Chapter 34: Sacrifice

Surviving In A Martial Arts World To Become A Saint

July 7th, the River God Festival.

Today was Gaolin County's annual grand event.

Every household hung wormwood and calamus in front of their doors to ward off evil and pray for blessings.

The cries of vendors and the faint sounds of gongs, drums, and stringed instruments from distant opera stages continued without end.

Temporary stalls sprouted like mushrooms after rain, densely packed along both sides of the streets.

The crowds surged like floodwaters through an opened gate, pouring from the riverbank into the narrow alleys of the city, creating extraordinary liveliness.

As a river patrol guard, Chen Qing naturally couldn't be idle. At this moment, he was patrolling along South River Dock with his saber at his side.

He was on guard against possible stampedes or troublemaking that the surging crowds might cause.

Patrolling to an old teahouse by the river, the clamorous noise seemed somewhat muffled by the bamboo shed.

"Right away! One bowl of jasmine tea!"

The server with a towel draped over his shoulder responded efficiently, and before long, brought over a bowl of flower tea.

Chen Qing picked up the bowl and heard a familiar voice, "Junior Brother Chen!"

"Senior Brother Sun?"

He looked toward the sound and saw Sun Shun and Zhou Yu standing at the teahouse entrance. Sun Shun had changed out of his practice clothes into a dark blue shirt.

Zhou Yu beside him had changed into an elegant light pink robe. Her waterfall-like black hair had only a simple wooden hairpin inserted diagonally, which made her face appear even more gracefully beautiful.

Following closely behind Zhou Yu was another female disciple from Zhou's courtyard, Li Rongrong. She wore a brand-new goose-yellow robe with exquisite makeup. Though also pretty, standing next to Zhou Yu, her brilliance was overshadowed.

Li Rongrong had been at the courtyard for over a year with obvious strength cultivation. She usually got along well with Zhou Yu, but Chen Qing had little interaction with her.

"Senior Brother Sun, Senior Sister Zhou? You're here too?"

Chen Qing set down his teacup, stood up, and greeted them with a smile, "Come in and sit, I'll treat you to tea."

Sun Shun sat down, "Today is the River God Festival. Which of the senior and junior brothers at the courtyard has the mood to practice boxing? They've all come out. The junior sister and I don't like crowds, so we're just wandering around casually."

Zhou Yu nodded slightly to Chen Qing, her lips curved in a gentle smile, "Then we thank Junior Brother Chen."

Li Rongrong also nodded reservedly, her gaze briefly lingering on Chen Qing's simple River Office uniform.

Chen Qing called the waiter to bring two more bowls of flower tea.

The teahouse was bustling with voices, but their corner was quite quiet.

Li Rongrong picked up the rough ceramic bowl, sipping tea in small mouthfuls. Her gaze turned on Chen Qing and she asked, "Junior Brother Chen, you hold a position at the River Office?"

"Yes," Chen Qing replied.

Li Rongrong set down her teacup, her tone carrying casual inquiry, "Haven't you thought about taking a position elsewhere? The River Office is leisurely enough, but the salary... I'm afraid it's barely enough to buy blood qi powder, right?"

Chen Qing smiled, his tone calm, "With my strength, there are limited places I can go. The River Office is stable, which is quite suitable."

"There's actually a good opportunity right now,"

Sun Shun smiled and said, "Junior Brother Chen, haven't you been paying attention recently? All the major forces in the county are competing for people, and they've lowered their thresholds considerably."

"Oh?" A trace of confusion flashed in Chen Qing's eyes.

Sun Shun said in a low voice, "You've heard about the celebratory banquet that Colonel Pang held some days ago, right? On the surface it was a celebration, but actually it was to win hearts and recruit many talented young people."

"There are rumors that the Colonel's residence plans to expand its army. Whether it's true or false is hard to say, but once the news got out..."

He paused, his voice even lower, "All the other forces panicked, especially the Five Major Families. They reacted fastest, offering higher and higher prices, desperately recruiting capable people from all walks."

"Not just the Five Major Families."

Li Rongrong interjected, her tone carrying a bit of showing off about being well-informed, "Far-Sight Escort Agency, weapon forging shops in the inner city, Renhe Hall and other established businesses are all competing for people. The market rate for positions in the county has really risen with the tide. For obvious strength martial artists, monthly salaries have reached eight taels of silver! As for hidden strength experts..."

She deliberately emphasized her tone, her gaze sweeping over Chen Qing, "They start at thirty taels, and that's just the official monthly salary. The additional provisions like medicine supplements, weapons, and armor are even more generous!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Qing was secretly amazed.

Hidden strength experts started at thirty taels of silver, meaning he could get thirty taels just for doing nothing for a month?

You had to know that Lady Han worked herself to exhaustion weaving fishing nets and only earned five or six taels of silver per year.

Zhou Yu gently advised, "Junior Brother Chen, this really is a rare opportunity. With your obvious strength cultivation, it shouldn't be difficult to get a position with some smaller forces."

