Chapter 298: Touring the States (Part 1)

"Quickly, go!" Jing Ke, gravely injured, urged Da Tiezhang to leave as Daniel Davis approached the mechanical Zhuque.

"We'll go together," Da Tiezhang replied, trying to hoist Jing Ke onto his back while glancing nervously at the slowly descending mechanical Zhuque. The situation was dire, and all he could think of was getting Jing Ke to safety. As for the other Mohist disciples aboard the Zhuque and Baihu, they were beyond his help.

"If you take me, no one will escape. You must leave and report what happened here to the Juzi and His Highness the Crown Prince. This is of utmost importance," Jing Ke insisted, trying to push Da Tiezhang away. However, in his weakened state, he barely had the strength to move.

Daniel's earlier strike had not only severed Jing Ke's right arm but had also left him severely injured. With the additional blood loss, Jing Ke was now exceptionally weak.

"But..." Da Tiezhang hesitated, seeing the stern look in Jing Ke's eyes. He knew Jing Ke's words were true, but leaving him behind went against the principles of the Mohist school, and he couldn't bring himself to abandon his comrade.

Suddenly, a thud echoed as a body landed near them. Both men turned to see the young pilot of the mechanical Zhuque, having been thrown to the ground, with Daniel standing not far behind.

"Afa, are you alright?" Da Tiezhang called out anxiously.

"Commander Jing, I'm sorry," Afa, the pilot, replied, his face filled with shame. As a Mohist disciple, he felt utterly humiliated to have been subdued by the enemy.

"It's alright. I didn't expect we'd all be heading down the same road together. At least we'll have each other for company," Jing Ke said, looking at Daniel, who was just a short distance away. Knowing they couldn't escape, Da Tiezhang seemed to let go of his earlier hesitation and, with a hint of resignation, moved in front of Jing Ke and Afa, shielding them.

"You don't seem afraid of death," Daniel remarked, now holding only his white sword, the black sword having been sheathed. He suddenly appeared right in front of Da Tiezhang, his white sword pressed against Da Tiezhang's neck.

Despite the cold blade at his throat, Da Tiezhang didn't even blink. His eyes remained calm as he stared at Daniel, as if the deadly weapon wasn't there at all.

"Da Tiezhang, when we meet again on the other side, let's share a drink," Jing Ke, supported by Afa, suddenly said.

"That's a promise. Don't forget."

"The Mohist school truly lives up to its reputation," Daniel remarked. Then, to everyone's surprise, he sheathed his white sword and turned away. The abrupt change left Da Tiezhang, Jing Ke, and Afa dumbfounded.

"What do you mean by this?" Da Tiezhang shouted at Daniel's retreating figure.

"What do you mean, what do I mean?" Daniel stopped, turned, and smiled at Da Tiezhang.

"You're not going to kill us?"

"Kill you? If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it already. In fact, I have a lot of respect for the Mohist school. Whether out of respect for the Mohists or for Gai Nie, I won't kill Jing Ke. And if I'm not killing Jing Ke, there's no need to kill you either. But this is a one-time deal. Next time we meet as enemies, I won't hold back."

With that, Daniel ignored them and walked towards the mechanical Zhuque. Despite its size and weight, it was no problem for Daniel. He effortlessly lifted it with one hand and then headed towards the collapsed mechanical Baihu.

"I was wondering why it wasn't moving. Turns out they passed out," Daniel said as he tossed out the two unconscious Mohist disciples who had been piloting the Baihu. The impact of the Baihu's fall had knocked them out cold.

Piloting mechanical beasts wasn't easy; it was far more challenging than driving a horse-drawn carriage. If driving a carriage was akin to operating a car in the modern world, then piloting a mechanical beast was like flying an airplane.

In the Mohist school, training to pilot a mechanical beast required extensive practice. After all, it was far more complex than driving a modern car.

When Tianming, Shaoyu, and Gao Yue piloted the mechanical Baihu and managed to defeat the mechanical serpent piloted by Gongshu Qiu, it was more a matter of luck, though their innate talent also played a role.

