All Heavens: Dual Cultivation of Magic and Martial Arts Starting from the Republic of China

Ten silver dollars!

Liu Aijin felt as if her heart was bleeding.

But she still gritted her teeth and forced a smile.

"Master Wang is right! This magistrate is willing to provide you two with some travel expenses to facilitate your journey to the prefectural city, which can be considered as your own contribution to the great cause of eliminating demons!"

Yu Mingzi shook his head and sighed.

Fu Ze sneered.

"Hehe, Magistrate Liu is so generous! Thank you so much for the travel expenses."

Liu Aijin knew he was being sarcastic and was annoyed, but she responded with a forced smile.

"Young man, no need to be so polite. Quickly take these ten silver dollars from me with the old Taoist priest and let's get going."

Fu Ze's voice was low and deep.

"Does the county magistrate really not want to deploy his rifle and artillery units to eliminate demons and protect the people of the region?"

snort!

Liu Aijin was also getting tired of pretending, and her tone began to become impatient.

"I made things very clear to the old Taoist priest yesterday. You came to bother me again today, and I treated you with courtesy, even giving you travel expenses to the prefectural city for help. You brat, you really don't understand reason. Don't push your luck."

"Alright..."

Fu Ze lowered his eyelids, seemingly no longer arguing, but in reality he was tightening his muscles and fascia, circulating his qi and blood, and adjusting himself to his peak condition.

Liu Aijin sneered inwardly when she saw that he didn't speak.

"Heh, this kid looks like a troublemaker. But he's still too green in front of me, the county magistrate."

He beckoned.

"Master Wang, take the two Taoist priests to the treasury to withdraw ten taels of silver..."

Before he could finish speaking, Fu Ze suddenly looked up, his eyes gleaming like sharp swords.

He moved!

The ten toes suddenly gripped the ground. Instantly, the calf muscles were engaged, which then moved the thighs, waist, and hips, much like a car suddenly starting its engine.

I floored the accelerator!

The muscles and fascia, in conjunction with the flow of blood and qi, expand and contract, unleashing tremendous power.

Swish!

Fu Ze leaped forward like a tiger bounding through the mountains and forests.

It was so fast that it felt like a gust of wind was whipped up wherever it went!

Liu Aijin had no time to react.

He had his own sidearm, but he didn't have time to draw it.

With two henchmen carrying foreign guns standing behind him, there was no time to spare!

Even Wang, the advisor who was closest to Liu Aijin, only felt a blur before his eyes.

By the time they could see clearly, Fu Ze had already grabbed Liu Aijin by the throat and was standing with his back against a pillar in the hall. His face was completely calm.

No one present expected that this young man, who looked like a "rich young master," would dare to take the county magistrate hostage.

Master Wang's eyes were wide open like copper bells, and his hands were trembling.

"What do you want to do?!"

Click, click!

The two guards also cocked their guns and pointed them in Fu Ze's direction.

Fu Ze blocked Liu Aijin in front of him and sneered.

"What am I doing? Can't you tell? I'm kidnapping your boss, of course. And you two, if you're not afraid of killing him, then go ahead and shoot."

Behind Fu Ze were pillars, and in front of him was Liu Aijin, who was completely obscured.

These days, foreign guns are generally inaccurate.

He's not afraid!

Liu Aijin was stunned by this sudden turn of events. When she came to her senses, she found herself to have become a "hostage."

Although he was trembling with fear inside, he had fought many battles and crawled out of piles of corpses in the past. He tried his best to maintain a calm exterior and gave a cold laugh.

"What? You dare kill me? Then I'll issue a nationwide warrant, and you'll have nowhere to hide in the world!"

Then he glared fiercely at Yu Mingzi.

"And you! Old Taoist priest, you're from Mount Luofu. If you kill this county magistrate, Mount Luofu will surely suffer as well. I am a registered, legitimate official!"

Yu Mingzi remained silent.

Fu Ze chuckled and reached out to grab Liu Aijin's arm.

His kung fu had reached the level of internal strength; when he used his fingers to grab or flick an ordinary person, it was no different from scraping them with a knife.

So, with a "pfft!"

A piece of skin and flesh was torn off, and fresh blood flowed out.

"ah!!!"

Liu Aijin let out a scream, her forehead covered in sweat.

But he stretched his neck and looked fierce.

"You little brat! Is that all you've got? You're still too green to mess with me."

Fu Ze laughed loudly.

"Lord Liu, you're a military officer who crawled out of piles of corpses. I only scratched you a little, like a cat scratch. Is that considered torture? It's worse than a woman or a child."

As he spoke, he stroked Liu Aijin's fingers and gently twisted them.

Click!

A crisp sound.

It's actually very difficult to break a person's fingernail by hand. But Fu Ze could use his hidden strength to break it easily.

