Heavenly Fire Sect

Li Batian's expression darkened instantly.

Why would Jiang Tian ask about his older brother?

Could it be that Li Kun already knew Jiang Tian was a genius who had broken through to Hidden Energy in less than ten days and wanted to recruit him first?

"Right." Li Batian's expression shifted uncertainly, his gaze sweeping back and forth across Jiang Tian's face, his tone tinged with a hint of wariness.

"How do you know about my brother? What... are you planning?"

Jiang Tian's eyes flickered slightly.

Judging by this reaction, the relationship between Li Batian and his brother Li Kun didn't seem very good.

"I just happened to find out he was your brother by chance, and I admire him quite a bit." Jiang Tian kept his face impassive, his tone flat. "I just wanted to learn a little more about him."

"Hmph!" Li Batian let out a cold snort, the corners of his mouth turning down in utter disdain.

"What is there to admire about him? The family doesn't even know how many resources they've dumped into him, and yet? He still hasn't been able to break through to Transformation Energy..."

Li Batian, seemingly lacking any sense of tact, spilled all of Li Kun's secrets in one go.

Yet, every single thing he recounted was laced with intense disparagement, as if he weren't talking about his own brother, but rather badmouthing an enemy.

So he really is just at Manifest Energy? A cold glint flashed in the depths of Jiang Tian's eyes, vanishing in an instant.

If Li Kun were a Transformation Energy expert, he really might not have been able to do much to him within these five days.

But since he was only at Manifest Energy, things would be much easier.

Never fight a battle unprepared.

After finishing his meal, Yuan Manzhi walked over.

"Jiang Tian, my father wants to see you."

"Alright." Jiang Tian nodded, lifted his feet, and walked toward Yuan Long's study.

Pushing open the door, a thick scent of medicinal herbs rushed out to meet him, mingled with a faint smell of blood.

Yuan Long sat in his chair, fully dressed, and from the outside, there didn't seem to be anything unusual, but his slightly pale face still betrayed some clues.

"Master Yuan, are you injured?" Jiang Tian felt a jolt of shock.

Yuan Long was a Transformation Energy expert; who could possibly hurt him?

Thinking back to what Li Kun had said at the house yesterday, Jiang Tian's heart sank.

With the garrison troops outside Blackwater County, the City Patrol Division within the walls, and several Martial Arts Hall masters, even if they couldn't handle the Poison Wolf Gang, they shouldn't have ended up like this, right?

Could it be, just as Yuan Manzhi had said, that chaos was imminent?

Just as he was about to speak, a single sentence from Yuan Long made his heart plummet to the bottom of a valley.

"I heard from Manzhi that you have already become a Hidden Energy martial artist." Yuan Long raised his head, his gaze heavy as he looked at him.

"Do you have any plans to head to the prefecture capital?"

"The prefecture capital?" Jiang Tian felt a chill in his heart. "Everything is fine here, why go to the prefecture capital?"

"Sigh—"

Yuan Long let out a heavy sigh, that sigh carrying an indescribable weariness and anxiety.

"The Poison Wolf Gang has absorbed a large number of refugees, and their power has surged. This campaign to suppress the bandits cost Blackwater County a great deal of manpower."

He paused, as if weighing his words, before finally speaking: "Over a thousand garrison troops, plus several hundred from the City Patrol Division, and seven Martial Arts Hall masters—do you know how it ended?"

Jiang Tian shook his head.

"The Poison Wolf Gang isn't actually that powerful." Yuan Long sneered, his smile full of mockery.

"The main issue was that our Thousand-Household official was too calculating. Furthermore, the Poison Wolf Gang had the shadow of the White Lotus Sect behind them, and there were many unfamiliar faces."

"The White Lotus Sect?" Jiang Tian's brows furrowed tightly.

"The White Lotus Sect is the number one evil sect in the Northwest. They have gathered experts within their ranks, and their influence spans all four major prefectures of the Northwest." Yuan Long's voice dropped very low.

"Originally, they only lurked in the shadows, but recently, the newly appointed leader of the White Lotus Sect has gone mad; they actually want to step into the light, recruiting bandits and refugees everywhere. It looks very much like they are preparing to rise in rebellion."

"In short, Blackwater County will certainly not be peaceful in the coming days."

Yuan Long's gaze landed on Jiang Tian's face, his eyes filled with earnestness: "I hope you will come with me and Manzhi to the prefecture capital. The prefecture capital is guarded by the Heavenly Fire Sect and has twenty thousand prefecture troops; the claws of the White Lotus Sect cannot reach that far."

"In a little while, it will be the annual day for the Heavenly Fire Sect to recruit disciples. With your and Manzhi's talent, you will definitely get in."

"The Heavenly Fire Sect..."

Jiang Tian's eyes flickered as he recited the name in his heart.

