Turbulent Times

Time flew like a shuttle, and in the blink of an eye, sixteen years had passed.

Sixteen years—neither long nor short—but for ordinary people, it was enough for seas to turn to mulberry fields and the world to change beyond recognition.

Over those sixteen years, the era name changed three times: from Kaihuang to Renshou, then from Renshou to Great Cause. The founding emperor of Great Sui, a peerless ruler of his generation, Emperor Wen of Sui, Yang Jian, died in Renshou Palace in Renshou 4th Year, at the age of sixty-four.

In July of that same year, Crown Prince Yang Guang ascended the throne and changed the era name to Great Cause, becoming Emperor Yang of Sui.

After Yang Guang took the throne, he unified north and south. Within the realm, he built the Grand Canal and constructed the Eastern Capital, Luoyang, indulging in extravagance without restraint. Beyond the borders, he launched military campaigns again and again, conquering Tuyuhun, attacking Ryukyu, and invading Goguryeo three times. To fund this, he levied taxes and exactions without mercy. The people could no longer bear the burden and suffered beyond endurance, until beacon fires rose across the realm.

Thus, by Great Cause 12th Year, Rebel Kings everywhere had surged to prominence. The Four Great Clans and Five Surnames Seven Clans had also carved out territories and proclaimed themselves kings. The Realm Declining, the state was no longer a state. Great Sui teetered on the verge of collapse, while the people suffered bitterly and livelihoods withered ever further.

In such times, Xuzhou was nevertheless...

"Meat buns! Fresh-from-the-steamer meat buns! Thin skin, thick filling, fat and fragrant big meat buns!"

"Medicinal plaster! Ancestral medicinal plaster! Headaches and fevers, one plaster and it works!"

"Well, isn't this strange? Someone actually came here to sell medicinal plaster?"

"What, can't medicinal plaster be sold around here?"

"It's not that you can't sell it—it's that you can't sell any. Didn't you ask whose territory this was before coming?"

"Whose territory?"

"Bao'an Hall's, of course. What, you don't know Bao'an Hall? Then surely you know Xuzhou City's foremost divine physician—Doctor Xu Qingyang, whose Miraculous Hands Restore Spring, who saves the dying and heals the wounded, and is known as King Yama Returns Life?"

"Doctor Xu is here!"

"Greetings, Doctor Xu!"

"My respects, Mister Qingyang!"

"Doctor Xu, have some of my pears. They were picked this very morning, absolutely fresh."

"Doctor Xu, my boy turned one month old yesterday. You were too busy, so I didn't dare disturb you, but please do accept this basket of red eggs. Never mind, you're busy—I'll bring them to Bao'an Hall!"

A man approached. His blue robes were plain, yet his bearing was upright and heroic. From within to without, he exuded calm composure. Though he looked like a youth, he possessed the bearing of a grandmaster, inspiring reverence and an inexplicable sense of closeness.

When the neighboring vendors saw him, all greeted him warmly. He chatted and laughed in reply before arriving at a bun stall. "Fifty meat buns."

"Doctor Xu, I prepared them for you long ago."

The owner smiled upon seeing him and handed over an oiled-paper bag. "Here you are."

Xu Yang nodded, accepted the bag, and took out a piece of broken silver.

The owner hurriedly waved his hands. "No, no, this won't do. Having you eat my buns is my good fortune. I absolutely cannot accept this money."

Xu Yang smiled without saying more. He set down the silver and turned away.

The plaster seller stared blankly at his departing back for a while before finally coming back to his senses.

"He... he's that Doctor Xu?"

"Who else would he be?"

"Is his Medical Arts really that good?"

"It isn't a question of whether they're good... Let me put it this way: from Bao'an Hall's opening until today, a full sixteen years, there has never been a patient Doctor Xu could not cure or save!"

"Really? He's so young—can he truly possess such Medical Arts?"

"What do you know? Great ambition does not depend on age. Doctor Xu is especially so."

"No matter whether it's a minor ailment, a serious illness, or some difficult and strange condition, once you enter Bao'an Hall and see Doctor Xu, Medicine Cures Illness without fail. Even for a terminal disease beyond all hope, he can let you depart in peace, without pain or injury. He is publicly recognized as Xuzhou's—no, the realm's—foremost divine physician!"

