Chapter 372: Test the Quality (Combined Three Parts)

The maid bowed and withdrew to make arrangements.

The Hejian listened nearby, his eyelid twitching.

The Princess Consort truly is formidable—Ruan Tianye’s permits, in the eyes of people like them, are certificates of “daily gold influx”!

Yet the Princess Consort casually pulled out one.

The Hejian’s eagerness to flatter surged; he bowed forward and said, “Everything you requested has been prepared.”

“Lead me there.”

“As you command.”

The barracks where the Hejian camp was previously stationed have not yet been torn down.

The Hejian had assigned men to guard them tightly.

In the center of the camp, where the commander’s tent once stood, a massive pit had been dug.

It measured fifteen zhang in length and width.

The pit was filled with water, murky and thick.

Bubbles occasionally rose to the surface, proving something truly lived within.

The Princess Consort stood before the pit, her nose twitching slightly.

The cracks on her skin widened further with the motion.

She grimaced in pain.

But she sensed every scent in the water—and was satisfied with the Hejian: “Good.”

The Hejian, delighted by the praise, rubbed his hands together: “Time was short, so we could only gather these for now. Your Highness, rest assured—I’ve ordered the Canal Guild to spare no lives, hunting relentlessly. More will arrive soon.”

“You’ve done well.” The Princess Consort nodded, walking toward the pit: “All of you, withdraw.”

“As you command.”

The Hejian and Gao Wanli and others swiftly retreated.

The two burly Wu Xiu accompanying the Princess Consort stood guard beside the pit, hands on their swords, facing outward, eyes like falcons, killing intent radiating from them—no one was allowed near.

As the Princess Consort reached the edge of the pit, her entire robe fell to the ground.

Then, naked, she stepped into the water.

The surface instantly boiled like a pot.

Countless water snakes, eels, crocodiles, loaches, turtles, and more, as if seized by the strongest lure, charged at her without hesitation.

The Princess Consort relaxed her body completely, floating on the water like a corpse.

Three or four out of ten of these creatures were demonic!

They tore and bit, ripping off scales and outer skin from her body, greedily swallowing them down!

The Princess Consort endured unbearable pain, gritting her teeth in silence.

Yet the hundreds of snakes and crocodiles had only torn off less than one-tenth of her scales and skin.

Anything that swallowed even a scrap soon flipped belly-up, floating to the surface.

Poisoned to death.

The water churned violently for about a quarter-hour, until all the creatures in the pit were dead.

All fell silent again.

After extreme agony, the Princess Consort let out a deeply soothing moan.

Then she stepped out of the water and dressed again.

“Return.”

…

Gao Wanli stirred up trouble, carefully accompanied the Princess Consort through a meal, and was then dismissed.

On the way back, Gao Wanli seethed with complaints.

“I always heard the Xiang Prince’s Princess Consort was a pretender—but I never imagined she could be this theatrical!”

“She even sent a maid to confront the greatest demon in Ghost Witch Mountain—tch, tch, tch! Even the Dragon King of the Canal himself wouldn’t dare such a display!”

“If Ruan Tianye could be so easily controlled, Ghost Witch Mountain wouldn’t exist.”

She cursed under her breath as she returned to the Zhancheng Office, and at the gate of her courtyard, she spotted Lang XiaoBa passing by—heading straight toward Xu Yuan.

Gao Wanli shot a suspicious glance that way and muttered angrily: “They’re still watching me?”

“You’re about to meet disaster, hmph!”

…

Lang XiaoBa reported to Master Xu: “Gao Wanli has returned.”

Xu Yuan nodded.

Not long after, Miao Yan arrived.

The San Niang Society had infiltrated the Canal Guild.

Miao Yan came to report to Master Xu on everything that had transpired at the dock today.

A while later, Zhu Zhanlei strolled in: “I found out—it’s the Xiang Prince’s Princess Consort.”

Xu Yuan asked: “More details?”

Zhu Zhanlei grinned: “Getting you this info wasn’t easy, hehe.”

Xu Yuan said: “Then I’ll deposit five hundred taels into Bai Yue Pavilion for you?”

Zhu Zhanlei waved his hand: “Don’t bother! I haven’t even spent the last deposit—my sister went there and drained it all!”

Not just mine—my brother-in-law still had twelve hundred taels there, and she wiped that out too!

Ah, ah, ah—

We two are now too afraid to speak up against Zhu Sanya.”

“Hahaha,” Xu Yuan couldn’t help laughing: “So what do you suggest?”

