Theft

Once he shut off Super Sensation, the strange phenomenon vanished, and he examined it carefully with both eyes.

This full moon was carved from white jade and set into a massive black stone shaped like dark clouds.

At first glance, it looked like a full moon embedded in the night sky, spilling down a gentle, limpid radiance.

Even without Super Sensation, one could sense that this moon statue was extraordinary.

The moment one stepped through the main doors of the True One Cult altar, a faint chill could be felt, along with the crisp, cool moonlight that seeped into the heart.

Standing in the middle of the main hall and focusing on the moon, the longer he looked, the more marvelous it seemed.

A bright moon hung high in the sky, sparse layers of dark clouds scattered around it, setting off the moon like a jade disk—pure, flawless, and luminous.

Yet with the slightest scrutiny, shadows could be seen within the moon.

They flickered indistinctly, as though there were people on the moon, or perhaps buildings.

One could not help thinking of Guanghan Palace upon the moon, and the fairy maiden of Guanghan Palace within it.

Was the fairy standing atop the lunar palace looking down upon the mortal world, watching over it?

Chu Zhiyuan released his Super Sensation once more.

The moon was no different from the one in the night sky, seemingly illusory yet real.

What sort of method was this?

Then he looked again at the worshippers kneeling beneath the moon statue and kowtowing. He could not help but muse, Could this be the Path of Incense and Fire?

The Path of Incense and Fire did not seem so easy to define.

Under Super Sensation, everything around him was reflected in his mind.

There was one grandmaster within this True One Cult altar: the old man in a dark green robe sitting in the corner of the main hall.

There were also two Xiantian Masters, both middle-aged, practicing in the rear courtyard.

The rest were utterly ordinary.

He had originally assumed that the True One Cult was about the same size, influence, and strength as the Thick Earth Sect.

Now, however, the True One Cult appeared far weaker than the Thick Earth Sect.

The Thick Earth Sect had a young genius like Feng Zhihao and held even greater promise. At the very least, it would have no cause for concern for the next hundred years.

Yet he had seen no young geniuses within the True One Cult altar. The entire place felt steeped in the twilight of decay.

He left the True One Cult altar and strolled with his hands clasped behind his back amid the bustling crowds on the street.

He had not seen the True One Cult's cultivation method, so it was hard to say which sect was truly stronger. Perhaps their experts were hidden outside Jade Capital, unwilling to draw attention.

Most martial artists were blunt and straightforward, but there was no shortage of clever people among them.

From the True One Cult's doctrines, he could vaguely guess that its cultivation method followed the path of using the spirit as a foundation. That path could almost never produce a Great Grandmaster.

Yet its early stages were often swift. Perhaps it could even match the speed of the Lesser Violet Sun Technique.

But judging from the situation inside the True One Cult altar, that did not seem to be the case.

His eyes flickered, and he smiled.

The True One Cult had been hiding its true strength!

Why hide it?

Either they did not wish to stand out, or their ambitions ran deep.

He smiled again.

None of these sects or schools was an oil-saving lamp!

For now, only the Flying Flower Sword Sect seemed to be newly arrived, narrow in outlook, and easier to see through. The other sects and schools possessed deep roots and solid foundations; they were entirely different.

He arrived outside the residence occupied by the Flying Flower Sword Sect.

Word had already been sent inside. Lu Wan came out to receive him with a group of Flying Flower Sword Sect disciples.

Dressed in a lake-green gauze robe, graceful and alluring, she smiled faintly and cupped her fists. "Assistant Director, your arrival brings radiance to this humble dwelling!"

"Assistant Director..."

The disciples all stepped forward to pay their respects.

Chu Zhiyuan noticed curiosity in their eyes, along with a trace of indignation.

Clearly, his words from last time had already reached their ears.

They were certainly unconvinced. After all, he was only twenty, about the same age as them, and even younger than some.

To them, his words had sounded old-fashioned and condescending, as though he were speaking down from on high. They had found them deeply unpleasant.

Chu Zhiyuan smiled and returned their salute.

He could tell that something was wrong with Lu Wan's expression. Behind her alluring smile lay a trace of strain, and Super Sensation caught the anger hidden beneath it. He gave her a questioning look.

Lu Wan smiled as though nothing were amiss. "My lord, let us speak inside."

Chu Zhiyuan nodded and followed her in.

Zou Fang remained by his side, while Guo Chi led six estate guards in after them.

After passing through the main gate and around the screen wall, they found several flowerbeds ahead, arranged like petals.

A hundred flowers competed in splendor within them—red, pink, yellow, purple, blue. All manner of blossoms ignored the cold wind and bloomed together in dazzling rivalry, their fragrance rushing to meet them.

Chu Zhiyuan studied the flowers curiously, then turned to her. "Elder Lu, how was this achieved?"

The flowers at Prince Qing's Estate bloomed year-round and its trees remained lush because of hot springs.

