From a tuberculosis patient to a martial arts master

In just a short while.

Everything was packed. Actually, there wasn't much to pack; a few people put on their outer robes, tightened their shoelaces, and they were all dressed. Uncle Liu casually grabbed a worn-out cotton-padded jacket and draped it over his arm, while Aunt Liu pulled out a deflated bundle from the kitchen; it was so light that it probably didn't contain many things.

Liu Ci entered early and left late, and was squatting on the threshold tying his shoelaces, muttering to himself:

"Where's my wooden sword...?"

"You won't get lost, hurry up and go." Uncle Liu slapped him on the back of the head.

Liu Ci shrank back, not daring to utter another word.

"Let's go."

Zhu Hong took the bundle from Aunt Liu's hand, slung it over his shoulder, and turned to leave the courtyard.

Lin Jizhi was leaning against the wall at the alley entrance, a blade of grass dangling from his mouth, looking utterly bored. Seeing Zhu Hong lead his men out, he spat the grass on the ground, straightened up, glanced at Uncle Liu's family, and called out:

Uncle, Aunt.

Uncle Liu was startled by the official uniform and hurriedly said, "Sir..."

"Alright, please don't," Lin Jizhi quickly stopped him. "I'm not some kind of official." He pointed at Zhu Hong, raised an eyebrow, and said with a carefree grin:

"This is my superior."

Going to the top?

Liu Housheng paused, then subconsciously glanced at Zhu Hong, feeling a strange sense of emotion. "Brother Zhu, you've really raised a good son." He still remembered seeing Hong in the dead of winter; he was a pale-faced boy, worried about food.

Who would have thought that he would become such a big shot in the government?

Although he didn't know their exact positions, they were all figures that Liu Guaizi wouldn't even dare to dream of.

"Master Jin!"

Suddenly, Liu Ci, who was standing nearby, waved and shouted to a group of people not far away.

Uncle Liu and Aunt Liu quickly turned around and saw Jin Buhuan walking over unhurriedly with a few people. They quickly bowed to greet him. They were truly grateful to this man for protecting them these past few days.

Jin Buhuan waved his hand and smiled faintly:

"Let's go, it's getting late, and everyone must be tired."

Zhu Hong nodded, then turned to Uncle Liu and said, "Uncle Liu, Aunt Liu, Master Jin is one of us, there's no need for formalities in the future." After saying that, he added, "Let's go."

"Okay."

Uncle Liu swallowed hard and responded.

But the look in his eyes when he looked at Jin Buhuan was one of fear. He had personally witnessed the ferocity of this man yesterday. He appeared amiable on the surface, but when he got to the point of violence, he was a ruthless and merciless character who didn't even blink an eye.

……

The group walked through the night, heading east along the alley.

Lin Jizhi was at the very back, glancing back every now and then, his hand on the hilt of his knife, his knuckles turning white from gripping it so tightly.

The night in the muddy alley is darker than anywhere else.

There were no lanterns, only moonlight, and occasionally a sliver of light leaking from a broken window, dim and yellowish, not illuminating very far. The road was uneven and bumpy, and Aunt Liu almost tripped several times, only to be caught by Zhu Hong.

"Slow down."

He said in a low voice, slowing his pace slightly.

Liu Ci walked behind, clutching his wooden sword, occasionally brandishing it towards the darkness by the roadside while making "hoho" sounds to himself. Lin Jizhi, walking beside him, was nearly hit on the leg by his wooden sword, dodging to the side and saying irritably:

"Little rascal, could you please put that wooden sword away a bit?"

"Brother Lin, what I'm doing is practicing martial arts." Liu Ci said seriously, "Brother Hong said that the key to martial arts is perseverance."

Lin Jizhi rolled her eyes, too lazy to argue with him.

"Hongwazi".

Aunt Liu suddenly turned around and called out.

Zhu Hong quickened his pace and walked alongside her.

"I asked you earlier if you had eaten, but you didn't answer."

Aunt Liu asked, "After all this commotion all night, you probably haven't even had a chance to drink some hot water."

"have eaten."

Zhu Hong smiled and said softly, "The food in the yamen is actually passable."

"That's good, that's good."

Aunt Liu muttered a couple of sentences.

"You old woman, you're always worrying about useless things."

Uncle Liu couldn't help but chime in, "The food in the yamen can't possibly be worse than the dishes you cook."

"Why would I concern myself with such trivial matters?"

Aunt Liu immediately raised her voice a few decibels, glared at him, and said, "These clothes you're wearing weren't made by me stitch by stitch, were they? Do you want to go out naked?"

"Alright, alright, you're so great."

Uncle Liu readily yielded, quickening his pace as if afraid she would start nagging again. Liu Ci followed behind, covering her mouth and secretly laughing, but Aunt Liu glared at her, and she quickly suppressed her laughter, only using the wooden knife in her hand to cover half her face.

They walked along at their own leisurely pace.

After passing through the muddy alley, turn onto a slightly wider dirt road.

"Wait a minute."

