RISE OF THE MARTIAL GOD

Anthony was still cultivating and gathering the natural earth energy filled with life force when they returned. The forest was filled with trees, making it ideal for gathering of energy, especially those related to trees and life.

The girls stopped before him, too afraid to distract his cultivation. He opened his eyes and looked at them.

"If you're done, sit down, let me prepare breakfast."

His words mortified them. How could they possibly let the almighty young master from heaven above make breakfast for them?

"Ah? No no no. How could we possibly let the young master cook for us?"

"Yes, yes. We're the girls. Cooking is what we should do. Also…"

"I already said it, here, everyone is equal. There's no servant or master, only mutual respect." Anthony cut in, not letting them finish. "Besides, what I'm making is ready made dishes."

The moment he finished speaking, he motioned before him and a tray appeared before him. He brought out two loaves of bread, mayonnaise, bananas, apple, water, fried chicken, grilled beef, chips, and homemade ketchup.

He divided everything into four equal parts, and placed it before them.

"One for everyone. It should be able to tide us over till night, or till we find an inn."

Without waiting for their opinion, he began to eat his own portion. In five minutes, he was done and returned to his cultivation.

'My spiritual sea is getting deeper and clearer, and the inner demon is reducing in size. But why is that dragon still asleep? And what's that mighty wall at the northern edge? Why do I feel as if it's blocking and hiding something incredible? Away from my reach. There's no time to investigate now, I'm on the run, and there's no suitable place in sight. Carelessly pushing a breakthrough, or getting trapped in my mind can cause a serious crisis and endanger not just my life, but also that of the ones I'm taking care of. Or it might give a traitor the chance to betray me. I absolutely cannot get too curious.'

After a while, he exhaled impurities, and locked some of his powers, carefully camouflaging his cultivation base, spiritual power, and physique.

"Tong Tong. If you're done eating, sit opposite me." He said with his eyes still closed.

Soon, a shadow blocked his view of the rising sun and he opened his eyes, taking a deep breath. With a wave of his hands, a set of medical equipment appeared beside him.

He looked at Miao Miao who was wincing and rolled his eyes.

"If you find it disgusting or unpleasant, you can turn around. Don't force yourself to watch." On second thought, he turned to them again.

"In fact, go feed the horses and let them have some water." He threw two apples at them, and returned his attention to Tong Tong.

Even without using his eyes, he knew exactly what they were doing, and when they fed Hector the apples, and their own with grass. Satisfied, he began to dress Tong Tong's wounds.

"You don't have to feel too bitter, it's healing nicely. I will restore your face to the best of my abilities."

She nodded with a smile, as he clipped the gauze.

"Are you in pain? Some tablets maybe?"

"No. I don't want to get addicted."

Anthony nodded and returned his first aid box to his storage unit.

"If you're ready, let's go. I have already wasted more than a week, going behind schedule." His careless words made them lower their heads since they knew exactly the reason he was behind schedule and derailed from his destination.

******

The moment Tong Tong fell off her horse, she crawled to the roadside vomiting heavily. Xinglan carried Miao Miao down, and she equally rushed to the bush, vomiting out her intestines while gasping like one who ran a marathon. Meanwhile, she did nothing except sit on the horse.

Anthony shook his head as he watched them, and sighed heavily.

The setting sun fell against his face, catching highlights of his dark hair.

"These people are too much. Assassins and bandits have been chasing us since morning. Someone must have tipped them off, making all the bandits in Mingde state hunt us down."

Anthony chuckled as he listened to Tong Tong's complaints. Her eyes were red and wet with tears.

"Why are you making noise? It's not as if you're the one fending them off."

Tong Tong kept quiet because she knew it was true. Each time, Anthony will hold back the bandits while they rode faster to escape. He would kill them in a few minutes and rejoin them, as fast as lightning.

Barely twenty minutes later, another bandit group would attack them, and it continued. One after another, Anthony handled them, but the more he killed, the more they came. Since morning, they have encountered sixteen bandit groups.

