Chapter 11: Four Seas Chamber of Commerce

No pursuit.

Jiang Ding pressed his hand against the sword hilt, closing his eyes slightly to feel the blood-drenched battlefield; the scent of blood at the tip of his nose was extremely heavy.

His spine felt slightly numb; in just a few short minutes, his Bone Refinement progress had advanced another notch.

Regardless of the martial art, its ultimate value could only be found on the battlefield, aligning with the essence of one's own life.

The caravan hands nearby looked at the youth amidst the corpses with awe, not daring to approach.

"Many thanks to the young hero for saving our lives."

After a long while, the caravan manager, having bandaged his wounds, hurried over and bowed deeply: "I am Long San, a collateral descendant of the Long family of the Four Seas Chamber of Commerce. I have met the young hero, and there will surely be a generous reward in the future."

Jiang Ding was stunned: "In the future? Why not now?"

Long San's scalp tingled, his whole body, especially his throat, felt cold, and he instinctively reached for the saber at his waist.

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"These large sects have always acted in a domineering manner; even the imperial court has rarely interfered in recent years, so who could have known?"

"Let's go, let's go! Young hero, rest assured, Dongling City is just a remote, small place for someone of the Long Feng Ranking's ninth place. If it weren't for his master's orders, how could 'Sea-Splitting Saber' Wei Xian be willing to come here?" Sea-Splitting Saber?

Jiang Ding's heart stirred, as if he remembered something, but after careful thought, there was nothing.

"These three are all renowned peak Internal Qi Realm experts. Not to mention their fame and influence, for an Internal Qi Realm martial artist like me, surviving even one move against them would be a stroke of extreme luck."

Along the way, the caravan stopped from time to time in small towns and villages to replenish food and water and rest the livestock, allowing Jiang Ding to witness some local customs.

"Naturally."

"Actually, a few months ago, there was still the Qixuan Sect, which was even stronger than the three major powers and had occupied Dongling Prefecture for over a thousand years. It's just a pity that they were slaughtered clean by Wei Xian, the eldest disciple of the Golden Blade Sect, one of the six major sects, who brought men to do it."

Body Refinement Realm martial artists possess hundreds of catties of brute force in a single arm, and Internal Qi Realm martial artists are even stronger, but it seems they have no intention of using this power in agricultural or handicraft production to increase productivity.

"Young hero, I couldn't ask for more!"

Jiang Ding also smiled: "Is that eldest disciple of the Golden Blade Sect still in Dongling City? I'm having second thoughts about going."

Long San pondered for a moment and said: "With the young hero's skills, some small gangs and minor powers are naturally beneath your notice. The only ones who can be called great experts are three: Yang Dongsheng, the leader of the Yiqi Gang, known as 'Righteousness Reaching the Clouds'; Old Master Yuan, the owner of the Dragon-Tiger Martial Hall, known as 'Heaven-Turning Monkey,' whose disciples are spread across both the black and white paths of Dongling Prefecture; and finally, Zheng Ye, the head of the Zheng family, nicknamed 'Mixed Golden Blade.' It is said that the Zheng family has marriage ties with the Marquis's Mansion."

Woodcutters, merchants, opera singers, night-soil collectors—people from all walks of life lined up to enter the city in an orderly fashion.

Long San thought for a moment and added:

"No, that is enough." Jiang Ding smiled: "You are also a merchant; naturally, you know that the concept of value is never fixed. As long as the buyer and seller agree, the money and goods are settled, and there should be no further entanglement."

"However, there are some rumors in the city."

Jiang Ding remembered something: "Doesn't the Qixuan Sect also have a Long Feng Ranking prodigy, what was her name, Fairy Feixue? Did she also fall into the hands of that 'Sea-Splitting Saber'?"

Long San thought about it.

Long San stepped back half a step and waved his hands repeatedly: "Young hero, you flatter me. You saved my life; you could just order these small matters, why go to such lengths?"

Of course, the requirements for specimens are very strict in all aspects, so training will be provided in advance.

"This..."

"In the prefecture city, besides the prefecture government office where the Marquis of Zhendong sits, what other experts should I avoid provoking so I can be careful?"

At the city gate, the tax collector charged one wen per person as an entry fee, with goods calculated separately. Seeing Long San's expression was normal, it seemed there was no overcharging, no undercharging, and none of the harassment he had speculated might exist.

"Young hero, a mere few dozen taels of silver..."

In general, it is roughly similar to the feudal society period of the Immortal Sect.

Four or five hours later, just as Jiang Ding was wondering whether to pull an all-nighter, a tall city appeared in the distance.

"Oh? Why is that?" Jiang Ding asked with interest: "I remember the Golden Blade Sect is a large sect near the capital. Why would they travel thousands of miles to our place to exterminate a sect?"

