"Uncle Zhang, you flatter me. I can't take your favor for nothing. It was only right for me to do my part." Zhou Qiming cupped his hands in salute. The Mountain-Weight Saber had improved him greatly, and Uncle Zhang had refused to take a single coin, which was practically sending charcoal in snowy weather.
"If you have nowhere to go after reaching the County Town, you can seek out Old Man Mo at the Weapon Forging Workshop. Just give him my name." Zhang Tie offered this advice before smiling and leaving.
"All right. I'll remember that."
Zhou Qiming could not persuade him any further, so he could only offer a few words of blessing before hurrying toward the County Town with the Cheng siblings.
The Luoshan Army was, after all, an official organization. It would not behave as disgracefully as the Jinsha Gang and King Chaotian. For ordinary people without martial strength, such as Xu Hailai and the others, it was also a decent protective umbrella. Zhou Qiming respected everyone's fate; he could not act as their caretaker forever.
"Qiming, we owe you everything this time. Once our Cheng Family has established itself in the County Town, we'll definitely repay you properly!" Cheng Yu cupped his hands in thanks.
Cheng Yan had survived the disaster and revealed a smile as well. "If you run into any difficulties, you can consider becoming a Blade Catcher. My master can help introduce you to the County Magistrate's Lieutenant."
"All right. Sorry for the trouble." Zhou Qiming nodded.
After traveling for an hour, Zhou Qiming parted ways with the Cheng Family and had them proceed to the County Town first.
"Qiming, are you going back to take a look?" Cheng Yan asked with concern.
"I suddenly remembered that I left some medicinal herbs at home." Zhou Qiming casually made up an excuse, then turned and headed back toward the town.
The Cheng siblings shook their heads as they watched him leave.
"Qiming must be overthinking it. With the Luoshan Army stationed there, even the Sky Shaker Bandits wouldn't dare provoke them. Boss Xu and the others should be fine."
Cheng Yu stopped thinking about it and led the group toward the County Town. Once night fell, the mountain roads would become even more dangerous.
Zhou Qiming's movement technique was extremely swift, and he soon drew close to Jinshui Town.
"The Jinsha Gang was killed by me. Why should the Luoshan Army take all the benefits?"
He had turned back because he was somewhat unwilling to accept this. These people were like those special investigators in the hero movies of his previous life—they always arrived leisurely after the villain had already been killed.
Regardless, he could not simply hand over Sha Heihu's savings to someone else.
"This is..."
However, in the next moment, he halted and discovered an utterly horrifying scene.
Fire and smoke rose all over the town, while the clash of blades and cries of slaughter shook the heavens.
"Could the Sky Shaker Bandits have come? This is bad. Uncle Xu is probably in danger."
Zhou Qiming sped up, racing against time. He had not expected to see such a scene after turning back.
In theory, after Sha Heihu's death, Jinshui Town should have returned to its former peace under the protection of the Luoshan Army. But now, it seemed things had gone completely contrary to his hopes.
Most importantly, the people from the Blacksmith Shop and the restaurant had all returned to resume their trades. They were probably dead in the town now.
"Damn Sky Shaker Bandits."
Zhou Qiming clenched his fists. In the blink of an eye, he reached the outskirts of the town and looked at the familiar streets.
But an even more shocking and infuriating scene appeared before him, leaving him unable to believe it for a long time.
"What? These are the neighbors from town! How did they all end up hanging from the city wall?"
Zhou Qiming stared fixedly, and an intensely furious conjecture emerged in his heart.
With one sweep of his eyes, he saw that all the honest villagers and neighbors who had once gone about their simple lives had been marked with straw tags and branded. Their severed bodies hung from the flagpoles.
Even when the Jinsha Gang had acted, the people had not suffered such a miserable fate.
Every corpse had been labeled as belonging to the Sky Shaker Bandit Army. The youngest were even children of only thirteen or fourteen, around the same age as Zhou Qiming.
"Damn it! Is this the true face of the world? People are even more terrifying than wolves, demons, and monsters."
