Chapter 6: Blade Art at Great Completion? Affinity Soaring!

"Where am I?"

In a daze, Chen Mo only felt a warm current surging within his body, nourishing his parched meridians and qi sea.

As his consciousness gradually cleared, he slowly opened his eyes.

He saw himself lying on a bed, with a beautiful middle-aged woman sitting beside him, gripping his wrist and continuously channeling true qi into him, her lovely eyes filled with worry.

"Mo'er, you're awake?"

The beautiful woman said softly.

"Mother?"

Chen Mo called out instinctively.

His gaze swept left and right; two figures were also standing by the bed.

A finely dressed man with a goatee, bearing an extraordinary air—presumably his cheap old man.

As for the girl earnestly gnawing on a ginger pork trotter… he seemed to have seen that face before passing out; it looked like she was the one who brought him back.

"Finally safe."

At this point, Chen Mo finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Mo'er, what exactly happened?"

"Young Lady Shen said she picked you up at the entrance of the Jiaofang Office… how could your body be overdrawn to this extent?"

He Yuzhi asked with concern.

"Hmph, debauched and dissolute, not even caring about your life! I bet you'll die on a woman's belly sooner or later!"

Chen Zhuo wore a look of exasperation at his son's unworthiness.

"No, Mo'er clearly got into a fight with someone…"

"Got into a brawl over a woman?"

"…"

Chen Mo shook his head inwardly.

Looks like this cheap old man holds deep prejudice against him.

He cut off their exchange and said concisely: "Gu Manzhi is the Holy Maiden of the Moon Huang Sect, a Rank 6 sorcerer who had been lurking inside the Jiaofang Office. After I saw through her identity, I beat her badly…"

"Going to capture her now is probably already too late."

At these words, the room instantly fell silent.

The information in that statement was too heavy, leaving them all stunned for a moment.

Chen Zhuo's narrow eyes narrowed slightly; no matter how outrageous this rebellious son usually was, he wouldn't joke about something like this.

The sect's reach had already extended into Ducheng?

"Wait a moment…"

"You said she's a Rank 6 sorcerer, and you beat her badly?"

He Yuzhi felt a bit dazed, wondering if she'd misheard.

Martial artists' methods are relatively singular; before stepping into the Heavenly Human Realm, they are basically suppressed by sorcerers of the same realm.

Not to mention the other party was Rank 6—the two of them were a full major realm apart.

Chen Mo nodded and said casually: "I caught her off guard, and with my blade art reaching Great Completion, I took her by surprise."

Blade art at Great Completion?

He Yuzhi's eyes were full of disbelief.

Blazing Flame Eight Slashes was something she had taught Chen Mo, so she naturally knew its intricacies.

If it weren't for lacking a touch of "Dao Resonance," this would be a powerful martial technique worthy of ranking among the Heaven Grade!

How easy could it be to cultivate it to Great Completion?

How many prodigies were stuck at that final step, unable to advance an inch; even she only grasped its essence after "Mortal Transformation."

Yet Chen Mo was only a Rank 7 Mortal Body…

"Although Mo'er's talent is no slouch, it hasn't reached such an exaggerated level."

"Could it be that a life-and-death moment unleashed his potential, a breakthrough in the heat of battle? Mmm, such situations do occur from time to time… no wonder his body is overdrawn so severely; that would explain it."

He Yuzhi pondered in thought.

"Someone come."

At this moment, Chen Zhuo spoke up.

The butler pushed the door open and entered. "Master."

Chen Zhuo ordered: "Have Cen Long head to the Jiaofang Office immediately…"

Cen Long was the Chen family's guard captain, at the peak of Martial Path Rank 4.

This matter was of great consequence; even if they couldn't catch the person, they could verify whether Chen Mo was telling the truth.

"Yes."

The butler quickly withdrew.

The room fell quiet.

Chen Mo leaned against the headboard, resting with his eyes closed.

Shen Zhixia silently gnawed on her pork trotter, her dark eyes curiously sizing him up.

……

Half an hour later.