Body Refinement Realm martial artists and Internal Qi Realm martial artists are all mortals. Once trapped in cities, plains, or similar areas and besieged by armies with strong bows and hard crossbows, no matter how strong they are, they cannot hold out and will surely die.

Getting closer, he discovered the city walls were eleven or twelve meters high and fifteen or sixteen meters wide, with a large number of armored soldiers guarding the city gate, standing motionless even in the sweltering heat.

The vast majority of martial artists choose violent professions that do not directly produce products, such as escorts, guards, gang members, or soldiers. Even if they face life and death from time to time, it cannot be called safe or stable. Long San's body relaxed, a smile appeared, and he cupped his hands, returning to the hands to borrow some money, offering up more than thirty taels of silver.

Jiang Ding also took the opportunity to ask him about some things in the vicinity.

Jiang Ding didn't have a single wen, so Long San paid for him.

Long San was overjoyed; he had been worried that the bandits of the Fierce Tiger Stronghold would not let the matter rest.

"Otherwise." Jiang Ding said seriously: "As I said before, since I have already accepted your generous gift, this matter is already concluded; do not mention it again."

Long San said solemnly: "The Marquis of Zhendong is one of the twelve Tianyun Generals who followed the Great Ancestor to conquer the empire, ranking ninth in the Tianyun Pavilion. His military governance and martial arts are naturally extraordinary, and he has yet to decline."

Long San's face tightened.

After all, this is the territory of the Fierce Tiger Stronghold, and everyone dared not linger. Long San had the hands clear a donkey cart to invite Jiang Ding in, and despite his own injuries, he accompanied him personally.

"Hey, hey hey..."

"That is unnecessary, this is enough. It was they who attacked first; it wasn't specifically to save you."

Facing Jiang Ding's gaze, he stopped abruptly.

"It is said that the Golden Blade Ancestor of the Golden Blade Sect took a fancy to a treasure of the Qixuan Sect, known as the Heavenly Sound Stone, left behind by the Qixuan Master who dominated the martial arts world a thousand years ago. Under the moonlight every month, it emits the sound of immortal music, which can help people comprehend martial arts."

After entering the city, Jiang Ding cupped his hands at Long San: "I intend to open a general store in the city. Manager Long, could you introduce some channels? I don't ask for a prime location, just to settle down temporarily. The commission will certainly not let you suffer a loss."

"In short, it's scattered, and everyone says something different." Long San smiled bitterly: "For small people like us, what we hear can generally not be taken as truth; it's just something to pass the time while drinking."

"Young hero, please don't blame me. I only have thirty taels of silver on me right now; there will be another generous gift when we reach the prefecture city."

"This was the dream woman that great figures like Old Master Yuan and the head of the Zheng family could not obtain when they were young. By luck, she was embraced by the Qixuan Sect Master, but who would have thought that now... sigh."

"In the city, it is said there are three major powers, but in reality, none compare to the Marquis's Mansion."

"By the way."

"Such a prodigy is truly a great man!"

"I dare not! Young hero, please wait a moment."

Jiang Ding carefully examined these soldiers and his expression became serious: "The soldiers in the city are quite elite."

With the beautiful scenery of the mountains and fields slowly receding outside the window, the two chatted casually, and Jiang Ding gained a general impression of Dongling City.

He showed an expression of awe.

"You are talking about 'Fairy Feixue' Gong Caiyu, the ninety-eighth on the Long Feng Ranking, right? She is the daughter of Fairy Lingyin, and her beauty is also peerless. I didn't see her that day, and I haven't heard what happened to her since."

Long San said with a hint of longing: "I saw it with my own eyes that day. Just the gold, silver, treasures, and people's blood and sweat dragged down from the Qixuan Sect mountain filled more than a dozen large carts. The last flower cart filled with beauties was even more covetable. It is said that the Qixuan Sect Master's wife, 'Fairy Lingyin,' was among them."

"Others say it was because one of the Golden Blade Ancestor's enemies was related to the Qixuan Sect, so he sent his eldest disciple to slaughter the entire Qixuan Sect to vent his anger."

Jiang Ding accepted the silver and shook his head, "I have another request. I am also going to the prefecture city; could you provide some convenience for me to travel with you?"

This was his plan: to open a general store and purchase various specimens dug and captured by the locals with a certain amount of silver.

"It is also said that it is related to a beauty..."

!.

"Could it be that the generous reward was just polite talk?" Jiang Ding said with displeasure.

Jiang Ding was speechless. These people really dare to brag; I'm afraid even a Golden Core True Person wouldn't dare to claim they could split the sea.

"Sigh, young hero, I cannot win an argument with you. Since you want to open a shop, I will send a hand familiar with these matters to handle things for you later. There is no need to mention the commission."

Long San smiled bitterly.

A small businessman opening a general store and this cold-blooded, green-robed, sword-wearing youth just didn't match; it was too incongruous.

Of course, he didn't ask further; that was someone else's business.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 12 =====