I Seriously Didn't Want to Be the Martial Alliance Leader

Zuo Xinglie, that sly old fox, was a deep schemer. Even on his deathbed, he couldn’t resist putting on an act, turning a past plot into a present favor.

Unfortunately, while cunning was important in the Jianghu, what mattered most was strength.

If he’d had enough strength back then, he wouldn’t have been annihilated by the Profound Whale Gang and the Lu Family of Celestial Water City.

To be precise, if his strength had been sufficient, the Lu Family would have chosen to cooperate with him instead.

Seeing Zuo Xinglie speechless, Chen Yuan smiled. "Elder Zuo, even though you gave me that Cultivation Technique back then to draw the Profound Whale Gang’s attention, I still acknowledge the favor."

Back then, Chen Yuan had put on an act for Zuo Xinglie, and Zuo Xinglie had done the same for him. It was a case of a sly old fox versus a sly young one; neither could blame the other.

"So rest assured, Elder Zuo. I will definitely get your granddaughter out of here alive."

Zuo Xinglie had just breathed a sigh of relief when Chen Yuan’s tone shifted. "But is just getting her out of here alive enough?

Elder Zuo, having lived in seclusion in You Province all these years, you should know better than anyone how hard this world is, how treacherous the Jianghu can be.

If you’re a commoner at the bottom, you’ll be bullied by everyone, powerless to fight back.

Even if you build a foundation and want to dominate the Jiulong River, the Lu Family of Celestial Water City can send a single person over and shatter everything you’ve built.

I can get your granddaughter out, but how can she live safely in this world?"

"What do you want, Lord Chen?"

Zuo Xinglie gave a bitter smile. "I’m just a decrepit old man on the verge of death. You didn’t go to all this trouble to find me just to repay a favor, did you, Lord Chen?"

Chen Yuan’s voice was deep and resonant. "Elder Zuo, it has come to this, and you’re still not willing to be frank? You should know what I want.

Besides the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill, is there anything else on you worth me going to such lengths to find?"

Zuo Xinglie trembled but said nothing.

He had actually guessed it long ago.

’Aside from this obscure and difficult Ancient Technique that I can’t even cultivate myself, what else do I have that’s worth him going to all this trouble?’

Taking a deep breath, Zuo Xinglie said in a low voice, "I can give you the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill, but what guarantee can you offer for my granddaughter’s safety?

As you said yourself, even with a foundation, one cannot escape the treacherous conflicts of the Jianghu."

"Elder Zuo, you’ve been in seclusion for so long. Have you been keeping up with news from the Jianghu?"

Zuo Xinglie smiled bitterly. "Once you’re in the Jianghu, you’re in it for life. It’s impossible to truly leave, especially for someone in my situation. Of course I’ve been secretly keeping an eye on the news, particularly from Lan Province."

Chen Yuan pointed to himself and said flatly, "I am currently in the Zhenwu Hall. My name is Chen Jiutian. You should have heard of this name, Elder Zuo."

Zuo Xinglie’s expression changed instantly as he stared at Chen Yuan in shock.

You Province bordered Ning Province, so of course he had heard that name.

𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

This was the most outstanding young talent to emerge from the Land of Youning in recent years, someone guaranteed to enter the top ten of the Hidden Dragon Rankings in the future.

Now, at such a young age, he was already in command of the White Tiger Hall, one of the Four Martial Halls of Zhenwu. He was both powerful and highly influential.

"With my achievements and my status, it should be enough to protect your granddaughter, don’t you think? To put it another way, if even I can’t protect her, the only other option would be to make her a Princess."

Zuo Xinglie took a deep breath and said gravely, "Then how can I trust you to keep your promise?

After all, once I give you the Cultivation Technique and I’m dead, no one will know how you treat my granddaughter."

Chen Yuan shook his head. "You can only choose to trust me. I have no way of making a guarantee.

It’s up to you, Elder Zuo. Are you going to take this Cultivation Technique with you to the Underworld, or are you going to choose to believe me?"

A bitter smile touched Zuo Xinglie’s lips.

He had no choice but to trust Chen Yuan.

"Lord Chen, please come closer."

Chen Yuan glanced back at the others. They were all keeping their distance, not daring to come any closer.

He moved close to Zuo Xinglie, who began to recite the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill in a low voice.

Zuo Xinglie had already destroyed the original text of the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill. Keeping such a Secret Technique on him was, in fact, a liability.

Zuo Xinglie spoke very slowly and in extreme detail. Fearing Chen Yuan might misremember some homophones, he took special care to clarify them.

At Chen Yuan’s current Realm, he had what was essentially a photographic memory. His recall was so powerful that he memorized everything after hearing Zuo Xinglie recite it just once.

It took a full hour for Zuo Xinglie to finish reciting the complete Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill.

By the time he was done, Chen Yuan’s head was throbbing. As he listened, he had been subconsciously trying to deduce the workings of the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill.

This Cultivation Technique contained heavenly secrets; it was obscure and difficult to comprehend. It was simply not something that could be successfully cultivated in a short amount of time.

When Zuo Xinglie first obtained this technique, he couldn’t even grasp the basics.

In hindsight, his best option would have been to give the technique to the Lu Family of Celestial Water City in exchange for a great merit.

With the protection of the Lu Family, he could have become the unrivaled hegemon of the Jiulong River.

Unfortunately, he was too greedy. He couldn’t bear to part with the Ancient Technique, and as a result, it rotted in his hands until he was forced to give it up on his deathbed.

