Unrivaled with a Sword

[Initial Entry: Sword-Wielding Invincible (Colored)]

Great Cang Kingdom.

White Sheep County.

Inside a derelict house south of the city.

The moment he opened his eyes at dawn, a prompt appeared above Shen Zhou's head—one only he could see.

He wasn't surprised by this.

After all, it was common knowledge that transmigrators came with cheat abilities.

The problem, however, was that he didn't feel any change in himself at all.

"Is this cheat a dud?"

Shen Zhou wondered inwardly, then analyzed the entry. "'Sword-Wielding Invincible'—does that mean I need a sword first?"

With that thought, he looked down at himself.

Fifteen years old, fair-skinned, with delicate features, but possessing nothing of value—his pockets turned out emptier than his face.

Of course, he couldn't blame himself for that.

Who asked him to transmigrate into a little beggar with no identity, no background, and no origin?

Since he was a beggar, this situation wasn't strange.

He looked around.

The ruined house was dilapidated. Aside from the dry grass he'd gathered to sleep on, the only things left were a few roof beams and some broken tiles and bricks from a collapsed corner.

But this didn't stump him.

"Who says a sword has to be a standard iron sword? Isn't a wooden sword still a sword?"

Shen Zhou raised an eyebrow and silently gave himself a thumbs-up for his cleverness.

He decided to give it a try.

So, among the pile of junk, he quickly found a relatively suitable piece of wood. Using the broken hatchet he usually kept for self-defense, he chopped and trimmed it. In no time, a forearm-length wooden sword appeared—rough-surfaced, its overall lines uneven.

The moment the wooden sword took shape, Shen Zhou grasped it.

Instantly, a surging power erupted from within him without reason, flooding through his limbs and bones. The overwhelming sensation made him unable to resist swinging the sword casually toward the outside of the ruined house.

A crescent-shaped Sword Qi shot out.

Puff, puff, puff...

The waist-high weeds in the desolate courtyard were instantly severed at their stems. Then, with a bang, a discarded stone mill base was split in two, the cut as smooth as a mirror, as if naturally formed.

"Sss... it actually works!"

Shen Zhou sucked in a sharp breath, disbelief and delight flickering in his eyes.

He hadn't expected that with just an "entry," without any cultivation, he could possess such immense power. It was simply outrageous.

"With this ability, where in the world can't I go?"

Looking at the wooden sword in his hand, Shen Zhou felt a surge of boldness, finally gaining the confidence to roam this world.

But before he could celebrate for long, the wooden sword in his hand—having unleashed Sword Qi and being too fragile to withstand it—finally snapped with a crack, crumbling into dust that drifted to the ground.

As the wooden sword vanished and his hand was empty again, the mysterious power inside Shen Zhou drained away like water leaking from a jar, disappearing without a trace in an instant.

"..."

Seeing this result, Shen Zhou was stunned.

So it really was "Sword-Wielding Invincible"—without the sword, he was nothing, right?

Just as Shen Zhou was thinking about where to get a real sword sturdy enough to withstand his abuse, three other little beggars emerged from a pile of dry grass in another corner of the ruined house.

These three beggars were all young—fourteen, thirteen, and eleven years old.

Two boys and one girl.

They were people Shen Zhou's previous self had met while begging on the streets, and later they'd teamed up to scrounge for a living.

Now, they'd been woken by the commotion.

The second-in-command of the four, "A Dai," rubbed his sleepy eyes and looked over, asking, "Zhou laoda, what are you clattering about so early?"

The third, with a round head and some pockmarks on his face, giving him a spotted look, was called "San Mazi." He yawned and muttered, "I think I heard Zhou laoda chopping wood—are you cooking something?"

At the mention of food, San Mazi perked up instantly, sitting upright. But after scanning the room and finding nothing to eat, he slumped back down.

Then even the youngest, the little girl Xi Mei, couldn't help saying, "Zhou gege, I'm hungry too."

A Dai glanced at the sky outside and said, "It's getting late. We should go out and beg."

With that, A Dai, San Mazi, and Xi Mei all stood up. As they were about to leave, they looked back at Shen Zhou, who seemed not to have reacted yet, and called out, "Zhou laoda, what are you spacing out for? Let's go."

Shen Zhou's expression froze.

Wait—I'm invincible under heaven, and you still want me to go begging?

Not long after, four little beggars appeared on the southern street.

Watching A Dai and the other two begging on the street, Shen Zhou crouched at the roadside with a gloomy expression, whittling a wooden sword.

After all, this was the weapon that would make him 'invincible.'

Until he got an iron sword, he'd probably have to rely on this thing.

Just thinking about it was a pain in the ass!

Even more annoying was that he, a man who was invincible under heaven, had to beg for food here—there was no one else like him!

Just then, the three little ones came back with two flatbreads, and the four of them shared the meal.

While eating, Shen Zhou couldn't help asking the three: "A Dai, say a person's already invincible—how would he go about making money fast in the city?"

After all, he'd only transmigrated here not long ago. Even with the memories of this body, his knowledge was still limited.

Hearing this question, the three little ones perked up with interest.

San Mazi spoke first: "He could be a thief, steal from the rich folks. I heard last month some squire in the county got robbed—lost tens of thousands of silver taels at once."

