Devouring Evil Martial Arts, Eliminating Demons from All Heavens

Chapter 147 My Soldier's Spirit, So Fierce!

Jingle bells!!
Inside the blacksmith shop north of Yongchun City, the furnace was blazing, and five or six strong men were forging iron.

The master craftsman sat to the side, watching the apprentices wield large and small hammers with orderly precision. He held a purple clay teapot in his hand, took a light sip, and nodded to himself.

The tall, thin boy walked into the shop and saw that in addition to farm tools and kitchen knives, there were also long swords displayed in front of the shop, their cold light gleaming. He couldn't help but purse his lips.

He walked through the shop, into the backyard, and pushed open the door to a room next to the storeroom.

The room was filled with dust and clutter, all piled up in the corner, with a table placed in the middle.

Next to the table was a long carrying pole and two baskets.

The dark-skinned man with old scars on his collarbone was fiddling with some oil paper packets and black and yellow powder on the table.

Because the Japanese pirates were committing massacres and setting fires, the hundreds of people who fled into the city were not all penniless.

Those families with servants and attendants simply found an inn to stay in, and those with relatives in the city made it even more convenient.

However, judging from their clothes and appearance, the tall, thin boy and his uncle were clearly not wealthy.

Somehow, I managed to rent a room in the backyard of the blacksmith's shop.

The boy said, "I sent the two children from Aunt Li's family to her, and then went out of the city with the magistrate. We actually found the person who killed the Japanese pirates."

The man replied, "I've already inquired about what kind of person this magistrate is; he's just an incompetent official."

"Who was the one who killed the Japanese pirates?"

The young man said, "I couldn't find out anything. He didn't say anything at all, but I felt that he was different from ordinary people in the martial arts world. The magistrate, out of consideration for his opinion, also had the constables help everyone find places to work..."

The man stopped what he was doing, his voice low.

"Do you think he's a true hero?"

The man turned around, his forehead beaded with sweat, his eyes glazed over.

"But now, the more I think about it, the more scared I feel."

“He was sitting by the roadside. When I saw him, it was like seeing a child. I couldn’t help but call him to run away together. You couldn’t hold back either and actually reached out to pull him.”

"But thinking about it carefully, his clothes were made of good materials and the style was not common. He was clearly a person from the martial arts world."

"Given our experiences, how could we be so completely unsuspecting of a江湖人 (jianghu person)?"

The boy was taken aback: "This morning someone inquired and said that I had been in contact with that person. The magistrate wants to take me out of the city to identify him. Why didn't you let me refuse, Uncle?"

The man remained silent for a while before saying, "Your father once said that those masters in the martial arts world who have eccentricities and unusual temperaments are mostly more dangerous than ordinary people, but they may also be more trustworthy than normal martial arts practitioners."

"I... sigh, I was also very confused. Actually, I hadn't made any decisions at the time, but I just let you go."

"When those Japanese pirates appeared yesterday, I thought it was the people chasing us again, although it turned out they were just like ordinary Japanese pirates and didn't come specifically for us."

"It still... leaves me bewildered for a long time."

The boy, however, advised, "Third Uncle, you are not exactly a skilled person when it comes to making decisions in the martial world. It's already quite good that we've been able to escape for half a year."

The man nodded.

"In short, what happened to the Japanese pirates yesterday shocked me greatly. If we hadn't been hunted down and had been killed by some petty thief or bandit, wouldn't that have been even more unjust?"

"This city is better than the countryside. There are shops that sell swords and knives to people from the martial arts world. If I use this place, I should be able to have more ways to defend myself."

Upon hearing this, the boy couldn't help but say, "That's what I'm worried about, Third Uncle. If you recreate the weapons unique to our sect, once you use them, they will most likely be noticed by those with ulterior motives."

The man smiled bitterly and said, "There was a period of time before when we deliberately didn't fight back, but we were still repeatedly targeted. If it weren't for my fourth uncle, fourth aunt, and seventh brother fighting them to the death, how could you and I have escaped?"

The boy fell silent.

The uncle and nephew pretended to be traveling merchants who had been injured by river pirates, and stayed in town to recuperate, living peacefully for half a month.

This gave him a sense of complacency, as if he could live a good life as long as he gave up those things that would make him recognizable.

But what Uncle San said is also correct.

They weren't found by their pursuers, but they still fell victim to the Japanese pirates.

As evening approached, fish-scale-like clouds filled the western sky, while the eastern sky remained a clear blue, without a trace of cloud.

The blacksmiths stopped work earlier than usual, the apprentices went home, and the master craftsman didn't stay there either, lending the shop to the uncle and nephew.

Before leaving, the master chef tried to pull the man away, but after observing for a while, he was persuaded to leave by the man.

The reason was that the man had shown off his skills as soon as he entered the blacksmith's shop, which made the master craftsman realize that he was an expert.

As long as we take in this uncle and nephew, even if they refuse to reveal the secret recipe, the shop's business will be even better when they forge swords with better blades.

Only the uncle and nephew remained in the shop.

The boy pulled the bellows and tended to the fire.

The man did indeed take out a packet of powder and, as instructed, reforged and tempered the two longswords in the shop.

