The First Realm of Martial Arts

The hour of the Goat had arrived, and the rain was gradually letting up.

Chu He rubbed his sore eyelids and slowly closed the illustrated volume, his mind little by little digesting the vast, turbulent world within its pages.

This place lay in the western part of the Great Qi Dynasty, within Tai Prefecture, one of its seven provinces. Misty Forest sat right at the edge of Tai Prefecture's western border.

Continuing west from Misty Forest led into the Earth-Woe Fog Sea, shrouded in mist and swallowed by darkness. The fog here drifted over from that sea. According to rumor, it was the birthplace of the strange.

Traveling east all the way would take one out of Misty Forest. After another several hundred li, one could reach Steed River City, the prefectural city of Tai Prefecture.

The Great Qi Dynasty had a unique terrain. Viewed as a whole, it resembled a dumpling wrapped between two sides: on one side lay the mysterious, unknown Earth-Woe Fog Sea; on the other stood the Border Immortal Mountains, soaring into the clouds and uncrossable by any man.

"At least I've got some idea now..."

Chu He opened his eyes and sorted through his thoughts. The illustrated volume not only introduced the customs and peoples of each province, but also covered rare treasures and exotic creatures. What interested Chu He most, however, was the classification of martial cultivation and the descriptions of cultivation methods.

The classification of martial cultivation was rather vague. It was not divided according to the realms of one's cultivation method, but according to changes in the strength of one's own qi and blood.

"I should be in the first realm now—the Blood Condensation Realm."

He clenched his fist. His muscles tensed, producing a sharp burst of air, while a thin layer of scorching blood-red light surfaced across his body.

This was the mark of the Blood Condensation Realm—External Blood Condensation!

Knock, knock—

Just as Chu He stood there blankly with his fist clenched, a knock suddenly sounded from outside.

He dispersed his qi and blood, tightened the saber at his waist, and pushed open the door.

"Who is it?"

Chu He walked up to the courtyard gate and asked cautiously.

"It's me, Junior Brother Chu."

Li Zhi?

A flicker of surprise crossed Chu He's heart as he recognized the visitor's voice.

With a creak, Chu He opened the courtyard gate and saw the languid-looking Li Zhi. Just as he was about to ask what was going on, Li Zhi spoke first.

"Let's talk inside."

Thoughtful, Chu He nodded and stepped aside.

Li Zhi entered the courtyard, and the two headed straight for the inner room.

The moment the door was shut, Chu He saw Li Zhi casually slouching sideways in a chair. "Junior Brother Chu, did you take the pills Eldest Senior Brother gave you?"

Chu He's expression did not change. "I did."

Li Zhi froze at that, turning to look at Chu He. Then he smiled. "Stop pretending. I know you didn't take them. I knew from the first moment I saw you."

Chu He raised a brow but did not deny it. "Senior Brother Li, don't tell me you came for my few pills too?"

"Don't joke around." Li Zhi made a joking remark, but the laziness on his face vanished in an instant, replaced by an indifferent sneer. "Heh. Who would eat something that harms people?"

Chu He's expression shifted slightly as he looked deeply at Li Zhi.

"What do you mean?"

"If you didn't take them, then you must have noticed something too. You know what I mean." Li Zhi sat upright, his expression grave. "Eldest Senior Brother and the village chief have secretly joined forces. Everyone in the village has become fish on their chopping block. We can't just sit here and wait to die!"

"Then what do you mean to do?"

Chu He leaned one shoulder against the wall, looking at him calmly.

"Junior Brother Chu, let's escape the village!"

"Oh? Hearing how righteously indignant you sounded just now, I thought you were going to drag me along to fight them to the death."

Chu He bared his teeth in a grin, teasing him.

"I know my own limits well enough." Li Zhi spread his hands and mocked himself. "We have no idea how strong they really are. If we went, we'd probably just be lambs walking into a tiger's maw—gone without return!"

"My idea is to flee the village immediately. Whether we find Master or go to town and report this matter, either is better than staying in the village with no guarantee of seeing tomorrow."

"True enough. You make a lot of sense." Chu He nodded, but in the next moment, his tone changed. "Then why didn't you go find Senior Brother Wu and the others? Why come to a rookie like me who only just broke through?"

"Heh, you think I didn't try?"

Li Zhi chuckled, curling his lip. "There's no need for me to say what kind of person Mao Chen is. As for Liu Ci, that guy's an idiot. He already took the pills, and sooner or later he'll become Eldest Senior Brother's puppet."

"As for Senior Brother Wu..." At the mention of Wu Feng, who had always had little presence, Li Zhi's smile faded, revealing a trace of gloom. "That guy is far more alert than we are. I'd guess that after the gathering that night, he quietly ran off by himself. I've been leading the patrols alone all this time."

"That does fit his style."

Chu He stroked his chin and agreed wholeheartedly.

Li Zhi crossed one leg over the other and looked at Chu He in puzzlement.

After hearing so much, Chu He was still as composed as ever, without the slightest sign of panic. Doubts immediately arose in Li Zhi's heart.

Was this guy truly unaware of how serious the situation was?

Or did he have something else to rely on?

"By the way, Senior Brother Li, do you know what the village chief intends by handing out those sculptures and having people burn incense?" Chu He turned and asked curiously.

"They may be raising venomous insects in a jar." In order to win Chu He over, Li Zhi explained tirelessly. "I tried lighting the incense. That night, I had two nightmares in a row, and I vaguely heard someone outside my window calling my name."

"So this incense can draw in the strange?"

"That's right, but it can only draw in grudge-class strange."

Understanding dawned on Chu He. The illustrated volume had briefly explained the ranks of the strange. Grudge-class strange were among the lowest-ranked, but they were still something ordinary people avoided like the plague. One careless mistake could cause widespread harm.

"As for the Land God sculptures, I'm not too sure, but I think they absorb people's essence, qi, and spirit." Recalling what had happened over the past few days, Li Zhi guessed, "The neighbors around me haven't been in good spirits these past few days."

"Drawing in the strange, weakening the villagers' bodies..." Chu He's gaze sharpened. He nodded solemnly. "Put that way, it really does seem like they're using the villagers' bodies to raise the strange."

"So? Are you leaving with me or not?"

"This..."

Li Zhi rose to his feet, walked to Chu He's side, and patted him on the shoulder. "Let me tell you something even worse. Since noon, I've noticed something watching me, observing my every move. That's enough to show Eldest Senior Brother can no longer hold back from making a move against us."

Chu He suddenly turned toward the outside of the room. Yet aside from the clarity after the rain and the dim sky, he sensed nothing unusual.

He turned back suspiciously. "How come I didn't notice anything?"

"You wouldn't have noticed even if it was right in front of you. This is my exclusive method."

Li Zhi seemed rather proud of this. Turning back, he asked again, "Are you coming or not? Give me a straight answer. Once tonight passes, you won't be able to leave even if you want to. Think it through."

Seeing that Li Zhi was already growing impatient, Chu He gave up on trying to squeeze any more useful information out of him.

He swept his gaze around the familiar yet unfamiliar little house, then silently sat on a stool. Just as Li Zhi was about to lose his patience, Chu He finally gave a heavy nod.

"Let's go!"