"This... Fine, even if his Medical Arts are truly that impressive, his consultation fees must be expensive. We common folk, if we have a headache or fever, can we afford Bao'an Hall? My medicinal plaster is still the better bargain."

"What do you know? Years ago, Doctor Xu began offering free consultations. He charges us common people nothing and even provides medicine. He has also taken in over a hundred disciples and nearly a thousand students, all from poor families, with quite a few orphaned children who have no one to rely on. Everyone praises him as a bodhisattva reborn, a Buddha reincarnated!"

"This... don't try to fool me. No consultation fees, free medicine, and he still supports over a hundred disciples and nearly a thousand students—what does he live on? Drinking the northwest wind?"

"When I say you don't understand, you truly don't understand. Doctor Xu may not charge us common folk, but when it comes to the powerful and wealthy, not a single coin or fraction of a coin is spared. You know the Iron Palm Gang, right? They call themselves Youzhou's greatest gang. Some time ago, their gang leader suffered Qi Deviation while practicing martial arts and came to Doctor Xu to beg for his life. Guess how much the consultation fee was?"

"How much?"

"A full thousand taels of gold, plus ten East Sea pearls and one Changbai Snow Ginseng for medicinal use."

"So tell me, what does Doctor Xu live on?"

"This... no, that isn't right. Are those great figures really so easy to deal with? Are they all such fools that they hand over a thousand taels of gold, pearls, and Snow Ginseng just like that? I've heard of the Iron Palm Gang too—they're all a pack of fierce-looking devils."

"I don't know about that. Anyway, ever since Doctor Xu began his free consultations years ago, hardly anyone has dared make trouble at Bao'an Hall. The occasional fool who failed to see what was before him got beaten out the door with sticks by Bao'an Hall's physicians... Wait, where are you going?"

"To become his disciple. By the way, which way is Bao'an Hall?"

"..."

While the crowd continued their discussion, Xu Yang had already carried the buns back to Bao'an Hall.

"Master!"

"Sir!"

"Greetings, Doctor Xu!"

"My respects, Mister Qingyang."

After several expansions over more than ten years, Bao'an Hall now occupied a vast area. When its many disciples, physicians, and patients saw Xu Yang return, they all saluted him.

Xu Yang passed through the outer hall and entered the inner chamber, where a burly middle-aged man with a square face—who looked nothing like a physician—came forward to greet him. "Master!"

"Mm."

Xu Yang nodded, sat in a grand chair, opened the oiled-paper bag, and began eating a bun.

The man brewed him a cup of tea and respectfully offered it to him. Then he stood waiting at the side, opened a booklet, and said, "Han Gaitian, leader of the Haisha Gang, has sent someone requesting that Master personally examine him. He offers a consultation fee of one thousand taels of gold and ten sea pearls!"

Xu Yang ate his bun without even raising his eyes. "Not going."

"Yes!"

The man nodded, made a note in the booklet, and continued, "Yun Yuzhen, leader of the Ju Kun Gang, has scheduled an appointment for June 16. The consultation fee is one hundred thousand taels of silver, along with the secret manual of the Bird Crossing Technique."

Xu Yang's expression did not change. He said calmly, "Have Little Nineteen take it."

"Yes!"

The man nodded and continued, "On the Imperial Court's side, the newly appointed Prefect has not yet arrived, but word is that he is from the Yuwen Clan. He has already sent someone with a calling card, and his words seem to suggest that Master should travel to the Eastern Capital."

"Don't see him!"

"The Dongming Sect has sent word that, beginning with the next batch of weapons and armor, prices will rise another thirty percent."

"Keep buying, until the Refining Blade Ship can support itself!"

"The Great River Association made a move and seized three of our salt ships. They demand one hundred thousand taels of silver for their return!"

"Have Qinglong deal with it!"

"Beacon fires have risen again across the land. Many Rebel Kings have raised the banner against Sui. The one with the greatest momentum now is Li Zitong, who calls himself King of Chu!"

"News has arrived from Luoyang. Emperor Yang Guang of Sui is preparing to set out on another tour, heading south for Jiangdu in Yangzhou."

