Becoming a Saint From the Iron Armor Skill

Chapter 410: Chapter 209: Returning Home in Glory

Under the autumn sunset, the weather was exceptionally hot and dry.

The party, led by County Yamen Chief Constable Zhang Yan and the He brothers, finally arrived near Qingxi Town after pushing onward with all haste.

They had traveled for four to five hours, covering over a hundred li, and everyone in the group was gasping for breath.

Their clothes were long soaked with sweat, mixing with the dust from the road to stick clammily to their bodies, a thoroughly uncomfortable feeling.

The horses pulling the carts neighed restlessly from time to time.

The leaders, Zhang Yan and the others, were all Martial Artists, so they still had plenty of stamina and showed little sign of fatigue.

But traveling in this hot, dry weather left their throats feeling like they were on fire. No amount of water seemed to help.

Zhang Yan walked over to a slope by the main road, untied the waterskin from his waist, and took several large gulps.

Turning to look at the exhausted group, he sighed and said:

"Sigh... I was hoping we could reach Chen Family Gully and meet up with Lord Chen before nightfall, but it seems we won’t make it."

"Indeed. The men and horses both need a good rest. We’ll need our strength to get to work once we arrive," He Xingyao agreed.

He was long accustomed to rushing about. Even after getting thoroughly drunk the previous night, a full day of such high-intensity travel left him full of vigor, his eyes shining brightly.

He Xingwen plopped down on the dry grass nearby, fanning himself vigorously with a folding fan, and said:

"I really can’t take it anymore. Forget these able-bodied men; even I need a proper bath to cool down."

Zhang Yan and He Xingyao glanced at each other, both smiling and shaking their heads.

This prized protégé of the County Magistrate was clearly used to a pampered life.

Despite his strength at Skin Grinding Realm Perfection, he was quite delicate and couldn’t even endure such a minor hardship of travel.

"I wonder if Lord Chen has reached Chen Family Gully yet?" He Xingwen asked.

How could Zhang Yan and He Xingyao possibly know the answer?

After a moment, He Xingyao said with a serious expression:

"At my top speed, I should have been able to reach Chen Family Gully by now.

But it would be a struggle if I were carrying a hundred pounds or so. As for traveling with a whole living person, that would be truly difficult."

After speaking, He Xingyao looked at Zhang Yan.

Among the three of them, only he was a Perfect Martial Artist of the Muscle Strengthening Realm and could compare his speed to Lord Chen’s.

Zhang Yan understood his meaning. After a moment’s thought, he shook his head with a wry smile and said:

"If I were carrying a person, I would likely only reach Chen Family Gully by nightfall."

"Whoa! Does that mean Lord Chen’s Martial Arts Power is far greater than Lord Zhang’s?" He Xingwen exclaimed in amazement.

Zhang Yan said, "That seems to be the case."

He Xingwen’s face filled with admiration again as he murmured, "For Lord Chen to be so formidable at such a young age... no wonder even my honored teacher is so respectful toward him!"

Zhang Yan and He Xingyao also wore solemn expressions, feeling a sense of awe in their hearts.

Just then, the group, which had walked a bit further ahead, suddenly broke out in an uproar.

Then, a constable ran over and said, "My lords, a dead body has been found by the main road ahead."

"Oh?"

The three of them hurried forward to investigate.

When they saw the decapitated body of Chen Ergou, the three of them looked at each other, stunned.

"What a fast blade!" Zhang Yan said in shock after examining the corpse.

The two He brothers, however, were lost in thought and remained silent.

’The one who killed Chen Ergou was probably Chen Cheng.’

’But why would Chen Cheng kill such a nobody?’

"Chen Ergou must have run into mountain bandits. Two of you, come dig a pit and bury him."

At Zhang Yan’s command, two constables hurriedly tended to Chen Ergou’s body.

The party continued on its way as if nothing had happened.

The three men moved to the front of the group again, and Zhang Yan said in a low voice, "I’ve heard that Lord Chen was previously a Chief Constable in the City Guard Department, with a reputation for being ruthless."

He Xingyao said, "This morning, I mentioned that this Chen Ergou was a petty thief who specialized in wicked deeds..."

He stopped there, saying no more.

Zhang Yan and He Xingwen clearly understood his meaning.

This Lord Chen, the Purple-clothed Guard from the Demon Suppression Department, was indeed a ruthless man who hated evil as if it were his mortal enemy.

...

Thirty li southeast of Qingxi Town was the edge of the Moshan Mountain Range, which bordered the Great Wilderness Mountain Range.

As the meeting point of the two mountain ranges, this area looked like a gully from a distance.

The gully’s terrain was gentle, stretching for twenty to thirty li, and contained a good amount of farmland suitable for growing crops.

On a southeastern slope, a small village was hidden among the forests. This was Chen Family Gully.

Chen Family Gully didn’t have many residents—only fifty or sixty households, with a population of just over three hundred.

For generations, they had made their living from this land.

Directly across from the village, by a small creek, stood a straight, steep cliff over a hundred meters high, looking quite perilous.

Chen Cheng stopped not far from the village entrance. He saw that the entire village was silent, without a single person in sight.

Every household had built high wooden fences, and their gates were shut tight.

"The people of Chen Family Gully are all mountain folk. Judging by the fences on their houses, though, they seem to be a tough and rugged people," Chen Cheng murmured to himself.

The local environment shapes its people. Chen Family Gully was close to the mountain forests, so it was inevitable they would encounter all sorts of dangers in their daily lives.

This rugged nature was likely forged out of necessity.

Only with such a rugged nature could the mountain people survive and thrive in this environment.

Chen Cheng did not enter the village. Instead, he turned and walked briskly toward the cliff on the opposite side.

Unlike the quiet village, it was now afternoon, and wisps of cooking smoke were rising from several caves on the cliff face.

Arriving at the base of the cliff, he could faintly hear the sounds of voices coming from the various caves halfway up.

Most of these caves were located at a height of over ten zhang, and man-made stone steps led up to them from the base of the cliff.

These stone steps were nearly vertical, making them extremely treacherous.

"Who goes there?" A shout rang out just as Chen Cheng was about to leap onto the stone steps.

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