Cold Moon Sect, Zi Hanyue

Lin Zhi's eyes flew wide. He hadn't expected Ling Tianhe to suddenly strike, and he didn't understand what Ling Tianhe meant.

"The Tower Lord said there was no need to keep anyone with divided loyalties in Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower, so I'm doing him a favor by eliminating you."

"And besides, I've already pledged myself to the Tower Lord."

As Ling Tianhe spoke, he released his grip.

Thud!

Lin Zhi's body fell to the ground, his eyes still wide open, his expression one of shock and confusion.

Looking at the corpse on the ground,

Ling Tianhe walked over and closed Lin Zhi's eyes.

Then he strode out of the hall and said to Lu Wencang and Jiang Chendong beside him, "Uproot them completely. Leave no survivors."

Ling Tianhe had now submitted to Su Chen completely.

He was going to become Su Chen's executioner, using ruthless methods to put down anyone harboring disloyal thoughts.

Lu Wencang and Jiang Chendong exchanged a glance.

They were taken aback, but neither hesitated. Jiang Chendong in particular immediately sent out a signal.

The men stationed outside the estate rushed in.

Before long, the stench of blood spread through Lin Zhi's residence.

In just one day,

Ling Tianhe had dealt with eight stewards of Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower.

At dusk, inside Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower,

"Tower Lord, they've all been dealt with. We recovered eight hundred thousand taels' worth of valuables from their eight households. It's all been sent to the main tower!"

Ling Tianhe reported.

"Set aside a hundred thousand taels to reward those who took part. Also, bring me Profound Ice Cold Frost Qi. Don't let anyone else find out."

"While you're at it, find me a secluded residence in the city. I need one."

Su Chen gave his orders.

"Yes!"

Ling Tianhe bowed and withdrew.

Before long, he returned to Su Chen with Profound Ice Cold Frost Qi.

"I'll take the manual with me for now. Take care of the house as soon as you can."

Su Chen picked up Profound Ice Cold Frost Qi and walked out. After descending the stairs, he climbed into a carriage prepared earlier and headed for Su Mansion.

The journey was peaceful.

But all of Qingcheng City was already talking about Ling Tianhe's methods.

He had purged his rivals, carried out a massacre of entire households, and wiped out eight stewards of Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower in a single day.

Ling Tianhe's ruthless methods had cowed many people.

No one knew why he had suddenly done it.

As this news spread through Qingcheng City, Su Chen had already returned to Su Mansion.

Steward Fu was waiting at the gate for Su Chen.

As soon as he saw Su Chen step down from the carriage, he hurried forward.

"Young Master, are you all right?"

His voice held a note of concern.

"I'm fine. I was just at Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower for a day. Did anything happen?"

Su Chen walked into the estate with Steward Fu.

Seeing that no one else was around, Steward Fu spoke up. "Young Master, Deputy Tower Lord Ling wiped out eight stewards and their families today. The place was practically awash in blood!"

Hearing Steward Fu's words, Su Chen put on a look of surprise.

"Deputy Tower Lord Ling made a move? He killed eight stewards? What is he trying to do?"

As Su Chen spoke, he furrowed his brow.

Then he sighed. "Although I'm the Tower Lord of Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower now, I'm not the one calling the shots."

"Let's leave this matter as it is for now. Have some food brought to me. After I eat, I'll go into seclusion and cultivate for a while!"

Su Chen was thinking of cultivating Profound Ice Cold Frost Qi

to see how well it matched with his Ice Qilin Arm.

Hearing Su Chen's words, Steward Fu's eyes dimmed. He had told Su Chen about it simply in the hope that Su Chen would know what had happened.

Before long,

the two arrived at the dining room.

The dining room

was furnished simply, with an old-fashioned dining table and a few wooden chairs.

But someone was already seated at the table.

A maid stood beside her.

It was Su Chen's Second Madam, Shangguan Ziyun, along with her maid, Xiao Lan.

"Why are they eating here today?"

Su Chen couldn't help wondering.

His gaze drifted toward Shangguan Ziyun. He didn't remember much about his Second Madam.

She had only joined the Su family after he entered Mountain River Sect.

Before that, he had seen Shangguan Ziyun just once, at Su Mengbai's funeral hall.

