That wretched vixen has disguised herself as my wife!

Unlike other disciples, he was not qualified to learn swordsmanship from a young age. He was practically left to his own devices until he was six years old, and then the war broke out.

His personal servant was originally responsible for helping him escape from the city, but he quickly abandoned him as a burden.

Jiang Jingming was alone and wandering in the battlefield when he was struck by an elbow strike from someone he didn't know was friend or foe. He fell headfirst onto the battlefield and when he woke up, he was surrounded by the corpses of strangers. He could hardly tell whether he was in hell or on earth.

The concepts of good and evil seem unimportant; everyone is fighting for survival and profit.

"If you ask me now why I saved you, I'll say I don't know."

Jiang Wuwang smiled.

“You are still young, but you are very thoughtful. Even Chen Zhuo said he couldn’t figure out what the young master was thinking. I think it’s time for you to go out and see the world. Maybe you can find the answer yourself.”

Jiang Jingming was slightly taken aback.

For the past ten years, he had almost never left Mangya, thinking he would live a carefree and happy life there.

Sometimes I feel a little bored, but when it's really time to leave, I feel a sense of emptiness.

"Based on my understanding of those bastards in the Righteous Alliance, they'll probably pretend to investigate for a while, then announce a truth that satisfies them. Finally, the main event will begin!"

Jiang Wuwang pulled out a copper gong from somewhere, stomped it on the table, and banged it loudly.

"Of course, we should convene a gathering of heroes! All heroes and valiant warriors! The actions of that demoness from the Crossing Moon Sect are intolerable to Heaven and Earth. Since we have taken it upon ourselves to eliminate evil and uphold justice, we will surely annihilate the demonic sect and restore peace and tranquility to the world!"

This demon imitated the righteous alliance's tone quite well, which made Jiang Jingming chuckle.

"After this bear gathering, they will assemble and come to kill me."

Jiang Wuwang also smiled as he looked at Jiang Jingming.

"And you, son, when that time comes, will you put a knife to my throat?"

"will not."

Jiang Jingming shook his head; there was nothing to hesitate about.

"Enough! You hothead, you're too early to kill me."

Jiang Wuwang suddenly smiled and waved his hand, gesturing for him to come closer.

Jiang Jingming walked up the steps and stood in front of him, only to find that his eyes were perfectly clear, without any trace of drunkenness.

Jiang Wuwang drew a sheathed sword from behind him and swung it casually, extinguishing half of the candlelight in the hall with the force of the sword's movement.

He turned the knife upside down and handed it forward.

Jiang Jingming took the knife and found it to be slightly heavier than it looked, with a cold hilt.

He turned slightly to the side, drew his sword from its sheath; the blade was entirely black, and a chilling aura emanated from it.

"This sword is named Wujiu. I tricked a craftsman into buying it when I was your age. It's the same kind of sword your master used, so it should be easy for you to handle."

Jiang Wuwang's own sword is a broadsword named Guhong. Its blade is an eerie crimson color and has the power to split mountains with its sweeping strokes. Its main feature is to break through all laws with sheer force.

Jiang Jingming's master was Kaiyang, one of the Seven Star Protectors, also known as Wuqu Star, whose name was Gu Tinghan.

As his name suggests, he is a pure martial arts fanatic and a man of few words.

Jiang Jingming learned knife skills from him from a young age, and their exchanges usually didn't exceed two words.

"wrong."

"slow."

"wrong."

"Practice again."

Gu Tinghan taught him to use a narrow and sharp horizontal sword, which was ruthless and decisive, and victory or defeat often came in an instant.

Jiang Jingming held Wujiu horizontally before him; the blade, reflected in the candlelight, remained as black as ink.

"A fine knife."

After a while, he sheathed his sword.

This was the first proper weapon he owned. Before, when he practiced martial arts, he used wooden swords, and Gu Tinghan would often slap him with the back of the sword.

"Even though it's a good knife, don't draw it lightly, unless..."

Jiang Wuwang suddenly paused.

"unless?"

"Unless someone wants to steal your things."

Jiang Wuwang's tone didn't carry the ruthlessness that should have been in his words; instead, it sounded desolate.

Jiang Jingming suddenly felt that something must have been stolen from him, and even if he could unleash a killing intent like a god of war, he wouldn't be able to get it back.

However, that loneliness was only fleeting, and he quickly returned to his usual arrogant demeanor.

"The Righteous Alliance is not concerned with the suffering of all living beings, but with their absolute authority. In order to maintain this authority, they can do countless things that are more cruel than those of the Demonic Sect."

Jiang Wuwang's gaze was intense, as if fire was burning in his eyes.

"There are always invisible rules in this world. The strong crave struggle, while the weak can only lose. Living under such rules makes us worse than pigs and dogs. I once thought I could end all of this, but unfortunately, I couldn't."

Perhaps people's conjectures about the Duyue Sect are not wrong.

Jiang Wuwang's ideals have not been extinguished. He may take up his sword and return to Zhongzhou at any time to reclaim everything he wants.

"But son, you're different from me. You're the one who can do it. So, let's start our journey of a thousand miles by capturing that audacious little vixen!"

Jiang Wuwang suddenly steered the conversation back to the demoness.