“We’re friends,” Zhu Zhanlei suddenly said. “Friends help each other, right?”

“Naturally.”

“This time I helped you. Next time you get a chance to earn merit, don’t forget to bring me along.”

Xu Yuan gave a gesture: “No problem.”

Zhu Zhanlei continued: “The Princess Consort has been stuck at Fifth Flow for four or five years. Supposedly, she long ago found the method to ascend to Fourth Flow—but for some reason, she’s never broken through.”

The Xiang Prince’s household holds her in high regard—even the Prince himself, it’s said, fears her deeply.”

Outsiders say: to get something done with the Xiang Prince, you don’t need to beg him—just win the Princess Consort’s approval, and half the job is done.”

Here, Zhu Zhanlei paused, then lowered his voice: “There’s another matter. About four years ago, when the Princess Consort began preparing to ascend to Fourth Flow, the Xiang Prince’s household suddenly replaced its servants.”

About eighty percent of the servants were replaced.”

The Xiang Prince’s household claimed these servants were old and frail, and they were given severance pay out of compassion.”

But in truth, they were all killed. Rumors even say they were all poisoned to death in a single night!”

Xu Yuan frowned: “Because of the Princess Consort?”

“No one knows what kind of ‘dragon’ she truly is. But after this incident, everyone concluded: this ‘dragon’ is deadly poisonous!”

Xu Yuan now understood. He slowly nodded, already calculating that he needed to contact Bai Lao and Gao Guanzi—to send him more herbs for a major enhancement of his medicinal pills.

Zhu Zhanlei asked: “Why are you watching her?”

“She was invited by Gao Wanli.”

Zhu Zhanlei had no patience for bureaucratic affairs and dropped the subject.

“Let’s go drink.”

“Still to Bai Yue Pavilion?”

Zhu Zhanlei winced: “Xu, you’re acting strange lately. You seem terrified of going to Bai Yue Pavilion.”

“Nonsense!” Xu Yuan’s voice rose involuntarily: “I simply dislike Bai Yue Pavilion.”

Zhu Zhanlei stared at him, puzzled, watching Xu Yuan grow increasingly uneasy as he scrambled for excuses—then Zhu Zhanlei waved his hand: “Fine, don’t go then.”

Xu Yuan exhaled quietly in relief.

…

The Hejian personally oversaw the operation; the Canal Guild’s chief steward, accompanied by dozens of trusted men, carefully fished the dead creatures from the pit.

The former chief steward at the dock had recently died under mysterious circumstances.

But to the Hejian, it was merely replacing one “lead dog.”

Within the Canal Guild, several lives had been lost fighting over the position.

This new chief steward was even more favored by the Hejian than the last.

“Be careful,” the Hejian said. “Don’t touch or let anything brush against you.”

The Canal Guild men hauled up the corpses and carefully placed them into several sealed wooden chests.

Then they transported them away, planning to bury them deep somewhere.

But the men assigned to bury them grew lazy and dug a shallow hole instead.

They didn’t notice a nearby ant nest.

By afternoon, a large white goose wobbled toward the city outskirts.

Da Fu had gone days without food.

The Zhancheng Office was free of demons.

Da Fu had turned over every drainage channel in the office—only ordinary insects remained.

Even after eating, his stomach still felt hollow.

When on patrol in the southern city watchhouse, Dafu could slip out to scavenge for food.

Though the surrounding streets were free of malevolent spirits, a little farther out, edible prey could still be found.

But here in Zhancheng Office, there was also the Shanhe Office.

A large surrounding area had very few malevolent spirits.

After Dafu stepped out, he wandered and suddenly realized: he was lost!

He panicked and wanted to return.

He searched everywhere but couldn’t find his way back; instead, he ended up leaving the city entirely.

Then he discovered: outside the city was wonderful—he quickly found a large nest of insects.

And they were the fierce kind; Dafu gorged himself halfway to fullness.

Then he went looking for the next nest.

While searching, he found a nest of ants.

…

The Princess Consort was deeply calculating.

She intended to use Gao Wanli but didn’t want Gao Wanli to know her full plan.

After sending Gao Wanli away, the Princess Consort called out: “Xiao Wu.”

A subordinate appeared: “Your servant is here.”

“Go monitor the Quesui Office. If Xu Yuan appears, move to test him—see if he’s secretly practicing the Dragon Transformation Scripture.”

Xiao Wu asked: “To what extent should I test him?”

