Lin Xi and Gao Yanan stayed in Rudong City for many days.

The physical and mental fatigue caused by continuous battles could only be slowly erased through time.

The two of them needed a bit of time, to understand some more about the current situation through Rudong City, or perhaps it could be said that they were waiting a bit, waiting for further information from Green Luan Academy.

In Lin Xi’s perspective, since Green Luan Academy’s inner changes were now already done, the situation calm again, the following cleanup shouldn’t take too long. Vice Principal Xia would most likely pass on a lot of information that would be even more valuable to him.

Only, when they entered Rudong City’s streets and alleys, they began to see the fine soaps imprinted with the characters he was most familiar with. He recalled the arrangements he made in that small courtyard with Chen Feirong in that winter day after Jadefall City’s events.

“Liu Family still feels unresigned?”

“Just what kind of meaning do these series of disappeared carriages really mean?”

During this empire’s new year midsummer, Lin Xi who walked amidst cicada sounds thought back to last summer. He held a piece of soap in his hands while returning to the residence the military provided him. He walked up to Gao Yanan, placed the soap in her hands, and then said with a quiet sigh, “We have to return to that place to take a look.”

…

At the same time, in a military relay station, a brown silk clothed, handsome middle-aged man was currently washing his face with cold water.

His face seemed to be even colder than this cold water, but there was no dirt or dust on his face. It seemed like he was only using the cold water to wash away a bit of fatigue from a long journey.

Xu Zhenyan stood respectfully behind this ice-cold and dignified middle-aged man.

Ever since he was transferred to Ghost Prison, becoming one of the three giants of Inspection Division, there already weren’t many people he had to act this respectfully and humbly before.

However, right now, he had to maintain this type of attitude, because this middle-aged man was precisely his father, Xu Tianwang.

“You can rest on your own first, there is no need for you to come and pay your respects to me unless I need you for something. According to the newest intelligence, there were some things that happened in Mountain Sun Path, so we will only rest at this relay station for four hours. You should not waste any time.” After continuously washing his face a few times with the cold water, Xu Tianwang lowered his wet towel, turning around and saying this calmly to Xu Zhenyan.

Xu Zhenyan bowed slightly, indicating that he understood. However, he still spoke out, “Respected father, what happened in Mountain Sun Path?”

Perhaps because he felt like Xu Zhenyan already had the qualifications to ask him some things, after Xu Tianwang sat down on a bamboo woven mat, he slowly said, “Revival Friend Company is a company you should be familiar with. One of their fleets were plundered in Jadefall City, the weight-carrying capacity of that fleet should be enough to carry large amounts of armor and large scale military equipment.”

“Perhaps Wenren Cangyue’s henchmen are already starting to make moves, or maybe it is people from other families?” Xu Zhenyan frowned and said coldly.

Xu Tianwang nodded.

Xu Zhenyan didn’t say anything else, only bowing respectfully and withdrawing.

“Wait.” However, before he arrived at the door, Xu Zhenyan was called to a stop. When he turned around, with a bit of surprise, he saw that his own father, that cold and dignified middle-aged man on the bed instead had a fanatical and happy expression on his face that he had never seen before.

“It’s finally here.”

Xu Tianwang’s voice even more so trembled slightly, something that rarely happened. It was as if he was speaking to himself, but also as if he wanted Xu Zhenyan to serve as a witness for this moment.

The instant he spoke these four words, the aura around his body suddenly changed, as if there was a streak of divine light that flickered past under his entire body’s skin. He himself didn’t change, didn’t become taller, but because his aura changed so suddenly, in Xu Zhenyan’s eyes, he suddenly became much taller.

Xu Zhenyan’s brows furrowed, his pupils suddenly contracting. Then, he showed a deep bow, not letting Xu Tianwang see the true expression on his face. “Congratulations to respected father for breaking through to the sacred level.”

Xu Tianwang nodded slightly. He reached out a hand, a wave of power separating from his hand. The basin of cold water he used to wash his face with just now, under the power released by his hand, flew out from the basin, and was then directly condensed into a sparkling sphere of water smaller than the size of a fist, flying out through the window like a chunk of crystal.

Only after flying out several hundred steps, did it scatter with a crash sound. The power of the water droplets blasted a peach tree below until it was scattered and smashed apart.

“This is precisely the power of a Sacred Expert… you need to be diligent.” Xu Tianwang gave the deeply bowing Xu Zhenyan a look, and then said with joy and great emotion, “Power is everything. As long as you reach the sacred level, no wonder will dare look down on you, you will be able to stand above most people.”

When he heard Xu Tianwang’s words, Xu Zhenyan nodded, looking extremely respectful and happy to hear this advice. However, there was a trace of a sneer of mockery that appeared on the corners of his lips.

“Father, Sacred Experts doesn’t count as the greatest power, right… back then, in that summer, I personally saw several Sacred Experts die under Wenren Cangyue’s hands… how many years would it take before I can reach Sacred Expert level? What can quickly make one powerful is still only true authority, and not individual cultivation.” He inwardly shook his head, silently saying this to himself.

One’s heart was sometimes even more fiery than a summer day. Sometimes, it could be colder than the most bitter winter day.