Her voice was soft and carried sincerity.

Chen Qing took a deep breath, nodded and said, "Thank you for the reminder, Senior Sister. I'll consider it carefully."

There was no such thing as free money falling from heaven. For all the major forces to invest such resources in recruiting people, their aims must be significant.

What risks and responsibilities were hidden behind these seemingly generous rewards?

Was it guarding homes and estates, or would it require real combat with swords and spears?

He needed to weigh this calmly.

Though the River Office didn't pay much, it was stable with controllable risks.

Just then, Li Rongrong's gaze inadvertently swept past the entrance, her expression changing slightly, "Senior Sister Zhou! Look over there... it's Gao Sheng from Pine Breeze Martial Hall!"

Pine Breeze Martial Hall?!

Upon hearing this, Chen Qing and Sun Shun immediately looked in the direction Li Rongrong indicated.

They saw four or five burly men with prominently bulging temples lifting the curtain and entering the teahouse.

The leader was about thirty-five or thirty-six years old, with a rough face and sharp eyes like a hawk's. He wore the characteristic dark green training outfit of Pine Breeze Martial Hall.

This person was Gao Sheng, a skilled fighter among the younger generation of Pine Breeze Martial Hall.

"It really is him."

Zhou Yu's beautiful brows furrowed slightly, her expression becoming grave.

Sun Shun's face also became somewhat unpleasant. He explained to Chen Qing in a low voice, "Junior Brother Chen, you entered late so you might not be clear about this. When Master first established Zhou's courtyard, to make a name for himself, he challenged several martial halls. One of them was this Pine Breeze Martial Hall."

"Their hall master has always held a grudge, considering it a great humiliation. In recent years, when disciples from both sides met on the street, they would often clash over disagreements, with constant friction in private. These past two years, Master has been stricter in his discipline, and as our Zhou's courtyard gradually established its footing, things have calmed down somewhat."

He paused, his tone carrying a warning, "Pine Breeze Martial Hall has considerable strength. It's one of the six martial halls in the inner city, with much deeper foundations than our kind of martial master's courtyard. If you encounter people from Pine Breeze Martial Hall, try to avoid them and don't suffer losses."

Chen Qing nodded silently, keeping the name Pine Breeze Martial Hall in mind.

Grudges in the martial world often cared more about face than gangs and were harder to resolve.

At this time, Gao Sheng also noticed their side. He glanced over then led his people to sit in the depths of the teahouse, not immediately coming over to cause trouble.

Chen Qing withdrew his gaze and picked up his teacup, but his vigilance didn't relax.

The clamor in the teahouse seemed to be diluted by this small episode, and an invisible tension permeated the air.

However, this brief oppression was soon completely overwhelmed by a commotion that swept in like a tsunami.

"Something's happened! Something big happened by the river!"

"Run! There's been a murder!"

Like water drops thrown into boiling oil, tremendous commotion suddenly erupted from the direction of the riverbank and spread into the city at unprecedented speed.

Those sounds were no longer festive clamor, but filled with terror, chaos, and unbelievable screams.

The originally noisy talking, laughing, and shouting in the teahouse was instantly cut off. Everyone looked toward the entrance and windows in shock.

They saw the flow of people on the street like startled ants beginning to surge frantically in reverse.

"What's happening?"

"What's going on?"

The tea guests in the teahouse stood up one after another, craning their necks to look outside, their faces full of uncertainty.

In the chaos, a panicked man squeezed past the teahouse entrance from the street and cried out, "Colonel Pang... Colonel Pang was... assassinated at the sacrificial ceremony."

Boom—!

This sentence exploded like thunder from a clear sky in the small teahouse!

"What?!"

"Colonel Pang... was assassinated?!"

"This... how is this possible!?"

"Heavens! Who did it?!"

"Something big is going to happen! Gaolin County is going to change!"

Discussion erupted like a tidal wave, instantly drowning the teahouse. Everyone's face was filled with disbelief.

Colonel Pang Qinghai was the sky over Gaolin County.

He was the ruthless man who had once killed the Canal Gang leader with a single spear thrust, striking fear in all directions.

Such a figure was actually assassinated at the River God Festival ceremony in full view of thousands?

This was beyond everyone's imagination.

Sun Shun was completely stunned, "This... how is this possible!?"

Zhou Yu's beautiful face was also filled with shock and gravity.

Li Rongrong was so frightened her face turned pale, her whole body trembling.

Chen Qing's heart also shook violently.

Assassinating the colonel?

This was definitely not ordinary martial world revenge. The depth of involvement and magnitude of impact behind it were enough to plunge all of Gaolin County into bloody chaos.

Images of Qin Lie participating in bandit suppression, attaching himself to the Colonel's residence, and attending the celebratory banquet flashed through his mind, and a chill quietly crept up his spine.

At this moment, Old Li from the River Office stood in the chaotic street, shouting hoarsely, "Ah Qing, something big has happened! Come with me quickly!"

His voice was hoarse, filled with unprecedented panic.