78: Chapter 78 Chinese New Year

The next day, Wu Wen and Yu De departed. Lu Hu resumed his daily routine, occasionally heading underground to cultivate his Poison Spirit Body.

Under his diligent cultivation, the corpse of the giant centipede demon was gradually drained by Lu Hu, turning into dust and vanishing from the world.

Lu Hu also mastered the centipede's demonic poison. He conducted an experiment on a rabbit; the poison rotted flesh and caused excruciating pain that an ordinary person would find unbearable.

This was the first time he had learned an ability through his own efforts rather than as a system reward. Lu Hu was in a good mood and felt quite cheerful, so he would drop a bit more when randomly distributing opportunities in the mountain forest.

The thirty-six spiritual herbs he had exchanged with the Owl were also bearing fruit. There was a wide variety, and the supply of spiritual herb seeds was gradually increasing.

In his current warehouse, spiritual items were piled high. Lu Hu was not stingy, sharing them with Mother Tiger, Tiger Dad, Mo Yun, and the others.

Occasionally, when the mood struck him, he would flip through the Medical Immortal's pill formulas and use spiritual herbs to refine pills. He failed frequently; the extent to which he squandered spiritual herbs would be intolerable for any nation. Lu Hu didn't care; he was rich.

Seeing Mother Tiger and Tiger Dad's strength skyrocket after eating the pills he refined, Lu Hu felt satisfied with the fruits of his labor.

Tiger Dad was now a Grandmaster, and Mother Tiger was close.

"Roar~" (Where is my little sister?)

When he had nothing to do, he liked to let his mind wander. Thinking of Tiger Sister, whom he hadn't seen in a long time, he felt a bit of longing.

Perhaps it was because Tiger Sister was still just an ordinary tiger.

...

In the Pi Kingdom, Li Jiao walked down the street. The fanatical and worshipful gazes of the commoners on both sides followed his steps. Tiger Brother, clad in crimson molten armor and looking majestic, followed by Li Jiao's side.

They killed corrupt officials, struck down landlords, led the people in rebellion, worked together, faced difficulties together, ate meat together, and drank wine together.

From this man and tiger, the commoners felt clearly for the first time that they were actually human beings, not livestock!

Humans were not born into this world to be slaves!

They too could live a life without worrying about food or clothing; it was others who had stripped them of their freedom!

In just three months, the man and the tiger were followed fanatically by the people as if they were saviors.

Compared to the commoners, the army behind Li Jiao, which was composed entirely of martial artists, held a fanatical awe for him.

Yesterday, they had witnessed and personally experienced an operation to slay a Grandmaster.

A Grandmaster!

An existence that many martial artists spent their entire lives looking up to but could never reach. Yet yesterday, these unranked, third-rate, and second-rate... ants, carrying the cannons made by the Commander, had simply killed a Grandmaster who was at his peak state!

Who would have dared to imagine it?

And who could have expected it?

What is a Grandmaster?

In past records, unless a Grandmaster had a death wish or fought until exhausted without retreating, they simply could not be killed by anyone below the Grandmaster level.

However, the Commander had created one incredible miracle after another.

Ordinary people holding golden rice guns could, after just two days of training, easily kill martial artists who had practiced their whole lives.

Martial artists using guns could easily defeat enemies ten or a hundred times their own strength.

Now, this group of martial artists had created the miracle of slaying a Grandmaster without taking any casualties.

That Grandmaster had run two kilometers away, yet he was still blasted to death by them!

This was perhaps the first time in history that a Grandmaster tried to flee from a group of ordinary martial artists but failed to escape.

Their deeds would surely be passed down!

This was simply... too satisfying!

A day had passed, and the blood of the martial artists was still boiling. Even low-level martial artists like them had a day where they could chase a Grandmaster to his death!

The thrill rushed from the soles of their feet to the tops of their heads, coursing through their entire bodies!

The Commander was practically a god!

"Commander, where are we attacking next?"

The martial artists were still hungry for more; they wanted to experience chasing and pummeling a Grandmaster again. Especially those who couldn't participate yesterday—their thighs were nearly bruised from slapping them in regret upon hearing the news.

This time, no matter what, they had to try the pleasure of chasing and beating a Grandmaster.

"Grandmasters aren't that common!" Li Jiao chuckled, looking at the snow on the rooftops.

"The New Year is coming. Let's rest and reorganize so everyone can have a good New Year!"

"Commander, we're not tired!"

The martial artists were excited. "We want to keep fighting!"

"People die in war," Li Jiao said. "Everyone should have a good New Year this year. I don't want to see anyone miss it!"

"The Commander is truly righteous!"

Everyone was full of admiration. The appearance of the cannons had caught Emperor Pi off guard. At this time, they should have struck while Emperor Pi hadn't found a countermeasure; victory would have been almost certain.

But for the sake of letting everyone have a good New Year, the Commander had given up a great opportunity, giving Emperor Pi a chance to breathe and prepare.

"The Pi Dynasty can be overthrown at any time, but if someone misses a New Year, they might never get to celebrate it again. Isn't my goal to let everyone live a good life?"