The prestige of the Heavenly Fire Sect was known to everyone in the entire Qingyuan Prefecture. The common people even referred to it as the "Immortal Gate."

This showed just how much weight it held in people's minds.

"Think it over carefully." Yuan Long leaned back into his chair and closed his eyes. "I truly hope you will go to Qingyuan Prefecture."

"Alright."

If you like this book, please remember to add it to your bookshelf so you don't lose it next time.

Jiang Tian nodded in agreement.

He naturally wanted to go to the prefectural city and had no desire to remain in Blackwater County, but he had to discuss this matter with his elder brother and sister-in-law first.

As for what came before that...

He still had a few things to take care of.

Three days later.

Late at night, in the courtyard of Jiang Tian's residence.

Jiang Tian sat cross-legged on the bluestone slabs in the yard, the moonlight like water spilling over his slightly heaving shoulders.

He slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air; the breath was long and steady, condensing into a white streak in the cold night wind that lingered for a long time.

His entire body's tendons and bones emitted a faint, crisp cracking sound, as if someone were using an invisible little hammer to tap his bones one section at a time.

His posture suddenly sank, like a brown bear hibernating in a cave; his aura became deep and long, every breath carrying a force that shook his surroundings, as if even the bluestone slabs beneath his feet were trembling slightly.

His internal energy was no longer hidden within his body as it had been before, but instead surfaced on his skin. It was visible to the naked eye—a faint, ethereal halo of light seemed to flow across his skin, and the air around him distorted slightly.

Jiang Tian focused his mind, and the panel appeared before his eyes.

[Host: Jiang Tian]

[Lifespan: 16/20]

[Realm: Manifest Energy]

[Mastered Martial Arts: Five Animals Creation Play (Micro-level) (1+/1500)]

[Traits: Innate Martial Bone (Purple) (446+/5000), Superb Comprehension (Purple) (1+/5000)]

[Momentum: Tiger in a Cage, Deer in the Snow, Bear in the Cave]

Breaking through to Manifest Energy had increased his lifespan by three years, from seventeen to twenty.

At the same time, he had mastered two new types of momentum: Deer in the Snow and Bear in the Cave.

Added to the previous Tiger in a Cage, he now possessed three types of momentum.

Jiang Tian slowly opened his eyes, a cold glint flashing through his pupils.

Everything is ready... all that's missing is the east wind.

For the past few days, he had practiced during the day and snuck out of the house at night to track Li Kun's movements.

To his satisfaction, Li Kun had not returned to the garrison camp outside the city these past few days, but had remained in the city the entire time.

His range of activity was very regular: the Li residence and Yihua Pavilion, a straight line between two points, always accompanied by four Hidden Energy followers who never left his side.

Calculating the time, at this hour, Li Kun should be coming out of Yihua Pavilion soon.

Yihua Pavilion was the largest brothel in Blackwater County.

The sounds of stringed instruments and lewd laughter could be heard through several walls, faint and intermittent.

Li Kun walked out while fastening his belt, surrounded by several heavily made-up women and a madam with a fawning smile on her face.

He had an unshakable habit: he never spent the night away from home.

He would either return to the Li residence or go to the garrison camp outside the city.

Although the Li family was one of the three great families of Blackwater County, everyone knew they had climbed to their position by stepping over countless bleached bones, and they had enemies all over the streets.

He had encountered many assassination attempts in his youth, and although things had been much more peaceful in recent years, he never dared to let his guard down.

"Master Li, come back again soon~" a painted woman beside him drawled in a coquettish voice.

"Heh!"

Li Kun let out a lewd laugh and gave the woman's plump buttocks a hard squeeze; the sensation was soft and bouncy, drawing a sharp, coquettish cry from her.

He grinned, revealing two rows of yellowed teeth: "Next time, your Master Li will make sure you can't get out of bed!"

"I'm off!"

Before the words had even faded, he slapped her backside hard once more, the crisp sound particularly jarring in the night.

Stepping out of the bustling market area, Blackwater County suddenly fell silent.

The shops on both sides had long since closed, their doors bolted shut, with only the lanterns under the eaves still lit, swaying in the night wind and casting shards of gold across the ground.

Li Kun suddenly felt a need to urinate, so he walked to the side of the road, unfastened his belt, and began to relieve himself against the base of a wall.

A stream of warm liquid hit the blue bricks, making a splashing sound.

Even though he had just come from a bed of pleasure, he felt an inexplicable heat rising in his heart, and the image of Bai Zhiruo involuntarily surfaced in his mind—that fair face, that curvaceous figure, those watery, shimmering eyes...

"Hiss—" He licked his dry lips, narrowed his eyes, and muttered to himself, "That wasn't satisfying at all. As expected, the things you can't get are always the ones that stir you the most."

The night wind blew, and the lantern at the mouth of the alley swayed.