The group galloped off and soon left the teahouse far behind. Mountain City was not far away to begin with, and at their swift pace, it took them less than half an hour to reach its gates.
It seemed Zhao Qiankun and his companions held considerable standing in Mountain City. The guards at the gate let them pass as soon as they saw them, without asking a single question. One glimpse was enough to show that the Shunfeng Escort Agency wielded no ordinary influence.
After entering the city, Xu Yang followed them to a place in the western district. He looked up and saw a sprawling compound, its buildings adorned with carved beams and painted rafters, elegant and steeped in ancient charm. Above the main gate hung a plaque bearing four large golden characters: Shunfeng Escort Agency.
Xu Yang had never seen such exquisite buildings before, and he was a little astonished. Fortunately, he kept his reaction off his face, maintaining an air of calm that gave Zhao Qiankun, who was watching him in secret, nothing to go on.
"Little Brother Xu, this is a branch of the Shunfeng Escort Agency. Yin Moon Hall would never dare come here to cause trouble, so we can stay here," Zhao Qiankun said with a smile.
Xu Yang nodded and was about to reply when the compound's main gates swung open. A burly man of about forty-five or forty-six strode out with a hearty laugh. "Deputy Chief Escort, you're late! Your brother here has been waiting ages. Come in, come in!"
Zhao Qiankun laughed heartily. "You're too kind, little brother. There's no need for such formalities between us." He and the burly man walked side by side, and Xu Yang and the others hurried after them. They entered the compound and followed their host to the reception hall.
Once everyone was seated, the burly man waved for the servants to leave. He turned to Zhao Qiankun with a serious expression. "Brother Zhao, what happened? Why are you so late? And how did you get injured?"
Zhao Qiankun snorted angrily. "Someone must have leaked the news. Outside Mountain City, I was ambushed by Old Ghost Yin, an elder of Yin Moon Hall. I nearly fell into a ditch and drowned, but Little Brother Xu Yang came to my aid, so I made it out safely."
"Oh! Old Ghost Yin came to Mountain City? We don't know whether he has any accomplices. This could make things difficult." As he spoke, he glanced at Xu Yang. "I'm not sure either," Zhao Qiankun said. "But Old Ghost Yin was badly injured by Little Brother Xu. He shouldn't be able to come after us again for a while." He then quickly introduced everyone to Xu Yang.
It turned out the two men were Zhao Qiankun's disciples. They were brothers, in perfect sync with each other, and skilled in combined attacks. The elder brother was called Zhao Long, and the younger was Zhao Hu. The woman was Zhao Qian, his daughter. The other man, Lei Yue, was the son of the escort agency's chief escort, Lei Dong. No wonder he had such an arrogant look.
The burly man was Zhang Yi, the helmsman of the Shunfeng Escort Agency's Mountain City branch. He and Zhao Qiankun were sworn brothers, and they shared a deep bond. After hearing this, Xu Yang stepped forward and hurriedly greeted them all.
Zhang Yi smiled at Xu Yang. "I'm a few years older than you. If you don't mind, call me Second Brother." "How could I? You're both seniors in the martial world, and I also have a connection with Chief Escort Lei. I should treat you as elders," Xu Yang said quickly.
"Oh? What connection do you have with Chief Escort Lei, Little Brother Xu?" Zhao Qiankun asked at once. Lei Yue, standing nearby, also looked at Xu Yang in surprise.
Xu Yang reached into his robes and took out a pitch-black token. One side bore the carving of a fierce tiger, while the other was engraved with a large character for "secret." A tiny character for "Li" was also marked in the lower-right corner.
Zhao Qiankun and Zhang Yi's expressions changed as soon as they saw the token. They blurted out, "This is Brother Li's identity token. How did it end up in your hands?"
Xu Yang handed the token to Zhao Qiankun, his face full of grief. "Master Li gave it to me before he died. He told me to take it to Chief Escort Lei and Senior Zhao."
Zhao Qiankun examined the token closely, and only after confirming it was genuine did he ask Xu Yang, "What exactly happened? Can you tell me everything in detail?" Xu Yang nodded and immediately recounted what had happened, saying nothing at all about the treasure.