"Stop following me now. Go back and prepare for the New Year properly."

Li Jiao smiled, continuing to build his prestige. After dismissing the crowd, he left only a few confidants by his side and entered a private room for a meeting.

"I've heard that the Princess of Dezhou, Xiao Qing, is known as Xiao Qingtian. She has solved countless cases, punished evil, and is impartial and selfless. The people all praise her!"

The war would certainly continue, but the next place to attack would be different. According to the information Li Jiao had gathered,

The Princess of Dezhou was like a lotus rising from the mud. While all other officials were preying on the people and breaking the law, this Princess still maintained her original heart.

She solved countless cases and protected the commoners, gaining great prestige locally. However, one person's strength was too weak. Xiao Qingtian could not change this rotten world; looking at the oppressed people, she could only do her best.

Even the people in other cities outside of Dezhou had heard of Xiao Qingtian's reputation.

Li Jiao's initial impression of this person was that someone with such a great reputation couldn't be bad. She was a good official, the last ray of light among the Pi Dynasty officials.

Such a person should not be killed.

This was also why Li Jiao wanted everyone to have a good New Year. For the upcoming Dezhou, he intended to avoid war; Li Jiao planned to persuade Xiao Qing to surrender, letting this Xiao Qingtian defect voluntarily!

It was the New Year, and he didn't want to use blades and guns.

However, Li Jiao was hesitant. In this Pi Kingdom where all officials deserved to be hung from lampposts, could such a person really exist?

"Xiao Qingtian's concern is that our Rebel Army has too few martial artists. Although we've beaten the Pi army back repeatedly, it's because the Pi army's martial artist units haven't appeared yet. She believes we don't have the strength to overthrow the Pi Dynasty."

A confidant said, "Commander, Xiao Qingtian also wishes to meet you. Why not let her come? I believe once she sees our cannons, she will no longer hesitate!"

"Fine, I'll leave this matter to you."

Li Jiao nodded. Let it be so. Mainly, it was the New Year, and he really didn't want to fight.

Thinking of the New Year, Li Jiao looked at Tiger Brother beside him.

"Brother Tiger, the New Year is coming. Aren't you going back to accompany that King?"

Tiger Brother's intelligence was getting higher and higher. He followed Li Jiao to learn the Chinese language. Now, the communication between the man and the tiger didn't rely on guessing; they used simple gestures for basic things and writing for complex ones. Li Jiao also knew about the relationship between Tiger Brother and that Tiger King from back then.

With the New Year here, it was time to go back and spend it with his tiger family.

"Roar~" (No.)

Tiger Brother had thought about going back. He had learned from his Big Brother that Mother Tiger and Tiger Dad were also there. He wouldn't speak of Tiger Dad; he had never met him and didn't know him.

It was mainly Mother Tiger whom Tiger Brother missed dearly.

After staying in the human world for so long, Tiger Brother was subconsciously influenced by Li Jiao's personality. He felt very ashamed; Mother Tiger had raised him and Tiger Sister with her own milk and meat.

Now that he was an adult and capable, he had yet to show his mother any filial piety.

Tiger Brother felt guilty, but he knew well that his younger brother's current situation was too precarious. If he hadn't discovered that Grandmaster yesterday, his younger brother would have been hard-pressed to escape death even with the protection of the crimson molten armor.

His younger brother's physical frame was too weak, and he didn't have any reliable martial artists to protect him. If Tiger Brother left and a Grandmaster came to assassinate him, his younger brother would be in danger.

Big Brother was there with Mother, and that Tiger Dad he had never met was there too. As the father of that evil and powerful Big Brother, his strength would surely be very great.

Mother Tiger's life should be very good; even if he went, he couldn't provide much filial piety.

Mother, I'm sorry. Your son is unfilial, but my younger brother needs me more!

Tiger Brother thought silently.

Seeing this, Li Jiao pushed aside the pile of documents he needed to process. Today, he would also give himself a holiday.

"Brother Tiger, we haven't eaten roasted deer in a long time. Shall we have some today?"

"Roar~" (Sure.)

Tiger Brother let out a Tiger Roar, and before long, the Wolf Pack brought him a small deer.

Li Jiao rolled up his sleeves, prepared the venison, and set up a fire to roast it. Looking at the sizzling, oily small deer, Li Jiao's exhausted spirit felt a moment of relaxation.

"This is what I originally imagined transmigration would be like."

Li Jiao murmured, thinking of his wild joy when he first transmigrated, even thinking of marrying several wives and concubines to live a happy and carefree life.

After digesting the original body's memories and learning about the Pi Kingdom's situation, he had been busy trying to overthrow it. Every morning he opened his eyes to work, and every night he dreamed of it. He was so tired he could barely catch his breath.

It was too exhausting. The subordinates he could use were basically ordinary people who couldn't read a single word. Any scholar who was literate was basically just like the officials.

He had to handle matters large and small personally. What supreme leader still had to be responsible for logistics like bookkeeping and distributing grain and fodder!

He hadn't trained many assistants, yet the team was growing at a terrifying speed. He was getting more and more tired. It was only now, with the arrival of righteous men from other countries to help, that he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

He was getting further and further away from his original dream!

