Chapter 103: Are You Using This to Test the Protagonist?

"Screech—!"

With a long cry, a dark shadow shot up from the ground and soared straight into the sky. Its wings trailed two streams of air before it rapidly vanished deep into the sea of clouds.

"Alright."

Chenlong withdrew his gaze and looked at Wang Ping beside him. "Once the Golden-Eyed Eagle delivers your message back to the Capital, the First Seat will naturally come to see you."

As he finished speaking, he couldn't help but recall the First Seat's arrangements prior to his departure, prompting a bitter smile. 'Forget a thousand days or a hundred days—he mastered the Martial God Pictorial Record in just three, and has even reached basic mastery of the Sacred Lord of Five Weapons. Might he attain the Martial Dao Grandmaster Rank before the First Seat even arrives?'

He drew a sharp breath.

Chenlong startled himself with the thought and hurriedly shook his head. Impossible. Absolutely impossible. No one progressed in martial arts that quickly.

"Thank you for your guidance, Milord."

Wang Ping bowed respectfully. "However, my martial arts are meager. How could I trouble the First Seat to come see me? I should be the one traveling to the Capital to see her."

"Hahaha."

Chenlong suddenly burst into laughter. "Trust me, compared to the time and energy you'd spend traveling to the Capital, it's much easier for the First Seat to come to you."

"As for why... you'll understand once you meet her."

After speaking, Chenlong continued calculating in his head:

'It will take the Golden-Eyed Eagle about half a month to reach the Capital.'

'It will take the First Seat three breaths at most to get here.'

Refusing to believe it, Chenlong thought, 'Can he really attain the Martial Dao Grandmaster Rank in half a month? If he pulls that off, I'll eat his Dragon Head Guillotine on the spot!'

'However... once the First Seat comes and meets Yin Hu, she'll probably order me back. Which means in half a month, I'll be going back to prison in the Capital.'

A wave of helplessness washed over Chenlong at the thought. Heaven knew, when he first left the Capital, he had assumed he could enjoy a few years of freedom before returning. The world was so vast, and he had wanted to see it. In the end, he hadn't even been out for a month, and most of that time had been wasted on the road.

At that thought, Chenlong cast another glance at Wang Ping.

'What a sin!'

.............

Outside Longxing County.

Wang Ping walked down the street with a bewildered expression. For some reason, the previously amiable Chenlong had suddenly changed his tune and kicked him out.

"Whatever, this is a good chance to rest."

As the saying went, alternating tension and relaxation is the Dao of civil and martial arts. The same principle applied to practicing martial arts. Relentless pressure would only backfire; finding the right balance between tension and relaxation was the true path.

Soon, Wang Ping arrived outside Longxing County. The Outer Market, which had grown desolate after multiple upheavals, was open for business once more. The air hummed with voices; it was even livelier than in his memories of peacetime. Every passing black-headed commoner wore a brighter smile.

Wang Ping watched them.

The atmosphere was infectious. Before he knew it, a smile had spread across his own face. With light steps, he soon reached his destination.

It was an open field.

The Xuanjia Camp was stationed here. However, right next to the heavily guarded Xuanjia Camp sat a smaller, rather crude encampment.

"Hey! Hah!"

Just as Wang Ping reached the gates of the encampment, he heard voices from within. Pushing open the doors, he saw a group of young and strong black-headed commoners practicing drills with wooden sticks.

Compared to a real army, these drills were naturally nothing worth mentioning, especially since they wielded wooden sticks without a single proper blade between them. Still, every black-headed commoner trained with absolute focus. The middle-aged man leading them was Liu Ye, who had stripped off his official uniform.

Soon, someone noticed Wang Ping.

Before long, a figure hurried over. It was Wu Xintai, the commander of the Xuanjia Camp, his square face plastered with a fawning smile.

"No need for formalities."

Wang Ping waved his hand. "I should be thanking you, Commander Wu, for helping me organize these people over the past two days. I'm truly not skilled in military formations."

"You praise me too highly, Milord..."

Wu Xintai shook his head, though a sense of peculiarity inevitably swelled in his heart.

Strictly speaking, every single one of these black-headed commoners outside the city was a rebel. The man standing before him was an outright traitor.

Yet this traitor was a Gold-Bearing Brocade Guard, an imperial bodyguard to the Emperor. Not only did he hold a royally bestowed Military Tally, but he even chatted merrily with a member of the Imperial Tribute Hall.

No matter how one looked at it, he was a die-hard loyalist.

But it was exactly this die-hard loyalist who was now Shuzhong's first rebel king, boasting immense fame... The more Wu Xintai thought about it, the more baffled he became.

Meanwhile, Wang Ping was quite satisfied. He had never expected a group of black-headed commoners to rival a real army after just a month or two of training. Even if they could, he lacked the weapons to arm them. Simply being able to march in formation and obey commands was enough to satisfy his requirements.

With that thought, he strode forward.

The moment he moved, Liu Ye noticed him immediately. The training young black-headed commoners all turned their heads, their faces soon revealing expressions of awe:

"It's the Lord!"

"The Lord has come to see us!"

"Greetings, Milord!"

The black-headed commoners bowed one after another, leaving Wang Ping momentarily stunned. He hadn't expected so many of them to recognize him. He immediately turned to Liu Ye, who was quickly approaching.

"It's not surprising, really."

Liu Ye saw through Wang Ping's confusion and chuckled. "These are the ones who followed right behind you into the granary that day. Naturally, they recognize your face."

"I see..."

Wang Ping finally understood. He reached into his sleeve and pulled out a paper pinwheel, handing it to Liu Ye. It was Yan Weichuan's Myriad Blade Spirit Chariot.

