The 36th time two years later (seeking recommendation votes)

  When Ximen Qing broke through to the upper rank of Wu Shi, Zhang Tian Shi quietly left. When Ximen Qing realized it later, he couldn't find his trace anymore. Although feeling sad in his heart, Ximen Qing's determination to speed up his cultivation and break through to the realm of Grand Master as soon as possible became even firmer! As long as he breaks through the realm of Grand Master, Ximen Qing can leave Qinghe County and start his own real adventure!

  In the past two years, although Ximen Qing followed Zhang Tian Shi to travel and gain experience, the places they visited were all near Qinghe County and never left Dongping Prefecture. As for the outside world, Ximen Qing still yearned for it greatly. In this era, although it was a turbulent time, heroes emerged in response to the times, and there were countless heroes and good men here. Ximen Qing respected and admired these heroes, so he naturally hoped to get to know them. Moreover, with his ambition to create a peaceful world and provide a happy life for the people, Ximen Qing even more eagerly wanted to meet those heroes! Those heroic outlaws were all forced by society to take the path of rebellion against the court; if they had their help, how could Ximen Qing's great cause not succeed?

  The people of Qinghe County are relatively better off, because although the Ximen family is the largest landlord, they do not oppress the people, but rather help them. Additionally, Sun Hou has some humanity and does not excessively exploit the people, so the people can live a relatively stable life. However, what about other places? Corrupt officials and merchants collude to oppress the people, bandits roam freely robbing the people, and unscrupulous swindlers cheat the people. This situation leads to people starving to death on the streets and scavenging in the wilderness! If you haven't seen it, you will never dare believe that such a miserable state exists. Don't think that the prosperity of the imperial capital Dongjing represents the entire Song Dynasty; in some poor mountain villages and counties, countless people have starved to death.

  The emperor indulges in drunken revelry and dies in his dreams, the high-ranking officials are wealthy and noble with overflowing riches, the landlords are carefree and self-satisfied, but what about the common people? What about the poor and suffering common people?

  Ximen Qing considers himself not a savior, but he has a grateful heart. In his past life, he was taken care of by others and could live to become a soldier and a hero who protected his family and country. Now in this life, Ximen Qing cannot tolerate the corrupt government oppressing the people! What's more, if he doesn't take action, after a few years, the Liao army will invade, and the consequences will be even more tragic! At that time, many more civilians will die, and even he and his parents will have no peace. Ximen Qing cannot tolerate the people being oppressed, nor can he tolerate his parents being harmed, let alone being humiliated by foreign enemies!

  Ximen Qing's past experience as a soldier has made him a man who would rather die than betray China, so for the sake of China's safety and its history, he cannot just stand by and watch as foreign enemies invade!

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  Time flies like a song, singing one tune, and suddenly I don't know what year it is tonight. Dazed and confused, two years have passed, as light as a cloud and gentle as the wind, making people unaware.

  In the Ximen residence, Ximen Chui Xue and Zhang Shi were standing hand in hand in the garden, smiling as they looked at the young man wielding a spear like the wind amidst the flowers.

  Two years have passed, and Ximen Chui's and Zhang's faces are even more withered, the wrinkles on their faces are even more numerous, and their bodies are even more hunched. Time is indeed merciless to people, ravaging life. But looking at Ximen Qing, it is a different story altogether.

  At this time, Ximen Qing was already fourteen years old. Although he wasn't very old, his height was over 1.8 meters, and his whole body was robust and lean, a perfect specimen of a fine young man. His previously immature face had matured even more, becoming even more handsome.

