"That's right, Sister Ningyue. Some things have happened in the county recently. Mother must have told you about them, right?"
Zhou Yun chimed in.
"What I mean is, didn't you only just break through to Bright Force? Does your martial hall already allow you to bring relatives to live there?"
Zhou Ningyue couldn't help asking.
At that, Lady Liu was also taken aback. "Bring relatives to live at the martial hall? Does Yun'er's status as a Bright Force martial artist still not qualify?"
Zhou Yun gave a helpless smile. "Ordinary Bright Force martial artists certainly can't, but I've already reached Dark Force."
Silence fell.
When he finished speaking, Lady Liu and Zhou Ningyue exchanged several disbelieving glances.
Dark Force? What did that even mean?
Just reaching Bright Force had already made them feel as if their ancestors' graves were smoking with good fortune. It meant a chance to be exempted from taxes and corvée labor, enough respect from their relatives and neighbors, and freedom from having to pay protection money to those so-called gangs.
As for Dark Force? Rumor had it that it stood a rank above Bright Force. Even Bright Force martial artists could only look up to it, and its practitioners could claim an official post from the authorities whenever they wished.
If Bright Force gave someone the means to survive in this chaotic world, then Dark Force was like a tenant farmer rising up to become a landlord.
Not only were they completely exempt from taxes and corvée labor, but wherever they went, county officials would come to pay their respects and grant them a certain rank. They were truly great lords!
Even Lady Liu, who understood little about such things, knew what sort of standing her son had now. He was no longer the boy who