Chapter 57

The Jiang Family.

In a spacious indoor training hall.

In the corner of the black hard clay floor, a stick of incense was inserted, its smoke curling and slowly drifting out through the window.

Jiang Yan, dressed in training attire, stood respectfully before a tall, long-browed man, listening to his teachings.

"Your Mountain Return Fist is still not up to par. Your timing, power, reaction, and response are all lacking.

It's a pity. If you could practice the family's martial arts, you wouldn't have to go to the outer city to learn this mediocre fist technique..."

The long-browed man had slightly graying hair and was even taller than Jiang Yan, with a strong and robust build, like a towering wall that inspired awe.

He was Jiang Yan's father, Jiang Donggui, one of the only three Triple Qi Blood experts in the Jiang Family.

It was precisely because of his guidance that Jiang Yan understood better than Xiao Ran and Jiang Su how difficult it was to break through to Triple Qi Blood.

"Father, with my talent, is there really no chance of breaking through?" Jiang Yan asked, somewhat unwillingly.

"You eat exotic beast meat every day, your qi and blood accumulate quickly, and you have someone guiding you through all the key points of breaking through to Triple Qi Blood. Yet, you're stuck at this stage. Whether you can do it or not, don't ask me. Ask yourself!" Jiang Donggui said coolly.

Jiang Yan had been stuck at the threshold of Triple Qi Blood for quite some time, and every attempt to break through had ended in failure.

It was only because the Jiang Family was large and resource-rich that someone with Jiang Yan's talent could even accumulate enough Double Qi Blood. In other families, he might not even have reached that level yet.

"I'm almost twenty... I'm afraid it's not possible..." Jiang Yan sighed. However, martial arts were not the only path he could take.

He practiced martial arts in the hope of finding a glimmer of hope, making one last effort.

Unfortunately, it seemed he truly lacked the talent.

"Breaking through to Triple Qi Blood is incredibly difficult. In the entire Feiyeh City, with all the outer city martial academies, out of all the Double Qi Blood disciples, if one can break through every three years, that's already considered good." Jiang Donggui said coolly.

"Is it that few?" Jiang Yan knew that breaking through to Triple Qi Blood was difficult, but he didn't realize it was this hard.

"Feiyeh City, with its vast population of a million, has no more than thirty Triple Qi Blood experts in total, and that's the result of years of accumulation. Do you think it's easy?" Jiang Donggui snorted.

"Once you break through, it's like a carp leaping over the dragon gate. A Triple Qi Blood expert can't be stopped by five Double Qi Blood practitioners. Do you know why?"

"I don't know, Father." This was the first time Jiang Yan had listened to his father explain these secrets, and he was now much more respectful in his response.

Jiang Donggui did not answer immediately.

Instead, he walked slowly to a black iron pillar embedded in the wall. "It's because of 'force'!"

Swish!

In an instant, his right hand shot out, and his fingers lightly traced the thick iron pillar.

Silently, a deep finger mark appeared on the hard iron pillar.

He had actually left a finger mark on the iron pillar without making a sound!

Jiang Yan was astonished. He had never seen his father display his full strength before him. He knew his father was strong, but he had no idea just how strong.

Now, he truly understood the gap between Triple Qi Blood and Double Qi Blood.

He walked over quickly and gently touched the finger mark.

It was at least an inch (2cm) deep!

The cut was smooth, as if sliced by a knife.

If he used his full strength, he could barely bend the iron pillar, but he would also suffer from the backlash, far from achieving such an effect.

"Breaking through to Triple Qi Blood requires talent, perseverance, and reaching the limit of your qi and blood. Only then can you break through the constraints and enter a new realm. Do you understand now?" Jiang Donggui said coolly.

"I understand, Father..." Jiang Yan nodded solemnly. "No wonder breaking through to Triple Qi Blood can extend one's lifespan by twenty years..."

"Triple Qi Blood may sound like just one more level, but this one level is a qualitative change, a sublimation, a breaking of one's own shackles."

Jiang Donggui swept his palm out again.

Puff.

The iron pillar in front of him was instantly cut in half, the top part flying out and rolling to the ground.

...

...

...

Outside the city, at the Qingdu Sect's Mo Castle.

The three gangs and two sects all had their own fortresses outside the city, though not as large as the Hong Family Castle, they were still strongholds and retreats.

Mo Castle of the Qingdu Sect was one such place, serving as the headquarters of the sect and the backing for the nearby Wuxing Town.

Compared to Feiyeh City, the city was just an extension of this place, a means for the Qingdu Sect to assert its presence as one of the three gangs and two sects.

Mo Castle was circular, with high walls and shooting holes, and simple watchtowers inside.

It could accommodate hundreds of households.

Living there were all the elite members of the Qingdu Sect and their families.

The surrounding area was filled with yellow-green fields, with irrigation channels allowing river water to flow slowly along the edges of the fields.

In the afternoon, the members of the Qingdu Sect were practicing martial arts in formation outside Mo Castle, led by their martial arts instructor.

The formations were neatly arranged, orderly, and precise.

Soon, a sharp whistle sounded from Mo Castle.

A black eagle swooped down from the sky and landed inside the castle.

Shortly after, the main gate opened, and several people came out to greet the newcomer, standing outside to wait.

Among them was Zhou Yan, one of the four hall masters of the Qingdu Sect, the Outer Hall Master.

