Li Jun looked at the two-pointed spears stretched out towards him and the dozen or so archers on the wall, looking down with arrows knocked just in case he made any sudden movements. He was too far away from the light for them to see his face.
Li Jun raised his hands and stopped where he was. Although he was a martial artist, it didn't mean he could survive being peppered by a dozen arrows. He wondered just what the group had said to the guards so they could have this kind of response.
"Take five steps forward!" One of the guards commanded, and Li Jun did precisely what he had asked.
As he stepped into the light of the flickering torches, one of the guards stepped forward with a look of disbelief on his face.
"You again?" It was the guard that had saved him when Li Chen had severed the tendon in his arm.
"Han Jie, you know that boy?" Another guard asked with caution.
It had only been a week, but Li Jun carried himself entirely differently. The guards couldn't tell by his silhouette in the dark that they was looking at a child. But the strangest thing was the feeling of danger emanating from Li Jun's body. They were trained soldiers, they could recognize when someone was stronger than them and each soldier felt intimidated by Li Jun despite him being a child.
"That's him!" One of the five boys shouted.
"He's the one who tried to kill us!" Yelled another as the guards grew more tense.
"You said he had a sword," one of the nervous guards said as he looked at Li Jun hesitantly.
"Erm, he probably hid it or something. But he tried to kill us! He's possessed by a demon!" A boy with short dark hair shouted.
"Li Jun, is it true that you attacked them?" Asked Han Jie.
Li Jun thought for a moment before responding. Looking at the situation, it didn't seem likely that the guards would believe him even if he denied it. The boy with short dark hair was from a prominent family. Despite being from the Li family, Li Jun was a nobody in terms of social status. If they saw the sorry state Li Chen was now in, it would only add to their hostility.
"I did," he finally said with a sigh. The guards grew more tense, and one of the archers even drew his bow.
"Li Jun," Said Han Jie with a questioning look. "Why exactly did you attack them? We'll have to take you into custody until we figure out what is going on."
"Do you mind if I take something out of my pouch? It will help explain what happened," He asked and turned his hip towards the guard.
"No! Stay where you are!" a guard shouted from the top of the wall, but Han Jie raised his hand to silence him.
"You can. But make sure you move very slowly," he said, looking back at the other guards to ensure that they weren't going to open fire.
Li Jun reached into his pouch and pulled out the token that Master Shen had given him. He then held it up for everyone to see.
"That's!" Han Jie exclaimed, shocked at what he saw.
"I am a student of Shen Guo. My cousin Li Chen lead his friends to attack me so I simply defended myself. That's all there is to say. You can find Li Chen and the fat one back there." he pointed to the dirt road where he had come from.
The guards tensed up even more as they saw the emblem in Li Jun's hand. However, they felt a different type of fear. It wasn't fear of Li Jun but fear of what would happen if they offended Shen Guo.
"Impossible!" The short-haired boy shouted. "You're lying! How could trash like you become a martial artist!?" He shouted in disbelief.
"You're welcome to fight me again if you want to. But if you do, I won't let you run away again," Li Jun said as he stared at the boy.
A shiver ran down his spine as Li Jun's eyes were like that of a hungry wolf looking at a defenseless rabbit.
"Li Jun, you do know that if you are found to be in possession of a counterfeit token of the Shen family, you will be hanged without trial." Han Jie said. Even he didn't believe it.
"I know. You are free to check with Master Shen himself. I just came back from his house." Li Jun shrugged. Looking at the fear in each of the guard's eyes, he knew that Master Shen must hold a lot of power within the city. He felt invincible.
Han Jie gulped. Just a week ago he had thought that Li Jun would live a miserable life without the use of his arm. He was there when the doctor said he would never be able to use it again. But all of a sudden he was now a martial artist, it didn't make sense. Unless it was true, and he really was a student of Shen Guo.
"Lower your weapons!" Another voice called out as a horse trotted through the gate. It was the guard captain that Li Jun had met when he followed the meteorite into the forest.
Now that Li Jun was a martial artist he could see an incredible aura radiating from the guard captain. He was by far the strongest person he had encountered beside Master Shen who's power was so profound that Li Jun couldn't even see it.
The guard captain glanced at Li Jun and narrowed his eyes toward the token in his hand.
"He is indeed a martial artist, and he certainly isn't possessed by a demon. As for the legitimacy of that token, we will look into that."
"Now, come with me, boy." Said the guard captain as he unmounted the horse and handed its reigns to Han Jie.
Li Jun didn't move. He remained staring at the guard captain for a moment.
"What are you waiting for? I said follow me." The guard captain said simply without even turning.
The guards and five boys watched with their hearts thumping against the inside of their chests. A strange feeling covered the area and seemed to wrap around them, almost like an invisible force was squeezing everyone present.
Li Jun remained standing as if he didn't feel anything, but he couldn't deny that the captain was much stronger than he was. In fact, he knew he wouldn't stand a chance against him if they were to fight.
"Where do you want to take me?" Li Jun asked, but the pressure seemed to vanish. The other people present let out deep breaths as they gained the ability to breathe again.
"To find out if that token is real, of course." Said the captain.
"And how exactly will you do that?" He asked.
"By presenting it to Lord Shen Tai." Said the guard captain as he turned to see if Li Jun's expression had changed.
"Ok, lead the way. But if you try anything funny just remember who my teacher is." He warned. He didn't want to use someone else's name to hide behind. But when he looked at the spiritual energy surrounding the guard captain he realized there would be no way to fight him. It was simply impossible to stand against someone that strong.