The Princess Consort replied coolly: “If there’s any trace of the Dragon Transformation Scripture on him, kill him, capture his soul, and interrogate it thoroughly to see if he’s leaked it to others.”

After all, Xu Yuan was the Head of the Quesui Office; the Princess Consort still had some reservations—if he hadn’t secretly practiced the Dragon Transformation Scripture, she couldn’t just kill him without cause.

“Yes, Your Excellency!”

Xiao Wu was a household guard cultivated since childhood by the Xiang Prince’s mansion.

Fifth-rank Wu Xiu!

After receiving the order, Xiao Wu recruited one sixth-rank Fa Xiu and one sixth-rank Wen Xiu to join him.

Gao Wanli had already informed the Princess Consort that Xu Yuan had advanced to fifth-rank.

Xiao Wu couldn’t help but raise his estimation of Xu Yuan.

So young and already fifth-rank—he himself had been far inferior at that age.

So Xiao Wu was cautious and brought two assistants.

“The target is a fifth-rank Dan Xiu who also practices the Shang Method,” Xiao Wu detailed the situation to the two.

“He may also practice the Dragon Transformation Scripture.”

“His proficiency in the Shang Method and Dragon Transformation Scripture likely doesn’t exceed sixth-rank.”

“I’ll lead the assault; Lao Chu will assist me.”

Lao Chu was the Fa Xiu.

“Hong Huai, stay on the perimeter and use your character scrolls to restrict the target’s movement.”

“Understood,” both replied.

“If he truly practices the Dragon Transformation Scripture, his physical strength may rival mine—I’ll hold him off directly. Lao Chu, strike swiftly and don’t fear injuring me—I won’t die.”

All Wu Xiu had absolute confidence: at the same level, they could kill any opponent!

Wu Xiu were born for slaughter.

But serving the Princess Consort, Xiao Wu arranged everything meticulously.

“If…” Xiao Wu still laid out contingency plans: “If the operation fails, Hong Huai, retreat immediately—abandon us two. Bring the intelligence we’ve paid for with our lives to the Princess Consort!”

Hong Huai chuckled: “I know, Fifth Brother—you always give this speech. Not saying it would be dereliction. But it won’t be needed.”

Lao Chu joined in teasing: “Fifth Brother may be a Wu Xiu, but he grew up in the mansion, read too many books, and still has these ‘heroic martyr’ fantasies.”

Xiao Wu glared: “Stop joking! Serving the Princess Consort isn’t a game!”

The two forced smiles away and said together: “We’ve remembered.”

Xiao Wu nodded: “Prepare. We leave immediately.”

Deep down, Xiao Wu didn’t think he’d need the final contingency.

It came from confidence in his own strength—and trust in Lao Chu.

Lao Chu’s Fa was unusual.

The three changed clothes and arrived outside Zhancheng Office.

They didn’t gather together.

They split up upon entering the city, pretending not to know each other.

But each remained within sight of the others.

At the street entrance of Zhancheng Office stood a teahouse; Xiao Wu sat by a window on the first floor.

He could clearly see the street.

He could charge out directly when the moment came.

More importantly, his two companions could clearly observe his every move, aiding coordination.

Lao Chu was in the bookstore across the street; Hong Huai had acquired a disguise and posed as a fortune-teller on the opposite side, now holding a beautiful woman’s hand, solemnly examining her palm.

And occasionally rubbing her palm.

They waited until evening, but Xu Yuan never emerged.

Xiao Wu silently shook his head—looks like today’s stakeout was wasted.

He was about to rise and leave when suddenly he saw a Quesui Office Captain sprint past on the street and rush into the office.

Xiao Wu thought for a moment and sat back down.

Not long after, Xu Yuan hurried eastward with several Captains.

Xiao Wu stood, placed a stack of copper coins on the table, then followed leisurely.

Lao Chu and Hong Huai followed as well.

…

Roughly halfway between Zhancheng Office and the eastern city watchhouse, Xiao Wu swept his hand across his face.

A milky-white membrane covered his face.

It was a craft artifact—low-grade, concealing his face without impairing vision.

If Xiao Wu died, the artifact would immediately devour his facial skin.

Thus, his identity wouldn’t be revealed by appearance.

This gesture was also the signal to attack.

Hidden away, Lao Chu circled to the front of Xu Yuan’s group.

Hong Huai slipped silently into a side alley, climbed onto the rooftop, and lay prone, clutching several character scrolls.

