Omen (Two-in-One)

These are unregistered Gold Notes issued by the Sihai Trading Company. With these, you can go to any of the Sihai Trading Company's banks and withdraw the corresponding amount of gold!

Five Gold Notes, each worth one thousand taels.

This means a total of five thousand taels of gold!

This is gold, gold that is more than ten times as precious as silver!

Without a doubt, with these five Gold Notes in hand, Yang Qingyun could be said to have become rich overnight!

In comparison, the items in the treasury seemed a bit lacking.

The remaining two booklets recorded the cultivation techniques and secret arts used by the Golden-Eyed Leopard, the Savage Bull Art and the Explosive Qi Method, along with his annotations. However, they weren't of much use to Yang Qingyun, merely broadening his horizons.

Inside the last three black wooden boxes, Yang Qingyun found a hundred-year-old Blood Lingzhi, and two Fo-ti, one two hundred years old and the other three hundred years old.

This undoubtedly made Yang Qingyun extremely delighted.

Not to mention the Blood Lingzhi, it's a medicinal ingredient more precious than ginseng, and simply decocting and consuming it can enhance a martial artist's Blood Essence.

And it's a hundred years old, so its medicinal power is even more astonishing!

Don't think that because Yang Qingyun obtained a Thousand-Year-Old Mountain Ginseng from Wang Family Village to lay the foundation for refining Blood Qi Pills, aged medicinal ingredients are just ordinary.

But that Thousand-Year-Old Mountain Ginseng is priceless, and it was sheer luck that he obtained it!

In reality, in some medicinal shops in towns, ginseng and other medicinal ingredients of two to three hundred years old are already considered treasures of the shop, not sold to outsiders!

"Good. With these medicinal ingredients, and after gathering some auxiliary herbs, I'll be able to refine Blood Strengthening Pills and speed up the improvement of my Martial Path Realm!"

A smile appeared on Yang Qingyun's face.

With the help of the Blood Strengthening Pills, he was confident he could reach the mid-Entry Realm within one to two months!

Not long after, the people of Huangshi Town who had been pursuing the Black Wind Bandits returned.

The encirclement had come to an end.

Next, naturally, was to clean up the battlefield and count the spoils of war.

Logically speaking, as the one who contributed the most to the annihilation of Black Wind Stronghold, and as the strongest individual who could easily crush them, surpassing even the chieftain of Black Wind Stronghold, the Golden-Eyed Leopard, no one would say anything if he took all the spoils of war from the mountain.

However, Yang Qingyun did not do that.

With the substantial wealth of five thousand taels in Gold Notes, and the unexpected acquisition of three main medicinal ingredients of significant age that could be used for refining pills, his gains were already extremely substantial.

Therefore, Yang Qingyun only took a portion of the silver in the treasury, as well as easily convertible gold and silver artifacts.

As for the piles of brocade, silk, precious stones, jade, calligraphy, paintings, antiques, copper coins, and equipment, etc., plundered from the treasury, he let them distribute them among themselves.

Of course, there were also various spoils of war from the bodies of the Black Wind Bandits, such as silver, weapons, horses, and so on. Yang Qingyun also disdained these trivial items and let them handle them as well.

As for how to distribute them, for example, how to allocate resettlement fees for those who died in battle, how much to give to the injured, and what to do with the large number of villagers rescued from the back mountain of Black Wind Stronghold.

These numerous miscellaneous matters were naturally handed over to Zhou Weilong to handle.

Yang Qingyun's generous actions undoubtedly earned him the admiration of everyone, who lamented and praised his noble character.

Yang Qingyun waved his hand in response, offering no explanation.

While Zhou Weilong was struggling with handling various miscellaneous matters, he found a relatively quiet and clean place to recover the Blood Essence consumed in the battle, and at the same time, to comprehend what he had gained from this battle. He then cultivated the Drawing Sword Technique again, nurturing the momentum that had not yet dissipated after his fight with the Golden-Eyed Leopard, to serve as his trump card for any unforeseen circumstances.

After a day of hustle and bustle, the main matters had been resolved.

The remaining miscellaneous tasks could be handled by the martial arts school disciples under Zhou Weilong's command.

Thus, Zhou Weilong planned to head back to Huangshi Town.

At this time, Yang Qingyun had also just finished consolidating and absorbing what he had gained from the battle and emerged from his seclusion.

Zhou Weilong then invited Yang Qingyun to be his guest in Huangshi Town.

Yang Qingyun thought for a moment, nodded, and accepted the invitation.

Although Wang Family Village was his first resting place, it was, after all, just a corner of the countryside with limited cultivation resources.

Previously, when refining Blood Qi Pills, he still needed to have the villagers go to town to buy the auxiliary herbs.

This barren countryside, was a limitation to his future path in the Martial Path.

