Zhang San, please behave yourself!
Chapter 212 - 205: I, Ye Longchen, the Destined One!

Chapter 212: Chapter 205: I, Ye Longchen, the Destined One!

Ye Longchen packed up his belongings, along with most of the valuable items from the Corpse Nether Sect that his master had just entrusted to him, and made his way to the shrine at the back of the Corpse Nether Sect’s mountain.

In the shrine, after kneeling and bowing several times to the ancestors of the Corpse Nether Sect, he took advantage of the moment of lighting incense to take the small box he had previously placed next to the ancestral master’s memorial tablet.

He always felt that the phalanx in the small box was extraordinary, so he took the opportunity to take it.

Afterward, Ye Longchen left the Corpse Nether Sect’s mountain gate overnight.

Soon, a disciple ran to Tian Xiamian’s door, knocking frantically.

"Sect Master, something terrible has happened. Brother Ye Longchen has just left the Sect."

With a creak, the door was pushed open.

Tian Xiamian walked out of the room with a look of contentment.

"I originally thought he would take a good rest tonight and leave tomorrow morning. Unexpectedly, this child is so eager; he couldn’t even wait for one night and left the mountain overnight."

The disciple who heard this was completely baffled.

The Sect had just faced a great catastrophe, and at this time, Ye Longchen leaving overnight—was he not running away?

"Sect Master, what do you mean by that?"

Tian Xiamian was worried that the disciples of the Corpse Nether Sect might accidentally leak the news that Ye Longchen was carrying a great fortune, given that everyone in the Corpse Nether Sect was particularly loose-lipped, so he waved his hand dismissively.

"You don’t need to know what he is up to. Just know that the influence he is going to bring to our Corpse Nether Sect will surpass any other disciple in these years. Now go."

With that, Tian Xiamian glanced at the bright moon in the sky.

A crystal-clear teardrop even traced the corner of his eye.

Indeed, the decision to take in that homeless little boy out of kindness all those years ago was the right one.

Ye Longchen was grateful and too eager to help the Corpse Nether Sect make money, not willing to wait even one night.

Meanwhile, outside the mountain gate of the Corpse Nether Sect, Ye Longchen, who had just left, turned to take one last look at the gate.

"Pah—spit!"

After spitting, Ye Longchen cursed under his breath as he began to run faster.

"Idiots, all idiots! One dumber than the next!"

"You believe that nonsense about earning thrice as much in three months?"

"Look what the Corpse Nether Sect has become under your piece-of-trash leadership! Idiot! Big idiot!"

"Hmph! The only right thing you ever did, was taking me, nearly frozen to death, back to the Corpse Nether Sect during that freezing winter!"

As he swore, Ye Longchen couldn’t help but think back to his former self.

He had originally been the eldest young master of a wealthy family; although his family wasn’t extremely rich, his father was still a small business owner in the area.

He had been the favorite at home, but then his mother gave birth to a younger brother, and Ye Longchen felt his status in the family plummet.

To make matters worse, he was constantly told he was the older brother and should yield to his younger brother!

Why should he yield to someone who would one day share in the division of the family assets!

Out of anger, Ye Longchen ran away from home.

He wanted to draw his parents’ attention.

But he acted too convincingly, leaving home early in the morning on a dung cart; by the time he woke up, he found himself next to a field, unable to find his way back home.

Thus, he became a pitiful little beggar during his life on the streets.

For this, he harbored deep resentment in his heart towards his parents and that damned younger brother for a very long time.

Thankfully, he later encountered his master, who brought him back to the Corpse Nether Sect, where he could finally eat his fill and stay warm, and because of his outstanding talent, he was taken as a closed-door disciple.

After years of arduous cultivation, he had now achieved the Qi Flow Transformation in the True Core Realm, and as long as he could reach the final step of True Core to the Sea, he could step into the Spiritual Platform Realm and become a true Cultivator.

Later, even under the pretext of descending the mountain for training, he returned to his hometown, found his parents, and his brother who had grown up.

The family of four, happy and harmonious.

In order to be with his family forever, Ye Longchen killed his parents and refined their corpses into Iron Corpses.

He even cruelly refined his own younger brother into a precious sword.

Because the Iron Corpses he refined were of his own blood, they protected him better in battle, winning him the appreciation of Tian Xiamian and thus more guidance.

Later, he came across a record in a book at the Scripture Pavilion that the ancestor of his sect had noted.

