Ten years of dormancy: Starting as a martial arts master at the pinnacle

Great Zhou Dynasty, Northern Desert City.

Many guests arrived at the open space next to the military camp.

There were two hundred tables for the banquet, with each table seating anywhere from four or five to six or seven people.

Unlike ordinary江湖豪客 (jianghu heroes), these江湖豪客 were mostly dressed in fine clothes.

They either wear brocade robes or fine silks and satins; they look like people of high status.

There's no way around it; even among those in the martial arts world, very few can completely ignore how others perceive them.

Especially after they became stronger, they naturally picked up their dignity and face again.

These are still those roughnecks who came from the martial arts world.

As for the experts sent out by noble families, their attire was even more elaborate.

Ordinary silks and satins are not acceptable; only the rarest and finest items will catch their eye.

The soldier responsible for delivering their meals occasionally showed a look of surprise in his eyes.

This is clearly far from the image of a chivalrous hero in their minds.

Only a few dozen masters from the Beggars' Sect wore somewhat tattered clothes.

Li Changqing, disguised as Chen Changfeng, repeatedly bowed to the people around him.

"Chief Chen is here!"

"Golden Dragon Hero!!"

Upon seeing Chen Changfeng appear, everyone's eyes involuntarily turned to him.

Everyone is very respectful towards the most popular figure in the martial arts world recently.

Even the people from the Duke of Qi's mansion and the Marquis of Xiaoyao's mansion didn't put on any airs in front of Chen Changfeng.

Instead, they politely returned the greeting and said hello.

"The young prince will arrive shortly. I, Chen, will first greet you all and express my gratitude for your great righteousness in serving the country and its people."

Li Changqing cupped his hands in greeting, explaining why his true self hadn't come, while simultaneously trying to confuse the surrounding heroes.

The martial arts masters who could be persuaded all had rosy cheeks.

They had never attended such a grand event before, and were already filled with excitement. Li Changqing's praise made them feel even more confident.

What grassland? What gold?

In their eyes, they all seemed to have become nothing more than clay chickens and earthen dogs. If they wanted to, they could easily crush those guys.

On the other hand, the experts sent by the noble families were clearly highly immune to Li Changqing's rhetoric.

Even as Li Changqing spoke with great enthusiasm, they merely nodded slightly.

Seeing that he had successfully fooled everyone, Li Changqing changed the subject: "I just had General Xiao give everyone a count. There are four Great Free and Unfettered Realm experts present. There are eighty-nine Free and Unfettered Realm experts in total. As for experts above the Grandmaster Realm, we have eight hundred and fifty-six people here."

"The grasslands and the Northern Gold Kingdom, even with the combined strength of their two nations, have only managed to send a thousand Grandmasters and less than a hundred Free Spirit Realm cultivators. We are no fewer in number than them, and our strength surpasses theirs!"

That's inspiring.

What martial arts are there on the grasslands? And the Northern Jin have long since faded into obscurity.

The martial artists of the Great Zhou Dynasty have always looked down on them.

Even though they only had five hundred Grandmasters at this time, and each of them was fighting two of the opponents, they were full of confidence.

Not to mention that they brought more than 800 people, which was not much different from the number of the other side, and there were also four Great Free and Unfettered Realm experts.

This also includes Chen Changfeng, the Golden Dragon Hero.

That's a ruthless person who dared to chase after the Heavenly Demon Elder all by himself.

The Heavenly Demon Elder was already a supreme-level powerhouse decades ago.

Even later, his cultivation level declined.

At the Beggars' Sect Martial Arts Tournament, the Heavenly Demon Elder also revealed his strength as a half-step Supreme.

It was precisely because Chen Changfeng had fought him before and had held his own.

That's why the name of the Golden Dragon Hero is so renowned in the Great Zhou Dynasty.

"I've already discussed this with the young prince. Our force is a surprise attack; the enemy is completely unprepared. For the sake of the soldiers and people of our Great Zhou, the young prince hopes we will launch a night raid and burn their supply lines, trapping their 600,000-strong army in front of Mobei City."

"I sincerely apologize for not having given you all time to rest!"

We'll start fighting as soon as they arrive, and wipe out their logistics and supplies.

An army of 600,000 men, without logistical support, would probably not last even two days.

Moreover, with such a massive amount of grain destroyed, even the resource-rich Great Zhou would need half a year to send a second batch.

Not to mention the resource-poor grasslands and northern gold mines.

If their supplies are destroyed this time, they will be unable to muster such a large force to attack the city for at least three years.

If things aren't going well, it could take five years or even longer.

Those who can cultivate to the level of Grandmaster or the Free and Unfettered Realm may not like to think about things outside of martial arts.

But none of them are fools.

Most of the experts quickly understood Chen Changfeng's intention.

"We will follow Chief Chen's orders!"

"We'll listen to Chief Chen!"

"We can't just eat and drink these dishes for nothing; let's get the work done today."

"To be honest, those guys on the grasslands are useless. In all this time, they've only managed two sneak attacks."

This is what happens when you're not in the situation and don't understand the pain.

Although the other side brought many experts, they didn't arrive in Beimo City overnight.

After receiving the news, the Great Zhou Dynasty immediately dispatched palace officials, military masters, and powerful figures to assist them.

In addition, Beimo City has been well-established for many years, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.

The enemy's two sneak attacks were also aimed at the supplies and provisions.

Unfortunately, none of them succeeded in the end.

The information obtained from General Xiao is that their Great Zhou suffered heavy losses of experts this time.

Dozens of Grandmasters died, and two powerful figures in the Free and Unfettered Realm also died...

That was barely enough to stop the opponent's sneak attack.

It is not difficult to see that the grasslands and the Great Jin are indeed coming with great force this time.

That's why Li Changqing wanted to resolve this major battle swiftly and decisively.

There was a grand show waiting for him in Kyoto, so Li Changqing didn't have much time to waste.

"The enemy should have already received news of our gathering, but they would never have expected us to assemble so quickly, much less that we would launch a surprise attack tonight. So, gentlemen, victory or defeat hinges on this moment. I, Chen, am willing to share life and death with you all, and go through thick and thin together."

Li Changqing raised the wine bowl in his hand, his heroic spirit soaring to the sky.

The martial arts heroes present, including the experts sent by noble and powerful families, were inevitably affected.

They also raised their wine bowls and drank them down in one gulp.

"happy!"

After finishing his drink, Li Changqing smashed the wine bowl on the ground.

"Snapped!"

The wine bowl was smashed to pieces.

The other江湖豪客 (jianghu heroes) followed suit, smashing their wine bowls on the ground as well.

The crackling sound instantly echoed throughout the entire military camp.

"Set off!"

Under Li Changqing's leadership, there were nearly a hundred people at the Free and Unfettered Realm and more than eight hundred Grandmaster-level experts.

Nearly a thousand people jumped off the city wall of the Northern Desert.

Thousands of small dots converged into a large army, charging straight towards the grassland.

……