"This is a mystic treasure. As long as you have enough people lined up in formation, spinning this treasure will let you command earth, water, wind, and fire. With this, even without practicing martial arts, you have enough power to contend with a five-hundred-man force like the Xuanjia Camp. Even outside of combat, it's highly convenient for reclaiming land."

This was Wang Ping's arrangement for the black-headed commoners.

With the Imperial Tribute Hall's guarantee, the imperial court wouldn't send troops to wipe them out. And with the mystic treasure that was the Myriad Blade Spirit Chariot, the livelihoods of the black-headed commoners were secured.

Moving forward, these black-headed commoners wouldn't need to do much.

They could just find a deep mountain forest, dive right in, and use the Myriad Blade Spirit Chariot to clear fields. They could achieve complete self-sufficiency and live peaceful lives.

"It's just hard on you, Old Brother Liu."

"Don't mention it."

Liu Ye shook his head. "You saved my life. I can't help you with any major tasks, so the least I can do is handle these minor matters. Just leave these people to me."

Liu Ye said this with total confidence. After all, he used to be the one from the Longxing County Yamen responsible for managing the black-headed commoners in the Outer Market. Now, the scale was simply a bit larger. After more than a month, he was handling it with ease and even enjoyed it somewhat, single-mindedly intent on making this group of black-headed commoners bigger and stronger.

"Then I'll head back first. Keep at it."

Naturally ignorant of Liu Ye's inner thoughts, Wang Ping saw that everything was properly arranged and felt a wave of relief wash over him, as if a massive boulder had finally been lifted from his chest.

As for that Shuzhong Rebel King title, he didn't care about it at all.

After all, he still had to make a living in the Imperial Tribute Hall in the future. Who would rebel for no reason and become a rebel king? Putting on a little show was enough; he couldn't actually take it seriously.

After he left.

"Old Brother Liu, what should we do next?" A young black-headed commoner leaned in close to Liu Ye, his tone filled with unease. "Is the Lord abandoning us?"

"It's because we're too weak."

Liu Ye smiled easily. "Alright, keep practicing. Only when we truly become strong will Brother Wang have a need for us."

Liu Ye felt that he truly understood Wang Ping.

As the saying went, build high walls, store grain broadly, and delay claiming kingship. Brother Wang was undoubtedly in this exact phase right now—it was the perfect time to keep a low profile and bide his time.

"Brother Wang's current title as the Shuzhong Rebel King is just an empty name for now."

"But that's fine. We'll be moving around a lot, assimilating black-headed commoners from all over Shuzhong. Once our ranks swell, we'll abruptly raise the banner of righteousness."

"When that time comes, we'll give Brother Wang a massive surprise!"

At these words, a wave of commotion swept through the young black-headed commoners. Finally, someone couldn't resist asking, "Then, Old Brother Liu, what should our name be?"

"I see those guys in the Xuanjia Camp and the Tabai Camp all have such grand names."

"Don't worry, I've already thought of one."

Without turning his head, Liu Ye said firmly, "We survived and have a good life now all thanks to Brother Wang's grace, but we cannot forget the past."

"Once upon a time, we were just a bunch of black-headed commoners who couldn't even beg for a way to live."

"Only by engraving our identity into our hearts and understanding what we fight for can we live up to Brother Wang's expectations and be worthy of his grace."

"Therefore... we shall be called the Beg-for-Life Army!"

Having said that, Liu Ye gazed in the direction Wang Ping had left and silently vowed in his heart, 'Rest assured, Brother Wang. In a few years... I will definitely give you a surprise!'

.............

Upon returning to the County Yamen, the first thing Wang Ping saw was Madam Su in the courtyard. She held the Six Desire Heavens Sovereign Attainment Method, studying it intently.

'This is really...'

Wang Ping felt a headache coming on over this doomed connection, but there was no way he could bring himself to stop her. Taking a step back, he planned to leave quietly.

But right at that moment.

"Brother-in-law."

Chen Luoyan suddenly appeared in a corner by the courtyard gates. She waved him over, gesturing for him to approach. Instead of speaking aloud, she transmitted her voice via spiritual sense:

"Don't let my cousin see you."

"..."

Wang Ping blinked, his brow furrowing deeply, but he followed her anyway. After the two of them entered a boudoir, Chen Luoyan took the initiative to shut the door.

Seeing this, Wang Ping immediately said, "Miss Chen, please conduct yourself with dignity."

"You...!"

Chen Luoyan's pretty face flushed red with anger. Finally, she gritted her teeth and pulled out a jade slip, whispering, "This is the secret core mantra of my Book Mountain."

"The Inner Landscape Scripture."

At those words, Wang Ping's attention was instantly captured. "The Inner Landscape Scripture... the secret art you mentioned before that can accelerate the process of Drawing Kan to Fill Li?"

Drawing Kan to Fill Li, refining the true essence.

Once successful, one could cultivate Borrowing Qi to Manifest Magic and forge magic power. Within Great Shun, this represented the Loose Immortal, the absolute peak of an extraordinary person! Within the Immortal Gate, it meant becoming an outer sect disciple!

Wang Ping's eyes instantly burned red.

On the other hand, Chen Luoyan looked increasingly embarrassed. "My master said that if you want to learn the Inner Landscape Scripture, you can, but you must become my dao companion."

After saying this, she squeezed her eyes shut, her face utterly mortified. Her beautiful features twisted into a look of humiliation, reluctance, and total helplessness. Two trails of clear tears even slid down her cheeks. Her expression practically screamed that if he couldn't hold back, he could just get on with it, and she would simply pretend she had been bitten by a dog.

Wang Ping was completely dumbfounded.

Wait, what did Book Mountain mean by this?

Were they using this to test a destined protagonist?