Zuo Xinglie gripped Chen Yuan’s hand tightly, a pleading look in his eyes. "Lord Chen, she is my only bloodline left in this world. I no longer ask for her to be rich or powerful, I only ask that she can live in peace and safety."

With that, Zuo Xinglie stroked his granddaughter’s head and gave a loving smile. "Little one, from now on, you’ll follow this big brother. You must be good, understand?"

"Grandpa, don’t go!"

Tears immediately streamed down the little girl’s face as she sobbed uncontrollably.

Having drifted through the Jianghu with Zuo Xinglie since she was a child, she was very perceptive for her age.

Hearing Zuo Xinglie’s words, she instantly knew her grandpa was leaving her.

"Everyone has to go eventually. Your grandpa has lived long enough."

Zuo Xinglie grinned, and more blood trickled from his mouth.

"I, Zuo Xinglie, came from humble beginnings. I was once nothing more than a lowly fisherman on the Jiulong River, constantly bullied by despotic fishing bosses and officials.

By a stroke of luck, I found a broken blade. I started my rise by killing, rampaged across the Jiulong River, and united the Thirty-Six Waterway Alliance. In those days, who on the Jiulong River didn’t know my name?

Forty years of ruling like a lord—even if it was all just a dream, what a glorious one it was!

A humble fisherman like me should have died unknown at the bottom of the river, but instead, I made a name for myself on the Jiulong River. This life has been worth living!"

Zuo Xinglie suddenly slammed his hand onto the wound over his heart and pressed down hard!

The bone shard pierced his heart completely, and a great gush of blood flowed from his mouth.

"Lord... Lord Chen, I named my granddaughter Zuo Qianlan. But all these years, she’s been hiding with me and never dared to use that name. I only hope that from now on, under your care, she can use her own name and live with dignity!"

As his voice faded, Zuo Xinglie’s breath ceased. The little girl, Zuo Qianlan, threw herself onto her grandfather’s body, crying her heart out.

Chen Yuan let out a soft sigh.

From Chen Yuan’s current perspective, Zuo Xinglie’s level wasn’t actually that high. He was just a pirate chieftain who dominated a single river.

To be blunt, the prestige of his Thirty-Six Waterway Alliance wasn’t even as formidable as Duan Hengshan’s Twelve Sword Halls of Yandang Mountain.

However, Zuo Xinglie had only started practicing martial arts as an adult. His mentality and methods were not weak, and it was truly remarkable that he had made it this far. He was definitely a local hegemon.

Even in death, he didn’t want to just waste away, clinging to life. Instead, while he still had the strength, he chose to be the master of his own fate.

Just then, seeing Zuo Qianlan crying over Zuo Xinglie’s body, Chen Yuan suddenly froze.

He seemed to have heard that name before.

’In the future, when the world descends into chaos and rebellions rise in every direction, there will be a Rebel Army in Lan Province called the Cangming Army. Its leader is a woman, Zuo Qianlan, known by the epithet ’Ming Water Guanyin.’

’While other Rebel Armies first clashed with the Court, the Cangming Army first fought a fierce battle with the Lu Family of Celestial Water City. They nearly crippled the Lu Family, forcing them to use a Divine Artifact Demon Soldier to barely preserve their legacy, and were even driven out of Lan Province.’

Chen Yuan looked at the crying little girl. ’Could she be the future ’Ming Water Guanyin,’ Zuo Qianlan?’

’The more I think about it, the more likely it seems.’

On the surface, the destruction of the Thirty-Six Waterway Alliance was the work of the Profound Whale Gang, but in reality, it was the intervention of the Lu Family of Celestial Water City that led to its downfall.

Therefore, the future Zuo Qianlan must also harbor a deep hatred for the Lu Family, so it would be natural for her to seek revenge against them.

Most importantly, this little girl definitely had the potential to become a major figure in the future, because she also knew the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill.

Chen Yuan had guessed long ago that Zuo Xinglie was definitely not content to live in seclusion forever.

Although he couldn’t cultivate the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill himself, there was still hope for his granddaughter.

So Zuo Xinglie must have forced Zuo Qianlan to memorize the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill from a very young age, intending for her to begin cultivating it once she started her Martial Dao training.

But even though Chen Yuan knew this, he had never mentioned it, nor had he ever considered trying to coax the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill from Zuo Qianlan after Zuo Xinglie’s death.

Although Chen Yuan didn’t consider himself a good person, he wasn’t capable of deceiving a little girl.

It was like the boss of the Fifth Prison. Even though he was a villain whose crimes were innumerable, he was, at the very least, still a human being.

Chen Yuan patted Zuo Qianlan’s small head. "Come with me for now. We’ll leave your grandfather’s body here. When I get the chance, I will bring it back to the Jiulong River for burial."

Though Zuo Qianlan was young, perhaps because she had wandered the world with her grandfather since she was little, she seemed very sensible.

Although reluctant to leave, she just nodded her little head and went with Chen Yuan.

Afterward, Chen Yuan took Zuo Qianlan and returned to the first prison during the next mealtime.

He could have initiated his plan from the other prisons, but the first was closest to the exit, making it more convenient.

Five days had passed in the outside world. Logically, Mr. Bei and the others should be in position by now.

However, to be on the safe side, Chen Yuan decided to wait another two days before making his move.

But on the second day, an unexpected person was thrown into the first prison: Elder Qi, the very man who had interrogated Chen Yuan and tried to force them to write down their Cultivation Techniques.