Taiyi Sect

Duan Rong was thinking: the artifact spirits of the junk sabers on the weapon rack were either second-rank or third-rank, yet the artifact spirit of the fine saber Zhao Mu used was unranked.

In other words, an Artifact Spirit Rank had no direct connection to the quality of the artifact itself.

"Then what exactly determines an Artifact Spirit Rank?"

Duan Rong furrowed his brows tightly and pondered bitterly.

He suddenly recalled that the junk sabers on the weapon rack each had two or three Devouring Effects, and they were all different saber techniques.

Duan Rong's eyes suddenly lit up. He realized those junk sabers might have been used by more than one person, and naturally, different people would have cultivated different saber techniques.

Zhao Mu's saber, meanwhile, had only been used by him alone. Its Devouring Effect had only one entry: the beginner-level Five Tigers Herd Sheep Saber technique.

"In other words, an artifact spirit's Devouring Effects are related to the artifact's experiences. The more it has experienced, the more Devouring Effects its artifact spirit possesses."

"Perhaps it is also related to one other thing..." Duan Rong's gaze suddenly sharpened as he murmured, "Time."

In principle, all Martial Arts could seep into an artifact spirit, but the more formidable the Martial Arts, the longer they likely required to seep into it.

Duan Rong had made this deduction because the artifact spirit he had devoured from Zhao Mu's Oxtail Saber contained traces of Zhao Mu's entire growth process in training. Though he had digested it all in a single night, he could still sense that peculiar force that belonged to the passage of time.

Still, these were only Duan Rong's conjectures. After passing the assessment, he intended to find an opportunity to properly verify his ideas. But for now, the most pressing matter before him was passing the assessment and becoming an apprentice.

Duan Rong was deep in thought when someone suddenly grabbed his shoulder and gave him a hard shake.

Almost instinctively, Duan Rong planted his feet in a horse stance. His right hand flipped over, ready to twist free of the grip, but when he looked up and saw a familiar, smiling face, his body immediately relaxed.

Yang Zhen was Duan Rong's Childhood Friend and worked as a constable at the county yamen. He was tall and powerfully built, quite burly, with fair, clean skin—unlike Duan Rong, who was dark as coal.

"Potato, how are you? Recovered already? Your complexion looks quite rosy!" Yang Zhen said with a grin.

Potato had been Duan Rong's childhood nickname. He had been short and dark, so he had ended up with such a name.

Yang Zhen had been even darker than Duan Rong as a child, and fat besides. Who knew how, but he had grown fairer and cleaner-looking as he got older. Back then, his nickname had been Black Pig.

Duan Rong found the nickname Black Pig far too unpleasant to say aloud. "I'm much better now. Thank you for taking care of me these past few days."

The original owner had suffered a serious illness a few days ago, with a fever that would not break. Yang Zhen had been the one caring for him all along, fetching medicine and decocting it for him. Though the original owner had still died in the end, Duan Rong remained deeply grateful to this Childhood Friend because of it.

Yang Zhen punched Duan Rong lightly on the shoulder and laughed. "Since when did you become so polite? Don't tell me that fever cooked your brains?"

Duan Rong's heart gave a jolt. His way of acting truly was vastly different from the original owner's.

He would have to be more careful about that, lest he give himself away. Fortunately, the original owner barely associated with any relatives or friends. The only person familiar with him was Yang Zhen before him.

Duan Rong gave an awkward smile but said nothing.

Seeing Duan Rong reveal the shy, quiet manner Yang Zhen had always known, Yang Zhen laughed, slung an arm around Duan Rong's shoulders, and said, "Come on. Better a chance encounter than a formal invitation! I'll treat you to a good meal."

As he spoke, Yang Zhen gave Duan Rong a shove and half-dragged him toward the tavern at the street corner.

Yang Zhen ordered several hearty dishes in a row, then asked for a large jar of Rice Wine, and the two began eating and drinking.

Yang Zhen had grown close to Duan Rong because both of them were orphans without parents, but Yang Zhen was ultimately different from Duan Rong.

Yang Zhen's second uncle worked as an accountant in a Crude Drug Store.

When martial artists trained, they needed not only nourishment from food, but more importantly, nourishment from medicinal supplements.

The medicine ordinary people bought when they fell ill generally consisted of common medicinal ingredients, and even those were already quite expensive.

The medicinal ingredients martial artists used to supplement their training, however, were usually precious materials. A single dose could cover an ordinary family's expenses for an entire year.

The profits involved were immense beyond imagining.

Thus, a business like a Crude Drug Store was not something just anyone could run. Without connections and influence, how could one swallow such a lucrative pie?