But as night fell and the streets were deserted, he stopped beating the swords and knives.

Thin sheets of refined steel gradually appeared between the anvil and the hammer, and were repeatedly hammered and modified after being fed into the furnace several times.

The man hammered out cylinders, each about the size and thickness of a boy's little finger.

Although it is called a cylinder, the bottom of the cylinder is not sealed, and there is a small hole.

After the cylinder has risen and fallen several times in the liquid, cooling is complete.

The boy picked one up, his eyes filled with barely suppressed joy.

Although he sometimes wants to stay away from these things, he can't help but love them every time he sees the finished product.

Despite being an object hammered out of an iron hammer, the surface of this small tube is as smooth as a mirror, without a single hammer mark.

The boy let go, letting it fall gently onto the anvil.

A clear and crisp sound.

Experienced disciples in Huoshen Gully can hear this sound clearly, even with their ears focused, indicating that there is not the slightest hidden crack.

The man returned to his room with these items, sealed the bottom with a round disc, filled it with medicinal powder, and sealed the opening with a round bead. He silently worked with his fingertips, using his unique skill in mixing the medicinal powder to penetrate inwards and gently twist and tighten it.

He then rummaged through the odds and ends at the bottom of the basket and pulled out a series of small parts, putting them together.

Two dark-colored muskets were formed, each less than a foot long, with a wide and thick handle.

The boy sealed off several vents in the sword-forging furnace, causing the internal flames to gradually extinguish. He then cleaned up the traces in the shop and went to the backyard.

The uncle and nephew were exhausted. They didn't take a bath, ate a few steamed buns, drank a bowl of water, and prepared to sleep fully clothed.

They've gotten used to this kind of life.

The straw mats and blankets were laid on the ground and placed under our bodies, which was much more comfortable than being outdoors.

The uncle went to sleep first in the first half of the night, while the boy sat leaning against the wall.

It was probably late at night when the boy called out twice, and his uncle woke up.

"Go to sleep."

The man rubbed his eyes and moved to the wall to stand guard.

The boy felt as if he had fallen asleep, but his sleep was restless, and he vaguely heard the sound of flapping wings.

He barely opened his eyes and saw a bat fly through the window into the room, hanging upside down from the roof beam.

The bat's two small eyes were bright green, like two rare gems.

The man stared at the bat, finding it very strange.

Two voices could be heard outside.

"Hahaha, I knew it! Once I've raised these bats properly, I can smell the bloodlines of each family in Huoshen Gou and find their escaped relatives."

"Big brother is indeed amazing. I didn't notice it outside, but once I entered this shop, I could smell the difference. It's the smell of the Huoshengou medicinal powder."

The two voices seemed to come from different directions, sometimes near, sometimes far, sometimes east, sometimes west. Even after they had finished speaking, they continued to chuckle strangely.

"The people inside are Xu Ben and Xu Zhicheng, right? The things should be in your hands, uncle and nephew."

A third voice rang out.

The entire room was filled with three strange accents.

Xu Zhicheng tried to get up, but felt dizzy and his vision went completely dark.

Only the two green dots at the very top remained motionless.

But that unmoving green was more nauseating than the swirling darkness around it.

Xu Zhicheng was as if he were falling into a deep vortex, forever plunged into darkness.

Just then, a flash of light appeared in the room.

When the silvery beads spewed out of the fire, their surfaces developed spiral patterns and glowed a scorching red.

The rapidly spinning bead struck the bat on the roof beam and split open the instant it entered its body.

Boom! The bat exploded into a pool of blood that spurted backward, and the two green dots disappeared.

Xu Zhicheng suddenly woke up and heard his uncle shouting.

"Come on!"

Xu Ben crashed through the door and tumbled into the yard.

The two muskets fired four times in quick succession as he rolled out.

Roof tiles were cracked, and shards of stone paving outside the windows were flying everywhere.

Two more shots were fired simultaneously into the night sky.

The two orbs collided precisely in mid-air and exploded.

The figure that darted through the darkness was grazed by the shards, as if suddenly appearing from the night.

Dressed in black and wearing a black cloak, he tumbled to the ground.

With one less person to cooperate, the eerie sounds surrounding the area suddenly felt incomplete.

Xu Ben's ears twitched slightly, and his hands made subtle adjustments.

Bang bang bang bang bang! !

Flames spewed forth, an invisible attack that manifested its power from all directions, causing damage to objects.

Xu Ben's two muskets could fire forty shots in succession.

Each bead can pierce chainmail from a hundred paces away, and its ability to collide and propel it through the air makes it virtually impossible to defend against.

He had temporarily held off the three figures who moved with unpredictable agility.

The room was empty.

Xu Zhicheng had already grabbed two baskets and jumped out of the window to escape.

It's always the same.

Each time they encounter pursuers, fewer of them are eliminated, and now only two remain.

After tonight, there may only be one left.

Xu Zhicheng's eyes welled up with tears, and he gritted his teeth and ran wildly.

He wasn't going to just run away in any direction like before; he was going to take a gamble.

As evening fell, the fish-scale-like clouds slowly spread out, the clouds becoming larger and more widely spaced, covering the entire sky.

