Section 2
The flames danced on the firewood, graceful as dancing sprites. Amidst the crackling sounds, the faces of Li Jun and the other three shimmered with bizarre and wondrous expressions.
All three pairs of eyes were fixed on Lei Hun. Lei Hun closed his eyes again, and everyone's gaze then focused on his mouth, as if they would dig the answer out of his mouth if he didn't continue speaking.
Fortunately, Thunder Soul's silence didn't last long.
“I began searching for the miracles of ancient legends a long time ago. This place, Jiaolong Island, is the remnant of the War of the Gods. At that time, in addition to the gods of various factions, all life in the world was involved in the war, such as fairies, demons, ghosts and dragons.”
"Ghosts and monsters are also life?" Li Jun discovered a loophole and pointed it out without hesitation.
“Ghosts are life,” Lei Hun said slowly. “There is no absolute boundary between life and death. After death, life will continue to exist in a form that you cannot imagine now. In essence, we are no different from trees, stones, and soil; the difference lies only in the form of existence.”
"You just said... we're inside a fairy's belly now?" Mo Rong asked, trembling slightly.
“This tree possesses a powerful spiritual energy, as you all sensed,” Lei Hun explained. “To retain such a powerful spiritual energy even after being dead for so many years must have been incredibly powerful when it was alive. Moreover, this tree was felled by a legendary forbidden spell.”
At this point, Lei Hun suddenly seemed a little irritable: "Let's rest quickly, we need to get going as soon as the weather gets better."
Li Jun's lips twitched slightly. The scholar had not only failed to fully answer his question, but his words had also raised many other questions. However, he swallowed the question that was about to be asked. If the scholar was unwilling to answer, there was no point in asking further.
The light outside the tree hollow had dimmed considerably, and the rain continued to fall. Li Jun was the first to take the night watch, hoping to use this opportunity to sort out his chaotic thoughts.
Having been a mercenary for seven or eight years, Li Jun had learned a great deal from Xiao Lin and his men, which was enough for an ordinary mercenary. However, after igniting his ambition in Linzhou, Li Jun realized he still lacked sufficient knowledge. As a warrior in a chaotic world, his skills were utterly inadequate. Against a powerful enemy like the giant he had encountered today, he had no chance whatsoever. Moreover, to win in war, mere martial prowess was far from enough. On the battlefield, the role of an excellent general far outweighed that of hundreds or thousands of warriors. In the last defeat, the Chen Kingdom's 100,000-strong army plus 30,000 mercenaries invaded the Hong Kingdom, yet still lost to an enemy force of only 30,000. The difference lay in the commanders of both sides—a point Xiao Lin had emphasized countless times. Chaotic times produce heroes, but those heroes must also have the ability to survive to the end; otherwise, they would merely be another skeleton in the wilderness. Only by seeking guidance from a renowned master could he achieve a qualitative leap in these two aspects and realize the dream he had begun in Linzhou… Marshal Lu was precisely such a master.
Li Jun's thoughts drifted to Lu Xiang, the renowned general of the Su Kingdom, and an overwhelming sense of admiration welled up within him. This Su general and his "Invincible Army" had already shaken the entire continent ten years ago. Back then, when the allied forces of six surrounding countries attacked Su, only three cities remained of Su, and King Li Gou fled to the ocean in terror. But Lu Xiang, with only six thousand men, decisively defeated the allied army of one hundred and fifty thousand, personally claiming the title of the bravest general of Lan Kingdom, known as the "Star of Lan Kingdom." Afterwards, armies of various countries trembled at the mere mention of Lu Xiang's name, bestowing upon his army the valiant title of "Invincible Army." These heroic deeds were precisely what people Li Jun's age yearned for most. His initial agreement to Lei Hun's request was, to some extent, because Lei Hun's promises had firmly captured Li Jun's heart.
"You." The thought of Lei Hun brought Lei Hun's voice to his ears.
"What's wrong?" Li Jun estimated the time; although he had been thinking for a long time, it wasn't yet time for Lei Hun to keep watch.
In the firelight, Lei Hun's eyes shone brightly, no longer showing the weakness he had at the beginning. Li Jun suddenly realized that when this enigmatic scholar looked directly at him, he exuded an imposing aura, as if he were born with a sense of superiority.
"Don't you think that giant is terrifying?" Lei Hun's question made Li Jun's heart tighten. The giant's strength was almost beyond the reach of ordinary people. He had exhausted his potential in a life-or-death situation to survive until now.
“Right now, you are no match for a top-tier martial artist in a head-on fight.” Seeing that Li Jun had tacitly agreed, Lei Hun continued, “No, you are not even a match for a second- or third-rate martial artist. You are very talented, which is why you survived under those circumstances.”
"In which case?" Li Jun asked, somewhat displeased.
"The last enemy pounced on you from the tree. Someone without talent would never have been able to twist their body, but you did, so his fatal blow only caused you minor injuries. However, you are not yet able to unleash your true power."
"My own true power?" Li Jun muttered to himself in confusion, as Lei Hun's explanation gradually unveiled the mystery in his heart.
“Yes, the power of Prajna.” Lei Hun’s expression became impatient again after mentioning this term. “There’s no need to explain so much to others. I’ll teach you a breathing and regulating method, which will save Marshal Lu some trouble.”
Li Jun's pride wouldn't allow him to accept such a method, but his curiosity made it impossible for him to refuse. In the end, curiosity triumphed over his pride. Li Jun mustered his courage and said, "Go ahead and tell me."
