High Martial Arts: I Travel Through Heaven and Earth Through Dreams

Chapter 27: Rapid Advancement in Cultivation, Chaos Awaits

Five years is but a blink of an eye for a martial artist who is immersed in cultivation.

In the unassuming little courtyard east of Ping'an Town, Lin Hanzhou has been living peacefully for five years.

His strength also underwent a dramatic change during these five years of peace.

In the center of the courtyard, Lin Hanzhou stood with his long sword in hand and his eyes closed.

He seemed to blend into his surroundings.

Suddenly, he opened his eyes and casually swung his long sword.

There was no astonishing sword energy, nor any sharp sound of air being torn apart.

His swordplay was like flowing clouds and running water, so continuous and uninterrupted; and like turbulent waves, so unpredictable and ever-changing.

In his hands, the entire sword technique possessed only a natural and effortless artistic conception.

This is precisely the symbol of the mastery of the Flowing Cloud Sword Technique.

"call……"

After finishing a set of sword techniques, Lin Hanzhou sheathed his sword and stood up, letting out a long breath.

His cultivation level had already broken through to the peak of the second-tier Qi Gathering Realm half a year ago.

He was only one step away from reaching the third-level Qi Sea Realm.

This cultivation speed can only be described as rapid progress.

You should know that he doesn't have any rare and precious materials in this peaceful town to help him cultivate.

He achieved this level of cultivation entirely by drawing upon the meager spiritual energy from the air.

Even with just that, he was able to break through from the third level of the Qi Gathering Realm to the peak of the ninth level in just five years.

Lin Hanzhou couldn't help but marvel once again at how powerful the talent produced by the system truly was.

During those five years, he lived a rather comfortable life in the small town.

With his second-rate martial arts skills and his identity as a constable, he was considered a significant figure in the town.

The highest-ranking cultivator in the entire town was the old town mayor, who was only at the peak of a first-class martial artist.

There is no one else in the entire town who is already a second-rate martial artist at such a young age like Lin Hanzhou.

This is why he has lived a very comfortable life in the town all these years.

Wherever he goes, he is respectfully addressed as "Officer Lin".

Many people in the town knew of a highly capable and kind-hearted constable named Lin, and were happy to befriend him.

Even the town's wealthiest merchant, Master Zhang, once sent a matchmaker to his door.

He was willing to offer a dowry of one hundred taels of gold to marry his precious daughter, who was only sixteen years old, to Lin Hanzhou.

Unfortunately, Lin Hanzhou politely declined the offer.

The reason is simple: he doesn't want to settle down here yet.

Ping'an Town is ultimately too small; he can't stay here forever, and there will always be a day when he has to leave.

Since you're going to leave anyway, why get married and have children here?

He's always been used to a leisurely life, and he can't stand being restricted like this.

For the past five years, Lin Hanzhou's daily life has remained very simple.

During the day, he cultivates in the courtyard.

In the evening, we patrolled the town.

They call it a patrol, but in reality, most of the time they're just loafing around.

Sometimes, he would simply walk around the street and get it over with.

After all, Ping'an Town is indeed quite peaceful, and crimes almost never occur there.

The reason for this is directly related to him.

I remember it was two years ago when a gang called the Flying Fish Gang came to Ping'an Town.

This gang is said to have fled from a large city to escape retribution from their enemies.

At first glance, they looked like stray dogs, nothing to be afraid of.

However, within its gang, there are several top-notch martial artists, and the gang leader is a top-tier martial artist at the peak.

This lineup is enough to sweep through several Ping'an Towns.

It should be noted that in Ping'an Town, there is only one top-tier martial artist, the old town chief.

The opponent is quite old and his vital energy is declining. His actual combat strength is probably only at the level of an ordinary first-class martial artist.

For this reason, the old town mayor had no choice but to let them enter Ping'an Town.

He knew very well that if he didn't let them go, the Flying Fish Gang would force their way in.

With so many top-tier experts on the other side, he couldn't possibly hold them off alone.

After arriving in Ping'an Town, the Flying Fish Gang revealed their true colors, committing all sorts of atrocities, including arson, murder, and looting.

They seem to be trying to make a comeback, and are even recruiting local thugs and hooligans into their gang.

For a time, everyone in Ping'an Town was on edge, and residents didn't even dare to leave their homes.

Although the old mayor wanted to resist, he was powerless to do so and could only remain in a corner of the town.

It was at this moment that Lin Hanzhou stepped forward.

He had already lived in Ping'an Town for two years at that time, so it was impossible for him not to have any feelings for it.

He couldn't stand by and watch the Flying Fish Gang commit evil deeds; they had crossed his bottom line.

Moreover, he is a police officer in Ping'an Town, and maintaining the local order is his duty.

So, on a dark and windy night, Lin Hanzhou went alone to the Flying Fish Gang's stronghold.

With just his sword, he slaughtered over a hundred members of the Flying Fish Gang in less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

Killing these martial artists whose cultivation level was not even at the second rank was as easy as cutting melons and vegetables for him.

After doing all this, Lin Hanzhou erased all traces of the scene as usual, burying all the hundreds of Flying Fish Gang members in the ground.

This course covers both physics and geography, making it a dual-discipline teaching approach.

It was precisely for this reason that most of the local thugs and ruffians in Ping'an Town died in the Flying Fish Gang.

As a result, after the town of Ping'an returned to peace, there were no more local thugs causing trouble.

As a result, Lin Hanzhou's life as a police officer became increasingly relaxed, and he might not encounter a case for several months.

During his night patrols, all he needed to do was keep an eye out for wild animals in the mountains that might approach the town.

With his current peak second-tier perception ability, he can detect any wild beasts approaching the town immediately, no matter where he is in the town.

With such a human radar in place, he has no fear of neglecting his duties.

In his spare time, Lin Hanzhou would go to the small Chunfeng Pavilion in town to listen to folk songs and drink wine.

In his own words, it was called "helping wayward girls and experiencing human suffering."

All I can say is that he knows how to enjoy life.

Sometimes, Lin Hanzhou would even wonder if he should just settle down in this small town, get married, have children, and live a peaceful life.

Such a leisurely life as a salted fisherman is truly captivating.

But he would soon put that thought to himself.

He clearly cannot continue down this path of depravity.

He was very clear that the reason he was able to enjoy all this comfort and leisure was fundamentally due to his strength.

With enough strength, you have everything.

This is also the greatest motivation for Lin Hanzhou to endure the loneliness and monotonous cultivation day after day.

In addition, he often went to the town's restaurants to inquire about news from the outside world from merchants coming and going.

In the past five years, many things have happened throughout the Great Qian Dynasty.

The critically ill Emperor Qian seemed to be getting worse, and it was said that he was on the verge of death.

This has led to the emergence of overt unrest in the Great Qian Dynasty.

Several states experienced large-scale peasant uprisings due to natural disasters and man-made calamities.

Meanwhile, the three powerful vassal kings, under the guise of "suppressing the rebellion," frantically recruited soldiers and expanded their own power.

They were already making final preparations for the coming chaos.

The three major sects, as well as the Qing Dynasty in the north, are all making moves.

Like a group of sharks smelling blood, they all wanted to tear a piece of flesh from the crumbling behemoth that was Daqian.

The whole world is like a powder keg about to explode.

Ping'an Town, where Lin Hanzhou is located, is just a temporarily calm harbor before the storm arrives.