We're practicing all martial arts, so why did you switch to easy mode?

Chapter 150 The Protagonist by Fate? A Twist of Fate

Su Chen hadn't expected that the old man with the five missing pieces would hide the cowhide on his 'body'. He wanted to tell the old man that he had a knife and there was no need to be so cruel, but when he saw the old man commit suicide on the spot, he fell silent.

After a long while, Su Chen put the cowhide away, took the body of the Five-Deficiency Old Man, found a place in the suburbs to bury him, and left a wooden tablet with the inscription 'Tomb of the Five-Deficiency Old Man'.

After doing all this, Su Chen left Da Yan City and, following the leather map given to him by the Five Lacking Elder, found the vicinity of the nameless mountain described on the map.

It was already daylight, and Su Chen was too lazy to rest. After a quick bite in the small town at the foot of the mountain, he went into the mountain alone.

The map was very detailed, so Su Chen only needed to follow the route on the map. The only problem was that the Five Lacking Elder had not been into the mountains for many years, so he did not know that the scenery in the mountains had changed slightly.

Fortunately, it's not a big problem.

It wasn't until the afternoon that Su Chen finally found the location on the leather map.

To his disappointment, however, he looked around and found no trace of the Fire Blood Ginseng King.

He was somewhat unwilling to give up, so he searched every place within a kilometer radius, almost turning the place upside down, but still found nothing.

"The old man with the five deficiencies wouldn't deceive himself on this issue. The only explanation is that he once found the Fire Blood Ginseng King here, but so much time has passed. Even if the Fire Blood Ginseng King exists, it may have been discovered by someone else long ago."

Su Chen was somewhat disappointed after returning empty-handed. He had searched for so long but still couldn't find any trace of the Fire Blood Ginseng King. He had thought there would be hope this time, but reality gave him a rude awakening.

He quickly descended the mountain, already determined to inquire about the Fire Blood Ginseng King of the Chu Clan.

"I remember meeting someone from the Chu family before. He wanted to invite me to join the Chu family. I don't know how high his status is in the Chu family. Although I don't plan to join the Chu family, I can trade with him. I just don't know if he is willing to trade with me."

Su Chen pondered, realizing he had no intention of joining the Chu family; instead, he wanted to make a deal with them.

After all, joining the Chu family might mean marrying into the family, but a transaction doesn't require that.

As dusk fell, Su Chen returned to the Wanglai Restaurant. As soon as he entered, the man recognized him and said, "You've come at the right time. Someone else has taken your mission."

Upon hearing this, Su Chen showed no sign of surprise, but instead asked calmly, "Where will he choose to trade this time?"

"This time it's not in the suburbs, but at the Grand View Garden."

"When?" Su Chen asked expressionlessly.

The masked man replied, "Tonight."

"Help me find out the identity of the Chu family members who went to Dafeng City in Qinzhou a while ago," Su Chen nodded and then said.

"Okay, I'll give you a deposit of one hundred taels first."

"When will we get the results?" Su Chen asked.

"tonight."

After listening, Su Chen took out a hundred-tael silver note, handed it to the other party, and then turned and left.

Seeing Su Chen leave, the masked man picked up the century-old silver note on the table and muttered to himself with a smile, "This must have been the one who killed Zhao Si's men last night. It's a pity that the Little Chu Gang is too stingy and doesn't care about Zhao Si's life or death at all."

Thirty taels? You think you can find out about my patron with just thirty taels? Hmph, what a pipe dream! Don't even think about getting information about my patron without five hundred taels.

With a creak, the room door suddenly opened, revealing Su Chen's calm face. The masked man was so startled that his hand trembled, and the silver notes fell onto the table. He looked at Su Chen in surprise and chuckled dryly, "Why are you back again?"

"I've forgotten where it is," Su Chen said, giving the masked man a deep look.

"The Yihong Courtyard, the biggest Yihong Courtyard in the city." The masked man said with some emotion, but quickly calmed down. Seeing that Su Chen was about to leave, he reminded him, "Close the door behind you!"

Watching the departing figure at the door, the masked man breathed a sigh of relief. This Su Chen was truly elusive; he had really given him a fright just now. He wondered if Su Chen had heard him.

"One hundred taels is too low. Without a thousand taels, don't even think about finding out the murderer!"

