Chapter 175

Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW

Chapter 175: I, the Old Man, Want to Show My Holiness and Ask for Votes

The intuition of the Martial Saint Spiritual Technique is two-way.

Although this person’s intuition is different from other practitioners of the Martial Saint Spiritual Technique, Qiao Mu noticed a momentary change in the female general’s expression when he glanced at her.

Qiao Mu moved back into the crowd, using the figures of others to block his view. He could only catch a glimpse of this armored female general from the corner of his eye.

The female general was fully armored, with a face mask covering her face. It was difficult to see her features, which piqued Qiao Mu’s curiosity even more.

It’s well known that people who intentionally hide their appearance often have suspicious identities.

Qiao Mu has experienced countless near-death situations and frequently disguises himself to change his identity, so he is particularly sensitive to this matter.

Especially since this person seems to have cultivated the Martial Saint Spiritual Technique, there is an unclear connection with the Wuji Association.

"What’s all the noise?" The female general, riding on a tall horse, spoke with a buzzing, chilling voice from beneath her face mask.

"Anxi Pass is a special place. Do you want to disturb the peace of the hundred thousand brave souls who died in battle? Intruders will be killed!"

Her voice was cold and solemn.

It was noticeable that the townspeople were somewhat fearful of the lady general. When she spoke, the gathered townspeople remained silent, afraid of angering this Iron Lady.

At this moment, a person stepped forward, and it was Mr. Hai.

Naturally, everyone’s gaze focused on him, including the lady general’s sharp eyes that examined him through her mask.

"Madame Bai," Mr. Hai stepped forward, pretending to be arrogant and laughed loudly:

"I’ve heard that as long as I can defeat you, I can enter this Anxi Pass of yours."

"But no matter how strong your martial arts are, how can they compare to power and influence? If I want to enter, do you dare to stop me?"

The lady general stared at him with two cold eyes, her voice low:

"Who are you?"

"My father is the Minister of Rites, Hai Wuya." The middle-aged man stood tall, confident and proud.

Although he was older and had no followers or servants with him, he didn’t seem as extravagant as one might expect.

"Do you have an imperial travel permit?" The female general’s voice remained cold and unaffected.

"What travel permit?" Mr. Hai frowned.

"My father’s command is the travel permit."

"Ha! Even if the Minister of Rites himself were here, without the permission of the court, you still wouldn’t be allowed to leave!" The female general’s gaze held a hint of disdain.

This person lied about being the son of a high-ranking official, which might deceive the townspeople, but now he was showing off in front of her?

"Disrespectful." Mr. Hai seemed angry, and exclaimed,

"Wait until I return to the Imperial Capital, I will immediately remove you from your position!"

"Please go ahead." The female general’s tone was harsh and dismissive, as she turned her horse’s head and walked away.

Unexpectedly, Mr. Hai didn’t retreat, instead his gaze intensified.

"Bloodthirsty Skill！"

He trembled slightly, his eyes widened, pupils uncontrollably trembling, blood vessels gradually becoming dense, as if blood was about to drip from his eyes.

A buzzing sound of a sword rang out.

Mr. Hai flew forward, gripping the sword and slashing diagonally towards the waist of the female general, a blood-colored brilliance trailing behind the sword in the air.

This was originally an unintentional sneak attack, but the immediate female general didn’t even turn her head, only facing away from him, not even glancing at him, sweeping her spear backwards with a casual motion.

A loud noise in the surroundings.

Mr. Hai let go of his sword and it fell from his hand. His hand bleeds and his eyes slowly regain clarity. He stands still in the same spot, looking dazed.

"Can’t it be done this way?" he sighed.

He originally intended to act arrogant to make the female general look down on him, then find a chance to ambush and try to defeat her. By doing so, he can pass this challenge in a righteous manner.

"You have underestimated the situation," the female general said calmly.

"You actually thought you could ambush a martial artist of the 3rd rank of the Spiritual Refining Period? How naive…"

Mr. Hai forces a bitter smile, and then his eyes start to bleed. The two streams of blood flow down, accompanied by his bitter and somewhat terrifying smile.

This type of explosive secret technique is also known as a forbidden spell. Although it can temporarily exceed the limits of the physical body and unleash immense power, it also comes with equally powerful side effects.

