Soul Emperor Martial God

Leaving Meteor County, the group swept across the land.

The duties of the Flame Martial Guard were not limited to their own county.

Instead, it encompassed a certain area around their base.

This generally included several surrounding counties.

There were 25 bases evenly distributed across the Flame Martial Kingdom.

There was always an overlapping range between bases.

This allowed the Flame Martial Guard's intelligence information to be quite accurate and fast.

The members of the Flame Martial Guard were also incredibly quick to act.

They could even easily receive support from other bases.

Of course, unless it was an emergency, there was no need for members to cross counties to carry out missions.

Back to the story.

Ten days later, the group arrived in Anyun County.

During this time, they passed two bases.

They accepted missions and completed them, accumulating merit.

They exterminated bandits and pursued wanted criminals, and sometimes encountered small-scale beast tides.

Of course, these small-scale beast tides were generally of very low danger.

But if encountered, lending a hand could reduce casualties among human martial artists.

By the way, Xiao Yi no longer accepted simple tasks.

Instead, he took on missions that only Captain Level members could.

The Captain of the Flame Martial Guard generally had the strength above the Earth Element Fifth Stage.

The missions were also about that level of difficulty.

Xiao Yi harnessed the power within his body from Ice Mountain Fire Sea and Blood Slaughter Sword.

Just in terms of Cultivation, he was on par with the Earth Element Fourth Stage.

If he used Wandering Cloud Kill Step and the Domineering Sword Technique, then he could match an Earth Origin Sixth Layer opponent.

Thus, he could complete these missions without using many trump cards.

However, Xiao Yi did not act alone for the time being.

Each time he took on a mission, he brought Zhou Ping and others with him.

He wanted Zhou Ping and the others to be tempered.

...

There was no base in Anyun County.

Counties with generally weaker martial artist forces did not have bases.

But surely one of the surrounding counties had a base.

If really needed, Flame Martial Guards would immediately come here to carry out missions.

After half a month, the group continued across several counties and completed many missions.

One month later, the group arrived in Wanshan County.

"Captain, we are just a few miles from entering Wanshan County territory," Zhou Ping said.

Xiao Yi nodded and took out a scroll.

Inside, there were records of the Flame Martial Guard missions he had accepted.

Xiao Yi glanced at it and said, "There are two more missions; completing them will finish the last of the tasks accepted from the previous base."

"Wanshan County happens to have a base."

"There's no hurry to enter before the missions are completed."

"Yes," the group nodded in agreement.

At this point, Zhou Ping said, "Captain, one of the two missions involves killing a Black Wind Beast."

"Intelligence indicates that this Black Wind Beast is about to reach adulthood."

"At that time, it will need to consume a large amount of Martial Artist Essence to stabilize its Cultivation."

"It will definitely drive other demon beasts to attack the city, provoking a beast tide."

"That demon beast forest is nearby."

"Do we need to act immediately?"

Xiao Yi heard this, looked at the sky, and said, "No rush."

"It's still afternoon right now."

"Black Wind Beast is a night-walking demon beast, it won't appear at this time."

"Tonight, as soon as it gets dark, we will enter the Demon Beast Forest."

"Yes," everyone nodded, looking at Xiao Yi with eyes full of respect and admiration.

Over the month-long patrols of various counties.

They increasingly recognized Xiao Yi's formidable abilities.

His strength was astonishing, needless to say.

Even more impressive was his extensive experience on the road.

When roughing it in the wilderness and sleeping outdoors, he always knew how to find the most suitable and safest places.

When completing missions requiring the killing of demon beasts, his knowledge of every kind of demon beast's distribution, strength, and habits was unparalleled.

In other dangerous situations, he could always come up with the quickest solution.

Tracking, scouting, hiding—he was adept at it all.

Coupled with his sharp intuition and profound knowledge.

In their eyes, Xiao Yi seemed like an all-capable person.

"Captain, were you a Demon Hunter before?" Zhou Ziyang asked.

"And the seasoned kind at that?"

Everyone was now waiting for nightfall, so they temporarily rested on the spot.

Xiao Yi just smiled, without a word.

More than a month of long journeys and relentless completion of missions.

Everyone seemed a little tired.

Patrolling various counties was far more strenuous than carrying out normal duties in their own county.

But the speed of earning merit was also faster.

And the tempering they received was more effective.

"One day, I will become a renowned power throughout the entire Flame Martial Kingdom," Zhou Ziyang said with determination.

"After stepping into the Heavenly Origin, I must kill all those despicable wanted criminals."

"And those evil demon beasts."

"That way, we Flame Martial Guards won't always have to go through various dangerous missions and run around tirelessly."

"Can you kill them all?" Hu San teased.

"I will be able to kill them all," Zhou Ziyang said resolutely.

"When I become a Late-stage Heavenly Origin practitioner, my flying speed will be extremely fast."

