Chapter 42, The Veiled Laborer

Translator: StarReader

 

On the cargo ship, several inner disciples of the Medicine King Group, along with the household guards and sailors, were already terrified when they saw Wang Fugui fall into the water. They were even more frightened by Ding Shisan’s ruthless taunts, turning pale as death and losing all courage.

 

These inner disciples of the Medicine King Group, with the most powerful among them being Wang Fugui, were no match for pirate chief Ding Shisan. How could they possibly fight? But if they didn’t fight, they’d die. Ding Shisan taunted them to kill all these inner disciples of the Medicine King Group, even if they surrendered.

 

“It’s over! We’re all going to be killed. Who will save us?!”

 

“The Li family is doomed, my lady. Let’s meet in the next life!”

 

Merchant Li held his trembling wife tightly, hiding under the table on the cargo ship’s deck. The couple looked at each other in despair, embracing and weeping together.

 

Just moments before, they were still celebrating with a feast, drinking wine, and enjoying the beautiful scenery, looking forward to attaching themselves to the esteemed Wu Region Wang family and living a life of luxury and power.

 

But now, in the blink of an eye, their world had collapsed. They were about to meet a violent end at the hands of these brutal pirates—the men to be killed like dogs, the women to be taken back to the pirate stronghold as captives. How bitter was their fate!

 

Li Jiao watched as the pirates encircled her, her delicate face pale with dread. Her slender hands trembled uncontrollably as they gripped the flexible sword, fear and helplessness overwhelming her.

 

She had pinned her hopes on Senior Brother Wang defeating the pirates leader and rescuing her family from their dire situation. But to her shock and disappointment, the man she once admired—whose refined manners and exceptional skills among the new disciples of the Medicine King Group left everyone in awe—was no match for the ruthless pirate. He stumbled and fell into the water, looking more like a wet rag than the formidable warrior she had imagined, unable to protect himself let alone others.

 

Li Jiao’s heart was torn between two choices: should she flee and save herself, or should she take her own life before being captured by the pirates? If they took her to their den, what horrors awaited at the hands of that brutal pirate chief? It would be better to end it all now.

 

…

 

Su Chen was seated on a small bamboo raft over three hundred meters away, in the mist-shrouded river. With his legs crossed, he was calmly absorbed in cultivating True Qi within his Middle Dantian, oblivious to the turmoil unfolding nearby.

 

Suddenly, he frowned and pricked up his ears to listen.

 

Through the thick mist on the river, he faintly heard two boats sailing side by side ahead, with some noisy shouts and fighting sounds carried by the wind.

 

The mild commotion was easily overshadowed by the river breeze. Others might overlook such a faint noise, but his hearing was sharp enough to make sense of it all.

 

[I wonder which martial group’s disciples are fighting?] Su Chen thought to himself.

 

He remained seated on the bamboo raft, unmoved.

 

In the past year or so, he had frequently run errands as a lowly laborer across various counties in the Wu Region, well aware of how rampant martial clashes were there.

 

The Wu Region alone had the Five Major Groups, with dozens of smaller ones, and martial brawls were nothing out of the ordinary. Generational grudges, vengeance, justice, and evil—all of these made it hard for outsiders to discern who was right or wrong in such conflicts.

 

If there was a conflict between two outside groups, disciples from other groups couldn’t just step in. When Su Chen saw disputes among outsiders, he usually took a detour.

 

Unless it involved a Medicine King Group disciple and another group’s disciple fighting.

 

All groups had a rule: if their own disciples and others’ were in conflict, they must help, sticking to the principle of aiding fellow members.

 

Of course, there was another special case. When encountering pirates from Whale Gang, they could be attacked with impunity. Of the Five Major Groups, four had their own businesses, while the Whale Gang’s pirates lived by pillaging the people.

 

These pirates were public enemies in the martial world; any group’s disciple could kill them. Su Chen faintly heard cries for help and the clashing of swords amidst a chorus of jeering pirates and begging for mercy.

 

Pirates? In the Wu Region, they were a dime a dozen. And Whale Gang’s pirates were the strongest; it was usual for big ships on rivers and lakes to be robbed by them. Even the constables across the Wu Region couldn’t clear them out; travelers must hire guards or bodyguards to protect themselves, relying on their own luck for safety.

 

“Some ships have encountered pirates?!”

 

Upon hearing this, Su Chen’s expression tightened.

 

He was born in Zhou Village, a fishing family, where every month they were extorted by the Whale Gang pirates for a hefty fee called the weighing tax. The previous final month of the year, his parents, struggling to pay the extortion, had been forced to consider selling him into servitude in a wealthy household in the county city.

 

He deeply despised those pirates who terrorized fishermen. It was these pirates who had nearly forced him into slavery, made him homeless, and driven him from his family.

 

If there was one group in the martial world that Su Chen harbored an irreconcilable hatred for, it was the Whale Gang’s pirates. Since joining the Medicine King Group, he had trained relentlessly day and night, dreaming of the day he could annihilate the pirates and take revenge not only for himself but also for his parents and all the fishermen of Zhou Village.

 

If this was just a typical altercation between rival martial arts factions, he might turn away without giving it a second thought. But if it was indeed a pirate raid, he couldn’t ignore it—he had to see what was happening.

 

If they couldn’t beat the pirates, he would step in to help. If not, he wouldn’t act rashly.

 

The small bamboo raft accelerated and quickly moved toward the direction of the commotion.

 

Soon, Su Chen’s small bamboo raft approached the two large ships ahead. They were about a hundred meters away. The river surface was shrouded in mist, making it difficult for ordinary people to see more than vague outlines of the ships.

 

Su Chen, however, with his keen eyesight, could already make out the situation on board the vessels.

