Blessed with Fortune and a Tough Life

Chen Xuewen's anxiety lessened slightly.

He could tell that these two people really didn't intend to kill him.

Therefore, the conversation about the crime just now was not a deliberate act of torment and humiliation before the murder.

If that's the case...

"I've heard that as long as someone hasn't committed a capital crime, they can have their punishment reduced if they perform meritorious service?"

Chen Xuewen immediately said, "If I persuade the martial arts practitioners of Chenjiagou to join the Great Han Government, wouldn't that count as making a contribution?"

Huo Ming's expression shifted slightly as he looked towards the village entrance.

Yes, although right now, those people are all lying on the ground.

However, based on his previous instances of secretly scouting the area,

Among the people of Chenjiagou, there were many skilled martial artists, and some even carried foreign guns and had practiced marksmanship.

Many of these people would be more than qualified to join the army and become physical training instructors.

Huo Ming said, "Then go and try it now."

Chen Xuewen thought to himself that although the gunman who captured him was brave and fierce, he was actually quite cunning.

Chu Tianshu, who had defeated almost everyone, stood right here.

At times like these, persuading the people of Chenjiagou is the most effective approach.

Chen Xuewen cupped his hands in a respectful gesture, then turned and walked away.

Chu Tianshu leaned against the truck, arms crossed, and said, "Whether he can persuade the people of Chenjiagou to join the army or not, he must ensure that the people of Chenjiagou do not go anywhere else in Yu Province recently and let on the news that Liu Xueya has been captured by me."

Huo Ming was startled and looked at the truck.

"Is this Liu Xueya herself?!"

Although he guessed that it was the Song-Pacifying Army that had come, he did not expect that it was Liu Xueya himself leading the team.

Upon closer inspection, it was then realized that the face stained with mud, ash, and blood was indeed Liu Xueya's.

Didn't I just run headfirst into Doctor Chu's hand?

"Since it's that villain Liu Xueya, how could Doctor Chu spare his life..."

Huo Ming thought for a moment and then understood, "Doctor Chu wants to peacefully take over Western Henan?"

Chu Tianshu said, "Complete peace is impossible, but if we try to maintain stability, everyone's lives will be more comfortable."

"Send a telegram to the Han Prefecture and ask them to send me as many helpers as possible."

Huo Ming nodded repeatedly. "We already have a complete plan for the overall situation in Shaanxi."

"If Doctor Chu stays here for more than half a month, we will have a large number of people who can cross Shaanxi to come and help."

Half a month.

Chu Tianshu glanced at Chenjiagou.

The brick-walled and tiled houses are arranged in neat rows, and the dirt roads in the village are well-organized.

Standing at the village entrance, due to the higher elevation, one can vaguely see the large training ground for martial arts practice to the side and rear of the village.

One can imagine how many places in this medium-sized village bear the marks of rigorous martial arts practice since the whole village has had the leisure to practice martial arts.

Unfortunately, for Chu Tianshu now, this level of martial arts training village no longer holds much appeal.

"If it's for half a month, then I plan to stay in Luoyang for a while."

Chu Tianshu looked up at the sky; the blue sky was high and distant, and the white clouds were inviting.

Luoyang City and Chenjiagou are both under the same sky.

"What does this ancient capital look like now? It always piques people's curiosity even more."

"Moreover, according to the newspapers, Yuan Shikai was previously building the Xigong Barracks there, intending to make it one of the top modern army barracks in the country."

"The Yuan family fell quickly, and there wasn't much time for that side to have a significant impact, but I heard the buildings are already complete, so it's worth a visit."

Huo Ming fell into deep thought after hearing this.

Chu Tianshu turned around again and reached out to grab him.

A suction force slid Liu Xueya across the truck chassis to the edge.

Liu Xueya coughed repeatedly, her swollen eyelids barely managing to open.

Then he saw a hand holding a silver needle fall down above his face.

The Evil Spirit from before had a deep connection with Liu Xueya; forcibly pulling it out would leave him nearly exhausted.

Chu Tianshu deliberately let him rest for a while before inserting the needles, intending to confuse his mind and elicit information.

In an instant, Liu Xueya's face was covered with a ring of silver needles, like scattered flower petals, with the ends of the needles all pointing outwards.

This person has been tainted by Evil Spirit spirits and their yin energy, making their physical constitution vastly different from that of ordinary people.

Chu Tianshu held his pulse with his left hand, carefully sensing his physical condition, while continuously inserting needles with his right hand.

After inserting thirty-two needles, they finally inserted one more into the top of his head.

Huo Ming snapped out of his daze and observed quietly from the side.

After the needle landed on his head, Chu Tianshu flicked his middle finger.

The needle's tail made a soft buzzing sound, and Liu Xueya also let out a hiccup.

Chu Tianshu asked, "Do you know that you're worshipping Plague God?"

Liu Xueya said, confused, "I know."

"Then tell me in detail the whole story of your encounter with this Plague God."

