Chapter 67: Killing
Chapter 67: Killing (6k chapter)
After Xu Qing gained some reputation, he said goodbye to Prefect He and the others, then took a small path to meet up with Guards Wang and Ma.
Guard Wang had already prepared a relatively docile official horse, and also prepared dry food, meat jerky, fresh water, flint and other supplies. There weren't many things, but they were enough for two or three days.
Xu Qing climbed onto the horse. His movements were not graceful but very steady.
This has a lot to do with the body movements he practiced in Bagua Youshen Palm every day.
The principles of riding a horse and doing horse stance are very similar. You should not sit on the horse's back with your buttocks, as that would be very bumpy.
Riding a horse requires the man and the horse to become one, with your legs clamped around the horse's belly.
From a distance, it looks like people are riding on the back of a horse. This saves a lot of energy and reduces the pain on the buttocks.
And when you are doing Mount and Slash, you can also use horsepower.
Therefore, a general who is good at charging into battle must be good at horsemanship. If there is a certain distance to sprint, with the help of horsepower, there is a chance to kill the enemy general in battle.
However, horses that can cooperate with fierce generals are often very hard to find and difficult to tame.
The horse under Xu Qing was just an ordinary southern horse. It was good for carrying heavy loads and traveling long distances, but it was not very suitable for charging into battle.
Riding a horse is also to save energy and make it easier to carry food.
Fortunately, it is winter now and the weeds along the way are withered, making it very easy to walk.
In spring and summer, birds are flying and grass is growing.
On remote official roads, there may be overgrown weeds and weeds all over the ground. The sharp grass tips are like swords. After walking for a while, both people and horses can easily get injured, not to mention their clothes, which will definitely be torn.
Therefore, in autumn and winter, when there is no rain or snow, it is even more convenient to travel on the official road to Yingtian Prefecture. At this time, there is a dense flow of business and travelers, and cars are like flowing water. The prosperity of the times can be seen at a glance.
But it is different when you get to Qixia Mountain. It is the Hengduan Mountains that separate Jiangning Prefecture and Yingtian Prefecture. If you take a detour, you have to walk a long circle. Fortunately, after passing Qixia Mountain, there is the Jiangning River, which leads directly to the Blackwater Lake outside Yingtian Prefecture. The whole way is vast and misty, with no end in sight, which often attracts many literati and poets to write about it.
Because of this mountain range, a turbulent river formed in the Jiangning waterway.
Otherwise, if the waterway between Jiangning Prefecture and Yingtian Prefecture were unobstructed, the prosperity of Jiangning Prefecture would also be able to rise to a higher level.
Guard Wang and Xu Qing had already followed closely behind Inspector Wu's motorcade.
Guard Wang pointed to the canyon ahead and said, "That is the most magnificent sight of Qixia Mountain - Yijian Gorge. Legend has it that there was a peerless celestial being who split Qixia Mountain with a sword, creating this wonder."
Xu Qing asked curiously: "Is this legend true?"
Guard Wang shook his head: "It's probably impossible. Even if I practice the supreme secret book of the Great Zen Temple to the extreme, I am just a mortal body. I can only destroy the enemy's leader in the midst of thousands of troops. How can I achieve such a feat? Even if I can, it may be caused by the power of some ancient mechanism."
"Ancient mechanism, what is this?"
Guard Ma explained, "These are all legends left by our great Zen temple's founder. I heard that in ancient times, there were saints who understood the principles of heaven and earth, built mechanisms, dredged rivers, and benefited all living things."
Xu Qing smiled and said, "Isn't the founder of Dachan Temple a Buddhist monk? Why does he sound like a scholar?"
Guard Wang smiled and said, "You don't know that the founder of our Great Zen Temple first acquired the knowledge of various schools of thought, but he was unable to decipher the truth of heaven and earth. He realized the way of heaven and man, so he turned to Buddhism and became a monk."
"It seems that the founder of your temple is a versatile person. If I have the chance, I would like to go to the Dachan Temple to seek the true scriptures." Xu Qing looked fascinated.
He also felt that the Great Zen Temple might have the supreme secret book for cultivating the soul.
But at the moment, I guess I can only try it out with Jinguang Temple first.
He felt that Fa Yue seemed to know something about the secret method of cultivating the soul.
Because they were following them all the way, no one else noticed, only Fa Yue looked back from time to time, obviously noticing the traces of Xu Qing and the others.
This doesn't seem to be something that can be done by just hearing or seeing.
