Chapter 141 – The Most Unique Sixth Rank, Revealing the Blood Blade Patriarch’s Identity - Part 3

A couple of weeks slipped by in a swirl of wind and snow. Gentle bells jingled through Gemhill County’s north gate as a caravan arrived at Silver Creek—part of the Fortune Trading Company, which used to employ Qian Da.

Qian Da’s cultivation talent was neither great nor poor; over the years, he had reached eighth rank and now led a steady life—working, earning money to buy ninth rank demonic beast meat, and continuing his practice.

Elder Li is still eighth rank. eighth rank is already amazing

! his acquaintances would keep telling him. But Qian Da had his doubts. There was something about Li Yuan—whether you called him

Brother Li

,

Young Master Li

, or

Elder Li

, especially an elder who did practically nothing—that felt off. The more Qian Da learned, the less he understood. All that remained was a vague sense of awe.

“Brother Qian, I’ve brought you something new this year,” announced the company’s steward with a jovial laugh. Jumping down from the cart, he fished out a small box and handed it to Qian Da, who was seated in the workshop’s martial practice area. Leaning in, the steward confided quietly, “This is the latest from the Jade Capital, a limited-edition product from Apparel Atelier. I saved one just for you.”

Friends in high places, as they say. The steward was pleased to keep him supplied with rarities. Qian Da flipped open the box, and a heady perfume wafted out. It had a peculiar but exquisite scent that felt almost spiritually cleansing. Definitely not cheap. He accepted it without reserve.

Over at the Heavenly Scent Pavilion, they’d recently introduced the concept of a courtesan queen, mimicking the top-tier brothels in the Central Plain. Truthfully, it was just a marketing gimmick, but men loved the thrill of it. With something like this upscale fragrance from Apparel Atelier in hand... well, even if he couldn’t turn the head of that marquee courtesan, it’d be more than enough to impress some other beauty.

“Isn’t the Jade Capital in the midst of a war?” Qian Da asked offhandedly, taking the manifest from the steward. While porters began checking off the goods on the list, he skimmed them, speaking almost absentmindedly. “How did you even manage to pass through there?”

The Fortune Trading Company’s steward said, “Oh right, you don’t know yet. Our guild master changed recently and ended up partnering with Apparel Atelier. From what I hear, Apparel Atelier has some major backing, so neither the Red Lotus Prince nor any other powers dare interfere with us now.”

“That big a deal?”

Qian Da was a bit taken aback. “What exactly does Apparel Atelier do?”

“They sell clothes,” the steward replied, shrugging. “Old-timers like me have no idea beyond that.”

“Selling clothes made them so famous?” Qian Da sounded mystified, smacking his lips in amazement. All the more reason to treasure that limited-edition rouge from the Jade Capital tucked under his arm. He tightened his grip on the box.

While the two men chatted, the rest of the goods had been checked. With a wave of Qian Da’s hand, the ox-drawn wagons of the Fortune Trading Company rumbled into the county.

Once the carts had gone, Qian Da opened the little box again and took another whiff, exhaling in delight. “So this is the fragrance of the Jade Capital, huh? Amazing... truly amazing!”

He was still murmuring to himself when he noticed a passing carriage in the distance. The menial workers didn’t stop it; they all recognized that carriage as Li Yuan’s. Qian Da’s eyes lit up; hastily delegating tasks to the nearby workers, he dashed after the vehicle.

The carriage came to a halt beside a lone grave on the water’s edge. Li Yuan lifted the curtain and stepped out.

Having fully absorbed his sixth rank power, Li Yuan was now trying to compile a cultivation technique of his own. Everything up to ninth, eighth, and seventh ranks was fine, but the moment he reached the step of creating a life chronicle, he hit a wall. He could cultivate his life chronicle himself with little trouble, but actually recording it in full proved far harder.

After thinking it over, Li Yuan decided he needed more examples. He studied the life chronicle illustration of the Spirit-Release Technique and went to Tie Sha to examine the replica of Earthfire Roaming. Though these incomplete, soulless diagrams were essentially worthless in others’ eyes, Li Yuan gleaned a few insights. Still, that wasn’t enough; he needed more references.

Where else to find soulless life chronicles?

