Blade Catcher Qiu San

Blade Catcher Qiu San was a native of Fujiang County,

At twenty-nine, he was in the mid-stage of the Bone Forging Realm.

At eighteen, he happened to meet his mentor, Old Blade Wielder Zhang Fugui, and embarked on the path of martial arts. Eleven years had passed since then.

The so-called Blade Catchers were, in truth, people who made a living by accepting commissions from local commoners, wealthy families, and rural gentry.

Their actual duties were no different from those of the martial warriors of the Wei Dao Si.

Blade Catchers usually traveled in pairs, with one master and one disciple.

They moved between county towns and villages, earning some silver whenever they completed a commission.

If they failed to secure any commissions, they had no choice but to burrow into the mountains and hunt some game.

They had to eat and sleep in the open, and often went hungry after finishing one meal.

Yet whether they were apprehending criminals or exterminating Demons and Monsters, the dangers were immense.

The slightest lapse in caution could cost them their lives.

As a result, fewer and fewer martial artists were entering the Blade Catcher trade.

Yet Qiu San had worked as a Blade Catcher for more than a decade and was still alive. Clearly, he possessed genuine ability.

According to the Snake Guards' covert observations, Qiu San hated evil with a passion and held righteousness in his heart, placing personal gains and losses beyond consideration.

He had taken it upon himself to eliminate demons, uphold justice, and restore peace to the people of Jinling. Yet precisely because of this, after eleven years as a Blade Catcher, Qiu San had failed to save even a single coin.

Apart from an old horse and a rusty saber, he owned nothing and stood utterly alone.

"Isn't someone like this exactly the expert I've been looking for?" Xia Qi'an set down the intelligence delivered by the Snake Guards and pondered inwardly.

At that moment, he was aboard a carriage heading to Lishan County. This time, the Wei Dao Si headquarters had established the position of commissioner and introduced several new policies and measures.

In the past, most of the Wei Dao Si's personnel had been concentrated in major cities like Jinling City, making it difficult for the Wei Dao Si to detect trouble in remote areas under its jurisdiction at the earliest opportunity.

This time, besides establishing four commissioner positions, each commissioner would also have to lead the Hound Guards under his jurisdiction to station themselves in the subordinate county towns.

Naturally, Xia Qi'an was no exception.

He had brought Bata and Xiao Cao and was heading to Lishan County to take up station first.

He had already received word earlier that he would be going to a county town to take up station, so he had commissioned the Snake Guards in advance to purchase a residence in Lishan County.

This time, he would first go to Lishan County and settle Bata and Xiao Cao in properly. As for the large items being moved, the Snake Guards had hired workers to transport them afterward.

There were eight county towns in total within Jinling Commandery.

Of these, Lishan and Linjiang Counties had been assigned to Xia Qi'an's jurisdiction.

Once he had settled down in Lishan County, he would begin recruiting martial experts from the jianghu.

Regardless of the outcome on Si Nanyue's side or whether the higher-ups of the Wei Dao Si approved his proposal,

he would proceed all the same. At worst, he would pay out of his own pocket. With his current wealth, he could still afford this bit of silver.

Xia Qi'an and the other two set out early in the morning, bringing only some valuables, a change of clothes, and three memorial tablets.

In any world, moving house was a headache-inducing nuisance.

Fortunately, with the Snake Guards' assistance, Xia Qi'an did not have to worry too much.

Lishan County had suffered a severe flood several months earlier.

Its original population of three hundred thousand had been reduced to little more than one hundred thousand.

Fortunately, after the disaster, Lishan County recovered well and gradually regained its former prosperity.

Though it could not compare with a major city like Jinling City, this city possessed a unique charm and a rich atmosphere of everyday life.

The scenery here seemed to transport people into an ancient town in the Jiangnan waterlands.

Clear streams murmured as they wound between ancient bridges; flagstone paths twisted and turned, leading people into secluded alleyways.

Ancient buildings stood scattered along the streets in an orderly fashion, exuding a profound cultural atmosphere.

Bluestone, ancient trees, green tiles, and moss,

lent this small county town a touch of quiet, deep, and weighty character.

Under the guidance of a young female Snake Guard, Xia Qi'an stepped into the newly purchased residence.

Within the residence stood pavilions and towers, lotus flowers, and lotus ponds—a breathtaking sight that delighted the eye.

After wandering around the residence once, Xia Qi'an was extremely satisfied with its layout and scenery.

The architectural style of this residence closely resembled the Tang and Song Dynasty style of Blue Star in his previous life,

as though it had carried him back to that prosperous yet poetic era.

Before leaving, the young female Snake Guard told Xia Qi'an, "Lord Xia! Qiu San will report to the Lishan County Wei Dao Si branch tomorrow!"

Xia Qi'an nodded. "The Snake Guards really are reliable..."

After the young female Snake Guard left,

Xia Qi'an devoted himself wholeheartedly to cultivation, as usual.

Leaving Jinling to take up station in a county town—

this could be called a mixed blessing.

The worry was that this place was far from Jinling. If the aristocratic families wanted to retaliate against him, it would become much easier for them.

The good thing was that this place was likewise far from the Jinling Wei Dao Si branch.

As the saying went, "The mountains are high and the emperor is far away."

In Lishan and Linjiang Counties, so long as he did not violate the Wei Dao Si's bottom line, he was practically an emperor of the soil, free to do as he pleased and act as he wished!

As for the county magistrate, you ask?

The county magistrate was eagerly waiting to receive Xia Qi'an's audience at the Wei Dao Si government office tomorrow!

The Wei Dao Si was an organization like this. It stood completely above worldly royal authority and was a powerful group composed entirely of martial artists.

This world was chaotic and dangerous, with demons, monsters, cultivators, and other beings roaming it.

Most people within the worldly royal authority were ordinary mortals of flesh and blood.

If demons and monsters ran rampant, how could they possibly resist?

Martial artists, on the other hand, possessed extraordinary power and stood high above the mundane world.

Getting them to organize and fight against demons was harder than ascending to heaven.

The overwhelming majority of martial artists would only preserve their own lives.

Yet the Wei Dao Si's creed was to protect the majority of ordinary people in the world.

It could be said that the person who founded the Wei Dao Si must have been a great man with the world in his heart and extraordinary foresight.

In this Five Turbidities Era, with demons rampant and ghosts roaming everywhere,

if there were no powerful official organization to suppress the world,

the demons would inevitably become even more reckless.

If that happened, how could the world possibly know peace?

Although the Wei Dao Si was not perfect and contained many internal problems,

no person was perfect, so where in the world was there a flawless faction?

Regardless, viewed as a whole, the existence of the Wei Dao Si had made an enormous contribution to the survival of humanity in this world.

The next morning, just as the sun rose, dawn shone through the gaps between the leaves, scattering threads of golden light.

Xia Qi'an rose early. After washing up, he hurried out the door,

heading for the Lishan County Wei Dao Si branch.

The Lishan County Wei Dao Si branch stood in the center of the county town, directly opposite the county government office.

When Xia Qi'an arrived before the entrance, he could not help stopping to gaze at the plaque hanging high above.

The three characters "Wei Dao Si" upon it were vigorous and powerful.

Looking at the plaque, Xia Qi'an felt something stir within him.

Oppressing the people and running amok was not what he wished for!

Slaying demons and eliminating monsters, standing supreme in the present age—that was what it meant to be a true man!

Drawing a deep breath, Xia Qi'an pushed open the main doors and strode into the Wei Dao Si branch with the bearing of a dragon and the gait of a tiger.