What's more, Xu Qing himself could travel at night with his soul, so he knew very well that as long as his soul was slightly out of the body, a warrior with strong qi and blood would be as bright and dazzling as a lamp in the dark night in his eyes, and there would be no escape.
Unless one can deliberately restrain one's qi and blood, one can avoid this kind of detection.
This is a bit like the Feng Shui technique used by Feng Shui practitioners.
Xu Qing's mind sank, and his soul left his body a little, looking towards the hills ahead.
It is called Hongnigang, and the color of the land is like sunset clouds. A government road leads directly into the dense forest on the hill, with no end in sight.
Because the woods were too dense, Xu Qing could only vaguely see some fire in the woods.
At this time of year, it is definitely not a forest fire. After all, if a fire breaks out, it will be a large mountain fire. It is impossible that it is just this.
Xu Qing's spirit returned to his body, and he thought to himself, "It's probably an ambush."
But the Hongnigang area cannot be avoided at all, and the roads in other places are even more difficult to travel.
He looked at the black energy in his destiny again, and it was still not very noticeable.
It seems that this trip was indeed safe and sound.
But don't be careless.
Xu Qing whispered to Guard Wang.
Not long after, Guard Wang urged his horse forward, arrived at Inspector Wu's convoy, and talked with Fa Yue.
As expected, Fa Yue was not surprised when she saw Guard Wang.
After listening to the conversation between the two, Inspector Wu realized that there was an ambush ahead and hesitated to move forward.
At this time Fa Yue came up and whispered something to Wu Xun'an. After Wu Xun'an understood, he nodded in agreement.
It is already afternoon. If we walk fast, we can just pass Hongnigang, rest at the post station ahead, and then cross Qixia Mountain and reach the ferry directly.
Under the order of Inspector Wu, the convoy quickly moved towards Huangnigang. When it was about to enter the official road in the woods, it suddenly stopped.
After a while, the official gong was sounded, and they were about to set off, but after a while, they stopped again.
This went on for several times until night fell.
Then Inspector Wu’s convoy set up camp directly.
The government troops who followed them were puzzled, but they knew how to set up camp after all. After some trouble, they found a place to set up camp in the open space in front of the woods.
When it was late at night and everyone was asleep, Xu Qing reunited with Fa Yue, Guard Wang and the others.
"Xu Sanyuan, are we going into the woods now?"
"Well, Master, is it convenient to travel at night?"
"It's convenient. I'm just worried that I can't take care of you on this dark and windy night."
"Master, rest assured. I know what's going on. Let's go in and see what kind of ambush is inside. When the time comes, please don't be too merciful."
Fa Yue said solemnly: "Master Wu cares about the people, and it is a merit for me to protect him. Even if there are sins, I will shoulder them all."
After he finished speaking, he chanted the Buddha's name with a compassionate look on his face.
As the saying goes, if I don’t go to hell, who will?
As long as the Buddhist teachings of Jinguang Temple can illuminate the world with compassion, this little sin of killing is nothing.
Fa Yue's awareness suddenly rose to several levels higher.
Xu Qing was very impressed.
When it comes to shamelessness, he still needs to learn from great monks and masters. He is still too immature.
This is also called "no person, no self".
...
...
Deep in the forest of Hongnigang, masked men in Lotus Sect clothing are lurking in the dense forest. If you get closer, listen carefully.
You can hear quite a few masked men yawning.
The target of the ambush outside has no martial ethics at all and is trying to confuse the enemy.
They were so tense that they have only just calmed down.
In addition, it was freezing cold, and even though everyone was dressed warmly, they couldn't help shivering at night.
At this time, many masked men were eager to rush out and have a good fight.
I just got some information and heard that there are tough guys on the other side. If I go out rashly, what if I get killed?
This time, each person was given only 20 taels of silver as resettlement allowance. Who would want to risk their life for this?
Twenty taels of silver are only enough for a few feasts in Tianjing City.
Living in Tianjing is not easy.
This little amount of money was enough to treat them like frontier soldiers who had never seen the world.
However, this time they all brought sophisticated crossbows, so they would not have to report the battle damage and could directly sell them on the black market and make a small fortune.
In fact, if you are brave enough, you can sell the stolen goods directly in Heifengzhai.
Among the masked men, some smart ones were wondering why they didn't ask the Black Wind Village to do this job.
They are sleepy and tend to have wild thoughts, but they dare not sleep.