"Greetings, Second Madam."

Su Chen bowed slightly.

Su Chen still had to observe the proper courtesies in public.

"Sit."

Shangguan Ziyun pointed to the chair across from her.

Su Chen walked over and sat down. The other maids in the hall immediately brought him some food.

Shangguan Ziyun said nothing and picked up her bowl and chopsticks.

"I heard you've been cultivating a lot lately. Your strength is at the Postnatal Peak. This is a bottle of Dust Origin Pills your father prepared for you before he died. There are ten inside. He'd planned to give them to you when you returned, but before he had the chance, someone assassinated him."

"I've kept them safe all this time. Now I'll give them to you on his behalf."

After a while, when Shangguan Ziyun saw that Su Chen had put down his chopsticks,

she set hers down too, then took a jade bottle from her robes and handed it to Su Chen.

Her outstretched fingers were slender as jade.

"Thank you, Second Madam."

Su Chen hurried to his feet and accepted the bottle, his face lighting up with excitement.

But inwardly, he thought, These pills probably weren't obtained by Su Mengbai. Shangguan Ziyun must have brought them out herself.

Is she trying to help me break into the Innate Realm so I can deal with Ling Tianhe?

Ling Tianhe's move to eliminate eight stewards today

had made Shangguan Ziyun feel threatened.

Dust Origin Pills were the best medicine for breaking through the bottleneck between the Postnatal and Innate realms, and they were hard to come by.

The pills were specifically made to overcome the Innate bottleneck, and they were extremely difficult to refine. That made them even more precious than pills that increased Innate Inner Qi.

Shangguan Ziyun had produced an entire bottle at once. Clearly, she was no ordinary person.

How had someone like her become Su Mengbai's Second Madam?

He would have to look into it carefully.

Su Chen feigned excitement and tucked the bottle into his robes.

Then he said to Shangguan Ziyun, "Second Madam, I've eaten enough. I'll head to the cultivation chamber. If anything comes up, have Steward Fu wait for me outside."

Su Chen rose to his feet.

Shangguan Ziyun nodded. "Go ahead. The path of martial arts is a journey over mountains and ridges; stand still, and you fall behind. I hope you break through to the Innate Realm soon."

Su Chen nodded.

But Su Chen was a man with a cheat. He had already broken through to the Innate Realm.

After bowing slightly, he left the dining room and headed for the cultivation chamber.

Steward Fu followed him out.

Outside the chamber,

Su Chen said to Steward Fu, "Steward Fu, I need a few things added to the chamber. Come inside with me."

Steward Fu didn't think much of it and followed Su Chen into the chamber.

The moment he entered, Steward Fu suddenly felt an immense pressure bear down on his whole body.

His mind felt as if a mountain had come crashing down upon it, leaving him dazed and muddled.

At the same time, the Enslavement Talisman appeared in Su Chen's hand once more, and he sent it straight into Steward Fu's mind.

It worked perfectly.

Just like before, Steward Fu was enslaved in a single attempt.

The main reason was that Steward Fu was at the Postnatal Peak and hadn't yet reached the Innate Realm.

A short while later, Steward Fu's expression returned to normal. He stared at Su Chen in shock.

"I never imagined you had a method like this, Young Master. All the worries I had before were unnecessary!"

Steward Fu said.

He didn't feel any fear or unease about Su Chen enslaving him.

He had been loyal to Su Mengbai, and he was loyal to Su Chen as well.

"Tell me about my Second Madam, Shangguan Ziyun. I want to know who she is."

Su Chen asked.

"Young Master, this old servant only learned of Second Madam's identity after Master died. She's one of the Saintesses of Cold Moon Sect, known as Zi Hanyue."

"She actually had nothing to do with Master. She must have entered Su Mansion because she had some kind of arrangement with him."

"This old servant doesn't know the details."

Steward Fu replied.

"Cold Moon Sect, Zi Hanyue?"

Su Chen furrowed his brow slightly.

Cold Moon Sect was unlike the other factions. It was one of the sects wanted by the Great Zhou authorities. Rumor had it that it was founded by an Imperial Daughter, a surviving descendant of Great Chu, the dynasty that had preceded Great Zhou.