I Seriously Didn't Want to Be the Martial Alliance Leader

Chapter 45: Chapter 44: Luo Shisanlang

An expert!

An absolute master!

The Jianghu People eating in the restaurant were all stunned.

The unstoppable momentum of that spear thrust and the dazzling brilliance of Chen Yuan’s saber strike were rarely seen among Martial Artists of the Qi Casting Realm.

The four Martial Artists from the Iron Armor Sect were also horrified.

The one in the lead quickly took off his Iron Conical Hat and held it before him, preparing to block Chen Yuan’s strike head-on.

Having stepped into the Qi Refining Realm Middle Stage, Chen Yuan’s Inner Strength had surged. The power of his strike instantly sent the Iron Armor Sect Martial Artist flying, and even sliced the Iron Conical Hat in his hands into two!

Previously, even with the Cyan Dragon Blood Drink, Chen Yuan wouldn’t have been able to slice through the Iron Conical Hat in a single strike.

The fact that his strength had increased so significantly after breaking through just one minor Realm was also due to the effects of the Inner Vision God Observation Method.

The hands of the Iron Armor Sect Martial Artist were dripping with blood and trembling uncontrollably, his eyes filled with terror.

Chen Yuan didn’t pause for a moment. His Surprise Wave Internal Power roared as he brought down his Wave-Treading Slash with immeasurable might!

Seeing this, another Iron Armor Sect Martial Artist from behind quickly swung his Iron Conical Hat towards the back of Chen Yuan’s heart.

But Chen Yuan’s Wave-Treading Slash suddenly changed direction and came slashing toward him instead.

As the chilling Sword Aura bore down on him, the Iron Armor Sect Martial Artist roared. His muscles bulged, and dark gray True Qi surged around him.

Iron Armor Cold Clothing, Iron Chain Cross River!

He attacked Chen Yuan with the Iron Conical Hat in one hand and formed a Fist Seal with the other, smashing down with a whistling force.

This man was stronger than the one Chen Yuan had sent flying earlier; he had also reached the Qi Refining Realm Middle Stage.

Moreover, he was experienced in battle. He knew that against the sharpness of the Cyan Dragon Blood Drink, he couldn’t just defend passively; he had to meet Attack Against Attack.

The problem was, his attacks were no match for Chen Yuan’s.

The Iron Conical Hat was torn apart, and half of his hand was sliced off along with it.

Yet he seemed not to notice. His Fist Seal was already less than three inches from Chen Yuan’s head, the dark gray True Qi about to hit!

But in the next instant, Chen Yuan’s arm moved like a Spiritual Snake Silk Binding. He used a Soft Strength to disperse the force, effortlessly neutralizing the power of the fierce and domineering Fist Seal.

Then, his Shattering Jade Strength erupted. Like a giant python constricting its prey, it twisted and broke the bone. The Iron Armor Sect Martial Artist’s entire wrist was crushed, revealing gruesome, splintered bone.

Before he could even scream, the Cyan Dragon Blood Drink in Chen Yuan’s hand had already slit his throat. Blood instantly sprayed through the air as his body collapsed to the ground with a THUD.

Chen Yuan turned his head to see the previously injured Iron Armor Sect Martial Artist turning to flee.

The next moment, the power of the Surging Waves and Flowing Clouds Technique erupted from within Chen Yuan. His Inner Strength surged, his body lunged forward, and his Autumn Wind Slash descended. A sky full of Sword Aura filled the air, beautiful yet brimming with a grim killing intent.

With both hands crippled, the Iron Armor Sect Martial Artist directly activated his Iron Chain Cross River Skill to block the attack head-on.

But his strength was inferior to Chen Yuan’s, and the sharpness of the Cyan Dragon Blood Drink was the perfect counter to the Hard Skills of the Iron Armor Sect.

Countless streaks of Sword Aura rained down, cutting through his Iron Armor Cold Clothing as easily as slicing tofu, dicing him into a pile of mangled flesh!

The blood on the saber’s blade gathered into a line along the edge. With a flick, Chen Yuan sent the blood flying in a neat, straight line.

Sheathing his saber, Chen Yuan turned to look. The simple-looking, burly man wasn’t much slower than him and had also finished off the other two Iron Armor Sect Martial Artists.

The Long Spear in his hands was like a black, swimming dragon, its momentum and power both incredibly astonishing.

Furthermore, it was an extremely sharp Profound Soldier, its quality not much inferior to the Cyan Dragon Blood Drink.

When the Iron Armor Sect Martial Artists used their Iron Conical Hats to defend, a hole was poked straight through.

Their Iron Armor Cold Clothing could withstand ordinary blades and swords, but before his Long Spear, it was no different from tofu. One poke, and there was a bloody hole.

In the blink of an eye, the two men had been stabbed full of holes, like sieves, with blood spurting from all over their bodies.

Seeing that Chen Yuan had also dispatched the Iron Armor Sect Martial Artists with such ease, the simple-looking, burly man’s eyes lit up.