Xiao Wu flicked his sleeve—two short knives, palm-width, appeared in his hands. He swung his arms, and his entire body became a heavy, massive blade-wheel, whirling toward Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan brought only Mao Dabin and Lang Xiao Ba, plus the Captain sent by Wan Yun with the message.

Lang Xiao Ba reacted instantly, turning and drawing his sword as he shouted: “You damned scoundrel!”

He slashed forward.

Clang!

Lang Xiao Ba’s sword flew high into the air.

In both Wu Xiu and Fa Xiu terms, he was far inferior to Xiao Wu.

Hiss—

Xiao Wu slashed across his chest. He expected to gut the lackey outright, but the blade’s touch felt wrong.

He had already passed Lang Xiao Ba and turned to see: a layer of skin covered Lang Xiao Ba’s chest.

Lang Xiao Ba’s clothes were completely cut open, but this skin—whatever it was—had withstood Xiao Wu’s strike, leaving only a white mark!

Xu Yuan also sensed the attack the moment Xiao Wu moved.

But fifth-rank Wu Xiu speed was too fast—he could only barely hurl out his Pi Dan to save Lang Xiao Ba’s life.

Lang Xiao Ba turned pale, still trembling.

Xiao Wu charged forward, blades flashing, moving with the knives straight at Xu Yuan.

Mao Dabin slapped his body—behind him, eight mechanical arms snapped open like fan ribs.

Each arm bore a short musket, hand cannon, or similar.

In recent days, Mao Dabin had carefully sought guidance from Lin Wan several times, greatly improving his Jiang Xiu skill.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Bullets slammed into Xiao Wu.

Xiao Wu ignored them entirely—the bullets simply bounced off!

“Ahh!” Mao Dabin screamed—his body now riddled with bloody holes, wounded by his own rebounding bullets.

Xiao Wu clasped his hands together—both thick short knives stabbed toward Xu Yuan’s face.

At the same time, a pale yellow glow flashed across Xiao Wu’s face.

His strength surged sharply.

A three-foot yellow light also surged forth from the twin blades!

Xu Yuan’s sword pellet flew out and slammed hard against the twin blades.

Ding!

The sword pellet struck the twin blades, producing a deafening crash.

Xu Yuan stepped back two paces, but Xiao Wu advanced instead of retreating, whirling his twin blades into dazzling white whirls of steel, slashing and chopping as he pressed forward.

The yellow light on his face grew even denser.

The yellow light on the twin blades extended another five feet!

This was the Wu Xiu’s “Five Viscera Qi.”

When a Wu Xiu reached the Sixth Flow, he could cultivate the Five Viscera Qi, each organ corresponding to a different color.

The Five Viscera Qi could cling to the body or weapons.

For a Wu Xiu, the Five Viscera Qi was an all-purpose qi.

It could drastically increase strength, protect the body, enhance attacks, and more.

For instance, these twin blades were Sixth Flow crafted items; after being infused with Five Viscera Qi, they could withstand direct clashes with Xu Yuan’s Fifth Flow sword pellet!

Xu Yuan’s mind shifted, and his twin Zhanlong Swords flew out, blocking Xiao Wu’s blades on either side—but they could not hold against Xiao Wu’s overwhelming force, and were pushed steadily backward.

Meanwhile, the sword pellet had quietly circled behind Xiao Wu.

Chi!

The sword pellet extended into a one-foot flying sword and pierced Xiao Wu’s back.

But Xiao Wu roared, tightening the muscles of his back, and with an incredible physique, he clamped the flying sword between his flesh!

The flying sword sank only two inches before becoming utterly stuck.

After that roar, Xiao Wu’s body swelled again, growing another full circle larger, standing before Xu Yuan like a giant.

He slammed downward with all his might, forcing the twin Zhanlong Swords nearly against Xu Yuan’s face.

Xiao Wu suddenly opened his mouth: Puh—

A sharp burst of qi shot out, no less potent than a Fifth Flow sword pellet!

This was Xiao Wu’s second Wu Mi: Qi-Infused Attack!

Xu Yuan suddenly snapped open a folding fan.

At the very moment the bright yellow qi struck his face, Xu Yuan vanished.

Moments later, Xu Yuan landed from dozens of zhang away, crunching through a section of roof with a sharp crack.

Xu Yuan’s face was as cold as water; he closed the folding fan.

Simultaneously, the twin Zhanlong Swords flew back into the sword case behind him.

In Xu Yuan’s hands appeared a pair of weapons.

In his right hand was something that resembled both a sword and a spike.

In his left hand was a bell.

Between the two objects stretched a thin, elongated chain.

