"Primordial unity!?"
Lijiang City, Prince Yue's Residence.
Yan Kaigui, who had been keeping a close watch on developments at Canglang Mountain, received the news immediately. In his fury, he hurled the white jade porcelain cup on the table, worth three hundred taels, to the floor and smashed it to pieces.
"Is there no justice left in this world!"
The heir to the King of Yue gritted his teeth, his face filled with shock and rage.
Standing before him was Bai Yup an, one of the four blood exchange and marrow washing experts who had entered the service of Prince Yue's Residence.
He, too, found the news deeply troublesome, but still said, "Even if Zhou Juechen has comprehended primordial unity and attained an impervious body, he still needs time to reach Commander Zhang's level. Dealing with him should be no difficulty for Commander Zhang. As long as we gather our men and rush them together, we can still hack them to death."
Gather their men and rush them together?
The Great Zhou Imperial Clan had enjoyed four hundred years of peace, and its commandery princes numbered in the hundreds. Thus, strict limits were placed on the troops local commandery princes could maintain. Having more than three hundred guards or ten suits of armor was treated as rebellion.
The Yueyang Prince's Residence had a hundred and twenty guards and a hundred and sixty ceremonial guards. In theory, these were more than enough to surround and eliminate Li Xian and Zhou Juechen.
But...
Yan Kaigui did not reply. Instead, he sank into thought.
He thought of the Canglang Sword Sect. Daoist Xuantie had made equally solemn assurances.
Yet the result...
Had his father not bestowed a Golden Light Talisman on him because of Yan Shui Rou, he would probably have died on Canglang Mountain.
That Li Xian...
He really dared to kill him!
And when he struck, he did so without the slightest hesitation!
How great a commotion would nearly three hundred men make if they turned out in full force?
Zhou Juechen and Li Xian were not fools who would wait at their base to be surrounded and exterminated.
If they avoided the initial onslaught and resorted solely to assassination, he did not have a second Golden Light Talisman.
Thinking of that Golden Light Talisman, he then thought of the Dragon Gate Token he carried. Thinking of the Dragon Gate Token naturally brought leaping over the Dragon Gate to mind...
"That's right. I've already leaped over the Dragon Gate. I'm destined to venture into a broader world!"
At that thought, his mind suddenly opened up.
"Of all those who embarked on Leaping Over the Dragon Gate in previous years, even the least accomplished had refined the void into reality and cultivated true qi by the time they returned. Those a little more outstanding had even reached the pre-heavenly state and enjoyed a lifespan of a hundred and twenty years. Since I've already shed my serpent form to become a dragon and ascended to heaven in a single step, why should I risk my precious life in a fight to the death with reckless martial brutes like Li Xian and Zhou Juechen, who waste their lives in the mud and dust!?"
Even though Zhang Shuheng had the advantage in cultivation.
Even though Bai Yup an was brimming with confidence.
Even though Prince Yue's Residence had strength in numbers.
But...
The son of a wealthy household did not sit beneath the eaves.
With his boundless future, he should not risk his life by staying at the Prince's Mansion to fight two mud-legged peasants to the death, even if there was the slightest possibility of danger.
"We were never destined to belong to the same world! Once I've embarked on Leaping Over the Dragon Gate, trained diligently for five years, and returned to occupy a lofty position and command troops and generals, won't killing these two arrogant wretches who have no respect for rank be as easy as turning my palm!?"
Having understood this, Yan Kaigui abruptly rose. "I'll leave avenging my sister and restoring the Prince's Mansion's honor entirely to my father. Prepare a horse. I'm heading to the Royal Capital to await the Dragon Gate Convention!"
Riding a horse was not something worth enjoying.
Fortunately, riding two hundred li hardly counted as an ordeal for Li Xian, who had attained blood exchange and marrow washing.
They departed in the afternoon, rested at a small town along the way, and continued their journey the next day, returning to Lijiang City near dusk.
By the time they arrived at the Dragon Spring Martial Arts Hall, Hongyu had already dismissed all the disciples.
This was to prevent innocent people from being hurt if the Prince's Mansion retaliated.
Aside from Hongyu, more than a dozen people were waiting at the martial arts hall.
Every one of them was vigorous as a dragon or tiger and had attained muscle and bone great accomplishment.
Two middle-aged men among them even had long, steady breathing, evidently having reached internal organ refinement.
These were all capable fighters from the Zhou Family.
As a major clan entrenched in Lijiang, the Zhou Family naturally had martial artists besides Zhou Juechen.
Aside from these dozen or so people, gathering another thirty or forty able-bodied young men accomplished in strength training would not be difficult either.
"Ninth Uncle."
"Ninth Brother, you're here."
"Juechen, your eagle-borne message said you comprehended primordial unity and entered the impervious body realm? Is that true!?"
