Martial Cultivator

It was a weathered face, with hair turned white by age, bearing no difference from any ordinary old man. There was no aura belonging to that of a martial powerhouse, nor any imposing presence befitting a Great General.

He seemed just like any other old man, one nearing the end of his life's journey. Chen Chao could not discern anything extraordinary about him, but he still quickly paid his respects. In the presence of this Great General, he had to show reverence, which he was also worthy of.

Seating himself beside Chen Chao, the Great General slowly said, "You've waited for quite some time. Have you been cursing this old man in your heart?"

Chen Chao shook his head.

The Great General looked at the young martial artist before him, asking earnestly, "Truly?"

Chen Chao shook his head, his expression sincere, "This lowly official only has respect for a martial artist like Great General."

The Great General waved his hand and took a sip of the cold tea on the table, smiling, "I've retired from military service for a long time now, I'm no longer the Great General."

Chen Chao did not refute, nor did he speak.

The Great General motioned for Chen Chao to sit down, then set down his teacup and sighed softly, "Ning Ping that fellow regards you highly, holding you firmly like a precious treasure. I, this old man, am a bit curious too, so I wanted to meet you before leaving the Divine Capital. Sorry for taking up some of your time, young man."

Chen Chao shook his head, still having a sincere face, "It should have been this lowly official presenting a formal invitation to Great General. However, considering that many in court wish to meet Great General these days, and you may not have time for me, this lowly official refrained from doing so. Who would have thought that the Great General would personally extend the invitation? This lowly official is truly honored."

The Great General remained silent, carefully examining the martial examination champion from the Myriad Willow Convention. Though he had been away from the Divine Capital for many years, many things in the Divine Capital would reach the Northern Frontier. Before the Myriad Willow Convention, he had intended to send some promising youths from the Northern Frontier to participate, but they just happened to encounter a large-scale attack by the demon army at that time. Later, to his surprise, he learned that the Great Liang Dynasty had emerged victorious in the Myriad Willow Convention, not just in literary or martial, but both. As a martial artist himself, he was not interested in the literary aspect but was intrigued by Chen Chao who was the martial examination's champion. He had even considered writing a letter inquiring about sending such a talented youth to the Northern Frontier for training, but later found out that Lord Warden Commander Ning Ping was unwilling to let him go, so he dropped the idea.

If Lord Warden Commander Ning Ping had been willing to let go back then, the meeting between Chen Chao and him should not have taken place at this moment.

The Great General smiled slightly as he said, "You're a young talent after all, it's reasonable for Ning Ping not to let go. I witnessed your performance in the imperial city battle. Your foundation is extremely solid, very good. However, there are faint traces of Ning Ping's influence. It seems he has also given you quite a bit of guidance in your martial arts."

Chen Chao nodded, saying, "Lord Warden Commander's guidance has been quite helpful to this lowly official."

"Indeed someone that he chose, not bad." The Great General lamented. "On this point, this old man isn't as good as him. After all these years in the Northern Frontier, I haven't been able to find a suitable lad. With my own health failing, I can only rely on him to help oversee the Northern Frontier for a few more years."

Chen Chao replied, "Great General is dedicated to the country, but no one is perfect. How can things be done flawlessly?"

The Great General chuckled, feeling indifferent towards the young man's meticulous response. In fact, the more Chen Chao behaved like this, the more disappointed he felt. He wanted to see a pure-hearted young martial artist, not someone who had lost their youthful spirit prematurely.

But after thinking carefully, however, the Great General realized there was nothing strange about it. Given his special background, he had to consider more things when traveling this world. Otherwise, he would not even know how he died.

But, the Great General was ultimately a little disappointed.

He rubbed his temples and actually did not know what else to say for a moment.

Chen Chao glanced at the Great General and suddenly asked, "When does Great General plan to leave the capital? This lowly official would like to see you off."

The Great General shook his head and said, "Fallen leaves must return to their roots, there's no need to trouble people."

"Great General has served the country all your life, you deserve proper respect," Chen Chao said earnestly. "This lowly officials thinks when Great General leaves the capital, Your Majesty should lead all the officials to see you off."

"Is the pursuit of fame the purpose of my life?" the Great General asked.

