frightfiction #561 - Fifty years
#561 - Fifty years
Chapter 558 Fifty Years
Zhang Chen's golden finger interface refreshed, streams of information flashed before his eyes like light:
[21 Skills (First Tier): Time Acceleration (0 / 1000000000)]
[Note 1: Activating the skill on an item will accelerate its time by fifty years.]
[Note 2: The same item can only be accelerated once per day]
"Fifty years?" Zhang Chen's gaze shifted on the golden finger interface; the power of time had only increased fivefold, but the required skill points had increased tenfold.
"Fifty years isn't a short time either; after all, the longer the coordinate of time acceleration, the greater the force required to leverage it," Zhang Chen muttered to himself.
As for needing a billion points for the next upgrade?
Zhang Chen felt it was alright; now that he had set foot in the Thirty-Third Heaven, he wouldn't lack points.
"How many cycles of sixty years does a person have in their life? Fifty years, plus the time they spend growing up, is at least one cycle of sixty years. One cycle of sixty years is already the entire life of most ordinary people," Zhang Chen sighed softly, his voice filled with emotion.
With the upgrade of the power of time complete, Zhang Chen didn't dare to waste more points, but closed the skill interface; it was best to save the remaining skill points for emergencies, in case he encountered an opponent he couldn't handle in the future, so he could reverse the situation at a critical moment.
Accompanied by the rumbling of the carriage, Zhang Chen stopped, turned, and came to the roadside, gently touching a small tree; the next moment, the small tree visibly grew at a rapid pace, transforming into a tree that three people could embrace in the blink of an eye, its lush greenery turning into a towering tree.
"Fifty years of time, while not enough for the vicissitudes of life, is still enough for things to change and people to be different," Zhang Chen looked at the tree, a touch of emotion in his eyes, and then continued walking behind the carriage.
The carriage rumbled, heading towards the Qinling Mountains; the number of refugees began to decrease, the number of merchant caravans gradually increased, and as for ordinary people?
Although it couldn't be said there were none, they were extremely rare.
In this era, many ordinary people might not even leave their village in their entire lives.
The most common were merchant caravans and people from escort agencies.
Of course, it wasn't that there were no refugees, but there were very few in the Qinling Mountains. Most refugees had already settled down in a random, safe place along the road, with only a very small number determined to take their families to the Jiangnan region to seek a living.
This world was too unfriendly to ordinary people; not to mention the bandits along the way, even after reaching their destination, it was extremely difficult to settle down. Why? Because they needed a travel permit!
Without a travel permit, they would be sent back the way they came at best, or directly captured and enslaved at worst.
Zhang Chen's family didn't have a travel permit, so Zhang Chen naturally tried to keep a low profile as much as possible.
As spring blossomed and the first blooming flower entered Zhang Chen's eyes, summer had arrived.
"Brother, it's blooming!" The young boy Zhang Fei plucked a morning glory and called out to Zhang Chen.
"Has summer arrived already?" Zhang Chen held a palm fan, leisurely fanning a gentle breeze; the scorching sun in the sky was like a fire to him, constantly affecting his soul.
"Spring has arrived, and new hope is also budding," Zhang Tuowei went over, snatched the flower, gently sniffed it, and revealed a hint of enjoyment.
"We should reach the Qinling Mountains tomorrow, but passing through will be a bit troublesome; we need a travel permit as proof," Zhang Chen turned to look into the distance, the Blood God Sons constantly patrolling the surroundings, having already locked onto the direction of the Qinling Pass.
The Qinling Mountains are the dividing line between the north and south, and also an important checkpoint, guarded by a large army; wanting to pass through requires a travel permit issued by the government.
"What do we do if we don't have a travel permit?" Cheng Yu asked from the side.
Travel permits weren't that simple; they not only had the government's seal but also documents issued by the government. For example, starting from King Pingbian's territory, Zhang Chen would need the government to issue documents stating the reason for the long journey, such as: visiting relatives, doing business, etc., clearly stating the destination and the route.
Then, on the way, each time they passed a government office, they would have to go to the office to have the permit stamped, just like Tang Sanzang's journey to the West, where the passport needed to be stamped; missing even one stamp wouldn't do.
It should be known that the Great Victory Dynasty enfeoffed the world to the feudal lords, and each feudal lord was like a small kingdom; people from other countries entering this country had to be closely monitored.
Ordinary people who wanted to avoid supervision could only avoid entering cities; without entering cities, they wouldn't be questioned and supervised. Exchanging some supplies in the villages along the way was fine, and no one would interfere.
Why are there so many who become bandits in this world?
Perhaps this is one reason; once they leave their hometown, it's difficult to find a place to settle down again, either being caught as a criminal or directly enslaved, which is unacceptable to the people.
"Travel permit…" Zhang Chen stroked his chin: "I'll think of a way."