"Traversing the entire Flame Martial Kingdom will take less than half a month."

"Those fugitives, I'll kill every one I see."

"Those mountain bandits hiding in dense forests, those demon beasts causing trouble, I won't let a single one go."

Unlike Uncle Zhou Ping, or the old slick Hu San,

Zhou Ziyang was the youngest member here.

It was within reason for a young man to be hot-blooded and to harbor fantasies.

"You can't kill them all," Xiao Yi smiled lightly, leaning against a large tree, feigning sleep.

"How come I can't kill them all?" Zhou Ziyang asked stubbornly.

"As long as there are people in this world, you will never finish killing," Xiao Yi said, his breathing even as he feigned sleep.

"Where there are people, there is Jianghu."

"Where there is Jianghu, there is strife."

"The world is changing every moment."

"Kill all the mountain bandits today, and new ones will emerge tomorrow;"

"Kill all troublesome demon beasts today, and new ones will appear tomorrow to cause harm."

"In short, all I can tell you is that everything changes."

"The power of one person alone cannot shake the gears of time."

Xiao Yi's words seemed somewhat desolate, somewhat mature.

They even seemed a bit negative, a bit pessimistic.

But, quite obviously,

No one saw that kind of expression on his face.

He seemed to be merely speaking casually.

"Captain," Zhou Ziyang hesitated, and everyone fell silent.

"Captain, will you change too?" Zhou Ziyang suddenly asked.

"Heh," Xiao Yi still had his eyes closed, chuckling softly, "I will."

"Perhaps one day, I too will become a wanted man on the Flame Martial Guard's list."

"Perhaps one day, you will think of me as an utterly abhorrent person."

"Perhaps one day, we will... become enemies."

The last two words, 'become enemies', made Xiao Yi's lips twitch slightly.

The fierce afternoon sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, gently shining down.

The person leaning against the tree, bathed in this sparse sunlight, seemed somewhat languid.

Yet underneath that languor, his handsome face was so charming.

Everyone looking at Xiao Yi couldn't help but be entranced.

"That won't happen," Zhou Ziyang spoke up loudly.

"I believe the Captain won't become that kind of bad person."

"Bad person?" Xiao Yi chuckled.

"What is a good person, and what is a bad person?"

"Are all members of the Flame Martial Guard good people? Are the wanted, all bad people?"

"The good and bad in this world have never been fixed."

Everyone shook their heads, and the two slick old-timers, Zhou Ping and Hu San, sighed.

Zhou Ziyang, however, seemed thoughtful.

"So, Captain, how do you determine who is good and who is bad?" Zhou Ziyang pressed on.

"It's impossible to determine," Xiao Yi said indifferently.

"Follow your heart."

"In your heart, set a bottom line."

"Captain, I don't quite understand what you're saying," Zhou Ziyang frowned.

"You'll understand someday," Xiao Yi replied lightly.

Zhou Ziyang shook his head, feeling somewhat perplexed, "I don't understand."

By his side, Zhou Ping let out a wry smile, "I'm also starting not to understand, feeling pessimistic and negative."

"Why be pessimistic or negative?" Xiao Yi asked indifferently.

Zhou Ping shrugged and said, "I just feel that people are very insignificant and powerless, even desperate."

"People are not insignificant," Xiao Yi shook his head.

"You said that one person's strength can't..." Zhou Ping began.

Xiao Yi interrupted, "People can be powerless, but they must never despair."

"Unknown hope lies above that horizon."

"The powers of a person can be limited; one person's strength can't shake the gears of time."

"But the gears of time operate under the cycle of Heavenly Dao."

"And above the cycle of Heavenly Dao, at the peak of the Heavenly Dome, there resides a Martial God."

"That is hope."

"That is the existence that can shatter everything and shake the world."

Xiao Yi suddenly dispelled the languor on his face and stood up.

"I never get entangled, never overthink."

"The life of a Martial Artist, even the unreachable end of Martial Arts, is worth the tireless pursuit."

"How could such trivial weakness hinder the unwavering Dao Heart I hold within?"

After Xiao Yi finished speaking,

In an instant, the confusion on Zhou Ziyang's face and the pessimism on the faces of Zhou Ping and the others all dissipated, leaving no trace.

In its place was determination.

They suddenly understood why Xiao Yi, while speaking those negative words earlier, did not have a trace of negativity on his face.

They also suddenly realized why Xiao Yi needed to say these words today.

"Thank you, Captain," everyone saluted.

Xiao Yi smiled, "Let's go, nighttime has arrived, it's time to carry out our mission."

"Yes," everyone replied firmly.

As the sky darkened, roars and cries from afar echoed through the air.

Like ghosts weeping and wolves howling, like night demons gnawing at the heart.

The faces of the group did not change as they stepped firmly towards the unknown darkness of the deep forest.

...

First update.