A burly man walked into the room; a vicious scar ran across his left cheek, adding a few degrees of fierceness to him.

Chen Zhuo asked: "How did it go?"

Cen Long replied, "When this subordinate arrived, the place was already empty. There were signs of a struggle in the room, along with residual auras of Daoist spells and Blazing Flame saber qi."

Saying this, he glanced at Chen Mo, a flicker of surprise and curiosity passing through his eyes.

"Besides this, this subordinate also discovered this item."

Cen Long presented a wooden box.

Inside could be seen a clump of mangled flesh, nearly crushed into a pulp, its original form already unrecognizable.

But the crescent moon emblem stamped on the lid was enough to explain everything.

"So it really is a remnant of the Moon Huang Sect."

Chen Zhuo furrowed his brow tightly, looked at Chen Mo, and asked, "In other words, you had long noticed something off about that woman, which is why you deliberately got close to her?"

"That's right."

"At first I only had some suspicions, but I wasn't certain of her identity. To avoid alerting the enemy, I didn't tell anyone."

"I had planned to see the act through to the end. Tearing up the marriage contract in public today was meant to further test her. I didn't expect her to actually try to harm me—forced, I could only act…"

"In the final analysis, I was too impatient, overreached, and from now on it will be even harder to catch her…"

Chen Mo sighed, his expression vexed.

This explanation was half true, half false. Even if the two had doubts, it could be explained away as "rushing in for credit."

Chen Zhuo was silent for a moment, then snorted coldly and said stiffly, "Ridiculous! You even dared to hide it from me and your mother—your nerve is getting bigger and bigger!"

"You were lucky this time to run into Shen Zhixia, or your little life would've been preserved!"

"You're confined to the residence for one month. Stay properly in the house, and don't go anywhere!"

Having finished, he swept his sleeve, turned, and walked out of the room.

"Mo'er, don't overthink it. Your father only has your best interests at heart."

"The situation is chaotic now. Stay home and recuperate peacefully, take good care of your body. Leave the other matters to us."

He Yuzhi said softly, offering comfort.

She then took out the "Zixiao Powder," which could replenish qi and nurture the primordial essence, watched Chen Mo take it, and only then left with peace of mind.

Arriving in the courtyard, Chen Zhuo's gaze darkened. He said to Cen Long, "Notify the Tianlin Guard. Seal off the Jiaofang Office immediately. Tear this place apart if you have to—don't let a single clue slip through!"

"Anyone who has ever had contact with Gu Manzhi, arrest them all. I want to interrogate each one personally!"

"Anyone who dares resist—execute first, report after!"

No matter who it was, daring to reach a hand toward the Chen family had already thoroughly struck at his reverse scale!

"Yes."

Cen Long acknowledged and departed.

He Yuzhi walked over and said, "This matter still needs to be reported to the Empress. As for Mo'er… although he was somewhat rash, he did eliminate a potential threat."

"Normally one couldn't tell, but he actually has this kind of boldness and cunning…"

Chen Zhuo said coldly, "It's nothing more than reckless gambling! All he knows is to play the brute's game—he'll never accomplish anything great!"

He Yuzhi shot him a look. "Enough, there's no one else here. Your mouth is about to split from holding it back. Still putting on an act?"

Chen Zhuo instinctively felt his cheek at her words.

Noticing He Yuzhi's teasing gaze, his expression turned slightly awkward. He snorted, and walked off into the distance with his hands behind his back.

He Yuzhi shook her head helplessly.

"Tch, a fellow who says one thing and means another… Afu."

"This old servant is here."

"Prepare the sedan. To the palace!"

……

Chen Mo had no objections to being confined.

Gu Manzhi must hate him to the bone now. She might pop out and bite him at any moment—better to lay low at home.

Just then, his vision blurred, and several lines of prompt text appeared:

【Gu Manzhi's affection has increased.】

【Affection has broken through the threshold, unlocking progress.】

【Current progress: 45/100 (Regret Not Meeting Sooner).】

Chen Mo: "¿"