That evening, everyone enjoyed a hearty feast. Zhu Chongshi, clearly overjoyed that he had reached his destination safely, drank until he was completely plastered before staggering off with Teng Qingshan and the others.

“Brother Qingshan! You absolutely must stay here for a few more days!” Zhu Chongshi, reeking of wine and swaying slightly as he walked, threw an arm around Teng Qingshan’s shoulder affectionately. “I know you Black Armored Soldiers don’t usually have much downtime, so don’t rush off. Just consider it time lost on the road—stay and enjoy yourselves! Oh... right, your brothers all have beautiful young women waiting at their lodgings. For you, I specifically arranged a pair of stunning twin girls for you to have some fun tonight, haha…”

Zhu Chongshi finished with a laugh and was supported away by his subordinates, still weaving unsteadily.

“Women?”

Teng Qingshan merely shook his head and headed toward his own quarters.

It was unclear whether the other Black Armored Army soldiers indulged in the women, but undoubtedly, that night, Teng Qingshan practiced the Xing Yi Three Forms and sat cross-legged in the courtyard until dawn, never once touching the two girls.

...

Inside a main hall, Zhu Chongshi sat in the seat of honor, much of the alcohol having already worn off.

“Master!”

Two tall, burly men bowed deeply in the center of the hall.

A slight smile touched Zhu Chongshi’s face. “I’ve troubled you both. Was there any loss to the cargo along the way?”

“We fulfilled our duty, Master,” one of them replied with powerful assurance. “We merged with other merchants, forming a massive caravan with nearly a thousand guards. Although there were minor incidents on the journey, not a single piece of our cargo was lost. All four chests have been delivered here.”

When traveling long distances, merchants typically congregate with many others. By forming a large collective, they could hire more escorts, making the journey much safer.

“Good,” Zhu Chongshi nodded. “Very good. It’s late now; you two may retire and rest.”

“Yes, Master.” Both men withdrew.

Zhu Chongshi picked up the nearby teacup, took two sips, and his gaze became intensely focused, the last trace of drunkenness vanished. “Father was right; never put all your eggs in one basket! If Brother Qingshan hadn't been here this time, I fear this batch of goods would have been lost for certain. My own strength is still insufficient to deal with that Meng Tian! If this shipment were robbed... I would only have the goods brought by the Fan brothers left!”

The cargo Zhu Chongshi had painstakingly accumulated from overseas over several years was split into two lots.

The Fan brothers were disguised as ordinary traveling peddlers, taking four chests of goods toward Chu Commandery.

Zhu Chongshi himself, however, led ten fully loaded carts toward Chu Commandery. Even if the ten carts were seized, he would still retain the four chests. In Zhu Chongshi’s estimation, even with just four chests, he still held a twenty percent chance of securing the position of family head.

“Brother Qingshan, so young! I consider myself diligent, talented, and fortunate to have had my own lucky encounters. There should be few younger than me who are stronger, but this Brother Qingshan…” Zhu Chongshi had spent years roaming the seas, surviving life-or-death encounters and seizing rare opportunities; he had never slackened in his martial arts refinement. He had always believed his own strength was considerable.

But who would have thought Teng Qingshan could actually kill Meng Tian? While Zhu Chongshi was confident, he had never presumed he could match Meng Tian.

“There is always someone better, a heaven beyond the heavens!” Zhu Chongshi sighed. “Father was right. No matter the time, one must never grow complacent, for when one feels too pleased, failure is not far behind.” The pride he had felt returning from overseas had been sharply chastised by Teng Qingshan’s power. Zhu Chongshi now understood the profound meaning behind some of his father’s casual remarks with ever-increasing clarity.

Night.

A carrier pigeon landed within the walls of the Guiyuan Sect in Jiangning Commandery.

Pigeon post was quite common across the Nine Provinces, though usually only sects or powerful merchant magnates could afford the capital to train specialized pigeons and maintain outposts across various regions.

The journey taken by Teng Qingshan and his group from Jiangning to Chu Commandery spanned nearly two thousand li. In reality, the road meandered, largely avoiding direct paths. The straight-line distance was much shorter.

These carrier pigeons, however, paid no mind to the rivers or mountains below. Furthermore, nurtured by the ambient spiritual energy of the Nine Provinces, their flight speed was astonishingly fast; some supreme pigeons could traverse an entire province in a single day. Even the 'Black Nightmare Steed,' one of the Three Great Dragon Horses, capable of covering five thousand li daily, still required a full day to cross the entirety of Yangzhou due to the necessary routing.

...

Outside the study of the Guiyuan Sect’s Sovereign, Zhuge Yuanhong, a middle-aged man in gray robes rushed over anxiously. The study was dark, utterly devoid of light. Yet, the gray-robed man knew that the Sovereign spent most nights within this room over the past month, rarely visiting the exclusive martial arts training ground reserved for him.

“Bang!” “Bang!” “Bang!”

“Enter!”

With a creak, the study door opened. Zhuge Yuanhong had already risen and lit a candle.

“Sovereign, an urgent secret dispatch from Xuyang Commandery.” The gray-robed man immediately handed over a tightly rolled cipher.

