I'll kill him! I'll kill him! How dare he threaten me!
No, I'll make him beg for life and deny him even death!
You country bumpkin, just you wait! Just you wait!
The young marquis cursed incessantly in his heart, driving his mount into a frenzied gallop toward the marquis's residence.
He dared neither curse aloud nor look back.
He feared that if Xia Yu turned around, he would take his life.
For the first time in his life, he faced the terror of death.
He had killed people before.
He had even tortured people to death.
He had found the deaths of those who perished at his hands amusing.
Yet when he faced death himself, he nearly wet his pants.
At that moment, he wanted only to return to the marquis's residence. Only there could he find some sense of safety.
"Young Master Xia, do you have a Dao Guardian by your side?" Duanmu Wenshan asked.
Xia Yu froze for a moment, then asked in return, "What is a Dao Guardian?"
Uh!
This time, it was Duanmu Wenshan's turn to freeze.
After a moment of silence, he said, "When the descendants of powerful Lineages venture out to gain experience, experts often follow them in secret."
"Their task is to intervene and protect those descendants when their lives are in danger. Such people are called Dao Guardians."
Xia Yu nodded. After a while, he said, "I don't have a Dao Guardian, and there isn't a powerful Lineage behind me. I've already left the Xia clan."
Duanmu Wenshan gave Xia Yu a long, searching look. Doesn't your conscience hurt when you say that?
I might believe that you don't have a Dao Guardian with you. Perhaps your Lineage arranged it that way deliberately.
But I don't believe a single word of your claim that you have no powerful Lineage behind you.
Your Heaven and Earth Ring, your Pill Furnace that seems to be saint-grade, your Sin Dragon Spear of unknown grade, and your formidable pill-refining skills have already given away your identity, haven't they?
Duanmu Wenshan could only keep these thoughts to himself.
There were things Xia Yu did not wish to explain, and he did not dare ask.
"All right!" Duanmu Wenshan could only go along with Xia Yu's words. "If you don't have a Dao Guardian, you were right not to kill the young marquis."
Xia Yu gave Duanmu Wenshan a puzzled look but said nothing.
Duanmu Wenshan continued, "The first marquis of this household was named Jiang Yuankui. He was a great general serving An Qi, the founding emperor of the Xia Dynasty. They say he even saved the emperor's life."
"So after An Qi became emperor, he made Jiang Yuankui a hereditary marquis, with the title to pass down through the generations without reduction in rank."
"Every successive marquis has been a trusted confidant of the imperial family."
"The current marquis, Jiang Chengyu, is no exception. His eldest son is this young marquis, Jiang Yuqi, who will inherit the title."
"Although Jiang Yuqi is the eldest son, he has little talent for cultivation and is no good at scholarly pursuits either. He has achieved nothing with either the brush or the sword."
"But he is proficient in every sort of vice, from bullying respectable folk to drinking, whoring, and gambling."
"And this Jiang Chengyu not only has the marquis backing him, but his mother is also a princess of the An imperial family. His connections are formidable."
"That is why he runs rampant through Capital City. Everyone seethes with anger, but no one dares speak out. So if you really killed him, you can imagine the consequences."
"Incidentally, the young marquis has a younger half-brother named Jiang Yufeng, born to a different mother. His cultivation talent is astonishing. You must be careful if you encounter him. They say he has already reached the half-step king realm and is a genius student at the Martial Saint Academy."
Duanmu Wenshan explained everything in detail, chiefly because he feared Xia Yu would act rashly.
If Xia Yu truly had no Dao Guardian behind him, there were people he simply could not afford to offend.
Even if his Lineage came to avenge him afterward, what would it matter if he was already dead?
Seeing Xia Yu fall silent, Duanmu Wenshan smiled and said, "Since the young marquis isn't dead, this will be easy to resolve. You needn't worry. I have a few old friends at the Myriad Treasures Pavilion in Capital City."
"Our Myriad Treasures Pavilion may only be a merchant association, but we span the entire continent and fear no imperial family. You can rest assured, Young Master Xia."
Xia Yu still said nothing and gave no response. He knew perfectly well that relying on himself was better than begging others for help.
From the day he left the Xia Lineage, he had told himself that he had to rely on himself!
Just then, he felt Xia Yao's hand tighten slightly around his.
Clearly, Xia Yao was worried about his safety.
Xia Yu smiled and said, "Sis, don't worry. I'll take care of everything!"
Xia Yao shook her head slightly, her expression grave. "Yu, no matter what happens, you must stay alive. Even if I die one day, you must live on! Do you understand?"
"Sis, I can protect you! Don't worry. Whoever wants you dead, I'll make sure he dies before you do!"
Xia Yu's voice was resolute!
He had boundless confidence in the future.
As long as he had a little time and devoted himself to cultivation, he could advance a thousand miles a day.
The Ancestral Dragon Boundless Art and the Heaven-Incinerating Furnace had shown him a future and given him hope.
"I believe you!" Xia Yao forced a smile. "I've only held you back. If not for my health, you would have soared into the heavens long ago."
"Sis, to be brother and sister in this lifetime is a rare blessing. Don't let your thoughts run wild. Once we meet Miss Mingyue and cure your illness, you'll be able to cultivate too."
"When that day comes, we'll be an invincible brother and sister!"
Xia Yu's face was wreathed in smiles.
This time, his smile was genuine. Those were the days he dreamed of.
Only, in the past, that dream had included not just the two of them, but their entire family.
Just then, Duanmu Wenshan suddenly pointed into the distance and said, "Young Master Xia, look. Those are the Crouching Dragon Mountains. The Martial Saint Academy is on Martial Saint Mountain, at the far right."
Xia Yu raised his eyes. In the distance, the land rose abruptly into a mountain range that truly resembled a crouching dragon.
The mountain range formed a semicircle, with three peaks standing side by side along it.
In truth, the three peaks were quite far apart.
"They say the Crouching Dragon Mountains are where the An Lineage's dragon vein lies. The leftmost peak is called Dragon-Riding Mountain, and it is also where the dragon vein's head lies. The An Lineage's Imperial City stands at its foot."
Xia Yu nodded. Noticing that Duanmu Wenshan had said nothing about the middle peak, he asked curiously, "Then what is the peak in the middle?"
"That is Wendao Mountain. It belongs to Wendao Academy."
"Wendao Academy? A place for studying?"
"Wendao Academy is far more than a place for studying," Duanmu Wenshan said with a smile. "Back when His Majesty An Qi was conquering the realm, countless talented people served him, with experts as numerous as clouds. The two most famous were Mr. Su, who founded Wendao Academy, and Yuan Dehai from the Martial Saint Main Academy, who was known as the Great Xia War God."
"No one knows where Mr. Su came from, and no one knows his name. He suddenly appeared at His Majesty's side and founded Wendao Academy."
"Wendao Academy is divided into many schools. There is the Confucian Academy, where scholars study, learn administration and statecraft, and nurture their vast, upright qi; the Martial Academy, devoted to cultivation and teaching its various methods; and the Weapon Academy, devoted to researching and teaching artifact refinement, as well as the Pill Academy and the Formation Academy."
Before you continue