County Seat

At dawn, two horses left the village one after the other.

Zhou Yan carried a travel pack. Apart from the valuables in the cloth bundle, he had only brought a few changes of clothes.

The horses did not travel quickly.

The morning mist slowly dispersed, and light shone through from the eastern mountains.

Zhao Shan tugged on his reins ahead and rode alongside Zhou Yan. "Your eldest sister nagged me all the way before she went back last night."

"She told me to take good care of you. If you come back thinner, she'll settle the score with me." Zhao Shan smiled.

"For this opportunity, and for going to the Sun Family, I still have Brother-in-law to thank." Zhou Yan turned back and cupped his fists.

"We're family. Don't talk like strangers. Your eldest sister has a fierce temper, but she has a good heart," Zhao Shan said heartily. "I could tell long ago. In your Zhou Family, she's the only one who truly cares about you. She's never stopped talking about you in my ear."

"I grew up without a father or mother, so I see these things more clearly than most." As Zhao Shan spoke, he casually tugged the reins.

"An old hunter in the mountains found me. The old man could barely feed himself, yet he still took in another mouth to feed."

"When I was seven or eight, I started following him into the mountains. Everything I know was taught to me by the old man."

"Later, the old man died of illness, and I lived alone."

Zhao Shan spoke of it calmly, but Zhou Yan could still sense a thread of sorrow in his voice.

"Hunting skills are tempered in the mountains. They aren't any proper cultivation art—they're bought with your life."

He patted the short blade at his waist.

"Later, when I got older and wanted a family, I asked a matchmaker to arrange a marriage."

"The matchmaker introduced me to your eldest sister."

At this point, he paused and gave a soft laugh. A faint flush rose on his dark face. "Back then, your father and mother thought I was poor. A hunter had no land and no house, living entirely at heaven's mercy. If I caught prey, I could eat well. If I caught nothing, I had to drink the northwest wind."

"Your eldest sister was the one who nodded in agreement." Zhao Shan's mouth split into a grin.

"She said I was an honest man." He patted the horse's neck, and the horse tossed its mane.

"Later, we got married. Life was tight, but now that I'm a guard for the Sun Family, we at least have some security."

Zhao Shan pointed toward the roadside.

"Once we pass that poplar grove ahead and turn the bend, we'll reach the main road."

Once they reached the main road, it became much wider.

Donkey carts occasionally passed by, their wheels grinding over the stone slabs with creaks and rattles.

Zhao Shan cleared his throat.

"The county seat isn't like the village. There are many matters and all kinds of people. Let me tell you what I know."

He counted on his fingers. "Three powers call the shots in the county seat."

"I told you about the Sun Family yesterday. They rose to prominence through medicinal herbs."

Zhou Yan nodded. The Body-Tempering Decoction he had bought before had come from a Sun Family shop.

He had heard that members of the Sun Family could even get a discount!

"Black Tiger Hall occupies the north of the city. They're at odds with the Sun Family and bear a blood feud. I heard that during an earlier assessment, the Sun Family's eldest young master accidentally killed the son of Black Tiger Hall's hall master. Whether it was truly an accident or deliberate, no one knows. Once you join the guard corps, be careful around Black Tiger Hall's people."

"Then there's the Azure Cloud Gang in the east of the city. They control the docks and some of the shops. Their gang leader is supposedly already a Martial Adept, and he has more than a hundred men under him. These two are the county seat's largest gangs. They keep each other in check and have some business dealings with the Sun Family."

Azure Cloud Gang!

Zhou Yan's fingers tightened around the reins.

Just as expected!

The Azure Cloud Gang's influence was no small matter!

"Besides those two, there are another seven or eight small gangs, scraping out a living in the cracks. Every other day, they fight until heads are broken and blood flows."

Zhao Shan sighed. "The lives of people from small gangs are worthless. Once they die, they're tossed into the mass graves outside the city. By the next day, no one remembers them."

"Besides the Sun Family, there's also the Qian family. They run restaurants and inns. The county seat's largest Cloud-Stacking Tower is a Qian family business."

"They also deal in tea and specialties from north and south. They're close to the government offices. Whenever officials hold banquets, they do so on Qian family turf."

"The He Family runs money houses and pawnshops. Half the silver flowing through the county seat passes through their hands." Zhao Shan paused. "They also deal in antiques and jade. The He Family patriarch keeps a low profile and rarely shows his face, but..."

He drew his thumb across his own throat.

"Biting dogs do not bark."

"Understood." Zhou Yan nodded.

"As for the government offices..." Zhao Shan gestured with his chin toward the farmland by the road. "Magistrate Meng nominally governs the whole county, but he does not meddle in the affairs of Martial Adepts. All these lineages have people backing them from above. Most days, he only deals with taxes. So long as no major trouble breaks out, he can't be bothered to provoke anyone."

"What if trouble does break out?"

"Even if it does, he might not be able to handle it."

Zhao Shan laughed after saying that. "At that point, there'll be people specially assigned to handle it!"

