The Sky Was Falling! The Sky Was Falling!

When Chu Qing saw the greatsword, satisfaction filled his face.

The greatsword was a meter and a half long in total: one foot for the hilt, four feet for the blade.

The blade was three fingers wide, with cloud patterns along its edge.

Chu Qing had altered the blade's shape, giving it traces of the eight-sided Han sword from his previous life.

Since the money had been paid in full, the materials used were quite precious, and the sword's quality was excellent.

Even when struck with a sledgehammer weighing dozens of pounds, the blade only hummed. After bouncing the hammer away, it did not bend in the slightest.

The hilt was hollow and could hold one liter of Fire Oil. By twisting the mechanism in the hilt, the Fire Oil would flow through channels reserved within the blade.

After a powerful collision or high-speed swing, the Fire Oil would ignite, turning it into a Flame Sword.

At that time, it would deal not only physical damage, but fire damage as well.

It was terrifyingly formidable.

More interestingly, because special materials had been used, every time the Fire Oil burned, it would stimulate those materials to squirm, equivalent to reforging the blade once and repairing its hidden damage.

"Good treasure!"

Chu Qing was delighted.

After paying the blacksmith enough Silver Coin and buying over a dozen portions of Fire Oil, sword oil, and other maintenance supplies, he left happily.

On the muddy road:

Chu Qing held the sword in both hands and sped along like a dragonfly skimming the water.

Sword Mastery +1

Sword Mastery +1

Under normal circumstances, cultivating the greatsword required a hundred repetitions every day for three hundred days before one could be Initiated.

But now, he only needed to hold the greatsword for three days, then use ten portions of Mantis Secret Medicine, to be Initiated.

After repeated experiments, Chu Qing discovered:

The Profession Slot had broken down the three-day sword-holding requirement to every single minute.

As long as he held the sword for one minute, he gained one point of progress.

Once his total sword-holding time reached 4,320, the first condition would be complete.

"The first condition is easy to fulfill."

"The second condition is even simpler."

"The only problem now is: how can I carry this sword openly and aboveboard?"

The blade was wide and long; it was hard to disguise.

"Should I hide it during the day and grind progress at night?"

"But if I do that, the time needed to be Initiated will double."

Chu Qing continued pondering, coming up with one plan after another, but discarded them all because they would delay his swordsmanship initiation.

When he reached the place where he had found the Purple Flower last time, Chu Qing searched around and found another Purple Flower.

He carefully stored the Purple Flower away and quickened his pace.

Before he knew it, he had returned outside Stone Rock County.

Watching the densely packed disaster victims outside the city walls get picked over like livestock by the many fortified manors, powerful families, and gangs, Chu Qing smiled in relief.

"Being Initiated in swordsmanship will make me stronger."

"As long as I am strong enough, forget carrying a sword—even if I kill someone in the street, who would dare rebuke me?"

"I am no longer the street thug I used to be."

"If anyone fails to recognize what's good for them, comes looking for trouble, or questions me, then—slaughter them."

With 180 Iron Sinews and knowledge of countless martial secrets, Chu Qing's mindset had changed.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

With the tips of his feet touching the ground, he passed through the refugees and approached the city gate.

Just as the gate guards were about to stop him, Chu Qing shot one of them a glare.

In an instant:

The soldier felt as though a ferocious beast had fixed its gaze upon him. His whole body stiffened, and his hair stood on end.

Only after a long while did he regain his senses and realize that he was drenched in cold sweat.

"That man just now... was terrifying!"

Tap! Tap! Tap!

As he strolled through the streets, there were few pedestrians. Only the grain shops were crowded.

Grain prices rose three times a day.

"If more refugees gather here, Stone Rock County will fall into chaos too."

"I hope it does not affect the Martial Academy's Preliminary Exam."

"And... the He Family is gone. Why has there been no reaction in the County Town?"

"Could it be that no one has discovered He Qi's death yet?"

Without realizing it, Chu Qing arrived at the Jin family residence.