As for Wang Family Village itself, he had only stayed there for a few days, and he didn't feel much nostalgia for it.

Immediately, Yang Qingyun sent someone to Wang Family Village to notify them that the matter had been resolved. Then, he and Zhou Weilong set off for town.

Along the way, Zhou Weilong lowered his stance and conversed with Yang Qingyun.

Although he was significantly older than Yang Qingyun, he didn't dare to show any arrogance. Instead, he implicitly treated Yang Qingyun as the leader and humbly sought his advice.

Seeing this, Yang Qingyun did not hesitate to offer him some guidance, including techniques for using Blood Essence and insights into controlling force.

Although it was only knowledge for the Entry Realm, each piece of advice struck at the crucial points of his cultivation.

Zhou Weilong gained a great deal, and even a bottleneck that had been stable for many years began to show signs of clarity!

This undoubtedly delighted Zhou Weilong, who repeatedly thanked Yang Qingyun with immense gratitude.

Sometimes, a seemingly insignificant piece of advice from another person could be a great opportunity for oneself to break through a bottleneck that had been perplexing for years!

This was precisely the case for Zhou Weilong.

Yang Qingyun merely nodded faintly, not paying it much mind.

These things were nothing to him.

Since he had a good impression of Zhou Weilong, he decided to consider it as forging some good karma in advance, without expecting any repayment.

He also saw it as payment for the martial world information Zhou Weilong had gathered for him along the way.

This made Zhou Weilong sigh even more in his heart.

This young brother Yang Qingyun came from an extraordinary background. When he gave advice, he got straight to the core of the issues. Moreover, he wasn't arrogant and conceited like the geniuses from prestigious sects. He would undoubtedly become a prominent figure who would shake the martial world in the future!

To have had a connection with such a significant figure in his youth was perhaps a life well-lived!

In the future, when he grew old, and returned to his village to live in seclusion, he might be able to brag to his juniors about how a renowned figure in the current martial world had once hunted mountain bandits with him in their youth!

When Zhou Weilong voiced this thought, it made Yang Qingyun chuckle.

"Haha, Pavilion Master Zhou is joking. Who can predict the future?"

"Some people live mediocre lives for most of their lives, only to suddenly comprehend the Dao one day, achieving great success late in life and comprehending Innate Divine Intent, soaring to prominence. It's not unheard of."

"The road ahead is still long. Who can know what achievements one will make in the future?"

Yang Qingyun shook his head with a smile. He knew that in twenty years, with the Spiritual Qi Resurgence and the arrival of a new era, many people would rise one after another, achieving great fame.

In that era, achieving the Dao in old age and late bloomers were not uncommon!

"Brother Yang, are you referring to Lord Gu Hanlin, the Southwest Inspector of the Great Chu's Six Doors?"

"That person is truly a legend. It is said that he had never practiced martial arts before. After his entire family was killed years ago, he hid in the Imperial Library to escape the pain in his heart. He stayed there for three years until he forgot himself. One night, as Western Falling Stars appeared, he experienced a Heaven-Man Resonance and directly comprehended Innate Xingyi. He developed Innate Qi Sensation within his body, bypassing the four realms of the Martial Path – Entry Realm, Body Tempering, Blood Changing, and Viscera Refining – and directly reaching the peak Innate realm!"

"Such an astonishingly talented individual is unprecedented. I dare not even dream of it!"

Zhou Weilong exclaimed with emotion, a look of longing on his face.

"Hmm? Western Falling Stars, entering the Innate realm overnight?"

Yang Qingyun, riding his horse, was taken aback. The horse beneath him also stopped.

"Yes, this matter has spread throughout Great Chu. His Majesty Emperor Chu personally summoned Lord Gu. Lord Gu, who was previously idle, was immediately promoted and became the current Southwest Martial World Inspector of the Six Doors, above thousands of people, with immense power. It caused a great stir in the Great Chu martial world!"

"What? Brother Qingyun, haven't you heard of this?"

"Oh, I have heard of the famous name Gu Hanlin, but I didn't expect there to be such a twist to the story."

"Who would have thought? It is said that after Lord Gu stabilized his Innate realm, he directly stormed the enemy's lair and killed all the enemies who had murdered his entire family. A local power also collapsed, and even the Demonic Sect was implicated..."

Zhou Weilong spoke eloquently.

He did not notice that

Yang Qingyun's words had become sparse, and his gaze had fallen into deep thought.

"Western Falling Stars... I remember that twenty years later, during the Large-scale Spiritual Qi Resurgence, a similar phenomenon occurred. However, that time, for ten days and ten nights, the entire sky was filled with meteors. The magnificent scene was incomparable to the fall of just one or two stars. Perhaps, it was just a coincidence?"

"No! Impossible!"

