NOVPUB
Chapter 51: Chapter 51 Children
Li Qian declined the hearty invitation from the Family Head of the Ming Family, switched to a fast horse, and left the West Dock Mine to return to the Divine Sword Sect.
All the way he rode without stopping, pressing on through the night.
In the dead of night, as he passed by a village, he saw many houses burning.
He remembered that when he passed through earlier, the adults were busy with work and the children were playing and frolicking... a serene, pastoral scene.
How could it have come to this in the blink of an eye?
"Was it horse thieves or bandits pillaging and slaughtering the village?"
Li Qian’s brows slightly furrowed.
Although he had heard of such things, he had never seen them with his own eyes.
Horse thieves pillaging wealth may kill, but seldom do they slaughter so indiscriminately... To them, such villages are like crops to be harvested. Cut once, and in a few years’ time, they can be reaped again.
He stopped outside the village for a long time.
Other than the crackling sounds of the fire, there were no other sounds.
Tap-tap-tap...
After some consideration, Li Qian pulled on the horse’s reins and directed the fast horse to slowly walk towards the burning village.
Near each flaming house, there were bodies strewn all over.
Nearly every house was surrounded by them.
The villagers died in various terrible ways, too horrible to witness.
There were adults, children, and the elderly...
"The time of death, most should not have exceeded an hour..."
Li Qian extended his Spiritual Perception and found many traces.
It was too tragic.
The entire village had turned into a land of death.
I wonder what powerful force the village offended to warrant such a ruthless massacre?
He walked around the village.
No survivors.
Probably two to three hundred people died.
The whole village had been slaughtered.
"Ah, without strength, facing such a massacre, one simply has no power to resist."
Li Qian sighed in his heart.
Even though he was now an Innate Martial Artist, which made him much stronger in self-protection compared to these ordinary villagers, if he put himself in their shoes, facing irresistible powers, what could he do?
The only way is to diligently ring the bell and practice, to strengthen my cultivation and power.
Just as he was about to leave, he faintly heard the sound of crying, mingled with the splash of water.
Li Qian went on high alert.
One hand had already reached for the hilt of his treasured sword.
After listening for a while, his figure abruptly moved. He leapt from the horseback and quickly arrived at the edge of a well outside a house that had been burned to collapsed eaves and broken walls.
A headless male corpse lay by the well.
The severed head, with blood flowing from its eyes, was looking up at the sky, lifelessly.
The sobbing came from within the well.
Li Qian stood at the well’s edge.
The well was narrow and deep, and with it being night, it was almost impossible to see clearly inside.
Using his Spiritual Perception, Li Qian could still sense what was inside.
He saw a five or six-year-old child floating in the well water, occasionally slapping the surface with both hands.
The water surface was estimated to be four to five meters from the mouth of the well.
Not to mention a child of this size; even an adult male would struggle to climb out after falling into the well water.
The child seemed to have cried himself to exhaustion, floating on his back in the well water, emitting only faint sobs.
Li Qian was somewhat surprised.
A child so young was able to survive in the well.
It must be that the child happened to maintain a floating position, preserving strength.
However, without rescue, a prolonged period would lead to drowning.
Li Qian surveyed the surroundings with his Spiritual Perception, then his figure moved, and he jumped into the well.
It didn’t take long before he emerged from the well opening, holding the child.
Although he didn’t want to meddle in extra affairs, he couldn’t stand by and watch the child struggle in the well waters, ignoring the plight.
The child had been soaked in the cold well water for a long time, his body chilled, his little face deathly pale.
Li Qian transmitted a breath of True Qi into the child’s body to dispel the cold.
At the same time, he took out a Qi Blood Pill, scraped a bit of the powder, and fed it to the child.
A while later, the condition of the child improved a lot.
Perhaps too exhausted, the child quickly fell into a deep sleep, snoring softly.
"You little one, is it good luck or bad luck?"
Li Qian sighed.
Although the person was saved.
How to settle this child?
It was impossible for him to take care of him.
"It seems I can only take him to Lijian City to find a family to adopt him."
Li Qian calculated in his mind.
Accordingly, Li Qian carried the child in one arm, leaped onto the horseback, pulled on the reins, and rode the fast horse away from the still-burning village.
The next morning.
Li Qian, who had been running non-stop, realized the child in his arms had woken up.
He was looking at Li Qian with his eyes open.
Very quiet.
Li Qian looked down and felt that something was off.
The child’s gaze seemed quiet, a bit dazed.