To work as an accountant in a Crude Drug Store, one had to keep clear accounts and calculate swiftly, but one probably also needed the shopkeeper's deep trust.

Yang Zhen's second uncle was naturally capable if he could work as an accountant in a Crude Drug Store. Otherwise, how could he have gotten Yang Zhen into the yamen as a constable?

As the old saying went, the government office was a fine place to cultivate oneself.

Though they were Childhood Friends, Yang Zhen's prospects were who knew how many times better than the original owner's.

Yang Zhen tore off a chicken leg from the roast chicken and handed it to Duan Rong. He picked up another for himself and began eating it with Rice Wine.

"Do you know Xu Ruhu?" Yang Zhen casually asked through a mouthful of chicken.

"Huh? Xu what?"

"Xu Ruhu." Yang Zhen swallowed his food, then repeated the name clearly.

"Never heard of him." Duan Rong shook his head, lowered his head, and continued eating. "I don't know him."

Yang Zhen rolled his eyes at Duan Rong. "Xu Ruhu is a traitor of the Taiyi Sect. They say he was once an Outer Sect Disciple of the Taiyi Sect, but after violating a fellow disciple, he was wanted throughout the entire sect's territory."

"Violating a fellow disciple? That's playing pretty wild, isn't it?" Duan Rong raised his head from the pile of food and drink.

"That bastard has been wanted by the Taiyi Sect for years. He's been roaming the four prefectures and eighteen commanderies in southeastern Qing Province, committing crimes wherever he goes."

Duan Rong blinked.

The Taiyi Sect was one of the Eight Great Sects of the Nine Provinces Continent. It dominated Qing Province and was the ruler of Qing Province.

This Xu Ruhu had been roaming Qing Province for years while wanted, yet had still not been brought to justice. It seemed he had some skill.

One had to know that the Taiyi Sect's eyes and ears were everywhere within Qing Province.

When Duan Rong had first transmigrated into this body, he had found this world's social organization rather astonishing. But after slowly digesting things over the past few days, he had more or less accepted it.

The Nine Provinces Continent was actually ruled by sects.

The Taiyi Sect controlled all of Qing Province. Even the magistrate of Xiangu County was an Outer Sect Disciple of the Taiyi Sect.

When Duan Rong had first transmigrated, he had found it absurd. But over the past few days, he had gradually begun to understand the logic behind it.

The Nine Provinces revered martial prowess, and the inheritances of Martial Arts secret manuals were all held in the sects' hands.

Whoever controlled the inheritance of Martial Arts secret manuals controlled the finest martial artists.

Whoever controlled the finest martial artists possessed the qualifications to rule.

It was, in truth, the same principle as political power growing from the barrel of a gun.

"That bastard was recently captured by our Constable Xie." Yang Zhen suddenly lowered his voice and said cautiously, "He was badly injured and hiding in a brothel to recover. No one knows what went wrong, but Constable Xie happened to run right into him while drinking there."

"His wanted portrait gets sent to the yamen every year. Our Jie Tou has served for so many years, so naturally his eyes are sharp."

"He recognized him immediately. The two of them started fighting on the spot. Xu Ruhu was already badly injured, but even so, Constable Xie took two palm strikes from him while capturing him. These past few days, he's been coughing up blood at home every day."

"That bastard is that fierce?"

Jie Daohan was already one of the notable figures in Xiangu County. It was said that he had come from poverty, yet he had risen to become the chief constable of the county yamen. That alone showed both his talent in Martial Arts and his ability to handle affairs.

For Xu Ruhu to beat Jie Daohan until he coughed blood even while severely injured showed just how ferocious the man was.

"That bastard is locked up in the underground dungeon now, Heavy Shackles piercing through his shoulder blades. Constable Xie is badly injured, so he ordered Jie Lei and me to guard the dungeon." Yang Zhen spoke smugly as he poured himself a bowl of Rice Wine and gulped down half of it in one breath.

Duan Rong smiled faintly. After taking such a long detour, so this was what Yang Zhen had been waiting for.

He wanted to show off that Constable Xie valued him, entrusting such an important task to him and Jie Lei.

After all, Jie Lei was Constable Xie's own nephew, while Yang Zhen had only been a constable at the county yamen for a little over half a year. Yet he had been assigned such an important task as well. That already suggested he was being treated as a trusted confidant.

"Why not execute that bastard at once? Why keep him in the underground dungeon?" Duan Rong deliberately changed the subject.

When Yang Zhen saw that Duan Rong had not praised him, he was immediately somewhat displeased. His expression darkened as he said, "The county yamen has already sent an urgent dispatch to the sect. The sect replied that they would send people to the county to take that beast away and bring him back to the sect for execution!"