Chapter 229

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Chapter 229: Don’t Act Like a High-Handed Expert

Early morning in the outskirts of the Imperial Capital.

Lately, Qiao Mu has been picking up new hobbies, such as bird-walking.

"Elder Lao, out walking your bird again? Your bird is quite unique."

"Oh my, why do you smell like alcohol so early in the morning? How can you walk your bird after drinking?

On the side of the road, a middle-aged man with a birdcage was talking to Qiao Mu who was approaching.

Qiao Mu also had a birdcage in his hand, inside was a delicate little canary chirping non-stop.

On his shoulder, there was a calico cat who seemed very interested in the canary in Qiao Mu’s hand, constantly trying to reach for the birdcage.

But Qiao Mu’s movements were faster than the cat’s, as if he could predict the future. Every time the cat’s claws were about to hook the canary, he would timely twist the birdcage, letting the canary escape.

"I’m happy to do so," Qiao Mu said casually.

"If you want to stay healthy and live a long life, drink, walk birds, and eat fatty meat."

"This is the longevity secret of my Qiao family members, in one word, be in a joyful mood."

Although a few days ago, he couldn’t control his mouth and argued with Lu Yanbei, saying he would go to the Great Dao Sect to retrieve the Earth Sword Immortal’s sword on his behalf.

But after thinking about it, Qiao Mu realized that it was just a temporary plan to prevent Lu Yanbei from putting himself in danger.

Qiao Mu doesn’t break his promises, but he can go later.

It’s the same whether it’s in a hundred years, two hundred years, or five hundred years.

It’s said that Elder Qingzhuo is over a thousand years old. Even though he’s a cultivator, not immortal, Qiao Mu can outlive him and then take action.

As for now… we should just enjoy life.

After learning the truth about the Long Life Lock and changing his name to Qiao Shui, Qiao Mu started living a different life.

Why go to your death? Being isolated year-round is a dull process.

Anyway, Qiao Mu is an immortal, he can live in the real world for a long time without sacrificing himself, living a long and prosperous life.

As long as he takes some time in his daily life to study the "Xumi Mountain King Sutra" and maintain his progress in it, he can prevent his blood and energy from declining too much so he won’t be unable to walk when he’s old.

So these days… instead of calling it Qiao Mu’s retired life, it’s more like taking a summer vacation.

On the first day, drink alcohol.

On the second day, walk the bird.

On the third day, play with the cat.

On the fourth day, listen to music by the fence.

On the fifth day, "Qiao Mu, oh Qiao Mu, you can’t keep living this way, if you don’t practice martial arts, you’ll soon become weak, old, and unable to walk."

So on the fifth day, Qiao Mu felt ashamed and decided to practice very hard in the yard for a whole half hour.

Then he realized a great truth:

Time is meant to be wasted.

Moreover, he was not an ordinary person; as an immortal with a long life, why should he cherish time?

If life were money, then Qiao Mu would be the richest person in the world from birth, with endless wealth in his hands. Why bother about every penny and cherish time?

So, Qiao Mu continued his summer life happily, practicing martial arts and living in a cycle of walking birds and teasing cats.

In fact, this is the life of a normal person.

The previous Qiao family members were like raging fires, with most of them not surviving more than ten days or half a month. Life is brilliant like fireworks but fleeting.

Now Qiao Mu has figured it out.

Between repeatedly dying and going to prison, and slowly practicing martial arts while enduring, he naturally chose the simple mode.

Earth Sword Immortal Lu Yannan is a transient figure in the world, like a swallow coming and going between the north and south, witnessing the mountains and rivers of Jiu Province. However, he has no permanent home in the world.

The only one who can accompany him, who has a place in his heart, is his elder brother Lu Yanbei, who grew up supporting each other.

As a time traveler who changes identities frequently, Qiao Mu also has no so-called permanent home in this world.

In his mind, he didn’t belong to the Great Yan Imperial Court, he felt no connection to it.

This is similar to Earth Sword Immortal.

The difference is that Earth Sword Immortal had a supporting older brother named Lu Yanbei, while Qiao Mu was always alone, growing old after numerous deaths.

After what seemed like a glorious sacrifice, a young man kept dreaming of being imprisoned and aging, living until he was 210 years old.

Martial arts training is always a boring process, especially when isolated in a dream for decades to train.

"Life is truly empty…"

Qiao Mu played with the canary in his hand, thinking such thoughts.