"Little guy, what’s your name?"
Li Qian slowed down and asked the child in his arms.
The child just looked at him and did not speak, a face full of confusion.
Could he have been frightened stupid?
Li Qian shook his head, then took out a Qi Blood Pill, scraped off a little powder to feed the child, swallowed the rest of the Qi Blood Pill himself, and then continued on his way.
It wasn’t until the afternoon Shenshi that he finally rushed to Lijian City.
"This child, you can tell he’s a bit silly at a glance, no one will adopt him."
"If I were to adopt, I’d definitely pick a smarter one, preferably with good Root Bone talent... what’s the use of adopting this silly child?"
"This child looks quite good, it’s just that he looks so foolish, what a pity."
.....
Li Qian went through several households in Lijian City via an agency, but after a lot of discussions and judgments, they all shook their heads, unwilling to adopt.
Li Qian had no choice but to take the child back to the Divine Sword Sect with him.
He planned to come back to Lijian City tomorrow, and if really no one would adopt the child, he would just have to rent a house and hire a maid to take care of the child.
It wouldn’t cost too much, anyway.
When Li Qian returned to the Divine Sword Sect, the Inner Sect Disciple guarding the mountain gate only registered them.
Inner Sect Disciples above the Innate level, or elders, have the qualifications to take in disciples outside and bring them back to the Divine Sword Sect, to be recorded in the register as Official Disciples.
Of course, there are quotas for this.
The main reason is to prevent the number of Official Disciples from flooding and elder disciples from abusing their power, seeking private benefits for their families and descendants.
As an Innate level Inner Sect Disciple, Li Qian already had the qualifications to take disciples.
He did not go to the Task Hall to hand in his task but went straight back to the Chen Bell Platform.
"You sit here."
Li Qian placed the child in the Bell Platform’s room.
The child looked at Li Qian blankly, very quietly.
Li Qian went up to the Bell Platform and began to calculate the time, getting the stopped hourglass to start working again.
After busying himself, Li Qian also estimated the approximate time.
As for the precision... that could only wait until the Gengluo Room struck the watch, or if there is sunshine the next day, to conduct a precise test.
After he was done, Li Qian returned to the Bell Platform room, and the child was still sitting quietly, not moving at all.
Definitely a fool.
Li Qian couldn’t help but shake his head.
He would just send the child to Lijian City tomorrow and find someone to take care of him.
When Youshi came, after Li Qian struck the bell, he began to cultivate.
After practicing the Heartless Sword Technique through a Grand Circulation, Li Qian felt completely relaxed.
He had not cultivated for three days while outside previously, which was very uncomfortable.
After all, missing a day of practice meant a day’s delay in the progress of one’s cultivation realm.
Not to mention that the ritual refinement of the Chen Bell would also be delayed.
It was getting dark.
Li Qian hurried back to the Bell Platform room, preparing dinner.
The child was still the same.
He did not move at all.
This kind of quiet was actually quite good; at least he didn’t need to be looked after.
After the meal was ready, a series of footsteps approached, and Master Zhou Buping walked into the Bell Platform room with his hands behind his back.
"Eh, who is this child?"
Zhou Buping was quite surprised to see the sitting child.
When the child saw the stranger, his face showed a scared expression, and he quickly hid behind Li Qian, who had just come out from the kitchen, trembling all over.
"Little guy, don’t be afraid."
Li Qian wasn’t surprised, the child always acted like this when encountering strangers, apparently having suffered a severe fright.
As for not being afraid of him, Li Qian guessed it might have something to do with him rescuing the child from the well.
Li Qian pulled the child over to sit at the dining table, after calming him down, he said to his master, "Master, I saved him on the way back."
Then he briefly explained what had happened.
"Hmm, it’s not just fright with this child; there seems to be a problem with his brain itself. Keeping him with you is not convenient, just find someone to take care of him."
Zhou Buping nodded and said.
During the meal, the child seemed a bit foolish but sat properly, picking up his chopsticks and wolfing down the food.
It was clear that he was really hungry.
After the meal, Li Qian told the child to sit on the side.
The child was very obedient, immediately went over and sat down properly, but his expression was wooden, his gaze unfocused, and no spiritedness.
"Master, during this task, I found this object inside the body of an Earth Dragon Exotic Insect."
While his master was still there, Li Qian took out the black stone from his bag.
"What is this?"
Upon seeing the black stone, Master Zhou Buping was taken aback for a moment, and his expression suddenly became serious.
...
