Cultivating for Immorality: I Evolved Martial Arts into the Immortal Path – Chapter 78

Chapter 78: Take Care of Yourself

The Green Robe Gang was like a dark cloud, hanging over the entire county town.

Many people knew that this gang had connections with the county government.

As long as the county government stood, the Green Robe Gang would not fall.

But the county government belonged to the Great Liang Dynasty.

“Could it be that this Green Robe Gang will only fall when something happens to the imperial court?” Qi Xiaoyu muttered in a low voice. To someone of his lowly status, the imperial court was something incredibly distant.

He had never even been to the prefectural city in his entire life, living like a frog at the bottom of a well.

“Xiaoyu, come over here, tell me everything in detail.” Behind the counter, Qi Shun suddenly beckoned.

“Coming!”

Qi Xiaoyu responded and ran behind the counter, relaying all the information he had gathered to Qi Shun.

After listening, Qi Shun said with a cheerful smile, “Incredible! That Young Master Xu Hua from the cloth shop is a genuine martial artist with one strand of Qi and Blood, but Young Master Chu is getting more and more powerful!”

“Shopkeeper, what level of martial artist is Master Chu, really?” Qi Xiaoyu asked curiously.

“I don’t know either.”

“Even you don’t know, Shopkeeper?”

“I never asked.”

“Many people outside are saying that Master Chu is at least a martial artist with two strands of Qi and Blood,” Qi Xiaoyu said. “Some even say he’s a martial artist with three strands of Qi and Blood, but since he’s so young, two strands of Qi and Blood seems more reasonable.”

“What does being young matter? Young Master Chu is a martial arts genius! Even five strands of Qi and Blood would be reasonable!”

Qi Shun was in a great mood and couldn’t help but praise him.

The more powerful Chu Liang was, the more worthwhile his previous risk was.

“If Young Master Chu can stand up for that noodle shop boy this time, he can stand up for us next time. He may not say much, but he remembers everything clearly in his heart, he won’t forget,” Qi Shun said with a smile.

“Shopkeeper, could it be that Master Chu’s strength is even greater than that person’s in our restaurant?”

Qi Xiaoyu was very curious. He knew that there was a martial artist with three strands of Qi and Blood behind the restaurant, but he had never seen him.

In the entire restaurant, only Qi Shun was qualified to meet that martial artist master.

Qi Shun shook his head and said, “I don’t know. I’ve never seen our master make a move, so it’s hard to judge.”

“Alright then.”

Qi Xiaoyu could only suppress his curiosity.

He asked another question, “Shopkeeper, that Young Master Xu Hua from the cloth shop was beaten so badly this time, will the cloth shop seek revenge?”

“Seek revenge on whom?” Qi Shun asked in return. “The one in charge of the cloth shop, Xu Hua’s father, only condensed his third strand of Qi and Blood a few months ago. Does he dare to seek revenge on Young Master Chu? Young Master Chu is a disciple of the Autumn Blade Martial Arts Hall. Does Xu Hua’s father dare to challenge the Autumn Blade Martial Arts Hall?”

“What about the Green Robe Gang?”

“The Green Robe Gang… that’s a big problem!”

Hearing the name of this gang, Qi Shun immediately put away the smile on his face.

Previously, due to those rumors, and the statements of experts like Wu Neng and Qi Hai, many people thought that Chu Liang was just a weakling who had just condensed one strand of Qi and Blood.

Someone like him, who hadn’t even learned any martial skills, naturally couldn’t be a match for the Green Robe Gang’s Nineteenth Wife’s group.

Therefore, the Green Robe Gang shifted their attention.

But now that this news was out, everyone knew that Chu Liang’s strength was definitely not as the rumors suggested.

This matter slapped Wu Neng and the others in the face, but it also brought Chu Liang back into the Green Robe Gang’s sights.

Qi Shun pondered for a moment and said, “With Young Master Chu displaying such talent, the Hall Master of the Autumn Blade Martial Arts Hall will definitely focus on nurturing him. The Martial Alliance should also pay more attention to him. With these two forces keeping them in check, the Green Robe Gang should not dare to act too recklessly.”

