Starting from Tianlong, Wudu Tianxia

The outskirts of Teng County were almost deserted, except for a dilapidated temple that had been abandoned and was now occupied by a group of beggars led by Li Pianbi.

At this time, the bronze tripod, incense burner, and prayer mats in the temple were scattered, and the ashes of the incense burner covered the ground. Meanwhile, seven or eight people in the temple were cooking and eating.

A broken cauldron hung above the pile of firewood, steaming from its interior.

The beggars stewed together the leftover pickled radishes, steamed buns, and dumplings they had begged for during the day.

Then sprinkle some scallions and garlic stolen from farmers as seasoning, and the aroma makes the beggars in the mountain god temple swallow hard.

This kind of mixed stew method was undoubtedly taught to them by Gao Yuan; it's commonly known as a vegetarian hodgepodge.

It tastes good, which is better than eating bland food that leaves a bitter taste in your mouth.

"Let's eat!"

Before anyone could speak, the beggars in the temple began scrambling for food, each holding a broken porcelain bowl.

Gao Yuan got sleepy, ate a large bowl of food in one gulp, lifted the curtain covering the altar table, and crawled inside.

The Mountain God Temple in Teng County was a small temple, with small statues and a small offering table. Among Li Pianbi's group of beggars, Gao Yuan was the only one who fit perfectly; he could squeeze inside and stretch his legs out to sleep.

He weighed down the four corners of the curtain with stones to prevent it from being blown away by the wind, and the area under the table was covered with dry grass that Gao Yuan had collected, which was much more comfortable than sleeping on the hard ground before.

Most importantly, it is not visible from the outside, making it a private little space.

For Gao Yuan, who was new to this unfamiliar world, it made him feel at ease.

After the beggars had eaten and made their fun, the only sound in the dilapidated temple was the crackling of the fire.

Just as the beggars were about to rest, voices suddenly came from the dirt road outside the dilapidated temple.

The sound was getting closer and closer, clearly heading towards the small temple.

Li Pianbi stood up, and the other beggars picked up bamboo poles and gathered around him.

The night was dark and windy, and they were in the middle of nowhere, so they couldn't help but be nervous.

When the person opened the gate and saw that there were people in the temple, they were also surprised for a moment.

By the light of the fire, the beggars breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that there was only a man and a woman among the newcomers.

They weren't some bandits or outlaws; they wouldn't travel with women. They were probably people from another county stopping at a small temple for a rest.

Seeing that they were a group of beggars, the man chuckled and said, "Are you all resting in the temple too? Is there a place for us to rest as well?"

Seeing that the man looked young and polite, not like a wicked person, Li Pianbi grew bolder: "If you want to rest, you can, but you'll have to give me something..."

"Guo Jie, why are you wasting your breath talking to a bunch of beggars..."

Before Li Pianbi could finish speaking, the woman snorted coldly.

Before anyone could react, she leaped up like a ghost and instantly appeared in front of Li Pianbi, striking him on the top of the head with her palm.

Everyone heard a "click".

Li Pianbi's skull was instantly shattered, and a mixture of red and white fluid, tears, and snot gushed out from his seven orifices.

"Clang"

The bamboo pole fell to the ground, and the person who had been alive just moments before now had limp arms, and his face, mixed with brain matter, looked twisted and ferocious.

After dealing with the old beggar, the woman unceremoniously sat down on the dusty offering table, looking both beautiful and eerie.

"...Run!"

"Hey, you bitch, can't you just stay quiet for once? You're always causing trouble."

Although he was complaining about the woman, the man also started to move at this moment.

He used his finger as a sword, leaped up, and in a few swift movements, landed beside the other beggars.

"Great hero, please help me, great hero..."

The beggars living in the dilapidated temple were already terrified and at a loss for what to do, and some of them began to kowtow.

"Tian Tu, Bai Hui, Ren Zhong..."

The man seemed not to hear, and those whose acupoints were struck all collapsed to the ground, dying instantly.

In the blink of an eye, the beggars in the temple had been wiped out.

"Guo Jie, clean this up. It's all over the place, there's nowhere to put your feet down and rest. It's bad luck."

The woman gently touched her red lips with her pinky finger and said:

"How long have Dang Qiang and the others been here? They should finish up and go back soon. Staying in this godforsaken place is really annoying."

Gao Yuan had already woken up from his dream. He held his breath and huddled under the offering table, not daring to move an inch.

He could smell the strong fragrance of spices on the woman even through the offering table.

Due to the angle, he only saw the woman's action of slapping Li Pianbi to death through the hole in the tablecloth.

His steps were steady, yet his speed was as fast as a startled horse, something no ordinary person could do.

"Is this... the martial arts of the wuxia world? Ordinary people are like chickens waiting to be slaughtered in front of them! But why do they treat ordinary people like dirt? The villains who killed the Xu family did it this way, and so do they..."

This was the first time Gao Yuan had witnessed the dangers of the martial world, and he unconsciously clenched his fists.

The young man named Guo Jie ignored the woman and sat down cross-legged: "Make do with this."

