True Explanation of Martial Dao

The sky had yet to brighten; only a hazy blue-gray light seeped through the window paper.

Jiang Yuechu woke up.

She opened her eyes, looked at the unfamiliar roof beams, and listened to the faint crowing of roosters outside the courtyard.

After a while, she finally came back to herself.

"Not a dream."

She sat up, and the blanket slid from her shoulders, revealing her slender collarbones.

The morning chill swept over her, thoroughly waking her.

Throwing off the covers, she got out of bed.

She changed into her clothes, found a strip of cloth, and neatly tied her long hair behind her head in a Gao ponytail.

She took her saber and pushed open the door.

With a creak.

A young maid stood in the courtyard, seemingly having waited for quite some time.

Seeing Jiang Yuechu emerge, she quickly bowed. "Miss."

Before long, she brought over a basin of water.

Jiang Yuechu walked over, scooped up a handful of water, and casually splashed it over her face.

The water was neither cold nor hot—just right.

The maid then handed her a willow twig and a small jar of green salt from a tray at her side.

Jiang Yuechu stared at the items and paused.

This was how ancient people cleaned their teeth—with a willow twig.

One end was chewed soft until it frayed into fine bristles, then dipped in salt to brush one's teeth.

She took it and tried it the way her memories suggested.

A bitter woody taste mixed with salt spread through her mouth. It truly felt awful.

"Forget it. I'll have to get used to it sooner or later."

She muttered inwardly, just as she tossed the willow twig back into the basin.

Footsteps sounded beyond the courtyard gate.

Chen Qingyuan stood outside and waved to the maid.

Seeing this, the maid looked as though she had received a pardon. She bowed, picked up the copper basin, and hurried away.

Only the two of them remained in the courtyard.

Chen Qingyuan stepped forward and cupped his fists. "My lord, did you rest well last night?"

"Fine."

Jiang Yuechu's answer was brief, every word worth its weight in gold.

She picked up the cloth towel beside her and wiped the droplets from her face.

Though Chen Qingyuan had not known Jiang Yuechu for long, he had more or less figured out the temperament of this Demon Suppression Office official.

Her attitude was somewhat cold, but he could not hear any dissatisfaction in it. That eased his heart slightly.

"My lord, I went to the county yamen last night."

Jiang Yuechu paused in wiping her face and looked up at him without speaking, waiting for him to continue.

Chen Qingyuan did not dare keep her in suspense and hurriedly went on. "I reported the matter of Upper Pan Village to the county magistrate. I only said that our Flying Eagle Sect had been fortunate enough to wipe out that pack of Wolf Demons after fighting to the death, though we lost quite a few brothers..."

He secretly glanced at Jiang Yuechu's expression. Only when he saw that her face remained utterly calm did he relax a little.

She might indeed be cold on the outside and warm within.

But if someone truly pushed their luck, thinking people from the Demon Suppression Office were easy to deal with, then they were simply tired of living.

Jiang Yuechu tossed the towel back into the copper basin and silently gave Chen Qingyuan a thumbs-up.

He knew the score.

She stretched lazily, and a string of faint crackling sounds came from her bones.

A night of rest was enough.

She casually picked up the bundle containing the Demon Suppression Office uniform she had changed out of.

This was not a place to linger.

Leaving aside how strange every aspect of the Jiang Household case was, even her current false identity could not withstand close scrutiny.

Seeing Jiang Yuechu pick up her bundle as if she were ready to leave at any moment, Chen Qingyuan froze.

"My lord, you're leaving already?"

Jiang Yuechu nodded. "Official duties await. I cannot delay."

She paused, recalling what had happened the night before.

"There is one more matter."

Chen Qingyuan was startled and quickly said, "Please speak, my lord!"

Jiang Yuechu turned around, and the morning breeze stirred several loose strands of hair before her forehead.

"Do you have... any books about martial arts here?"

"...Huh?"

Chen Qingyuan was dumbfounded.

This official... wanted the Flying Eagle Sect's martial arts secrets?

But the Flying Eagle Sect had no damned secret arts!

Forget comparing them to methods of the Demon Suppression Office—even within the martial world of Longyou Circuit, they were merely crude farming-village techniques that did not even rank.

This official looked quite young. Could she have only recently joined the Demon Suppression Office and wanted to collect folk martial arts for reference?

Thoughts churned endlessly through Chen Qingyuan's mind, but he did not dare reveal the slightest hint on his face. He only grew more respectful.

"My lord, you jest... The shallow skills of my Flying Eagle Sect are merely techniques for strengthening the body, self-defense, and fending off enemies. How could they possibly be worthy of your notice?"

He chose his words with the utmost care, afraid of saying something wrong.

"Our sect does have several fist and saber manuals passed down through the generations. One is Flying Eagle Thirteen Claws, the foundation of our sect. It emphasizes speed, precision, and ruthlessness—striking like lightning and attacking the enemy's vital points..."

"There is also the Windward Saber Art. It is a fragmentary text our founding patriarch traded from a traveling merchant in his early years. It contains only three moves, without any exquisite variations, relying entirely on brute force. It is still fairly useful when fighting someone to the death."

By this point, Chen Qingyuan's old face had turned a little red.

Even he found it embarrassing.

What kind of rubbish was this?

