99: Chapter 99 Shu Prefecture

The crisp sound of horse hooves and the bell-like laughter of the two sisters echoed along the silent mountain path.

Chaoge City was located in the heart of the Divine Land, a long distance away.

Chen Fan, however, was in no hurry.

He deliberately slowed his horse's pace, letting the fine steed beneath him take leisurely steps, carrying him along to appreciate these great rivers and mountains.

In his previous life as Chen Jinzhong, he had lived too repressively, too aggrievedly. Every day was spent either practicing his skills or on the way to a duel, stretched tight like a string about to snap.

Now, having changed his identity to the Jade-Faced Asura and possessing the peak strength of a Rank Six Martial Artist, the world was wide and open to him. Instead, he wanted to experience the true pleasure and freedom that belonged to the Jianghu.

“Master Luo, look at that waterfall over there!”

Hong Shao pointed excitedly with her riding crop, her fiery red martial attire snapping in the mountain wind, making her appear brilliantly beautiful beyond compare.

Chen Fan looked in the direction she pointed and saw a white silk-like stream hanging from the mountains, the water roaring spectacularly.

Before he could respond, Hong Shao had already urged her horse closer, her body nearly pressed against him as she exhaled a fragrance like orchids.

“Shall we go take a look? We can camp by the pool under the waterfall tonight, and I'll dance for you.”

The invitation was bold and direct.

Hearing this, Qing Luo's cheeks instantly flushed crimson, and she gave a soft, disdainful spit.

“Sister, have you no shame?”

“Is my little sister jealous?” Hong Shao turned back and winked at her. “How about we sisters join him together tonight?”

Qing Luo's face turned even redder as she turned her head away, not daring to look further.

Chen Fan found it somewhat amusing. These two sisters—one passionate as fire, the other gentle as water—complemented each other well. Maintaining Luo Hengsheng's aloof and cold persona, he merely gave a faint nod.

“Very well.”

Two simple words made Hong Shao smile so broadly her eyes curved like crescents, as if she had received a grand reward.

The Jianghu, a swordsman, and beauties.

This script didn't seem too bad.

The three people and their horses traveled leisurely for seven or eight days.

On this day, they reached a narrow mountain pass known as 'Black Wind Mouth,' where the official road was flanked by steep cliffs, making the terrain treacherous.

A cacophony of shouting and crying drifted from not far ahead.

“Stop! Everyone stop right there!”

“If you know what's good for you, leave all your money and goods behind, and I might just spare your miserable lives!”

A dozen or so bandits with ferocious expressions and weapons in hand had surrounded a small merchant caravan.

The caravan's guards already lay in pools of blood, leaving only a middle-aged man who appeared to be the manager kneeling on the ground, shaking like a sieve.

“Have mercy, heroes! Have mercy! These goods are my entire livelihood...”

“Cut the crap!” The one-eyed bandit leader kicked him to the ground, grinning savagely. “Your livelihood belongs to me now!”

The lackeys behind him swarmed forward, beginning to roughly ransack the goods, letting out greedy cackles from time to time.

Hong Shao's willow-like brows furrowed.

“Master Luo...”

Chen Fan raised his hand, signaling that she needn't say more.

He nudged the horse's flanks with his legs, and his steed slowly moved forward.

The dozen bandits also noticed the three of them; especially when they saw the peerless beauty of Hong Shao and Qing Luo, a lecherous green light flickered in their eyes.

The one-eyed bandit licked his dry lips, gripped his Ring-Pommel Broadsword, and walked over with a lustful gaze.

“Oho, three more fat sheep? And one wearing a mask, playing the ghost!”

He sized up Chen Fan and the pair of sisters behind him, chuckling.

“Kill the man, keep the women! We'll take them back to the fortress for the brothers to enjoy!”

“Yes, Boss!” the bandits shouted in unison, laughing even more wantonly.

Seeing this, the last trace of color drained from the kneeling merchant manager's face, his eyes filled with despair. It was over; these three delicate-looking young people were going to suffer along with them.

Chen Fan remained seated on his horse, motionless.

He didn't even look at the shouting one-eyed bandit, merely staring forward calmly.

Seeing him ignore him like this, the one-eyed bandit flew into a rage.

“Damn it! You masked mute, you're looking for death!”

He roared, raising his Ring-Pommel Broadsword and swinging it toward the horse's legs. He intended to cripple the man's mount first before slowly dealing with him.

The blade whistled down, carrying a vicious wind.

At that moment, Chen Fan moved.

No one saw his movement clearly.

He simply flicked his finger.

A small pebble flew from between his fingers, tracing a trajectory through the air that was nearly invisible to the naked eye.

