Anle City

Green-Face Tiger Gao Zhen, who had been cutting a swath through the battlefield, looked at the man standing before him.

He wore a bamboo hat and a straw rain cape, and held a sharp sword in his hand. His gaze was indifferent.

That man was Li Mo, the martial arts fanatic and divine physician of the Pingshan Society.

Over the past year or so, Li Mo had grown noticeably taller and earned the title of martial arts fanatic and divine physician in the stronghold. Even standing before Gao Zhen, he no longer resembled the half-grown boy he had once been, all awkwardness and childishness. An air of oppression had quietly emerged.

The infighting within the Pingshan Society had turned the brothers against the whole world. Only three heads of the bands still wished to follow them, and Li Mo had played a major part in that.

Shouts of slaughter rang out all around them.

"Divine Physician Li, what exactly did that vixen offer you? We brothers have always treated you well. Why betray us?"

Li Mo's eyes were cold.

Not to mention that Jade Fox Wang Ying had treated him decently enough, when he first joined the Pingshan Society, he had heard with his own ears that if the bear gall failed to cure Green-Face Tiger Gao Zhen, Gao Zhen would flay him alive the next day.

After seeing how the brothers had dealt with Water Jumper, Li Mo did not think they had been joking.

In the end, all the benefits Li Mo had received afterward had simply been a matter of mutual exploitation.

Gao Zhen continued coldly, "I admit your martial arts have improved quickly this past year, but you should know you're no match for me."

Li Mo remained silent.

The din of battle thundered all around them, and many had already died in the gang's internal conflict.

Knowing there was no point trying to persuade Li Mo any further, Gao Zhen stopped wasting his breath. He gave a cold snort and assumed the stance of a fierce tiger emerging from its mountain lair. His body was like a tiger coiled to spring, ready to unleash a devastating attack at any moment.

Li Mo knew the martial art Gao Zhen practiced was called Tiger Warrior Fist. It emphasized fierce, explosive power and excelled at inflicting tremendous damage in an instant. Every move seemed to unleash a tiger's roar.

He, too, wanted to use this opportunity to test how much he had improved over the past year or so.

As his opponent charged in with overwhelming force, Li Mo made the most of the Three-Way Swordplay's nimble footwork, keeping his distance and maintaining a circling fight. With subtle sword strikes, he kept probing for openings to wound Gao Zhen.

A brief moment passed.

The two figures crossed and recrossed. After more than thirty moves, neither had gained the upper hand.

Seeing how difficult Li Mo was to handle, Gao Zhen was startled. The speed of the man's improvement was truly astonishing.

He launched another diving assault from above, but missed. Soil sprayed beneath his feet, and the force of his charge was astonishing.

Seeing Li Mo about to create distance again and continue wearing him down with his soft, flowing swordplay, Gao Zhen let out a loud roar. A chain suddenly shot from the sleeve beneath his tiger claw and whipped toward Li Mo, who had been caught off guard. This was his signature technique: Beast-Trapping Chain.

Li Mo used Green Willow Deflects the Sword, meeting force with finesse.

But just then, Gao Zhen's feet suddenly quickened. He unleashed Evil Tiger Pouncing on a Lamb, driving his explosive power to its limit in hopes of making a decisive strike.

Li Mo's pupils narrowed beneath his bamboo hat.

He used every bit of skill he could muster to deflect the chain's attack with finesse, then spun rapidly and flung off his straw rain cape, attempting to escape like a cicada shedding its shell.

With a ripping sound, Gao Zhen's Evil Tiger Pouncing on a Lamb instantly shredded the cape into a sky full of scraps.

Then Gao Zhen took a sword slash across the face from Li Mo without hesitation, and struck out with a tiger claw. His right hand pierced through the fluttering scraps and landed on Li Mo's left shoulder.

"What power!"

Li Mo was sent flying a full zhang. Blood drenched his left shoulder, which had been dislocated.

His expression grew slightly grave, but as a physician, he did not panic over his injury. In nearly the same instant, he set his own bone back in place.

Gao Zhen's chain swept toward him again, and Li Mo raised his sword to block it.

But in the scramble, Li Mo felt two terrifying surges of force travel through the chain. This was one of Gao Zhen's signature techniques, Double Force.

Li Mo's sword was knocked from his hand, and he was suddenly in danger.

"Divine Physician Li, see you in the next life!"

Seeing Li Mo roll over and reach for his sword, Gao Zhen sneered and charged at him with a roar.

Li Mo's expression remained indifferent. He did not panic. Instead, he suddenly thrust out with a reverse grip, swinging the scabbard at his waist. A cloud of white smoke billowed forth.