"Excellent skills, brother! What a fast saber!"

Chen Yuan smiled. "And your spear isn’t slow either."

The two returned to the restaurant. Wherever they passed, the Jianghu People all subconsciously cleared a path for them.

Although the Iron Armor Sect wasn’t a top-tier Major Sect, it was still a local power in the border region of You Province.

In particular, the Martial Artists of the Iron Armor Sect cultivated Hard Skills, making them difficult to kill even if you could defeat them.

And if you couldn’t kill them, you could expect retaliation from a bunch of those iron-shelled turtles.

Yet these two, fighting two against four, had slaughtered Iron Armor Sect Martial Artists of the same rank as if they were chopping melons and cutting vegetables.

Before these two, their Horizontal Training Techniques were as fragile as paper. Such combat prowess was truly terrifying.

When they returned to their table, they found it already covered with a full spread of dishes.

Perhaps the restaurant’s Shopkeeper had gotten scared and specially rushed their order.

The burly man’s eyes turned red when he saw the table full of food. He yelled to the waiter, "Bring a basin of rice!"

The waiter brought the rice, and the man devoured half the basin with the dishes before he finally seemed to recover. He looked up and gave Chen Yuan an embarrassed smile.

"Please forgive me, brother. I’ve been starving for days. By the way, I haven’t yet asked for your name."

Chen Yuan paused, then said, "Chen Tian."

Not knowing the other man’s background, Chen Yuan still gave a false name.

When you’re out and about, it’s normal to have a few aliases.

"So it’s Brother Chen. Listening to your accent, Brother Chen, you must be from You Province, right? My name is Luo Lie, from Yan Province."

Chen Yuan nodded, then as if suddenly recalling something, he lowered his voice. "From under the Sun-Swapping Alliance, Luo the Thirteenth Lang?"

Luo the Thirteenth Lang grinned, scratching his head in a simple, honest way. "Brother Chen actually knows about the Sun-Swapping Alliance, and even my nickname?"

’Of course I know,’ Chen Yuan thought to himself. ’I also know you’re going to die a horrible death in the future.’

The man before him was the adopted son of Zhi Shilang, the Alliance Leader of the Sun-Swapping Alliance. After the Sun-Swapping Alliance raised its banner in rebellion, Luo Lie would lead the Death Warriors to be the first to scale the city walls in every battle. Once, he even charged back and forth through the enemy formation thirteen times, earning him the nickname Luo the Thirteenth Lang within the alliance.

Later, as the Sun-Swapping Alliance gradually grew stronger, Luo the Thirteenth Lang became one of its core fighting forces—a classic Fierce Battle General, unstoppable when charging through enemy lines.

In the end, the Sun-Swapping Alliance was beset by internal and external troubles and was annihilated by the combined forces of the Court and the Jianghu. To cover Zhi Shilang’s escape, Luo the Thirteenth Lang fought alone against the experts from the Court and the various Jianghu factions. He was finally exhausted by a successive wave of opponents and died with ten thousand arrows piercing his heart.

Luo the Thirteenth Lang was loyal, righteous, and fearless in the face of death. Even when the Sun-Swapping Alliance was deserted by its followers and plunged into a desperate situation, he chose to remain steadfast. He was truly a good man.

’But the Sun-Swapping Alliance had just raised its banner of rebellion. He should be in Yan Province, so why has he come to You Province?’

"The Sun-Swapping Alliance has risen in rebellion to fight the Court’s tyranny. Who in the Jianghu doesn’t know of it?

Brother Luo, you were the first to scale the city walls and charged through the enemy lines thirteen times at the risk of your own life. Truly fierce and inspiring."

Luo the Thirteenth Lang beamed at the praise. "You’re exaggerating, you’re exaggerating. My Sun-Swapping Alliance hasn’t even made it onto the Jianghu Wind and Cloud Rankings yet. How could we dare say everyone knows about us?

Besides, the Court’s army in Yan Province is utterly corrupt. Several times, I only had to charge a few times before they ran away. It wasn’t that dangerous."

The so-called Jianghu Wind and Cloud Rankings were compiled by the Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower, listing the top factions that controlled Divine Artifact Demon Soldiers and could stir up storms in the Jianghu.

The ranking was: East Sea Island, the Northwest Two Cities, the Three Buddhist Temples, the Four Daoist Sects, the Five Demonic Sects, the Fish and Dragon Six Sects, the Seven Alliances of the World, the Eight Great Noble Families, and the Nine Martial Sects.

For example, the Murong Family of Longcheng in You Province was one of the Eight Great Noble Families, and the Sun-piercing Alliance was one of the Seven Alliances of the World.

The Ning Province Martial Hall, which Chen Yuan was preparing to join, was also one of the Seven Alliances of the World.

Right now, the Sun-Swapping Alliance had just risen in rebellion and its power was only beginning to show, so it was not listed on the Jianghu Wind and Cloud Rankings.