Shen Zhou's forehead darkened. "Can you think of something proper? An invincible guy becoming a thief—how shameful is that? If he gets famous later, how's he supposed to show his face?"

Xi Mei, chewing on her flatbread, chimed in: "He could open a martial hall. I've seen lots of them in the county town. That line of work must make good money, or why would so many people open one?"

Shen Zhou pondered for a moment and said, "That idea's proper enough, but opening a hall and taking disciples needs capital to set up shop. The returns are too slow. Got anything else?"

Then A Dai finally spoke. He was always more sensible and steady than the other two younger ones. Frowning, he said, "If this person's really that strong and wants quick money, he could go challenge a hall."

Shen Zhou looked at him doubtfully. "Challenge a hall? How does that make money?"

A Dai said, "Every martial hall has to pay a deposit to the city lord's office before opening. That's to stop people from taking tuition fees and running off. According to the rules of the martial world, if someone successfully challenges a hall, that hall has to take down its signboard. The signboard goes to the victor, and the victor can claim the deposit with it.

In the past, many accomplished martial artists who wanted to make a name for themselves would challenge halls. If they won, they got both money and fame.

It's a kind of encouragement for martial artists!"

After hearing this, Shen Zhou's eyes lit up.

This idea seemed pretty good.

No time like the present!

Even though he'd transmigrated, Shen Zhou still had the impatient nature of a post-millennial from his old life—once something was on his mind, he couldn't bear to delay a single moment.

He quickly stuffed the rest of his flatbread into his mouth, picked up the three short wooden swords he'd finished carving, stood up, and said with fighting spirit: "Let's go. I'll take you to challenge a hall. When we win, we'll trade it for cash and eat at a restaurant!"

"..." The three little ones stood frozen in place.

So the 'invincible person' you were talking about was yourself?

At the entrance of Ma's Martial Hall.

Shen Zhou and the three little ones looked up at the signboard hanging above the door, each wearing a different expression.

Shen Zhou's eyes were bright, sharp as an eagle's.

In his eyes, that signboard was now a big chunk of silver, just waiting for him to reach out and take it.

But in the eyes of the three little ones, that signboard was a tall, ferocious beast, waiting for them to walk in so it could swallow them whole.

Because of this, A Dai looked at Shen Zhou with worry and asked hesitantly, "Zhou boss, you're not really going through with this, are you?"

San Mazi swallowed nervously and added, "Zhou boss, I think we'd better not go. I heard the master of Ma's Martial Hall is a 'Blood Coagulation Eighth Grade' martial artist. His 'Horse-Breaking Fist' and 'Blazing Sun Art' are no joke. If you go in there, you might..."

He didn't finish the sentence, but the meaning was clear.

Even Xi Mei didn't have faith in Shen Zhou, her little face tense with nervousness.

The cultivation realms for martial artists: Blood Coagulation, Qi Transformation, Heavenly Firmament... the three early major realms, each step a hurdle.

'Blood Coagulation Eighth Grade' might not sound like much, but to ordinary people, it was absolutely a master among masters among masters.

But for Shen Zhou, who had already obtained his 'trait,' it meant nothing at all.

Shen Zhou didn't bother looking at their faces. He just said confidently, "Relax. Didn't I just tell you? I'm already invincible under heaven. What are you afraid of? Come on, let's go in and take down their signboard!"

With that, Shen Zhou strode into the martial hall first.

Behind him, A Dai and the other two wanted to stop him, but they were too slow.

San Mazi watched Shen Zhou's back and couldn't help lamenting, "Yesterday the four of us were still being chased all over the street by Old Black and his gang from the next block. It's only been one night—how did he suddenly become invincible under heaven?"

A Dai sighed helplessly too, but since Shen Zhou had already gone in, and they always stuck together through thick and thin, they could only hurry in after him.

When A Dai and the other two entered, Shen Zhou had already explained his purpose to a martial hall apprentice inside. The apprentice immediately lost his composure, pointing at Shen Zhou and laughing so hard he doubled over: "Challenge the hall? You? Hahaha... Brothers, come quick! Someone's here to entertain us!"

Not content to laugh alone, he turned and called over the other twenty or so apprentices who were practicing their punches inside. After he repeated Shen Zhou's purpose, the room erupted in another wave of jeering laughter.

"What day is it today? Someone actually came to our door to put on a show for us—how fresh!"

"I recognize these little brats. They're the little beggars from the street. They can't even fill their bellies most days, and now they're pretending to challenge a hall? What a joke!"

"No, no, no... maybe he's actually a hidden master, just been living the simple life, cultivating his martial arts... pfft hahaha... sorry, I can't keep a straight face..."

Watching the martial arts school's disciples laughing without restraint, A Dai and his two companions felt their faces burn with shame as they stood behind him.

This was truly humiliating!

Shen Zhou's expression slowly darkened, anger rising in his eyes.

If he didn't teach them a lesson, these people would really think he'd come to make a fool of himself!

A sharp glint flashed in Shen Zhou's eyes. He grabbed one of the three wooden swords tucked at his waist.

In an instant, the trait activated, power surging into him!

He casually swung it toward a guest tea table in the main hall of the martial arts school.

One motion, one sound.

The solid wood table shattered into splinters on the floor.

The roomful of laughter stopped dead.

When it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, Shen Zhou spoke again: "Now, can you go get your master?"