235: Chapter 18: Beyond Snow Mountain 235: Chapter 18: Beyond Snow Mountain “Xie Zhen didn’t react?”
“Yes…
Xie Zhen didn’t react.”
“But he was being watched by so many people.”
“It was just the people on one street, not that many really.”
“You should understand what I mean, sir.
Aside from Yong’an Street, the eyes of the entire Imperial City are on him.”
The Qin Family’s banquet lasted all night.
In fact, everyone was well aware that this was not a mere dinner party.
As soon as news of the Lin Family’s incident reached the Deputy Director of Imperial City, it also reached the ears of the head of the Qin Family.
These people gathered here both to avoid trouble from the “Lin Family case” and to declare their own stand.
After the banquet ended, Qin Wanyang returned to his mansion, which had not many servants.
Although he was a young prince of the Qin Mansion.
But the rules of the Qin Family were extremely strict; most martial arts noble families had numerous restrictions on their disciples.
The Qin Family and the Xie Family, though both were noble families of the Dachu Dynasty with different surnames.
One was rooted under the Imperial City; the other was located thousands of miles away in Jiangning.
The customs of the families were very different.
The courtyard was empty.
At dawn, the first light fell on the courtyard but left a shadow.
Qin Wanyang stood before this shadow.
His face bore a hint of distress, “If Xie Zhen shows no reaction at all, wouldn’t my beating tonight have been in vain?”
The questioning fists of last evening were, after all, instigated by him.
When Jiang Qihu came to visit, the family head took out a cane in front of everyone and severely punished him.
The young prince knew clearly.
This family discipline was unavoidable; if it could achieve the goal, the pain was nothing.
“Young Prince, it wasn’t entirely in vain to be beaten.”
Within the shadows, a figure sat like a dried-up bone.
He wore a black linen robe, only revealing a pale and delicate face.
The figure was extremely thin, almost like a thin sheet of paper.
Apparently from a lack of sleep.
The dark circles under his eyes were pitch black and deeply sunken.
But it must be said…
that was a handsome face, about seventy percent as delicate as a woman’s, only the features were somewhat too striking.
He pursed his lips and smiled, “Xie Zhen is now facing enemies all over the city.
People have already gone to his mansion to challenge him.”
“Challenge him with fists?”
Qin Wanyang shook his head, “What’s the use of that?
Even Xie Sheng is no match for him, could those stray soldiers really beat him?”
“Of course they can’t win.”
The man in the black robe softly said, “But before today, people’s understanding of ‘Xie Zhen’ was only from the Qing State case files and the few pitiful images from Xuanshui Cave Heaven of the Da Sui Sword Palace.
No one knew his personality, background, or experiences.
After today, people will gradually understand him, get to know him, and…
become familiar with him.”
“So?” Qin Wanyang was puzzled.
“If you want to defeat an opponent, the first thing you must do is ‘understand’ him.”
The man lowered his brows and calmly said, “Many people want Xie Zhen ‘dead,’ but they don’t know how to do it.
If you understand someone well enough, you will find…that nobody is invincible.”
“Mr.
Yan, that statement shouldn’t be said so lightly, right?”
Qin Wanyang was somewhat scared and instinctively looked up at the sky.
The Qin family, in the Dachu Dynasty, ranked just below one person and above tens of thousands.
It could be said that the Qin ancestor protected the martial fortunes of the Dachu Dynasty.
No one is unkillable.
This statement…was rather blasphemous.
The man known as Mr.
Yan shook his head, unconcernedly smiling, “This is the ultimate truth of Dao, unafraid of imperial power.
How powerful were the founders of Daoist sects, Sword Palaces, and the Imperial Family a thousand years ago?
They all died.
How can anyone in this era compare to them?”
“…”
Qin Wanyang swallowed, did not speak, and firmly remembered the lessons his father taught him.
Under the Imperial City, be cautious in your speech and actions.
“Alright, no more scaring you, let’s get back to the point…”
Mr.
Yan smiled, “Before the Northern Hunt, I will use the Heart-following Rope of Tai Shang House to lock the Heavenly Secrets of Xie Zhen’s mansion, trying to glean as much information as possible about him.”