Even though Anthony had been the one killing them all, with Xinglan knocking off Any stray who managed to slip past him, it had not been easy on them. They had to ride at breakneck speed at all times, not resting at all in their bids to avoid the battle zones. And for the two women who had not lived a warrior's life, it was too much for their poor waist to take. The heart attack each time they collided with a bandit group while Anthony was far behind tackling the previous batch was another thing. Their bodies were in shambles, and they were barely standing. Even though he always caught up in the nick of time preventing an accident, it was far from pleasant

There was no way to rest because another group of bandits would have definitely caught up with them. The only reason Anthony asked them to stop was that there had been no bandits for the past hour, it was already nightfall, in addition to the fact that he felt a body of water nearby.

The two were at the verge of collapse.

"Especially you, Miao Miao. What did you do that you're exhausted? Xinglan is the one controlling the horse you're riding on, and also fighting at intervals. You both should feel ashamed of your poor staminas. Assuming you encountered a band of fifty assassins, does it mean you can't fight your way out? There are fights that go on for days or weeks without a break? If you encounter such a situation, what will you do? This is a sign that you need to exercise more, improve your physique and cultivate harder. Otherwise, the moment I leave. You will be equivalent to a pig on the chopping block."

Xinglan cleared her throat and came closer to Anthony.

"Master, I will go explore the surroundings for a suitable campsite, please watch over the girls."

Ten minutes later, Xinglan rushed back in excitement.

"Master, I found a nice spot close to a river, free of insects and wild animals. There's also a space without trees, so dangerous beings can't prowl without us seeing them."

Anthony nodded and mouthed 'wow'.

"This area seems to be full of water, from the Chen clan, down to this place, there have been little bodies of water, we even had to cross a bridge."

Xinglan smiled and squared her shoulders with pride.

"Of course. Ming de is blessed with water bodies. Unlike Southern Chu that is literally a desert, with scattered vegetation and scarce water availability. There are parts with oceans for trade in greater Ming. The northernmost part of the world is filled with ice after the great seas. Mingde has the best seasons, perfect for farming, fishing and business. Unlike South Chu which is only good for mining."

Anthony merely smiled at her, not wanting to tell her that the seemingly barren southern Chu is probably hiding crude oil and fossil fuels. Assuming it was on earth, it would be among the most prosperous regions.

"Master, sisters, follow me."

Soon, they came to a dry clearing and tethered the horses.

"Xinglan Jie, help me, let's sweep these dead leaves away and make this place habitable." Tong Tong said as she picked up dried branches.

Miao Miao joined them of her own accord, earning her a nod of approval from Anthony who was walking around, surveying the area and inspecting the trees for snakes and other unwanted elements.

By the time he returned, the girls had already spread a blanket on the now clean and dry land, and set up a fire place.

Tong Tong stood before Anthony with her hands clasped before her, avoiding his eyes. Anthony frowned for a while before he understood her silent request. He squatted down and brought out two pots.

Tong Tong's face brightened with a huge smile as she watched him load the food items on a tray. Her stomach was rumbling from hunger, and her bones were weary from all the escape.

Xinglan walked to them alongside Miao Miao, and looked at what Anthony was bringing out.

"There's no need to bring out so much meat, I saw fishes in the river earlier."

Anthony's eyes brightened.

"Even better. Today has been exhausting. Let's prepare a feast tonight with lots of meat and fish, and use the rest to prepare snacks to take on the way."

He brought out more foodstuffs and smiled.

"I even have rice in addition to the potatoes. Can you cook them or should we make do?"

"What do you mean by making do? Of course we can cook? I can cook. As long as there's food, I will always cook." Tong Tong shouted, cutting him off. He looked at her and she blushed, smiling awkwardly as she realized how overly eager and gluttonous she must have seemed.

"It's fine, you don't need to blush. You girls should go ahead and start cooking with these while I go fishing. Cook as many dishes as possible, make them tasty. Whatever remains will be eaten tomorrow."

He noticed the expression on their faces and frowned, looking around for possible signs of threat.

"What's wrong?"