Through Super Sensation, he knew there were no hot springs here.

He was quite curious why these flowers neither withered nor faded.

"My lord, it is because of the flower varieties, as well as certain special medicines."

"Oh?" Chu Zhiyuan examined them with interest.

"My lord is interested in flowers and plants as well?" Lu Wan asked, surprised.

She had always felt that Chu Zhiyuan was profoundly thoughtful, his eyes seeming capable of seeing through the human heart. He truly did not resemble a young man of twenty, but rather some deep and seasoned old fellow of fifty or sixty, weathered by the trials of the world.

Moreover, she knew that Chu Zhiyuan was a martial arts prodigy. He should have been wholly devoted to cultivation, yet she had not expected him to take an interest in flowers and plants.

Chu Zhiyuan smiled. "It is not me. My younger sister enjoys growing flowers and tending plants... Could you give me one of these unusual flowers?"

Lu Wan smiled. "Which one does my lord want?"

"That one." Chu Zhiyuan pointed at a large apricot-yellow blossom.

The flower resembled the yellow peonies he had seen in his previous life, layer upon layer of petals, its color pure without being gaudy—possessing heavenly beauty while standing bright and apart from the common throng.

"This is a Morning Glow Flower," Lu Wan said. "Its color is lovely but its fragrance faint. It does not bloom for long, and it can only bloom for ten days a year."

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Its flowering period is only ten days..."

Lu Wan nodded gently. "But once it blooms, the more one looks at it, the more beautiful it becomes. It is enough to intoxicate the heart."

"Is it easy to grow?"

"It is rather difficult." Lu Wan said, "Su Yue is skilled at growing flowers. Why not have her explain it all carefully to the County Princess?"

She beckoned with her jade-like hand.

A shy, delicate girl stepped forward, keeping her head lowered and too embarrassed to look at Chu Zhiyuan. "Master..."

Chu Zhiyuan glanced at the lovely young girl, Li Suyue, then cupped his fists with a smile. "That could not be better. I will have to trouble you, miss."

Li Suyue flushed and hastily returned the gesture.

Chu Zhiyuan took one more deep look at the bright-yellow, densely petaled Morning Glow Flower, then followed Lu Wan into the front hall.

Zou Fang stood behind Chu Zhiyuan, while Guo Chi and the six estate guards remained outside.

"My lord, the Earth Dragon Pearl is gone!"

The moment he sat down, Chu Zhiyuan heard Lu Wan say those words. He stared at her in astonishment.

Lu Wan pressed her red lips tightly together, anger veiling her alluring eyes. "It was stolen."

Chu Zhiyuan blinked, as though he could not comprehend her words.

Lu Wan said bitterly, "After Senior Brother Yang and I left, we gave the thief an opening. He actually snuck in and stole it!"

Chu Zhiyuan asked in confusion, "You did not leave a grandmaster behind to guard the residence?"

Lu Wan sighed. "Who could have imagined that someone would dare do such a thing in Jade Capital?"

"This sort of thing happens all the time!" Chu Zhiyuan snapped. "You people really are... If you do not leave even one grandmaster at home, what if someone takes the chance to break in and massacre everyone?"

The Town Martial Division was formidable, and the City Patrol Guard was powerful as well, but that did not mean Yujing City had become a place where no one pocketed lost treasures, utterly safe in every respect.

No matter the world or the era, there would always be antisocial villains. This world had more evil people than his previous one.

Some martial arts cultivation methods were not flawed in themselves, but their practitioners suffered Qi Deviation and became madmen who wanted only to kill.

Some cultivation methods were inherently problematic, capable of drawing out the darkness in one's heart and strengthening it, making their temperament increasingly irritable and murderous.

Still others were not merely flawed but incomparably vile. Even normal people would become inhuman fiends who knew only slaughter after practicing them.

Living in such an age, how could one afford to be without vigilance?

Without a grandmaster guarding the place, there could be no peace of mind.

No matter the time, one grandmaster had to remain in the residence.

Yet they had not left a single grandmaster behind. He truly did not know what to say.

Should he call them foolish, or call them naive?

They had spent too long in a small city and had not changed their way of thinking. There, no one had dared stroke the Flying Flower Sword Sect's tiger whiskers, but this was Jade Capital!

No matter how one put it, it could not conceal their ignorance and stupidity, their impetuousness and incompetence.

He could not be bothered to say more and asked, "You were lured away from the mountain, weren't you?"

"...Yes." A layer of frost settled over Lu Wan's face.

The more she thought about it, the angrier and more humiliated she became, until her chest ached with rage.

"Do you know who did it?"

"The! Thick! Earth! Sect!"

"Did you personally see someone from the Thick Earth Sect?"

"If we had seen him, how could we have let him succeed?"

"Then it is too early to draw that conclusion."

The world was sometimes stranger than imagination. Without seeing it with one's own eyes, one could not be certain.