Fan Xian was startled. He thought this was a sacred and tranquil place, but suddenly there was such a loud shout. He focused his eyes and realized that there was someone in the Qing Yu Nian Temple. Blocking him was a middle-aged man with deep-set eyes and a hooked nose, looking quite sinister.

Seeing the other person staring at him, Fan Xian felt a little displeased. He thought that according to the classics he had read and the rules of the Imperial City, Qing Yu Nian Temple was a place everyone could visit. Not only did this person hide behind the door and scare people, but he also put on such an "eagle hunting rabbit" posture, which was outrageous.

Who the hell wanted to be a rabbit?

Fan Xian frowned and said, "Your Excellency's voice is so loud, aren't you afraid of deafening people?"

Unexpectedly, the middle-aged man looked extremely serious, pushed him hard, and whispered, "Leave quickly. Someone is praying in the temple and must not be disturbed." This person's attire was clearly that of a wealthy family's follower, but his tone was full of officialdom.

However, Fan Xian did not notice this. Ever since he started digging graves with Teacher Fei when he was young, he had developed a slight obsession with cleanliness. Seeing the hand getting closer and closer, he frowned, crossed his hands, and twisted the other person's wrist.

With a soft crack.

The two people, one big and one small, looked at each other in surprise, discovering that their techniques were extremely similar, like two snakes entwined, impossible to tear apart.

"Hmm." The middle-aged man made a soft sound, his eyes flashing brightly. A surge of hidden power, like a vast river, surged from his wrist and attacked Fan Xian's body.

Fan Xian groaned. He never expected to encounter such an expert for no reason. A burning sensation arose in his back, and the domineering true qi that had been quiet for many years reacted instantly, rushing out of his dantian and meeting the opponent head-on.

With a soft buzz, the dust on the stone steps was stirred up by the collision of the two hidden energies, forming a strange ball of dust that quickly dissipated.

The two were shaken apart by several steps. The middle-aged man coughed twice, covering his mouth, while Fan Xian was expressionless, seemingly unaffected.

The middle-aged man glanced at him coldly and said, "At such a young age, you possess such domineering true qi. Who's son are you?"

"Why bother asking who I am? I just want to enter Qing Yu Nian Temple to pray. Why are you stopping me?" Fan Xian looked at him coldly.

"There is a noble inside the temple. Young man, wait a moment." The middle-aged man thought that the other person's technique was similar to his own, and suspected that the other party might be the son of some family in the capital and had some connection with him, so the killing intent in his heart gradually dissipated.

A hint of a smile flashed in Fan Xian's eyes: "There is no rule in the Qing Yu Nian Kingdom's laws that requires people to queue to pray at the temple."

The middle-aged man frowned, finding the young man quite annoying. He flicked his sleeves and entered the temple, leaving Fan Xian outside.

Fan Xian opened his mouth to speak, but felt a burst of discomfort in his chest and a sweet taste in his throat. He quickly pulled out a handkerchief from his sleeve and covered his mouth. During the previous clash of hidden energies, he was fortunate to have subtly flicked the other person's pulse with his right index finger at a critical moment – relying entirely on his deeper understanding of the human body's structure than these martial arts masters, otherwise he would have suffered even more serious injuries.

At this moment, he looked at the heavy wooden door with a hint of fear and no longer dared to try pushing the seemingly immovable door again.

……

……

Fan Xian coughed twice, and a few traces of resolution appeared on his handsome face. Since he couldn't beat the opponent, he naturally had to retreat and wait for another day to fight again. Just as he turned to leave, he noticed that the wooden door behind him had opened again. The middle-aged expert who had injured him stood at the door and said coldly, "My master has ordered that the young man go to the side hall to pray and not enter the main hall."

After speaking, he added, "Don't enter the main hall, understand?"

Fan Xian turned around, glanced at the middle-aged man, and then at the seemingly unfathomable Qing Yu Nian Temple. He frowned, flicked his sleeves, stepped over the high threshold, and walked towards the side hall without looking back.

Seeing that the young man, after suffering such a setback, remained calm, unhurried, unafraid, and unyielding, still adhering to his original goal, a trace of appreciation flashed in the middle-aged expert's eyes.

The middle-aged man closed the temple door, frowned and looked around, thinking that these little brats had actually allowed that young man to reach the temple door. He would have to drill them hard when he got back at night.

————————————————————————

Qing Yu Nian Temple was a quiet place. The people of Qing Yu Nian Kingdom were a very pragmatic nation – if ordinary people wanted to pray for blessings, they would rather go to the East Mountain Temple west of the capital to worship the Child-Giving Goddess and those immortals who looked like wealthy landowners.

But the people of Qing Yu Nian Kingdom respected and feared Heaven, and the emperor was precisely the so-called Son of Heaven, so Qing Yu Nian Temple became the place where the imperial family worshiped Heaven. Although Qing Yu Nian Temple was still open to the people of the capital on ordinary days, no one liked the oppressive and solemn feeling it gave off.

The main hall of Qing Yu Nian Temple was the building that resembled the Temple of Heaven, with two layers of circular eaves emerging in succession, very beautiful.

The middle-aged man stood respectfully outside the main hall, looking at the noble in the hall who was admiring the colored paintings on the wall with his hands behind his back, and said in a low voice, "According to master's wishes, that young man has been sent to the side hall."

The noble was about forty years old. His appearance could not be described as heroic, but his eyebrows revealed a kind of domineering spirit that overlooked the world, but it was diluted by a trace of fatigue that was extremely difficult to detect.

"Who's son is that young man, to be able to exchange a palm strike with you?" the noble asked with a smile.

The middle-aged man's martial arts were so strong, but in front of him, he was really like a follower, honestly answering, "This subordinate does not know, but I just reported it to master. The path he takes is similar to... the path of the guards in the family."

The noble was slightly surprised: "Oh? Could it be that it's Li Zhi's kid?"

The middle-aged man smiled wryly: "Although this subordinate has always been too lazy to interact with people, I still recognize Jing Wang's (Prince Jing) heir."

"Oh." The noble said "Oh" again and turned to look at the murals on the wall again. He had too many things to consider every day, and rarely had such leisure time, so he was unwilling to be disturbed by these trivial matters. The previous permission for the young man to enter the side hall to pray was simply because he felt that it was a good thing for the country to have more young talents.

The middle-aged man quietly guarded outside the hall, his eyes occasionally glancing towards the side hall.

……

……

After a long time, a commotion came from outside the hall. The noble suddenly frowned and said, "Why is the girl not resting in the back and running to the side hall?"

The middle-aged man was slightly startled, mobilized all his true energy to listen to the sounds from that direction, and said with a look of shame, "The Princess has gone to the side hall."

The noble frowned and said, "Nonsense..." He suddenly thought of something, and his expression changed slightly: "Go and take a look, and... bring that young man to me."

"Yes." The middle-aged man accepted the order and was about to leave when suddenly a bird call came from outside Qing Yu Nian Temple. Immediately afterward, the temple door was pushed open, and a person with a hurried expression ran up and handed him a letter with a fire lacquer seal on it.