Chen Chao shook his head. "Great General naturally doesn't seek fame but sincerely wishes to do something for the people of Great Liang. However, if even Great General cannot receive such respect, wouldn't it chill the hearts of martial artists under the heavens"

The Great General was somewhat stunned.

Chen Chao continued sincerely, "When this lowly official first arrived from Tianqing County to the Divine Capital, I had a dispute with the academy's students at the South Lake of the academy. I imagine Great General might have heard of it too. The argument boiled down to the words: uncouth martial artists. The foreign cultivators use these words to belittle us martial artists. It's likely that even the scholars of the academy and the civil officials in the court think the same. The bottom-level martial artists cannot speak out, and even if they do, no one will listen. But if a martial artist like Great General doesn't take a stand, won't martial artists under the heavens be disappointed?"

"When Lord Warden Commander left the Divine Capital before, it should have been the same. We martial artists have already been demeaned like this, so we should strive for such glory to let the world know that martial artists are not uncouth and not looked down upon by everyone. Therefore, please, Great General, even if not for us, do not quietly leave the Divine Capital! Do it for the countless martial artists who have died for the human race in the Northern Frontier!"

The moment Chen Chao saw the invitation from the Great General, he already harbored this thought. He was dissatisfied with the status of martial artists in the Great Liang Dynasty and the entire world. While Xie Nandu had grand ambitions for the Northern Frontier and the human race, Chen Chao could not think that far ahead at the moment, but he had his own ideas. Since "martial artist" was also his identity, he hoped to elevate these two words significantly in his lifetime.

This was his thought after arriving in the Divine Capital and experiencing the demeaning of martial artists, and after hearing about the exploits of the Great Liang Emperor in the thirty thousand miles of the desolate north.

The Great General looked at Chen Chao and sighed, "I didn't expect you to have such aspirations. This old man almost misjudged you."

Chen Chao smiled, "This lowly official hasn't confided this to anyone, but I wanted to share it with the Great General. After all, there are only three martial artists in this world that this lowly official truly admires."

The Great General asked curiously, "This old man counts as one, and Ning Ping is naturally another too. Who is the third one, is it His Majesty?"

The actions taken by the Great Liang Emperor were enough to earn admiration from people all over the world, but given Chen Chao's special identity, the Great General did not necessarily think that Chen Chao would hold such admiration for His Majesty.

Chen Chao nodded, "His Majesty traversed the thirty thousand miles of the desolate north, and his battle against the Demon Emperor surpassed predecessors and amazed the world. This lowly official naturally admires him too."

On this point, Chen Chao did not hide his admiration in the slightest.

The Great General said, "I seem to see the shadow of the late Crown Prince in you."

As soon as these words were spoken, the hall became much quieter.

Since the Great Liang Emperor ascended the throne, figures like the late Crown Prince and the deposed emperor had rarely been mentioned by people. Even though some might mention them in private, it was ultimately different at this moment.

Chen Chao remained silent for a moment and said calmly, "That's my father. I presume it's no longer a secret to Great General."

The Great General had imagined countless responses from Chen Chao, but he had not expected Chen Chao to be so straightforward in revealing his identity.

Chen Chao said, "I presume the reason the Great General invited this lowly official here this time wasn't to confirm that."

This time it was the Great General's turn to fall silent.

"Previously, the imperial court could at most just speculate about your identity. But now that you've told this old man, it's different."

The Great General looked into Chen Chao's eyes, his expression gradually turning serious.

Chen Chao did not flinch, staring directly at the Great General. "This lowly official trusts Great General."

"We've only met one."

"But I believe that all martial artists in the world can trust Great General!"

The Great General fell silent.

The atmosphere became somewhat heavy for a moment.

Suddenly, the Great General spoke, "Do you know my identity?"

Chen Chao replied, "Great General is the former Great General of our dynasty, now the Imperial Duke of the country."

The Great General frowned, "You know I'm not talking about that."

Chen Chao did not speak.

The Great General said, "I'm also the father-in-law of the First Prince."

Chen Chao still did not say anything.

The Great General asked straightforwardly, "Do you realize that the words you've spoken to me today could very well be known by others?"

Chen Chao did not say much, simply repeating, "This lowly official said before, I trust Great General."