Chapter 8 Third-Rated Master
Huang Wei felt a little guilty as Li Mu stared at him.
He had never seen such County Magistrate like this before, who was calling himself Lao Zi. He was so rude and arrogant.
“Good, that’s so good. Your honor, I will still remember you when you are such a big official. However, I don’t think what you said counts in Taibai County.” Huang Wei came to his mind, and then he didn’t pretend but smiled coldly and said sarcastically lightly, “I will pa.s.s on what you’ve said exactly to my boss, hoping that you can do as you said. Well, goodbye, Sir.”
As he finished, he turned and left.
As he just walked, he turned back and smiled contemptuously to his heart’s content. “By the way, your honor, you may not know how mighty Magical Medicine Pharmacy is in this county since you’ve just been here, you’d better make some time to have a good inquiry about it, otherwise, that’ll be late for you to regret three days later.”
After that, he went off by himself.
He was only a shopkeeper but he dared to be so arrogant in the county of the County. It could be seen that the Magical Medicine Pharmacy and the Shennong Faction behind must be usually so bullying in Taibai County.
As Li Mu saw his back, he had wanted to go to him and slap him many times, but he was unable to bear finally.
He knew that he had already been treated as a cowardly lion more than 20 days later after he lived a very sheltered life since his office a.s.suming.
It shouldn’t be like this.
It seemed to be the real time for him to show his true ability.
And found a good opportunity to let those aboriginals on this alien planet feel the warm welcome from the earth.
“Take it easy, let me deal with them together three days later.”
But before this, Li Mu still had something to make it clear.
“Come on, send Mrs. Li and Qin’er to the Medical Center for medical treatment and rest,” said Li Mu.
And the guards lifted the woman and her daughter up.
“Don’t worry, I will get the justice for you three days later.” Li Mu comforted the poor orphan and widow.
But Mr. Li and Qin’er left after grat.i.tude.
They finally saw a trace of fairness and hope at the darkest and most desperate time of their lives.
“Why there are only six of you in today’s court trial?” Li Mu went back to his chair, he looked at those rest guards and felt strange last time. Qing Feng had mentioned roughly before, saying that there were up to 100 guards in the county government, but why there were only 6 today? Where were the rest ones?
“Oh, well…”
“Well…”
The 4 guards spoke with hesitation.
“Tell me.” Li Mu pointed at that guard who spoke at the court trial and asked, “What’s your name?”
This guard was so young and he was in his early twenties. He was strong with delineated cheekbones, as he was mentioned by Li Mu, he paled and said with hesitation, “My name is Shu Ru… others… may be sent out… I’m not quite sure…”
As Li Mu saw him like this, he knew it was not as absolutely simple as he said.
But he thought for a while, waved and signed them to leave.
He couldn’t get any answer from these guards.
Then those guards were feeling the amnesty and retreated as they were leaving.
“Young Master, someone is going to make you a mere figurehead,” said the little girl Ming Yue with a look of indignation.
The little boy attendant Qing Feng had finished recording the court proceedings from the master of Li Mu, he put down the brush, stood up and looked worried. “Ming Yue is right this time, there’s an unusual atmosphere in the court recently.”
Hearing this, Ming Yue was happy at first and smiled like the crescent moon with the beautiful big eyes, but later she moved the white and fine ears and looked at Qing Feng as if she had realized something and said, “This time? Do you mean what I’ve said before is wrong?”
Qing Feng was speechless.
“I remember that I’ve not washed Young Master’s underpants. Let me go and wash now…” As she said so, Qing Feng turned around and left.
But Ming Yue jumped up and said, “No, you have to make it clear.”
Li Much touched his head.
Li Mu, who was falling off the cliff without knowing to be living or dead, didn’t know how he found those two funny young attendants.
The first time when Li Mu hold the court trial he was not feeling very well, and he didn’t get the sense of comfort as he was pretending to be something.
The most important was, as Li Mu thought seriously, that he had to integrate more actively into the world and had better to contact or conflict with the martial art circle in this world. Though the old faker had mentioned being safety first, there was no absolute safety in the circle of martial art. And one super sailor couldn’t be well-trained on the quiet lake, he could be the real captain only through the violent storms.
Li Mu had to fight in order to get the degree of martial art which would be enough to help him out of the planet within 20 years.
As he became convinced, he was much clearer.
He continued to practice after he went back to the back of the office.
…
Early in the morning of the second day, he commanded and brought Ma Junwu in, the head of guards, to know something.
“Greetings, Magistrate.”
Ma Junwu was a tall and strong man with a beard and a square face. He was wearing black soft armor, a cloth helmet and a thick sheathed steel knife hanging around his waist, showing great momentum. As one of the three major Dutou Official in Taibai County, he was obviously quite powerful. And at least he gave a feeling to Li Mu that he was stronger than the official of those six warriors who chased him that day.
