This was Ning Xiaochuan's last night living in Marquis Jiange's Residence. Ning Xiner had already packed his bundle. Tomorrow, he would head to Begonia Manor.
As for Ning Xiner, tomorrow she would go to the Five Desolate Ridges for training along with the other geniuses of Marquis Jiange's Residence. She had packed her own bundle.
Ning Xiaochuan found an opportunity to retrieve a hundred drops of Nourishing-heart Liquid and the hundred drops of Blood-increasing Liquid which Ning Xiner had placed in his bundle, and secretly put them in her bundle.
At the same time, Ning Xiaochuan took a small jade bottle which was filled with thirty drops of Grade Two Heart-nourishing Liquid and stored it in Ning Xiner's bundle as well.
This was the Heart-nourishing Liquid Ning Xiaochuan had obtained by refining ten stalks of Grade Two Heart-nourishing Herb. Initially, he could have sold it for a huge sum of money, but felt that this Heart-nourishing Liquid would be a bigger help for Ning Xiner's Martial Art Cultivation.
"Bong!"
In Imperial City, the morning bell was ringing!
Ning Xiaochuan and Yu Yan went to the Marquis' Residence's backdoor. A Green Deerhorse carriage was already waiting there.
An Elder dressed in plain cotton clothes stood before the carriage. He handed a rosewood box to Ning Xiaochuan, saying softly, "Master, this is something from the Old Marquis."
This old man was called "Uncle Ji", an old servant who had always been by the Old Marquis' side.
With a puzzled look, Ning Xiaochuan took the rosewood box. His arms dropped slightly as his fingers gripped the box quickly.
The rosewood box weighed a few dozen pounds. It was not sculpted from ordinary rosewood. The wood's grain had a golden, flowing shimmer, for it was the "gold-grained rosewood" of the legends.
Not even a trunk of gold coins was enough to purchase a square of gold-grained rosewood. This showed how precious it was.
Apparently, a box made of gold-grained rosewood could store food for a year without spoiling.
Ning Xiaochuan's palms pressed the surface of the gold-grained rosewood box. He instantly felt traces of Earthly Martial Qi flowing in his body. In a flash, his blood was surging and circulating even faster.
"Boom!"
In his body, Heaven and Earth Qi were growing wildly!
The Devil Sword within Ning Xiaochuan's body emitted a faint, blood-red glow, encompassing all of his blood vessels. As a result, even a martial art expert like Uncle Ji did not notice the Qi fluctuations within Ning Xiaochuan's body.
Uncle Ji sighed. "The Old Marquis is sending you to Begonia Manor because he knows about the ruthless struggles within the Marquis' Residence. He wishes to distance you from them for the sake of your own safety and your life.
"This gold-grained rosewood box contains the Old Marquis's Earthly Martial Qi. If your fetal affliction is acting up, you just have to place your palm upon the box's surface to absorb the Earthly Martial Qi within, which will suppress the sickness temporarily. If you're not using it, then just keep the gold-grained rosewood box within a bag. The Old Marquis secluded himself partly because he was preparing this life-giving treasure for you."
Ning Xiaochuan was rather touched. It seemed like, within Marquis Jiange's Residence, things were not so cold and callous. At least, some form of affection existed.
Should he tell the Old Marquis that he was able to cultivate Combat Qi?
No, he had better not!
'Although the Old Marquis's Cultivation is high, and his stature is formidable, there are too many branch systems in the Marquis' Residence. Once the news gets out that I'm able to cultivate Combat Qi, many people will take desperate risks and set out to kill me behind the Old Marquis's back. It's easier to dodge an attack you can see coming. I'd better tell him only when my Cultivation is stronger!'
Although Ning Xiaochuan had arrived in this world not too long ago, he understood how dangerous it was through his experience over these past few days. If he did not have sufficiently powerful capabilities, it would be hard to even take a single step forward.
"Uncle Ji, please thank Grandfather for me. I'll live a good life." Ning Xiaochuan kept the gold-grained rosewood box.
Uncle Ji nodded, saying, "The forces in the Marquis' Residence are tangled and complicated. Battles are fought in the open and in the dark in order to gain influence and benefits or become the heir. In order to be discreet, I won't see you off, Master Ning."
"Understood!"
Yu Yan boarded the Green Deerhorse carriage, while Ning Xiaochuan sat outside, holding a whip covered in green scales.
"Hiya!"
The Green Deerhorse carriage crushed the carpet of fallen leaves as it left the enormous, dazzling Noble's mansion. Without looking back, it vanished at the end of the street.
Uncle Ji watched the carriage getting further away, and thought of what the Old Marquis had said, "That child, Xiaochuan's fetal disease has worsened greatly. At most, he has six months to live, so let him enjoy his final six months!"
"Perhaps the young Master doesn't know that he only has half a year left to live. Oh heavens, why do only the good die young? Can't you spare this child? Sigh!" Uncle Ji shook his head and sighed heavily, then entered the Marquis' Residence's backdoor.
In a courtyard of Marquis Jiange's Residence!
"What? Old Marquis sent Uncle Ji to give that invalid a gold-grained rosewood box? And it's filled with a large amount of Earthly Martial Qi?" Ning Qianwu slammed the table as he stood up from his seat in a flash.
In the darkness, there stood a warrior in black armor. Steady blue flames flowed over the armor, making "crackling" noises in the air.
