The Great Zhou Dynasty. Bozhou, Pingzhang Commandery, Black Mountain County.
The streets of the county were deserted. A winding path of crushed stone slabs stretched outward, flanked by the mottled silhouettes of tiled roofs. A chilling aura of death permeated the silence. As autumn set in, the weather turned cold, and with the fading sunset, the town felt even more frigid.
The slanting sun dipped further away. Bathed in the evening glow, a constable clad in a thin, tattered Official's uniform leaned against the doorframe of a tiled house. Blood gushed from the back of his head, dyeing the ground a deep red. The biting cold around him was palpable. The fallen constable suddenly shuddered and groggily opened his eyes.
"HISS."
A sharp pain lanced through his head. Zheng Jun couldn't help but draw in a sharp breath. Feeling dizzy and disoriented, he clutched the bloody back of his head and curled up in the corner of the doorway. At the same time, a flood of memories that didn't belong to him began merging into his mind.
He wondered, "Have I crossed over?"
As the memories rushed in like a tidal wave, Zheng Jun was forced to accept this astonishing reality.
He thought, "It doesn't seem like I crossed over. It feels more like... awakening memories of a past life. This sudden trauma actually unlocked my past."
This place was Black Mountain County in Pingzhang Commandery, under the rule of the Great Zhou Dynasty. He was a sixteen-year-old constable in the Black Mountain County Government Office. Because Zhou Pu, who was also a constable, had bribed a Historian, Zheng Jun had entered the Government Office right after turning sixteen to become a constable and secure a government salary.
Now, in his second month on the job, Zhou Pu had brought him out to gain some experience. Zheng Jun's only task was to guard the door. He never expected that a petty thief would slip through the net, sprint out wildly, and crash right into him from behind. Before Zheng Jun could react, the thief threw a punch that left him seeing stars and knocked him out cold.
At this thought, Zheng Jun instinctively touched the back of his head. A wave of sharp pain immediately washed over him, making him wince in agony.
He thought, "That thief must have been wielding a weapon like brass knuckles!"
With his head covered in blood, Zheng Jun exhaled a deep breath of hot air. The resulting white mist was quite conspicuous against the biting wind. Just as he regained his bearings, the tide of memories surged toward him once again.
He thought, "The Divine Martial Emperor of the Great Zhou used Martial Arts to achieve the Dao, defeating the King of Kao Mountain of the Late Yu in one fell swoop and conquering the world? The Emperor rose to power eight hundred years ago and is now nearing the end of his life. He has raised nine sons, all of whom are grandmaster Martial Saints who have condensed their Primordial Pills. The Great Zhou Dynasty's territory is stable, and its national destiny is Yongchang?"
After digesting these convoluted memories, Zheng Jun's expression turned somewhat bizarre. He hadn't expected this to be a world where cultivation was possible. By using Martial Arts to achieve the Dao, one could naturally prolong their life and strengthen their body! At this thought, Zheng Jun's eyes suddenly lit up, but they quickly dimmed.
The path of Martial Arts was as difficult as ascending to the heavens. Since ancient times, the poor studied literature while the rich practiced Martial Arts, and the Great Zhou Dynasty was no exception. Given a family background like Zheng Jun's, even though he had learned a few crude, peasant-style moves while on duty, the path of Martial Arts cultivation remained hopelessly out of reach. Even Zhou Pu, who had been a constable for many years, had barely crossed the threshold and was just scraping by in this small border county of the Great Zhou.
He thought, "From the looks of it, my path should lie in studying and the imperial examinations. All professions are of Lower Grade; only studying is exalted. Only by becoming a Child Scholar and a Scholar can I change my family's circumstances and have a chance to practice Martial Arts..."
Zheng Jun frowned. Something suddenly surfaced in his memories, and he let out a bitter laugh. Black Officials, forensic doctors, and constables were all considered lowly servants. Their status was equal to that of Courtesans and beggars! For three generations, their descendants were forbidden from taking the imperial examinations! Artisans, musicians, the Dang Family, beggars, slaves, and servants!
He thought, "At least I'm a constable and not registered as a slave or a musician. If that were the case, turning my life around would be horrifyingly difficult..."
