Paper Crane

For reasons unknown, ever since the incident with Xia Dong, Qin Wan felt her relationship with her master had grown closer.

Furthermore, her master had warned her not to let word of this matter leak out.

It seemed this had become a secret shared only between master and disciple.

In recent days, officials from the government below the mountain had frequently come up to consult with the Sect Master and her master. Since then, the older senior brothers and sisters of the Qixia Immortal Sect had begun to descend the mountain one after another.

However, Qin Wan keenly observed that other cultivators, not affiliated with the government, were also quietly making their way up the mountain.

Though she saw them, she simply pretended to be unaware.

Later, her master reminded her of one thing.

She said that if anyone approached the Qin Family to join some religious group, she must ensure the Qin Family did not get involved, yet she must also be careful not to offend the other party.

Qin Wan took this to heart.

Her master also mentioned other affairs below the mountain, stating that the imperial court was planning to establish the Eagle-Wolf Guard in Linyuan Prefecture.

Previously, in places like Linyuan Prefecture, which had been controlled by an Immortal Sect for many years, the government had never set up the Eagle-Wolf Guard. The Eagle-Wolf Guard was responsible for monitoring martial artists in the pugilistic world and cultivators.

This function had originally been performed on behalf of the government by the Qixia Immortal Sect.

But now, the Qixia Immortal Sect had actually relinquished this power.

However, the disciples of the Qixia Immortal Sect would also become the primary members of the Linyuan Prefecture Eagle-Wolf Guard.

To be precise, the former law enforcement team of the Immortal Sect had now largely entered the Eagle-Wolf Guard, gaining official status within the imperial court. In addition to receiving spirit stones from the sect each month, the court would also issue a monthly stipend.

Moreover, the Eagle-Wolf Guard could accumulate merit by completing tasks for the court, which could then be exchanged for the cultivation resources they required.

In terms of the depth and variety of resources, the imperial court now surpassed the Qixia Immortal Sect.

The Eagle-Wolf Guard consisted not only of cultivators but also formidable martial artists.

Currently, the imperial court possessed an unknown number of Mortal Transformation Realm martial artists. These warriors could contend with top-tier cultivators in the Qi Refining Realm, and above the Mortal Transformation Realm were True Intent Realm martial artists who did not fear even Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Compared to cultivators, the imperial court seemed more adept at nurturing martial artists, and they were now promoting the martial path across all prefectures in the realm.

Qin Wan naturally would not involve herself in these matters; instead, she intensified her cultivation. No matter how the situation in the world changed, only by possessing sufficient strength could she protect herself.

After folding the thin sheet of paper on the desk, Qin Wan flicked her sleeve, and it turned to ash, drifting away into the mountain wind outside.

That thin paper was a letter Xia Dong had entrusted someone to send from the mortal world.

The handwriting in the letter was square and upright, with a hidden strength in the strokes.

At the end of the letter, Xia Dong solemnly promised that if any descendants of the Xia Family were born with spiritual roots in the future, he would do everything in his power to save up for a Foundation Establishment Pill to trade with her.

Looking at these lines, the stone that had been weighing on Qin Wan's heart finally settled.

She possessed an exotic spiritual root; even with good aptitude, it would take at least ten or twenty years of grueling, steady effort to cultivate from the Qi Refining Realm step by step to the ninth level and knock on the door of Foundation Establishment.

She could afford to wait; there was no need to rush.

Cultivation was a race against time, and securing a long-term guarantee was already a great relief.

However, in the letter, Xia Dong also requested one thing—he wanted to ask Qin Wan to help him find a martial arts technique to control his blood and energy and stimulate the potential of his physical body.

Qin Wan was slightly surprised, but she understood immediately; it seemed Xia Dong had already begun to walk the path of martial arts.

In the Qixia Immortal Sect, martial arts techniques were not rare; in fact, the first floor of the Scripture Depository was filled with them. Cultivators had always looked down upon these mundane martial arts.

Immortal breathing techniques, which drew the spiritual energy of heaven and earth into the body, could subtly cleanse the marrow and nourish the flesh, with effects far superior to mortal martial arts.

Moreover, many external martial arts in the mortal world relied on overdrawing one's vitality and damaging the body in exchange for short-lived combat power, which was certainly not the path to longevity.

But since it was Xia Dong's request, she would naturally do her best.

Half a day later, Qin Wan unearthed a yellowed book from a corner of the Scripture Depository—the Dragon-Capturing Technique.

This technique did not cultivate internal energy but focused exclusively on the physique. Its core lay in capturing the "great dragon" of the spine, thereby locking the body's blood and energy to prevent it from leaking, which could greatly enhance a martial artist's control over their blood and their instantaneous explosive power.

After obtaining the technique, Qin Wan did not hide it and went straight to the cave dwelling of Lone Moon to report.

In the quiet cave, Lone Moon listened to the whole story, her expression unchanged, and said indifferently, "No matter how vigorous the blood and energy of a mortal martial artist, they cannot defeat the passage of time. However, since he has the heart to forge this bond of kindness, there is no harm in bestowing a technique upon him."

Having said this, she flicked her sleeve, and a primitive token, neither gold nor jade, fell into Qin Wan's hand.

"I will send him a message first, allowing the two of you to meet secretly at the market outside the sect. At that time, you will give him this token, and in the future, he can use it to enter and exit the cultivation market in Linyuan Prefecture." Lone Moon spoke in a calm tone, "Although he lacks spiritual roots and cannot cultivate by absorbing spirit stones, there are cultivation families and mortal martial artists moving through the market. He can use spirit stones to exchange for resources beneficial to his martial cultivation."

Lone Moon casually picked up a piece of yellow paper from her desk and folded it into a paper crane. She flicked her finger, chanted a spell, and the aura and image of Xia Dong appeared in the void, then transformed into a glimmer of spiritual light that was injected into the crane. The paper crane suddenly came to life, spread its wings, and soared into the air.

A faint halo of light swirled around the paper crane, perfectly concealing its silhouette and aura within the night, and in an instant, it vanished into the sea of clouds, leaving no trace.

Pingyang County, inside the city.

Xia Dong was standing in his courtyard practicing his stance, his breathing steady and long, his blood and energy steaming slightly like a furnace under the perfect execution of the Crane Stance.

Suddenly, his heart skipped a beat, and he snapped his eyes open.

In the gloomy night breeze, a glowing paper crane pierced through the darkness without warning, spiraling down with an ethereal grace before landing steadily before him.

The spiritual light surrounding the paper crane gradually faded, transforming into a single sheet of letter paper.

Xia Dong reached out to grasp the letter, his fingertips tracing the archaic patterns upon it, feeling the lingering, frigid aura that did not belong to the mortal realm.

He did not speak, merely gazing for a long time at the deep night sky from which the paper crane had flown.

His palm felt slightly cool, yet his blood was faintly burning.

This was the first time since arriving in this world that he had touched the methods of the high and mighty immortals so directly and so vividly.