He used deception in his words and employed forbidden spells; he exhausted both internal and external strategies, but in the end, he had no choice.

Blood drips down his cheek, and Mr. Hai closes his eyes, quickly taking out the letter from his bosom.

These letters are the letters that the townspeople asked him to deliver. If they were stained with blood, they might be blamed by the spirit of those soldiers….

The townspeople watched this scene with longing in their eyes, but they could only sigh in their hearts.

The Iron Lady guarding the gate was right in front of them, but they didn’t dare to express their indignation and could only keep it to themselves.

And at this moment.

Among the crowd, there was an old man with white hair walking out slowly.

"Child, don’t cry, it’s just delivering a letter, right?" The old man walked up to Mr. Hai and reached out to take the letter from his hand.

"The water here is deep, you can’t handle it. Let grandpa do it."

Mr. Hai was first shocked, wanting to snatch the letters back from the old man’s hand. But suddenly, he sensed a powerful internal energy, which passed through the envelope in his hand and entered his body, temporarily relieving his injuries from the forbidden art that he had used on himself.

"Huh?" At this moment, Mr. Hai realized what kind of powerful and extraordinary old being he had encountered. Instantly, he no longer resisted and let go of the letters in his hand.

Despite being a middle-aged man, Mr. Hai felt a bit embarrassed when an old man called him "child" in front of everyone.

But in such a critical moment, having this old monster help out was a great thing.

The older this man acted, the more reliable Mr. Hai felt he was.

After taking the package, the old man looked up at the female officer guarding the checkpoint.

He smiled and said softly:

"Miss, if I wanted to pass through the checkpoint, would you dare to stop me?"

The female officer was silent for a moment, sensing that the old man in front of her was not easy to provoke. After a long silence, she asked:

"And who might you be?"

Asking the same question, but when it came to this old man, she asked with a bit more caution.

"I, well, the old man’s surname is Qiao, and my name is…"

The old man, halfway through his words, suddenly got stuck and frowned as he pondered.

The townspeople saw this scene and couldn’t help but have doubts and wonder if the old man was too old to remember even his own name, taking a long time to think.

"By the way, my name is Qiao Shuangsen, you all should remember this name well."

"Because next…"

"I, the old man, am going to display my holiness in front of everyone."

As soon as he finished speaking, the old man’s figure suddenly became blurry.

"Dis…disappeared?" The townspeople widened their eyes.

In broad daylight, right before everyone’s eyes, the old man’s figure unexpectedly appeared like a ghost, flickering in front of the female general who was riding a tall and majestic horse.

And at that moment, the female warrior suddenly came to her senses and tightly gripped the long spear in her hand.

But it was already too late.

Because Qiao Mu drew his sword.

He simply pulled out his sword and slashed upwards.

It was just a simple movement, but it was quick and powerful.

The sword was surrounded by a heavy aura that seemed to distort the air.

The eyes behind the female warrior’s face mask widened suddenly.

Even though the Spirit Refining martial artist’s instincts were sharp enough to anticipate the enemy’s moves, she still felt overwhelmed when facing a formidable opponent who could easily overpower her.

Hiss!

The sword light soared upwards, making a loud whooshing sound.

Then came the sound of loud horse neighing.

In that instant, the armored female general didn’t have time to dodge. She and her horse were struck by the sword light, crashing to the ground and forming a pool of blood.

"Let me see your true face…"

With a move from Qiao Mu’s hand, he uncovered the female general’s face mask and helmet. But when he saw her real face, he was stunned for a while.

"Sir!"

"Sir…"

The soldiers rushed forward in panic, swinging their long spears and big knives, surrounding Qiao Mu.

"Everyone, calm down and step back." The female general on the ground spoke calmly.

But she was clearly no match for Qiao Mu, as his sword only managed to scratch her armor, causing little damage.

Qiao Mu’s Military Spear Skill was already perfected, and he had mastered the Shadow Sword Technique. He could control his strength and movements effortlessly.

It was obvious that Qiao Mu had held back.

The female general pushed the dead horse off her and stood up from the ground.

Qiao Mu removed her helmet and face mask, revealing long gray hair that waved in the wind.

