It took Jiang Yan a great deal of effort to squeeze close to Tang Long, but he didn't stand right beside him.
If there really was danger, being closest to Tang Long meant Tang Long might not have time to react. That would be disastrous.
This spot was just right for Jiang Yan: close enough to seek protection, but far enough back to avoid danger.
Nobody in the group spoke. Only the hurried, disorderly sounds of their footsteps filled the air.
Suddenly, a faint yet clear sob came from up ahead. The voice was plaintive but strangely moving, making people want to pay attention.
Tang Long paused. The group behind him grew restless, pairs of eyes fixed tensely on the path ahead.
Tang Long's expression darkened. "Keep moving. Don't stop!" he barked. Then he continued forward.
They kept walking. As they drew closer, Jiang Yan saw a white figure curled up outside the Talisman Path, its back to them and its shoulders trembling slightly. Faint sobs drifted over.
Tang Long glanced at the Blazing Talisman on the wooden stick, then watched the white figure for a while. Seeing it make no other movements, he continued on.
"Don't pay it any mind. Keep moving."
The group pressed on. The figure remained curled up outside the Talisman Path, sobbing softly.
Gradually, the sound faded away.
"My lord, is that a strange creature?" Jiang Yan hurried a couple of steps to catch up, then looked up with a shy, curious expression.
Tang Long didn't look back. He continued striding forward, sounding a little impatient as he replied, "Of course it is. That's a Human Wraith, a small fry. It wouldn't dare attack us with so many people around."
A Human Wraith?
Jiang Yan shook his head. He'd never heard of this kind of strange creature. He'd transmigrated to another world, yet hadn't suffered a splitting headache and absorbed his predecessor's memories. What an unqualified transmigrator.
Suddenly, another faint yet clear sob rang in his mind.
Jiang Yan looked up. Ahead, a white figure was curled up outside the Talisman Path...
Only, Jiang Yan noticed that it was closer to the path now.
Tang Long saw the Human Wraith too, but didn't stop. He walked past it and continued onward, as if he hadn't seen it.
A while later, they could make out the village ahead, a few scattered lights dotting the darkness.
Tang Long also breathed a sigh of relief. At last, they could make it back to the village without incident.
Just then, a white figure stood directly in front of their group, sobbing...
When Jiang Yan saw it, his pupils contracted. The figure was standing on the Talisman Path!
"Die!"
The moment Tang Long saw it, he surged forward, drew his long sword, and thrust!
The strike was ferocious and sudden. In Jiang Yan's eyes, Tang Long seemed to cross more than ten meters in a single step, thrusting straight at the strange creature.
But the white Human Wraith simply floated aside, dodging the lightning-fast, deadly attack.
In the next instant, the white figure turned around. It had no features. Its pitch-black claws rose as it lunged at them.
Even from a distance, Jiang Yan could clearly see the Human Wraith's sharp claws.
Then the unexpected happened. Tang Long's right hand remained still as his left hand swept upward. A brighter flash of sword light instantly slashed into the lunging Human Wraith.
It was as if the strange creature had thrown itself onto the blade to die.
The long sword cleaved the Human Wraith in two. Before it could even hit the ground, it burst apart with a soft pop, scattering into black ash.
Jiang Yan was shaken to the core. So this was martial arts.
Tang Long wielded his sword with both hands, killing the strange creature in an instant.
Hm?
Jiang Yan suddenly felt a chill in his left hand. A stream of black ash, invisible to ordinary people, flew out from the drifting ashes, circled once, then merged into his left hand.
Martial Arts Modifier: ... Weird Value: 5
As expected, Weird Value comes from strange creatures that have died.
Tang Long had killed the strange creature in just three moves: a lunge, a thrust, and an upward sweep.
Simple and efficient.
Jiang Yan noticed, though, that after killing the strange creature, Tang Long removed a Yellow Talisman from his sword.
What kind of talisman was that?
He felt more and more as if a mysterious, unfathomable world had revealed one of its wondrous corners to him.
