Swordholder

"The previous ones don't count."

Lu Chengfeng seemed to see through Chen Yuan's thoughts and added haltingly,

"My first real battle as the Swordholder!"

This real battle was... a fight to the death, a sword drawn!

Although his voice was intermittent, his expression was extremely solemn, and every word carried the conviction and responsibility of the swordsman.

Chen Yuan's heart leaped!

A surge of inexplicable passion welled up in his heart, and his expression instantly turned solemn.

Chen Zhaoning and Li Wei were also startled by these words, and they both stopped cultivating. Their expressions changed slightly, and a hint of fighting spirit appeared in their eyes.

Li Wei was even more excited, his knuckles cracking as he chuckled:

"Great! I've been itching to show off my skills and prove my power to those evil villains!"

Chen Yuan possesses a special ability: the spiritual energy of heaven and earth that the group had absorbed during their recent cultivation had been secretly purified and refined by him, removing impurities and making it incomparably pure.

Therefore, even Li Wei, who was of average talent, had already opened seventy-two spiritual apertures.

According to Chen Zhaoning, this number of spiritual apertures already places them among the ranks of the most outstanding talents.

This made Li Wei even more eager to demonstrate his abilities and prove that he was no longer the ordinary person who could only hold others back.

"Hmph!"

Nuomi followed the example of everyone else, clenching her little fists and letting out a loud "Hmph!" to bolster her courage.

Then, in a childish but incredibly earnest voice, she shouted, "Nuomi wants to fight too! Nuomi wants to protect everyone!"

Lu Chengfeng's expressionless face swept over the four people, and without saying a word, he turned around and strode quickly out of the cave.

"Keep up."

Upon hearing the hoarse voice, Chen Yuan and the others immediately stood up and quickly followed.

The group soon entered the territory of Huaishan County.

The various demons and monsters they encountered along the way were all intimidated by the remaining aura of the swordsman on Lu Chengfeng's body and dared not approach, allowing them to pass through smoothly.

Although the journey seemed much safer, the horrific scenes of piled-up corpses and flowing blood in every village and town they passed through were still deeply etched in the hearts of Chen Yuan and the others, weighing heavily on their minds and filling them with sorrow and helplessness.

············

After more than half a day, Chen Yuan, Chen Zhaoning, and Li Wei arrived at the entrance of Huaishan County.

They were going into the city to buy some supplies and, incidentally, to complete their first trial as sword bearers.

[For injustice... draw your sword!]

Such injustices are easy to find in this chaotic world.

Lu Chengfeng, with Nuomi riding a big black horse, stopped on a distant hilltop and quietly watched them, without entering the city together.

Even if Nuomi wanted to go with him, Lu Chengfeng wouldn't go.

Nuomi could only pitifully tell Chen Yuan and the others to be careful.

And so, Chen Yuan and his two companions headed towards Huai Shan County. Lu Chengfeng's cold face and his indifferent instructions kept flashing before their eyes and echoing in their ears.

"Take up your swords, fight against injustice, and battle the officials of the Great Xiang Empire! This is your first trial."

"Don't be afraid, don't back down, and don't let your guard down."

"When life and death are at stake, you can only rely on yourself or your sword-wielding teammates."

"If the three of you are no match for me, I will not intervene."

"If you die there, I will avenge you."

"Therefore, all you can rely on is the sword in your own hand and the conviction in your heart to wield it."

······

Both Chen Yuan and Chen Zhaoning had solemn expressions.

Although Chen Yuan has already entered the Dharma Body Realm, this is a county town, which is completely different from the previous town.

There are probably cultivators at the Great Perfection of the Dharma Body Realm in the county town.

There might even be a Daoist at the early stage of the Yellow Court Realm, whose strength far exceeds their imagination.

However, now that Chen Yuan has mastered the Heavenly Light Dao Technique and the Heavenly Light Demon-Slaying Technique, he is capable of fighting even against opponents in the late stage of the Dharma Body Realm, and he feels somewhat confident.

Li Wei, on the other hand, remained extremely excited.

Since arriving in this world, he has never truly fought with anyone, and his heart is full of anticipation and eagerness.

Murder is a terrible act.

In his previous life, that was an inviolable legal line.

But in this chaotic world, if you don't kill, you will be killed!

Therefore, even if Li Wei is a good person, he can't help but be excited about it!

His face was even a little distorted.

Chen Yuan glanced at Li Wei, his expression calm.

That's the difference between him being an experienced driver and the other person being a complete novice.

The way to enter the city was similar to that in Shangang Town, except that the checks in the county town were more stringent.

Chen Zhaoning and Chen Yuan presented their identity documents as citizens of the county and successfully brought Li Wei, an unregistered resident, into the county town.

The county town was much more prosperous and cleaner than the towns along the way.

The streets were paved with smooth bluestone slabs, lined with shops on both sides, and the people coming and going were all dressed neatly and properly, creating a lively scene.

Upon entering the city, Chen Zhaoning led the two to make large-scale purchases of grains, oils, rice, flour, and other supplies.

After all, they had the Star Copper and Moon Silver brought by Nuomi, so they weren't exactly strapped for cash.

