Early the next morning.
In the courtyard, Fang Shuwen was practicing.
He moved slowly, every motion as though he bore the weight of a thousand catties.
As he stepped forward, the air broke with a sound like thunder.
He slowly thrust out a palm, and the force it stirred set a nearby tree swaying incessantly.
Zhou Qingmei was drinking tea in the courtyard, yet she did not even notice a fallen leaf land in her cup.
Her gaze was slightly unfocused, her thoughts elsewhere. No one knew what she was thinking about, and in the end, a knock at the door startled her awake.
After glancing at Fang Shuwen, she turned and went to answer it.
The Fang family steward stood outside. Before he could even offer a greeting, a graceful young woman could be seen standing beside him.
The young woman had a round face and a delicate, charming appearance, but her most striking feature was her eyes.
They were large and round, sparkling brightly.
She blinked as she looked at Zhou Qingmei.
"You must be Sister Zhou, right? Father told me you saved me twice. The last time I woke up, you had already left.
"Luckily, you're still here this time, so I can thank you in person for saving my life."
After speaking, she seemed to feel she had been a little abrupt and hastily added:
"My name is Fang Lingxin."
Zhou Qingmei smiled faintly.
"You don't need to be so polite, Sister Lingxin. It was all a matter of chance.
"Besides, I wasn't the only one who saved you last night..."
"Brother Fang helped too, right?"
Fang Lingxin said with a smile:
"I can thank him at the same time. May I come in?"
"Please."
Zhou Qingmei stepped aside, and Fang Lingxin entered the courtyard. Before she could speak, she saw Fang Shuwen suddenly thrust out a palm in the distance.
The immense force came like roaring mountains and surging seas. Though it was not aimed at her, the power it contained was displayed to the fullest.
Fang Lingxin's eyes widened in an instant.
"Amazing!!"
Zhou Qingmei smiled at her words.
"Brother Fang's martial arts truly inspire admiration."
His martial arts were not only formidable; his aptitude and comprehension were also beyond those of ordinary people.
In this short time, his [Great Black Heaven Divine Palm] had advanced again, and he was gradually showing signs of entering the hall of mastery.
It was truly enviable.
Just then, Fang Shuwen slowly raised his palm and ended his stance, gradually breathing out a mouthful of turbid Qi.
He turned around, and his gaze fell on Fang Lingxin.
"Miss Fang?"
"Yes, yes! Brother Fang, my name is Fang Lingxin."
Fang Lingxin hurriedly said:
"Thank you, Brother Fang and Sister Zhou, for saving me last night."
"Have a seat."
Fang Shuwen gestured with an outstretched arm, then sat down himself.
Once Fang Lingxin and Zhou Qingmei had taken their seats, the group began to chat casually.
Fang Lingxin was young, with some of the flightiness peculiar to children.
Sometimes all it took was giving her a topic, and she would launch into a lengthy discourse.
Thanks to this, Fang Shuwen learned a great deal about her circumstances, as well as quite a bit more about the Fang family.
For instance, although Fang Mingxuan was a businessman, he knew martial arts.
His martial arts did not seem weak, either.
Fang Lingxin had also practiced martial arts under Fang Mingxuan since childhood, and by now had achieved some modest success.
Fang Mingxuan seemed to be extremely familiar with a certain sect and intended to send Fang Lingxin there to study martial arts, but he also felt she was too young and did not want her to leave his side.
Speaking of this, Fang Lingxin sounded somewhat indignant.
"My father is no spring chicken himself, but he still treats me like a child every day. I've clearly already grown up.
"I came of age two years ago. I could even get married.
"But he still worries about me... Mother is the same. She never thinks to say anything to him."
Zhou Qingmei did not know whether to laugh or cry when she heard this.
"Parents love their children, so naturally they're unwilling to endure the pain of separation."
"But... I want to make something of my studies and help ease their burdens too."
Fang Lingxin grew a little sad as she spoke of this.
"As things stand, not only can't I ease their burdens, I'm always making them worry and fear for me instead.
"Both times, I fell victim without even realizing it... If I had mastered my martial arts, I wouldn't fear the tricks of those demons and monsters. The moment they came knocking, I'd beat every last one of them into a pig's head..."
"Speaking of which, I haven't yet paid my respects to the Fang family's mistress."
Fang Shuwen suddenly spoke up.
"Mother usually stays in the Buddhist prayer hall, chanting scriptures and praying for my eldest brother, who was separated from us when he was little."
Zhou Qingmei had heard the steward mention this the night before, so she was not surprised.
Fang Lingxin sighed.
"This has been a constant worry for my father and mother. Father has always done good deeds, saying he wants to build up blessings for the brother I've never met. He doesn't ask to see him in his lifetime, only hoping that if he's still alive, he can live a little better.
"Mother also chants scriptures day and night and worships the Buddha with a sincere heart, accumulating merit for him."
"I see..."
Zhou Qingmei sighed.
"No wonder your parents can't bear to let you go. Having experienced the pain of such a separation themselves, they're even less willing to let you travel far away."
Fang Shuwen lowered his head and poured them some tea, casually changing the subject.
The group chatted like this for the entire morning.
Over the next few days, Fang Shuwen, Zhou Qingmei, and Fang Lingxin spent their days together.
They either sat and chatted or exchanged insights on practicing martial arts.
But Zhang Fang, who was keeping watch, had sent back no news. It was not until the afternoon of the third day that Zhang Fang, who had been gone for a full three days, finally appeared at the Fang family residence.
He slapped a sheet of paper onto the table and, before he had time to speak, drank an entire teapot of water in great gulps.
Fang Shuwen picked up the paper to examine it and found it was a rather crude map.
"What is this?"
Zhou Qingmei looked at Zhang Fang.
Only then did Zhang Fang finally catch his breath. He looked pleased with himself.
"You were right. The Great Xuan Bank really does have ties to the Black Sha Cult.
"I've been watching them in secret these past few days and discovered that everyone in the bank, from the clerks to the manager, keeps their abilities well hidden.
"By day, they welcome guests from all directions with smiles, but under cover of night, every one of them moves about furtively.
"After three days, I finally found their hideout.
"It's thirteen li outside the city, a mountain retreat called Qingyang Manor.
"Everyone in the manor is a member of the Black Sha Cult, and there are many experts among them!
"But if we want to investigate the whole of Qingyang Manor thoroughly, we can't do it from outside.
"I was worried that sneaking in alone might alert them, so I came back to discuss what we should do next.
"Should we continue by sneaking in, or..."
"There's no need to sneak in."
Fang Shuwen said:
"In a little while, we'll go find Master Fang and ask him to help gather some people.
"We'll go to Qingyang Manor tonight."
"Tonight?"
Zhang Fang was taken aback.
"Isn't that a little too soon?"
"There's no time to lose. Delay invites change."
As Fang Shuwen spoke, he looked at Zhou Qingmei.
Zhou Qingmei nodded slowly.
"All right."
Seeing that Zhou Qingmei agreed, Zhang Fang said no more.
The three of them immediately went straight to Fang Mingxuan.
Fang Mingxuan had begun secretly gathering people three days earlier. Now that he saw the investigation had produced results, he agreed without another word.
When night fell, the group split into several parties and headed straight for Qingyang Manor.