  For the past two years, Ximen Qing has not gone out and has been cultivating at home. His efforts have paid off, and his cultivation has reached the peak of the lower rank of the Great Martial Artist, just one step away from reaching the middle rank! The higher you go on the path of cultivation, the more difficult it becomes. To achieve such success in two years is truly remarkable, a genius among geniuses. Fang Tianhua's spear skills have also reached the peak of the small accomplishment realm. If Ximen Qing can obtain the Heaven-Defying Dragon-Tiger Mountain's Heaven-Shaking Halberd, he will be able to break through to the Great Accomplishment Realm in one go! Unfortunately, without obtaining the Heaven-Shaking Halberd, no matter how hard Ximen Qing tries, he cannot break through to the Great Accomplishment Realm. The way of martial arts is such that once you enter the Great Accomplishment Realm, you need to let your weapon develop its own emotions and feelings. It's like Xu Zhanfeng's Golden Spear, which has a proud and aloof demeanor. This may sound mysterious, but in simple terms, it means finding a weapon that suits you perfectly! The war halberd in Ximen Qing's hand is not bad, but it's not his cup of tea, and he won't be able to use it for the rest of his life. His true match is the Heaven-Shaking Halberd on Dragon-Tiger Mountain! Without obtaining the Heaven-Shaking Halberd, Ximen Qing will never be able to enter the Great Accomplishment Realm!

  However, even if it's just a small achievement, Ximen Qing dares to claim that he can compete with the initial level of the Great Achievement Realm! If Ximen Qing were to compete with Xu Zhanfeng now, it would be really hard to say who is stronger or weaker. Even if he couldn't win, he absolutely wouldn't lose too miserably. Moreover, Ximen Qing's Featherless Arrow has made some progress, and he can now throw stones for 70 meters and even shatter them! The power of this stone-throwing technique is enough to make a lower-level martial artist drink a pot, and if it's an ambush, even mid-to-high-level martial artists would be injured.

  Since Ximen Qing arrived at the border of Dawu, he had been thinking about going out for a trip. But how could Ximen Chui Xue bear to let him go alone? Now that the situation in the Song Dynasty was turbulent and it was even more unsafe outside, although his son's martial arts were strong, Ximen Chui Xue still worried about his safety. So he kept delaying, until now Ximen Qing had not left Qinghe County. Fortunately, after Ximen Qing's persuasion, Ximen Chui Xue had agreed to let him go out for a trip three days later.

  Three days later, he will be able to leave Qinghe County and truly travel the world. Ximen Qing's heart is secretly excited.

  In the garden, Ximen Qing finished his "Overlord War God Halberd Method" and ended with a long sigh, exhaling a mouthful of turbid air. Carrying the Fang Tianhua halberd, he arrived in front of Ximen Chui Xue and Zhang Shi, saying: "Dad, mom, why are you standing here? It's tiring! Besides, what's so good about watching me practice martial arts?"

  Ximen Chuiyun glared at Ximen Qing and said, "You stinky little brat, all you know is how to wield a sword and shoot arrows, but you don't even bother to accompany your mother. In a few days, you'll be leaving, what an unfilial thing to do!"

  "Never mind what your father says," said Zhang with a smile, "he just wants to take another look at you, that's why he's standing here with me."

  Ximen Qing smiled and came to the front of Ximen Qing and Zhang Shi, saying: "Dad, mom, you can rest assured, I went out just to take a look at the outside world. You don't want me to stay at home all day, do you?"

  "Ha! As a matter of fact, I was thinking of keeping you at home until you get married!"

  Ximen Qing said: "Old man, you must promise me, let me go, and never regret it!"

  Ximen Chui Xue glared at Ximen Qing and said, "You stinky little brat, get out of here quickly! I've wasted my time raising you! Hmph! And don't forget, in a year you'll be 15, then you have to come back to me. After that, go to your Uncle Xu's house and Uncle Zhang's house to ask for their daughters' hands in marriage. If you dare to forget to come back, then don't bother coming home again!"

  Ximen Qing nodded and said: "Don't worry, Father, I know, I will definitely not forget!"

  After finishing speaking, Ximen Qing inserted the Fang Tianhua halberd into the nearby weapon rack, then picked up his clothes and said: "Dad, mom, I'm going to take a bath. You two should go back and rest well too!"

  PS: The errors that appeared earlier, such as "Hu Zai" and "Poor Monk", have been corrected! I apologize for the inconvenience! Also, thank you to several alert readers who pointed them out!

  By the way, I'd like to ask for your support and collection~~~