As soon as Chu Tianshu finished speaking, Liu Xueya began to recount her past.

After Yuan Shikai's downfall, rumors spread that the ancient city of Luoyang, a prime location, would surely be occupied by a few leaders of the Northern military faction.

However, back then, Yi Province and Bashu jointly launched the movement to protect the country and oppose Yuan Shikai.

Yuan Shikai had some idea of what was going on in Yi Province, but he had no idea that Bashu would join forces with him.

Several key figures under the president were urgently mobilized at that time.

Among them were people who were personally killed by Liu Yanqi in the command post near the front lines.

Later, Cao Bokun, who inherited the greatest power of the Northern Army, focused most of his efforts on Liaodong.

Furthermore, because he was assassinated by the Dongying, he became even more unwilling to retreat, constantly advancing his troops and eliminating hostile forces near Liaodong.

For a time, Luoyang became a no-man's land.

Liu Xueya was greatly tempted at that time, seized the opportunity, surrendered to the Cao Family, and at the same time sent troops to Luoyang, thus creating the de facto occupation of Luoyang.

During that period, he was filled with anxiety, knowing that he could either Qingyun Sect or fall into the abyss in an instant.

Often, even after midnight, he would still not sleep, wandering around outside, worshipping gods in temples and Buddhas in sight.

May the spirit of Luoyang, this ancient capital, bless him so that he can hold onto this great city.

To show his sincerity, he would bring offerings of three kinds of sacrificial animals when he worshipped the gods, but for some reason, the more he worshipped, the more uneasy he felt, and he was always sleepy and lacked energy.

The leader of the swordsmen, who had an excellent foundation in martial arts, had become somewhat susceptible to colds and was not paying attention.

One day, when he went to worship the gods at the ruins of Luoyang, the ancient capital of the Eastern Han Dynasty, he was in a car accident, and the offerings of sacrifices overturned in the field.

From within the overgrown weeds, a fierce, emerald-green aura suddenly surged forth, stretching across the sky like a rainbow or a long bridge.

Bathed in the azure light, Liu Xueya turned around abruptly, only to discover that she was being followed by a large group of demons and monsters.

A strange man with limbs as thin as bamboo poles and joints bent backwards, an official robe floating in mid-air, a wild dog with only its head remaining—a jumbled mess, too numerous to see at a glance.

It turned out that the Dragon Vein was returning, and he was worshipping randomly in the ancient city, unintentionally attracting many fierce and Evil Spirit spirits. Because of his irritability and depression, and the evil spirits he had attracted by burning incense many times, his mind was clouded, and even with his martial arts intuition, he failed to distinguish and be alert.

Fortunately, he had a relatively good physical foundation and was often accompanied by many soldiers with strong yang energy, and he often watched the soldiers practice shooting.

The sounds of gunpowder and cannons, almost like thunder, startled away some weak Evil Spirit.

Otherwise, he would have been killed by those Evil Spirit long ago.

That day, the sacrificial offerings overturned in the field were just the beginning.

Importantly, the malevolent Evil Spirit that Liu Xueya brought with her happened to be positioned in the direction of the sacrificial offerings.

The Zhongping Plague God was thus completely unsealed, descending halfway down and attaching himself to Liu Xueya, causing his swordsmanship to increase dramatically over the past six months.

Chu Tianshu couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement upon hearing this.

This bandit leader is incredibly lucky; if any one of these things he did had been missing, he would have died halfway through.

He actually managed to hold on until the very end and gained the possession of Ghost God.

However, the Plague God had been worn down to an extreme degree and was difficult to recover.

Only by demonstrating the majesty befitting the god of plague can the foundation be gradually repaired.

Although Liu Xueya was a fool, he couldn't possibly be happy to see a major plague break out in the territory he had already occupied.

Eastern Henan was close to the main force of the northern military forces, the Song-Pacifying Army dared not expand in that direction, so it set its sights on Shaanxi.

With the help of Ghost God and gods, he sent people to spread the plague over there several times, but before the plague could spread, it was dealt with.

Over the past thousand years, medical techniques have advanced.

Ordinary plague ailments can be prevented and treated by even some untrained doctors who have read a little about medicine.

The Plague God was dissatisfied with the repeated setbacks and felt that the quality of the offerings was too poor.

Liu Xueya then thought of the people from Chenjiagou.

If all these martial arts masters are captured and used to cultivate plague energy, the resulting plague will certainly not be easily prevented or controlled.

The Rainbow Half-Body, without a trace or form, remained in Luoyang alongside the plague, while he personally led a team to Chenjiagou.

"Then..."

Liu Xueya's eyes were glazed over, and she said resentfully, "Then, I met someone who also worshipped a great god, and he even possessed divine power."

"We all worship the same deity, even if we're not from the same family, we're still brothers in arms, how could he cut me so badly?"

Who's going to share your pants?!

Chu Tianshu slapped him unconscious, ending the interrogation.

(End of this chapter)