To their surprise, it was an old woman with white hair, wrinkles all over her face, and tiredness apparent in her sunken eyes.

The townspeople gasped in astonishment.

Clearly, they had never expected that this Iron Lady, representing the Great Yan Imperial Court and guarding Anxi Pass, would be an elderly woman much older than them.

"Anxi Pass cannot stop a true warrior," the old woman bowed to Qiao Mu.

"If Mr. Qiao wants to enter this Hundred-mile Desert, we naturally have no power to stop him."

"But that desert is not ordinary, it can be said to be a forbidden zone for life… This is not the place to talk, please Mr. Qiao come inside, we can talk more."

The old lady with white hair pointed to the checkpoint behind her and said seriously.

After being easily defeated by Qiao Mu and revealing her true identity, she became much easier to talk to than when she was fully armed before.

"Okay." Qiao Mu nodded.

Ordinary people may be afraid of what the old lady might do, like setting a trap or closing the door to catch the dog, but Qiao Mu is not afraid at all.

"Mr. Qiao, can I follow you in? If we enter the desert, I can help Mr. Qiao and carry the luggage." Mr. Hai asked hurriedly from behind.

"He can’t, he is too weak." The old lady said coldly.

"Before the establishment of Anxi Pass, that desert was a forbidden zone for life, and it could be said that people who entered may never return."

"Letting him in, actually harmed him."

Qiao Mu nodded.

Just as he was about to enter Anxi Pass with the old woman, he heard someone calling him from behind again.

"Mr. Qiao Shuangsen…"

The one speaking was the innkeeper from earlier.

This innkeeper was already in his middle age, but at this moment, his eyes were slightly teary as he bowed deeply to Qiao Mu.

"We can’t enter Anxi Pass. I hope that Mr. Qiao Shuangsen can help to take good care of the family letters, maybe don’t burn them for now…"

"If… if by any chance they are still alive, this family letter might be able to reach their hands."

As the innkeeper said this, he shook his head and sighed.

"I was talking nonsense, let’s pretend I didn’t say it. Mr. Qiao is very skilled, but please be careful when entering the desert."

After saying this, the other townspeople looked at him without any strange expressions, instead they were deeply moved.

The people from Zhong Province who came to settle outside Anxi Pass, how could their true reason be something like burning letters to send to the underworld?

They gathered outside Anxi Pass because they foolishly believed that their loved ones were not dead, but only lost somewhere in the Hundred-mile Desert.

The Inhuman War forty years ago was unprecedented.

The entire army of one hundred thousand elite soldiers perished, only one person survived. This was an unprecedented and brutal battle in the history of Jiu Province.

Speaking of death tolls, there have been more in history, but none as many as one hundred thousand.

However, with one hundred thousand people extinct, including Anxi City, everyone disappeared without a trace… this made the situation very mysterious.

In the years immediately after the war, many people believed that those soldiers didn’t actually die, so many people from Zhong Province rushed to the desert to search.

As time passed and Anxi Pass was established, their hope gradually faded away.

Including the innkeeper, these townspeople’s letters… were not meant to be sent to the deceased, but to the living.

This tiny bit of hope is what kept them clinging outside of Anxi Pass.

…..

The gate of the checkpoint closed with a bang.

Qiao Mu and the old woman’s figures disappeared from the sight of the crowd.

Mr. Hai sighed, silently adjusting his breath and repairing the damage inside his body.

"Da Mu’s idea this time is really not good." Mr. Hai shook his head and said.

"The ‘Bloodthirsty Skill’ he gave me can temporarily enhance my vision and reaction speed, but even with this ‘Bloodthirsty Skill’, it is still no match for that Iron Lady."

"Maybe we should discuss this matter in more detail… Huh? Where did Big Brother go? Wasn’t he just in the crowd?"

He looked through the crowd but found nothing.

………..

The interior of Anxi Pass is not big, and the buildings inside are just the living quarters for the soldiers.

The number of soldiers stationed here is not large either, totaling only one or two hundred, and these soldiers are clearly not elite warriors, their strength is ordinary at best.

Less than one-third of the martial artists with rank in internal strength are inside.

It can be seen that the Great Yan Imperial Court doesn’t seem to attach much importance to Anxi Pass, which can be observed from the number and strength of the soldiers.

