River God Festival

Fang Han sat at the bow, put the last piece of tiger meat into his mouth, chewed it carefully, and swallowed.

After eating two catties of tiger meat, a warm sensation slowly rose within him.

Fang Han closed his eyes and felt it carefully, discovering the nourishing effect brought by the tiger meat.

It was slightly inferior to a Blood-Qi Pill, but it was well worth the price.

What concerned him more was that this nourishing power had condensed into a warm cluster of qi, steadily lodged in his lower abdomen's dantian and refusing to disperse.

Warm and gentle, it pulsed faintly with his breathing.

Fang Han rose to his feet and assumed the opening stance of the Gale-Breaking Fist at the bow.

As his fist technique unfolded, his punches stirred the wind.

After mastering the Gale-Breaking Fist, Fang Han's understanding of this technique was no longer what it had once been.

With every punch he threw, the Blood Qi throughout his body surged endlessly alongside the movements of the technique.

He practiced tirelessly, every punch delivered with exhilarating force.

Then, at a certain moment, a sudden change occurred.

A wholly new force condensed within his body, echoing the two strands of Blood Qi from before.

A third strand of Blood Qi!

Fang Han was astonished. He had not expected that merely two catties of tiger meat would allow him to condense another strand of Blood Qi!

The more Blood Qi he condensed within his body, the stronger his confidence became.

Now that the third strand had formed, could the fourth and fifth be far behind?

As long as he kept growing stronger, kept improving, what Dragon King Gang? What Chen You? He would crush them all with a single punch!

"Stronger! Keep getting stronger!"

Fang Han clenched his fists, his gaze firm as iron.

The next day, the fifth day of the fifth month.

Today was the annual River God Festival.

The largest dock at the fish market was festooned with lanterns and decorations, draped in red and green, arranged with considerable grandeur.

A high platform had been erected in the center of the dock. An altar and offerings sat upon it, incense smoke curling through the air in a solemn, reverent scene.

The Dragon King Gang's members wore matching black short outfits, short blades hanging at their waists. They maintained order throughout the dock, their faces expressionless and their gazes cold.

Fang Han and Fang Ding stood among the crowd, having come to attend the River God Festival as well.

Fang Han frowned slightly, his expression grave as he looked at the sacrificial arrangements on the dock.

His gaze passed over the crowd and settled on several people dressed in luxurious brocade robes. They were representatives of the prominent families from the outer city.

At the center of the dock, atop the high platform, stood a middle-aged man in his thirties.

The moment Fang Han's eyes fell upon him, he could no longer look away.

The man wore a black brocade robe. His face was square and upright, his brows carrying a composed, steady air.

He simply stood there quietly on the platform, his hands clasped behind his back.

His gaze swept indifferently across the crowd, yet he gave off an oppressive presence like a mountain.

This man was Qiu Haiyou, the Dragon King Gang's leader!

Fang Han secretly studied him, his heart chilled.

Leader Qiu was no ordinary Martial Artist. The aura radiating from his very bones was powerful!

Fang Han withdrew his gaze, becoming even more cautious.

Until the auspicious hour approached.

A series of heavy drumbeats sounded across the dock.

Boom, boom, boom—three beats of the drum.

The crowd instantly fell silent. The clamor came to an abrupt stop, and every gaze focused on the high platform.

Qiu Haiyou slowly stepped forward to face the Dragon King River. He raised both hands above his head and began chanting under his breath.

His voice was not loud, yet it was exceptionally clear and penetrating. Everyone on the dock heard every word distinctly.

Fang Han listened closely for a few moments, yet could not understand a single word.

The syllables sounded ancient and awkward, unlike ordinary speech, more like some ancient incantation.

Then his gaze passed beyond Qiu Haiyou and fell behind him.

Below the platform, several gang members carried two tiny bridal sedans toward the edge of the dock.

The two sedans were exquisitely made but pitifully small, only a third the size of ordinary bridal sedans.

Through their windows, Fang Han vaguely saw a boy and a girl sitting inside, both only five or six years old!

The two children wore vacant expressions, their eyes hollow, as if terror had frightened them senseless.

They sat motionless in the sedans, unable even to cry.

Fang Han's heart suddenly sank.

"Offer sacrifice to the River God, and ensure peace!"

After Qiu Haiyou finished his eerie chanting, he suddenly shouted, his voice echoing over the river.

He waved his hand coldly, signaling his subordinates to carry the two little sedans onto a small wooden boat prepared in advance.

Several gang members swiftly carried the sedans aboard, placing them one before and one behind, then wrapping ropes around them several times to ensure they would not sway.

The small wooden boat was slowly pushed into the river, drifting with the current toward its center.

The dock was silent as death.

Fang Han stared fixedly at the small wooden boat as it drifted farther away, at the two vacant children in the sedans, his fists unconsciously clenching...

If he had not awakened the panel, if he had not learned martial arts and dealt with Zhou Dabao...

If his family had not been able to pay the later five taels of River God tribute silver...

Then the young girl sitting in the sedan this time, offered as a sacrifice to the River God, would likely have been his own little sister!

Fang Han's breathing became more hurried. It felt as though something were lodged in his chest, suffocating him with unbearable pressure.

He looked toward Qiu Haiyou, who stood on the distant platform with his hands behind his back, his eyes gradually turning cold.

The Dragon King Gang... truly deserved to die!

He took a deep breath and swept his gaze across the onlookers around him.

The expressions of the dockside commoners varied, but most wore numb looks of detached indifference.

Some whispered among themselves. Some stood on tiptoe to watch. Some expressionlessly watched the little boat drift farther and farther away, as though it were nothing more than an ordinary matter unrelated to them.

Only the families of the two children wept in heart-wrenching anguish.

Other than their cries, no other sound could be heard on the dock.

Fang Han watched this scene in silent reflection.

This was the Great Qian Dynasty, a world where strength was revered above all else.

The lives of those at the bottom were worthless. They could not even protect their own children.

Before the Dragon King Gang, these impoverished commoners could not summon even the thought of resistance. They could only endure whatever was done to them.

Far out on the river, the small wooden boat carrying the two tiny sedans drifted farther and farther away, gradually reaching the middle of the river.

Fang Han could not bear to witness the fate of those two children and was about to turn away.

Just then!

His pupils suddenly contracted. His whole body froze, his scalp tingling as though he had been struck by lightning!

In the scene reflected in his eyes, the previously mirror-still center of the Dragon King River suddenly began to churn violently, as though some enormous creature were thrashing beneath the water.

Then—

A huge head suddenly burst from the water, sending spray flying everywhere and glinting with a cold, sinister light beneath the sun.

It was the head of a flood dragon!

The flood dragon's head was enormous, entirely covered in jet-black scales. Each scale was the size of a palm, gleaming with a cold metallic luster in the sunlight.

Its vertical pupils were amber-colored, cold and merciless, enough to send chills down one's spine.

The Great Flood Dragon's huge maw opened slightly, revealing rows of ghastly white teeth, sharp as blades.

The dock instantly erupted into chaos.

"A Great Flood Dragon! It really is a Great Flood Dragon!"

"Run!"

Cries of alarm rose one after another as the crowd scattered in every direction like a receding tide, thrown into complete disorder.

Only Qiu Haiyou remained standing atop the platform.

His hands were clasped behind his back, and he did not move in the slightest.

As he looked at the massive flood dragon head in the middle of the river, the corners of his mouth even lifted slightly, revealing an unfathomable smile.

Fang Han stood where he was, fists clenched tightly, staring at the enormous, savage flood dragon head in the river's center, his heart filled with indescribable shock.

There really...

Really was a Great Flood Dragon!