Yunqin’s nine great elders were precisely nine great powers, nine giant rich and powerful families. That was why the elders behind the layers of curtains didn’t only have to worry about their own authority, they had to take responsibility for their own clan, their posterity, as well as the officials and disciples who followed them.

Towards Xu Zhenyan becoming one of the three giants of Inspection Division, Jiang Family had always been extremely satisfied, to the extent where they even encouraged this behind the scenes. It was because Xu Family was always considered to be under Jiang Family. Moreover, some of Judicial Sector’s important intelligence departments were always under Jiang Family’s control. In Lin Xi’s judgment, Inspection Division might perhaps eventually evolve into something similar to the Embroidered Uniform Guard, while previously, Jiang Family actually always possessed authority similar to having a Embroidered Uniform Guard.

In Jiang Family’s opinion, being able to control an Inspection Division was naturally something that couldn’t be better.

However, while interacting with the emperor, especially during the last two years, they fully understood that he wasn’t an idiot. Even if he was obstinate and self-opinionated, had crazy ambitions, even some parts of his brain deceived by certain thoughts, on the field of manipulating power, he wasn’t beneath any of these elders. That was why if they didn’t want to fall like Huang and Wenren Families, Jiang Family had to obtain even more vocal authority.

Wenren Cangyue’s hidden treasure trove in Jadefall City was precisely the vocal authority Jiang Family needed.

Large amounts of heavy armor and military equipment were also something Jiang Family was determined to win. That was why even someone of such importance as Xu Tianwang was sent over.

…

When the people sent by Jiang Family were quickly moving towards Jadefall City, all of Great Mang Dynasty was also bathed in midsummer.

Purgatory Mountain’s midsummer was definitely much hotter than most places in this world.

Zhang Ping stood in a black rock house that didn’t have any ventilation.[1]

In front of him was a burner, on it an iron rack supporting countless metal arrows.

The flame came from some lava flow. After passing through the artisans’ architecture and adjustments, when it rushed out from the burner, the temperature of the flames and air would be just enough to keep the metal arrows placed above in an entirely red state, yet wouldn’t melt.

This way, it would become easier for artisans to carve the patterns they needed on the arrows’ surface.

What was in front of Zhang Ping right now was a rotating rack that could hold arrows in place. One of his hands was covered with a heat resistant thick stone glove, while the other held a fine blue steel needle. Just by relying on the scraping of this fine steel needle, he would skillfully and swiftly produce delicate decorative wind guiding grooves on the entirely red metal arrows.

These metal arrows were all special metal arrows used with soul weapon longbows.

Even though archers at the level of Xu Qiubai and Lin Xi were extremely few, there were many ordinary cultivator archers in the military. Ever since the southern expedition began, the consumption of this type of metal arrow always continuously increased.

During the past period, the impression Zhang Ping gave everyone who came into contact with him in Purgatory Mountain was someone who was habitually silent, but always worked extremely seriously and carefully. This type of focused and productive, but didn’t complain character naturally won a lot of appreciation and recognition. That was why ten days ago, he was already transferred to this weapon making workshop.

In Purgatory Mountain, what was above this type of weapons making factory, were already workshops that were related to runes and some special materials. As long as he could enter those workshops, he would already obtain the identity of an official Purgatory Mountain disciple. He would then have a place to stand on in Great Mang.

If this continued, after just a few more months, Zhang Ping should already be able to enter those workshops.

However, even if he could enter those workshops, he needed a lot of time to distinguish himself. Once he did, the amount of true secrets he could come into contact with in Purgatory Mountain was once again unknown.

Right now, Zhang Ping felt extremely hot.

The temperature in this type of workshop would be a dozen or so degrees higher than under the blistering sun outside. This was originally a type of labor only cultivators could undertake.

That was why the current Zhang Ping only wore a single pair of trousers. Only a single towel hung around his neck in order to prevent the sweat on his face from landing on the arrows and producing some type of quenching effects that would alter the arrows’ performance.

Right at this time, a red robed woman walked into this rune engraving room, walking up to Zhang Ping.

“Senior Sister Chang.”

Zhang Ping lowered the tools in his hands in a bit of a hurry, standing up and showing her a greeting of respect.

This tall and slender, calm faced woman who was a few years older than him was one of the people in charge of this workshop, a Purgatory Mountain Divine Adjudicator. Even though she was normally extremely friendly, showing quite a bit of consideration for him, moreover only having the workshop disciples call her senior sister, all of the rewards and punishments were within her hands. Regardless of how good-natured her attitude towards him was, he naturally wouldn’t feel that he had status anywhere near hers, that he could truly have the type of relationship one had between senior sisters and junior brothers.

When he stood up and saw that his upper body was exposed, Zhang Ping felt even more alarmed inside.

This young lady whose facial features were ordinary, could only be described as not ugly, looked at Zhang Ping, at his bronze skin, at the drops of sweat covering it. A wave of mysterious feeling appeared in her eyes. “You are someone from Yunqin.” She raised her head, looking into Zhang Ping’s eyes while slowly saying this.

1. Zhang Ping agreed to infiltrate Purgatory Mountain when asked to do so by Vice Principal Xia