Chapter 1: Behead Him
Translator: TYZ Editor: Book_Hoarder
The sun was scorching. The enormous fireball in the sky appeared as though it could cook people alive.
Ren Baqian kneeled on the ground as beads of sweat streamed down his forehead. His face reflected the sunlight, appearing as if it was covered with a layer of wax.
It wasn't that he did not want to move, but rather, the two swords placed on his neck intimidated him from making any reckless movements.
He didn't know what had happened and why he would end up in this state.
When he saw the people surrounding him were burly men wearing extremely antique clothing that did not seem to belong to any dynasty in history and that their arms were thick enough to walk with, he knew he most likely wasn't on Earth anymore.
So many of their body builds looked like Arnold Schwarzenegger's. Where could one find a group of actors like these who wore armor that covered only the left side of their bodies with their chest muscles pulsating?
Three minutes ago, Ren Baqian was still in a rental house eating instant noodles and surfing the web while in his pants and undershirt. The next moment, he appeared in this place with a bowl of instant noodles in one hand and a pair of chopsticks in the other. The chair beneath his ass was still there.
However, his surroundings had changed completely.
The familiar sight of his house had disappeared. He was in the middle of a road with army ranks on his either side.
His sudden appearance also gave those people a shock.
Cries broke out and the sound of swords unsheathing could be heard.
Following which, 2 swords were placed against his neck.
Subsequently, he kneeled in this place. The bowl of instant noodles was mixed with the soil on the ground half a meter away, giving off an alluring aroma.
As of Now, he had already let go of his a-man-with-dignity-should-not-grovel mentality. One could also say that it was the tall and muscular soldiers, the swaying weapons in their hands, and the austere aura of the army that caused his mind to turn blank.
Why did it seem like he was in the middle of a marching army? Did he coincidentally fall in the middle of a marching army?
"Who are you?" A two-meter-tall burly man wearing armor stood in front of him. His small eyes filled with a cold glint. Ren Baqian felt that this fellow would cut him down on the spot if he said something wrong.
"Ren Baqian!" He blurted out. He didn't know what he should say as his mind was at a loss.
"Why are you here?"
"I also don't know!" Ren Baqian cried miserably. If crying could be used to change his current situation, he would really bawl his eyes out.
"Behead him!"
When Ren Baqian heard these two words, he was dumbstruck. At the same time, he felt the two swords on his neck lifting off. He knew that it would be his head rolling on the ground in the next second. Immediately, he yelled, "Stop!"
Ren Baqian never knew that he could yell so loud.
The man waved his hand and stopped the two steel swords that were about to cut his head off.
"What do you want to say?"
Ren Baqian could feel the gust from the two swords brushing against his neck, causing a slight piercing pain.
His brain frantically worked. An engulfing aura of death suffocated him. From the tone of that man, Ren Baqian was certain that he really wanted to behead him. He knew that even without seeing the two raised swords behind him.
"I… I want to see your superior. I am proficient in literature, mathematics, agriculture and smelting. I am a talent that seeks refuge in your army."
Ren Baqian quickly thought of the things he knew and listed them out loudly. Eyes filled with hope, he looked at the man and hoped that he would change his decision.
The man lowered his gaze and peered at him.
Ren Baqian then saw the man's lips curl into a smile. Though, why did it seem like an "evil grin" no matter which way he looked at it?
"Behead him."
"Stop, I haven't finished my sentence." Ren Baqian was at a loss. Does this fellow only know the two words "behead him"?
"What is going on? Why are we not moving forward?" Suddenly, a female voice rang through the air from behind the ranks. A lady wearing armor rode a horse over.
"Wait." That man waved his hand and prevented the two swords from cutting off Ren Baqian's head once again.
He turned around and faced the lady. Then, he cupped his hands and said, "Reporting to General, as we were moving forward just now, this man suddenly dropped from the sky and landed in our army ranks. I suspect that he might be an assassin. Now, I am going to behead him to serve as a warning to the public."
"I am not an assassin! I am a talent! I really am a talent! Please don't kill me!" Ren Baqian yelled at the top of his voice. At this point in time, he had yet to have any chance to defend himself. His head might roll to the ground the next second if he did not speak for himself now. Therefore, he thought of the word that would give him the highest chance of survival—"talent".
Even if the lady was not interested in talents, the word "talent" might still be able to pique her interest and make her listen to what he had to say.
At whichever point in history, talents were always given preferential treatment.
Furthermore, Ren Baqian was well aware that he himself he was capable. At the very least he had previously studied mathematics, physics, and chemistry, and he knew a thing or two about other miscellaneous subjects. No matter what, he must know something that the other party would be interested in, right?
"Nuisance!" The burly man landed a kick on Ren Baqian's chest, causing him to fly backward in the air. He laid on the ground panting heavily for a long while, feeling as though he was going to die at any moment.
The female general rode over to Ren Baqian on her horse and gazed down at him. Following which, she ordered, "Bring him to the side of the road and check the surroundings. If there's nothing wrong, continue forward. I will report this to Her Majesty."
"Yes," the burly man responded and continued, "Drag him to the side of the road and send a team of men to check the surroundings."
Like a dead dog, Ren Baqian was dragged to the side of the road. At this point in time, he no longer cared about getting angry over the kick he received from that burly man. He was sizing up his surroundings, thinking of a way to save his life.
All the soldiers surrounding him were holding spears and swords. It was impossible for him to make an escape. He knew that his head would roll to the ground before he could even run for a few meters.
Oh, did he hear the female general mention something about a "His Majesty" just now? Was it referring to an emperor or something?
He had to think of a way to save his own skin.
First and foremost, he had to figure out why he ended up in this place; however, the conclusion he came up with was —— he had no idea.
However, he knew just how unlucky he was to land smack dab in the middle of a marching army. He guessed his chance of survival would even be higher if he was to land in the wilderness. At this rate, he would be considered lucky if he wasn't accidentally killed.
The only silver lining was that he spoke the same language as them. Otherwise, his head would already be separated from his body and thrown on the side of the road to feed the wild animals.
Looking at these people, he was certain that their clothing did not belong to any of the dynasties he knew, not resembling the ancient Chinese's. Were they from another world then?
From their mannerisms, Ren Baqian knew that they belonged to a feudal society. Therefore, their productivity wouldn't be high. He knew many things that were valuable to this world.
Moreover, he knew many verses, odes, ditties, historical stories and "fun things to do". He would be rather valuable as an evil courtier as well.
He had to think of a way to make sure "His Majesty" knew of his usefulness. Only by doing so, could he then save his life.
Ren Baqian kneeled on the side of the road with his mind in stupor. After the team of soldiers checked the surroundings, they continued forward while dragging him along. At that moment, he saw a huge carriage approaching them from the front.
The sound of the wheels rolling against the ground was deep and low.
Wait, what was that creature pulling the carriage!?
Ren Baqian's eyes widened when he saw the two-meter-tall beast: it had the head of a lion, the horns of a deer, the eyes of a tiger, the body of a reindeer, the scales of a dragon, and the tail of a cow. "Is this a kirin? A live kirin? Pulling a carriage?"
Initially, he thought he had arrived in an ancient-Chinese-like world, but why was there a kirin here? And why was it pulling a carriage?
Damn it! Was he in some sort of pugilistic-cum-fantasy world?
Was it the sort of world that could be easily destroyed by an individual, and a punch could shatter a mountain and shake a sea?
When Ren Baqian thought of this, his face turned even whiter.