If you sleep in this weather, who knows if you will freeze to death.
But the leader did not dare to retreat. What if the other side did not follow the routine and they had to travel in the middle of the night? But tonight, the clouds covered the moon and there was a dense forest. It was not suitable for traveling at night.
The leader planned to wait a while before making any plans.
This moment of hesitation.
Xu Qing, together with Guard Wang, Guard Ma, and Fa Yue, a group of four, quietly sneaked into the woods.
Xu Qing brought his guard Wang, and Fa Yue brought his guard Ma.
Both of them have the ability to sense qi and blood. In the dark, they can find people accurately without the need for torches.
In the dark night, the masked men who were lying in ambush fell down silently.
Xu Qing and Guard Wang both covered their mouths and attacked directly at the vital points.
On the other hand, Fa Yue also worked very efficiently and effectively.
There was no sign of movement.
But there are always warriors among these people.
When Xu Qing and Guard Wang were killing the sixth person, something went wrong.
The other party became alert and discovered Xu Qing and Guard Wang.
The two of them worked together but failed to deal with the man immediately, and instead aroused the vigilance of others.
It immediately triggered a chain reaction.
Crossbow arrows broke through the air and shot towards Xu Qing and his group.
Fortunately, Xu Qing and Guard Wang were wearing armor and tried to dodge, so they only rubbed against the arrows, causing no harm. In addition, there were trees to block their view, and it was hard to see at night, so the enemy was in a panic and could not cause any harm.
After a while, Xu Qing was seen hiding behind a big tree. He used his soul to come out of his body, saw the nearest masked man clearly, and directly used Bagua body skills to kill him.
His state of "absolute concentration" was activated, and he fell into a state like the moon in a well.
Observe with your soul, return to your shell, use your body skills, and pounce to kill.
Repeatedly.
"They have crossbows, so leave a few of them alive." While killing people, Xu Qing still calmly reminded Fa Yue who passed by.
Fa Yue also knows the pros and cons.
Using crossbows is a serious crime of treason.
Obviously, leaving a few people alive would be beneficial to Wu Xun'an's actions after arriving in Yingtian Prefecture.
...
...
"Go." Seeing the losses becoming more and more severe, the leader of the masked men finally couldn't help but roar.
In fact, if he hadn't yelled, many masked men would have wanted to retreat. But it was freezing cold, and they had been disturbed for a long time, so they were not very flexible at this time. Those who walked fast became targets in the eyes of Xu Qing and Fa Yue, and the rest of the people had numb legs and feet.
However, the leader of the masked men couldn't care less and he certainly wouldn't dare to stay.
He took big strides and ran to the other end of Hongnigang, where horses were tied and there was an open official road. As long as he rode a horse, he would have a chance to escape.
This time I really hit a brick wall.
He even suspected that the person who did it was a master among the Embroidered Uniform Guards.
Xu Qing recognized that this man had the most vigorous energy and blood. How could he tolerate him escaping? He chased after him without thinking.
The man sensed a strong wind approaching from behind and threw a crossbow arrow in his backhand.
Xu Qing used Bagua body skills to avoid it, and when he landed he stomped his hoof like a bull demon, using the recoil force to get directly behind the man.
The leader was also quite skilled in martial arts, and with a kick of his legs he created some distance between them.
But Bagua body skills are not only about flexibility. During a fight, if the enemy wants to run away, I will chase him like chasing the wind and the moon. No matter how far you run, I will catch up with you.
Seeing that he couldn't get rid of Xu Qing, the masked man pulled out a dagger and wanted to engage in close combat with Xu Qing.
Xu Qing's Bagua skills are very proficient and he is not afraid of close combat.
Even though he didn't have much practical experience, he was now in a state of absolute concentration, with all distractions aside, and was actually much calmer than the enemy in front of him.
I saw the opponent slashing with a knife, making a sound of wind and with fierce force.
Xu Qing did not retreat but advanced, took half a step forward, lowered his waist and dismounted from the horse, exhaled and started talking.
Bangquan!
He took this step very skillfully, exerting force with his fist and dodging the opponent's knife. It seemed that the opponent's knife was only a hair's breadth away from Xu Qing, but in fact it was like an insurmountable chasm.
Instead, it was Xu Qing's punch that hit the opponent's heart.
"Heart-protecting mirror." After Xu Qing punched him, he immediately realized something was wrong.
However, this is also his instinct when practicing boxing. He intuitively attacks the opponent's vital points, but those who are in the gangs usually know to take careful protection of the vital parts.