After the strange creature was killed, the group settled down again. Nothing else happened, and Tang Long and Fei Shan successfully led everyone to Yuyang Village.
After hastily arranging their lodgings, the two men went back to rest as well.
Early the next morning, Jiang Yan and the others were roused and brought to a square in the center of the village.
There was nothing in the square. A few brick houses stood along its edge, their doors shut and locked.
As soon as Jiang Yan entered the square, his attention was drawn to a tall stone platform in its center. A pitch-black carp, a little over two feet long, floated above the platform. It looked perfectly ordinary, like a wooden carving left untouched for years.
He immediately guessed what it was.
It had to be a Rune Soldier.
Rune Soldiers were specially made by the authorities to defend against strange creatures in the wilderness. They were the most precious things in any village settlement.
"Jiang Yan, see that? The Rune Soldier here is a big carp."
Ren Tao seemed used to seeing the floating Rune Soldier, though its shape surprised him a little.
"What shape was the Rune Soldier in your previous village?"
"A snow-white long sword. It was beautiful."
Ren Tao answered casually.
"Do different Rune Soldier forms have different functions?"
Jiang Yan looked at the motionless carp on the stone platform and asked another question.
Ren Tao was stumped. How would he know?
"The Rune Soldiers in different villages serve much the same purpose. Their shapes differ only because they're made from different materials."
Tang Long walked in from the other side of the square. Hearing Jiang Yan's question, he answered casually.
"Captain Tang!" When everyone saw Tang Long arrive, they stopped talking and bowed to him with their fists clasped.
He turned around and smiled. "You've all joined the Patrol Mountain Hall. From now on, we're brothers. We don't have many rules here, so there's no need to be so formal."
His expression turned serious. "Next, I hope you'll remember every word I say, because it's important!"
Jiang Yan perked up his ears too and listened attentively.
The others gradually gathered around him. Tang Long said, "We have two things to do this morning. First, I'll teach you how to train in martial arts. Second, I'll go over some things to watch out for during patrols. Now, spread out and follow me through a set of movements."
Tang Long got straight to the lesson without wasting any time. Dawn was breaking, and every so often, villagers from Yuyang Village passed by carrying hoes.
Tang Long taught them a martial arts training method called Chopping Iron Four Forms, the standard training method for low-ranking members of the Dahe Gang.
It consisted of four forms. Performing them properly would gradually strengthen the body until one developed a sense of qi. He demonstrated all four forms five times, making the newcomers memorize them as best they could, then focused on the movements of Chopping Iron First Form.
The first form was the thrust he'd used to kill the Human Wraith the previous day.
Tang Long formed his hand into a sword and began demonstrating.
It was easy to see his left foot pressing into the ground as a ripple of muscle movement traveled from his legs and hips to his waist, chest, arms, and fingers, passing through each in turn. It was as if a swordsman held a long sword, the power building from the soles of his feet and surging upward before converging in the blade as he thrust at his enemy.
He repeated the movement five more times.
"The point of a thrust is to make every muscle and joint in your body contribute to the movement, training your overall physical condition. Practice this form deeply enough, and your qi and blood will surge through you. Those with good aptitude will develop a sense of qi. Once you reach that point, you'll be a Martial Apprentice."
He continued, "As you become more proficient, your strength and agility will improve. Chopping Iron Training Method has another advantage: this form trains your martial arts, but it's also a combat technique. I recommend practicing it with a weapon once you're stronger."
The group began practicing.
Tang Long walked among them, correcting their movements from time to time.
Jiang Yan performed the thrust with a serious expression. Although his muscles were stiff and his movements slow, his form was fairly accurate.
He repeated the movement again and again, trying to feel most of his muscles exerting force together and gradually refining his form.
Before long, all his muscles were aching.
That was normal. The exercise used many different muscles. As a medical student before he transmigrated, he understood why.
It was a good thing.
It meant the Chopping Iron Training Method really could make him stronger.
He had officially stepped onto the path of martial arts.
Before you continue