Lucky for him, he was immortal, his life endless, even if he wanted to end it, he couldn’t.

So it didn’t matter if his previous life was dull.

There is still plenty of time, being a bit happier in life later on.

Qiao Mu was not lazy, he just wasn’t rushing to train.

In life, the most important thing is to be happy, everything else is less important.

Training is the same.

Walking boredly down the street, suddenly a big man appeared in front of him, accompanied by a young girl, blocking his way.

"But Qiao Shui, in front of the Qiao family seniors?" the big man asked.

"Yes, you are…" Qiao Mu replied casually, his eyes resting on the big man.

After examining him closely, he recognized the visitor.

The visitor was named Hu Han, known as Dragon Claw hero, who had once crossed paths with Qiao Mu at the market.

Hu Han is a student of the famous wooden sword master Lu Yanbei, which is quite a twist of fate.

The girl standing behind Hu Han looks somewhat similar to him, possibly his daughter.

The girl, dressed in typical martial arts attire, stood behind Hu Han. Her eyes occasionally glanced at Qiao Mu, showing admiration.

"Elder Lao, it’s like this…" Hu Han briefly introduced himself and then started talking about the matter:

"The other day, there was a sudden flood in Cangshe County, causing many people to suffer. Although King Qin provided relief, I was in Cangshe County at the time and witnessed some unusual things. I felt that the flood might have been suspicious."

Hu Han moved closer to Qiao Mu and whispered:

"I suspect there is a hidden truth behind the sudden flood, perhaps caused deliberately by someone inhuman…"

"Inhuman?" Qiao Mu didn’t speak, just silently observing Hu Han, waiting to hear what he had to say.

Hu Han continued:

"I know that there may be something strange happening behind the scenes, but I can’t do anything about it… The Qiao family has always been against evil, hoping that Elder Lao can help me go to Cangshe County and find the possible culprit behind this."

"Do you think this flood is not a natural disaster, but a strange disaster?" Qiao Mu understood what Hu Han meant.

Then he spoke:

"I… can’t do anything about it either. Wasn’t Cangshe County already under the jurisdiction of the newly established Great Qin Prefecture? In that case, why not report to King Qin?"

If it was the old Qiao Mu, he would usually dive into danger wherever it was. Even though the idea of something strange happening behind the scenes was just a guess, he probably had volunteered to go to Cangshe County by now.

After traveling through the desert for so long, Qiao Mu also casually asked about the situation of King Qin.

King Qin was truly remarkable. He claimed to be a martial artist who followed the path of martial arts, gaining fame for the first time by defeating a sorcerer in Zhong Province who had harmed innocent people.

The reputation of a martial artist is usually earned through battles.

King Qin’s rise to fame and even being crowned by the court was not only because he surpassed the previous 1st rank Spirit Refining martial artist.

Many evil cultivators were killed by his powerful punches.

It is said that these martial artists who cultivate both martial arts and Dao possess incredibly strong bodies, and can even resist the spells of immortal cultivators, completely changing people’s understanding of martial artists.

With the body of an ordinary martial artist, he defeated many cultivators and resolved numerous disasters, quickly gaining fame in Zhong Province. He even surpassed the reputation of the Great Dao Sect’s Immortal Gate for a while and was crowned king.

After the Martial Saint died and the Earth Sword Immortal disappeared, King Qin became the top martial artist in the world, with some people in the martial arts community believing that he was the hope of martial arts today, the leader of a new generation of martial arts.

However, when Hu Han refused, Qiao Shui was slightly surprised.

Although it was their first meeting, he never expected Qiao Shui to refuse.

"Why did Elder Lao refuse—" Hu Han stopped himself halfway and quickly realized, saying with respect:

"In that case, I’ll take my leave now, I have troubled Elder Lao."

He also knew what he was talking about.

The Elder Lao in front of us is not the same person as many deceased members of the Qiao family.

So it is understandable that Qiao Shui in front of us refused.

After all, many previous Qiao family members died for the so-called righteousness.

Put yourself in their shoes, so many descendants of our own have died for righteousness and chivalry, so the older generation must also feel weary and disheartened.

Hu Han turned to leave, but his daughter beside him didn’t.

The young girl was surprised by Qiao Mu’s rejection. The admiration in her eyes gradually faded, and her eyebrows unconsciously furrowed.