But the clouds also became thinner as a result.

Even when the moon is in the clouds, it can still shine through.

Chu Tianshu sat upright on the bench, his hands resting on his knees, gazing up at the clouds and moon.

He also heard the noise coming from the blacksmith's shop, turned his head and saw the tall, thin boy running towards him.

The boy was covered in sweat, and his forehead was slightly red, from the force he had used when he led everyone to express their gratitude.

"Hero!"

Xu Zhicheng was out of breath, but he still managed to finish the whole sentence in a hoarse voice.

"I am from the Xu family of Huoshen Gou. The secrets of a weapon that can change the world are hidden here. I'm giving it to you, please!"

"Please save my uncle!!"

The secrets of weapons that could change the world?
Change the world!

weapon!
Suddenly, a strong emotion welled up in the soldier's soul, but it felt very complicated, and he couldn't quite figure out what it was.

He wanted to eliminate the impurities, but he couldn't suppress them.

"Boy, since you've wised up to admit defeat, why don't you hand over the goods to us?"

Three figures dressed in black leaped across the rooftops of the long street.

One of them was carrying Xu Ben in his hand.

Xu Ben was only one person, and even with his highest firing rate, he could only hold them off for a short while.

Judging from his angry expression and the way his limbs were hanging limply, it was clear that he had been grabbed by a major acupoint, leaving him powerless.

The three men were dressed in the same clothes, wearing cloaks, and each had a mask covering the upper half of their face, with long and short beards on their chins.

They were none other than the infamous Yin Feng San Sha among the pirates, renowned for their tracking skills, and served Chen Zuqi, the largest pirate leader in the southeast.

“Your uncle is still perfectly fine, but as soon as I unleash my power, he will die on the spot.”

The man in black sneered, "Think carefully, who should get the things?"

Another man in black said, "There aren't many survivors left in Huoshengou. It would be a real pity if they got the secret but couldn't crack it. No need for further words, let's capture these two, uncle and nephew, alive."

They said that, but they didn't act rashly.

People from Huoshengou usually have some discernment.

Xu Zhicheng would ask that young man for help, so the young man must be no ordinary person.

The Three Fiends of Yin Wind deliberately ignored Chu Tianshu in their conversation, hoping to provoke him into speaking up and revealing his name and origins.

Chu Tianshu looked at the three people standing on the roof, and then looked around.

So many humans, so full of malice.

Boom! ! !
A sound like a large drum emanated from Chu Tianshu's body, and his imposing aura spread out.

Suddenly, Yin Feng San Sha felt his pupils tremble slightly, his vision become somewhat blurred, and his hair stand on end. He instinctively tried to dodge and leave.

But Chu Tianshu had already broken off a corner of the bench and thrown the piece of wood out.

The arm that the man in black was holding Xu Ben with suddenly exploded at the elbow.

The blood was mixed with the cheap wood that had been thrown at high speed and perished along with the elbow bone.

The man in black screamed and staggered backward.

Xu Ben tumbled off the roof and landed on the street.

Xu Zhicheng wanted to help his uncle, but he also felt dizzy and weak.

After the oppressive aura spread, several more figures appeared on the surrounding rooftops and at the entrances of alleys.

Although they were not overwhelmed by this power, they had no choice but to break free from their concealed state and actively confront it.

"What a strong momentum!"

One of the masked old men in blue robes spoke in a hoarse voice, “Gentlemen, we have been following the Three Fiends of Yin Wind and have had several encounters with them. We know each other’s identities without saying a word.”

"But if we continue to fight separately, I'm afraid the stuff will definitely fall into this person's hands, and we'll have no share at all."

Chu Tianshu had already reached out and grasped the basket.

Everyone's eyes narrowed.

If you save your uncle, you can obtain the secrets of the weapon.

Now this is mine.

Binghun gripped the basket, examined it carefully, but instead of rummaging through the miscellaneous items inside, he placed his fingers on the edge of the basket and gently shook and pulled it.

He pulled out a complete bamboo strip.

On the surface of the bamboo strips, there are clearly many tiny characters, as fine as ants. However, the pigment used is similar to that of the bamboo strips themselves, and they are woven into a basket to be stored inside, making them difficult to notice.

Everyone who saw this looked enlightened; the secret was hidden in the bamboo strip.

The soldier's spirit has already drawn out the second bamboo strip.

When the two are pieced together, the partially incomplete image can be pieced together to form a rough outline.

The soldier's spirit then showed a bewildered expression.

He can't read, but why can't he even understand the pictures?
Oh, the owner is back!
Everyone saw him looking bewildered, then suddenly delighted, and then his expression became calm.

Chu Tianshu blinked and saw the two bamboo strips in his hand.

A young man was kneeling beside him, and a middle-aged man was lying on the street.

There was a bunch of masked guys around, and three men in black on the roof, one of whom had a missing arm.

Wait, it's only been less than two days since we entered this world.

Based on my previous experience with time travel, at this point in time, I should be looking for a place to eat, stay, and practice my skills.

Why does it look like you've made a lot of enemies this time?

(End of this chapter)