Chapter 14: Pledge of Loyalty

“My master has passed away!” Xia Daoming replied.

“Passed away?” Liang Jingtang froze at the news, falling into long silence.

“Sigh!” After a long while, Liang Jingtang let out a deep breath and said, “Tell me about your master—how he lived, how he died. He was a fourth-rank Wu Master; logically, he shouldn’t have died so young.”

“Yes.” Xia Daoming bowed slightly and recounted the key events of Qiu Zhiheng’s life—how he opened a martial arts school in Heishi City, and how he was murdered.

The matter of the hundred-year Dragon-Patterned Purple Blood Ginseng was replaced by Xia Daoming with a story of other Liyizhengdou .

After listening, Liang Jingtang fell silent again, then sighed with sorrow: “These are turbulent times. Though martial artists seem better able to protect themselves than ordinary folk, it’s precisely this strength that makes them unwilling to live quietly, drawing them deeper into conflicts and bloodshed—rarely ending well.”

“Your master lived to sixty. Now you, risking your life to avenge him, ensure he can rest in peace.”

“A master’s murder is a feud beyond reconciliation—what danger is there to me?” Xia Daoming said.

“Excellent! A master’s murder is a feud beyond reconciliation!” Liang Jingtang slammed his chair’s armrest, his gaze toward Xia Daoming now tinged with renewed appreciation.

“How old are you? When did you reach the fourth level of the Dragon-Snake Scripture?” Liang Jingtang asked.

“Respected Director, I am twenty-four. I reached the fourth level at twenty-two.” Xia Daoming replied.

Liu Qiaolian had once told Xia Daoming that martial schools rarely let a Wu Master of twenty-five observe the Divine Aura Diagram.

Xia Daoming would turn twenty-five in a few months—he had just barely slipped through the age threshold.

Such an age was unfavorable; he risked being turned away outright.

So before coming, Xia Daoming had already decided: besides invoking his connection to Qiu Zhiheng, he would claim he reached fourth-rank Wu Master at twenty-two.

He had considered altering his true age, but the harsh northern climate had stunted his body’s growth; if he pretended to be younger, Liang Jingtang would surely grow suspicious.

“At twenty-two, reaching the fourth level is exceptional in a remote place like Heishi City—but among the young generation of Li City, it’s merely average.”

“And you delayed coming to Li City by two years—you wasted two full years of chances to take the Dark Force Elixir. Even if I grant you permission to observe the Qianjiaoshenyunmitu out of respect for Zhiheng, it will be futile. You’ll only waste your silver—and the Divine Aura hidden within the diagram.” Liang Jingtang frowned.

Hearing this, Xia Daoming was startled, yet secretly relieved.

Thank heaven he’d played a small trick—if not, he’d have had to reveal some of his true abilities just to earn the chance to observe the diagram.

Now, from Liang Jingtang’s tone, it wasn’t that he refused outright—he merely feared Xia Daoming would waste his time and money.

“I traveled thousands of miles, braved countless dangers to reach Li City. My heart for martial arts is unwavering. I beg you, Director, to grant me this chance!” Xia Daoming knelt on one knee.

Liang Jingtang studied Xia Daoming’s determined face, stroked his silver beard, and after long thought, spoke: “Each time the Divine Aura Diagram is activated, its aura fades slightly.”

“Thus, no sect or family ever allows outsiders to view their Divine Aura Diagrams—they’re reserved only for disciples with potential to reach Grand Wu Master, lest misuse exhaust the aura and rob future generations of their destiny.”

“Though our school teaches outsiders for profit, the Divine Aura Diagram is not for sale. I am old, my martial path has reached its limit, and I have no children. Money holds no allure for me.”

“My greatest wish now is to train a true Grand Wu Master who will elevate the Qianjiaowuguan . For five years, I’ve taken no new disciples—unless someone’s martial talent moves me deeply.”

“You became a fourth-rank Wu Master at twenty-two—your talent is unremarkable in Li City, and you wasted two years. Had it not been for your late master, I would never have offered you this chance!”

“Thank you, Director!” Xia Daoming exclaimed, overjoyed.

“Don’t celebrate yet. I grant you this chance out of respect for your dead master—but the rules for transmitting the Divine Aura Diagram cannot be broken. Listen first. If you accept and fulfill them, then you may thank me and become my disciple.” Liang Jingtang waved a hand.

“Director, please speak!” Xia Daoming’s expression turned solemn.

“First, tuition: five thousand taels. But since your master and I were fellow disciples, I am your senior brother. You come from a remote place—you likely have little silver. I’ll reduce it by two thousand. Pay three thousand.”

Hearing this, Xia Daoming was startled, then looked at Liang Jingtang with new eyes.

“Second, submit a pledge of loyalty. Once you observe the Divine Aura Diagram, you become a direct disciple—unlike those in the outer courtyard who pay to learn. You must prove your will and loyalty to the school.”