Among the three allied county sects, two more groups might have them. One was the Frost Sword Sect and Orange Blossom Sect. Beyond the Frost Sword Sect’s alliance stood the Floating Moon Abbey, and beneath the Orange Blossom Sect were three more minor factions. All four likely had access to life chronicles they themselves couldn’t fully comprehend, empty shells without a guiding

soul

.

Tie Sha had already sent word to Frost Sword and Orange Blossom that the Blood Blade Patriarch wanted to borrow their life chronicle diagrams. Normally, such documents were top secret, but in truth they were mostly useless to anyone who couldn’t truly decipher them. Neither sect wished to offend the infamous Patriarch, so both replied in agreement.

And so...

While Tie Sha was busy trying to arrange a covert trip for Li Yuan to view the diagrams without revealing his identity, Li Yuan himself said, “There’s no need to hide who I am anymore.”

Tie Sha had been stunned, unsure what Li Yuan was thinking, but finally agreed. There were pros and cons to revealing oneself. It could improve cohesion, grow their territory, and justify claiming greater benefits, but it would also mean losing the mystique of operating from the shadows.

To Li Yuan, though, it was simple. He had always followed the principle of concealing seven parts and revealing three.

Back when he’d crushed the Sun-Wei alliance and annihilated the Fragrant General’s remaining forces, his power ranged only from 305~455, relying on that single City Toppler. That was already on par with a typical newcomer to the sixth rank. Yet now, he stood at 635~1135. If the Blood Blade Patriarch was known to be 305~455 in power, why keep hiding anything at all?

He was the Patriarch.

And if anyone was curious why he was so young, well, Zhao Xiantong and General Mammoth weren’t exactly old, either. Being sixth rank just kept martial artists looking spry.

˙·٠✧🐗➶➴🏹✧٠·˙

When Qian Da saw Li Yuan’s carriage stop by the lake, he hurried over, deciding to give Li Yuan his precious limited-edition rouge from the Jade Capital. It was much better than spending it on the courtesans of the Heavenly Scent Pavilion.

Might as well curry some more favor

, Qian Da thought. Yet as he approached, he stopped in his tracks several hundred meters away.

Because he saw a gathering of people in black robes trimmed in white, including someone in a distinctive white robe—the inner disciples and sect master Tie Sha himself.

With keen eyes, Qian Da recognized geniuses like Fang Jianlong and Fang Chengbao among the inner disciples, along with the somewhat downcast Zhao Chunxin, who remained stuck at eighth rank, as well as other lofty faces he knew only from a distance.

A strange sense of unease filled Qian Da. All these inner disciples, even some newly promoted elders and the sect master, were standing there, yet Li Yuan just stayed in his carriage, letting it roll right up to them.

That...that’s quite rude, isn’t it? What’s going on? I don’t think he’s ever behaved like this before.

Qian Da recalled traveling with Li Yuan to haul wild boar meat in the past; he knew how cautious and modest Li Yuan usually was. Could it be that holding a higher position had now gone to his head?

Still puzzling over this, he saw the carriage curtains lift. Li Yuan stepped down, and in the shadow behind him was a tall, rigid figure.

“Sect Master, Senior Sister...” Li Yuan greeted them casually.

In response, the entire group of inner disciples turned to Li Yuan with complicated, disbelieving looks and said in unison, “Greetings to the Blood Blade Patriarch.”

Qian Da stood there in utter shock, mouth agape.

Meanwhile, Zhao Chunxin lowered her head in a swirl of emotions. Even now, she couldn’t quite accept that her junior brother was the Blood Blade Patriarch himself.

Li Yuan glanced at the plump senior sister with a scar at the corner of her mouth, then abruptly drew the executioner’s blade hanging at her waist.

With a single shake of his hand, an intense, high-frequency vibration radiated along the steel, as if the blade itself had suddenly come alive. A shrill cry swelled from a low wail to a piercing screech, ringing so fiercely it seemed to slice through the air.

That sound dragged Zhao Chunxin back to the day she’d heard it in the inner district, an echo from a time that now felt like another lifetime. She nearly dropped to her knees, prepared to kowtow before the Blood Blade Patriarch.

Li Yuan steadied her by the elbow and said, “This move is called City Toppler. Do you want to learn it?”

A beat passed before Zhao Chunxin managed to reply, “I... I do!”

He nodded. “I’ll teach you. And as for your bottleneck at seventh rank, don’t rush. I’ll have a surprise for you soon.”

