Chapter 4: If I Became Emperor, I Would Also Attack Goguryeo!
The stream babbled gently, soft and clear, like a soothing melody.
But a faint scent of blood hung in the air, along with the scattered corpses nearby.
It added an eerie touch to the scene!
Fu Jun A, her hand resting on her sword hilt, was alert and wary!
Her veiled face betrayed no emotion, but inside her heart, a storm raged!
The young man before her, clearly lacking the aura of a top-tier martial artist!
How could he have repelled that skilled Sui soldier?
She knew her own strength was that of a near-Grandmaster, so that soldier must have been a Grandmaster!
The more she thought about it, the more shocked she became, her hand tightening on her sword hilt!
Kou Zhong stood opposite her, scrutinizing her.
His gaze was deep, as if able to penetrate her very soul!
Seeing Fu Jun A's trembling form...
He knew she must be suffering!
She was suppressing the injury inflicted by the Ice Xuan Force!
Currently, she was all bark and no bite, attempting to engage him in conversation to buy some time.
However, he didn't mind, as he had no intention of making an enemy of such a beautiful woman.
Fu Jun A possessed the Yang Family Treasure!
If he could obtain it, he might receive another inheritance reward!
Judging by the Elephant Armor Skill reward he received earlier, it seemed related to the martial arts manual he obtained...
Or perhaps it was tied to some treasure he acquired!
This was a perfect opportunity to test this theory, he wouldn't let Fu Jun A off easy!
He spoke leisurely:
"As the disciple of Goguryeo's 'E-Jian Grandmaster' Fu Cai Lin, your journey to the Central Plains..."
"...was to assassinate Emperor Yang Guang, am I right?"
Kou Zhong's words pierced Fu Jun A's heart like a sharp blade!
Fu Jun A's pupils constricted, her gaze fixed on Kou Zhong, her mind racing!
The image of Kou Zhong's incredible power flashed before her eyes!
Not to mention the numerous corpses lying on the ground nearby...
Since leaving Goguryeo, she hadn't revealed her whereabouts to anyone!
How had her mission been compromised?
Even this seemingly ordinary youth knew about her plan to assassinate the dog emperor!
Xu Zi Ling, hearing this, was also shocked as he looked at Fu Jun A, never imagining this beautiful woman was an assassin targeting the emperor. He then said to Kou Zhong:
"Brother Zhong, maybe we should stay away from her, just in case we get caught up in this..."
Kou Zhong shook his head and said:
"Miss Fu, while she was acting in self-defense, she did save our lives."
"She's seriously injured now, how could we be ungrateful and abandon her?"
Xu Zi Ling glanced at Fu Jun A, noticing her ready stance with her hand on her sword, he questioned with confusion:
"She doesn't seem to be in any trouble..."
Before he could finish, Fu Jun A could no longer contain the pain coursing through her body.
A wave of coldness swept through her internal organs!
Everything around her blurred. She tried to speak, but...
"Pfft!"
She vomited a mouthful of blood!
Her legs gave way, and she fell forward!
Kou Zhong rushed to catch her. Her body was ice-cold!
She was like a piece of human ice, about to shatter!
Her face pale, she whispered:
"Don't touch me!"
However, as soon as she spoke, she fainted.
He quickly wrapped Fu Jun A in his outer garment, then looked at Xu Zi Ling and said:
"Brother Ling, search those guys for anything good."
He gently placed Fu Jun A down, then joined Xu Zi Ling in looting the corpses of the fallen cavalrymen.
After obtaining some silver and miscellaneous items,
He hoisted Fu Jun A onto his shoulder and took Xu Zi Ling along the stream, leaving this dangerous place!
As they walked, they found a small boat, Kou Zhong had Xu Zi Ling steer it.
He laid Fu Jun A in the boat and stood at the bow, enjoying the gentle breeze.
This was the first time he had taken a life, and he had done it brutally...
Yet, he felt no guilt whatsoever!
After all, this was merely the beginning, for the sake of his grand ambitions.
Looking at the clouds in the distance, he suddenly said:
"Brother Ling, do you know what the term 'top-tier martial artist' that Miss Fu mentioned means?"
Xu Zi Ling looked up, pondered for a moment, then replied:
"It must refer to martial arts realms!"
Kou Zhong nodded and continued:
"That's right. The martial arts realms in this world are divided into five levels!"
"Grandmaster, Master, Top-tier Martial Artist, Second-rate Martial Artist, Third-rate Martial Artist!"
"Each realm is further divided into early, middle, late, and peak stages!"