“Third, you have only ten opportunities to observe the diagram—once every six months, one hour per session. If within five years you fail to comprehend the diagram and cultivate Dark Force, you lose all future chances.”

“Moreover, after the first session, each subsequent observation requires an additional hundred taels—or completion of a task.” Liang Jingtang said.

“Why only one hour per session, and only once every six months?” Xia Daoming asked.

Liang Jingtang glanced at Xia Daoming with surprise.

He’d expected Xia Daoming to focus on the tuition and the loyalty pledge.

After all, even with the reduction, three thousand taels was still a fortune for a young Wu Master from a remote region.

And the loyalty pledge—surely it wouldn’t be easy, or why set it at all?

Yet Xia Daoming had skipped both entirely, as if silver and the pledge meant nothing to him.

After his surprise, Liang Jingtang answered: “The Divine Aura Diagram is the accumulated martial essence of a legendary master. It holds potent Divine Aura that violently strikes the mind.”

“Most people lose mental clarity after one hour—some even fall into coma or become mentally broken. The six-month gap exists because after viewing, one can recall and ponder the aura in their mind for half a year.”

“After that, the memory fades entirely, requiring a new viewing. Observing every one or two months might yield better results—but the aura degrades faster.”

“I understand!” Xia Daoming said, relieved, yet secretly astonished—and even more eager to see the diagram.

“You’ll understand once you’ve had the chance to observe it,” Liang Jingtang said.

“I understand. Please tell me what loyalty pledge I must submit?” Xia Daoming asked.

Several days later.

On a country road thirty li east of Li City, Wu Changlu rode a horse, a withered blade of grass between his lips. One hand gripped the reins; the other periodically slapped the girl’s buttocks, laid horizontally across his saddle.

Behind him, two retainers, also chewing grass, swayed atop their horses.

Watching the girl’s writhing body, the muffled “wuh wuh!” from her stuffed mouth, they leered, grinning wickedly.

Because after their young master had his fun, he always handed her over to them.

After they had theirs, they sold her to a broker—and pocketed a tidy profit.

And with their young master taking the blame, they bore zero risk.

As the master and two retainers fantasized about returning to Wu Family Fortress for pleasure, a man in black martial attire, face hidden beneath a wide-brimmed hat, suddenly appeared on the road ahead.

“Move aside! This is Wu Changlu, the legitimate son of Elder Wu Yue of Wu Family Fortress!” the two retainers shouted, rushing forward.

“So you’re Wu Changlu!” The hat-wearer’s gaze swept over the girl pinned before Wu Changlu—his eyes flashed with killing intent as he leapt from his horse.

Mid-air, he unleashed Dragon-Snake Drifting Mist—leg shadows multiplied, and in an instant, the two retainers were kicked off their mounts.

Then, using the momentum, he flipped through the air, executing Teshechudong —a dagger-hand thrust straight at Wu Changlu’s throat.

Wu Changlu paled, crossed his arms to block, shouting: “Who are you? Why—”

Before he could finish, a terrifying force slammed into his crossed arms.

Wu Changlu flew backward off his horse.

Before he could recover, the man landed behind him, a sharp short dagger now in hand.

The blade flashed in sunlight—Wu Changlu’s head separated from his body.

The man spun swiftly and ended the two retainers, who were struggling to rise.

“Wuh wuh wuh!”

The girl on the horse, witnessing the horror, saw the hat-wearer approaching—she thrashed wildly, eyes wide with terror.

“Don’t fear. I won’t kill you.” The man cut the girl’s ropes.

“Thank you, great hero for saving me!” The girl, pale-faced, bowed her head repeatedly in gratitude.

“Leave this place quickly,” the man waved.

The girl bowed twice more, then turned and stumbled away, fleeing down the road without looking back.

“Rumors were wrong—Wu Changlu was a fourth-rank Wu Master. Oddly, his force carried a trace of Dark Force—though extremely weak. Lucky I acted—otherwise, this would’ve become a major incident!” After the girl left, the hat-wearer knelt beside Wu Changlu’s corpse, patting it, muttering softly.

He quickly searched all three bodies, placed Wu Changlu’s head in a black leather sack, hastily buried the corpses, mounted his horse, and galloped toward Li City.

One hour later.

Xia Daoming, dressed in blue martial attire, entered the Qianjiaowuguan , carrying a leather sack.

Yu Chi Xiao, overseeing training in the outer courtyard, noticed him and glanced at the sack—his eyes flickered with surprise.

“Got it so fast?” Yu Chi Xiao stepped forward, whispering.

“Mm.” Xia Daoming nodded.

“No complications?”

“None. Is the Director here?”

“He is. Follow me.”

Soon, they passed through an arched gate and walked along a winding corridor to the inner courtyard.