“Are we really doing the right thing by doing this?”
Qin Wanyang took a deep breath and cautiously asked.
“Don’t you want to inherit the position of family head?”
Mr.
Yan raised an eyebrow, “In a few days, the rights to inherit the head of the Qin family will be announced to the world…
Do you really want to see Qin Baihuang sitting in that position in the future?”
Qin Wanyang fell silent.
A myriad of complex emotions flashed in his eyes, and eventually, he shook his head and calmly said, “The position of family head should not be occupied by him.”
“Behind Qin Baihuang are the library, Chen Jingxuan, Jiang Qihu…”
“In the future, this Xie Zhen will undoubtedly be there too.”
Mr.
Yan gently persuaded, “If you want him to withdraw from the succession of the family head, it’s necessary to weaken his support as much as possible…
Among these people, who is the easiest to handle?”
Chen Jingxuan is the new State Preceptor of Dachu, in charge of the Complete Sphere Instrument, and nearly impossible to move.
Jiang Qihu has the backing of the Jiang Family of Qing State and has been rooted in Imperial City for many years as the Deputy Director.
Only Xie Zhen could be more easily bullied.
Though backed by the Da Sui Sword Palace, he is too young and his strength and realm relatively lower compared to the other two.
More importantly…
Xie Zhen is currently embroiled in troubles, making him a prime target for stirring trouble.
“I don’t understand.”
Qin Wanyang furrowed his brows and said in a deep voice, “Why is this guy insistent on running to the Imperial City?
From the looks of it, he’s even determined to participate in the Northern Hunt.
What’s he plotting?”
“It’s not important.”
Mr.
Yan said solemnly, “Some things don’t need to be scrutinized too deeply.
Since he’s willing to enter the game, what we need to do is to lay out the best possible strategy.”
…
…
“Bang!”
“Bang!”
“Bang!!”
Early in the morning, many challengers were at the gates of the Chen residence; these people, without exception, came to challenge Xie Zhen…
Under the banner of the Northern County noble families, there were many young cultivators.
Some disciples of the Martial Sect were also mixed in.
In the martial-valor-oriented Dachu Dynasty, challenging through fists was an obligatory ritual among the noble clans, Sending people to challenge was a clever scheme; so many people taking turns to challenge him was akin to bothersome flies, enough to annoy anyone to death.
Unfortunately.
They weren’t qualified to meet Xie Zhen.
Xie Xuanyi felt heartfelt relief that he had made an extremely correct decision to bring the son of the Island Master of Wangyou Island on this trip to the Imperial City.
The restless Duan Zhao couldn’t wait to be given his orders and went out without delay.
The fight lasted from morning to evening.
Outside the Chen Mansion, there were groans everywhere, and the ground was a complete mess.
Xie Xuanyi specifically warned Duan Zhao that if anyone came to challenge him, he must show no mercy.
A preemptive strike is best to prevent a hundred more.
Duan Zhao, being in the Golden Body Realm, was strong enough to keep over ninety percent of challengers outside the gates.
After about four or five two-hour periods,
the front of the Chen Mansion was much quieter…
There would probably be more challengers the next day, but with a few more days of fighting, those Northern County noble families and martial sects would understand that such tricks were meaningless.
A completely relaxed Duan Zhao, humming a tune, returned to his mansion.
That day,
he fought with great satisfaction.
“Xie Zhen, there’s something I don’t understand,”
Duan Zhao came to the courtyard and earnestly asked, “These people know full well they are no match for you, so why do they still come to challenge you?”
In his view,
challenging,
is an extremely serious matter for martial artists.
The previous challenge at the city wall with Lin Yu felt reasonable to Duan Zhao, considering the guy was already at the eighth layer of the Golden Body…
But today’s visitors were mostly at the Foundation Establishment Realm, with few even in the Qi-controlling Realm, and some were just beginner Qi Refining Masters.
Duan Zhao dared not strike too harshly, fearing a single slap might end their lives.
Xie Xuanyi threw a jade token into Duan Zhao’s hand.
This token was the cause and aftermath of the trouble in the Imperial City.
After reading it,
the lad furrowed his brows.
