Tang Yan was quite fond of Uncle Mo's eldest grandson. He smiled and asked, "Brother Mo, were you looking for me?"
"I was blind before and always treated you disrespectfully, Young Master. Only now do I realize how utterly wrong I was. After spending this month with you, I've seen that you surpass the finest young talents of every other Lineage in every respect. Given time, the Number One of Cloud City's Younger Generation might well be a son of our Tang Family." Mo Yanjun's praise was heartfelt.
"Brother Mo, just tell me what you need. We're family; there's no need for empty formalities." Tang Yan waved a hand.
Mo Yanjun gave a wry smile. "You... I'm planning to resign as troop captain and focus on cultivating. Everyone's advancing so quickly, and they're all disciplined enough that they don't need me leading them. Besides, they respect you. I'll report everything honestly to the old master and let you take direct command of the guards from now on."
Tang Yan pondered this. He understood Mo Yanjun's feelings fairly well. Seeing so many guards advancing rapidly had put him under tremendous pressure. He feared that, over time, others would surpass him and he would no longer deserve his position as captain.
"Brother Mo, although your surname is Mo, you're inseparable from the Tang Family. My grandfather treats you as his own flesh and blood. We still need you to shoulder the burden of protecting the Tang Family." Tang Yan's expression turned serious. "Although I've spent more than a month at the Drill Grounds, I've rarely interfered with your training of the guards. That was precisely so I wouldn't undermine your authority.
"If the Tang Family faces powerful enemies in the future, you'll be able to command the Tang Family Guards more smoothly and protect our home."
"Wouldn't it be better for you to command them directly?" Mo Yanjun asked, puzzled.
"My ambitions lie elsewhere. I'll definitely leave Cloud City someday. The heavy burden of protecting the Tang Family will still rest on you, Brother Mo." After a pause, Tang Yan took out several bottles. "These are First Spirit Pills. Among pills that increase true qi, they're the finest within the second tier. Give everyone one tonight. Quite a few should reach the Yellow Tier tomorrow."
Mo Yanjun accepted the pills in a daze and stammered, "They're better than Qi-Gathering Pills?"
"Of course they're better than Qi-Gathering Pills. Keep three for yourself. Take one tonight, and you'll understand their benefits. Your aptitude is excellent too, Brother Mo. If you're a little harder on yourself, reaching the Heaven Tier isn't beyond hope!"
"I understand." Mo Yanjun looked earnestly at Tang Yan. "Rest assured."
Their eyes met. Tang Yan smiled, patted Mo Yanjun on the shoulder, then turned and left.
Watching Tang Yan walk away, Mo Yanjun fell into a daze. Which of us is the older brother, anyway? Why does that fellow feel like my elder?
Tang Yan had entrusted him with distributing the pills to the guards. Mo Yanjun was deeply moved; he knew this was Tang Yan's way of helping him win their loyalty.
He did not care much about power, however. Tang Yan's words kept echoing in his mind-as long as he was a little harder on himself, even the Heaven Tier was within reach.
In the past, Mo Yanjun would never have believed it, but Chang Tie's advancement had given him tremendous confidence.
As the Tang Family Troop Captain, he knew every man well. He had thought Chang Tie would need at least several years to reach the Yellow Tier, if he could reach it at all. Yet after Tang Yan arrived, Chang Tie had broken through in just one month.
Tang Yan's methods for training troops had undoubtedly opened a clear path of cultivation for them all.
The Liu Family's main hall.
The Liu Family's senior members had gathered, and a heavy atmosphere hung over the hall.
Old Master Liu, Liu Wuhui, sat in the center. "Liu Quan, recount everything that happened today, exactly as it occurred."
"I saw Tang Yan humiliating Little Yuan and damaging our Liu Family's reputation, so I wanted to reclaim our honor. Elder Brother Liu Zhi had already crippled Tang Yan's dantian, but when I fought him, who could have imagined that brat would possess Origin Tier Eighth Grade strength!" Liu Quan spoke with a mournful expression.
"Hmph! Ever since you were children, I've taught you that even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit! Underestimating your enemy is the greatest cause of defeat. Every one of you had better remember that!" Liu Wuhui slammed the table and roared, and everyone in the hall fell as silent as cicadas in winter.
"No one expected that brat to have concealed himself so deeply. Even before his dantian was crippled, the rumors outside always put him at only Origin Tier Second Grade. Besides, when Zhi crippled that Tang Family brat's dantian, several renowned physicians in Cloud City confirmed it. How could he have restored his dantian and gained Origin Tier Eighth Grade strength?" Liu He asked with a frown.
Liu He was the Liu Family's second-strongest expert, Old Master Liu's eldest son, and the heir to the position of family head.
Once he spoke, the tense atmosphere in the hall finally eased somewhat.
"I suspect that brat has been cultivating all along, and learned some secret art that temporarily made his dantian appear damaged, deceiving everyone's eyes and ears," said Liu Jing, the family's second-in-command. His son Liu Quan possessed outstanding talent and would have become a formidable expert in time, yet that bastard Tang Yan had severely injured his dantian. The thought filled him with hatred that surged to the heavens.
"We must admit that Tang Yan's sudden display of strength is no good news for our Liu Family. Give that brat a few more years to mature, and he'll become another major threat." Liu Wuhui sipped his tea and said darkly, "Besides, that brat has made our Liu Family lose face twice. We might as well eliminate him."
"In twenty days, it will be Mid-Autumn. The young members of Cloud City's major Lineages will gather at Bright Moon Lake for the Mid-Autumn Gathering.
"If Tang Yan participates in the Mid-Autumn Martial Contest, fists and feet have no eyes. Wouldn't it be satisfying to seize the chance and finish that brat off?" Liu Jing said ominously.
"An excellent plan, Second Brother. Although Tang Yan is still a martial artist, his wings haven't fully grown. Zhi previously humiliated him in front of the City Lord's Daughter, so that brat must bear a grudge. When the time comes, everyone can egg him on to challenge Zhi, and Zhi can dispose of him while he's at it," Liu He said.
A plot against Tang Yan quietly took shape within the Liu Family.
Tang Yan, the target of the Liu Family's supposedly brilliant plan, knew nothing about it.
Refining pills the previous night had cost him a considerable sum, leaving him with little silver again.
Now, carrying three First Spirit Pills and wearing a disguise, he headed toward the Heavenly Treasure Auction House.
After today, the Tang Family would likely have at least several dozen more Yellow Tier martial artists. Their monthly expenses would be no small sum. He also needed to accumulate wealth for the Tang Family to ensure its future development.
"Young master, what business brings you here?" an old man asked with a smile when Tang Yan entered the Heavenly Treasure Auction House.
"I'd like to auction some pills."
"Oh? What pills would you like to auction, young master? What grade are they? Ordinary pills won't be included in our auction listings." The old man explained, "By ordinary pills, I mean common pills below the second grade. Those can easily be bought at the Wonderful Elixir Workshop."
The old man had spent several years in Cloud City and prided himself on recognizing the young members of all the major Lineages. Even that Tang Family wastrel would be familiar to him on sight.
Yet after mentally going through everyone from the major Lineages, he still could not place the fellow before him. He must therefore have come from a minor Lineage. What fine pills could a young man from a minor Lineage possibly produce?
The old man would never have imagined that the young man before him was precisely Young Master Tang, whom he had dismissed as a wastrel.
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