Therefore, hitting someone's vital points is sometimes not the best option in actual combat.
This is also because Xu Qing's boxing style has not yet reached the first-class level. He is unable to think carefully and do what he wants in a life-and-death fight.
Of course, more experience can make up for this omission.
Fortunately, Xu Qing's punch was powerful. After one punch, the shock wave made the opponent see stars and feel stuffy in the chest.
Xu Qing took advantage of the situation and kicked out.
This is the poking technique of the Bagua Youshen Palm. Although it does not use the palm, it uses the leg power, which makes it more sharp and fierce, and can directly kick the opponent's lower body.
After all, the other party wasn't wearing any iron crotch.
Moreover, wearing this thing will affect your flexibility.
The opponent was hit hard in the vitals and fainted immediately. Xu Qing was worried that he was not reliable, so he hit him on the neck with a knife and tied him up on the spot.
Due to this delay, some people escaped, but most of them were killed, and the remaining few were captured alive.
In fact, if these people attacked directly with powerful crossbows in their hands, they might be able to kill Inspector Wu head-on, but they were somewhat nervous about killing the Inspector Censor in broad daylight.
Moreover, doing so could easily result in casualties.
Therefore, the traditional ambush and killing plan was chosen.
Unfortunately, the version of the enemy they encountered was different from what they imagined.
Xu Qing and Fa Yue cultivated their souls in a dark environment, just like Xu Qing wore night vision goggles in his previous life. The night became their biggest advantage.
After a fierce battle, even Xu Qing felt sore in his legs and feet, even though he didn't feel it during the fight.
After all, he had entered a state of absolute concentration, and the loss of physical strength was no less than that of Fa Yue and the others.
If Xu Qing had not made great progress in practicing the Bull Demon Power recently, this battle might have been quite dangerous.
Fortunately, things went smoothly.
Moreover, after a life-and-death battle, Xu Qing felt that his understanding of martial arts had advanced a step further.
It turns out that actual combat is the best teacher.
In fact, Fa Yue, Wang Huwei and others also have similar feelings.
Especially Fa Yue, he doesn't have much practical experience.
After all, when Jinguang Temple was trying to enclose land, its opponents were all farmers at the foot of the mountain, a bunch of mud-legged peasants. How could they allow Fayue, the first-line successor in the temple, to take action?
On weekdays, I just practice with the monks.
But after all, his many years of Buddhist practice were not to be underestimated, so he did not react too much to the killing.
...
...
Although Inspector Wu was protected by a martial monk, he was still somewhat nervous. However, he was now an Inspector Censor, a civil official in Southern Zhili, and the last of the four great giants.
How can it be so unclassy?
So he lit a lamp in the tent and asked Master Qian to play chess with him.
It’s a pity that Master Qian, at his old age, still has to stay up late to play with the boss.
This staff salary is not easy to earn.
But no matter how difficult it is, you have to earn it.
In the past, I earned the salary from the county magistrate and could always find similar work, but now I have to earn the salary from the provincial inspector.
This is basically the pinnacle of career for local staff.
With this qualification, you can use it to your advantage when you return home in the future.
The prerequisite is that Mr. Wu does not fall.
Inspector Wu pretended to be calm, but he was actually absent-minded.
However, Master Qian was an excellent chess player and the match with Master Wu was very close.
This game of chess is no more than that played by the current national players.
I do not know how long it has been.
Master Qian's moves became slower and slower.
Wu Xun'an was as nervous as ever... He just made a blind move.
Suddenly, there was a noisy sound outside.
Inspector Wu listened attentively to the noise outside. He didn't hear anything, but he didn't hear any shouting or killing, so he remained relatively calm.
At this time, Xu Qing's voice came from outside.
Inspector Wu already knew that his good student was following him, so he was not surprised.
"My old mentor, the roadblocks at Hongnigang have been cleared."
This sound was like the sound of nature to Inspector Wu.
But he forced himself to calm down, threw the chess piece onto the chessboard, and said to Master Qian with a smile: "The boys have defeated the enemy."
He then stood up and went out to check the results of the battle.
Seeing that the master was in a hurry to get up without even putting on his shoes, Master Qian wanted to remind him, but suddenly held back.
Wouldn't this reminder destroy the master's aura? I'm afraid he will bear a grudge against me.
The tent is open.
Wu Xun came out with his hands behind his back, but he forgot that he was not wearing shoes. He touched the ground and felt icy cold. He almost fell in front of the good student.