And so the domineering demon who had been looking down on the world disappeared, and the smile on his face turned sly again, like an old father gossiping about his child's love life.

Jiang Jingming was thinking of someone else at that moment.

"Can Aqing come with me?"

"That girl would be very sad if she knew you left alone."

Jiang Wuwang smacked his lips and shrank back as he thought of the pretty girl's aloof gaze.

"I don't want to have to sleep with one eye on guard every night, lest she chop off my head as the culprit!"

Watching Jiang Jingming turn and walk away, he gave him another serious instruction.

"Remember to change your clothes before you set off. Wearing such red and black will make people suspect you're a member of the Demonic Sect."

Chapter Four: Jingming

Jiang Jingming walked out of the tomb and stood in the sunlight again.

The morning mist had dissipated, and he squinted slightly to adjust to the sudden bright light.

Unlike the tranquility and peace when I first woke up, as the sun got warmer, the Duyue Sect also became lively.

The men sat together, playing a card game they had made themselves, creating a powerful gust of wind as they swiped the cards.

The women sat under the eaves, chatting animatedly while simultaneously threading needles with their heads down, a sight that dazzled onlookers.

But today's excitement is a little different; it seems that something joyous is about to happen.

In the past, this atmosphere was only present during the Lunar New Year. Most of the believers were from Central China, and the Lunar New Year was the most important festival of the year.

Jiang Jingming walked through the crowd just like he had in the morning, listening to the young master's words, but this time he added a few more cheerful "Congratulations, young master."

Congratulations?

Jiang Jingming paused, looking at the women who were smiling behind their handkerchiefs.

"Aunt Li, Aunt Wang, what are you congratulating me on?"

The two women who were called out immediately made a series of strange noises, such as "Oh dear, oh dear" and "I won't talk, I won't talk."

There's a sense of helplessness, like encountering a village reconnaissance team when returning to your hometown for the Lunar New Year.

Jiang Jingming regretted speaking up for a moment and was about to turn around and slip away when he saw Tang Gua and Tang Zao run through the crowd like a whirlwind.

"Urgent report! Urgent report! The young master has a wife!!! (Express delivery at breakneck speed!) We have a young mistress!!!"

"..."

Now I know where this joyous atmosphere comes from.

Jiang Jingming stepped forward, grabbed the two kids by the arms, and lifted them upside down.

"Who gave you permission to spread such nonsense?"

Sugar Melon's face turned bright red, while Sugar Dates swayed and struggled like a wild monkey.

"It's not nonsense, we heard Uncle Chen say it this morning!"

It turned out to be the case.

When I was talking to Shen Zhuo in the morning, they were probably hiding in the distance and only vaguely heard the gist of it. They only heard "Young Master's wife" but didn't understand the part about the massacre of the family.

Jiang Jingming put the two children down and flicked each of them on the forehead in an annoyed manner.

“That’s not my wife, that’s a vixen who wreaks havoc on the world. Do you know what it means to wreak havoc on the world?”

"I know, Master Han scolds Tangzao like that every day."

Tang Gua nodded, confident in his plan.

Hearing him say that, Jiang Jingming couldn't help but picture Master Han's sorrowful and indignant old eyes.

Master Han's real name is Han Baisong. He is the Wenqu among the Seven Star Protectors. It is said that he cultivates the profound knowledge of establishing a heart for heaven and earth.

Unfortunately, he was unsuccessful in his later years and could only waste his talents teaching a group of unruly people in a poor and remote place. He was so angry that he would beat his chest and stomp his feet every day, questioning heaven and earth.

Speaking of which, the name Jiang Jingming was given to him by Master Han, taking the imagery of "springtime and bright sunshine".

Jiang Wuwang had some reservations about this, feeling that it was too bookish and not like a little devil.

His original name was Jiang Wudi.

In the end, Jiang Jingming himself seriously rejected the proposal.

"In short, that vixen is doing bad things under my wife's name, so I'm going on a long trip to catch her."

Jiang Jingming bent down and rubbed the heads of Tanggua and Tangzao.

"Going on a long trip? Will it be a long trip?"

"Maybe so."

Jiang Jingming smiled.

"What about Sister Aqing?"

At that moment, someone grabbed his belt from behind.

Jiang Jingming turned his head and saw Tang Bao with teary eyes.

Why are you crying?

"She was heartbroken when she heard this morning that you had a wife, and it didn't sound like Sister Aqing!"

Tangzao came over and tugged at her pigtails, whether to comfort her or just out of curiosity.

Seeing that Tangbao's tears were about to burst forth again, Jiang Jingming quickly separated the two of them and patiently explained.

"I'll go find Sister Aqing first, and then we'll go find that witch together."

"really?"

Tangbao wiped away her tears, a glimmer of hope in her eyes.

"real."

Jiang Jingming smiled slightly.

"Have you ever seen Sister Aqing use a knife? Without her, I wouldn't dare go to such a far place by myself."

"I've met her! Sister Aqing is the most amazing person in the world."

The sugar packet nodded emphatically.

Aqing rarely speaks; she is always quiet, like a ray of cool and distant moonlight.

Apart from Jiang Jingming, she had a subtle sense of distance from everyone else in the church.