“All this happened last night?”
He murmured in disbelief, “I thought I just slept through it…”
“In fact, more has happened than you think,”
Xie Xuanyi said indifferently, “There’s half a month before the Northern Hunt, and you will have to work a bit harder during this period.”
“Fighting them, no trouble at all,”
The little fellow shook his head and scratched it, saying, “Little master, since so many in the Imperial City are hoping for your downfall, why do we still stay here?”
“…”
Xie Xuanyi did not rush to answer the question but simply gestured for Duan Zhao to sit down.
Duan Zhao obediently moved to sit in front of Xie Xuanyi.
Xie Xuanyi took out a jade bottle, which contained the “apology” from Prince Jiangning’s mansion—a Sea Breaking Pill.
Initially, he had listed a hundred Sea Breaking Pills, and Xie Zhisu indeed paid a heavy price to deliver exactly a hundred.
He took out a pill, gently crushed it with his fingers, and smeared it onto Duan Zhao’s exposed skin.
The power of the Sea Breaking Pill immediately invaded the little fellow’s body.
The latter grunted, his hair flying about.
“It might be a bit painful, hold on,”
Xie Xuanyi spoke while evenly spreading the Sea Breaking Pill…
Throughout the process, a great amount of white mist burst forth.
At first, Duan Zhao moaned in pain, but gradually he became absorbed in the sensation.
The medicinal power of this pill was exceptionally potent.
Washing Marrow, indeed one of the top pills for those in the Golden Body Realm!
The only downside was its rarity and cost.
“It feels so good…”
After a while, Duan Zhao slowly opened his eyes and expressed his feeling.
“In the coming days, after each challenge, I will give you a Sea Breaking Pill,”
Xie Xuanyi spoke calmly, “You already have quite a bit of accumulation.
By the end of the Northern Hunt, you should be able to advance to the next realm.”
“So…”
Duan Zhao scratched his head and said, “The reason we must go to the Northern Hunt is?”
“A Golden Body Body Refiner who wants to advance to the Yin God stage needs to cultivate a Divine Embryo,”
Xie Xuanyi said calmly, “Starting from the first layer, you can cultivate a Divine Embryo.
The so-called Divine Embryo is essentially another kind of embryonic form of the Dao…
When I was applying the Sea Breaking Pill just now, did you ‘look inward’ and see the image in your Heart Lake?”
Duan Zhao was stunned.
At that moment, it seemed as though he saw a miniature person consolidating above his Heart Lake.
“That might be the Divine Embryo,”
Xie Xuanyi smiled and said, “The embryonic form of the Divine Embryo for a Golden Body martial artist is equivalent to the Sword Qi Cave Heaven for a Sword Cultivator, the Secret Cave Heaven for a Qi Refining Master…
The stronger the Divine Embryo, the more powerful the lethal power unleashed after advancing to Yin God.”
Duan Zhao looked bewildered.
He still did not quite understand the inevitable connection between this and the Northern Hunt.
“I have a hundred Sea Breaking Pills here.”
Xie Xuanyi took out the jade bottle and placed it in the little fellow’s hands, softly saying, “These pills, you can use them up slowly…
They’re not very useful to me.”
Duan Zhao suddenly understood Xie Zhen’s implication.
To him, these Sea Breaking Pills were divine pills with excellent effects,
but to Xie Zhen, they were merely “chicken ribs.”
So…
Was the Northern Hunt to look for better pills than the Sea Breaking Pills?
He was just about to speak.
“Actually, I’m someone who really dislikes trouble.
Who would want to come to a place like the Imperial City?”
Xie Xuanyi lowered his eyelids and said somewhat helplessly, “It’s just that I must participate in this Northern Hunt…
Over at Snow Mountain, there’s something I’m very interested in.”
At this point,
Duan Zhao noticed a change in Xie Xuanyi’s voice.
It seemed…
to have gained a bit more of a sharp and solemn intent.
“Is it something very important to you?”
He pursed his lips seriously, shaking the Wind and Thunder Bracelet.
“How should I put it…”
Xie Xuanyi thought for a long while.
He smiled and said, “Perhaps, yes?”