Jin Buhuan suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He merely glanced around casually; the trees were still there, the scenery was as usual, and he couldn't see anything amiss. But a sharp glint flashed in his slightly narrowed eyes:

It has a tail.

Zhu Hong didn't stop and continued walking forward. When he passed by Jin Buhuan, their shoulders almost brushed against each other.

"Stop pretending, come out and say something."

His gaze was fixed ahead, his tone calm, yet chilling.

"call……"

Only the night wind answered.

"Not coming out?" Zhu Hong faced the empty dirt road, the moonlight shining on it, making it look like a silvery-white snake, winding and deserted.

……

in the dark.

More than ten figures concealed their presence and lay quietly beneath the half-collapsed mud-brick wall.

"We've been discovered."

The one who spoke was a round-faced middle-aged man, his voice barely audible, "...Are we still going to make a move?" A dozen or so men in tight-fitting clothes were squatting beside him, all silent, their gazes fixed on the tall, thin figure at the front.

Jiang Zhongping remained silent.

In the previous operation, all manpower was lost. When the news reached the clan headquarters, the clan chief showed no anger, only issuing a death order:

Tonight, we will surely bring them home.

"Move."

He uttered two words softly, a chill permeating the air.

The long-faced man beside him whispered, "But, the strength of those people on the other side is still unclear..."

"There's no time left."

Furthermore,

Jiang Zhongping continued calmly, "This time, we have all arrived. Within Jinyang City, besides those six constables, who else can stop us?"

The long-faced man was speechless.

Jiang Zhongping stopped talking nonsense, reached out his right hand from his sleeve, slowly closed his five fingers, clenched them a few times, and then suddenly swung them.

"kill."

As soon as the word was uttered, a chill suddenly rose.

The shadowy figure lurking in the darkness suddenly sprang up from the base of the broken wall, like a cold blade being drawn from its sheath. There was no roar, no shout of killing, only the soft sound of its toes grinding over the broken soil and stones.

Five steps away.

Zhu Hong watched as figures emerged from the shadows, and murmured:

"Jiang Yannian thinks highly of me."

It wasn't just one or two people, or even three or four, but a whole dozen or so martial artists who would be considered quite formidable even in Jinyang. They stood in staggered formations, blocking all their escape routes—front, sides, overhead—from all directions, their killing intent spread far and wide.

The three at the head of the group exuded an especially solemn aura.

The man in the center walked with steady steps, each step turning pebbles into dust, revealing the profound foundation of a novice martial artist. The two on either side were slightly less skilled, but their auras were also long and stable, having already crossed the threshold of becoming a martial arts student. Their brute strength and martial arts foundation were not to be underestimated.

This martial arts force is powerful enough to cause chaos in the city.

Jin Buhuan stood in the center of the killing intent, his expression calm, without a trace of panic in his eyes. "Finally, a few people I can practice on have arrived." He murmured casually, straightened his back, and lightly twisted his wrist, his knuckles cracking with a series of crisp sounds.

"Engineer Chen."

"Your subordinate is here!"

Chen, the assistant behind him, stepped forward in response.

"You don't need to lift a finger." Jin Buhuan's tone was nonchalant, as if he were watching ants causing trouble with indifference. "Just keep a close watch on the people and don't let these small fry scare them."

"Yes, ma'am."

Engineer Chen immediately accepted the order, leading his men to step sideways and firmly protect Liu Housheng's family within the circle.

Jin Buhuan turned around to face the overwhelming killing intent.

His right hand hung by his side, fingers outstretched, the stagnant energy in his palm flowing like boiling water, ready to be unleashed at any moment.

He was about to take a step.

A figure swept past from the side.

Zhu Hong didn't give any explanation. He simply walked past Jin Buhuan, looked up, and slowly scanned the room, taking in every unfamiliar and sinister face.

"The small fry, I'll keep them."

Despite being called a nobody, his official boots rolled over the mud, and his figure moved like an arrow, rushing straight at one of the figures who had just entered the Martial Apprentice realm.

"Alright, those two are mine."

Jin Buhuan grinned and followed without hesitation.

"court death!"

The long-faced man, locked on by Zhu Hong's blade, felt a surge of anger and humiliation. "Does he think I'm some pushover?" he thought.

His expression hardened, and he suddenly swung his wide sleeves.

Countless tiny, black poison needles, as fine as cow's hair, burst forth from Zhu Hong's sleeves, densely packed and enveloped in a foul-smelling black mist, sealing off all of Zhu Hong's room to dodge.

It is extremely insidious and poisonous; contact with it will cause flesh and blood to rot.

Almost simultaneously, two martial arts experts beside the long-faced man arrived one after the other.

One man lowered his shoulders and twisted his waist, his fists whistling like thunder, his aura crashing down with overwhelming force. He didn't seek fancy moves, but relied on pure brute force to suppress the enemy. The other man had soft chains wrapped around his wrists, and a scythe blade concealed a chilling aura. He moved with a low, stealthy gait, keeping a close eye on the legs, feet, waist, and hips. His moves were unpredictable and ruthless, all aimed at breaking tendons and bones.