Gao Zhen wasn't the only one with a signature trick. Li Mo had his own, too. This time, he had come prepared with plenty of specially made poison tubes and healing medicine.

Gao Zhen sidestepped and retreated, avoiding Li Mo's poisonous smoke.

Once Li Mo had retrieved his sword, he smoothly slapped a golden wound salve onto himself, then widened the gap between them again. He chose to circle and engage from a distance, his gaze still calm and indifferent.

"You!"

Gao Zhen noticed that Li Mo had applied the salve with his free hand, and the wound had stopped bleeding at once. His face turned livid. This was the advanced golden wound salve Li Mo had specially made from a hundred-year-old Blood Red Flower. Its medicinal power was extraordinary.

Li Mo ignored Gao Zhen's fury.

A while later, Li Mo estimated the time in his mind, then pointed out the wound on his cheek to Gao Zhen.

Gao Zhen frowned slightly and casually touched the streak of blood on his cheek. It was only a superficial wound, so he paid it no mind. Before fighting Li Mo, he had already been wounded several times by Jade Fox and the others. But his Tiger Warrior Fist had originated in the military and was designed to temper the bones, strengthen the skin, and improve one's ability to survive. It was a second-rate martial art by the standards of the martial world, so a scratch like this was nothing.

But then he remembered the white smoke in Li Mo's scabbard, and his expression changed. The next instant, his body turned limp and weak.

Li Mo knew the poison had taken effect.

To avoid any further complications, he immediately used Three Immortals Return to the Cave and charged forward.

Gao Zhen's movements had clearly slowed. As Li Mo's sword pierced through his chest, he quickly retreated, avoiding Gao Zhen's final counterattack. He watched as the other man fell with a look of bitter unwillingness.

"The poison I concocted myself is no mere Blood Decay."

"Little brother!"

Having witnessed Li Mo kill his younger brother, Bloodface Lion Gao Po was so enraged that his eyes nearly split open. But Li Mo ignored the dying lion and turned his attention to Jade Fox Wang Ying.

"Tell me. What exactly is the trap?"

He had now done everything he could for her.

Seeing that Li Mo had killed Gao Zhen on his own, Wang Ying was overjoyed.

"Under no circumstances should you go to the four great prefectural cities or the county seats to have your spiritual root tested. You must go to Anle City, the provincial capital. Every year, they discover far more people with spiritual roots there than in the prefectural cities and county seats. Some say the Aristocratic Clan disciples of Lingmu Sect don't want to recruit large numbers of unaffiliated disciples, so they deliberately hide the fact that some people have spiritual roots. Only in Anle City can they not keep them all under control!"

Li Mo was shocked.

If this was true, then his long wait had not been in vain.

Otherwise, if the Aristocratic Clan disciples testing for spiritual roots had concealed the truth and mistakenly told him he had none, wouldn't he regret it for the rest of his life?

"Thank you!"

The resentment in Li Mo's heart swept away. He immediately left the Pingshan Society's stronghold and headed out beyond the Eighteen Mountains. It seemed that only by leaving this den of filth as soon as possible could he honor his mother's earnest hopes and keep her from being shamed by him.

He no longer needed to endure humiliation and bear burdens.

On an Evening Moon taboo day.

Li Mo stayed at a farmhouse in the countryside.

The household consisted only of a grandfather and his grandchild, and they lived in poverty. When they saw that Li Mo was willing to pay One String of Coins for half a month's lodging and meals, they happily agreed at once.

Once he had a place to stay, Li Mo took out the Spirit Stones he had acquired and began examining them closely.

The two Spirit Stones had different hues. As he clasped them in his palm, he felt not only a refreshing coolness that seeped into his bones, but also wisps of mist drifting within them. The sensation was much like the mist in the Mystic Dream, only denser.

"Could this really be spiritual energy from heaven and earth?"

After studying them for a long time and carefully reflecting on what he felt, Li Mo confirmed that he could indeed sense the strange substance inside the Spirit Stones.

"Could it be... that I have spiritual roots?"

Cultivators were said to possess not only spiritual roots but also aptitude.

Spiritual roots were merely the foundation of cultivation, while aptitude determined its direction.

But there was no doubt that only those with spiritual roots could sense the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. If what Li Mo sensed now was indeed spiritual energy, wouldn't that prove he had spiritual roots?

"Forget it. After the Evening Moon passes, I'll head to the provincial capital, Anle City. I'll pay to have myself tested during the Dragon Boat Festival, and then everything will be clear."

The provincial capital of Muzhou was called Anle City, and it lay within Zhang River Prefecture.

The northern region of Zhang River Prefecture was, relatively speaking, the most prosperous part of Muzhou.