Zhou Yan, in his forties, had a ruddy complexion and a scholarly air. Seeing someone approaching on the main road, he went out to greet him.

"Brother Zheng, it's been a long time. How have you been?"

The newcomer was riding a black horse, hunched over, with a gaunt face. It was none other than Zheng Fugui, who usually stayed at the Mountain Return Fist Academy.

"Zhou Yan, it has indeed been a long time." Zheng Fugui dismounted, carefully checking the horse's hooves to ensure nothing was damaged before feeling relieved.

The black horse had been with him for many years and was now thirty-five years old.

Each time he went out, he was extremely cautious, fearing that the horse might get injured.

Zhou Yan didn't rush, standing by with a smile, waiting patiently.

After Zheng Fugui finished his inspection and confirmed everything was fine, he spoke slowly.

"Brother, is there something important on this trip?"

"To be honest, I'm here to find jobs for my few unaccomplished disciples."

Zheng Fugui's purpose was to find a place for Zhao Hong, Jiang Su, and Wei He, who had no hope of breaking through.

The current situation was complex, and these three were at the Stone Skin level. After failing to break through, their future strength would likely decline with age.

Therefore, it was important to consider their future, livelihood, development, and family matters early on.

If they didn't seize the opportunity while young to find a good place to strive and earn some wealth and assets, it would only become more difficult as they aged.

Neither the Seven Family Alliance nor the Hong Family Castle were benevolent places, and a conflict was inevitable. If the disciples chose to leave, that was their choice, but since they were still with him, he had to take responsibility for their future.

The Qingdu Sect was always neutral and had deep roots, making it a suitable choice for a fallback.

"Since it's a favor from you, Brother, there's no need to say more. Please come in!" Outer Hall Master Zhou Yan laughed heartily.

The two were escorted by several others into Mo Castle.

...

...

...

In the fifth year of the Shizong era, August.

Thirteen martial masters of Feiyeh City held a secret meeting to discuss evacuation plans.

In the same month, the Hong Family Castle secretly sent troops to intercept and kill the reinforcements from Suzhou City sent to aid the Seven Family Alliance. They returned victorious.

Hiss...

Wei He held a brush, writing swiftly on a dry, yellowed piece of paper.

His movements were large, but the characters he wrote were delicate and clear.

He was transcribing a secret manual.

He copied the key parts of the Flying Dragon Technique, storing a copy in a secret place.

This way, he kept a partial copy with him and another partial copy at home, along with his unique encryption method.

This greatly increased security.

This was a technique he had learned from the bandit leader who had given him the Five Ridge Palm.

"As the saying goes, 'Among three people walking, there must be one who can be my teacher.' This saying is indeed true."

After writing the last character, Wei He carefully hung the paper to dry and then admired his work.

The encrypted yellow paper was filled with symbols that only he could understand.

Not to mention, these symbols were split into two parts, stored in different places.

By now, several such papers were hanging on a rope along one wall of his bedroom.

The weather was dry, so they dried quickly.

Wei He picked up a piece of steamed meat and put it in his mouth. Although it was only salty, the meat itself was quite fresh and flavorful...

"It's just a bit gamey...," Wei He sighed.

Actually, it wasn't just a bit gamey, it was very gamey...

He had been in seclusion for the past two days, eating deer meat to the point of almost vomiting. However, the Breakthrough Pearl was almost complete, just missing that last bit.

He sighed, about to get up to practice his fist technique to enhance his digestion.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the gate outside the courtyard.

"Who is it?" Wei Ying asked cautiously, her voice loud.

"It's me," a somewhat familiar female voice replied.

Although Wei He didn't recognize the voice, it sounded quite familiar, perhaps a junior sister from the academy who was often seen but not remembered due to her large, muscular build, similar to his eldest sister, Wei Chun.

There were many such junior sisters at the academy, all strong and capable.

"This is something Sister Jiang asked me to deliver for you." The muscular junior sister dropped a bundle and ran off.

Wei Ying opened the door, but before she could say anything, the junior sister was already gone.

She looked around but couldn't find her, so she closed the door with a sigh.

"Xiao He, that big brother from last time has sent more meat..."

"..." She may not look it, but she is indeed a girl... Sister, you really...

Wei He was speechless.

However, he knew that Wei Ying wasn't being intentional; she genuinely thought it was a man...

To be honest, if he had met the person for the first time and heard that rough, bold voice, combined with the muscular builds of both men and women at the academy, it would be normal not to be able to tell the gender.

"I know, it's from Sister Jiang. Just accept it," Wei He replied from inside the room.

He had told Wei Ying he would be in seclusion, but she didn't understand what that meant and kept coming to check on him.

Questions like, "Do you need your chamber pot changed?" "I'll take your quilt out to air; you need to rest even in seclusion." "Didn't you just go into seclusion this morning?" "Aren't you going to change your clothes?" "Come out and take a bath; I've heated the water. Eat some late-night snacks and then go back into seclusion."

It took a lot of effort to explain to her what seclusion meant.

Now, she didn't disturb him as much.

"This is the third time... Sister Jiang really cares about you..." Wei Ying's voice came from outside as she started to open the bag.

"Oh, it's this strong-smelling meat again. The packaging looks expensive. The color is much better than the pork jerky I bought before...," she said, comparing it to the meat she usually saw.

Since Wei He had gone into seclusion and stopped talking, she had developed a habit of talking to herself, as if speaking to Wei He.