Martial Cultivator

After seeing off Xu Bai and his wife, Chen Chao returned to the Sword Proximity Commandery and headed to the Warden's Office. The guards at the office, who had just come from the main street, were all trembling in fear when they saw this young martial artist return. Since they knew he was a big shot from the Divine Capital, they naturally did not dare to stop him and quickly welcomed Chen Chao inside with smiles all over their faces.

Inside the main hall, the warden of the Sword Proximity Commandery had just received a report from his subordinate. But before he could get up, the young figure had already arrived at the entrance of the hall. The warden immediately stood up, but before he could speak, Chen Chao spoke first with a smile on his face, "Li Huaiyan, do you feel like you've lived long enough?"

Being addressed by his full name, Li Huaiyan dropped all pretense and immediately knelt down with a thud, apologizing with a pained expression, "This lowly official really didn't know it was Commander Chen. Otherwise, even if you gave this lowly official a hundred times the courage, this lowly official wouldn't dare to do such a thing!"

Li Huaiyan knew about this young military official. Despite his young age, he held the position of Deputy Commander of the Left Guard. Coupled with the authority granted by His Majesty to bear arms, he was a prominent figure in the Divine Capital. If he did not want to let him off today, Li Huaiyan reckoned that his dead body would be laid out here today.

Chen Chao narrowed his eyes and smiled, " As this official said before, do you know how Xu Xuanshan died?"

Li Huaiyan's expression turned ugly, but he still kept his head down, answering reluctantly, "This lowly official only had some friendship with those cultivators, but I never colluded with them! Commander Chen, you must investigate clearly!"

Although he said so, Li Huaiyan himself was terrified. Whether or not he colluded with foreign lands, it likely depended on the whim of this young military official before him. It was hard to say whether or not he would be able to see the light of tomorrow.

Chen Chao continued, "Xu Xuanshan did nothing, yet this official killed him just like that. Yet, you still have the audacity to cause trouble for this official? Should this official kill you or not?"

Li Huaiyan knelt on the ground, feeling hopeless.

"Don't think that just because you're in a remote province where imperial authority wanes, the Divine Capital doesn't know what you've been up to. That's what Xu Xuanshan thought, so he died. But you shouldn't think like that, otherwise, it will serve as a cautionary tale."

Chen Chao had never intended to kill this warden. Without any news from the Divine Capital, if he took action against a warden who had only caused him trouble, when he returned to the Divine Capital, he would undoubtedly face criticism and condemnation. However, what worried him more was the possibility of someone latching onto this matter, making his days in the Divine Capital difficult.

Having been seasoned in the officialdom for many years, Li Huaiyan relaxed a bit after hearing Chen Chao's words. He understood that it was just a warning. Nevertheless, he dared not let his guard down. He raised his head and said earnestly, "This lowly official will definitely fulfill my duties diligently in the future and refrain from such foolish actions!"

Chen Chao's next sentence made Li Huaiyan even more uneasy.

"This official killed quite a number of people on this trip away from the Divine Capital."

Li Huaiyan's expression turned ugly. He had heard about those incidents, from Clearwater Mountain to Ancient Mountain Commandery. This young commander would really kill someone at a single word of disagreement.

"Go and fetch this official a map of the Yellow Dragon Prefecture's territories for me. This official wants to take it with me."

After he was done intimidating this warden, Chen Chao did not want to waste any more words. After asking for a copy of the Yellow Dragon Prefecture's territory map, he turned around and left the Warden's Office.

As Chen Chao's figure finally disappeared from his line of sight, Li Huaiyan wiped the sweat from his forehead and stood up, feeling relieved. The constables nearby watched the scene silently, afraid to speak.

Li Huaiyan wiped the sweat from his forehead and let out a sigh of relief. He had indeed just made a visit to the gates of hell and back.

After standing up, he could not muster any resentment. After all, that young martial artist might become the next Lord Warden Commander of the Great Liang Dynasty in just a few years.

At that time...

Li Huaiyan sighed, not daring to think further.

……

……

Chen Chao walked out of the Warden's Office and strolled along the long street filled with swordsmith workshops. Finally, he reached the end and stopped in front of a courtyard that was not small. It was also a swordsmith workshop, but with more furnaces and smiths, and most importantly, it was home to the number one swordsmith in the Sword Proximity Commandery.

As Chen Chao approached the entrance, he was quickly recognized by someone. All the swordsmiths in the courtyard stopped their work and looked at this young martial artist.

Although Master Zuo left the earliest, he continued to keep an eye on subsequent developments. After learning that the young martial artist was actually the Deputy Commander of the Divine Capital's Left Guard, he completely gave up on the idea of reclaiming the flying sword. Even so, he never expected that Chen Chao would come to his swordsmith workshop. Everyone present felt that he did not come with good intentions.

Nevertheless, Master Zuo dared not turn away this Commander Chen, so he quickly welcomed this young martial artist inside.

As Chen Chao followed the burly man through the courtyard, he was met with many eye-rolls.

Chen Chao did not mind. After he met Master Zuo, he presented a prepared gift. Although not very valuable, the gift would allow Master Zuo to save face afterward by spreading word that he had been visited with due respect.

