Chapter 136: Comply with Heaven's Will
In the dead of night, someone downstairs was still enjoying a late-night beer. As they drank, they called out to the bartender, "Another bottle!" Clearly, this was a hint for me to add an extra chapter, so here it is.
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Cheng Xu stared at Gao Yiye with a strange look, wondering how this "most formidable of spirits" intended to deal with him.
Then he heard Gao Yiye's melodious voice: "General Cheng, the Heavenly Lord says your martial prowess is quite good. He wishes for you to stay in Gao Family Village from now on, to teach the villagers martial arts and the ways of battle formation and attack."
"What?"
Cheng Xu picked at his ears. "After dying, my hearing isn't what it used to be. You want me to teach ghostly villagers martial arts? What exactly is this about? Your ghostly Highness, you're not planning to organize three thousand spectral soldiers to overthrow the Lord of the Underworld, are you?"
Gao Yiye blinked, a little confused by what he was saying.
San Shier, however, burst out laughing. "General Cheng, have you perhaps been under the impression that you're dead this whole time?"
Cheng Xu asked, "Am I not dead?"
Cheng Xu retorted, "Only a fool would smack themselves!"
San Shier gave him a sidelong glance.
Gao Yiye giggled. "If Madam Bai heard that, she'd give you a whopping smack."
Her laughter was like a rainbow piercing through the twilight, instantly dispelling the chill that permeated the courtyard at night.
Cheng Xu's heart leaped; he saw light emanating from Gao Yiye.
Do you believe in light?
"You're not a ghost? Master San, you're not a ghost either?"
San Shier replied, "Do I look like a ghost? And I'm no longer a strategist; please call me Steward San."
Cheng Xu was speechless.
He stretched out his hands, examining them closely for a long moment, then reached down to his thigh and gave it a hard pinch.
"Damn, that hurt!"
Cheng Xu rubbed his thigh. "I'm still alive, damn it! No wonder I didn't see my great-grandmother on the way in. What exactly is this Gao Family Village?"
San Shier sighed softly. "It's a place in these chaotic times that takes in those of us with nowhere to go. General Cheng, please rest in the guest room tonight. We can discuss further tomorrow morning."
He led Cheng Xu to a guest room and showed him the bed and bedding.
With the New Year approaching, the weather was freezing. Cheng Xu, utterly exhausted, laboriously stripped off his heavy iron armor, flopped onto the bed, and pulled the thick cotton quilt over himself. In moments, he was fast asleep, lost to the world.
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Early the next morning, Cheng Xu was roused by a cacophony of everyday sounds. He stepped out of his room, climbed onto the fortress wall, and looked down. Below, throughout Gao Family Village, villagers were everywhere performing calisthenics.
Li Daoxuan no longer needed his phone to play the accompanying audio; now, they chanted the movements themselves.
Cheng Xu watched for only a moment before shaking his head. "What good is this kind of exercise? It only loosens the body; it won't improve combat effectiveness."
"General Cheng, do you also think so?" San Shier suddenly appeared beside him, smiling. "The Heavenly Lord said the same. This Seventh Set of Radio Calisthenics is only suitable for ordinary people to loosen stiff bodies. To fight and kill enemies, true training is required, and that is precisely General Cheng's forte."
Cheng Xu quipped, "Hearing your irritating idiom summaries, that's when I truly feel alive."
He gazed out, observing that the morning at Gao Family Fortress was starkly different from other villages.
The villagers within the main fortress seemed somewhat leisurely, performing calisthenics slowly and starting their work at a leisurely pace.
Outside the fortress, the people in the Labor Reform Village and Short-term Workers Village were far more diligent. They had already eaten breakfast and were preparing to begin their tasks. Large numbers of people streamed towards the hillsides, felling trees that had long withered and died after being stripped of their bark. Few dead trees remained, and the entire hillside had been cleared, clearly in preparation for some major undertaking.
Many others were heading outside the village, busily constructing a cement road connecting Gao Family Village to Wangjia Village.
Cheng Xu was now certain: this was the human world!
"Who has such immense power to have rescued me from that landslide?"
San Shier pointed to the sky. "Dao Xuan Tian Zun. You don't have to believe it now, but live here for a few days, and you'll know that he is always watching over us."
Cheng Xu glanced up at the sky, still doubtful, and whispered, "You must be well aware of the risks involved in taking me in, aren't you?"
San Shier replied, "That's why you'll need to cover your face and adopt a bandit alias. From now on, whenever you meet someone, simply use that alias."
Cheng Xu nodded. "So, you're keeping me here to teach the villagers martial arts and the art of battle formations?"
San Shier nodded again. "Yes, that is the Heavenly Lord's will."
"Alright!" Cheng Xu agreed immediately. In truth, where else could he go? If he wandered outside and the Embroidered Uniform Guard found out he was still alive, it would mean another life on the run.
Just then, someone clambered up the fortress wall.
Cheng Xu looked closely and realized he knew the person. Wasn't this the simple-minded, burly young man who drove the enormous, strange vehicles that delivered catapults, giant crossbow vehicles, and Block Missiles to Bai Family Fortress? What was his name again? Oh, right, Gao Chuwu.
Gao Chuwu quickly rushed over to Cheng Xu, excitedly blurting out, "I know you! You're that general from the imperial court! I saw you at Bai Family Fortress!"
A fleeting expression of awkwardness crossed Cheng Xu's face. He thought: *I should have masked my face sooner. To be recognized so quickly... if this news gets out, the Embroidered Uniform Guard will be hunting me again.*
Gao Chuwu suddenly bowed deeply. "General, I want to learn martial arts! Could you please be my master and teach me?"
Cheng Xu let out a surprised "Huh?" He was greatly puzzled, unable to make sense of the situation.
San Shier, however, laughed and chided him, "Chuwu, what do you need to learn martial arts for? You're already big, strong, and quick-witted; you're quite capable in a fight!"
Gao Chuwu shook his head. "Last time, when I faced Zheng Yanfu, he struck me with just one move. If it weren't for my armor, I'd have been cut down. I know I'm simply not good enough."
With a bitter expression, he continued, "I'm clumsy and not very smart. As I am now, I'll never win the heart of *that* girl. So, I must learn martial arts! I need to become incredibly, incredibly, incredibly powerful, and then maybe that girl will like me."
"That girl?" Cheng Xu was utterly bewildered. *Alright, I already know you're clumsy. With your vague, incomprehensible way of speaking, it's clear you're quite simple.*
San Shier, however, understood. "Still thinking about Xing Honglang? Chuwu, give it up. How could a remarkable woman like her ever fall for a simpleton like you? It is called... 'A pipe dream.'"
Gao Chuwu pointed to the sky. "Oh, the sky really opened up!"
San Shier: '?'
Cheng Xu: '?'
The two looked up and saw the clouds parting in the sky. A giant sheet of paper, as large as a cloud, appeared, with two enormous characters written on it: "Strive!"
Gao Chuwu asked, "What do those two characters say?"
Cheng Xu's mouth hung wide open. "Huh? Why are there characters in the sky?"
San Shier clapped Cheng Xu on the shoulder. "Teach him! It is called... 'Comply with Heaven's will.'"
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