The onlookers, from Tie Sha to the inner disciples, felt any remaining doubts melt away after witnessing that thunderous cry. All eyes flashed enviously at Zhao Chunxin, who’d just been promised personal instruction.

Li Yuan then walked over to the tomb on the water’s edge—labeled with only Senior Li’s name and ceremonial attire—where Tie Sha had already set out incense for the ritual.

Li Yuan and Zhao Chunxin burned their offerings side by side, performing solemn rites. Seeing Li Yuan worship Senior Li so sincerely eased some of her lingering worries. It wasn't an act. His regard for Senior Li, and his concern for her, seemed genuine.

Once the ceremony was over, Tie Sha dismissed the crowd. He then told Li Yuan, “Patriarch, everything’s arranged for your journey to those two counties. Some disciples have gone ahead to make preparations. When you arrive, they’ll be waiting outside the city to welcome you.”

“You’ve done well, Old Tie.” Li Yuan patted him on the shoulder, their exchange warm and casual.

Standing off to the side, Qian Da felt out of his depth. His mind spun at the sight of so many inner disciples, and even the sect master, treating Li Yuan with such deference. Then Li Yuan noticed him from afar and called out, “Old Qian, what are you doing over there?”

Startled, Qian Da scrambled over, bowing low. “Patriarch, please call me

Little Qian

if you like. Old Qian is far too grand.”

Li Yuan chuckled and turned to Tie Sha. “From now on, I’ll just keep calling you Sect Master, or Old Tie; no one else dares respond to that name anyway.”

Tie Sha, unconcerned with formalities, gave a hearty laugh. Qian Da merely stood there, soaked in sweat from nerves he couldn’t quite explain. He was still reeling, trying to reconcile the Li Yuan he’d known with the fearsome Blood Blade Patriarch.

“You still don’t believe I’m the Patriarch?” Li Yuan teased him.

Qian Da forced a grin. “N-not at all, P-patriarch...”

Li Yuan patted his shoulder. “We used to work together, so no need to be so stiff.”

“Yes, of course.” Taking a deep breath, Qian Da squared his shoulders.

“Did you need something?” Li Yuan asked.

Qian Da thought of the limited-edition rouge in his pocket, but seeing Tie Sha right beside them and having only the one box, he hesitated. Finally, he mumbled, “I-I just saw you entering Silver Creek and wanted to tag along... to learn from your example.”

Both Li Yuan and Tie Sha laughed at that. Li Yuan offered one last bit of encouragement, “Train hard.”

“Y-yes!” Qian Da excused himself, slipping away with the still-unopened Apparel Atelier rouge secured in his coat.

Li Yuan climbed back into the carriage, where Tang Nian and her tall, faceless puppet—its six arms now retracted—were quietly seated. Hoping to keep her from growing too withdrawn, he had decided to bring her along on this trip.

In the dimness inside, Tang Nian called softly, “Godfather...” There was a slight tremor in her voice, a glimmer of awe.

Li Yuan stroked her hair. “If you really want to surpass me someday, you’ll have to cast off that reverence first.”

She nodded. “I’ll try my best.”

The carriage rolled onward, wheels rattling as it left Silver Creek. Outside, an endless expanse of white snow and the ceaseless howling wind made for a dull, frigid journey, apt to lull any traveler to sleep.

𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Sure enough, after a while Tang Nian drifted off. At first, she drowsily tipped her head onto Li Yuan’s lap, but within moments she stirred, scooted away, and curled up against the puppet instead. Despite the lifeless chill of its metal body, she slept soundly, at ease.

Rather than wake her, Li Yuan simply laid a small blanket over her and leaned back in thought, mind already turning to the cultivation techniques he hoped to piece together.

Meanwhile, two of Li Yuan’s white finches still perched far away—one in Antelope Pass, the other near the mass grave—while the small sparrow that guarded his home had, unfortunately, frozen to death.

After burying it, Li Yuan replaced it with a falcon-like bird known as a

maosun

, sometimes called a gyrfalcon or sea eagle in other lands—an exceedingly rare white hawk that had wandered into the area. He quickly tamed it and forged a spiritual link with it. Now, this majestic hawk perched on a snowy rooftop, surveying the surroundings.

Crows clustered around it, four in total, dark shapes circled by feathers of stark white.