The Four Supreme Wonder Mansions

The Su Family was not only a top-tier aristocratic clan of the time, but also one of the five main families of the Ten-Thousand-Year Fox Manor.

The Ten-Thousand-Year Fox Manor did not belong to the Nine Great Profound Veins, but it was one of the Four Supreme Wonder Mansions. With its deep foundations, it ranked among the foremost sects of the age and excelled most in the arts of music.

Yuzao was someone the Su Family had spared no effort in training. Within the Su Family, she was a maid; within the Ten-Thousand-Year Fox Manor, she held the status of an inner-chamber disciple. Although that fell short of the true-inheritor status held by Chu Qiuzi and the other Eight Beauties of Qingcheng, it was still respectable.

Yuzao was an exceedingly clever girl. She knew that the Ten-Thousand-Year Fox Manor was dominated by its five main families, and only relatives of those five surnames had a chance to become true inheritors. For ordinary disciples, such as a household-raised little maid like her, becoming a true inheritor would be fraught with countless difficulties, however gifted she might be. So, unlike Jiangzhuer and the other girls, she had not chosen one of the manor's most powerful secret teachings in the hope of someday receiving the complete version. Instead, she had chosen a secret art with a fixed ceiling, but one she could learn in full, called the Thirteen Heavenly Fox Melodies of a Thousand Tricks and a Hundred Illusions!

The Ten-Thousand-Year Fox Manor excelled most in the arts of music, and many of its secret martial arts were related to music. In earlier years, a genius from the Fox Manor, whose standing was very low, had enjoyed coarse forms of music, such as horns, great drums, bowed fiddles, and wooden clappers. Because of his low standing, he had never received the manor's true teachings, so he had drawn connections between related arts and created a saber technique of his own.

This saber technique comprised thirteen grand melodies. Performed with a specially crafted Multi-Holed Fox Saber, the blade naturally produced all manner of soul-gripping tunes as it cut through the air. Combined with its treacherously shifting saber moves, it had vaulted that genius into the ranks of the Ten-Thousand-Year Fox Manor's ten greatest experts of his day, his martial prowess even surpassing that of many true inheritors. Later, the Thirteen Heavenly Fox Melodies of a Thousand Tricks and a Hundred Illusions had become one of the manor's supreme arts. But because its moves lacked grandeur, its variations were too bizarre and devious, and the art itself was so intricate and changeable that it was extremely difficult to begin learning, it had never won the favor of the manor's true inheritors. Thus, it had become the finest martial art available to inner-chamber disciples.

Besides this main martial art, Yuzao, as an elite maid trained by the Su Family, had also been assigned several other arts to learn, including a sword formation art, an unconventional formation for coordinated attacks, a lightness art, and an internal cultivation art.

Intrigued by what he heard, Wang Chong asked Yuzao to demonstrate what she had learned. Yuzao drew a short saber from her sleeve and performed the Thirteen Heavenly Fox Melodies of a Thousand Tricks and a Hundred Illusions. Every melody shifted unpredictably, leaving the listener agitated and depressed. As for the moves themselves, Wang Chong thought little of them. What he had learned was one of Wudang Mountain's Seven Routes Divine Sword. That Fox Manor genius might not have lacked talent or ingenuity, but it was like someone studying mathematics abroad having a chance to win the Fields Medal, while a genius at home had no hope of claiming it: their resources differed. Having never learned the Ten-Thousand-Year Fox Manor's superior martial arts, his horizons had not been broad enough, so naturally he could not compare with Wudang Mountain's geniuses. The Candle-Bearing Sword Technique was far more sophisticated than the Thirteen Heavenly Fox Melodies of a Thousand Tricks and a Hundred Illusions.

After watching just once, Wang Chong spotted several discordant points in Yuzao's saber technique and offered her some guidance. The beautiful little maid was so moved that her eyes reddened slightly and brimmed with tears.

Yuzao practiced an obscure art that her young mistress had never learned either, so she could not guide her. Although Yuzao held the status of an inner-chamber disciple, she was still a maid of the Su Family and had no avenues through which to seek instruction. Usually, she had to puzzle things out on her own. She had never expected her new master, Wang Chong, to possess such profound martial attainments that he could easily reveal the subtleties of the saber technique she had pondered for so long without grasping.