At the junction of Chuan-Yu Road, Sword South Path, and Longhua Road, there was a mountain called Jun Mountain.

Atop Jun Mountain, there resided a Mountain God who had returned from death.

This time, after leaving the Corpse Nether Sect, Ye Longchen planned to head to Jun Mountain to serve the Mountain God.

With the massive amount of cultivation resources, gold, silver, and other important corpse-refining materials he had in his Storage Ring from the entire Corpse Nether Sect, he had enough to make his breakthrough to the Spiritual Platform Realm.

By then, he could return to get his revenge on that Zhang San with a couple of slaps!

Although it was just a couple of slaps, in Ye Longchen’s eyes, being slapped twice in front of everyone from the Corpse Nether Sect was a sign of disrespect, and he was determined to repay the insult!

As for the Corpse Nether Sect, it was clearly in decline, and having to pay the Town Martial Office so much money every month, it would be impossible for them to turn things around in the next twenty years. They would just remain enslaved for life.

Leaving such a sect as soon as possible was the wisest decision.

I, Ye Longchen, am favored by Heavenly Mandate with limitless possibilities. How could I possibly be trapped within the trivial Corpse Nether Sect?

...

The same night sky cast different moods.

Zhang San arrived at the prison once again.

Upon seeing Zhang San, the inmates immediately stood up and respectfully bowed to him.

"Military Chief Zhang, greetings!"

"Military Chief Zhang, you’ve worked hard coming here so late!"

Everyone now had a very clear understanding of Zhang San’s status and methods.

Although he was only an Acting Military Chief, Zhang San’s prestige was definitely higher than any other Military Chief in the Chuan-Yu area. Of course, much higher than that of Lu Qingquan.

Even now, many people in the entire Chuan-Yu area did not know who the new Acting Officer of the Town Martial Office was, but they all knew who Zhang San was.

Zhang San greeted everyone with a nod and a smile.

"Being locked up here for such a long time isn’t right. I’ve been running around recently, pleading on your behalf, and now, at last, there is an opportunity for you to be released."

Upon hearing this, many inmates were so moved they immediately tried to kneel and kowtow to Zhang San.

"There’s no need for kowtowing. We’re all straightforward people. I’m not for all that fluff. This time, you were caught because of a brawl, but considering that all of you are Martial Artists and a moment of heated confrontation is inevitable, you will be spared punishment such as penal servitude. However..."[Note 65]

Zhang San’s tone shifted as he spoke.

"Based on your different levels of Cultivation, you will need to pay a ransom."

As soon as many heard the word "ransom," their faces fell.

If they had any means of earning money, they wouldn’t have joined the Dragon Slaying Alliance to make a living.

"If you don’t have money on you, you can borrow from relatives and friends. Our Town Martial Office can send your letters. Once the money arrives, you’ll just sign a guarantee promising not to cause trouble in the future and to cooperate with the work of the Town Martial Office, and then you’ll be free to leave. After all, I have superiors too, and I need to explain things to them. Let’s understand and accommodate each other."

Zhang San turned to leave and instructed, "If you want to send a letter, just call the guarding Martial Artists, and they will send it for you."

After finishing, Zhang San saw Wang Ziteng and Big Head Wang outside and asked in a low voice, "How are the arrangements coming along?"

The two nodded and said, "Everything is ready!"

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[Note 65]A little legal education

In ancient times, because the technology for injury assessment was not as advanced as it is today, there was a legal system called "Guaranteed Recovery (Bao Cu)." It was a system requiring the offender to care for the injured person until recovery within a deadline, with the degree of recovery determining the offender’s punishment. It can be understood as someone being beaten, but the extent of the injury being unclear, so the offender had to wait and see how the victim fared before the punishment could be assigned. If the injuries were not serious, the punishment was lighter, but if the victim died after a few days, the assailant could be sentenced to death.

In the Tang Code Commentaries, the concept of Guaranteed Recovery (Bao Cu) is presented, stating, "For all cases of Guaranteed Recovery, if someone is beaten with hands or feet, the period is ten days; if beaten with an object other than hands or feet, twenty days; if wounded with a blade or by scalding water, thirty days; if the victim’s limbs are broken or bones fractured, fifty days." In essence, anyone who beats someone has a set period for recovery. Whether the victim is injured or not, the recovery period is ten days; for using different tools to beat someone, twenty days; for using a knife, hot water, etc., thirty days; for causing fractures, fifty days.