Hundred Household Officer Liu Came Calling

The next morning.

Snowflakes as white as goose down drifted from the sky, growing denser by the minute until the whole world was a blur of white.

It was the kind of weather that made you want to sleep in.

Yet Chen Mo still rose early and called Qiulan over. "Qiulan, go to Xie Manor and ask what Xie Dong has been up to lately. See if he still remembers what I told him."

"Yes, Young Master. I'll go right away." Qiulan gave a cheerful curtsy, then hurried off.

Chen Mo carried his saber into the courtyard and trained for half an hour, loosening up his muscles and bones. Then he went to the back courtyard to check on The Woman.

As soon as he entered, he saw Ma Tie feeding her raw pork.

When Ma Tie saw Chen Mo, he hurried over with a deferential greeting. "Young Master, you're here."

After what had happened the previous night, Ma Tie practically worshiped Chen Mo. Even greeting him made Ma Tie feel immense pressure. He had to turn his words over in his mind again and again, making sure there was nothing inappropriate before daring to say them aloud.

"Has The Woman changed at all?"

"Take a look, Young Master."

Chen Mo walked to the doorway and peered inside.

It wasn't light out yet. In the dim room, only a Horn Lantern cast its glow. Beneath its yellow light, The Woman was covered from head to toe in thick white fur, crouched on the floor and gnawing on raw pork. Her face was smeared with blood, making for a terrifying sight.

Chen Mo stepped closer to examine her abdomen and opened the panel.

The Baby Face on The Woman's belly had grown clearer, and its mouth had opened wider. The two Black Rods in the panel's frame had also grown thicker than before.

The outline of a third rod had faintly appeared.

Chen Mo's heart sank...

A third Black Rod was about to appear?

The more Black Rods there were, the stronger the Ghost Curse's resentment became.

That was no good sign.

The reason The Woman's strength kept increasing was directly connected to the growing number of Black Rods.

A nameless dread and pressure washed over Chen Mo.

It felt like the ominous calm before a storm.

Seeing Chen Mo crouch there in silence for so long, Ma Tie came closer. "Young Master, is something wrong?"

Chen Mo came back to himself. "It's fine. Keep a close eye on her. From now on, you don't need to leave unless I tell you to. Stay here and watch her. Keep detailed records, and give me the daily logs."

Ma Tie didn't know the reason, but he understood how serious this was. "Rest assured, Young Master. I'll keep a close eye on her."

Chen Mo nodded, then cut a small piece of skin from The Woman. He boiled it into Wei Qi Skin Paste, pinched off a tiny pill, and gave it to Lu Wei.

The moment Lu Wei swallowed the pill, he let out a scream. Then he rolled around on the ground, wailing in agony.

"Bastard, what did you give me? I'm so hot—I'm going to burn to death!"

"Chen family boy, get me a doctor! I don't want to die. Ahhh..."

"So hot! So hot!!"

Before long, Lu Wei's legs jerked out straight.

He was dead.

Ma Tie was badly shaken by the sight.

"Throw his corpse to The Woman. I'll find someone at the Blood Rush Realm to test it next time."

Leaving those words behind, Chen Mo hurried back to the Central Courtyard and took a pill from the previous batch of Wei Qi Skin Paste. It went down smoothly, and he felt no reaction.

As for the freshly boiled paste, Chen Mo had decided not to take it, out of caution. He needed to find someone at the Blood Rush Realm to test it first.

After all, money could be earned again if it was lost, but you only had one life.

If he didn't want to take the risk himself, then he could only have someone else take it for him.

Fortunately, this was an age full of bandits and villains. Capturing a few to experiment on was making the best use of them—serving society and ridding the people of a menace.

Chen Mo stepped out of the East Courtyard and saw that the snowfall had grown heavier. A valiant young man, his head covered in snow, stood bolt upright in the courtyard, waiting quietly.

When Chen Mo recognized him, he was startled. "Chen Wu, why didn't you knock when you arrived?"

Chen Wu's still-youthful face was pale with cold. He rubbed his hands briskly. "I knew you were still recovering from your injury, Brother Mo. I was afraid I'd disturb your rest."

Chen Mo gave him a sidelong glance. "Did Second Mother tell you to say that?"

Chen Wu's face reddened, and he lowered his head in embarrassment.

"Come with me."

