An Audience

The assessments for the five towers had ended.

The other towers had all taken more than five people. The Forging Sword Tower had taken the most, seven in total.

Moreover, those selected generally had vitality between 8.0 and 9.5.

Their potential seemed higher than that of the Myriad Swords Tower recruits.

After the selections ended, the stewards of the other four towers congratulated one another. Leng Shuangyu alone was completely ignored.

Li Mu swept his gaze around and roughly understood what was happening. He could not help sighing inwardly.

Looks like life won't get any easier after becoming a household servant...

When your direct superior was being isolated, the resources they received would surely be fewer.

Yet Leng Shuangyu remained as cold-faced as ever. She did not even glance at the commotion over there before getting up and leaving on her own.

Zhao Meng called for Li Mu and the other three, leading them through a long corridor to the inner storeroom in the central courtyard. There, they registered and collected the rewards for newly promoted household servants.

There was a wooden token, its front engraved with a small silver sword and its back bearing their name.

There were four sets of white robes, with styles and thicknesses suited to the four seasons—long and short, thick and thin.

There was also an ordinary three-foot longsword. It was light and easy to control, but the material was mediocre. Against famous swords or sharp weapons, it would probably break easily.

At the same time, their monthly pay was raised from the twenty copper coins earned as sword-wiping slaves to two taels of silver.

"After you return from the audience, take your token to Zhao Tuo. He'll arrange lodgings for you. Hurry up and get yourselves ready."

Zhao Meng urged them repeatedly.

They temporarily stored their remaining clothes, changed into short white outfits, washed their faces, tied their black hair behind their heads with hair cords, and hung swords at their waists.

They also traded their straw sandals for black-soled white cloth shoes.

In the bronze mirror stood a handsome young swordsman, eight feet tall and well-proportioned.

Compared to three months ago, when he had been little more than skin and bones, it was a complete transformation.

Li Mu smiled faintly and stepped out of the changing room. The others were ready as well.

"Not bad. You all look the part now. Follow me."

Zhao Meng looked over the four of them, then led the group toward the inner courtyard.

"The inner courtyard."

Li Mu had been here for so long, yet he had never entered the inner courtyard.

Only those with the status of formal disciples or higher could enter it.

Today was an exception because they were to meet the Third Manor Lord. Many household servants might only enter this place once in their entire lives.

They walked another long corridor from the central courtyard to the inner courtyard. Passing through an arched gate built from strange stones, they finally entered.

The inner courtyard was enormous. In the distance lay a large lake, with a tall tower at its center.

Several grand halls and dozens of small buildings had been built along the lakeside.

There was also a secluded path winding away somewhere unknown, guarded by numerous sentries. It was clearly an important forbidden area.

On the sword-practice ground to the left, dozens of Hidden Sword disciples were practicing swordsmanship. Li Mu could not understand their sword techniques at all.

That feeling again... the feeling of not being able to understand it...

Li Mu knew that this was the true supreme sword art of Hidden Sword Manor, something he could not yet reach.

While he was thinking, his feet had already followed Zhao Meng to the grand hall directly ahead. Four large characters were written above it: "Hidden Sword Manor."

"This is the inner courtyard's main hall. Follow me up. Stay behind Steward Leng. Once inside, kneel when I kneel. Do not raise your heads and look around. Watch your words and actions!"

Zhao Meng reminded them as they walked, his tone extremely stern.

Everyone collected themselves and followed him up the steps.

Before the main hall, the stewards of the other four towers had already arrived with their respective instructors and newly promoted household servants.

"Steward Leng, you certainly made us wait."

Among the four tower stewards, a female steward suddenly spoke. Her voice was gentle and pleasing, yet it carried a faint scent of gunpowder.

"You arrived early." Leng Shuangyu did not even look at her and walked straight inside.

"You... Hmph. Everyone is here. Let's go in."

Though the female steward intended to compete with Leng Shuangyu, she knew this was not the place for it and left it at that.

She too wore a fitted black outfit, but the curves it outlined were fuller than Leng Shuangyu's. Her face was unadorned, yet she possessed an innate charm.

