Origin Stone!

The next day.

Dawn had just broken.

Shen Xiuhan pushed open the door, scooped up half a ladle of water, and wiped his face.

Most of the wretches in the outer city shantytowns had no time for such niceties.

Being able to snap off half a willow twig, dip it in well water, and scrub away the grime on their teeth already counted as a love of cleanliness.

As for the great households of the inner city, it was said that they used premium green salt to rinse their mouths upon waking. Some even brewed herbs that drew out toxins and cleared internal heat into a wash specifically for cleansing the mouth.

"Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey..."

Shen Xiuhan spat out the bitter willow-twig dregs in his mouth. With a glance from the corner of his eye, he saw Madam Zheng already busy preparing breakfast in the kitchen.

On the open ground outside the kitchen lay several strands of twisted hemp cord and a bundle of finely split green bamboo strips.

By the look of it, Madam Zheng intended to make him a new fishing net and a new bamboo basket.

Warmth rose in Shen Xiuhan's heart, but he did not go disturb her. Instead, he turned back into the house.

He sat on the edge of the kang bed, and a thought stirred in his mind.

[Today's intelligence has refreshed!]

[Intelligence ①: The dark-brown stone you obtained from the hollow dead tree last night is truly called an "Origin Stone." It contains pure primordial energy of heaven and earth, and is of immense benefit to the cultivation of "Gang Force Realm" martial artists.]

Origin Stone...

Shen Xiuhan's eyes abruptly lit up. He pulled the jade-like stone from his clothes and rubbed it between his fingers.

Gang Force Realm martial artists...

Could that be a martial realm above Transformation Force?

Not bad. This piece of intelligence alone made for a tremendous gain.

As for this Origin Stone...

Shen Xiuhan lowered his head to look at the fingernail-sized jade-like stone in his palm, then carefully put it away.

Something useful even to Gang Force Realm martial artists was undoubtedly a heaven-sent opportunity for those in the Transformation Force, Dark Force, and Bright Force realms.

He absolutely could not reveal his wealth.

[Intelligence ②: Yan Xiao, master of Through-the-Back Martial Hall, is the live-in son-in-law of the former master, Song Hengjiang. Yet he harbored the ambition of a wolf cub. At the instigation of his wife Song Yanrong, he poisoned his father-in-law and seized the magpie's nest!]

[Song Yanrong also imprisoned her own younger brother, Song Huatang, in a dark chamber, torturing him day and night in an attempt to force him to reveal the whereabouts of the original Transformation Force manual for the "Through-Back Stance."]

[That scoundrel Yan Xiao even coveted the charms of his mother-in-law from the Han Clan. He secretly forced her into an illicit affair, hoping to gain wealth, beauty, and martial arts all at once...]

Well, damn...

Shen Xiuhan's eyes widened as he eagerly devoured the gossip.

Impressive!

What kind of Tian Wenjing behavior was this Yan Xiao pulling?

And that Song Yanrong—she had poisoned her own father, and could even imprison and humiliate both her full-blooded younger brother and her own mother. Her heart was truly that of a viper and scorpion, vicious to the extreme!

When the beam above was crooked, the beams below could hardly stand straight.

No wonder the likes of Feng Xiaobao and Ma Xianyang acted without the slightest restraint, ready to kill and rob at the drop of a hat!

[Intelligence ③: Feng Xiaobao forcibly borrowed your fishing rod yesterday with ill intent concealed in his heart. To prevent the Treasure Fish from falling into another's hands, he wished to use this rod as leverage over you.]

[Ma Xianyang, who traveled far to Changshui County, returned empty-handed because the local Treasure Fish had long been controlled by powerful clans. Having heard that Nanxiang Commandery had many Treasure Fish, he changed his route overnight and headed there instead. His return has been postponed for another sixteen days.]

Hmph, just as expected!

A trace of coldness surfaced in Shen Xiuhan's eyes.

Feng Xiaobao looked rough and uncouth, pretending that he simply loved eating fish in order to swindle him, but he had actually learned the whole story from Ma Xianyang long ago.

Borrowing the fishing rod was merely a way to put a noose around him.

Once Ma Xianyang returned, they would have a perfectly legitimate pretext to suck the marrow from his bones.

This Through-the-Back Martial Hall...

Every last one of them deserved to die!

Oh, Chen An did not have to die.

[Intelligence ④: Seeing you kneeling in the snow for so long, longing for the martial path, Mei Shuangfeng faintly glimpsed in you a few traces of her deceased son Jiang Luoyun as he had once been, and pity rose in her heart.]