Though Tianming often appeared foolish, he was actually incredibly smart, with exceptional talent in both martial arts and mechanical arts. He mastered the Mohist technique in just three days and then repaired the unparalleled mechanism on his own, a level of skill already considered very high within the Mohist school.

His martial arts talent was equally impressive. After seeing the "Snow After Clear Skies" technique from Xiaoyaozi just once, he was able to imitate it nearly perfectly. Truly, he was the son of Jing Ke.

"That belongs to our Mohist school," Da Tiezhang protested as Daniel set the Zhuque down beside the Baihu.

"I know. But so what? These are my spoils of war now. You didn't think attacking me would come without a price, did you? Farewell." Daniel waved cheerfully at Da Tiezhang and Jing Ke as he spoke.

Soon, green leaves began to appear around Daniel, swirling through the air. More and more leaves filled the space, eventually covering both the Baihu and the Zhuque.

As the number of leaves grew, Da Tiezhang and Jing Ke lost sight of Daniel, as well as the two mechanical beasts.

A moment later, as the leaves gradually dispersed and disappeared, Daniel and the mechanical beasts were gone.

"How is this possible?" Da Tiezhang exclaimed, using his swift footwork to search the area where Daniel had been, meticulously examining every trace.

As a master thief, Da Tiezhang was exceptionally skilled in observation, rivaling the likes of Moya. How else could he steal without getting caught?

"Daoist Dream Butterfly Escape," Jing Ke muttered softly.

"Is the Daoist school really that extraordinary?" Da Tiezhang asked, returning to Jing Ke's side.

"I don't know... ugh..." Jing Ke began to reply, but suddenly he coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed. Fortunately, Da Tiezhang caught him before he hit the ground.

"We must get you treated immediately. I'll go ahead." After quickly checking Jing Ke's condition, Da Tiezhang hoisted him onto his back and nodded to Afa before swiftly leaving the area.

"Such good fortune—I've got it!" Daniel remarked to himself as he walked along the official road to Yan State, tossing two silk pouches in his hands. These pouches, of course, were the remarkably convenient Large Wrapping Cloths, which now held the mechanical Baihu and Zhuque.

By using the Yin-Yang technique of Many Leaf Flowers as a cover, Daniel had distracted Da Tiezhang and Jing Ke, allowing him to use this special ability and then leave through a secret door.

"Next up is the mechanical Qinglong, and then the Soldier Demon God, and Xiao Li, the tears of the Nine Heavens Goddess. But where is the real Nine Heavens Goddess?" 

The mechanical Qinglong was located in the Mohist Mechanism City. Once he found the city, he would find the Qinglong as well. But the Soldier Demon God would be much harder to locate—even though Daniel knew it was in Loulan, he didn't know where Loulan was.

"Did we miss him?" Shortly after Daniel and Da Tiezhang left, several figures clad in Daoist robes appeared at the scene of the battle. Seeing the carnage, Daoist Ren Zong's leader, Xiaoyaozi, frowned deeply.

"Such ruthless means... such high-level martial arts," Xiaoyaozi muttered after inspecting the bodies.

"Master, there are no survivors," one of the Ren Zong disciples reported.

"I see. Bury them here." Leaving so many corpses unburied would cause big problems. Daniel could leave without a care, knowing someone would come to bury the bodies.

"You, are you a Mohist disciple?" Xiaoyaozi asked, turning to Afa, who had lingered behind.

"Yes," Afa replied respectfully.

"What exactly happened?"

"I was with Commander Jing..." Afa began to recount what he knew, though he had missed much of the battle.

"Is anyone there? Help! Master Nian, help!" Outside a remote manor on the outskirts of Jicheng, the capital of Yan State, Da Tiezhang shouted urgently as he dismounted from the mechanical Zhuque.

"Da Tiezhang, what's all this commotion about?" An elderly man with white hair and a mechanical hand holding a small model of the Zhuque walked out of the house, speaking as he approached. This old man was none other than the Mohist master craftsman, Ban Dashi.

"Commander Jing is seriously injured, Master Nian!" Da Tiezhang ignored Ban Dashi and continued to shout for help.