The only unusual person is the female general guarding the pass.

She is a martial artist of the 3rd rank of the Spiritual Refining Period, although she has also aged and her vitality has declined, her strength is still apparent.

Weak soldiers paired with strong generals? That’s not fair.

A martial artist, who is at the 3rd level of the Spiritual Refining Period, appeared at Anxi Pass. This is quite unusual.

The old woman led Qiao Mu up the walls of Anxi Pass and instructed the soldiers accompanying her to step back.

Looking down from the walls, you could see a distant cemetery with countless tombstones densely packed like a forest.

"Mr. Qiao, your martial arts skills are amazing. I can’t stop you," the old woman said, looking towards the cemetery and speaking first:

"And if you have any questions about the Hundred-mile Desert outside the city, you can ask me here."

"Is this how you guard the pass? And weren’t you quite powerful towards that ordinary townsfolk just now… Qiao Mu was having trouble understanding why the old woman’s attitude suddenly changed.

But he didn’t pay much attention to these details and after a moment of thought, he asked the first question:

"Where did you learn the ‘Martial Saint Spiritual Technique’? Is it related to the Martial Saint or the Wuji Association?"

The old woman was clearly surprised when Qiao Mu asked his first question.

"I don’t practice the ‘Martial Saint Spiritual Technique’, I have no connection with Martial Saint or the Wuji Association."

"If you want to know why I guard this pass, it’s simply my personal choice."

"If you haven’t practiced the ‘Martial Saint Spiritual Technique,’ how can you have a sense of intuition about me?" Qiao Mu asked again.

The old woman’s eyes were deep and she remained silent for a moment, but she didn’t explain further.

"Mr. Qiao, this question has nothing to do with the desert."

"You are a rare master, and there might be some opportunities for you in the desert, so I just wanted to help in any little way I can."

"But that’s not a reason for you to pry into my personal details."

"You want to help an old man who wants to enter the desert, yet you’re also blocking the townspeople from crossing the pass?" Qiao Mu asked again.

"This is because the desert is very dangerous, it’s a forbidden zone for life," the old woman said calmly.

"Ordinary people who enter will face certain death, but someone as skilled as you might have a slim chance of survival… Of course, whether you go or not, I can’t stop you."

"Can you tell me specifically what dangers there are in this desert?" Qiao Mu asked again.

"Although this desert, called Fang Yuan, is only a hundred miles long, it can’t compare to the vast wilderness desert in the west of Jiu Province. But over the years, almost everyone who entered the desert got lost and never returned. It’s a natural maze."

"Besides that, there are also rumors of ‘ghost soldiers passing through.’ It’s said that travelers who venture deep into the desert sometimes encounter an illusion of ghostly soldiers as white as paper, and hear the sound of horns…"

Qiao Mu nodded.

These words seemed to align with Dao Zhen’s explanation as well.

"So, you’re saying that Anxi Pass can’t stop true masters, which means there were other skilled individuals who attempted the challenge before me?" Qiao Mu asked again.

"That’s right. The most recent skilled challenger had quite a reputation, you might have heard of them," the old woman said.

"Walker Lu Yanbei, a swordsman with exceptional skills, ranks thirtieth on the ‘Skill List’ of Tide Listening Building. His swordsmanship is among the top ten in the world."

"He also has a talented disciple named Hu Han, who is known as ‘Dragon Claw’. He has gained quite a reputation in Zhong Province in recent years."

"Hmm… So, what about Earth Sword Immortal, the number one martial artist from forty years ago? Did he also pass this test?" Qiao Mu asked again.

The old woman’s face showed a clear flash of surprise.

Earth Sword Immortal was the top martial artist forty years ago, and his fame naturally spread far and wide among martial artists like her who were getting older.

"I’m not sure about that," she said.

"The top ten martial artists, led by Earth Sword Immortal, disappeared ten years after the Inhuman War, which is now thirty years ago. But at that time, Anxi Pass didn’t exist yet."

Qiao Mu nodded thoughtfully and asked his final question:

"I heard someone say that the hundred thousand soldiers from back then didn’t die out completely. There are still people trapped inside Anxi City in the desert… As the commander of Anxi Pass, have you heard any rumors about this?"