Lei Hun seemed somewhat surprised by Li Jun's quick acceptance of his unceremonious gift, but a hint of admiration flashed in his eyes. The key to progress and success lies in knowing shame and then striving harder; this young man is indeed intelligent.
At first, Li Jun could hardly adapt to the seemingly irregular breathing pattern, which was sometimes long and sometimes short. However, after a while, he felt his mind begin to relax, and the messenger of sleep used her unseen hand to close Li Jun's eyelids. Although Li Jun tried to remind himself that he still had to keep watch, his body just wouldn't listen to him, and he gradually drifted off to sleep.
When no one was paying attention to Lei Hun, the cold expression on his face began to relax, and light and danger intertwined softly on his face, making him look like he had been through a lot.
When Li Jun woke up, it was already the morning of the next day. The fatigue from the previous day had completely vanished, and he no longer felt the pain in his back injury. To Li Jun's surprise, his breathing naturally followed the method of the Thunder Soul Sect.
"The rain has stopped, it's time to go." Mo Rong happily crawled out of the tree hole and circled the tree twice.
Li Jun also stretched his arms. The air in the forest was filled with the scent of earth, which made him want to stretch his muscles as well.
With a sharp "snap," Li Jun immediately found an opportunity to move. He charged forward and tackled Mo Rong to the ground.
With Mo Rong pinned down by him, her heart pounded like a deer's. Unfortunately, Li Jun's right hand was positioned awkwardly, making it impossible for her to calmly judge why he had tackled her. Her female instincts led her to believe that Li Jun had ill intentions, so, reflexively, she kneed Li Jun.
Li Jun, who was lying on top of Mo Rong, raised his head to search for the source of the bowstring twang, but he did not expect the almost fatal blow to come from below. He let out a strange, mournful cry like a cat's meow, and jumped off Mo Rong with the speed of the wind, clutching his lower abdomen and pounding wildly.
Tu Longziyun was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but burst into laughter. He pointed to the tree trunk next to Mo Rong and said, "Innocent... Li Jun..."
Li Jun roared, but the immense pain prevented him from uttering complete sentences. Just then, a second arrow arrived with the force of a cleaving cloud, and Li Jun fell to the ground. The arrow was embedded halfway into the tree trunk.
Lei Hun began to gather spiritual power, silently chanting strange incantations. Tu Long Zi Yun raised his shield to protect his body, and Mo Rong also realized her misunderstanding, repeatedly apologizing to Li Jun.
Li Junpin roared angrily, "I'd rather you had shot me to death!" His eyes darted around, though he knew that his earlier tackle on Mo Rong had been indecent. Therefore, he transferred all his hatred for the archer to the man who had been brutally attacked. This man's arrow could penetrate six inches into wood; his arm strength was truly astonishing.
Apart from the sound of the wind rustling the leaves, there was nothing to be heard, and nothing could be seen where the bowstring had first rang. Li Jun also took off his bow and tentatively shot an arrow in that direction, then moved away from his position, and a second arrow was already nocked.
Just as he expected, as he moved, an arrow flew towards the spot where he had initially stood, its force so sharp it could pierce even the thickest chainmail. Without hesitation, Li Jun fired a second arrow at the spot where his opponent had fired, then quickly moved away again.
Lei Hun finished his incantation and pointed in the general direction of his opponent. A yellow light rose from the ground there, and the earth magic increased the gravity of that area by three times. The enemy hidden in it felt his movements suddenly become sluggish, and every move he made was extremely difficult.
“The Confucian scholar is actually most skilled in Taoist magic.” A new doubt arose in Li Jun’s mind, which reminded him of the strange Buddhist and Taoist patterns on the chest covered by the Thunder Soul Confucian scholar’s robe. He suppressed his doubts and took the opportunity to roll forward several times, gradually closing in on his opponent who was half-bound by earth magic.
To his surprise, his opponent seemed to be only one person; Li Jun did not suffer any attacks from others while approaching Huang Guang.
"I surrender!" To Li Jun's surprise, the half-bound opponent suddenly shouted, showing no shame whatsoever in surrendering. Out of caution, Li Jun aimed his arrow at the source of the voice, while winking at Lei Hun and Tu Long Zi Yun.
Tu Longziyun understood his meaning and shouted, "Step forward! If you want to surrender, step forward and throw away your weapons!"
"I'll drop my weapon if you promise not to kill me." The other party seemed to want to bargain, but Tu Long Ziyun said again, "You might live if you surrender, otherwise you're doomed!"
“What a losing proposition.” The man muttered, but finally stood up with his hands raised. Judging from his bronze skin and not-so-tall stature, he was probably a barbarian living by the sea (Note 1), and looked to be about thirty years old.
"No wonder the bow and arrow are so powerful. The word 'barbarian' is just a combination of 'bow' and 'person,' isn't it?" Li Jun thought to himself. But the lingering pain in his lower abdomen made him rush over and kick the barbarian. The barbarian tumbled, realizing the yellow light binding him was gone. But under Li Jun's arrows, he was helpless and could only cry out, "Treat prisoners well! Treat prisoners well! Tell me and I can live..."
“Not killing you doesn’t mean I can’t hit you.” Li Jun kicked the barbarian hard in the buttocks again. But he had no intention of killing him at this moment. He turned to look at Lei Hun to see how he would handle the situation.