However, it wouldn’t be long before the Sun-Swapping Alliance revealed its might and replaced the Sun-piercing Alliance as one of the Seven Alliances of the World.

"Brother Luo, don’t be so modest. The Jianghu Wind and Cloud Rankings aren’t set in stone. It’s only a matter of time before the Sun-Swapping Alliance is listed among them."

Chen Yuan said, "By the way, Brother Luo, shouldn’t you be in Yan Province right now? Why have you come here, to the border of Ning Province?"

Luo the Thirteenth Lang scratched his head and sighed. "I wasn’t going to Ning Province, I was going to You Province.

Right now, the Sun-Swapping Alliance is in a standoff with the Court. There wasn’t much for me to do back at the alliance, so I wanted to help my adoptive father recruit some experts from the Jianghu.

I happened to hear news that Zuo Xinglie, the ’Jiujiang Flood Dragon’ and former alliance leader of the Thirty-Six Waterway Alliance of the Jiulong River, was living in seclusion in Lianshan City, You Province. I wanted to go and invite him to join the Sun-Swapping Alliance.

Who would have thought that when I got there, I couldn’t find Zuo Xinglie? And there were a bunch of people from the Murong Family in Lianshan City, killing people indiscriminately. I even got into a fight with them.

Since I couldn’t find him, I decided to head back. But on the way, I ran into that gang from the Iron Armor Sect bullying people.

I just said a few words of justice and they got all riled up and insisted on fighting. So I had no choice but to oblige them and poke a few of them to death.

Later, I heard there was some damn Demon Sealing Conference being held nearby, so I thought I’d come and join the fun.

I didn’t expect those guys to be so petty. They actually chased me all the way here. What bad luck."

Chen Yuan stroked his chin. ’Have I altered the plot again?’

’Probably not. In the original plot, there was never any mention of Luo the Thirteenth Lang coming to invite Zuo Xinglie to join the Sun-Swapping Alliance.’

’Either he never found the man, or Zuo Xinglie refused him.’

At that moment, Luo the Thirteenth Lang suddenly thought of something and said excitedly to Chen Yuan, "Brother Chen, your Saber Technique is so stunning! Would you be willing to join my Sun-Swapping Alliance? I guarantee your position will be no lower than mine.

Oh, or how about you also take my adoptive father as your own? My adoptive father cherishes talented people the most; he would definitely treat you well."

Chen Yuan: "..."

’My last adoptive father just turned cold in his grave,’ he thought. ’I have no desire to be someone’s godson again.’

Besides, the Sun-Swapping Alliance had plenty of internal problems. Although Zhi Shilang was an ambitious and ruthless figure, he had character flaws that led to the alliance’s rapid rise, but also its catastrophic collapse.

Even if Chen Yuan was familiar with the plot, he didn’t have the ability to completely turn the tide.

His strength was insufficient, and he lacked the confidence and standing. Even if he pointed out the Sun-Swapping Alliance’s various flaws, no one would pay him any mind.

Therefore, Chen Yuan had no intention of jumping into the fire pit that was the Sun-Swapping Alliance right now.

"Thank you for your kind offer, Brother Luo, but I already have plans for my future. For now, I don’t intend to go to Yan Province to join the Sun-Swapping Alliance."

Luo the Thirteenth Lang shook his head with regret but didn’t insist.

"It’s a real shame I won’t be able to work with you, Brother Chen. By the way, Brother Chen, that saber of yours is really nice. Could I borrow it for a look?"

Chen Yuan handed over his Cyan Dragon Blood Drink. Luo the Thirteenth Lang drew the saber from its sheath. The blade was as bright as snow, and its edge was a crimson red, like Blood Jade.

"A fine saber! If I’m not mistaken, this must be a Treasure Saber forged from Earth Soldier Material."

Luo the Thirteenth Lang exclaimed in admiration and returned the Cyan Dragon Blood Drink to Chen Yuan.

Chen Yuan took the saber. "You have a good eye, Brother Luo, to be able to tell at a glance."

"Hehe, I used to be a blacksmith. I originally wanted to become a Weapon Master, but I ended up joining my adoptive father in a rebellion instead."

Luo the Thirteenth Lang took out his own Long Spear and handed it to Chen Yuan. "This spear is called the Profound Flood Dragon. My adoptive father helped me find the Earth Soldier Material, and I forged it myself. What do you think, Brother Chen?"

Chen Yuan took the Profound Flood Dragon. It felt extremely heavy in his hands, probably weighing two or three hundred jin. It was definitely not forged from ordinary materials.

"A fine spear! Its surface is dark and glossy, the spearhead is sharp and imposing, and it radiates a grim killing intent. It is truly a vicious weapon."

Chen Yuan praised it, then handed the Profound Flood Dragon back to him.

Luo the Thirteenth Lang scratched his head. He felt like something wasn’t quite right, but he couldn’t put his finger on what it was.