Xu Yuan shook the bell: Dang lang lang…

Xiao Wu instantly became dizzy, his soul trembling, and crashed heavily to the ground.

Xu Yuan, already riding his fire wheel, surged forward at speed, driving the long spike with a sharp chi into Xiao Wu’s back!

Xiao Wu’s formidable Fifth Flow physique could not withstand this crafted item.

This was given to Xu Yuan this morning by his stepmother, just after she emerged from her cultivation chamber.

It was forged from Qi Yue’s treacherous dagger, a seashell, three hairpins, counting rods, and Xu Yuan’s previous cart bell—after immense mental and spiritual effort, it became a Fourth Flow crafted item!

Xiao Wu slammed his head hard against the ground: Dong!

The ground shattered instantly.

A massive shockwave, like ripples on water, spread rapidly outward from the point of impact.

Xu Yuan, caught off guard, was blasted backward.

This was Xiao Wu’s second Wu Mi: War Drum Beat!

Originally activated by stomping the earth, Xiao Wu, lying on the ground, simply used his head instead.

Xiao Wu sprang up quickly, spat out a mouthful of blood, then drew a deep breath, and yellow light spread across his body.

The wound on his back sealed shut, not a single drop of blood leaking out.

He gripped his twin blades and roared at Xu Yuan: “Come on! What else have you got? Use it all on me!”

Xiao Wu felt a faint unease, but he had to test it out—had this man secretly practiced the Dragon Transformation Scripture?

Xu Yuan was thrown back eight or nine zhang, landed with a stumble, as if his physique was not particularly strong.

Xiao Wu stomped the earth with all his might and lunged forward with a thunderous crash, his twin blades blurring into countless afterimages too fast to follow.

Shu shu shu—

Blade after blade slashed toward Xu Yuan.

Suddenly, something wrapped around his feet, and he crashed to the ground with a boom.

The rope that had entangled his feet tightened rapidly, spreading into a vast net that fully enveloped him.

“Think you can trap me? Dream on!”

Xiao Wu exerted all his strength and tore the net open!

Xu Yuan was startled—this was the first time the Beast Sinew Rope had been broken by sheer force.

Wu Xiu were truly formidable!

Xu Yuan seized this opening and charged forward.

Xiao Wu grunted, and again spat out his “Qi-Infused Attack.”

Xu Yuan had anticipated it—he twisted aside and donned his Pi Dan.

A bright yellow stream of qi sliced across the Pi Dan and slammed into the ground beside Xu Yuan, leaving a deep black crater.

Xu Yuan pushed forward, driving the long spike upward into Xiao Wu’s abdomen.

Xiao Wu screamed again, slapped his blade against the spike, and knocked it clean out of his belly.

Xu Yuan’s hand went numb—the spike slipped from his grip.

But the bell in his other hand was still connected by the chain.

Xu Yuan retreated swiftly, but Xiao Wu chased after him, kicking out.

Xu Yuan’s fire wheel surged in speed; Xiao Wu’s kick missed, landing on the ground with another “Dong!”—releasing another shockwave.

Xu Yuan was tossed like a leaf in a storm, spinning wildly through the air.

At that exact moment, Lao Chu suddenly appeared, moving as agile as a rabbit, arriving before Xu Yuan and slapping a tax receipt onto his body:

“Tax!”

“Head tax: one in ten!”

Lao Chu cultivated the “Tax Law!”

Once activated, it collected taxes without reason.

How much he collected was entirely up to him.

This law was exceptionally tyrannical, but had one critical flaw: the target had to accept the tax receipt.

If the target refused it, there was no recipient.

The law could not be enacted.

Even though Xu Yuan was Fifth Flow, far superior to Lao Chu, if he accepted the receipt, Lao Chu could still tax him!

Lao Chu had been hiding, waiting for this exact moment—Xu Yuan had just been hit by the second “War Drum Beat,” likely dazed and unable to dodge his “delivery.”

But when Lao Chu shouted “Tax!”, he failed to extract one-tenth of Xu Yuan’s life force.

Lao Chu felt his law had failed!

“How could this…?”

The receipt was wrapped in the Pi Dan.

A burst of flame erupted from within, burning the receipt to ash.

When Xiao Wu charged, Xu Yuan had already activated “Wang Ming” and taken a glance.

It was a combat instinct.

Naturally, he had seen Lao Chu lurking nearby, and Hong Huai hiding as well.

Someone was trying to assassinate him, and two Sixth Flows were watching—clearly accomplices.

(End of Chapter)