"Before the Spiritual Qi Resurgence, the martial path in this world leaned towards materialism. Such a thing as comprehending the Dao overnight and directly entering the Innate realm was impossible. Under the thin spiritual energy of the old era, it was insufficient to support such a leap!"

"Forcing advancement through Soul Resonance would only result in the person being instantly drained!"

"Unless he obtained some great opportunity under the Western Falling Stars, he would definitely not have survived!"

"Such miracles of entering the Innate realm in one step only began to appear after the Large-scale Spiritual Qi Resurgence!"

Thinking of the divine miracles he had witnessed in his previous life, where people entered the Innate realm overnight after the Spiritual Qi Resurgence.

Yang Qingyun couldn't help but feel a pang of bitterness in his heart.

In his previous life, No matter how hard he tried, no matter how much sweat he poured out, he couldn't cross that insurmountable chasm.

Yet, some people, with the greatest of ease, as if eating and drinking, soared to the heavens, reaching a realm he couldn't achieve even with a lifetime of effort!

In the ten years after the Spiritual Qi Resurgence, It was only because of his resolute Dao heart that he didn't collapse.

Fortunately, he quickly stabilized his mind.

With a second life, He believed his future wouldn't stop at the Innate realm!

Calming his mind, he carefully considered the meaning behind this matter.

"Gu Hanlin... I think I've heard that name before in my previous life."

"It seems when I was still toiling away in the White Feather Sect's mines, he stirred up a massive rebellion in the Southern Wilderness martial world. Later, the Great Chu Dynasty suppressed it, and the White Feather Sect was caught in the crossfire. My escape from the mines was also partly due to this."

"But not long after the rebellion, Gu Hanlin was defeated, his entire clan's nine generations were exterminated, and his name became taboo, rarely mentioned again."

What Zhou Weilong said was correct; he did remember the man's name.

He just didn't know much about him.

After all, back then, he was merely an insignificant martial artist at the Entry Realm in the martial world, barely struggling to survive at the bottom.

The conflicts between the big shots above, those beings on the level of the clouds, had little to do with him.

The distance was too great.

It was like a common citizen preoccupied with their daily meals and struggles, compared to the changes in the highest positions of power in the nation's capital – there was no overlap.

By the time he reached the level of a first-rate expert in Viscera Refining, more than ten years had passed, and all traces of him had long been buried by the flow of time.

"Perhaps the Spiritual Qi Resurgence wasn't a sudden outbreak, but had signs beforehand."

"Gu Hanlin likely seized an opportunity amidst the signs of the Spiritual Qi Resurgence during that night of falling stars, allowing him to step directly into the peak Innate realm."

"If that's the case, then I need to speed things up!"

Within the depths of Yang Qingyun's pupils, a faint light flickered.

In his heart, A subtle sense of urgency began to grow, a feeling that time was not waiting for him!

Zhou Weilong and Yang Qingyun conversed as they traveled, enjoying each other's company.

The group gradually approached the city gates of Huangshi Town.

A dusty, earth-yellow road stretched from the wilderness to the town.

People and carts bustled back and forth on the bare dirt road, kicking up dust that filled the air, coating the trees on either side in a dull gray!

At the end of the road, a dilapidated brick city wall, three to four zhang high, stretched across the front. Above the central archway hung an old, weathered plaque with the words "Huangshi Town" inscribed in bold, iron-like strokes.

On either side of the archway entrance, a few ragged soldiers stood guard, holding sharp spears. They were collecting entry fees from people queuing to enter the town.

Further away from the entrance, in an open space, a crowd bustled, far larger than those entering or exiting the town!

"Hmm? What's that?"

Gazing at the marketplace outside the city, Yang Qingyun asked.

"Oh, it's nothing, just a temporary market."

As Zhou Weilong explained, Farmers from the surrounding villages who didn't want to pay the entry fee would choose to set up stalls here.

Many people from within the town also frequented this place because the goods were cheaper.

Over time, it had grown into a market of considerable size.

Of course, Such a place naturally had a powerful force to maintain order.

That would be the renowned Black Tiger Gang within the town!

The Black Tiger Gang collected money here, maintained order, and of course, also paid a portion to the city guards, officials, and so on, ensuring they turned a blind eye.

After all, the entry fees and taxes paid on transactions were for the imperial court, while this cut from outside the city was for themselves.

Thus, this market had tacitly formed on its own.

"I see!"

Hearing this, Yang Qingyun became interested.

A market formed by farmers from the vast villages under Huangshi Town, encompassing villagers from hundreds of villages coming to trade.

In a small, unremarkable village like Wang Family Village, there was a Thousand-Year-Old Mountain Ginseng hidden away!

Who knew what good things hunters who ventured into the mountains in the countryside might have found?

A four-thousand-character chapter, two updates combined into one.