Over the course of a meal, Lu Chen had already learned most of the basic details about Canglan Prefecture.
Though the inn was small, all sorts of people came and went.
By eavesdropping and occasionally tossing in a few questions to probe for more, Lu Chen gradually pieced together a clearer picture of Canglan Prefecture's power structure.
The forces here were far more complex and extensive than the "three-way standoff" back in Nujiang County.
First came the official forces—the Prefecture Army.
They were the undisputed overlords, commanding the finest troops and the most formidable martial power. It was said that the Prefecture Army's commander had surpassed the Viscera Refining Realm and reached the terrifying Blood Changing Realm!
Before the Prefecture Army, every other force had to bow its head.
Next came the aristocratic clans.
The great families, led by the Li Family and the Wang Family, had deep roots and controlled Canglan Prefecture's economic lifelines and access to advanced martial arts. Though they were nominally under the Prefecture Army's authority, their private influence was astonishing. They could even sway certain decisions in the Prefectural City.
The Li Changfeng Lu Chen had killed earlier was an elder of the Li Family.
At the thought of this, Lu Chen grew wary.
In the Prefectural City, he had to be even more careful. If his identity was exposed, he feared his current strength would be no match for the Li Family's retaliation.
Aside from the Prefecture Army and the aristocratic clans, the rest were the forces of the martial world.
In Canglan Prefecture, these forces were mainly divided into two groups.
One was the martial arts halls.
Canglan Prefecture was steeped in martial arts, and halls stood everywhere. The most famous were the "Three Great Martial Arts Halls": Zhentian Martial Hall, Feihe Martial