[Before his death, Jiang Luoyun most enjoyed fish dishes, as well as the malt-sugar snacks personally simmered by Mei Shuangfeng.]

Shen Xiuhan's gaze paused, and he fell into thought.

He had assumed Mei Shuangfeng only valued the Silver-backed Fish, but there was such hidden history behind it.

He shook his head and continued reading.

[Intelligence ⑤: Recently, boys and girls between five and eight years old have repeatedly vanished under strange circumstances in the impoverished outer-city districts of Longcloud and Changshui Counties.]

[The common folk all say that roving child-snatchers are secretly at work, but the true force behind it is the Bai clan of Longcloud County, manipulating matters from the shadows!]

"Hmm?!"

Shen Xiuhan narrowed his eyes slightly.

The child-snatchers trafficking children were actually connected to the White Family?

When Madam Zheng had mentioned Auntie Liu from the cloth shop losing her grandson last night, her face had been full of fear.

Everyone said that wandering kidnappers from outside had committed the crimes. Who would have thought the real mastermind was the Bai clan of the inner city?

But the question was...

The mighty White Family of Longcloud County had power and money alike. Why were they secretly abducting children from these poor families? What did they want with them?

Could it be...

To force decent people into prostitution?

A thought suddenly flashed through Shen Xiuhan's mind.

He had heard in the marketplace that the White Family owned several pleasure houses and entertainment quarters.

Most of the prostitutes kept there for others' amusement had either been bought cheaply when they were young or secretly abducted, then made to sign lifelong contracts as lowly slave households.

"I'm afraid that's truly the case..."

Shen Xiuhan murmured, slowly clenching his fists.

These beasts in human skin and scholar's robes would not even spare children. They were truly bereft of all conscience.

Suddenly, his heart jolted as he remembered something.

Momo was exactly within that age range!

A chill shot up his spine, shrouding his heart like dark clouds.

"No..."

Shen Xiuhan took a deep breath, suppressing his surging thoughts as his gaze gradually darkened.

"From now on, I can't let Mother and Momo stay in the outer city alone or wander around."

Fixing this intelligence firmly in his heart, Shen Xiuhan continued reading.

[Intelligence ⑥: ...The original manual of the Transformation Force-level stance art "Through-Back Stance" is stored in the rear courtyard of Through-the-Back Martial Hall in Longcloud County's inner city.]

[Intelligence ⑦: ...Deep within Cloudwater Lake lie the belongings and inheritance of a true disciple of Sea-Fishing Tower...]

The remaining two pieces of intelligence were the same as before.

Meanwhile, intelligence concerning the Silver-backed Fish, Golden-Tailed Rat, and the like had quietly vanished after he obtained them.

Shen Xiuhan stared at the light screen and pondered carefully for quite some time. Then his heart suddenly stirred.

The pattern by which this intelligence refreshed... seemed to be connected to the people and matters he came into contact with.

And judging by this line of reasoning...

Did that not mean that, given enough time, he would see through every person's background, secrets, and weaknesses without exception?

"Dalang, wake Momo up for breakfast..." Madam Zheng called from outside, interrupting his thoughts.

After breakfast, Shen Xiuhan tucked the two flatbreads Madam Zheng had prepared for his lunch into his clothes and hurried toward Mei Martial Hall in the inner city.

Perhaps he had arrived early, for he did not see the two Golden Dragon Gang lookouts.

The moment he stepped through the martial hall's gates, thunderous shouts came from the training ground.

Twenty or thirty outer-court disciples were already drenched in sweat, their blood and qi steaming as the sounds of fists and feet tearing through the air rose one after another.

The one supervising them today was not the sharply dressed woman from yesterday, but a sturdy man with a tiger's back, bear's waist, and a square, upright face.

He stood in the center of the grounds with his hands behind his back, his eyes blazing like torches. From time to time, he called out instructions.

Mei Shuangfeng, meanwhile, reclined sideways in a grandmaster's chair beneath the corridor, holding a celadon teacup as she leisurely sipped her tea.

When she saw Shen Xiuhan enter, she merely nodded slightly and waved toward the training ground.

"Xu Chuan, take Xiuhan around and explain the martial hall's rules. The rest of you, continue your morning practice."

"Yes, ma'am!"

The sturdy man supervising the disciples' morning practice immediately strode over, his voice booming like a great bell.

"I am Xu Chuan, the second disciple of the inner court. Just call me Second Senior Brother."

Shen Xiuhan did not dare be negligent. He hurriedly cupped his fists in salute. "Greetings, Second Senior Brother!"

Xu Chuan had a forthright temperament. He grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.

"We're fellow disciples, so there's no need for ceremony. Come, I'll first show you the lay of the land."