In the world of martial arts, I can invest in countless realms.

Chapter 61 Talent

"The people of Fengzhou are so kind and simple!"

After Bai Xiyu's death, Shen Che left Baicao Valley and wandered south to Fengzhou.

After Bai Xiyu died in Baicao Valley, the Cicadas did indeed riot for a moment, but after the pain subsided, they found that the martial arts masters were unharmed.

The red cicada inside the body died, but in doing so, it nourished them instead.

Many people felt that their skills had improved slightly, their spirits seemed to be lifted, and even their faces looked a little younger.

The threat that had been lingering in his mind vanished without a trace, allowing Shen Che to leave with peace of mind.

After leaving Baicao Valley, he headed south and later heard that Baicao Valley had been almost completely wiped out, and those who had followed the fake Lu Zhao were almost all killed.

Of course, while killing people, don't expect those martial arts practitioners to be clean. After a massacre, Hundred Herbs Valley will probably be nothing but an empty shell.

Now, the rightful heir of Baicaogu is gone, leaving only a few old men struggling to keep it going. Most of these old men are disheartened and don't have long to live.

It can be said that Baicaogu is already defunct in name only, and it is only a matter of time before it disappears from the martial arts world.

More than a month has passed since Shen Che left Baicao Valley, and he has been in Fengzhou for several days.

He would visit any notorious mountain strongholds or bandits he encountered along the way.

But it taught these thugs, who usually acted recklessly and ate large chunks of meat, what the iron fist of justice was like.

That's like punching several pieces at once, knocking out pieces here and there, making it impossible to piece them back together.

Fengzhou is located in the south and is considered part of the Jiangnan region. However, Fengzhou is separated from the other neighboring prefectures by mountains and rivers, making the journey relatively difficult and thus somewhat isolated.

The summer heat was unbearable. However, for someone like Shen Che, whose skills had reached a certain level and who was impervious to heat and cold, the difference between winter and summer was not that significant.

Once inside, she could clearly sense that the customs here were very different from those in Qingzhou.

Moreover, the local customs are quite open, and the women are much bolder in both their clothing and personality, which is truly an eye-opening experience.

Whether the literary scene in Fengzhou was flourishing or not is unknown, but storytelling was very popular, and Shen Che even bought a few to read out of boredom.

What about talented scholars and beautiful women, the rise of poor scholars, and the story of a noblewoman's illegitimate daughter marrying a poor man and eventually becoming a noblewoman?

It's obviously written by a poor scholar, just to deceive naive young girls and secluded women. According to rumors circulating on the street, quite a few people have actually fallen for it.

Fortunately, that's all there is to it. If it were to evolve further, making those sheltered women feel that they could also achieve great things, then the families in Fengzhou would be in for a lot of trouble.

"Waiter, bring us a superior room, and also bring up your best food and wine."

In Fengzhou Jingcheng, Shen Che found a relatively large inn to stay in.

We'll stay at the inn tonight; we can't go to the brothels anymore. The girls in Fengzhou are just too enthusiastic; my small frame really can't handle it.

Upon entering the room, I looked around. Although it wasn't luxurious, it was definitely clean.

Lying in bed, Shen Che's consciousness once again sank into the system.

As usual, I went to visit Liu Zhan. Several months have passed since I invested in Liu Zhan's company. If we calculate the time flow rate as one to one hundred, Liu Zhan must be in his seventies or eighties by now.

From a young man not yet twenty years old to a sprightly old man, he climbed all the way from a county magistrate in a small county to the position of Grand Tutor.

In all calculations, he was already in a position second only to the emperor, enjoying immense prestige and commanding countless skilled subordinates.

Moreover, Liu Zhan has been practicing martial arts for fifty or sixty years, and his skill level has long reached that of a grandmaster. He looks to be in excellent spirits.

Surrounded by countless people every day, his prestige grew stronger with each passing day, and he lived an incredibly comfortable life.

At this rate, he could easily live another thirty or fifty years.

Those who work in the imperial court have never experienced many bloody battles in their lives, nor do they have many hidden injuries. They might live another thirty or fifty years, which would be considered a short life.

After glancing at Liu Zhan, Shen Che focused his attention elsewhere.

It's been over a month since he left Baicaogu, and he still hasn't found a suitable partner in the system.

Fortunately, he's not in a hurry; he'll take it slow.

"System, begin the search!"

Countless starlight flashed through my mind, and my thoughts were quickly drawn into one of the starlight.

In the blink of an eye, a magnificent city appeared before us. Looking down from the sky, the city below was bustling with people.

With his current search range, he can only cover a small portion of such a city, which is not much smaller than the city where Shi Lichou was located back then.

This time, Shen Che sat up straight and focused his mind, unlike his previous casual demeanor.

Places like this are generally prone to producing geniuses. After all, the population ratio is what it is, and with so many wealthy and powerful families, there are bound to be unpolished gems among them.

Just like the city where Shi Lichou was, several people with excellent aptitude were discovered there. It was a place where a big shot was in charge.

Even though Shi Lichou was known as the invincible Iron Fist and used his iron fists to solidify the positions of the Xu and Shi families, he still couldn't squeeze into the top tier of people.

In places like these, geniuses tend to flock together.

Unlike the previous month, I don't know if it's a problem with this broken system, but the places I searched for were either wastelands or rural areas with hardly any people. How could I expect to find any geniuses there?

His consciousness searched the city continuously, and the next moment, Shen Che's heart stirred, and his consciousness instantly froze.

"This is...four stars? What a talent!"

The sudden surprise filled him with excitement. His thoughts were quickly drawn together, and soon, a boy kneeling in the snow in the courtyard appeared before him.

The boy was about seventeen or eighteen years old, thin and frail, dressed in thin clothes, his small face red from the cold.

Under the cold wind, Shen Che could clearly feel himself shivering, and frostbite was clearly visible on his hands, feet, ears, nose and other parts of his body.

Judging from the snow falling all over the sky, it must be the dead of winter there. Wearing such thin clothes and kneeling on the cold ground, a person would freeze to death in just a few hours.

"Young Master!"

Just as the boy seemed to be losing consciousness in the cold wind, a figure suddenly ran over quietly.

"Young Master, are you alright?"

The old man ran to the boy and quickly took off his cotton coat and draped it over the boy's shoulders.

Feeling the warmth emanating from his body immediately brought the boy's somewhat hazy consciousness back to normal.

Upon realizing he was wearing a cotton-padded coat, the boy immediately took it off and forcibly stuffed it back in.

"Uncle An, I can't wear this. It will bring you trouble."

"Young master, please put this on! You'll freeze to death in this cold weather!"

They tried to force the boy to put the cotton coat back on, but he resolutely refused.

"Uncle An, there aren't many elderly people left in the manor. I can't let anything happen to you."

Kneeling on the ground, the boy's back remained straight, but when he looked at the old man, there was a hint of urgency in his eyes.

"Uncle An, you should leave here quickly. If people find out, they will definitely cause you trouble."

"Don't worry, young master. With all this snow, the master and mistress won't come out, and no one will notice. The snow will cover my footprints soon, so don't worry."

As he spoke, the old man hurriedly took out a leg of lamb wrapped in oiled paper from his pocket, unwrapped the paper, and handed it over.

"Young master, please eat something, or your body won't be able to take it."

"This..." The boy hesitated, looking at the still-warm lamb leg in the old man's hand.

Seemingly understanding the young man's concerns, the old man hurriedly said, "Young master, these are things the master didn't want at the banquet, no one will know about them."

"Young Master, please eat something. You need to be full to keep going."