As the saying goes, "Don't hit a smiling person's face." Since Chen Chao came bearing gifts, Master Zuo went along with it, saying with vicissitudes of emotion, "This old man didn't think it through at the time. Since the flying sword chose that girl, she must be an exceptional sword cultivator seedling."

Chen Chao nodded and smiled, "Master Zuo is right. This official has already arranged for Xu Bai to take her to a sect to find a master. Before long, there will be another female sword cultivator in the world. When people learn that her flying sword is a creation of Master Zuo, your reputation will surely remain untarnished."

Master Zuo's face turned red and said a bit sheepishly, "I must thank Commander Chen. Without your help, this old man's reputation would have been ruined."

Chen Chao waved his hand dismissively. "It's Master Zuo who generously gave the sword. It was just some jealous sword cultivators causing trouble."

Master Zuo nodded. Although he recognized Chen Chao's words as polite niceties, he knew it was not the right time to point that out. After all, in this world, was one's reputation not everything.

Chen Chao suddenly asked, "I heard that Master Zuo learned swordsmithing on Sword Qi Mountain in your early years. Why did you leave afterward?"

Master Zuo's expression stiffened, and then he forced a bitter smile. "It's not worth mentioning, Commander Chen..."

Chen Chao nodded understandingly and then changed the topic. "This official will be heading to Sword Qi Mountain soon. Are there any taboos there that Master Zuo can share?"

Master Zuo was taken aback but, after thinking it over, he decided not to hold back. He shared various details about Sword Qi Mountain. These so-called taboos were not really secrets; anyone who cared enough could find out. But Chen Chao asking him showed consideration for his face.

This consideration alleviated any lingering resentment Master Zuo had toward Chen Chao before.

Since ancient times, it was a well-known truth that the common people should not clash with officials. After leaving Sword Qi Mountain, Master Zuo naturally lost Sword Qi Mountain's protection too. While he could disregard ordinary officials, he had to treat this Deputy Commander before him with utmost caution. After chatting aimlessly for half a day, Chen Chao left the swordsmith workshop.

As soon as this Commander Chen left, a disciple immediately walked in and asked his master curiously, "Master, what was he here for?"

Master Zuo sighed deeply, "What for? You could say he was here to form a good relationship, or to eliminate worries for that young woman. All in all, this young man is truly remarkable."

……

……

After handling the final two matters, Chen Chao could finally leave Sword Proximity Commandery and head to Sword Qi Mountain.

However, after leaving the city and walking no more than twenty or thirty miles, he saw numerous swordsmith workshops along the main road. This left Chen Chao somewhat speechless. While it made sense that more swordsmith workshops would appear as one got closer to Sword Qi Mountain, he had not expected these workshops to dare operate outside the city. Were they not afraid of attracting trouble from demons?

Although the demons in Yellow Dragon Prefecture were relatively less troublesome compared to those in other commanderies, it was not exactly a peaceful place. However, since these swordsmiths were not afraid, Chen Chao would not interfere either. Among the numerous swordsmith workshops, he found a simple tea stall, ordered a pot of cheap tea, and sat down to rest for a while. But soon enough, something happened.

Several sword cultivators were wandering around the swordsmith workshops. Then, for some reason, a woman with extraordinary beauty appeared in the distance. As soon as she appeared, she attracted many gazes. A young sword cultivator temporarily abandoned his plan to visit the workshops and went to bother the woman. This kind of thing was quite common, but Chen Chao narrowed his eyes. It was hard for him to overlook it since it was happening in front of him.

But before he could get up, the woman directly reached her hand out and broke the neck of the sword cultivator.

Simple and decisive.

In an instant, all the sword cultivators immediately scattered like birds and beasts, and no one dared to stay around that woman.

Chen Chao was stunned, not expecting things to escalate so quickly.

The woman who had a cold expression scanned her surroundings before finally fixing her gaze on Chen Chao.

Chen Chao raised his head and met her gaze, then could not help but furrow his brow.

The woman's pupils suddenly turned completely white but returned to normal after a moment.

Chen Chao frowned, wondering what kind of cultivation technique that was.

He did not involve himself in vendettas of the pugilist world unless he had to. But soon, a group of cultivators arrived from afar. It turned out they were fellow sect members of the young sword cultivator who had been killed earlier, now gathering to seek justice.

Chen Chao could not help but think that the woman was in big trouble.

However, the next moment, Chen Chao was stunned.

The woman was still expressionless, directly attacking and instantly killing several of the cultivators.

This sudden action caused all the swordsmiths in the workshops to flee for their lives, no longer daring to stay.

Even the tea shop owner quickly made his escape, not even bothering to collect the money for the tea.

In an instant, the group of cultivators died there, leaving only the woman standing.

Just as Chen Chao was about to get up, the woman's gaze fell on him again.

Some killing intent gradually arose.

Chen Chao was at a loss whether to cry or laugh. He was merely a bystander, yet somehow it seemed he had provoked trouble for no reason!

However, the next moment, Chen Chao's expression turned serious. There was freaking demonic qi here!