"You...did you break the county's finger?"

Fu Ze ignored Liu Aijin.

They tore off a few more strands of his hair.

At this point, all the materials for the [Four True Soul Control Spell] have been gathered.

Fingernails, hair, skin, and essence/blood are four things that are connected to a person's life and soul.

Fu Ze conjured a talisman and wrapped the items he had taken from Liu Aijin inside it. He quickly chanted an incantation and then tossed the talisman into the air.

With a loud bang!

The talisman burned, from which wisps of pale red thread emerged and pierced Liu Aijin's crown chakra. Then they wrapped around Fu Ze's palm.

It flashed by and disappeared without a trace.

Fu Ze also released Liu Aijin and sneered.

"The spell is complete, Magistrate Liu. Your life is now in my hands. I'll ask you one more time: will you lend me troops?"

Seeing that he had let go of her, Liu Aijin quickly stepped back. Two guards immediately supported him on either side, and Wang Shiye also rushed over, looking extremely anxious.

Perhaps because she was protected by armed guards, or perhaps because she did not feel any discomfort, Liu Aijin regained her courage.

lol.

"You little brat, spouting nonsense. Trying to fool me? No way!"

"it is good."

Fu Ze nodded slightly.

"You chose this yourself."

After he finished speaking, he said no more, his eyes narrowing slightly.

A wisp of spiritual energy emanated from the Niwan Palace, gathering at the fingertips, silently and directly approaching Liu Aijin's soul.

next moment--

Liu Aijin's cold smile suddenly froze.

An indescribable, excruciating pain suddenly exploded from the depths of my mind!

It felt as if countless steel needles were piercing his soul at the same time, causing him to convulse in pain, his face to turn deathly pale, his features to contort, and cold sweat to pour out of his body.

"ah--!!"

Liu Aijin screamed and fell to the ground, trembling all over, clutching her head and howling in agony.

"It hurts...it hurts so much! Help...help me!"

That was excruciating pain from the depths of the soul, a soul being wantonly tormented.

How can this be compared to ordinary flesh wounds?

The two guards supporting him and the advisor beside him were terrified. The maids and servants in the hall also knelt down, trembling and not daring to raise their heads.

Fu Ze remained expressionless and spoke calmly.

"Magistrate Liu, are you willing to lend it now?"

Liu Aijin was in excruciating pain, her soul almost leaving her body. She dared not disobey in the slightest and screamed with all her might.

"Borrow! Borrow!! I'll borrow!!! How many soldiers do you want... what guns and cannons do you want... I'll give you everything... Stop... Stop it!!"

"Brother Ze, please stop! Please stop doing this to me!"

Fu Ze's fingertips twitched slightly.

The excruciating pain in Liu Aijin's soul vanished instantly.

He immediately collapsed to the ground, sprawled out like a fish out of water. Soaked to the bone, he gasped for breath, his eyes unfocused, his gaze towards Fu Ze filled with utter terror.

Liu Aijin felt that the young man in front of her... was a devil!

He said that evil cultivators control zombies to cause chaos, but isn't he the evil cultivator himself?

Fu Ze looked down at him from his high position, his tone indifferent.

"Immediately issue an order to assemble a team of twenty foreign gunners and two cannons. Meet at the county gate in half an hour and come with us to the ancient tomb outside Sanshui Town to exorcise the corpse and slay the evil spirit."

"If you dare to delay even half a step—"

Fu Ze's voice turned cold.

"I will annihilate your soul and spirit, so that you may never be reincarnated."

Liu Aijin trembled all over, her soul almost leaving her body, and she scrambled to her feet, nodding frantically.

"Yes, yes, yes! I obey! I'll do it right away! I'll do it right away!!"

He disregarded his official dignity, scrambled to his feet in a panic, and rushed to the back hall like a madman to personally relay the order.

Yu Mingzi looked at the scene before her with a complicated expression and let out a long breath.

He walked to Fu Ze's side.

"Young friend Fu, this matter is settled. It seems you were right; were my previous methods too merciful?"

Fu Ze shook his head.

"Master, there's no need to blame yourself. Our situations are different. You have sect concerns, while I'm alone and a wandering cultivator with no scruples. We can't be compared. You've already done enough."

He also comforted Yu Mingzi.

In this chaotic world, it's not easy to be a good person. We shouldn't be too harsh on others because of some flaws.

Otherwise, who would bother being a good person?

After they finished speaking, the two watched as the entire county government office bustled about, with Liu Aijin and his advisor, Master Wang, making a racket and arguing.

Fu Ze stood tall and straight, his eyes calm and serene.

"In chaotic times, to show mercy to the wicked is to be cruel to the common people. Today, I will use swift and decisive measures to force out a little bit of justice in this chaotic world."