Zheng Jun's expression was complex, his mind filled with emotion. Although being a constable meant belonging to the lowly class, they could arrest and lock people up at will. Anyone who saw them feared them somewhat, and ordinary commoners naturally didn't dare provoke them. Compared to Courtesans, the Dang Family, beggars, and slaves, there was a world of difference. Ordinary commoners always looked for an opportunity to become a constable or a Quick Hand. The fact that Zhou Pu had managed to secure a spot for him was already an incredibly difficult feat.
"Junzi, what happened to you? Did you run into the Wave-Treading Thief Lou Wei?!"
At that moment, an anxious shout rang in Zheng Jun's ears. He instinctively looked toward the source and saw a dark-faced man in a black constable's uniform hurrying toward him.
"Oh no! If anything happened to you, how am I supposed to explain this to your sister?!" the man cried out as he approached.
Upon seeing this dark-faced man, a name immediately surfaced in Zheng Jun's memories. It was Zhou Pu, his sister's husband.
"Zhou Pu!" Zheng Jun immediately leaned forward and exhaled deeply. He then said, "I was following your orders and standing guard here when I suddenly got punched by someone..."
With that, Zheng Jun held out his bloodstained hand and hissed twice in pain, appearing to be quite heavily injured.
Zhou Pu hurried forward. After carefully inspecting the back of Zheng Jun's head, he finally let out a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness, thank goodness. You must have encountered Lou Wei's disciple. If it had been Lou Wei himself, he would have just killed you and been done with it. Sigh! If that had happened, how could I ever face your sister again!"
Hearing this, Zheng Jun thought, "Based on what he just said, the person who smashed me must have been the Wave-Treading Thief Lou Wei."
At this thought, Zheng Jun's expression grew conflicted. Zhou Pu assumed that he was simply scared silly by what had just happened and didn't reprimand him too harshly. He just said, "After we report back, I'll take you to Doctor Mr. Zhang's place to get that treated, just to be safe...
"I didn't want to come catch Lou Wei this time either! But Chief Sun said that a new County Captain is arriving in the county, and we need to present the newly appointed official with some achievements. That's why we organized this operation to catch Lou Wei.
"But who would have thought that thief Lou Wei was so clever? At the first sign of trouble, he became alert. After injuring two of our fellow constables, he and his disciples scattered in all directions. I originally wanted you to tag along and earn some reward money so you could marry a wife, but you almost lost your life instead. Ah, this is all my fault..."
Zhou Pu babbled on, seemingly explaining to Zheng Jun why he had brought him along. Hearing Zhou Pu's rambling words, Zheng Jun felt a warmth in his heart. Having been lonely and bitter in his past life, he had never been cared for by a relative like this before.
He then said, "Zhou Pu, I don't blame you... With me being injured like this, the County Magistrate won't skimp on my medical expenses, right?"
"Of course not..."
The two figures gradually walked further away. After following Zhou Pu to Doctor Mr. Zhang's place to get a blood-stopping powder prescribed, Zheng Jun was sent home to rest.
Being sixteen years old, Zheng Jun had naturally moved out from his sister and Zhou Pu's home a long time ago. He lived in the old house left behind by his parents. As soon as he lay down, he saw the starlit sky outside the window, the stars twinkling brightly. Black Mountain County was not a wealthy or large county. Living alone, Zheng Jun couldn't bear to waste money on lighting a candle. He simply leaned against the wall of the earthen bed and sighed deeply, his mind in a tangled mess.
Although it was an awakening of past-life memories, it was really no different from crossing over.
He thought, "Now that I have crossed over, what should I do? Tinker with modern inventions? I don't have the skills of a great inventor. Plagiarize poems to become world-famous? With my meager knowledge, speaking even a few words with those scholars and beauties would probably expose me, turning me into a despised fraud chased through the streets. It is too difficult!"
Zheng Jun sighed. Just then, a line of small text suddenly shimmered into existence before his eyes.
"Hm?"
Zheng Jun was taken aback. He blinked, and the illusory yet somewhat clear line of small text abruptly stabilized in front of him.
[Available Martial Arts for Advance: Cloak and Dagger Technique (Great Success).]
[Do you wish to advance the 'Cloak and Dagger Technique (Great Success)'? Because you are borrowing the Fruit of the Future, you must swing a saber five thousand times before it can truly become your own.]
[...]
Staring at the clearly visible ink-wash text before him, Zheng Jun froze as towering waves crashed in his heart.
He thought, "A cheat? Has my cheat arrived? Can Martial Arts actually be advanced?"
Zheng Jun was profoundly shocked. "They even have loans here?!"