stjorthotic Chapter 56 One Foot of Merit!
Chapter 56 One Foot of Merit!
The former county magistrate was unparalleled in martial arts within the county and held extremely high prestige in the army; these were all genuine achievements.
In fact, Lianjiang County, which he once guarded, was not without thieves for miles around, but it was quite peaceful.
Before leaving Black Wind Stronghold, he ventured into the mountains and rivers, wiping out countless bandits and pirates.
Perhaps they became complacent later, or perhaps the Black Wind Stronghold was too cunning; only this time did they stumble, leading to a great disaster.
Not only did he lose his official position, but he was also thrown into prison, and his life was hopeless.
Now that he has escaped from prison, he never expected to run into Zhao An again, and this time he lost his life.
A lifetime of hard work and achievements, only to end up with nothing.
This is not because the county magistrate is merely a figurehead with little real ability, but because Zhao An's strength far exceeds common sense!
Mastering all martial arts techniques significantly enhances one's strength.
Even though his internal energy cultivation was far inferior, Zhao An was still able to win by relying on his flawless martial arts techniques.
"You actually have such strength!" County Magistrate Tao Heng couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
Even when he was cornered and in imminent danger, he was still able to remain calm.
But now, after witnessing Zhao An's formidable strength, he could no longer remain calm.
Is this still the talented young martial arts actor he once saw?
With such strength, they are almost on par with the personal guards in his mansion who have been trained since childhood!
Zhao An simply nodded without saying anything more; his thoughts were focused on the escaped prisoners and the remnants of Black Wind Stronghold.
These are all top-quality, highly reputable brands!
Unlike the Moon People with red names outside the wall, these are all martial artists. After being cleansed in the Soul Pool, they will all be Soul Slaves who can help him cultivate martial arts.
Now, every time someone falls and is killed by another, it is a significant loss in his eyes, and he even feels regret.
After a quick glance, Zhao An once again charged into this battlefield like a ferocious tiger!
Instead of looking for others first, he went straight for the second king of Black Wind Stronghold, who was fiercely fighting with the county magistrate's guards.
In Zhao An's eyes, both He Zhang and this person were top-tier soul slaves with extremely high martial arts skills in their lifetimes.
Whether he can master hard skills and movement techniques in the future depends on these soul slaves; one soul slave can be worth dozens or even hundreds of soul slaves!
Liang Yuan was also complaining bitterly at this moment.
If I had known this would happen, I would have just rushed through the city gate.
He thought the magistrate was isolated and helpless, but he didn't expect that he still had such a powerful guard by his side. He also didn't expect that Zhao An would suddenly appear and easily kill He Zhang.
Right now, he knows that if he delays any longer, he won't be able to leave even if he wants to.
With gritted teeth, Liang Yuan took the guard's knife head-on. The blade cut his back to the bone, and he narrowly escaped death. He moved like the wind and was about to flee for his life.
But a throwing knife suddenly came flying across, piercing his thigh and killing his last chance of survival.
Liang Yuan let out a scream and turned his head to see Zhao An already right in front of him, pointing a finger at his heart.
puff!
Blood splattered, his heart was severed, and the second king of Black Wind Stronghold, who had stirred up trouble in the city, died at the city gate.
He was already exhausted and at his limit, so it was normal for him to be killed by Zhao Anyi's finger.
Seeing this, the guard Tao Jinsi gave Zhao An a deep look before silently retreating back to Tao Heng's side.
He was responsible for the safety of the county magistrate, so it was impossible for him to have gone after that traitor.
Therefore, Zhao An cannot be considered to have stolen a kill.
However, like Tao Heng, he was simply astonished by the true strength that Zhao An had revealed.
Especially that finger technique, which could mobilize internal energy to unleash such power, was something he had never seen before!
Liang Yuan's soul flew out and was thrown into the soul pool to keep He Zhang's soul company.
Zhao An drew his long sword, but he didn't stop there. He continued to kill anyone with a red name on their list!
Even as the prisoners he had already killed knelt and begged for mercy, weeping bitterly, the knife in his hand did not slow down in the slightest.
If you wish to repent, go to his soul pool to repent.
As the killing continued, some of the county soldiers gradually stopped their swords, exchanged glances, and their eyes now held only awe and even fear when they looked at Zhao An.
He's practically a god of death incarnate! All of them combined couldn't kill as many as Zhao An alone!
Zhao An only stopped slashing after all the red-named enemies had been killed.
His eyes were clear, and he did not lose his mind due to excessive killing.
His goals were always clear, and the people who died under his blade were all deeply sinful; none of them were innocent.
He did not find pleasure in killing, nor did he enjoy it.
He only considered these red names as consumables for improving his strength, no different from the elixirs and rare treasures that other martial artists regarded.
When Zhao An returned, Tao Jin instinctively grabbed the hilt of his knife, his eyes filled with wariness.
It's no wonder he was so nervous, mainly because Zhao An's aura of bloodlust was too strong.
Anyone who sees a menacing-looking person approaching will be on high alert.
"Magistrate, the bandits have been completely eliminated," Zhao An said, bowing with his hands clasped. His tone was extremely calm, as if he hadn't just been the one wreaking havoc.
Tao Heng let out a long sigh, as if he were seeing Zhao An in a completely new light.
"Zhao An, I owe you a lot this time, otherwise I might not be alive," Tao Heng said.
As soon as he finished speaking, the six-foot-long beam of merit above his head suddenly changed, and a foot of it was cut off, turning into a good fruit that fell into Zhao An's hand.
Upon seeing this, Zhao An was overjoyed, knowing that his efforts to save her had not been in vain.
Unfortunately, this life-saving grace only earned Tao Heng a small portion of his merit, not the entirety.
"Does this mean I have to save them a few more times?" Zhao An wondered to himself.
Or perhaps other conditions must be met before all of Tao Heng's good deeds can be taken away.
However, even if it was only a portion of Tao Heng's good deeds, it was still far more than the good deeds of an ordinary kind person.
It should be noted that when he previously wished for the lost Heavenly Profound Meridian Intercepting Finger martial arts manual, he used five good fruits combined to create this foot of merit light.
Now, even just a portion of the good deeds done by this county magistrate is enough.
That's enough for him to make another wish to create a lost martial art comparable to the Heavenly Profound Meridian Intercepting Finger!
In comparison, he also possesses a triple merit, which he earned after passing the imperial examination and obtaining the title of martial arts performer, through his efforts in eliminating evil and maintaining order in the streets and neighborhoods.
However, even when these three good fruits are combined, they only produce six inches of merit light, which is less than a foot.
For the time being, Zhao An has no plans to use this good fruit to make a wish. He thinks that he can continue to combine other good fruits in the future to collect and accumulate good merit.
So that when the time truly comes, there won't be no good results to be had.
After exchanging a few words with Tao Heng, Zhao An did not immediately return to the city wall to continue fighting the enemy.
He will eventually get tired and need to rest and catch his breath.
Every arrow fired from the city wall using the Bone-Piercing Finger technique was a double drain on his physical strength and internal energy.
Adding to the recent massacre, although it was mostly simple chopping and cutting, the sheer number of people involved meant that even bending over to harvest wheat would leave one with a sore back and utterly exhausted.
......