"It turns out that the Qiao family members are not as glorious as they seem, are they afraid of inhumanity?"

Qiao Mu glanced at her and remained silent.

Hu Han’s face changed slightly and he quickly scolded:

"Wan’er, please don’t speak nonsense."

He turned his head, showing a look of apology:

"Elder Lao, please don’t be angry. I have not taught my daughter well, making Elder Lao laugh at us."

"What did I say wrong?" The young girl widened her eyes, feeling both admiration and disappointment:

"As soon as I heard that someone inhuman might be the mastermind, I got scared. What’s the difference between such a member of the Qiao family and a regular martial artist from the martial world?"

"Be quiet." Hu Han furrowed his brow:

"How many loyal warriors of the Qiao family have died because of this? The number of people they have saved is countless. How can we blame them?"

Qiao Mu looked calm and didn’t show anger.

He didn’t care whether this father and daughter were acting or speaking their minds impulsively, he was not bothered.

Just a regular martial artist?

He’s not a firefighter, he’s not a superhero who can do everything.

He has died many times before, spent hundreds of years in prison, now he just wants to take a break, enjoy his summer life, is that not breaking the law?

After countless deaths, what’s his life like now as an ordinary martial artist?

In life, don’t pretend to be a saint.

"I’m getting old and tired, I’m going home to rest first," Qiao Mu casually made up a reason and walked away.

Practicing martial arts is inevitably a boring and tough process, the shadow of the isolation from five years ago, Qiao Mu has not completely come out of it yet.

Now he just wants to continue walking his bird.

Qiao Mu walked away with a birdcage, while Hu Han and his daughter stood in place arguing.

The Qiao family member characters in the story are so perfect that they are almost like saints.

The sudden appearance of the disheartened Qiao Shui truly surprised them.

"Although unexpected, it makes sense," Hu Han said to his daughter.

"When we realized there might be dark forces behind the flash flood, we didn’t rush into danger but came to this Imperial Capital to find the Qiao family member, right?"

"We both value our lives, so what right do we have to blame the Qiao family member?"

Hu Han remembered the image of the Qiao family member who sacrificed himself in the market square.

Despite his past reputation as a hero, he was impulsive and almost manipulated by others. After witnessing the death of the Qiao family member, he became more cautious.

…………………………

"Actually, living a peaceful life is not so bad."

Qiao Mu walked towards the house in the outskirts with a birdcage in his hand and a cat on his shoulder.

"If you want to drink, drink. If you want to walk the bird, walk the bird. Indulge yourself to the fullest."

"In one’s lifetime, it’s important to prioritize your own happiness. Why bother doing things that are hard and not appreciated by others?"

After realizing there is a "simple mode" option in life, Qiao Mu started to change his style and pursued a carefree way of living.

Since he is immortal, he wants to waste time and squander the moments.

As Qiao Mu walked along, the cat on his shoulder suddenly perked up its ears alertly, ignoring the birdcage in Qiao Mu’s hand.

"Hmm?"

Qiao Mu slowed down his pace and let out a soft sigh.

"The trees are quiet but the wind keeps blowing…. Looks like I have to get rid of those foolish troublemakers first before I can continue my summer vacation."

He gently pushed open the courtyard gate.

The gate creaked and crashed loudly into the yard.

Inside the mansion that he had recently purchased, it was already a mess.

Tables and chairs were overturned and broken, screens and decorative paintings were torn into pieces, and the floor was covered with debris, with not a single intact piece of furniture in sight.

A large figure stood in the courtyard.

Although the man was wearing a butler’s uniform, his body was extremely strong and burly, almost like a large steel pillar in human form, giving off a strong sense of incongruity.

His extremely strong muscles pushed the clothes up high, almost bursting out of them.

"You’ve noticed my presence here, it seems you’ve already reached the 3rd rank in spiritual refining?" Luohan smirked, eager for a challenge.

Today, he would thoroughly investigate the Qiao family member.

This person’s name is Luohan, and he had a confrontation with Qiao Mu before.

He appears to be a butler, but in fact, he is the protector of the former top martial artist named Qin Shiqing.

"Strong martial artists who can reach the level of spiritual refining are extraordinary individuals, but they often meet their demise due to overconfidence." Luohan smirked:

"Sometimes, ordinary people should listen to their instincts and run away, instead of acting arrogantly like experts. It’s easier to survive that way."