Chapter 65: Chapter 65: Luo Qingshan’s Problem? General Tao Ji?_1
In the following period of time,
the Luo Family from Qingshi Town practically emptied all of their gold and silver.
They formed a massive caravan and headed towards the nearest, most bustling county town.
It seemed they intended to trade their gold and silver for a large amount of supplies.
Of course, the closest county town belonged to Feng Wentai, the King of Huai Shui.
After all, they had traded for supplies there once before.
Trading there again shouldn’t pose any major problems, right?
Anyway, as the King of Huai Shui County, Feng Wentai’s business was vast; shearing a bit of wool from him wouldn’t be a big deal.
…
After the caravan had traded all their gold and silver for supplies,
they unassumingly set off in the direction of Qingshi Town under the escort of the Luo Family’s army.
Along the way, they encountered several bands of short-sighted bandits.
However, all were promptly dispatched by the troops stationed near the caravan.
Then, after another five days of continuous travel,
this caravan, laden with a vast amount of supplies, finally returned to the Luo Family’s territory in Qingshi Town.
…
Qingshi Town, Luo Family Ancestral Land.
In the courtyard where the Ancestor of the Luo Family resided,
there sat Luo Changfeng, the Ancestor himself, peacefully beneath a Stone Pavilion.
He was engrossed in a book called Introduction to Talismans, flipping through its pages.
Standing silently before him was a handsome youth with a treasured sword tied at his waist.
He appeared rather young, yet his brows and eyes, and indeed his entire being, emitted waves of murderous aura.
“Luo… Qingshan?”
“What brings you to me so suddenly, young fellow?”
After glancing at Introduction to Talismans for a few moments more,
Luo Changfeng somewhat reluctantly set the book down.
For some reason, compared to the obscure and complicated ways of alchemy, he found he had a talent for the art of talismans, as if it was ordained by the heavens themselves, no, as if the heavens were spoon-feeding him.
Merely at a glance, he could already sense his understanding of the way of talismans deepening.
“Patriarch Changfeng, I don’t know why, but lately my cultivation has been progressing unusually fast…”
“So fast it’s somewhat abnormal…”
Luo Qingshan stood silently, speaking in a respectful and subdued tone.
“Your cultivation is advancing too quickly?”
“Isn’t that a good thing?”
Luo Changfeng was about to voice these thoughts when he noticed the extreme intensity of the murderous and frantic madness hidden deep in the eyes of Luo Qingshan.
His expression suddenly turned serious.
Something is off with this kid…
“Come here, let me have a closer look at you,”
Luo Changfeng gestured to a stone stool beside him, signaling for him to sit down.
After a moment of hesitation, Luo Qingshan silently took a seat beside Luo Changfeng.
“Skin Refinement Perfection?”
“Just a step away from the Bone Refinement stage, aren’t you?”
“This rate of cultivation progress is indeed a bit fast…”
If Luo Changfeng’s memory served him correctly, this youngster’s previous cultivation was only in the latter stages of Skin Refinement.
And more importantly,
this youngster had achieved this purely through his own capabilities,
not as a result of pill-induced enhancements.
“Tsk tsk tsk, it seems my Luo Family has produced another anomaly…”
“We haven’t dealt with Luo Youwei’s issue yet,”
“and now another one arises.”
As Luo Changfeng pondered, he involuntarily squinted his eyes: “Is it due to killing?”
He couldn’t be certain, as he had not personally witnessed the killings.
“What does it feel like to kill someone?”
“Feels a bit exhilarating…”
“A bit exhilarating?” Luo Changfeng took another look at Luo Qingshan before him.
He glimpsed that sliver of extreme murderous intent and madness hidden in his eyes, so faint it was almost imperceptible.
Luo Changfeng sighed helplessly.
After pondering for a moment, he said in a low voice to Luo Qingshan, “Come back to me in three days, I have something to give you.”
Having said that, Luo Changfeng picked up the “Introduction to Talismans” from the stone table and began to read again.
Meanwhile, Luo Qingshan standing beside him slightly bowed his head and quickly left the courtyard.
…
Though he said three days, actually shortening it to two wasn’t impossible.
But giving oneself a bit more time isn’t a bad thing either.
As for what he was going to give to Luo Qingshan?
Luo Changfeng intended to spend these three days thoroughly researching the method to refine Calming Heart Pills.
Then he would personally make some.
Although he didn’t know exactly what was going on with Luo Qingshan,
since it involved extreme murderous intent and madness,
then the Calming Heart Pills should be useful, right? Should be, right?
Heh, whatever!
Considering the junior’s condition, it was far from the worst step.
Even if the Calming Heart Pills weren’t effective, Luo Changfeng still had spare time to explore other plans.
…
In the blink of an eye, another day had passed.
Ever since the New Emperor ascended to the throne, the struggles between the powerful princes became openly fierce.
The vast Da Feng Dynasty was gradually becoming more chaotic.
The number of refugees was growing every day.
The power of bandits in various parts of the Da Feng Dynasty was also swelling.
It wasn’t until the number of bandits reached a certain level
that they began to harbor the idea of attacking cities, establishing their own territory, and declaring themselves king.
So, under the trend of ambition,
countless cities began to suffer attacks.
Some cities, with decent defensive forces, successfully kept the bandits outside.
Others, overwhelmed by the sheer number of bandits,
resulted in the defending forces fleeing.
This situation led to another one,
which was the nearly fully armored officers and soldiers, also choosing to become bandits.
Among them, a general named Tao Ji
became one of those officers and soldiers who had turned to banditry.
He commanded roughly two thousand armored youth.
“General, the bandits’ power is great, the city we are in has now been breached by bandits,”
“What should we do next?”
“We fled in such a hurry that we didn’t bring much food and supplies.”
“Even if we only eat twice a day now, I’m afraid it won’t last us for many days.”
Next to the armored Tao Ji, a deputy general with a worried expression spoke to his general.
“Food and supplies?”
On hearing this, Tao Ji couldn’t help wanting to laugh: “We’re in control of a full two thousand soldiers, how can we be afraid of running out of food and supplies?”
“General, then what do you think is the most secure direction for us to march next?”
“Where to march?” Tao Ji, hearing this, instinctively reached out to touch his beard, stiff like steel needles.
After a moment’s thought, a gleam of light crossed his eyes.
“Back then, I collected countless amounts of gold and silver on the emperor’s command.”
“Among those who were disobedient, those who refused to pay gold and silver, only Qingshi Town left the deepest impression on me.”
“Therefore, I think marching toward Qingshi Town is the right direction.”
“To borrow some food and various supplies from the families in Qingshi Town.”
“This is surely the most prudent course of action.”