"Rumors in the martial world say that Cihang Jingzhai's current successor is about to enter the martial world, lead the righteous path, and Choose Emperor on Behalf of Heaven!"

"Word from unofficial sources says that the Daoist canon and extraordinary tome—the Longevity Art—has fallen into the hands of Yangzhou's foremost expert, Mountain Pusher Shi Long!"

"The Yuwen Clan's four great experts have arrived in Yangzhou under the leadership of Yuwen Huaji, Commander of the Imperial Guards of Emperor Sui. They intend to seize this book and present it to Emperor Sui!"

"..."

Xu Yang sat in the grand chair, eating buns and savoring fragrant tea as he listened to the reports and issued instructions.

After a while, all matters had been settled. The man turned and left, leaving Xu Yang alone.

After swallowing the last bun, the grease on his hands naturally vanished. Xu Yang raised his head, gazed into the distance beyond the hall, and muttered, "Sixteen years. It has finally come!"

As he murmured, the panel silently opened.

Xu Yang

Lifespan: 28/300

Cultivation: True Gang Realm

Skills:

Butchery (Butchering the Ox)

Eating (Devour an ox a day, strengthen foundations, fortify the body, prolong life and eternal youth)

Sleep (Nourishes spirit and soul, Strengthen foundations and cultivate origin, prolong life and eternal youth)

Breathing (Vitality like a surging tide, Strengthen foundations and cultivate origin, prolong life and eternal youth)

Medical Arts (Miraculous Hands Restoring Spring, Medicine Cures Illness, Golden Needle Passing Through Acupoints, Pushing Qi Through the Palace, King Yama Returns Life)

Walking (Swift as Flying, stride across ten thousand miles)

Archery (Every arrow hits its mark, Nine Stars Align)

Reading (Eidetic Memory, Infer other things from one instance)

Teaching (Earnest teachings, Teaching and learning promote each other, Lead by example, Spread martial arts throughout the world, Everyone is like a dragon)

Martial Arts Practice (Diligence Makes Up for Lack of Talent, Marrow Cleansing and Meridian Washing, Eternal Spring and Agelessness, Martial Path Reaches Divinity, Ancestor of Martial Scriptures)

...

Like the Great Zhou World, this world's flow of time compared to the main world was one to three hundred and sixty-five. One day in reality was one year in this world, and cultivating skills and gaining traits here was far easier than in the real world.

Thus, relying on the accumulated foundation of the Great Zhou World, support from his real-world body, and sixteen years of bitter endurance and cultivation, soul transmission, Xu Yang had finally developed and transferred over his main body's primary skills.

Now, he had recovered the cultivation of the Three Realms of Martial Path, where True Qi formed gang force. Together with the trait "Martial Path Reaches Divinity," he could fully rival, in theory, an expert of the fourth realm, Condensed Spirit.

The only issue was that time had been too short. His foundation of power and strength of soul were insufficient, far inferior to the profound accumulation his Great Zhou World body had built over three hundred years ruling the world. He therefore could not yet attempt a breakthrough. If he could, he truly wished to accumulate another few decades, even a century.

Unfortunately, that possibility did not exist. The realm was about to fall into chaos, and a great age was approaching.

What was a great age?

A great age was an age of great contention—the struggle of a great age, an age of great struggle!

Put in terms modern people would better understand, it came down to one word—competition!

Either you competed until others died, or others competed until you died. There was no third possibility.

After all, at this point, with his scale and strength, he had long since entered every faction's field of vision. It was no longer possible for him to continue lurking in obscurity, watching from the sidelines, and reaping the fisherman's profit.

No one was a fool. Before the snipe and clam fought, they would surely drag the fisherman watching from the sidelines into the water as well.

Therefore, whether Xu Yang wished it or not, whether he was willing or not, the beacon fires of this chaotic age would burn their way to him.

Since that was so, then let them come!

Xu Yang had never been one to fear trouble. Lurking and building his strength had merely been a temporary method, not his ultimate goal.

A true man born into this world could endure humiliation for a time, but could not steal a lifetime in cowardly survival. Some things had to be fought for, no matter what!

He... was ready!