However, Inspector Wu's many years of experience in officialdom have already brought him to perfection.
He bowed and saluted Fa Yue, Wang Huwei and others behind him: "Thank you for your hard work."
"I don't deserve it..." Fa Yue, Guard Wang and others naturally dodged.
Inspector Wu became calm again.
At this time, Xu Qing gave an excuse, "Old teacher cares about us and greets us barefoot. This kind of courtesy is really the style of the ancients."
At this time, Master Qian took out the shoes and hurriedly helped Wu Xun'an put them on.
Xun'an Wu looked calm and continued to express his condolences to Fa Yue and the others.
This is called winning people's hearts and minds and using them for one's own benefit.
It turns out that he is also a master in officialdom, but unfortunately he had no room to perform before.
Xu Qing watched from the side and thought, if there was a suitable stage, perhaps everyone could be an actor.
Then came the interrogation.
At Xu Qing's reminder, Inspector Wu guessed that he would go to Yingtian Prefecture to investigate a case, so he specially picked an old criminal in Qingshui County to bring with him, and now he came in handy.
Mr. Wu was kind-hearted. He did not follow the example of Prefect He who personally interrogated Zhao Xiong. Instead, he listened to the interrogation behind a curtain.
The old criminal had the support of Inspector Wu, so he naturally dared to use torture boldly.
The leader that Xu Qing captured was a stubborn person, and he didn't say a word for two hours. Moreover, this man was good at martial arts, and once he couldn't hold on any longer, he used the method of feigning death by breathing like a turtle.
The old criminal was afraid of killing the other party, so he couldn't get any information out of him, and in the end he couldn't help but show mercy.
Seeing that he couldn't pry the other person open his mouth, Xu Qing became a little annoyed.
He looked at Fa Yue who was calm and composed beside him, and something in his mind moved him. "I heard that Buddhism has the Lion's Roar, which teaches people to turn back from their mistakes. I wonder if the master has such magical power?"
After this incident, Fa Yue knew that Xu Qing was extraordinary and that his tricks could not be hidden from him, so he simply admitted: "I don't have the magical power of the lion's roar, but my Buddha has the method of compassion to save people. Why not let me ask him and try."
"Then I'll have to trouble you, Master." Xu Qinghe bowed eleven times.
Fa Yue nodded slightly and glanced at the thief leader. "If it was at the beginning, I would not be able to make him speak. But he is in a difficult situation now and needs to be saved. If I continue to chant Buddhist teachings and Zen music, I will have a better chance of success."
This is also the reason why the sedan chair was carried by everyone. It is the truth and it also confirms the role of the old criminal lawyer, so that people don't have to work hard for half the night and get nothing in return.
If that's the case, wouldn't that just be offending people for no reason?
They are Buddhist disciples who care about relationships and reputation. They actively participate in worldly affairs, unlike Stinky Ox Nose who is so aloof.
What’s more, Buddha is merciful. Lao Xingming’s family background can be considered middle-class and he is a major target for the spread of Buddhism.
Out of professional habit, we have to respect it.
As expected, Fa Yue's words greatly benefited Lao Xingming, who showed an expression of approval.
After listening to Fa Yue's words, Xu Qing felt like he had met an opponent.
Fortunately, this guy did not take the examination for the position of Tongsheng with him, otherwise he would definitely be a strong rival.
As for Brother Yan Shan, the greatest honor in his life is probably to compete on the same stage with Xu Sanyuan.
This is a qualification worth bragging about for a lifetime!
Then Fa Yue began to recite Buddhist scriptures.
This Zen sound felt like a tight hoop to Xu Qing's ears. Even he could not concentrate and even had difficulty entering a state of "absolute concentration".
Fa Yue chanted for a while and directly broke the thief leader's method of feigning death by breathing.
The other party was knowledgeable after all. He woke up and sneered: "What a great Golden Light Temple's Soul-stealing Curse, you stinky monk, do you know what's going on right now? How dare you get involved?"
Fa Yue sighed: "I am a monk from the secular world, but I also know that the law of the country is the most important. The donor has violated the law of the country, so you should tell the truth."
"What do you want to explain? I have nothing to explain."
"That's offending."
Fa Yue had an indifferent expression. He suddenly slapped the other person on the head and then chanted a spell.
The man suddenly became dazed, and began to answer every question Fa Yue asked, without hiding anything.
(End of this chapter)