One minute later:

When Madam Jin and Xiao Taohong saw him, they were utterly stunned.

Xiao Taohong secretly gestured with her hand and realized that the sword in Chu Qing's arms was taller than she was.

Madam Jin did not notice the sword.

What she noticed was his bearing.

Before:

Although Chu Qing was already an adult, he had still been green, like a young lad with childishness on his face.

But after one night, this youth had unexpectedly matured.

He carried himself with confidence, and when his eyes opened and closed, they shone brightly.

As he walked, his body stood tall and straight, carrying an attitude that looked down upon all things.

For a moment, she seemed to have returned to the prefectural city, seeing once more the peerless prodigies she had encountered in her youth, gazing proudly over the four wilds.

And she herself had been merely a little girl trailing behind those prodigies.

A violet swaying in the wind filled Madam Jin's vision.

She took it in delighted surprise, handed it to Xiao Taohong, then tightly embraced Chu Qing and said:

"Qing'er has grown up."

"But it is dangerous outside the city. Do not ever go pick flowers for me again."

She thought Chu Qing had specially traveled hundreds of li into the deep mountains to pick it for her.

Beside them, Xiao Taohong looked at the violet in her arms, then at Madam Jin, and sighed inwardly.

"Madam... please be a little more alert!"

A few minutes later:

Madam Jin said to Chu Qing:

"People from the Blood River Gang came looking for you this morning. They said that once you returned, you had to go to the gang."

Chu Qing nodded.

But he did not take it to heart.

Killing Hall Master Liu and exterminating He Qi's entire household

had brought a tremendous change to his mindset.

The Blood River Gang used to be one of his identities, even a protective umbrella; but now, it was a shackle.

"I will handle it."

Madam Jin did not ask further. Instead, she chattered away, asking him about the scenery in the mountains and the situation outside.

Chu Qing told her everything in detail.

At first, hearing of the misty rain in the mountains and the beautiful scenery, Madam Jin was in a pleasant mood.

But when she heard that disaster victims were everywhere, roads had collapsed, and farmland had been submerged, her heart grew three parts heavier.

She rose and paced back and forth. "This is a Natural Disaster, but it is also a man-made calamity."

"Stone Rock County, perhaps even the surrounding counties, are likely to fall into chaos."

Chu Qing said in puzzlement, "They are only disaster victims. If they are settled properly, how chaotic can things become?"

Madam Jin shook her head. "Who will settle the disaster victims?"

"The authorities will not care. How many can fortified manors, wealthy households, and gangs take in?"

"Stone Rock County sits on relatively high ground. If the wind and rain do not stop, even more disaster victims will gather here."

"When the time comes... if the Rebel Army incites them, it will certainly brew into great chaos."

Chu Qing secretly shook his head. "This has little to do with us."

"If chaos truly comes, I will protect you."

As he spoke, he patted the longsword in his arms.

Madam Jin's heart warmed, and she was deeply moved.

"Qing'er is so much better than Jin Yiren."

Bathing, eating, reading, copying calligraphy.

Chu Qing spent the entire afternoon at Madam Jin's place.

What Madam Jin found strange was:

No matter what he did, even when he massaged her shoulders, Chu Qing kept one hand gripping that sword.

She muttered, "This sword..."

Chu Qing smiled. "I used to chop people with a knife. It felt too low-class."

"So I thought about getting myself a sword."

At the mention of chopping people, Madam Jin's expression darkened.

She had urged Jin Yiren to kill Head Steward He, but in the end, he had failed.

"Could Qing'er have gotten this sword because he wants to kill Head Steward He?"

Just then, a commotion suddenly erupted in the city.

Urgent hoofbeats sounded; cries and screams rang out.

Madam Jin's face went pale, and she cried out, "Could the Rebel Army have broken into the city?"

Chu Qing hurriedly grabbed her arm and said sternly, "It is all right!"

"Go hide in the room. I will stand guard here."

At this moment:

A servant ran in, panicked. "The sky is falling! The sky is falling!"

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