The three men were carrying large and small bags of grain and cloth, and their conspicuous appearance quickly attracted the attention of the officials and constables of Huaishan County.

Several burly, cold-eyed officials quietly followed them on the street not far behind, observing them in secret.

Chen Yuan and his two companions paid no attention to this and continued to stroll leisurely down the street, selecting the items they needed.

Chen Yuan and Li Wei had changed into clean clothes... which they had found in a clothing shop in Shangang Town.

At this moment, they look more like two capable servants accompanying a young lady from a powerful family as she goes shopping for supplies.

For this reason, although the officials had doubts, they did not dare to rush forward to question them. They could only follow from a distance and observe the situation.

Before long, a rich aroma of food wafted over, and Chen Yuan and the other two instinctively stopped in their tracks.

There's a tavern not far ahead.

"How about we go get something to eat?"

Li Wei swallowed hard, his eyes fixed eagerly on the direction of the tavern. "All along the way, we've been eating wild animal meat, which is tough and dry, and there's no seasoning at all. It's so bland it's practically tasteless."

"Okay, pack some for Nuomi too." Chen Yuan nodded, and Chen Zhaoning didn't object. After days of running around, she was already tired of simple meals.

The three of them went into the tavern and found a table to sit down.

This tavern was quite large, and it looked to be the largest restaurant in Huaishan County. Besides them, there were dozens of other people sitting at other square tables.

Some were talking in hushed tones, while others were sipping wine and savoring snacks, their expressions relaxed.

It is worth noting that most of these people are beings of the "All Beings" category, and there are even quite a few members of the "Full Form" category. Most of them are not human, but rather transformed beasts.

That is, orcs.

When two humans walked in with someone who had no trace of their origin, everyone in the tavern was instantly drawn to them, with many looking at them with displeasure and malice.

The officials who had been following them outside also frowned slightly.

Seeing Li Wei sitting leisurely at the table, her doubts deepened.

A servant boy dressed in a blue robe with a towel draped over his shoulder, upon seeing this, changed his expression drastically. He immediately trotted over, leaned close to Chen Zhaoning's ear, and whispered urgently:

"Sir, you've made a mistake! How can you allow a servant to sit at the same table as you?"

As he spoke, the servant turned to look at Chen Yuan and Li Wei, his face darkening, and he reprimanded them:

"Where did this ignorant slave come from? How dare he sit at the same table as his master?"

"You want to die? You son of a bitch, get out of here and wait by the door!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Yuan and Li Wei's expressions instantly froze, and their anger surged up.

Chen Zhaoning's expression also changed slightly. In her haste, and because she valued Chen Yuan and Li Wei as her two sworn brothers, she forgot about the rules of the Great Xiang Empire.

If one is not registered among all living beings, one is no different from pigs and dogs.

Even if one is registered in the register of all beings, if one is of lowly birth, one is still regarded as a lowly person.

But Chen Yuan and Li Wei were her sworn brothers, not servants or slaves!

With a cold expression, she snapped, "Get out! This is none of your business!"

The servant frowned, but for the sake of that piece of silver, he ultimately didn't dare to say anything more.

He deftly gathered the silver coins from the table, then gave Chen Yuan and Li Wei a cold glance, muttering under his breath:

"You ignorant fools, always causing trouble for your master! Just wait and see how you die!"

After saying that, he turned around with a sour face and went to serve the dishes.

Chen Yuan quickly restrained Li Wei, who was about to erupt in anger, shook his head slightly, and whispered:

"He's right. You're not a registered citizen, so in their eyes you're an unregistered person, no different from a slave."

He looked at himself again, then helplessly rubbed his nose: "Besides, although I have the status of a commoner, I come from a humble background. In their eyes, I'm not really a master. I'll just have to bear with it for now, avoid trouble, and eat my fill first."

Li Wei gritted his teeth and finally suppressed his anger.

He also knew that acting impulsively at this moment would only bring more trouble.

But the gazes cast from all around the tavern grew increasingly cold, filled with undisguised malice and mockery, piercing the three like needles.

Chen Yuan simply ignored it, closed his eyes to rest, and patiently waited for the food to be served.

Before long, one dish after another was served.

Although it can't be called delicacies, it is still a feast for the eyes, nose, and palate. There are refreshing stir-fries as well as hearty dishes such as roast goose, roast chicken, and braised pig's trotters, all with an enticing aroma.

Chen Yuan and Li Wei's eyes lit up instantly, their mouths watering. They no longer cared about the malicious stares around them and began to wolf down their food, devouring it like a whirlwind, without any regard for table manners.

Although Chen Zhaoning usually pays attention to her demeanor, she has been away from the Chen family for many days and has been eating only bland food and going hungry. At this moment, she is also starving.

She abandoned her reserve and joined the two of them in eating heartily. Although her eating manners were not as unrestrained as Li Wei's, she could not hide her eagerness.

The three men's uncouth eating habits caused the creatures in the tavern to frown frequently, their anger intensifying.

Discussions gradually arose, mostly consisting of mockery and dissatisfaction.

Even the constables secretly observing from outside grew increasingly suspicious.

If she were a true lady from a prominent family, why would she allow servants to sit at the table to eat?

How could they have such a "poor and stingy" way of eating?

Something's not right, there must be something wrong here!