The face within the black armor had sunken sockets, a high, straight nose, and deathly pale skin as if it was a skull.
He looked like an emissary from hell, and his voice was quite raspy. "Your humble servant's foremost Divine Martial Art is Divine Hearing. I personally heard the conversation between Uncle Ji and Ning Xiaochuan. There's no mistake."
The warrior who wore black armor repeated everything he heard without missing a word.
Ning Qianwu's eyes turned gloomy and he laughed coldly. "Of course I believe your Divine Hearing. Within a thousand feet, you can even hear the sound of ants fighting. Uncle Ji's Martial Art Cultivation is profound, but he can't possibly notice someone listening to him from a thousand feet away.
"So that invalid only has six months left to live. Looks like I've been worried over nothing. Still, the gold-grained rosewood box and Earthly Martial Qi are treasures only obtainable through luck. If I have them, my Cultivation will surely progress another level. Hei Lin, bring a team with you to retrieve that gold-grained rosewood box for me now. Remember, only attack when you're outside the city."
"What shall I do with that Ning Xiaochuan? Should we eliminate the problem at its root?" the black-armored warrior asked lifelessly.
Ning Qianwu said, "There's no need. Doing so would only arouse the Old Marquis' fury, who would certainly know that someone from the Marquis' Residence did this. He would investigate, which would not make things easy for us. Breaking both Ning Xiaochuan's legs is good enough. Make the scene look like it was ransacked by robbers. After all, the border is in chaos. Ning Xiaochuan is so physically weak that, for him to be killed and his treasure stolen would be a very normal occurrence."
"I understand!"
Black Qi circulated around the body of the black-armored warrior. It turned into a whirlwind and he gradually disappeared in the darkness.
"Clip-clop!"
In a short while, five warriors in black armor rushed out of the Marquis' Residence, riding five pitch-black Mystical Iron Lions. The fallen leaves swirled up, just like the five black whirlwinds galloping out of the city.
…
The Imperial City of the Yulan Empire was divided into the inner city, the outskirts, and the border.
Begonia Manor was a property of Marquis Jiange's Residence, located at the border. It was far away from the Imperial City and was once a place where the Marquis' Residence's descendants would play around in.
Marquis Jiange's Residence had many properties. In the inner city alone, it owned twenty-three manors. On the outskirts, it owned more than a hundred manors. Remote manors like Begonia Manor would have been neglected for a long time.
Only clan members who had lost their influence in the Marquis' Residence would be sent to take care of these remote manors.
The inner city was a beautiful, bustling place; the outskirts was where martial artists and merchants would gather, while the border was a place of chaos.
Ning Xiaochuan steered the Green Deerhorse carriage and exited the outskirts. As he passed through the moat, the surrounding scene started to change. Towering, ancient buildings grew fewer in number, and old, twisting, moss-green trees began to show up. He could even spot a few hills and streams.
"Maiden Yu Yan, that day, by the river, when Ning Han wanted to kill you, who was the veiled woman who rescued you?" Ning Xiaochuan asked as he drove the carriage.
Yu Yan pushed aside one side of the curtain, revealing half of her round, pretty face. After some thought, she finally replied, "That's a young miss from my place."
"A young miss? Who is she?" Ning Xiaochuan had formed a deep impression of that mysterious, sword-wielding lady whose face was covered with a white muslin veil. When he had first met her, he had thought she was an angel from heaven. Naturally, he was rather curious about her.
Yu Yan hesitated for a long while, then said, "If I tell you, you mustn't tell anyone from Marquis Jiange's Residence."
Ning Xiaochuan understood her reasoning. "Rest assured! I played a part in Ning Han's death too. I won't say anything about this matter to anyone from the Marquis' Residence."
Yu Yan nodded. "The young miss from my place is one of the three great beauties of the Imperial City, Yu Ningsheng. She's number one when it comes to talent, passion, and dance. It's immensely difficult for even the exceptional, illustrious individuals from the Heavenly Emperor Academy to be acquainted with the young miss. If they want her to dance for them, it still depends on whether she's willing."
"This young miss is also a woman of the brothel?" Ning Xiaochuan asked.
Yu Yan hastened to reply, "Although she was born in the brothel, she remains uncorrupted by her environment. She has more integrity than most people and is kinder too. Back when I was sold into Guanyu Tower, if the young miss hadn't pitied me and taken me on as a hostess, by now I'd certainly have become a lowly prostitute who spreads my legs to welcome customers."
Yu Yan wept as she spoke as if recalling something sorrowful from the past.
Ning Xiaochuan said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have dragged up painful things for you."
"It has nothing to do with you." Yu Yan pursed her lips and shook her head.
"Clip-clop!"
From behind came the sounds of lions roaring and iron hoofs striking the ground, causing the Green Deerhorse who was hauling the carriage to tremble in fear.
Five gigantic, black Mystical Iron Lions raced forward, stirring up five clouds of dust as they blocked the carriage.
Atop the Mystical Lion Beasts there sat five warriors covered completely in black plates of armor. Their bodies exuded a menacing, murderous aura, causing the temperature of the surrounding air to drop by a few degrees.
Amongst them, the warrior in front had the most fearsome force. His eyes were pitch-black and hollow. It was like the Grim Reaper was staring at Ning Xiaochuan.