As for the other martial arts, Yuzao had received authentic instruction, and Su Luoyan had given her plenty of pointers as well, so Wang Chong had little need to say more.

After guiding Yuzao, Wang Chong had Wang Dong demonstrate his martial arts too. Having watched Yuzao's martial arts, he could only sigh when he then watched Wang Dong's. "Your foundations are very solid. From now on, just keep practicing diligently."

Yuzao watched with a suppressed smile. How could she fail to see that Wang Dong's aptitude was too poor for him to grasp the subtle variations of the martial arts he had learned? Wang Chong had received more than ten years of scientific education, so of course he knew just how "different" the students produced by the same teachers, the same textbooks, and the same environment could be.

Wang Dong belonged to that sort...

Well, the sort whose comprehension fell short, and for whom no amount of explanation would help.

After more than ten years of instruction from the Qingcheng Sect, this was all he amounted to. As his secondhand master, Wang Chong might as well spare himself the effort.

Besides, Wang Dong had no such passion for martial arts. While Yuzao practiced, he was stealing a moment of leisure. Telling him to cultivate diligently would only breed resentment in the bookboy's heart. After all, not everyone liked working hard.

After all, Wang Dong was only a bookboy, neither a junior relative nor a disciple. If he could handle miscellaneous chores well, he was a good bookboy; he had no need for profound martial arts.

Wang Dong was delighted by this assessment and visibly brightened. Wang Chong sent him to sort out the luggage, then called Yuzao into the room and said, "I'm going to help Constable Li investigate a case. For the time being, Wang Dong will stay here and watch the luggage. I have something for you to do."

Yuzao said happily, "This little maid is at your command, young master."

Wang Chong rested briefly, then sat in meditation to cultivate Qi, practicing the Innate Pure Yang Formula for a while. After Yin Deficiency Giving Rise to Yang, as Yang Qi gradually flourished, one had to "harmonize yin and yang," regulating the two kinds of Qi. Normally, one would refine away the yin dross strand by strand until finally attaining pure yang. But this method had two drawbacks: first, progress was extremely slow; second, it was extremely difficult to refine away all the yin dross, and fluctuations often occurred. Thus, he had chosen another path that allowed more rapid advancement, gathering all his Yin Qi together and using yin to refine yang.

Progress along this path was extremely fast. The more fiercely Yin Qi blazed, the more intensely Yang Qi burned, and the Yang Qi refined this way was purer. But because one could not refine away the yin dross at the outset, Yin Qi accumulated in ever greater quantities and grew more concentrated with time. Eliminating it all later would be ten times harder than with the first path.

Wang Chong had chosen this path because his circumstances were unusual. His martial arts needed to advance as fast as possible. There was no need to think about the future; he might not have one.

In fact, once he had passed the hurdle of Yin Deficiency Giving Rise to Yang, he could begin cultivating the Pure Yang Sword-Refining Chapter. But after weighing the advantages and disadvantages, Wang Chong still devoted painstaking effort to the Innate Pure Yang Formula. First, the Pure Yang Sword-Refining Chapter was extremely difficult to get started with. If he wanted to improve his cultivation in a short time, he certainly could not touch it. Second, if his internal power reached pure yang before he cultivated that chapter, he could achieve twice the result with half the effort. He was willing to gamble that he could pass the hurdle of harmonizing yin and yang and refine his internal power to pure yang.

In the late afternoon, Li Qingge came to visit. On seeing Wang Chong, he said, "It looks like we'll have to head out."

Wang Chong nodded slightly and took Yuzao with him as he followed Li Qingge out of the Daoist temple.

All three rode horses this time. Yuzao had also changed into a practical warrior's outfit. The little maid had even procured a veil to cover her face, making an amusing counterpart to Wang Chong's mask.

On the road, Li Qingge said, "I told you before, Young Master Wang, that White Chrysanthemum had committed another crime recently. This time, we're going to see the victim of that case."

Wang Chong had read the case file and knew that the victim was named Li Miaomiao, a well-known Buddhist nun. She was not a member of the martial world, but was renowned for her poetic talent. However, because the crime had only just occurred, the information in the file was incomplete. When it had been compiled, Li Miaomiao had merely been abducted by White Chrysanthemum, and whether she was alive or dead had not yet been determined.

...Li Miaomiao: "Don't come any closer..."