However, there was always a faint arrogance in her eyes.

"Ye Wanqing."

Li Mu silently recited the woman's name, and her information appeared before him.

[Ye Wanqing, vitality 45.8, spirit 5.0, sword talent: 47.8 (white)]

"Her talent is very high... It's almost at the green grade."

"Just as the rumors said, she is only slightly inferior to Leng Shuangyu."

He glanced at the other stewards. Though he did not know their names, he could see that their vitality ranged from 41 to 45, and their talent was roughly comparable. Still, compared with Ye Wanqing and Leng Shuangyu, they fell a notch short.

No wonder only those two competed for the position of core disciple.

The group entered the main hall.

At first glance, Li Mu was stunned by its extravagance.

The pillars and beams, tables and chairs, sword racks, flooring... all were gilded.

This is obscene...

Any one of those chairs could probably be worth several taels of silver.

In this world, building such a hall would cost an astronomical sum.

Yet Hidden Sword Manor had more than one such hall.

Its financial foundation was plain to see.

Inside the hall, a white-haired middle-aged man with a troubled expression stood up.

He wore a yellow sword robe with black sword sleeves, a crimson-gold belt around his waist, a long jade pendant hanging at his side, and a long sword in a black scabbard.

Simply standing there, he resembled a towering greatsword. An immense, invisible pressure spread outward, making everyone's breathing hitch.

The middle-aged man merely swept his eyes over them, and Li Mu felt every hair on his body stand on end!

No information whatsoever appeared for this man!

It seems Clear Sword Eyes cannot see through experts who surpass me by too great a level.

Li Mu's scalp tingled, and his heart shook.

Much of the joy from his recent promotion to household servant faded away.

He was still truly weak. He had not even passed the first vitality threshold.

Against an expert like this, he would not even know how he died!

"The newly promoted household servants of the five towers have all arrived. We invite the Third Manor Lord to address them!" Ye Wanqing, clearly the leader among the stewards, stepped forward, bowed slightly, and cupped her hands in salute.

At her words, Zhao Meng immediately waved his hand. Li Mu and the others hurriedly half-knelt alongside the other household servants, lowered their heads, and called out, "We pay respects to the Third Manor Lord! Please instruct us, Third Manor Lord!"

At their first meeting with the Third Manor Lord, they were required to perform a half-kneeling salute and receive his instruction, establishing the rules.

Things would not be so strict afterward.

"You are all quite good," the Third Manor Lord said calmly. His voice was hoarse, as though his vocal cords had once been injured. "From today onward, you may cast off your slave status and become household servants of Hidden Sword Manor.

"The manor rewards and punishes fairly. So long as you do your work wholeheartedly, rewards will not be lacking. Superior sword arts, great medicines, and the like will not be lacking either.

"But if you violate the manor rules, even if you flee a thousand miles, I will capture you and deal with you according to the rules!"

"Did you all hear that?!" Ye Wanqing shouted.

"We heard clearly!"

Once the instruction was over, the Third Manor Lord casually waved them away. The group saluted and withdrew from the hall. The audience was over.

In the front courtyard of Hidden Sword Manor, before rows of small brick houses in the Myriad Swords Tower area.

"Congratulations, new recruits. From now on, we're brothers. My elder brother told me to assign your lodgings. There are indeed quite a few houses for you to choose from..."

Zhao Tuo smiled at Li Mu and the other three, but he kept rambling without moving an inch.

"Brother Tuo, sorry to trouble you."

How could Li Mu fail to understand? His heart twitched as he pinched off a corner from the three taels of silver he had just received from Zhao Meng, worth roughly twenty copper coins. He stepped forward and slipped it into Zhao Tuo's sleeve without drawing attention.

"No trouble at all. It's part of my duty! Come with me first. The rest of you wait here." Zhao Tuo secretly weighed it in his hand, revealing a satisfied expression. He gave the others a meaningful glance before taking Li Mu to inspect his lodging.

"Brother Tuo, I prefer peace and quiet. Could you arrange..."

