Chapter 477: Great Zhou Martial Arts Gathering

The status of the Zhennan Wangfu in the Great Zhou is not something he, a mere Organ Refining Martial Artist, can contend with.

Not to mention that he has yet to step into the Gang Qi Realm; even if he had, facing a behemoth like the Zhennan Wangfu, he would only be able to temporarily avoid its edge.

What's more, Zhou Yanran's summons this time might not necessarily be to call him to account.

She is a Wang Ji, noble in status; if she truly wanted to kill him, she could simply send a few Gang Qi Realm experts, there would be no need to summon him personally, let alone deliver a formal invitation.

Having figured this out, Cheng Feng felt more at ease. He reached out to take the invitation, opened it, and glanced at it.

The handwriting was elegant yet concealed a sharp edge; within the turns of the strokes, a keen sharpness flowed. Just by looking at these few characters, one could imagine how sharp and exposed the writer's nature was.

"Please." Cheng Feng closed the invitation, tucked it into his robe, and nodded at the green-clad attendant.

The green-clad attendant visibly breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly stepped aside to lead the way.

Outside the Cheng Mansion, a carriage entirely black in color had long been waiting. The carriage body had no decorations, save for a very faint sword mark carved on each side of the cabin.

The animals pulling the carriage were not ordinary horses, but two exotic, fine steeds with snow-white bodies and hooves as black as ink. They stood there without moving a muscle, and even their snorting was barely audible.

Cheng Feng boarded the carriage, the curtain fell, and the interior plunged into darkness. He leaned against the carriage wall, closing his eyes to rest, while his mind raced.

Zhou Yanran looking for him could only mean one of three possibilities. First, to reclaim the head of Liehuo Fawang. The head had already been handed over to the Suppression Office, and the reward money had been collected, so this was unlikely.

Second, to hold him accountable. After all, he had picked up her spoils of war; according to the rules of the jianghu, that was indeed not very honorable.

But at Zhou Yanran's level, a mere four hundred thousand taels of Silver should not be enough to make her go to such lengths.

Third, to recruit him. This was the most likely. A young man who could kill a Gang Qi Realm Martial Artist while only at the Organ Refining stage—even if it was picking up a bargain—in itself demonstrated strength.

The Great Zhou is currently in need of talent, so recruiting such a person is logical and reasonable.

The carriage traveled for about half an hour before stopping in front of a secluded courtyard. Cheng Feng got out and looked around.

This courtyard was deep in a quiet alley in South City, surrounded by green bamboo. The wind rustled the bamboo leaves, completely isolating the noise outside the courtyard.

The green-clad attendant led him into the courtyard, passed through a moon gate, and the view suddenly opened up.

In the courtyard stood a stone pavilion, and inside sat a woman in a plain white long dress. Her long hair was casually pinned up with a single green jade hairpin. On the stone table in front of her lay a Sword—the scabbard was simple and ancient, and the silk ribbon wrapped around the hilt had faded slightly, clearly a sword she carried with her year-round.

Cheng Feng recognized her identity at a glance.

It was an aura that had become as calm as water after the sharpness had been restrained to the extreme.

"Cheng Feng?" Zhou Yanran raised her head, her gaze sweeping over him faintly.

Her features were indeed exquisite, brows like distant mountains, eyes like autumn water, but that was not what Cheng Feng noticed. He noticed her complexion—pale, weak, and carrying a listlessness from a serious injury not yet healed.

It seemed the rumors outside were true; although she succeeded in killing Liehuo Fawang by crossing realms, she had paid a heavy price.

Although her Sword Body was tyrannical, forcing it to activate at the Organ Refining stage meant the backlash was no laughing matter.

"Cheng Feng greets the Wang Ji." Cheng Feng cupped his hands in a salute, his posture neither humble nor pushy.

Zhou Yanran did not ask him to sit, nor did she engage in pleasantries. She simply observed him in silence for a moment, then suddenly spoke, her voice as cold as a spring, yet carrying a heavy, oppressive weight.

"Liehuo Fawang was injured by me."

Cheng Feng nodded and said candidly, "I know."

"He fled, I pursued for ten miles, but my injuries were too severe to sustain it, so I had to turn back," Zhou Yanran continued, her tone as calm as if she were narrating a trivial matter unrelated to herself.

"By the time I sent people to search after my wounds healed, his head was already hanging at the Suppression Office. You collected the bounty, and you claimed the merit."

Cheng Feng nodded again: "That is correct."

Zhou Yanran narrowed her eyes slightly, and for the first time, a sharp light shone in those usually indifferent eyes, like the cold glint reflected off a sword blade.