To calm his shock, he took it upon himself to exaggerate the value of the news, to show his full respect for his benefactor, and certainly not because he was worried that Su Chen would harm him.

Yihongyuan.

"Help! Someone's trying to dine and dash at a brothel!"

The brothel was at its liveliest at night, but amidst the hustle and bustle, a piercing sound broke the silence.

The madam, accompanied by a group of guards, burst into the room. Seeing the man in blue robes wolfing down his food, she glared angrily: "You little rascal, daring to come to the brothel and freeload..."

She glanced at the girl whose clothes were intact and continued, "He's just wasting his time. He's practically asking for death. Someone, drag him out and beat him until he throws up everything he ate and drank."

"Yes!"

The guards, wielding long staffs, shouted and were about to seize the man in blue when they saw him slowly raise the hand holding the chicken leg and mumble, "Wait!"

He looked at the madam, smiled contemptuously, and asked, "Who told you I came here to dine and dash?"

"I've touched you all over, and you don't have a single penny. You're still saying you're not here to dine and dash!" the girl said angrily, hands on her hips.

The man in blue sneered, "Do I look like someone who would dine and dash? To tell you the truth, the person who will pay will be here soon. Hurry up and bring me another table of food so I can entertain my distinguished guest."

"You little brat, how dare you spout such nonsense! Arrest him and give him a good beating first!" The madam was furious upon hearing this.

"Hey, hey, don't make a move, the person who's going to pay is here..." The man in blue, who had been so imposing just moments before, suddenly changed color when he saw the swarm of guards rushing towards him, but he quickly pointed at Su Chen at the door and said.

The madam turned around and saw that there really was someone behind her. She walked up and looked at Su Chen suspiciously. When she saw Su Chen's sharp gaze, she couldn't help but tremble.

“I paid for his money.”

Su Chen glanced at the man in blue, whose features matched exactly those described by the masked man, and thus confirmed his identity. He then spoke.

Upon hearing this, the madam immediately put on a smile full of rouge and powder: "Yes, yes, sir, please come in."

The guards withdrew, the madam left, and a table was set with food. Only Su Chen and the man in blue remained in the room.

Seeing that Su Chen was just sitting, the man in blue said familiarly, "Eat up, you eat too!"

Su Chen didn't speak, but just stared at the other person indifferently. The man in blue didn't seem embarrassed at all and ate very ravenously.

He ate for a full half hour, his mouth greasy with food, and then let out a satisfied burp before finally stopping.

Snapped!
Before he could speak, Su Chen took out a silver note and said, "This is ten thousand taels. Where is your information?"

"I don't want money!" the man in blue smiled faintly and shook his head.

Su Chen's eyes narrowed slightly, and he remained silent, waiting for the man in blue to speak. The man in blue then said, "I have only one condition."

"What conditions?"

"Are you a warrior?"

Upon hearing this, the man in blue did not state his conditions, but instead asked a seemingly irrelevant question, a hint of anticipation in his eyes.

"So what if it is?" Su Chen asked impatiently.

Upon hearing this, the man in blue stood up, bowed deeply to Su Chen under his astonished gaze, and then looked up and said, "I would like to ask you to teach me martial arts."

"These are your conditions?" Su Chen chuckled.

The man in blue ignored Su Chen's laughter and nodded solemnly, his face full of determination.

Su Chen suddenly stood up, his eyes sharp as knives. Instantly, a bone-chilling coldness enveloped the man in blue. Sensing Su Chen's coldness, he said, "As long as you teach me martial arts, I will tell you about the Fire Blood Ginseng King."

He met Su Chen's gaze without flinching: "Unless you can break through the Chu family's defenses and snatch the Fire Blood Ginseng King from their family, the information I have is your best option."

"If you don't talk, I'll kill you!"

Su Chen's gaze darkened, and the surrounding air suddenly turned to freezing point as his killing intent emanated.

Even so, the man in blue remained unmoved.

His face was resolute, and his eyes were piercing: "I came here with the conviction that I would die."

His words carried a resolute tone that even moved Su Chen.

He looked directly at Su Chen, a smile suddenly appearing on his face: "Besides, I'm pretty good at judging people. You probably won't kill me, after all, the information I'm about to tell you isn't fake."