“Sit down, please, Mr. Ma.” Li Mu pointed at the chair aside and said, “I’m inviting you here to consult you about the underworld.”
“The matter of the ‘underworld’?” Hearing this, Ma Junwu was a little terrified since he wondered why this young county magistrate asked about the underworld rather than the county political affairs since he didn’t want to see him those days.
Li Mu nodded and asked, “I hear that you’re from the gang too?”
Ma Junwu was a martial art master with reticence character, he replied. “I was from the Taibai faction.”
“What is the Taibai faction?”
“Absolutely, it’s just located in Taibai Mountain and among the hundreds of factions of this empire. Taibai faction ranks 99 with good range in the whole continent. Ten years ago, I was lucky enough and taught by a master from this faction,” said Ma Junwu honestly.
Actually, it was not only because of his appreciation by the former county magistrate, but also his ident.i.ty as a disciple of Taibai faction that made him become the guard Dutou Official in Taibai County. Anyway, Taibai faction had such a good reputation with far-reaching impact within thousands of miles.
“The Nine-rated Faction?” Li Mu was there as if he was absorbed in thought and asked, “Are there also ranges for the factions too?”
Ma Junwu thought this young county magistrate only focused on study and didn’t know about the general knowledge of martial art, and then he nodded and replied. “Yes, the three great empires and the nine factions are governing the world together. There’re also thousands of other factions besides the nine great ones. Thousands of years ago, there was one ancient master, he had divided the continent order, saying that the factions shouldn’t govern the world directly but had to do so according to their levels. Once they were ranked as good, they factions would enjoy the secular privilege and the faction disciples might not be constrained by the secular laws…”
Li Mu didn’t speak, he was listening to Ma Junwu quietly until he finished.
He had the general knowledge that this world was actually not the same as the earth.
The martial art power might function to govern the destiny of the country in this world. There were thousands of factions and they were everywhere penetrating each corner of the world. Those three empires of the mainland of Western Qin, Northern Song and Southern Chu were equal and governed the secular world. While many officials, ministers, and generals in the empires had some background of faction, and even the royal families of the three empires had a long-inherited force of martial arts.
Though it was a Martial Art Star with low grade as said by the old faker, obviously, the martial art level here on this planet was much higher than it was in the ancient times of the earth.
“What are those nine great magic factions?” Li Mu asked again.
“Don’t you know, ‘your honor’?” Ma Junwu was quite surprised since it was excusable when he didn’t know the Imperial Names of the Three Empires, but that would be so weird when he didn’t know the nine factions which inherited for thousands of years in the world.
Li Mu answered seriously, “Well, it’s like this, I have broken my brain last time when I fell into the cliff.”
Ma Junwu was half in doubt, but he still replied. “Those nine factions are Huazang Temple, Qingcheng Taoist Temple on Qingcheng Mountain, Magic Sun Temple, Temple of Devils, Wendao Academy, Diancang Faction, Prairie Wolf Temple, Polar South and the powerful faction of Guanshan Pasture in the Western Qin Empire.”
Li Mu nodded, he didn’t continue to ask in fear that Ma Junwu might doubt. Then he changed the subject and asked, “I’m literate and don’t know about the martial art. So, may I know how martial art levels are cla.s.sified? Are there different names for the masters at different levels, Mr. Ma?”
This time, Ma Junwu didn’t doubt and explained with patience. “There’re indeed level cla.s.sifications from the martial arts. A normal healthy person can improve his strength by enduring more hot blood, which can make him stronger than ordinary people. He can defeat more than a dozen ordinary people with bare hands combined with some martial arts, showing mighty power, which is called the Joint-force level. And we can call this kind of person a master of high levels in the underworld. When we talk about the higher level, it is the Joint-qi level when they successfully start the valve on the body with good mastery of internal Qi. They can be called third-rated maters, and they can even be the second-rated masters when they combine the strength and qi together, which is called the Joint-thoughts level when they progress further…”
As he said so, Ma Junwu didn’t want to continue.
Li Mu was very interesting about it, and then he asked quickly as he stopped. “What about the level above the Joint-thoughts level? Are there any other levels? What kind of master can be the first-rated one?”
Ma Junwu replied with a forced smile. “I still need some improvement and my teacher only taught me some basic martial arts, and I’m not familiar with the details about the levels above the Joint-thoughts level. As per those real first-rated masters, they might not exist in Taibai County except my teacher, and I’ve never seen them before.”
“So, may I know which level you are now, Mr. Ma?” Li Mu asked again.
Ma Junwu didn’t conceal and replied. “I’m not so high, and it’s only just the Joint-qi level after practice for 10 years.”
“Wow, that’s also amazing,” said Li Mu complimented with disagreement of words and thoughts.
He nodded thoughtfully.
Ma Junwu gave him the feeling that he didn’t show great pressure on him, and Li Mu was confident enough to beat him down with one blow.
That’s to say, his present fighting power was stronger than the master with Joint-qi level, which could be at the third-rated level.