As soon as Zhou Juechen arrived, everyone gathered around him.
The two elders who had attained internal organ refinement, however, turned their eyes toward Li Xian.
"This must be Li Xian, our Lijiang's great talent accomplished in both letters and arms... Martial Master Li Xian, yes? What a fine appearance and extraordinary bearing!"
One of them cupped his hands in greeting.
Li Xian nodded politely. "You flatter me."
Zhou Juechen understood that Li Xian had no intention of joining the Zhou Family.
Although he accepted investment, the investment he had agreed to accept seemed to concern Zhou Juechen alone.
The two could not be conflated.
He immediately took the initiative. "All right, you don't need to stay here! Go back, all of you! There's not much you can help with here."
With that, he turned to the middle-aged man who had offered the greeting. "Fourth Uncle, have you told my father? If things become untenable, scatter immediately! Still, I believe that until they've dealt with us, the Prince's Mansion won't dare attack our Zhou Family compound like rabid dogs."
"Rest assured. The family head has made all the arrangements."
A keen light flashed in the middle-aged man's eyes. "If our Zhou Family can withstand this round of pressure, we'll surely rise another step. The five major powers of Lijiang will become six competing factions."
Zhou Juechen nodded. "Then keep a close watch on the Prince's Mansion. Report any unusual activity immediately."
"Understood."
"Go. We don't need anyone here. With fewer people, we'll actually have greater freedom to act."
Zhou Juechen spoke.
Hearing this, the dozen or so people no longer insisted and soon left one after another.
Only after everyone had left did Zhou Juechen say, "In a day or two at the earliest, three to five days at the latest, someone from the Prince's Mansion will deliver a challenge. Of course, if no challenge arrives within three to five days, that proves they've invited powerful reinforcements and are waiting for them to arrive. In that case, the situation will be rather unfavorable for us."
In a world where immense power could be concentrated in a single individual, settling grudges and conflicts had its own rules.
Arranged duels and death matches between the strongest combatants were the most common methods.
Unless each side's strongest fighters were dealt with through a death match first, rashly taking action would invite unrestrained retaliation, inevitably spreading casualties far more widely.
And because the strongest fighters could overturn the table at any moment, high-level martial masters in this world naturally carried weight. No so-called official or powerful noble was naive enough to believe that authority, righteousness, or threats alone could crush a high-level martial master completely.
"No matter. Without grueling battles, how could I uncover my own limits?"
Li Xian answered calmly.
Hearing this, Zhou Juechen smiled and offered no rebuttal.
Hongyu, however, who was still keeping them company, glanced at her master, then at Li Xian...
Having already learned what had happened on Canglang Mountain, she had never imagined that Li Xian could cause such enormous trouble in a single trip.
It was simply...
She had nothing to say.
"Stay in the West Courtyard for the next few days. It'll also make your daily training easier. I'll have someone bring your things from Green Ink Alley."
Zhou Juechen said this to Li Xian.
"All right."
Li Xian agreed.
Counting the days...
The lease on the courtyard in Green Ink Alley was nearly up.
"Keep watch tonight."
Zhou Juechen gave Hongyu another instruction.
"Yes."
Hongyu acknowledged it.
Seeing Li Xian head toward the West Courtyard, she could not help asking, "Li... Young Master Li, have you... really attained blood exchange and marrow washing?"
"Yes."
Li Xian nodded slightly.
Hearing him admit it himself, Hongyu was struck utterly speechless despite having already prepared herself mentally, as though she had shut herself away.
Seeing this, Zhou Juechen seemed to understand how she felt at that moment. "The world of geniuses is destined to be beyond our understanding. Think of the few Immortal Seedlings selected by Great Zhou. Those people can set their sights directly on entering the Dao..."
He sounded rather wistful. "After blood exchange and marrow washing, we martial artists still have to pass through impervious body, refining the void into reality, all hundred meridians unblocked, and returning to the pre-heavenly state before we can be considered to have laid our foundations and qualified for entering the Dao through martial arts. Yet this... is merely the first step of their cultivation. Though not every Immortal Seedling can take that step successfully, their starting point is a finish line that ninety-nine percent of martial artists can never reach in their entire lives. Who could we even appeal to for justice?"
Hearing this, Hongyu gave her master a rather helpless look.
She no longer knew whether her master was trying to console her or deal her another blow.
"On my trip to Canglang Mountain, the many young heroes and heroines I saw were all merely in the bone and muscle realm. You're already working on internal organ refinement. That's excellent."
Li Xian chimed in with some encouragement as well.
Hongyu covered her face. "I understand. Please stop talking."
With that, she hurried toward the Inner Courtyard. "I'll go see how dinner and the medicinal meals are coming along."
(End of chapter)
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