"What happened? Quickly, bring him inside!" Ban Dashi, seeing Jing Ke's condition, panicked and began shouting orders as well.

"Stop shouting, I heard you!" Soon, a young woman with short black hair emerged from a nearby room. Seeing Jing Ke, she immediately stepped forward to check his pulse. With a flick of her right hand, several silver needles pierced key acupuncture points on Jing Ke's body.

"R

ong'er, bring my medical kit. The rest of you, get out and make sure no one disturbs me. Otherwise, prepare to collect his corpse."

"Yes," Da Tiezhang and Ban Dashi responded, quickly leaving the room. A moment later, a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl with black hair rushed in, carrying a wooden box.

The young woman and the girl were Nian Duan, a master of the Medical School, and Duanmu Rong, later known as the "Medical Immortal" in "Qin's Time."

Nian Duan was a grandmaster of the Medical School, her medical skills on par with the legendary Bian Que.

"Da Tiezhang, what happened? How did Jing Ke get so badly injured?"

"Old man Ban, I'll explain after I report to the Juzi and the Crown Prince." With that, Da Tiezhang swiftly boarded the mechanical Zhuque and flew off in another direction.

Though Nian Duan was closely aligned with the Mohist school, she was not part of it, so the Juzi and Yan Dan were not in this location.

Yan State, Jicheng.

Just as he had in Handan, Daniel stood quietly at the gates of Jicheng for a moment. After the recent battle, his reputation as the Grandmaster of Qin had spread far and wide. Though it was a reputation of infamy, it had at least deterred any further assassination attempts along his journey. Sometimes, a bad reputation could be very useful.

Among the Seven Warring States, Yan State had the longest history, having existed since the founding of the Zhou dynasty. It was one of the first states to be enfeoffed, and among the nearly eight hundred feudal states at the time, Yan was one of the strongest.

During the early Zhou dynasty, feudal lords were primarily members of the royal family or key founding figures. Of the initial eight hundred or so feudal lords, nearly four or five hundred were members of the Ji royal family, with the rest being significant ministers.

Apart from a few exceptions, most of the key ministers didn't receive the best lands; those went to the royal family. Yet today, only the Yan State remained of the Ji family's original fiefs, and Yan was also the only one of the Seven Warring States that hadn't undergone significant upheaval.

Even the weakest of the Seven States, Han, had attempted to reform and grow stronger. But Yan? It had remained largely unchanged.

Yan had once been very proud, having existed since the dawn of the Zhou dynasty. Unlike the other six states, whose ancestors had more humble beginnings—Qin's ancestor, for example, was a horse breeder who was ennobled after being rewarded by the Zhou king.

It just goes to show that it's not about what job you have, but who you work for. Zhao Gao, the head of the carriage bureau, also rose to power because he was good at driving carriages for Ying Zheng.

As for everything else, that was secondary.

Though Daniel despised the nobility, it didn't mean he hated all nobles. He loathed those who were greedy and corrupt. In fact, the original nobility were worthy of respect; they truly earned their success through hard work and bravery.

Most of today's nobles were no longer true nobles. True nobility balanced power with responsibility, but now the nobility focused only on power, abandoning their responsibilities.

Back in the early Zhou dynasty, when the king enfeoffed Qin's ancestor, the land was just a desolate, undeveloped frontier. The king couldn't give Qin's ancestor the land of other feudal lords; he had to carve out a piece beyond the borders and tell him, "This is your fief. What you make of it is up to you."

The feudal system wasn't as bad as some might think. In the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, it was the most suitable system. Many feudal lords, like Qin, were appointed by the king, but had to conquer and develop their own lands. Much of central China was settled this way.

Now, the Six States of Shandong call Qin a "nation of tigers and wolves," but several hundred years ago, Chu was labeled a "southern barbarian." And now Chu has passed that label onto the Baiyue tribes.

The feudal system had its advantages. Even if the land was barren or inhabited by native tribes, someone would be eager to claim it. But under a county system, getting people to work so hard would be much more difficult.

Times have changed. The feudal system was perfect for the founding generation, but after several generations, it became less effective.

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