 

On one of the fast boats, a pirate stood out as particularly formidable. With a fierce and powerful slash, he struck down a familiar figure wearing brocade robes into the water.

 

“Is that Wang Fugui? Why is he on a boat?”

 

Su Chen was startled upon seeing the familiar figure.

 

He knew Wang Fugui’s strength; even among new inner disciples of the Medicine King Group, his late third-rate level was considered quite skilled. Yet, he had been defeated in a single blow by the pirates, revealing just how vast the difference was.

 

From his perspective, it wasn’t that Wang Fugui’s sword technique was weak—it was his overwhelming fear and reluctance to be injured that had left him paralyzed by the pirates’ fierce and ruthless blade.

 

“The pirate’s martial skills are quite ordinary,” Su Chen observed. “But the ferocity is definitely on another level…”

 

Su Chen quickly assessed the situation on both ships.

 

On one side was the pirate’s swift boat, with only the pirate chief standing out as slightly more formidable. The rest were just minor pirate scum, not worth mentioning.

 

On the other side was the Li family’s rice-carrying cargo ship. There were Li Jiao’s parents, over thirty sailors and household guards, along with Wang Fugui and several inner disciples from the Medicine King Group.

 

Su Chen calculated his chances quickly in his mind.

 

Although he himself was still only a third-rate practitioner and had just broken through to Middle Dantian three or four days before, his martial skills were far superior to Wang Fugui’s.

 

And besides, he had the huge advantage of extraordinary perception, just needing to fight with the pirate chief for dozens of moves, buying time, giving the people on board the cargo ship the opportunity to deal with the other dozen or so pirates.

 

In the end, they would all surround and attack the pirate chief, which should be able to turn the tide and have over a seventy percent chance of winning.

 

Su Chen tore a large piece of blue cloth from his clothes, covered it over his face, and approached the Li family cargo ship.

 

…

 

After Wang Fugui fell into the river and became soaked to the skin, the people on board the Li family ship were filled with despair. They were only using iron rods and paddles to stubbornly resist.

 

These pirates were extremely cruel, intent on taking all their lives, so they naturally wouldn’t give up their own.

 

After a fierce struggle, those dozen or so pirates still couldn’t take the cargo ship, remaining in a stalemate.

 

The pirate chief Ding Shisan saw that his men failed to take the cargo ship for a long time and grew annoyed. He was about to grab his blade and personally attack the ship.

 

A small bamboo raft broke through the mist and quickly approached the two ships.

 

The sound of water splashing immediately caught the attention of those engaged in the fierce battle on both ships.

 

“Boss Ding, another raft is coming over! We’re busy here, yet someone still dares to come and meddle… Why is he wearing a veil? Hiding his face, too cowardly to show himself?!”

 

A pirate saw the bamboo raft emerging from the misty river surface and heading towards them, letting out a yell.

 

On Merchant Li’s ship, the passengers spotted the bamboo raft breaking through the mist and charging straight ahead. They thought it was reinforcements or an expert arriving, briefly lifting their spirits with hope.

 

Upon closer inspection, the bamboo raft only carried a single blue-clad errand disciple, hooded, not even carrying a weapon. He was crudely pushing a bamboo pole and charging forward with reckless abandon.

 

Those familiar with martial affairs all knew that the outfittings of various groups’ disciples had clear distinctions. The lower-level errand disciples wore blue, while inner disciples donned white and brocade attire, and senior figures like Protectors or the leadership wore grand robes of different colors.

 

In a martial group, hierarchy was strict, and attire signified status; one couldn’t transgress these norms. Thus, one could discern someone’s rank at a glance.

 

This blue-clad boy’s outfit marked him as a junior executive errand disciple from the Medicine King Group, who had come here to lend a hand amidst the fight.

 

Fearing repercussions from the pirates, he had covered his face to hide his true identity.

 

However, given his status as a laborer, he was clearly no match for them. Far from being able to save anyone, he might even risk his own life in the attempt.

 

The pirates burst into laughter.

 

Meanwhile, those on the Li family cargo ship looked on with disappointment.

 

“Ha! I thought a true martial hero had come to intervene. It turns out to be just this insolent little lackey? You gave me a scare there. Take three of you and cut him down—turn him into minced meat for the fish!”

 

Ding Shisan sneered contemptuously and spat, not even willing to dirty his own hands with this blue-clad laborer. Instead, he simply ordered his henchmen to deal with him.

 

“On it, Boss Ding. My brothers and I will take care of him!”

 

“Boy, you’re as good as dead!”

 

Three ruthless pirates jumped down from the Merchant Li’s cargo ship, bellowing loudly. They brandished their gleaming broadswords and swung them at Su Chen, who stood defenseless below.

 

On board the ship, Merchant Li and the others watched in horror, unable to take their eyes off the scene. The blue-clad boy was hopelessly outmatched, facing three pirates with just a bamboo pole for protection. They were sure he would be hacked to death by the pirate gang.

 

Su Chen stood his ground, propping himself up on his bamboo pole as he saw the pirates leap toward him with their blades flashing in the air. He remained calm and composed despite the imminent danger.

 

Among the three pirates, one was a third-rate practitioner, while the other two were mere uninitiates—nothing more than lightly trained pirate minions, only slightly stronger than ordinary men.

 

Su Chen wasted no time. With a flick of his pole, he swung it out in an arc, striking all three.

 

“Crack!” The three pirates in mid-air saw a flash of bamboo pole rushing towards them. The pole was as cunning as a snake, avoiding their large blades and striking their abdomens. The pirates screamed, plunging into the water, splashing violently, and quickly filling their bellies with river water. This single bamboo pole flip that knocked over three pirates’ minions was executed flawlessly.