According to Jade Fox Wang Ying, Lingmu Sect's Aristocratic Clan disciples and unaffiliated disciples were at odds. When testing for spiritual roots in the various prefectures and counties, the Aristocratic Clan disciples often deliberately skipped over some unaffiliated disciples and told them they had no spiritual roots, thus reducing their chances of entering the sect. So it was best to have one's spiritual roots tested in the provincial capital, Anle City.

Li Mo naturally believed it was better to be safe than sorry.

After all, when it came to something that could determine the course of his life, he did not want to miss his chance over a mere word from someone else, then regret it for the rest of his life.

After the Evening Moon passed.

Li Mo said goodbye to the grandfather and grandchild. He spent a full month hurrying along the road before finally reaching Anle City in Zhang River Prefecture. By then, he could travel on foot nearly twice as fast as he had a year or so earlier.

As the provincial capital of Muzhou, Anle City was truly a sight that opened Li Mo's eyes.

The city walls blazed with lights, making the night as bright as day.

What astonished Li Mo most were the enormous birds soaring high above, the massive Flying Ships stretching twenty or thirty zhang long, and the Wooden Ox and Flowing Horse that walked along the roads on their own.

Some people used them to transport goods, while others used them to get around.

The giant birds and Flying Ships, meanwhile, were used as privately rented transportation and as public transit connecting the prefectural cities.

Li Mo had heard of Anle City's prosperity before, but seeing it with his own eyes still left him deeply shaken.

Aside from the giant birds, Flying Ships, and Wooden Ox and Flowing Horse, the city's buildings were also especially magnificent. Seven- and eight-story towers were everywhere, and there were even several pagodas thirty or forty zhang tall, ablaze with lights and breathtakingly beautiful.

Li Mo could hardly take it all in.

Before this, he had never even visited a county seat or a prefectural city. He had lived only in Hua'an Town and the Eighteen Mountains.

The street hawkers' calls were endless.

Storytellers, face-changing performers, stilt walkers, fire-breathing acrobats, performers balancing spears on their throats, shadow puppets, tiger and leopard tamers—the streets overflowed with performances by all kinds of martial-world entertainers. There were even people in strange costumes strolling through the streets.

Li Mo could not bring himself to leave.

His heart brimmed with wonder and sighs of admiration. If only his mother and Xiao Man could see such a beautiful sight with him.

That night, Li Mo went to bed very late.

It was already early April. He only needed to wait in Anle City for the Dragon Boat Festival to arrive the following month, when he could have his spiritual roots tested in the city.

The next day.

Li Mo went to a tavern for a meal and asked why the Gan Kingdom had announced this great amnesty.

As the provincial capital of Muzhou, Anle City was naturally much better informed.

"Of course it's because the war between us and Lu Country has temporarily come to an end. Our Da Gan Kingdom won, and Emperor of the Qian Yuan Era granted a nationwide amnesty to mourn those who died in the war."

Listening to the waiter's detailed explanation, Li Mo looked thoughtful.

"Didn't the war end seven years ago?"

"That was only the end of the war between mortals. The cultivators of Gan Kingdom and Lu Country have been locked in a standoff and fighting over Zhongshan Country ever since."

Zhongshan Country was a small nation sandwiched between the two great powers of Gan Kingdom and Lu Country.

"Oh, I see."

In the days that followed, Li Mo found a job running errands around Anle City. He packed up dishes from the Hundred Delicacies Hall and delivered them throughout the city, earning a little hard-earned money.

Meanwhile.

Li Mo broadened his knowledge and experience while asking around for news of sacred mountains and holy lands. He learned that the Gan Kingdom had twelve major sects.

Although Muzhou was the largest of the nine provinces in the Gan Kingdom, it was also the poorest and least populated. As a result, it had only one sect, Lingmu Sect, located on Qingming Mountain, several hundred li west of Anle City in Zhang River Prefecture.

"Lingmu Sect."

Li Mo thought of the two Heaven's Mandate Bureau inspectors he had encountered in Hua'an Town. Both of them were from Lingmu Sect.

One had been the inspector pursuing the Meishan Six Killers; the other was Lu Qi, who had slain the River God evil spirit.

If he did not want to travel thousands, or even tens of thousands, of li to other provinces and prefectures in search of a sacred mountain or holy land where he could join a sect, then his only option was to try to join Lingmu Sect and seek his chance there.

As the provincial capital of Muzhou, Anle City had cultivators publicly test people for spiritual roots every Dragon Boat Festival. However, the process was rather complicated. Ordinary people had to be at least sixteen years old, and they also had to pay a testing fee of five Strings of Coins.

The fee of five Strings of Coins kept the crowds manageable, but it also caused many people from poor families to miss their chance.

Who knew how many people might have had spiritual roots, yet lived their whole lives as ordinary people?