Indeed, he needed to think of a way; he was the pillar of the family, if he didn't think of a way, who would?
But how to obtain a travel permit was also a problem; after all, his family had sneaked in secretly, where would they get passage documents?
"I wonder if there are any black market dealers here who can make a fake travel permit for me," Zhang Chen thought; the Blood God Sons had already begun to act, searching for black market dealers who forged documents.
Cats have cat ways, dogs have dog ways; in just half a day, Zhang Chen had an extra stack of passage documents in his hand.
The passage documents weren't issued from the Northern Territory but were local documents from the Qinling Mountains; the black market dealer had made the identities of several people into locals, the only thing that was difficult to hide was their accent.
But for Zhang Chen, it wasn't difficult.
After the family rested for a night, Zhang Chen led his family towards the Qinling Pass; from afar, they saw a long queue in front of the pass, with people from merchant caravans and escort agencies, all waiting in line to pass through.
Zhang Chen's family, with old and young, women and children, was very eye-catching, but everyone just glanced at them and didn't meddle in their affairs; in this world, everyone usually tries to avoid getting involved in other people's business.
As the line slowly moved forward, Zhang Chen's carriage gradually approached; after half a day, it was Zhang Chen's family's turn. The official checking the travel permits swept over Zhang Chen's family of orphans and widows, a strange look in his eyes. Before he could speak, Zhang Chen had already proactively handed over the travel permit.
"What are you going to Jinling for?" The official asked in the local dialect while checking the travel permit in his hand.
This era didn't have the internet, so the authenticity of the travel permit couldn't be determined, but Zhang Chen's travel permit was genuine.
Zhang Chen smiled and flattered: "Sir, we are going to Jiangnan to visit relatives."
"Visit relatives? Your accent doesn't sound like you're from the Qinling Mountains…" The official moved his gaze away from the travel permit, looking at Zhang Chen suspiciously. Before he could ask further, suddenly a buzzing sound was heard, and then swarms of hornets rose up, covering the sky and rushing towards the pass.
The hornets covered the sky, probably numbering in the tens of thousands, forming a black 'whirlwind' at a glance.
"Run! It's hornets!"
The horses in line were startled and ran around, and passing merchants hurriedly covered their heads with their clothes or used their clothes to swat at the attacking hornets.
The guards watching the pass saw the overwhelming hornets and didn't care about Zhang Chen; they dropped the travel permit in their hands without saying a word, covered their heads with their clothes, and ran into the distance.
The entire gate was in chaos; facing the overwhelming hornets, even martial arts experts who had cultivated their blood and qi couldn't resist.
"Damn it! Where did these hornets come from, daring to attack the pass!" The guard general in charge of guarding the pass possessed blood and qi, but facing the overwhelming hornets, he could only cover his head and scurry away.
Zhang Chen looked at the chaotic pass, a smug smile on his lips; he led the carriage towards the pass, easily passing through.
For capable people, passing through is always not difficult.
As Zhang Chen walked away, the hornets in the sky flew away, and the city gate gradually returned to order; the official checking the travel permits had long forgotten about Zhang Chen.
The hornets swarming in the sky drilled into Zhang Chen's robe, returning to the hive; Zhang Chen patted the carriage: "Come out, we've passed the pass."
"Brother, you're really capable; you can even fool your way through this?" Zhang Tuowei jumped out of the carriage first, raising his finger at Zhang Chen in praise.
"Small tricks, not worth mentioning," Zhang Chen smiled smugly, his eyes looking at the scenery in front of him; although he said they were small tricks, he was still very proud in his heart.
He had supernatural powers that could forcefully break through the pass, but for him, the easiest way was to use the hornets to create chaos, easily passing through the pass.
"After passing the Qinling Mountains, the Jiangnan region is not far away! In another year's journey, we should be able to reach Jinling," Zhang Chen took out a map from his arms, carefully observed it for a moment, and a trace of thought appeared in his eyes.
"Jiangnan is a place of trouble; once we arrive in Jiangnan, we still need to be careful, otherwise, if we anger those big forces, we're afraid we'll have a hard time. Those big forces are millennium-old families; your father once told me when he was alive that those millennium-old families have deep foundations, and even the Great Victory Dynasty has to be wary of them. I know you're capable, but remember that there are people beyond people and heavens beyond heavens, but we still need to act cautiously," Zhang Shi lifted the curtain of the carriage, instructing Zhang Chen.
She knew that her adopted son was no ordinary person, so she constantly instructed him to avoid causing bigger trouble.
"I already know, you don't need to instruct me; I will act cautiously," Zhang Chen replied, then changed the topic: "Should we take the waterway or continue on the land route?"
Taking the land route would inevitably be bumpy, while taking the waterway would inevitably cause seasickness.