"So—" her voice dropped very low, yet every word was like a sword,

"I activated my Qingyuan Sword Body to kill an enemy above my realm. The enemy was heavily wounded by me, and my spoils of war were picked up by you?"

The air suddenly stagnated.

Cheng Feng could feel an invisible sword intent locking onto his brow, cold and bone-chilling. If his next answer did not satisfy this Wang Ji, that sword lying on the stone table could be unsheathed at any moment.

He was silent for two breaths, then suddenly smiled.

"Your Highness is mistaken about two things." He held up two fingers and said unhurriedly.

Zhou Yanran did not speak, merely raised an eyebrow.

"First," Cheng Feng bent his first finger, "Liehuo Fawang was not your spoils of war. You wounded him heavily, but you did not kill him.

According to the rules of the Suppression Office, the bounty belongs to the one who makes the kill. On this point, Your Highness knows better than I."

"Second," he bent his second finger, meeting her sword-intent-filled gaze candidly, "I did not pick up a bargain. I encountered him by accident.

Even if he was a Gang Qi Realm expert, he was merely gasping his last breath.

This was indeed thanks to the Wang Ji.

If Your Highness does not believe me, you can go to the Suppression Office to find out."

Having finished, he lowered his hand and said no more.

Zhou Yanran stared at him for a long, long time. That gaze was like a sword, sweeping back and forth over Cheng Feng's body, as if to dissect him from the inside out. Cheng Feng accepted it calmly, his expression unchanging.

Suddenly, Zhou Yanran smiled.

The smile was extremely faint and vanished in an instant, but she had indeed smiled.

She raised her hand and pushed the sword on the stone table to the side, clearing half the tabletop.

"Sit," she said.

Cheng Feng secretly breathed a sigh of relief, knowing this hurdle had been cleared.

He sat down opposite the stone table as instructed, not speaking first, waiting for Zhou Yanran to state her true purpose.

Zhou Yanran did not beat around the bush either, saying straightforwardly: "You were able to kill Liehuo Fawang; regardless of the means, it at least shows you have ability.

My Zhennan Wangfu is currently in need of people; are you interested in coming to work for my mansion?"

As expected, it was recruitment.

Cheng Feng was silent for a moment, quickly weighing the pros and cons in his mind.

The Zhennan Wangfu is a great backer; by relying on them, at least in this territory, few people would dare to touch him.

But what is the price? It is freedom, being ordered about, and placing one's own life in the hands of others. The thing Cheng Feng is least willing to do in this life is to be someone's dog.

"Your Highness is too kind," he cupped his hands, "but I, Cheng, am accustomed to being idle and cannot bear constraints. If I were to work in your estate, I fear I would disappoint Your Highness."

Zhou Yanran seemed to have anticipated his answer long ago; there was no look of surprise on her face. She picked up the teacup on the stone table, took a light sip, then set it down and said, "Not joining the estate is fine. But you owe me a favor; do you acknowledge this?"

Cheng Feng thought for a moment and nodded: "I acknowledge it."

The head of Liehuo Fawang was indeed a bargain he had picked up from Zhou Yanran. That Zhou Yanran did not pursue the matter was already giving him immense face.

Although he, Cheng Feng, is no upright gentleman, he acknowledges this debt.

"Good." Zhou Yanran stood up, picked up the Sword on the table, and turned to walk out of the pavilion. After two steps, she stopped and said one sentence without looking back.

"Three months from now, the Great Zhou Martial Arts Tournament. I lack a partner; you will go with me."

Having said that, she did not wait for Cheng Feng's reply, walking straight through the moon gate and disappearing into the depths of the bamboo forest.

Cheng Feng sat in the stone pavilion, not moving for a long time. After a while, he let out a long breath and cursed in a low voice.

"Damn it, the Great Zhou Martial Arts Tournament."

What kind of place is that? It is the top-tier gladiatorial arena for the young generation of Martial Artists in the entire Great Zhou dynasty.

The most elite geniuses from every major family, every major sect, and the imperial clan will all gather there.

The number of Organ Refining realm experts who have died there is as numerous as the hairs on an ox, and it is not as if those in the Gang Qi Realm haven't perished there either.

Zhou Yanran wanting him as a partner is not repaying a favor; it is pushing him into a pit of fire.

But he had already nodded and acknowledged this debt. The word "renege" does not exist in Cheng Feng's dictionary.

He stood up, patted the wrinkles on his robe, and strode out of the villa. His mind was already rapidly calculating another account—

There are three months until the Great Zhou Martial Arts Tournament. In three months, he needs more Fortune Points.

Cheng Feng took a deep breath, mounted the carriage, and said one word to the driver.

"Return to the estate."

Tonight, there will be no sleep.