"I'm just an ordinary person, unable to influence the course of history, but at least... I should focus on doing what's in front of me."

……

When faced with the threat of death, people can unleash tremendous potential.

In less than half an hour, the foreign gun team and the artillery team had already assembled in the open space in front of the county government office!

Liu Aijin personally stood on the steps, shouting at the top of his lungs to direct his soldiers to assemble.

Fu Ze watched from the side and thought that although this guy was no good as a county magistrate and only knew how to exploit the people, he was still quite capable of commanding soldiers in battle.

Indeed, being able to become a county magistrate based on military achievements on the battlefield is not considered a sign of incompetence.

Liu Aijin wiped the cold sweat from her forehead and shouted.

"Damn it! Hurry up, all of you, move faster! Riflemen, check your ammunition; artillerymen, move your cannons out! We have to move out in fifteen minutes. If you're even a second late, I'll skin you alive!"

He shouted himself hoarse, giving orders while secretly glancing at Fu Ze not far away out of the corner of his eye, his eyes filled with fear.

The excruciating pain, as if his soul had been torn to pieces, still lingered in his senses. He never wanted to experience that feeling of being worse than dead again.

Standing beside Fu Ze, Yu Mingzi looked at the bustling troop mobilization scene before him and couldn't help but stroke his beard and marvel.

"Young friend Fu, your soul-controlling technique is truly effective. Last night, I tried to persuade Liu Aijin until his lips were sore, but he wouldn't budge an inch. Now that you've got his soul under your control, he's more obedient than a lapdog."

Fu Ze smiled.

"In chaotic times, reasoning with those who are afraid of death is less effective than talking about life and death. If they value their lives, then use your own life to control them; that's the most effective way. Evil people need other evil people to torment them. I'm all alone, without any ties, so I'm perfect for being that 'evil person.'"

In fact, it was because of the tragic deaths of that old beggar and his grandson that he truly understood this principle.

In chaotic times, if you want to be a good person, you have to be even more ruthless and decisive than the bad people!

Yu Mingzi nodded in agreement.

The old Taoist priest had lived most of his life by adhering to the rules of the Taoist sect. Now, seeing Fu Ze break the deadlock with swift and decisive measures, he suddenly understood – with the people in imminent danger, how could he care about anything else?

Unfortunately, just as Fu Ze said, he also knew that he had Mount Luofu behind him. His sect was both his support and his Achilles' heel…

The orthodox Xuanmen sect and the government of the Republic of China reached a compromise.

Unless it truly comes to the point of a complete break due to differing beliefs, major Taoist sects will not make things difficult for the government, and the government will turn a blind eye to the major Taoist sects.

……

Closer to home.

Before long, the team was fully assembled.

The twenty foreign-armed soldiers in the front row carried rifles on their shoulders and had ammunition boxes at their waists. They stood solemnly and in neat formation.

Two bronze cannons at the rear were being pulled by horses; their black muzzles exuded an intimidating aura.

Each cannon was staffed with eight soldiers, including two gunners and six support personnel.

Liu Aijin jogged up to Fu Ze, bending over so low she was almost like a shrimp, her face plastered with an extremely fawning smile.

"Master Fu, the troops are all assembled: twenty riflemen, twelve artillerymen, and two cannons, with ample ammunition. We're ready to depart at any time! What do you think... shall we set off?"

Fu Ze glanced at him indifferently.

"Okay, come with us."

"How could I trouble you, Master Fu? I know the location of that mass grave outside Sanshui Town. I will personally lead the way! Please, you and the old Taoist priest, mount your horses first!"

Liu Aijin brought over two fine horses and let Fu Ze and Yu Mingzi ride them.

He mounted his horse and rode to the front of the group, like a guide.

Fu Ze held this guy in even higher esteem.

The convoy drove out of the county town in a grand procession, heading towards Sanshui Town along the official road.

Liu Aijin rode her horse closely beside Fu Ze and Yu Mingzi, her obsequious smile never ceasing.

"Master Fu, do you think I handled things efficiently this time? I've never put this much effort into anything in my life."

"Master Fu, you possess boundless supernatural powers and limitless magic. My admiration for you is as endless as a surging river..."

"Great Immortal, look at this curse... When can you lift it for me? I promise, after defeating the evil cultivators and zombies this time, I will return to be diligent in governing and loving the people, and I will never be greedy for money again, nor will I oppress the people again..."

Liu Aijin kept rambling on and on, doing everything she could to flatter him, hoping that Fu Zene would soften his heart and lift the curse on him ahead of time.

Fu Ze glanced at him, his tone indifferent.

"Once we deal with the evil cultivators and zombies in the ancient tomb, I will naturally lift the curse for you. Until then, don't even dream about it. Instead of wasting your breath talking, you should think about how to fight the evil cultivators and zombies later."