"Oh, it's so easy to say. You stinky man, you don't know how to cherish a woman at all."

The woman said, "All the beggars in the temple are dead. Aren't you afraid someone will discover something amiss?"

"If someone with ulterior motives follows the clues and discovers something, all our previous efforts will be in vain."

"What's there to be afraid of? Once the leader starts his rebellion, every single person in Teng County who doesn't submit will die sooner or later."

As Guo explained, he frowned and said, "Besides, didn't you strike first? How come you're blaming me?"

"They're just a few beggars, who cares? We'll have Dang Qiang and the others find a place to bury them later."

The woman chuckled: "You certainly know how to order people around. Dang Qiang and the others are from the Lei Men."

"Just a few barbarian followers."

"Let's get back to the main topic."

Guo Jie took the initiative to change the subject:

"The Wheel Master and his men finally managed to lure the beggars from Xuzhou to Jingyuan. We must find out the deployment of the Song army in Xuzhou as soon as possible."

"The Song army isn't entirely stupid; it's quite good that Dang Qiang and his men were able to gather enough information to establish some outposts."

The woman opened her beautiful eyes, her smile fading. "I heard that Jiu Yi wiped out a family in Teng County. You'd better report it and summon him back as soon as possible. Otherwise, we'll all be exposed!"

The leader? Nine Wings? So the villains who wiped out the entire Xu family of thirteen were in cahoots with them; they were all members of the Zoroastrian Church!

Gao Yuan was already puzzled as to how martial arts practitioners could appear in Teng County, but now he has made contact with them all.

The Zoroastrianism, also known as the Ming Cult, originated in Persia and believed in the "Two Schools and Three Realms Theory." It worshipped only the Ming God and did not respect Confucianism, Buddhism, or Taoism. Its doctrine was "to venerate the light and enlighten the world."

Unlike most sects that only seek status in the martial arts world, the Zoroastrian sect frequently launched uprisings during the Song and Yuan dynasties, which led to repeated suppression by the imperial court. Due to its secretive nature, the sect was labeled a "demonic sect."

"Ding ding ding"

The sound of camel bells could be heard outside the door, indicating that someone else was heading towards the dilapidated temple.

Gao Yuan was slightly startled. Camel bells, white camels, merchants... these keywords reminded him of the three Tibetan merchants who had entered the county that afternoon.

"Dang Qiang, Li Yuan, and Liang Yi pay their respects to the two incense masters..."

Within a few quarters of an hour, the spy leader named Dang Qiang finished his report and presented a partial drawing of the garrison deployment map.

Guo Jie instructed, "The beggars in Xuzhou are keeping a close watch. Once you return, do not make any further moves for the time being."

"Your Excellency will obey your orders."

Gao Yuan felt like he was walking on thin ice, hoping the others would leave as soon as possible!

As they began clearing the beggar's body from the dilapidated temple, they heard the woman outside the offering table suddenly say:

"We've already got the garrison deployment map. What are you staring at the corpses for? Let Dang Qiang and the others handle it. Let's leave now."

Inside the dilapidated temple, Guo Jie remained silent for a few moments, then suddenly laughed: "Look, there are eight broken porcelain bowls scattered haphazardly on the ground, but there are only seven corpses. Can you guess why...?"

Gao Yuan's heart instantly rose to his throat, pounding wildly.

Why?

"Fool, there are still living people in the temple."

"Guo Jie, you bastard..."

Before the woman could react, at Guo Jie's signal, Dang Qiang drew the hilt knife hanging from his waist, its cold light flashing.

Gao Yuan rolled under the table to dodge, but his blade still struck with undiminished force, cleaving the offering table in two.

The crisis happened so fast that Gao Yuan had no chance to think. He scrambled toward the temple gate.

At that moment, the hairs on my back stood on end—the sound of wind breaking was mixed with the smell of rust and blood.

In a moment of life and death, Gao Yuan reacted in an unbelievable way, suddenly collapsing to the ground.

The blade grazed his back, sending up a gust of cold wind.

Taking advantage of the moment when Dang Qiang sheathed his sword, Gao Yuan got up and rushed towards the temple gate again.

When we were still a foot away from the temple gate, we suddenly felt a strong, silent gust of wind coming towards us, without any prior warning.

Gao Yuan felt a sharp pain in his back, his face flushed red, and he squatted on the ground due to the intense pain, with large beads of sweat dripping from his forehead.

"Damn it," he cursed inwardly, but it did nothing to alleviate the pain.

"Turns out he was a little beggar."

Guo Jie ignored Gao Yuan lying on the ground and laughed to himself, saying to the woman, "You wouldn't believe me if I said you were stupid. Look, there's a little mouse."

Perhaps displeased by Guo's comment that she was stupid, a murderous glint appeared in the woman's eyes: "Guo Jie, you'd better shut your stinking mouth."

Guo Jie shrugged, completely unfazed by the woman's threat. He turned to Gao Yuan, a mocking expression on his face: "Kid, you're out of luck. Don't blame anyone else. Remember to be born into a good family next time."

Dang Qiang's footsteps echoed overhead, his blade dragging on the ground with a sizzling sound.