Did he regret it?

He didn't regret it, but he still had to complain when it was time to complain.

Aside from the commoners who barely knew any characters, there wasn't a single usable talent.

He accepted the rebellion, but couldn't they lower the difficulty for him? He had to run to other countries just to recruit talent. They really weren't afraid of him working himself to death!

"Xiao Qingtian..."

Hopefully, she really is a 'Clear Sky,' so he can save a lot of trouble.

"Roar~" (It's burning, it's about to burn!)

Tiger Brother's voice pulled Li Jiao's thoughts back to reality. He hurriedly flipped the roasted deer. After eating the deer, Li Jiao began his endless busy work again.

The next day, the Princess of Dezhou, who bore the title Xiao Qingtian, secretly came to the Rebel Army camp to meet with Li Jiao.

"I have long been unable to stand the filth of those corrupt officials. What Mr. Tetler has done fills me with admiration!"

Princess Xiao lived up to her name. Just as the rumors said, she was impartial, selfless, and hated evil. She had once stood up for the people and executed many sons of wealthy families.

It was also since then that Princess Xiao had been targeted and marginalized. She was alone and weak, unable to contend with a colossus like the Pi Kingdom. Facing the hopeful eyes of the people, she could only turn away helplessly.

Now, Li Jiao's powerful rise gave her hope of purging the imperial court.

"I will also be direct. While I admire what Mr. Tetler has done, you and I both know the strength of the imperial court. If you do not have the strength to contend with it, I'm afraid I cannot cooperate."

Princess Xiao said. She also wanted to see a prosperous era, but she didn't want to throw her life away. If the Rebel Army didn't have enough strength, she wouldn't dare to join.

Looking at the curvaceous and incredibly beautiful Princess Xiao, who also had a face full of justice, Li Jiao nodded inwardly.

After transmigrating, besides a clear improvement in his manual skills, his perception was also not bad. In just this brief exchange, he could see that Princess Xiao was indeed impartial and full of a sense of justice.

Such a person would absolutely loathe those officials who broke the law and were corrupt.

Trust the people you use, and don't use the people you doubt. Li Jiao showed her his cannons.

The power of the cannons was immense, especially when controlled by martial artists; their precision soared and they reacted quickly, capable of blasting Grandmasters without fail.

In the Pi Kingdom, there were barely twenty Grandmasters, while cannons could be made as long as there was refined iron and steel. It was obvious who held the advantage.

After witnessing the power of the cannons, Princess Xiao was excited.

"Mr. Tetler, I will give you a grand gift!"

Princess Xiao said, "In my territory, there are iron mines, copper mines, and grain. If you need them, use them as you wish, to kill off those corrupt officials as soon as possible."

"Thank you!"

Li Jiao was not polite. A Grandmaster's reaction speed was simply absurd. To blast that Grandmaster to death, it took a full thirty cannons, all controlled by martial artists, firing hundreds of shots just to predict the Grandmaster's movements.

There were still no fewer than ten Grandmasters in the Pi Kingdom, and the current stock of cannons was indeed too small.

...

The animals of Tianduan Mountain had no concept of the New Year, but Lu Hu wanted to celebrate it. Following the human calendars, the animals began the first-ever New Year celebration in Tianduan Mountain's history.

The Wild Boar King had already prepared a batch of his brothers-in-law to offer as a tribute to Lu Hu.

Lu Hu got up early in the morning. First, he accepted the Wild Boar King's gift, then went to the river to catch a few fish, and finally caught a few wild chickens.

After returning, Mo Yun boiled water, Lu Hu slaughtered the pigs, the Wild Boar King assisted, and Mother Tiger slaughtered the chickens and fish.

As for Tiger Dad, his size was too massive to do such delicate work. He was rejected by Lu Hu and was currently feeling depressed.

Lu Qing butchered the pigs Lu Hu had killed, marinating what needed to be marinated and stewing what needed to be stewed.

The Dragon Li and the Owl were competing over the taste of their fried chicken and fried fish nuggets. Cat Eagle acted as the judge; if he said the chicken was good, the Owl would be sad, and if he said the fish was good, the Dragon Li would be sad. Cat Eagle's head was aching from the stress!

As the King, Lu Hu's way of celebrating the New Year was learned by the animals in the mountain who had gained sapience. One by one, they also slaughtered pigs, chickens, and fish to prepare New Year goods, cleaned their nests, and imitated him perfectly.

Lu Hu saw this and personally took action, using ancient kun script to create a 'movie' and gathering the mountain animals to watch it together.

After watching the movie, he took out the remaining Crimson Molten Fish and distributed them to the sapient animals as New Year gifts.

This New Year was very lively. The animals also understood what the New Year was. Celebrating the New Year would become a custom for the animals of Tianduan Mountain, passed down from generation to generation.

The animals were all very happy, looking forward to the arrival of the next New Year. Only the pig, chicken, and fish tribes were trembling, praying for this terrifying festival to disappear!

After the New Year, there was good news for Lu Hu.

Da Bei's crimson melt pearl was fully nurtured!