"There are also four or five martial halls in the county seat. You know White Cloud Martial Hall—the one that gave us directions last time."

White Cloud Martial Hall!

Zhou Yan's eyelid twitched.

Others might not know, but he knew perfectly well that Zheng Tong had died by his hand.

Instructor Zhou had failed to find the body and hurried away afterward.

Zhao Shan did not notice and continued, "White Cloud Martial Hall, Mountain-Suppressing Martial Hall, and Iron Eagle Martial Hall are all well-known. Each has its own signature skills. Some excel at fist techniques, some at saber arts, and some specialize in toughening arts. Their hall masters are Martial Adepts and rarely act in person."

Zhao Shan turned his head and glanced at Zhou Yan.

"Oh, right. There are a few rules you need to remember."

"In the county seat, don't casually ask about the origins of other people's cultivation arts. Martial Adepts consider that taboo. Ask too much, and trouble will easily find you."

"And don't flaunt your wealth or abilities. Keep a low profile."

That reminded Zhou Yan of the Mountain-Breaking Fist.

It was the cultivation art of the Azure Cloud Gang's young gang leader.

Lei Bao had recognized it before, causing him no small amount of trouble!

He could not use it this time within the Sun Family Guard Corps.

If he used it and someone recognized it, he would be seeking his own death!

"Your eldest sister asked me to look after you. I don't want you getting into trouble the moment you enter the city." As Zhao Shan spoke, he wiped the sweat from his face with his sleeve again.

"The Sun Family has recently been in a hurry to recruit guards. I don't know why, but the Guard Corps truly is short on people. More than a dozen died last month, and they still haven't filled those spots. But I reckon the Sun Family wants to expand its own influence!"

"Once you're there, be sharp. Talk less and work more. Don't compete with others over every little thing. Study carefully when the instructors drill you. Once you truly join the Sun Family Guard Corps and break through Body Tempering, you may even get the chance to learn cultivation arts at one of the Sun Family's martial halls."

Cultivation arts!

Zhou Yan's expression shifted. What he lacked most right now was precisely cultivation arts.

He only had the Mountain-Breaking Fist, and he could not even use it.

He could practice the Basic Stance Art, but that was merely a foundation and could not support real combat.

"Cultivation arts are something people in villages may never encounter in their entire lives. Even in the county seat, not just anyone can afford to learn them. You brat are lucky."

The horses continued forward.

In the distance, familiar bluish-gray city walls stretched across the horizon.

After entering the city, Zhao Shan pointed with his riding whip. "We're here."

Zhou Yan's eyes swept across the streets on both sides.

The Sun Family's shops were easy to recognize.

The people behind their counters all wore the same dark-blue clothing.

Cloth shops, medicine shops, general stores—one could be seen every few storefronts.

The Qian family's Cloud-Stacking Tower stood at a crossroads.

It was three stories tall, with upturned eaves and soaring corners. Several sedan chairs were parked outside its entrance.

Zhao Shan looked back at him.

"Stop staring. You'll have plenty of time to look later."

The two headed west along the street.

As they passed a side alley, several burly men squatted at its entrance.

Blue cloth bands were tied around their arms. One of them was picking at his nails with a dagger. He raised his eyes to sweep a glance over Zhou Yan on horseback, then lowered them again.

They were Azure Cloud Gang members!

Azure Cloud Gang members were easy to recognize. All of them had blue cloth bands wrapped around their arms.

Without changing his expression, he shifted his gaze away and looked down the road ahead.

Zhao Shan lowered his voice. "Don't stare at them."

The two arrived at an inn and ordered a few small dishes.

"Dress neatly when you meet the steward tomorrow, and speak less," Zhao Shan said as he ate. "Answer whatever they ask you. If they don't ask, don't say more than necessary."

"Understood," Zhou Yan said.

"Your bone appraisal is Inferior Middle Grade. It isn't good, but it isn't the worst either. Once you enter the Guard Corps, train properly and you can still rise."

"In this world, there are only two paths for children from poor families to rise above the rest."

"Either take the martial civil service examination, or sell your life to another."

"The threshold for the martial civil service examination is too high. Cultivation arts, medicinal baths, silver for greasing palms—which one doesn't burn money?"

"Selling your life is dangerous, but at least it gives you a chance."

He stood and patted Zhou Yan on the shoulder. "Don't put too much pressure on yourself. Get some sleep early."

The night deepened.

Dogs barked occasionally in the alley, while the clapper of the night watch sounded in the distance.

Zhou Yan lay on the hard plank bed, unable to sleep.

He slipped his hand into the cloth bundle and touched the loose silver and medicinal pills beneath his clothes.

Azure Cloud Gang members were everywhere in the county seat.

He would put the Mountain-Breaking Fist aside for now.

He could continue practicing the Basic Stance Art. It left no trace and was a common commodity, something that could be bought for a few taels of silver.

Once he entered the Sun Family, he would see whether he could learn a proper cultivation art.