The more he thought about it, the guiltier he felt. He hurriedly added, "These crude things truly... truly cannot grace the halls of elegance. If my lord does not find them beneath you, I shall fetch them at once for your perusal..."

"..."

Looking at him like this, Jiang Yuechu felt her head ache.

She slowly shook her head.

"I'm not asking for those."

Chen Qingyuan froze again, now completely confused.

She did not want martial arts manuals? Then what did she want?

Jiang Yuechu only felt a headache coming on.

She did not know just how vast the gap between realms truly was.

That was the most fatal problem.

It was like an unparalleled expert holding the art of slaying dragons, yet knowing nothing of what dragons looked like or what habits they had.

But she could not say that outright.

She could hardly tell Chen Qingyuan, Brother, I'll come clean—I'm actually a rookie. Explain everything to me from the beginning?

If she said that aloud,

how would it be any different from directly admitting that her Demon Suppression Office identity was fake?

She rubbed her temples, thought for a while, then said, "Recently, I have vaguely felt that I am about to break through."

Chen Qingyuan's entire body shook, and his pupils widened.

Break through?!

This official appeared to be no more than twenty, yet her cultivation was already unfathomably deep—and she was about to break through again?!

Was this the foundation of the Demon Suppression Office?

Sure enough, it was not something ordinary mortals like them could fathom.

Jiang Yuechu ignored his shock and continued on her own.

"It is only that my foundation was laid too quickly, and I fear there may be oversights. A Gao-rise building rises from level ground; if its foundation is unstable, the more Gao it rises, the faster it collapses."

She raised her eyes and looked calmly at Chen Qingyuan.

"I need some of the most basic general principles of martial arts to compare against myself and fill in the gaps. Do you understand?"

"..."

Chen Qingyuan's face filled with sudden realization.

So that was it!

This official was actually preparing for a breakthrough!

And she was using such a method of returning to simplicity and tracing back to the source!

What ordinary martial artist, upon obtaining Gao-level martial arts, did not cast aside the basics like worn-out shoes?

Only those who truly had hope of reaching the summit would value their foundation so greatly!

"I understand! I understand!"

"Please wait a moment, my lord! I... I shall fetch it at once!"

He hurriedly begged leave, turned, and ran out of the courtyard.

Jiang Yuechu was in no hurry. She simply folded her arms, leaned against a corridor pillar, and rested with her eyes closed.

Before long.

A burst of hurried footsteps approached again from afar.

Chen Qingyuan returned, holding a thin booklet in his hands.

Four regular-script characters were written across its cover.

True Explanation of Martial Dao.

Chen Qingyuan offered the booklet with both hands, his breathing still slightly uneven.

"My lord, do you think... this will serve your needs?"

Jiang Yuechu opened her eyes and reached out to take it.

She did not open it right away. She merely weighed it in her hand, her gaze settling on Chen Qingyuan.

Chen Qingyuan hurriedly explained, "My lord, this book was compiled jointly by the Ministry of War and the Imperial Academy of Great Tang, as introductory reading for soldiers in the military and martial artists of the jianghu."

"It explains in detail the Mortal Realm, String-Hearing, and then the Bone-Resonance Realm, including the characteristics of each realm, methods of circulating one's qi and blood, and even some basic means of identifying demons."

"It is not anything rare. This one was simply foolish before and did not realize this was what my lord needed..."

Jiang Yuechu nodded in satisfaction.

A beginner's guidebook!

And it was damned well issued by the imperial court!

"Thank you."

Chen Qingyuan hurriedly waved his hands. "You honor me too much, my lord. Being able to serve you is the honor of people like us."

He hesitated for a while, but ultimately could not hold back and cautiously asked, "My lord, have you come this time because of... the matter in Jincheng County?"

Jincheng County?

What Jincheng County?

Three question marks appeared above Jiang Yuechu's head. Her face remained an ageless iceberg, however, and she only cast Chen Qingyuan a faint glance without speaking.

That single look made Chen Qingyuan's heart jolt. Cold sweat instantly seeped across his back.

Damn it!

He had truly lost his mind!

What was his status? How dare he inquire into a major case of the Demon Suppression Office?

Cases handled by the Demon Suppression Office had always been secrets within secrets.

Forget a minor martial sect leader like him—even the county magistrate of Guangwu County had to be respectful upon meeting someone from the Demon Suppression Office and did not dare ask a single extra word.

Rumor had it that when the Demon Suppression Office was out handling cases, anyone who obstructed them could be executed first and reported afterward.

If this question of his happened to offend this official and she cleaved him in two on the spot, he would have nowhere even to cry.

"I spoke out of turn! I spoke out of turn!"

Chen Qingyuan's face went pale with fright. He hurriedly bowed in apology and explained at a rapid pace.

"Please forgive me, my lord! I had absolutely no intention of prying! It is only... only that Jincheng County lies less than a hundred li from Guangwu County."

"Half a month ago, six villages under Jincheng County's jurisdiction were slaughtered clean in a single night—not even chickens or dogs were left alive! Now people from Jincheng County are fleeing everywhere. Many have escaped to Guangwu County. Inside and outside the city, everyone is anxious and discussing this matter, saying that sooner or later an official from the Demon Suppression Office would come to investigate."

"That... that is why I dared ask. I meant nothing else!"

He finished in one breath. Cold sweat already streamed down his forehead as he lowered his head, no longer daring to look Jiang Yuechu in the eyes.