Borrowing Money

Half a month later.

The group finally dragged their exhausted bodies out of the endless Jingyang Mountain Range.

Before them, the view opened up—an official road stretched into the distance, and faintly visible was the outline of a city of considerable scale.

"Dad, are we... out?" Yun Hu wiped the sweat and dust from his face, his voice hoarse with disbelief.

Yun Ji gazed at the distant city, nodded, and let out a sigh of relief.

"Judging by the direction, it should be the border of the Great Xia Dynasty."

Li Pinghu rubbed his hands excitedly.

"Finally out of that godforsaken Changqing Kingdom! These half a month, I've been on edge the whole time, nearly falling apart!"

Shi Tie, holding the sleeping Shi Chen, also showed a rare look of ease on his face.

"Yeah, we need to find a place to rest properly. Adults can handle it, but the kid can't."

Yun Long looked at the weary yet hopeful expressions of the group and said in a deep voice, "Ahead should be a city of Great Xia. We'll enter and rest up."

Yun Ji reminded them, "The Great Xia Dynasty is different from Changqing Kingdom. More rules, more prosperity. We're newcomers, so we should keep a low profile to avoid trouble."

Yun Long nodded. "Dad, don't worry. I know."

As they neared the city gate, towering walls came into view. On the gate were three bold, flowing characters—Dongyun City.

Entering the city required no inspection. After paying a small entry fee, the group stepped into this border city.

The streets were wide, paved with bluestone. Shops lined both sides, people came and went, carriages and horses flowed endlessly. The cries of vendors and hawkers filled the air—a scene of bustling prosperity.

"Wow! Brother, look! That building is so tall!" Yun He's eyes went wide as she tugged Yun Long's sleeve, pointing at a three-story restaurant with carved beams and painted rafters, her face full of amazement.

Shi Chen was also drawn in by the lively scene, his small face brimming with excitement as he looked left and right, unable to take it all in.

Yun Long's expression remained calm, but inwardly, he had already suppressed his Qi Refining Stage aura to the extreme, appearing as an ordinary Xiantian martial artist.

His spiritual sense spread out subtly, keenly detecting a powerful presence in the city—definitely a Qi Refining Stage cultivator. The other party was flaunting their aura without restraint, clearly to intimidate any petty troublemakers.

"The Great Xia Dynasty truly has deep foundations. Even a border city has a Qi Refining Stage cultivator stationed here," Yun Long mused inwardly, growing more vigilant.

The group found a clean-looking inn called "Qingfeng Inn" and checked in.

After washing up, changing into fresh new clothes, and ordering a lavish meal at the inn, they finally dispelled the fatigue of their long journey.

But after all this rest and spending, the little silver they had left was completely drained.

That evening, Li Lingyue looked at the few copper coins left on the table, her delicate brows furrowed in worry as she said to Yun Long, "Long Ge, food and lodging are still small expenses. We can't stay at the inn forever. Later, we'll need to buy land and settle down—that will cost much more. This money..."

Yun Long looked at her anxious expression, the corner of his mouth lifting into a mysterious smile.

"Don't worry. Leave the money to me."

He paused, lowering his voice. "I happen to know a few 'friends' around here. I'll go 'borrow' some from them tonight."

Li Lingyue was momentarily stunned.

She felt that, ever since leaving the Jingyang Mountain Range, Yun Long seemed to have changed a lot.

The old him was impulsive, but he would never have said something with such a... sinister edge.

Still, she didn't ask further. She just nodded and said softly, "Be careful, then."

The night was as dark as ink.

Yun Long left the inn without a sound.

There was little turmoil in his heart.

"Borrowing money"? That was just a nicer way of putting it.

If Fang Yuanhua hadn't pushed him to the brink, he wouldn't have resorted to this.

But now, for the survival of his family and friends, for a foothold in the future, and to accumulate wealth for the clan's foundation and growth, this was the fastest and best way.

Soft-heartedness would only harm himself and others.

In this world, strength ultimately reigns supreme.

He carefully avoided the aura of that Qi Refining Stage cultivator in the city. Aside from that cultivator, no one in the city could stop him.

Activating the Vajra Primordial Qi and casting a concealment technique, his figure melted completely into the night, like a ghost.

Relying on his perception and movement skills far beyond ordinary people, Yun Long easily evaded the patrolling soldiers and the guards of various mansions.

His targets were all the most imposing and luxurious estates in the city.

The first two went smoothly. He slipped in silently, found the treasury rooms, and took a large amount of silver notes and gold—enough for them to settle down and still have plenty left over.

When he reached the third mansion, Yun Long's brow twitched slightly.

The defenses here were noticeably tighter than the first two, and there were even faint traces of energy fluctuations, as if some simple alarm formation had been set up.

But a formation of this level was nothing before a Qi Refining Stage cultivator like him.

He easily bypassed the formation's nodes and slipped deep into the mansion, into a study.

The study was elegantly furnished, with shelves full of various books.

Yun Long swept his gaze across the room when, suddenly, in an inconspicuous corner, he sensed a faint but pure fluctuation of Spiritual Energy.

He stepped forward and tapped the wall lightly, producing a dull thud.

A hidden compartment indeed!

He gathered Vajra Primordial Qi at his fingertip and carefully broke the lock on the compartment, revealing an exquisite wooden box before him.

Opening the box, he found not gold or jewels, but two spirit stones and a yellowed, ancient booklet.

The booklet had no title on its cover, its material neither paper nor silk, feeling warm and smooth to the touch.

Yun Long flipped through a few pages, and a sharp glint flashed in his eyes!

This was actually a cultivation manual!

"An unexpected windfall!"

Yun Long's heart stirred. He tucked the manual and the wooden box into his robes, then found some valuable jewelry and jade in another hidden drawer of the study.

Having done all this, he lingered not a moment, slipping out of the mansion as silently as he had come, vanishing into the thick darkness of the night.

The next day, just as the sky began to lighten with the first hints of dawn.

Yun Long roused everyone.

"We're leaving Dongyun City."

His voice was low, but carried an unyielding finality.

The group resumed their westward journey.

Every one or two towns, the party's luggage would gain some heavy valuables.

Yun Long spoke little, only slipping away in the dead of night and returning with what was needed before daybreak.

Expenses flowed out like water—inn lodgings, new clothes, carriage rentals.

Yun Ji, Li Pinghu, Shi Tie, and the others were all sharp-eyed. Watching the occasional banknotes Yun Long handed over, and seeing the group's improved circumstances, they understood clearly in their hearts.

Yun Ji asked nothing, said nothing.

He only accepted the money, his gaze lingering on Yun Long for a moment with a complex look, then nodded silently.

The once impulsive child of the Yun Clan, who only knew martial arts, had truly grown up.

Li Lingyue sometimes woke to faint sounds in the dead of night, seeing Yun Long return unharmed, pushing the door open cloaked in darkness. She would simply tuck the corner of her blanket tighter and close her eyes again, as if she had noticed nothing.

Yun Hu and Yun He trusted their eldest brother completely. If Big Brother said they had money, then they had money.