"Jiang Zhongping, you've chosen the wrong person."

Suddenly, Jin Buhuan's figure darted between Zhu Hong and the other two martial arts experts.

He struck out with a single palm, without any particular technique.

It was just a simple palm strike, but when that palm struck the air, it produced a dull, explosive sound.

"Bang!"

Jiang Zhongping, whose fist was as powerful as thunder, was struck on the shoulder by a palm before his fist could even reach Zhu Hong. He was sent flying like he had been hit by a galloping carriage, crashing into half of an earthen wall and being covered in bricks and tiles.

Another novice martial artist wielding a soft chain sickle reacted faster.

He touched the ground with his toes and turned sharply, trying to dodge, but Jin Buhuan's palm wind was faster than him, grazing his back and flipping him to the ground, rolling more than 30 feet away, his mouth full of dirt.

Jin Buhuan then stopped.

The moonlight fell on him, illuminating his kind face clearly.

Jiang Zhongping's pupils suddenly contracted.

To everyone's surprise, the one guarding this place was this malevolent spirit.

"Jin Buhuan, it's you?"

His voice was hoarse, and he couldn't understand whether the clan leader's plan had been leaked in advance. Otherwise... why would he send a demon god to hide in Liu Housheng's house so early on? No wonder the people sent before had all disappeared without a trace, not even a word could be sent.

Jin Buhuan did not answer, but instead struck out with another palm.

……

the other side.

"Old man! Being distracted by other things is far too presumptuous."

Zhu Hong lightly tapped the hilt of his sword with his thumb, releasing a subtle burst of energy. The short sword rang out of its sheath with a clang, and with a "drawing sword slash," it came crashing down.

"Zhu Hong?!"

The long-faced man's expression changed drastically. He had been distracted by Jin Buhuan, but now he snapped back to his senses.

He hadn't expected the boy to be there either, as if he knew their every move. Even more impressively, his attack was swift; the poisoned needle had barely been thrown when the blade was already at his brow. In a panic, he touched the ground with his toes and leaned back sharply, barely avoiding the fatal blow.

As the blade grazed his chest, someone behind him was struck dead.

It brought up a string of blood beads.

"you……"

Before he could even feel relieved, Zhu Hong's second stab had already landed.

The long-faced man had no time to dodge and could only raise his hand to block. "Clang!" The metal clashed, sparks flew, and he felt a sharp pain in his wrist. His hand was split open, and blood flowed down the hilt of the knife.

How can this young man be so strong?

He was horrified and dared not be careless any longer. He quickly retreated, his toes barely touching the ground. But Zhu Hong gave him no chance, following closely behind and unleashing a third horizontal slash that blocked all his escape routes.

The long-faced man gritted his teeth and exerted all his strength to unleash the poisoned needles to intercept the attack.

The needles hovered in mid-air, but could not withstand the overwhelming force of the blade, and all of them fell to the side of the road.

"Surround them, don't scatter!"

He knew things were going badly; he was afraid he wouldn't be a match for the boy in a one-on-one fight. So he shouted loudly to the back, "Attack together and wear him down!" As soon as he finished speaking, one person held him back, two attacked from the side, three launched a ranged attack, four set up a trap, and the rest roamed around, plundering and killing, waiting for an opportunity to launch a sneak attack.

Individually, these people are not worth mentioning, but they have all achieved great success in martial arts.

But with eight or nine people working together as one, and the long-faced man constantly trying to trip him up, he would deliberately target any gaps in his energy flow, making the situation quite troublesome.

"A bunch of scabies-ridden ants."

Zhu Hong stood amidst the overwhelming killing intent and the flashing blades and powerful punches, his expression remaining indifferent.

He held a knife in one hand and clenched his fist with the other. His mind was calm and still, without any ripples. No matter how many moves you made to surround him, he would dismantle them one by one.

His footsteps weaved between countless deadly attacks.

Draw the knife!

Tiger Fist of the Mountain!

Zhu Hong stopped trying to maneuver and instead unleashed his killing blows, suddenly increasing his speed to slash the neck with his knife and punch the heart.

With a single breath, several people died.

The long-faced man's face was ashen, and his fingers, which were holding the poisoned needle in his sleeve, trembled incessantly.

"No, we have to escape."

He had been hoping that Jiang Zhongping could hold the situation back, but a quick glance out of the corner of his eye almost shattered his Dao heart. Only one thought remained in his mind: "If I don't run now, I'm afraid I won't see the sun rise tomorrow." At this moment, the will to survive instantly overwhelmed the clan's death order.

The Hui people may not necessarily die, but those who stay will certainly not survive.

A thousand thoughts raced through his mind in an instant. The long-faced man feigned desperation and glared angrily, saying, "Boy, don't be too arrogant! Do you really think this is all I have to offer?" Before his words had even finished, he suddenly flicked his wrist, and a rain of poisoned needles poured down like pear blossoms.

Taking advantage of the moment when the flash of the blade was temporarily halted by the rain of needles.

He didn't care about saving face anymore; he twisted his body and plunged into the dark alley next to him, fleeing in a panic.