"Mm." Chen Wu nodded firmly, gripped his broad saber, and followed behind Chen Mo with his head held high, brimming with excitement.

As they passed the Training Ground, the guards practicing there all stopped and greeted Chen Mo as Second Young Master. As for Chen Wu, who followed behind him, the guards instinctively ignored him.

For years, Chen Wu had been like an invisible man. The guards had never taken much notice of him, a son born to a concubine. Some of the newer guards didn't even know the Chen family had a Chen Wu.

Fortunately, Chen Wu was used to being treated this way and didn't think much of it. He simply stayed close behind Chen Mo.

Chen Mo paused and looked at the guards in the Training Ground. "This is my younger brother, Chen Wu."

At once, the guards realized Chen Mo meant to cultivate Chen Wu, and they all began calling him Third Young Master.

Hearing them address him that way, Chen Wu felt, for the first time, what it was like to be treated as one of the masters. His eyes reddened. He glanced at Chen Mo, deeply grateful, and silently vowed to repay his Second Brother someday.

Chen Mo was pleased with how the guards had responded. "Wei Heng, Liu Jiang, come here."

Wei Heng and Liu Jiang came over with cheerful smiles.

"Second Young Master, what can we do for you?"

Chen Mo said, "The two of you fought valiantly yesterday. I saw it all. Are your injuries serious?"

"Nothing serious. Just a few flesh wounds."

"Thank you for your concern, Second Young Master."

After a few pleasantries, Chen Mo said, "The manor is about to open a pharmaceutical workshop. From now on, you'll receive Tiger Viscera Essence Soup and Tiger Blood Soup for free—enough to help you break through the Five Passes. I'll also gather some martial arts manuals and put them in the Library Tower for you to study..."

The two were astonished and thanked him profusely.

Chen Mo waved a hand. "No need to thank me yet. I have a favor to ask. This is my younger brother, Chen Wu. You both know him, I'm sure. He's a natural martial arts talent. At thirteen, he's already close to the Skin Refining Realm. From now on, I want the two of you to teach him martial arts. If you do a good job, I'll reward you handsomely."

Wei Heng immediately thumped his chest and promised, "Rest assured, Second Young Master. I, Wei Heng, will teach him personally, step by step. I won't let you down."

Liu Jiang said, "Same here."

Chen Mo nodded, then turned to Chen Wu. "Wei Heng and Liu Jiang are both experts at the Five Viscera Realm. They're also in their prime, and breaking through to the Blood Rush Realm is only a matter of time. Learn from them and train hard. Don't slack off."

Chen Wu's eyes reddened with emotion. He bowed deeply to Chen Mo. "Thank you, Brother Mo..."

"Brother Mo sounds awkward. Call me Second Brother."

"Se... Second Brother!"

After leaving the Training Ground, Chen Mo headed for the East Courtyard. He wanted to see whether Qiulan had returned, but after only a few steps, he saw Haitang, the manor's head maid, hurrying toward him.

"Haitang, do you need something?"

Haitang had come with Chen Mo's mother as a young maid and had served the household for eighteen years. Her status was quite different from the other maids, and Chen Mo treated her with greater respect.

Haitang was now thirty, at the age when a woman was in full bloom. She had a graceful figure and a pretty face.

She gave Chen Mo a curtsy and smiled. "The Master wants you to go to the Central Courtyard."

Chen Mo asked, "Did my father say why?"

Haitang replied, "Liu Hao, a Hundred Household Officer from the Thousand Household Guard Station, has arrived. He's having tea with the Master in the Central Courtyard. He heard about Second Young Master's feat of slaying bandits yesterday and greatly admires you. He asked the Master to summon you. There may be a great benefit in it for you."

Chen Mo's heart lifted.

It was only just getting light, yet Hundred Household Officer Liu had already come to the manor. That showed just how good his relationship with Chen Mo's father was.

Honghe County lay on the southeastern border of the Great Gan Dynasty, so it naturally had troops stationed there in force. Military officials were appointed at higher ranks than usual. The county's Thousand Household Guard Station had a garrison of three thousand soldiers, and its commander held the sixth rank—higher than the county magistrate.

They said the Thousand Household Commander was a remarkable man, and an Internal Martial Master, too.

Perhaps he could learn how to achieve Blood Infusion to Qi Transformation from Liu Hao?