Zhou Qiming gnashed his teeth, fury surging within him.
He had never expected Jinshui Town to receive not the aid of reinforcements, but an even darker and bloodier blade.
They had killed innocents to claim military merit. Every able-bodied man in town had become a military achievement, and not a single survivor had been left behind.
"This is troublesome. I hope Uncle Xu and the others are all right."
Zhou Qiming forcibly suppressed his rage. The movement of his Earth Fiend Legs was as ghostly as a phantom as he hurried toward the garrison camp in town, wanting to learn more.
None of the soldiers along the way noticed him. He was simply too fast, vanishing into the shadows of the streets like a fading afterimage.
"Sir, don't kill me! I'll give you all my money!"
Cries of slaughter and pleas for mercy shook the streets. These people had escaped Sha Heihu's butcher's blade, but they still could not survive the cruelty of the world.
"Go in peace. I'll take good care of your wife and daughters for you."
"Damn you! You're even more brutal than the Sky Shaker Bandits. I'll never let you off, even as a ghost!"
Zhou Qiming shook his head and did not interfere with these tragic scenes. Even if he could save a few people for a time, he could not protect them for a lifetime. Only by reaching the pinnacle of the martial path could he pacify this demon-ridden, chaotic world.
Along the way, he also heard some information he wanted. The soldiers' discussions could not escape his keen five senses.
"Haha, who would have thought the Jinsha Gang would be so pathetically weak? Myriad Commander Jiang didn't even need to act before the enemy fled at the mere sight of us."
"What a pity. Those were living heads, all worth military merit. We could only use these villagers as scapegoats. Weakness is the original sin. Who told them to raise a force like the Jinsha Gang that colluded with the Bandit Army?"
"This place has become a nest of filth and corruption. It's no longer clean."
"With the great merit from this successful bandit suppression, Lord Jiang will probably rise another rank. He'll definitely earn the County Magistrate's Lieutenant's and the Garrison General's favor!"
Several armored soldiers searched and confiscated property along the streets while laughing loudly and discussing things. Once the Myriad Commander was promoted, these trusted foot soldiers would naturally rise with him, like dogs and chickens ascending to Heaven.
But suddenly, a huge black shadow fell over them, as though the sky itself had darkened. The men halted, stopping in astonishment.
"Who's there?"
"Damn it! There are still remnants of the Sky Shaker Bandits here."
"Quick, go notify Lord Jiang!"
The men swiftly entered a state of alert, facing the enemy as if confronting a great danger.
Zhou Qiming wore black clothes and a black veil, his eyes bloodshot like a Rakshasa from hell. Two iron-clawed hands shot out and smashed two of the men's heads.
His killing intent surged like a tide. Asura claimed their lives.
He stared coldly at the two remaining men and asked hoarsely, "What happened to the people from the Blacksmith Shop and Haolai Restaurant? Who killed them?"
"Sir, spare us! You mean Zhang Tie and those old men from Boss Xu's place, right? They're not dead. Lord Jiang sent them to the frontline garrison. Blacksmiths and cooks are also highly useful to the Luoshan Army."
The two armored soldiers were so frightened that they wet their trousers. Their legs trembled uncontrollably, and even the Iron Ge in their hands fell to the ground in terror.
"What? In the end, no one can escape fate. Is this the destiny of ordinary people?"
After receiving the news, Zhou Qiming shook his head helplessly. He had no intention of going to rescue them.
The Luoshan Army's escorted convoy had already left. Chasing after it rashly might trigger unforeseen dangers, such as encountering an ambush by the Sky Shaker Bandits and being dragged into a struggle between two enormous forces.
Besides, Zhou Qiming had seen the truth clearly. Forces like restaurants and blacksmith shops were pieces of fat meat in this wretched world. They could not escape the fate of working for the army, and it was impossible for him to protect them in secret forever.
"Let it be. The Luoshan Army is still a proper organization, no matter what. Besides, not everyone should be as vile as Jiang Baichuan."
Before you continue