Pfft.

A soft sound.

The one-eyed bandit's charging body suddenly stiffened, and the high-raised broadsword fell to the ground with a clang.

He looked down in disbelief at his right knee.

There, a bloody hole had appeared.

A surge of intense pain finally followed.

“Ah—!”

The one-eyed bandit let out a shrill scream, clutching his leg as he rolled on the ground.

Everyone was stunned.

The lecherous grins on the bandits' faces froze.

The merchant manager also forgot to cry out, simply staring blankly.

What happened?

He... he didn't even draw his sword!

Chen Fan ignored the wailing on the ground. He slowly raised his hand, pointing at the group of terrified bandits. With a surge of Internal Energy, a dozen pebbles flew out, piercing through the bandits' foreheads. Every single one was killed instantly!

The merchant manager finally snapped out of it, crawling and scrambling to the front of Chen Fan's horse, kowtowing frantically.

“Thank you, Great Hero, for saving my life! Thank you for saving my life!”

Chen Fan didn't even give him a glance. He readjusted his mask and turned his horse around.

“Let's go.”

Hong Shao and Qing Luo urged their horses to follow, one on each side.

Hong Shao's eyes shone with admiration.

“Master Luo, you looked so handsome just now.”

Qing Luo added in a small voice.

“He would look much better if he wasn't wearing the mask.”

The three continued on their way, while back on the road, the merchant manager remained kneeling, kowtowing toward their departing figures.

After another half-month of travel, they finally entered the borders of Shu Province.

However, the sight before them caused the previously relaxed atmosphere to vanish instantly.

Along the official road, refugees in rags with sallow, emaciated faces were everywhere. They moved in groups of three or five, dragging their families along, their eyes numb as they struggled toward some unknown destination.

The air was thick with the scent of despair and deathly silence.

The smile on Hong Shao's face disappeared. She watched a woman sitting by the roadside, wailing while holding an infant that had long since stopped breathing, and her eyes turned slightly red.

“How... how did it become like this?”

Chen Fan didn't speak, merely watching silently.

In Luo Hengsheng's memory, Shu Province was known as the Land of Abundance, with rich resources and peaceful people. But the scene before him was like night and day compared to those descriptions.

He took out half a silver ingot, tossed it into the lap of the woman who was crying herself numb, and then departed.

Half an hour later, Chen Fan and the others entered the provincial capital of Shu Province.

The streets that should have been bustling and prosperous were now desolate and cold.

More than half the shops were closed, and pedestrians were few and far between, walking in a hurry. Squads of government soldiers in battered armor patrolled with spears in hand, the atmosphere tense to the extreme.

The three found a restaurant that was still open and walked inside.

Inside the restaurant, there were only a few scattered tables of guests, all looking worried and speaking in hushed tones.

Chen Fan ordered a jar of wine and a few small dishes, while the sisters sat quietly beside him.

The conversation of some Jianghu people at the neighboring table drifted over in fragments.

“Have you heard? The Yellow Robe Army captured another county town the day before yesterday, and the defending troops fled as soon as they saw them coming!”

“Sigh, when will these days end? The government does nothing, letting the Yellow Robe Army run rampant everywhere. We businessmen can hardly survive anymore!”

“Keep it down! Do you want to die? This city is crawling with Yellow Robe Army spies!”

A man who looked like a merchant from out of town couldn't help asking: “What is the origin of this Yellow Robe Army? How can they be so rampant?”

A local man sighed and lowered his voice.

“What origin could they have? They're all refugees who can't survive! Shu Province is in a great drought, and the imperial relief funds and grain are embezzled at every level. By the time it reaches the bottom, not a single grain of rice is seen. When the people can't survive, they have no choice but to rebel!”

“The leader of the Yellow Robe Army calls himself 'General Tiangong.' It's said he already has a hundred thousand followers. Their momentum is massive, and the government troops are simply no match for them!”

General Tiangong.

Yellow Robe Army.

Hearing these names, Chen Fan's hand holding the wine cup paused slightly.

A dusty memory surfaced from the depths of his mind.

It was back when he was the Chief of Black Wind Fortress, known as the 'Black Wind Demon.'

Once, someone claiming to be an envoy of the Yellow Robe Army had approached Black Wind Fortress, wanting to recruit him. They promised many benefits, asking him to start an uprising in Xiushan Province.

At the time, Chen Fan knew it was a giant trap and had refused without hesitation.

He hadn't expected that after so little time...

That group of rabble he had looked down upon had actually become a prairie fire sweeping across an entire province.

A hundred thousand troops.

That was no small number.

Is the imperial court doing nothing?