"Zhang Biao, you've exploited and oppressed the villagers. Today, I, Ma Ji Qing, will enforce justice on behalf of the heavens, and rid the people of Dayu County of the menace you've become."
After finishing off a black-clothed man with a single sword stroke, the blue-clothed swordsman didn't let up. He raised his weapon and approached the burly man in front of him, speaking coldly.
Watching from the side at a tea stall, Lu Yuan looked at the man targeted by the blue-clothed swordsman, his expression a mix of surprise. This man was none other than Biao Ye, who had just extorted 540 cents from him earlier in the morning as protection money.
'Didn't he have the backing of the Black Wolf Gang? He was pretty arrogant in the morning; how come in just a short while, he's found himself in such trouble?'
'And this enemy seems like no pushover…'
He recalled the scene just now: the swordsman by the name of Ma had flown in from the street, leaped effortlessly across at least five or six meters.
In just a few short jumps, he covered more than a hundred meters.
Moreover, his sword speed was so fast. The experienced brawler in front of him didn't even have time to put up a defense before his throat was slit.
Even the Olympic champions Lu Yuan had seen in his previous life wouldn't be able to match this agility.
"So...this must be martial arts, definitely martial arts."
Having travelled through time himself, and having gained a golden finger, Lu Yuan had no reason to believe that this world was an ordinary one.
Even if this world had martial arts secret books and miraculous methods for immortals, it would all be quite normal to him. He wouldn't be surprised at all.
However, what did surprise him was that he'd barely been here in this world for very long, and he'd already encountered a martial artist from the legendary Jianghu.
Alerted by the commotion, the pedestrians on the street had long fled to safety, leaving a wide-open space large enough for the swordsman and Biao Ye to carry on their confrontation.
Every few steps along the street, one could see a corpse either stabbed through the heart or with their throat slashed. There were four bodies in total, sprawled along this small street in the south of the city.
A kill every ten steps, leaving no trace over thousands of miles. This must be an example of it.
With the ruthless killing of four people, the swordsman named Ma Ji Qing, blood dripping from his long sword, stepped closer and closer to Biao Ye. Black Wolf Gang's."
"Don't...don't kill me. I have the backing of the Black Wolf Gang," Biao Ye said, his face turning pale with fear. He stepped backward while loudly proclaiming, "Our gang leader is a disciple of the Iron Sword Sect. If you kill me, you'll be provoking the Iron Sword Sect."
However, Ma Ji Qing wasn't frightened by the threat and just sneered as he continued to close in.
His speed had slowed down considerably compared to earlier, and he no longer used the seemingly effortless acrobatics of his light skill to leap forward.
Instead, he chose to step forward one step at a time, as if he wasn't in a hurry to kill Biao Ye but rather wanted to torture him psychologically before the final blow.
"I have money, I'll give you money," Biao Ye said, his voice trembling in fear.
Seeing that his own background couldn't scare off the swordsman, Biao Ye changed tactics, pleading, "One thousand silver taels, no, two thousand silver taels. Spare my life, and all my money will be yours."
"Money in exchange for life?"
Upon hearing the offer, Ma Ji Qing seemed to be swayed and paused.
Seeing this, Biao Ye's face lit up in relief.
However, the next moment, a flash of murderous intent crossed Ma Ji Qing's face. "Money, huh? You think everything can be solved with money? Today, you will die."
With that, Ma Ji Qing raised his sword and lunged at Biao Ye.
"Go to hell!"
Biao Ye saw that even after offering money, the swordsman still refused to spare him, and he was both fearful and angry.
At this life-and-death moment, he hardened his heart, threw his hands forward, and suddenly a dozen dark, shadowy figures flew from his sleeves toward Ma Ji Qing.
Without even looking, he turned and ran towards the distance.
However, Ma Ji Qing seemed to be prepared for this move. Facing the hidden weapons, his sword danced, producing a series of clangs, and the dozen plus darts fell to the ground.
At this point, Biao Ye had only escaped about ten meters.
With a few leaps, Ma Ji Qing quickly caught up.
His long sword stabbed forward, and before Biao Ye could even react, he was struck in the chest.
"Ah——"
With a scream, Biao Ye fell to the ground.
Ma Ji Qing sheathed his sword, then crouched down and searched Biao Ye's body, taking out a large money bag.
He glanced at the frightened people hiding in the corners of the room, his expression cold. With a leap, he ran in a certain direction.
Watching the fading figure, the people who had been hiding nearby slowly emerged, trembling in fear.
They looked at the corpses of Biao Ye and the others, their expressions varied but mostly frightened. The crowd gathered around the bodies, not daring to get too close.
"Who was that man just now?"
"Judging from his moves, he must be a martial artist in the world of swordsmanship."
"What did Biao Ye do to provoke such a desperate man?"
"Hmph, Zhang Biao always bullied and oppressed people. It's not unusual for someone to seek revenge."
"Shush, do you have a death wish? The Black Wolf Gang won't let this go easily. That swordsman doesn't care about your identity, aren't you afraid they'll vent their anger on you?"
In the teahouse, the tea guests who had witnessed everything began to chat after everything had settled.
Lu Yuan listened for a while, but when he noticed that none of the information being shared was of any value, he stopped listening.
Picking up his bowl, he drank the last of his wine. With his backpack slung over his shoulder, he turned and headed for the south gate of the city.
The recent events had greatly shocked Lu Yuan.
The dangers of this world had been brutally revealed to him.
Jianghu martial arts, seeking revenge and fighting.
Even in broad daylight, in a bustling marketplace, those martial artists didn't hesitate to kill people in the streets.
More importantly, all five of Biao Ye's men were skilled fighters.
But when facing that blue-clothed swordsman named Ma Ji Qing, they couldn't even resist and were easily killed like chickens.
Is there such a big gap between martial artists and ordinary people?
"And what Biao Ye said in the end, about his Black Wolf Gang leader being a disciple of the Iron Sword Sect… Is that the legendary martial arts sect? Can martial arts be learned there?"
Lu Yuan recalled Biao Ye's words before his death and couldn't help feeling excited.
Having crossed over into this world with the advantage of an attribute template, he naturally yearned to become a martial artist.
Now that he had finally heard some news, he couldn't help but have his heart set on it.
"But even if I want to find a sect to learn from, that's something I can only try for later. As a poverty-stricken hunter like myself, I'm afraid nobody would be willing to take me in if I simply showed up."
Lu Yuan didn't think that martial arts sects were charitable and would accept just anyone.
Joining a sect would require a clean background, a wealthy family, and extraordinary talent.
Otherwise, why would they accept you?
There's a difference between TV dramas and reality. After living in this world for several months, Lu Yuan had come to deeply understand this fact.