After a brief pause, he added, "Most importantly, I'm very lucky. Even when I encounter danger, I always manage to turn it into safety and escape misfortune."

Upon hearing this, Su Chen withdrew his aura and asked, "Why do you want to learn martial arts?"

"My parents died early, my family property was seized by my uncles, and I lost my position as clan leader. My older sister was forced into marriage by the family, and I was dumped by my fiancée because I was a martial arts failure... With such a tragic background, shouldn't I learn martial arts?"

After listening to the man in blue's story, Su Chen's lips twitched slightly.

This character is both a good-for-nothing and a jilted engagement; it sounds like a protagonist archetype.

He suddenly asked, "What's your surname? Xiao Lin Ye Shi? Or Li Chu Qin Chen?"

"My surname is Su!" Su Chen: "...!"

After a moment of silence, Su Chen stood up and asked, "Where do you live?"

"I'll take you there." The man in blue was delighted to hear this.

The two walked towards the door, the madam's eyes fixed on them. After Su Chen paid, she immediately became amiable.

Upon seeing this, the man in blue gave a haughty snort.

After traveling for about half an hour, the two arrived at a secluded and simple courtyard. The man in blue said, "This is it."

Su Chen glanced at it but didn't pay any attention and went inside, with the man in blue following closely behind.

"Start now!"

Upon entering the courtyard, Su Chen suddenly asked, "Now?", causing the man in blue to pause in surprise.

The next moment, he saw Su Chen grab his arm and push him onto the stone bench, where the two sat down facing each other.

Su Chen closed his eyes and used the power within his body to test each one.

The opponent indeed had no martial arts skills, so to prevent his body from being injured by the force, he did not use much of it.

Five different energies circulated within the man in blue, and Su Chen quickly determined the suitable cultivation method for him. He opened his eyes, looked at the puzzled man, and said, "Bring me paper and pen."

The man in blue nodded hurriedly, got up quickly, took out paper and pen from the room, and handed them to Su Chen.

Su Chen memorized the Fiery Cloud Transformation technique, which was the most suitable cultivation method for men when he had just tested it.

A moment later, Su Chen finished writing down the cultivation technique from memory. The man in blue was overjoyed and reached out to take it to read it, but Su Chen stopped him.

He was taken aback for a moment, then chuckled and said, "A while ago, the Chu family sent a team to the prefectural city. The treasure they were escorting was the Fire Blood Ginseng King. The team set off just yesterday. If you go to chase after them now, you might be able to catch up."

Did you leave yesterday?
Upon hearing this, Su Chen paused for a moment, then seemed to remember something and asked, "Will they pass through Sifang City?"

The man in blue nodded: "Yes, to get to the prefectural city, you naturally have to pass through Sifang City."

"Hey, what are you doing?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than the man in blue saw Su Chen stand up and disappear before his eyes in the blink of an eye, which startled him, and he couldn't help but ask.

Su Chen did not answer. After the man in blue revealed the news about the Fire Blood Ginseng King, his mind went blank, and he immediately remembered the information he had learned from the Red Ying Sect before he came.

He hadn't paid much attention at the time, but now, combining the two, he immediately realized that the treasure the Red Heroes Sect wanted to steal was the Fire Blood Ginseng King that the man in blue had mentioned.

The thought of missing out on the Fire Blood Ginseng King made Su Chen move even faster, as if he had turned into a gust of wind, quickly traversing through the forest.

It had been a day since the Chu family's team set off. If it weren't for the Red Hero Sect's ambush, he wouldn't be in such a hurry.

Although he didn't know the overall strength of the Chu family's team, the Red Hero Sect's preparations were quite thorough, and he was genuinely worried that the Red Hero Sect would ultimately prevail if the two sides clashed.

In this case, obtaining the Fire Blood Ginseng King would be extremely difficult for him.

"Please wait for me!"

Su Chen looked anxious and muttered to himself.

……

Laifu Inn.

The silence was eerily quiet.

Disguised as a traveler, innkeeper, and waiter, Hongying taught everyone to maintain the awkward atmosphere, but her gaze kept drifting into the distance, as if she was waiting for something.

Tapping.

After an unknown amount of time, a hurried figure rushed in. Everyone recognized the person and adopted an eager-to-try attitude.