Xu Zi Ling, upon hearing this, suddenly interjected:
"Then Brother Zhong's strength must be incredibly strong! Only below a Master!"
"We can earn even more money in the future..."
Kou Zhong chuckled and shook his head:
"Not enough! My current strength is still inadequate!"
Xu Zi Ling scratched his head, confused:
"Brother Zhong, why do you say that? With your strength, we can go to a place and establish a gang!"
"Then we can operate it, just like the Bamboo Flower Gang!"
Looking at Xu Zi Ling, who seemed a bit 'naive,' Kou Zhong chuckled a few times.
He thought to himself that these Third-rate to Top-tier Martial Artists were post-heaven martial artists, their focus on cultivating internal energy!
The opponents that the Twin Dragons had encountered initially were all at this level!
Once they opened the Ren Du Channel and transformed their internal energy into True Qi, they became innate martial artists!
That was a Master!
Among them were the Four Great Clan Leaders, Yu Wen Huaji, the Seven Great Masters of the Demon Cult, and so on...
Above Master was the Grandmaster realm, where one could stand alone against ten thousand men!
Every move and gesture could overturn mountains and split seas!
The Heaven-Slaying Evil King, the Three Great Grandmasters, and the Twin Dragons later on...
Xu Zi Ling, however, was still lost. He only saw Kou Zhong's current strength.
He felt that the two of them could make a difference in the future, no longer living in poverty!
Fu Jun A's body moved slightly in the boat, very subtly.
It was as if she was moved by the boat's motion, but Kou Zhong noticed it.
Kou Zhong raised an eyebrow, then spoke:
"Brother Ling, do you know why our Great Sui dynasty has launched three campaigns against Goguryeo?"
Xu Zi Ling, rowing the boat, pondered for a moment and replied:
"Because he's cruel and exploits the people."
Kou Zhong was disappointed with Xu Zi Ling's answer.
Fu Jun A had actually woken up some time ago, intending to slip away.
But hearing Kou Zhong's words, she wanted to see what he had to say...
Kou Zhong shook his head and sighed:
"Brother Ling, it's understandable that you don't know. Just like Miss Fu's attempt to assassinate Emperor Yang Guang!"
"And her desire to steal the 'Eternal Scripture' that Yang Guang coveted!"
"Miss Fu must have a deep-seated hatred for Emperor Yang Guang!"
"She wants revenge, but this is likely a mission she took on by herself."
Fu Jun A was startled. How did this kid know so much!
But she continued to feign unconsciousness. She couldn't help but recall that day.
Her master had told her that Goguryeo wanted her to assassinate the dog emperor, but his expression had been strange.
He had hinted that she should only travel to the Central Plains, there was no need to carry out Goguryeo's royal mission!
Kou Zhong paused for a moment, then continued:
"If I were the current emperor, I would also want to conquer Goguryeo!"
Xu Zi Ling was startled. He stopped rowing and turned to look at Kou Zhong, saying:
"Brother Zhong, be careful, be careful what you say!"
Kou Zhong's treasonous words made him shudder!
Kou Zhong didn't care!
An air of boldness surged through him!
His handsome features became even more striking as he declared loudly:
"Brother Ling, Goguryeo has always been a vassal state of our Central Plains dynasty!"
"They should pay tribute every year and obey the Sui dynasty's orders!"
"But Goguryeo has been constantly expanding its territory, even sending people to assassinate Emperor Yang Guang!"
"They have repeatedly provoked our Sui dynasty's prestige on the border!"
"The border people are suffering! Though Emperor Yang Guang's methods were indeed hasty..."
Kou Zhong stopped there, looking at Xu Zi Ling, who was deep in thought.
And at Fu Jun A, who was still pretending to be unconscious but had a slight frown.
Fu Jun A was shaken to her core!
All these years, she had never thought about why Emperor Yang Guang wanted to wage war against Goguryeo.
She had only heard people back home say that Emperor Yang Guang was cruel!
But after coming to the Central Plains, she discovered that under Emperor Yang Guang's rule...
The people of the Central Plains seemed to live more peacefully than the people of Goguryeo.
They didn't have to constantly worry about being conscripted into the army!
She had repeatedly failed to assassinate Emperor Yang Guang on this trip to the Central Plains.
She had begun to realize that if Emperor Yang Guang was truly hated by heaven...
Why were so many masters loyal to him!
Xu Zi Ling was different. He and the original Kou Zhong had become orphans because of war!
Many other orphans were in the same situation as them!
He asked in a daze:
"Brother Zhong, does that mean Emperor Yang Guang wasn't wrong? It was Goguryeo's fault?"