“Shopkeeper, do you think Master Chu will be able to destroy the Green Robe Gang in the future?”

“Destroy them? You really dare to think!”

Qi Shun glanced at him and said, “As long as that County Magistrate is still in the county government, the Green Robe Gang will exist. Even if a new magistrate comes, the new magistrate will also need a gang to do his dirty work for him. Do you understand?”

“I understand.”

Qi Xiaoyu immediately nodded. He was a smart person and naturally understood these things.

He couldn’t help but feel a little regretful.

It seemed that the Green Robe Gang’s lawless days were far from over.

“However, Master Chu’s strength is far greater than the rumors suggest. He must have killed that tiger demon himself. Those who previously scolded him should all apologize to him, right?”

“Apologize? Xiaoyu, you really are overthinking,” Qi Shun shook his head. “Leaving aside others, just take that Young Miss Qi Yue from the Black Sword Martial Arts Hall, do you think she will apologize?”

“This…”

In the dictionaries of some people, the word “apology” simply did not exist.

It didn’t exist before, and it probably wouldn’t exist in the future.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the Black Sword Martial Arts Hall was somewhat strange.

The entire county town was discussing Chu Liang’s outburst, and the Black Sword Martial Arts Hall was naturally no exception.

Many disciples of the Black Sword Martial Arts Hall knew that their Eldest Miss had personally expelled Chu Liang from the martial arts hall, and had also publicly discussed the contents of those rumors on multiple occasions over the past month.

It could be said that the rapid spread of those rumors had a lot to do with their Eldest Miss.

Of course, their martial arts hall’s Master Qi Hai also participated.

“It’s already this late, why hasn’t Young Miss Qi Yue come out to make a statement?”

Many martial arts hall disciples were puzzled.

Qi Xiuliang chuckled and asked, “Make a statement? Do you expect that Eldest Miss to apologize?”

“Senior Martial Brother Qi, you are truly amazing, discerning right from wrong, and consistently speaking up for Chu Liang, not being misled by rumors.”

“I’ve said it before, Brother Chu is a martial arts genius!”

Qi Xiuliang was in a very good mood, the gloom of the past month had been swept away.

When he heard this news earlier, his entire mood could be described in two words—

Utterly delighted!

With just one slap, Chu Liang shattered everyone’s preconceived notions about him, and also rendered most of the rumors baseless.

Qi Xiuliang smiled and said, “Young Miss Qi Yue fancies herself a genius, believing that what she can’t do, Brother Chu definitely can’t do either, after all, they are of similar age. But she doesn’t consider… even among geniuses, there are differences!”

◈◈◈

“Qi Xiuliang!”

An angry voice suddenly rang out.

Everyone was startled and recognized that it was Young Miss Qi Yue’s voice.

They all looked back.

They saw Young Miss Qi Yue with her willow-leaf eyebrows raised, her pretty face full of anger, shouting, “That Chu Liang, due to a private fight, injured and disabled his fellow disciples. He is extremely vicious. How can you, in your words, portray him as a hero?”

“Miss, the Autumn Blade Martial Arts Hall has already reached a conclusion regarding Chu Liang’s actions.”

Qi Xiuliang remained calm, bowed, and argued,

He stated, “The Hall Master of the Autumn Blade Martial Arts Hall only asked Chu Liang to reflect on his actions, which shows that this matter is not as serious as you say, Miss.”

“You are not a member of the Autumn Blade Martial Arts Hall, you don’t know the whole story, how dare you jump to conclusions?” Qi Yue said coldly.

“Miss, you are right.”

Qi Xiuliang nodded and said, “But I have a question I want to ask.”

“What question?”

“Do you know the whole story of the conflict between Chu Liang and Wu Neng, Miss?”

“It’s nothing more than Chu Liang taking the credit that should have belonged to Wu Neng and the others. What’s there to talk about?”