"Sure! This one, then. A detached house, nice and secluded."

Zhao Tuo agreed readily and brought Li Mu before a small house in a quiet spot.

Upon entering, Li Mu saw that it had all the basic furniture. There was even a small stove where he could light a fire and cook for himself.

It was also spotless, with fresh air and not the slightest trace of mold or dampness. It seemed to have just been cleaned.

The window faced Spirit Ravine Peak, and the area around the house was full of greenery. The air was fresh.

The bedding had been freshly replaced as well, looking soft and comfortable.

Compared to the tiny partition in the five-story wooden building where he had lived before, it was the difference between heaven and earth.

Li Mu now felt that the broken silver had been well spent. Zhao Tuo had full authority over housing assignments, after all. If he offended him over such a small offering, who knew where he might be assigned?

Zhao Tuo stood with his hands behind his back and asked, "Well? Not bad, right?"

"Thank you for taking care of me, Brother Tuo." Li Mu handed over another piece of silver.

The smile on Zhao Tuo's rough, bearded face immediately grew broader.

"You really are a good kid. I heard Steward Leng praised you today too. Your future is boundless!"

"I'll still need Brother Tuo and Brother Meng to look after me." Li Mu understood the meaning behind his words and pinched off another piece of silver to offer him.

"No matter. Since you're such a sensible kid, I'll say a few more things as your elder brother."

Zhao Tuo did not stand on ceremony. "As a newly promoted household servant, you've cast off your slave status, so you can now move around many areas of the manor. But there are some forbidden places I should make clear to you first..."

"On workdays, you guard the tower during the day and stand watch at night. Tower duty is with me. Night watch is sometimes with me and sometimes with the Night Watch Tower—it depends. Naturally, it's all on rotation, so it won't take too long or delay your sword training. After half a month, once you know the procedures, you'll be reassigned to something easier. We don't have that many rules here..."

And this isn't a lot of rules? Li Mu was speechless.

"You get four rest days a month. You have to submit a request to my elder brother, and you can only move freely after he approves it. Unless you're leaving with a team on a mission, you must normally report directly to Steward Leng for approval before leaving the manor. Steward Leng will then submit a request to the Night Watch Tower, where your identity will be checked before you can leave."

"Once you pass the first vitality threshold, you can apply to escort sword shipments. You earn at least five taels of silver per round trip. When following the Third Manor Lord, you usually go to Azure River City and rarely elsewhere. It's practically free money, so those slots are hard to get."

Zhao Tuo said a great deal. Li Mu had not expected household servants to have so many rules to learn, and he could not help frowning slightly.

Even leaving the manor required an application. It seemed household servants were not truly free either. He still had to become a formal disciple...

But this escort mission was indeed tempting.

Today, Li Mu had personally witnessed the Third Manor Lord's strength.

Following the Third Manor Lord to Azure River City, with such an expert overseeing the journey, would surely be safe. Five taels of silver really was easy money!

The premise was that the bandits from the Mountain-Holding Vulture gang were far weaker than the sword escort convoy... After all, though the Third Manor Lord was powerful, he might not be able to protect every single person.

Li Mu suddenly had a thought and asked, "Brother Tuo, what level is the Third Manor Lord?"

Zhao Tuo did not hide it from him. "I don't know his exact realm either, but he is already above the nine vitality thresholds! He has entered the Jiangnan Grandmaster Register!"

"The Third Manor Lord is already a grandmaster-level figure in all of Jiangnan Commandery?"

Above the nine vitality thresholds!

Li Mu's heart shook. Such an expert was actually right beside him.

"Then what about the First Manor Lord and the Second Manor Lord?"

"The First Manor Lord has been in seclusion for many years. His depth is unfathomable. As for the Second Manor Lord... once you become a formal disciple, you'll get to see for yourself. I don't know either." Zhao Tuo shook his head.

Li Mu began to understand why this manor had stood firm for thirty years.

Wealth, martial strength, weapons... it had everything. This foundation made it a local dragon that none dared provoke.

But most importantly, the three Manor Lords used their formidable strength to deter all petty threats.