Zhao Qiankun and Zhang Yi exchanged glances. After a moment, Zhang Yi said, his face full of disbelief, "How could this happen? With Brother Li's martial arts, how could he have died together with Poison Elder?" "Alas! I can't believe Brother Li is gone. It grieves me deeply," Zhao Qiankun said with a shake of his head.
After a while, Zhao Qiankun said to Xu Yang, "It seems you're Brother Li's successor. Then I'll call you my worthy nephew. What do you plan to do?"
Xu Yang bowed to him. "Master Li wanted me to gain some experience first, then inherit his position."
"If that's the case, you can stay at the Shunfeng Escort Agency for a while, my worthy nephew. Once we've dealt with Yin Moon Hall, you can continue your travels. It's too dangerous otherwise, and neither Chief Escort Lei nor I would feel at ease."
Xu Yang's face filled with gratitude. "Then I thank you, Senior." "Ha! There's no need for that, my worthy nephew. You got mixed up with Yin Moon Hall because of us, after all. It's only right that we help you," Zhao Qiankun replied with a laugh.
He then turned to Zhang Yi. "Little brother, my worthy nephew Xu is still injured. Please arrange for him to rest with the young escort and Little Qian." Zhang Yi quickly nodded, called over a servant, and had him lead Xu Yang and the others to their guest rooms.
Xu Yang parted from the others and followed the servant to his room. The furnishings were so refined that they were beyond anything he had ever seen, but his injuries left him in no mood to look around. He went straight to the bed, sat down, and began circulating his energy to heal himself.
After Xu Yang left, Zhao Qiankun's expression changed at once. He turned to Zhang Yi. "How are things? The news has leaked, so Yin Moon Hall must have heard about it by now. What instructions did Chief Escort Lei give?"
"I've already sent the news out. There shouldn't be any unexpected developments. Chief Escort Lei set out in person two days ago, so he should be halfway here by now. He'll arrive in another day," Zhang Yi replied gravely.
Then he changed the subject and asked Zhao Qiankun, "What do you think of this Xu Yang? Is there anything suspicious about him? Brother Li's death is strange. Could there be something hidden behind it?"
Zhao Qiankun shook his head. "There's nothing off about that kid. He's just a rookie who's only recently entered the martial world. His martial arts may be decent, but that's only because Brother Li passed his power on to him."
He paused, then continued, "Still, Brother Li's death is hard to believe. There must be something hidden behind it. He's been acting very mysteriously these past few years, and now he suddenly dies alongside Poison Elder. There's definitely something fishy about it."
"Should we seize Xu Yang and interrogate him?" Zhang Yi asked.
Zhao Qiankun waved a hand. "Forget it. Xu Yang is Brother Li's successor, and he also saved my life. It wouldn't be right to lay a hand on him now. Besides, Chief Escort Lei will be here soon, and he'd never agree to that. Let's deal with the urgent matter at hand first. We'll have our chance with Xu Yang later."
"All right, you have a point. But what about Yin Moon Hall? They're no weaker than we are. Damn it, who leaked the news? If I find out, I'll grind his bones to dust!" Zhang Yi said bitterly.
At those words, Zhao Qiankun's face darkened as well. A cold glint flashed through his eyes; clearly, he hated the traitor with all his heart.
The two men discussed matters for a while longer before Zhao Qiankun finally got up to head to the guest rooms. He didn't see Zhang Yi behind him wearing a strange smile that sent a chill down one's spine.
At dawn the next morning, after a night of healing, Xu Yang's injuries had improved greatly. He rose early and went to an open space outside. There, he assumed a stance and practiced a grappling technique, his movements so fluent that they seemed to reveal the bearing of a grandmaster.
Although Xu Yang's martial arts had only reached the peak of the first-rate realm, he had already begun to glimpse the mysteries of the supreme realm. The martial world's hierarchy had five levels: unranked, third-rate, second-rate, first-rate, and supreme. The supreme realm was that of grandmasters. Beyond it lay the legendary realm of the innate grandmaster, a level no martial artist had reached for a long time.
Xu Yang could now be called a great expert in the martial world. Even Zhang Yi, a branch helmsman, had only reached the peak of the first-rate realm, while Zhao Qiankun and Old Ghost Yin were merely in the early stage of the supreme realm.
For that reason, Xu Yang was deeply grateful to Li Yuan. Without his energy-transmission and power-infusion, there was no way Xu Yang could have cultivated to such a level on his own in a mere year.
Before you continue