“Oh? Was Miss present at the time?” Qi Xiuliang asked in return. “You said it yourself, Miss, I am not a member of the Autumn Blade Martial Arts Hall, so I don’t know everything that happened in the Autumn Blade Martial Arts Hall… But you yourself are not from Qing Shi Village, Miss. Do you know what happened in Qing Shi Village?”

“You…”

Qi Yue was at a loss for words.

Qi Xiuliang was using her own logic against her.

And for a moment, she couldn’t think of a better way to refute him, and was stunned on the spot.

“Alright, that’s enough!”

A stern voice suddenly rang out.

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw a familiar figure.

Qi Hai!

An expert with four strands of Qi and Blood, and also one of the masters employed by the Black Sword Martial Arts Hall.

He had cultivated the 《Sinking Water Sword》 for many years, and his swordsmanship was superb. In the county town, he could be considered the most skilled swordsman next to the Hall Master of the Black Sword Martial Arts Hall.

“Master Qi Hai!”

“Sword Master!”

The disciples of the martial arts hall all performed the disciple’s salute.

Qi Hai’s status in the Black Sword Martial Arts Hall was similar to that of the Saber Master in the Autumn Blade Martial Arts Hall, except that he taught swordsmanship.

There were originally two sword masters in the Black Sword Martial Arts Hall, but the older one recently passed away due to hidden injuries, leaving only Qi Hai.

He was powerful and had many friends in the county town, Wu Neng being one of them.

The two had known each other for many years and had once fought side by side in the deep mountains.

A large portion of the previous rumors about Chu Liang were spread by him using his influence.

“Qi Xiuliang, Yue’er, you are both elites of my Black Sword Martial Arts Hall. Why must you argue over an outsider?” Qi Hai walked over slowly.

“Sword Master, I just feel that this matter is unfair to Chu Liang,” Qi Xiuliang replied.

“What’s unfair about it?”

Qi Hai’s expression was cold, and his tone was stern as he said, “Justice resides in people’s hearts. What’s the point of talking about it so much?”

“But…”

“Enough!”

Qi Hai shouted, his voice like thunder.

He didn’t give Qi Xiuliang any chance to argue.

Qi Xiuliang’s face turned ugly. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something more, but he was, after all, one of Qi Hai’s apprentices and had to follow Qi Hai to practice the 《Sinking Water Sword》 technique.

He valued the 《Sinking Water Sword》 very highly. There was no more powerful sword technique in the entire county town.

If he angered Qi Hai, who would he learn from in the future?

“This Qi Hai is one of the black hands behind those rumors!” Qi Xiuliang felt aggrieved. “Brother Chu saved my life, but I’m learning swordsmanship under this Qi Hai. I…”

His heart was extremely conflicted.

At this moment, the teachings of his former sword master suddenly flashed through his mind.

That old master had a unique temperament. He often said to Qi Xiuliang, “A-Liang, remember, the sword is the weapon of a gentleman. Not everyone is qualified to call themselves a swordsman. Life is a long journey. A person should be like the long sword in your hand, unyielding!”

Qi Xiuliang took a deep breath and made up his mind.

He suddenly raised his head, like an unsheathed sword, sharp and unyielding, and said, defying Qi Hai’s pressure, “Master Qi Hai, justice does indeed reside in people’s hearts. Now, people’s hearts are with Chu Liang. I believe the day when the truth comes to light is not far away.”

“Qi Xiuliang, are you dissatisfied with me?”

Qi Hai’s face was ashen, and he asked coldly.

The atmosphere instantly became extremely tense. The surrounding disciples were silent, not daring to utter a word.

They simply couldn’t understand where Qi Xiuliang, an apprentice, got the courage to contradict his master.

Qi Lin’s face turned pale. He tugged at Qi Xiuliang’s sleeve, signaling him to stop talking and quickly back down.

But Qi Xiuliang stood firm and replied earnestly, “Yes, I am dissatisfied!”

“Good! Very good!” Qi Hai was so angry that he laughed instead. “In that case, Qi Xiuliang, you don’t need to come to my classes anymore. Take care of yourself!”

With that, he flung his sleeves and left in a fit of anger.

Qi Xiuliang stood alone, his expression resolute.