"Has the Chu family's army arrived?"

Since everyone here was one of their own, they didn't hold back and asked directly.

The newcomer shook his head and said angrily, "Vice Leader, we've been tricked. The Chu family's group has no intention of staying at the inn at all. They're going to stop at Kaoshan Village, which is thirty miles away, and plan to pass by the inn early tomorrow morning!"

"what?!"

Upon hearing this, the vice-leader's face darkened. No wonder he hadn't seen the Chu family's group after waiting for so long; it turned out they had no intention of spending the night at the inn.

"Vice Leader, why don't we just charge straight in?"

Someone spoke up, and the rest of the crowd nodded in agreement. Thirty li was not a long distance for them.

Without hesitation, the vice-leader waved his hand and shouted, "Grab your weapons!"

The group changed their clothes, rushed out of the inn, transformed into messengers of the night, and sped towards Kaoshan Village.

In less than two hours, the group arrived at Kaoshan Village and found Chu's carriage in a large courtyard.

There was a group of Chu people guarding the courtyard, about a dozen of them.

"Vice Leader, look at that box!" someone exclaimed excitedly, pointing to a large box in the middle of the group, as if they had seen a treasure inside.

The others looked in the direction of the sound and saw the box that was tied up tightly. Their eyes lit up immediately.

"That box might contain the patriarch's most precious treasure."

"Vice Master, when shall we make our move? My broadsword is itching for action."

"Yeah, it's just a dozen or so guards. I can kill them all in no time."

Everyone chimed in, eager to try it out.

The vice leader didn't speak, but raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet. He glanced at the sky and said in a deep voice, "Wait until around four in the morning before making a move."

Time passed slowly. The Chu family's guards were rotated, and a new batch of guards would be replaced around midnight, but the number of guards remained the same.

Soon it was the fourth watch of the night. The long wait made the members of the Red Ying Sect feel sleepy, but it also relieved the fatigue of the journey. In addition, since everyone was a martial artist with an extraordinary physique, they did not appear to be very tired.

"Do it!"

The vice-leader estimated that the time was almost up, so he gave an order.

Contrary to expectations, there was no screaming or shouting. After he gave the order, more than twenty figures darted out like monkeys, appearing and disappearing into the Chu clan's ranks. Just as they were about to silently eliminate the guards, a bell rang out from the courtyard.

"Enemy attack!"

A sharp sound suddenly rang out, instantly shattering the silence of the night. Hearing the commotion, the members of the Red Ying Cult no longer intended to hide and quickened their pace in action.

"They are people from the Hongying Sect."

When the Chu family guards recognized the identities of the Red Ying Cult members, their expressions changed, and they drew their swords in defense.

Before long, the sound of swords clashing came from the courtyard, and the scene suddenly became chaotic.

"You scoundrels from the Red Heroes Sect, how dare you raid my Chu Clan's army! You're really asking for trouble!" A rough voice roared, and a burly man, as strong as an ox, wielding a wolf-tooth hammer, strode out of the door with the stride of a dragon and the gait of a tiger, and immediately spotted the vice sect leader.

"The box is empty."

Suddenly, a member of the Red Ying Sect who opened the box shouted.

Upon hearing this, the burly man laughed wildly and said, "If you want to seize the Fire Blood Ginseng, you'll have to get past me first!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he stomped his foot hard on the ground, causing the dust to churn and rise. A surge of powerful energy emanated from the burly man's body, forcefully pressing the dust down.

"Blood Transformation Realm Two!"

The vice-leader gazed at the surging, rain-like qi and blood from afar, his eyes narrowing slightly. Then, his body trembled, and an equally vast surge of qi and blood erupted forth.

The two gazed at each other across the distance, as if lightning were rising and falling between them.

"kill!"

Before the vice instructor could make a move, the burly man roared and shot out, his body, as large as a hill, crashing down with each step, causing the ground to shake.

Despite his robust physique, he still possessed astonishing speed, which caught the attention of the vice-leader.

His eyes narrowed slightly, and in an instant he distanced himself from the burly man. A sickle appeared in his hand, its cold blade gleaming with a dark light that was glaringly bright under the moonlight.

"bring it on!"

(End of this chapter)