was wrapped in an old cotton-padded jacket that Fu Qing had thrown to her. Her hair was disheveled and there was blood at the corner of her mouth.

Song Nini paused, turned to look at Fu Qing, her eyes filled with questions.

Song Yawei also stood up, her gaze sweeping over Shen Yao before turning to Fu Qing.

"I met him on the road and helped him out."

Fu Qing tossed the reins to Song Yawei and briefly explained what had happened in the forest—the bandits of Black Stone Ridge, the leader of the Body Tempering Realm cultivator, had all five of them dealt with.

He wasn't acting out of kindness; it was just that it was his first time in the city and he was unfamiliar with the place. Having a city person to guide him would be ideal, and it would also make things easier for him in terms of his status.

After listening, Song Yawei took out a clean piece of her own clothing from her bundle and handed it to Shen Yao.

Shen Yao took the clothes, bowed her head and said, "Thank you, sister."

The two groups continued their journey towards Ironblood City together.