Time Travel: The Survival of Li Zhi

Chapter 114 Another Copper Coin

Early the next morning, the sleepy Li Zhi was awakened by Master Liu.

"So early, Master."

Li Zhi rubbed his eyes and yawned.

Immortal Master Liu looked much better than yesterday. He said, "Aren't you anxious to find that water dragon?"

"There's no need to do it so early..." Li Zhi muttered softly.

Li Zhi called the waiter to get a basin of water, washed up, and then followed Master Liu to eat something.

After eating something roughly, the two of them began their tiring journey again.

On the way, Li Zhi remembered what the store owner said last night, so he asked Master Liu about the matter of Chao Feng.

Immortal Master Liu paused after hearing this. Then he slowly said, "Do you know how many countries there are in this world, including Yongguo?"

Li Zhi didn't know why Master Liu asked this question, but he had never been out of Yongguo, so how could he know these things? He answered truthfully: "Disciple doesn't know."

"There are hundreds of them, and thousands of them. But do you know how many countries are actually recognized?"

Master Liu asked again.

"Recognized?"

But Master Liu's question made Li Zhi frown. He didn't understand what it meant to be recognized. Could it be that a country that was not recognized was not considered a country?

Li Zhi shook his head again.

Immortal Master Liu continued, "Among hundreds of countries, large and small, only eighteen can be recognized!"

Li Zhi looked at Master Liu and asked the question in his mind: "Only eighteen countries can be recognized? Who recognized it?"

"Of course it is the approval of the suzerain state. Only with the approval of the suzerain state can we be qualified to pay tribute and worship the emperor."

Immortal Master Liu's words shocked Li Zhi again. Li Zhi said in disbelief, "So Chu and Yong fought to the death just to gain the qualification to pay homage to others?"

No wonder Li Zhi was shocked. He had heard of two countries fighting for money and materials, two countries fighting for breath, and even two countries fighting for a woman.

Li Zhi had never heard of anyone fighting a war just for the qualification to kneel down and pay tribute to others.

Immortal Master Liu could hear the disbelief in Li Zhi's words. He smiled faintly and said, "Of course. Only when a country is canonized and recognized by the sovereign country can it be considered orthodox."

"Then... the sovereign country is..."

Li Zhi didn't know what the benefits of the so-called orthodoxy were that could cause these countries to fight each other to death, but he was rather curious about what kind of country this suzerain state was that had such ruling power and majesty.

Immortal Master Liu looked in one direction and said softly, "The suzerain state... is... the Great Wei!"

"Da Wei?"

Li Zhi repeated in a low voice.

Immortal Master Liu looked at Li Zhi and said, "The Great Wei has controlled this world for three thousand years with its internal Confucianism and external military power..."

hiss!

Li Zhi took a deep breath. Looking back at the world before Li Zhi traveled through time, no country could dominate the world for three thousand years.

"Why has the Wei Dynasty been able to control the world for so long..."

Li Zhi couldn't help but murmur.

Immortal Master Liu smiled and said, "It's nothing special. Heaven and earth approve of it!"

"Recognized by heaven and earth?"

Li Zhi then said, "So, other countries are fighting to the death in order to gain the approval of heaven and earth?"

"That's right! Only when a country is recognized by heaven and earth and is ordained by heaven, can it be considered a real country, and its citizens... can be considered human beings..."

Master Liu rode forward on his horse, while Li Zhi behind him had a look of confusion in his eyes.

"If you don't get recognition... you can't be considered a human being?"

 …

Pingtian Village.

This was the small village where Li Zhi first traveled through. In this village, Li Zhi met an old man who seemed kind but sold him out without even blinking an eye.

It was also because of this old man that Li Zhi met Master Liu and the subsequent story took place.

The old man with a dirty face and missing teeth was lying in a pool of blood at this moment. He was no longer able to breathe, and a group of flies were buzzing around him.

Not only this old man, the entire Pingtian Village was shrouded in a dead aura. The originally quiet and peaceful village now became a dead ruin.

There was not a single living person in the villagers' houses, only debris and corpses scattered all over the ground.

The bodies were covered with knife wounds and bullet marks, and their faces still showed expressions of fear and despair, as if they had experienced tremendous pain and torture before dying.

The bloodstained ground and walls seemed to silently tell of the brutality they had suffered.

The whole village was filled with a dead and depressing atmosphere.

However, in the silence, a burst of orderly footsteps suddenly was heard.

A neatly-formed group of soldiers in armor walked past.

The He Mansion, which used to be the largest mansion in Pingtian Village, was surrounded by troops, with layer upon layer of soldiers surrounding the entire He Mansion.

A sturdy man wearing fine armor, with a strong face and dark complexion was sitting in the seat where Master He used to sit. He lowered his head and looked at the map in his hand seriously.

"Have the scouts returned?"

The sturdy man asked without even raising his head.

The guard who was quietly waiting nearby hurriedly said, "General, the scouts haven't come back yet."

The sturdy man frowned and said to himself, "I'm afraid the scout is in danger. It seems that we need to speed up the process..."

When the guards heard what the strong man said, they said, "General, Mengbei of Yongguo is now being held back by General Gao, so he probably won't be able to detect us for a while... We, the Chu State, will definitely defeat Yongguo this time!"

This personal soldier was actually the strong man's relative and brother. After listening to his inspiring words, the strong man shook his head and his face did not look optimistic.

The strong man said: "Don't underestimate Yongguo, and don't underestimate Mengbei."

The guard quickly bowed his head and responded.

The sturdy man glanced at his personal soldiers. He knew that ever since the State of Chu was defeated by the State of Yong, the people of the State of Chu had been holding back their desire to defeat the State of Yong and take revenge.

However, as someone who had participated in the Chu-Yong War, he naturally knew how powerful the Yong Kingdom was. Meng Bei was known as the God of War, and that reputation was not undeserved.

The strong man lowered his head and thought for a moment, then raised his head and said to his personal soldiers: "Give the order, all troops are ready to leave tomorrow!"

"Yes!"

After the personal soldier responded, he hurried out to convey the general's order.

All of a sudden, the Chu army took action.

An unknown logistics soldier received an order to replenish water. While he was replenishing the water he carried with the army, he salvaged a copper coin from a well in a small courtyard of the He Mansion.

The soldier was illiterate and could not recognize the word "Fengdu" written on the coin, so he casually stuffed the coin into his arms and continued to fetch water.