Zhuge Yuanhong’s eyebrows furrowed. Anything labeled 'urgent' was certainly not trivial. He frowned as he accepted the dispatch, unrolled the paper, and as he read, he immediately began to laugh. “Haha… what a surprise! Junior Brother Qingyang, come and look.”

“A surprise?” The gray-robed man paused, looking somewhat confused, before taking the message.

“Two of my Black Armored Army soldiers dead, one severely injured. Teng Qingshan killed Meng Tian?” The gray-robed man looked at Zhuge Yuanhong in shock. “Sovereign, how—how is this possible?”

“Junior Brother Qingyang, the message only states that Qingshan heavily wounded Meng Tian, pursued him thereafter, and returned with a Blood Moon Blade. As for whether Meng Tian was actually killed, no one saw it,” Zhuge Yuanhong said calmly. “If no one saw it, this matter is hard to definitively confirm.”

The gray-robed man nodded eagerly. “But Meng Tian was an expert on the Earth Ranking! How could he be defeated by Teng Qingshan, and have his weapon seized? If his weapon was taken, he’s almost certainly dead!”

Regardless of whether Meng Tian was truly dead, the seizure of his weapon was an undeniable fact. For a supreme expert, losing one’s weapon constituted a complete defeat!

“Xuyang Commandery also reported that the rumor circulating is that Teng Qingshan severely wounded Meng Tian, causing him to lose an arm, and gave chase, but they did not claim he was killed!” Zhuge Yuanhong explained.

“Mmm,” the gray-robed man agreed.

In truth, this news originated from the group of twenty-odd individuals who witnessed Teng Qingshan severely injure Meng Tian. Those men, having survived the carnage at the Sanshi Inn, quickly departed. They did not know if Teng Qingshan had finished off Meng Tian. These men had spread the news widely while traveling through Xuyang Commandery, and as it circulated faster and faster, it eventually reached the ears of the Guiyuan Sect’s intelligence personnel.

“Haha… Qingshan will certainly make the Hidden Dragon Ranking,” Zhuge Yuanhong chuckled heartily. “As for whether he makes the Earth Ranking, that’s uncertain... because the Myriad Manifestation Gate’s review process for the Earth Ranking is extremely strict. Whether Qingshan can qualify based solely on taking the opponent’s weapon is also questionable, since no one saw the final blow!”

The gray-robed man nodded. Earning a spot on the Earth Ranking was indeed difficult; look at any expert on it—each one possessed a string of astonishing achievements. The fastest ways to be listed were: first, killing the opponent directly—though this required witnesses, otherwise how would anyone know? Second, the opponent formally conceding defeat, which also required witnesses.

Zhuge Yuanhong continued with a smile, “Regardless, our Guiyuan Sect finally has a junior disciple who can be listed on the Hidden Dragon Ranking! No one will dare say our younger generation is incompetent anymore!”

The Guiyuan Sect had many young masters—Zang Feng and Guan Lü, the two young commanders, and Zhuge Yun, among others. However, the outside world still believed the sect’s younger generation was lacking. Outsiders didn't know the geniuses within; they only looked at the Hidden Dragon Ranking.

“Sovereign…” The gray-robed man suddenly sounded hesitant, yet excited. “Teng Qingshan is under twenty years old. To defeat Meng Tian now! He definitely possesses Earth Ranking strength. Sovereign, do you think he might reach the Xiantian realm?”

“Xiantian?” Zhuge Yuanhong’s eyes lit up. The significance of a Xiantian realm expert to a sect needed no elaboration.

“You may withdraw for now,” Zhuge Yuanhong instructed.

“Yes, Sovereign.” The gray-robed man respectfully retreated immediately.

Zhuge Yuanhong waved his hand, extinguishing the candle, and sat quietly in the dark study for a long time. “Teng Qingshan’s background is pure; he absolutely cannot be a pawn for another sect. Moreover, it’s unlikely any sect would waste such a genius as a mere pawn! This is absolutely the number one genius figure in the history of our Guiyuan Sect for a thousand years! If Teng Qingshan can continue improving at this pace, in a few decades, a century perhaps, under his leadership, our Guiyuan Sect might… one day surpass Green Lake Island! Becoming the premier sect of Yangzhou! Qingshan, I will nurture you with all my resources. We shall see how far you can ascend. I hope you do not disappoint me!”

Sometimes, decisiveness was essential! Although Teng Qingshan’s parents were not disciples of the Guiyuan Sect, meaning he wasn't among the most trusted group, his background was clean. Such an unparalleled genius—if not cultivated, wouldn't another sect snatch him away? When a decision must be made, one must be resolute!

In his heart, Zhuge Yuanhong already intended to groom Teng Qingshan as the next Sect Master. The position of Guiyuan Sect Master was not passed from father to son; rather, the most outstanding disciple was selected. Previously, Zhuge Yuanhong considered Zang Feng, Guan Lü, and his own son, Zhuge Yun, as candidates for the succession. While these three were formidable, they paled in comparison to Teng Qingshan, who could defeat Meng Tian. Most crucially, Teng Qingshan was only seventeen! A seventeen-year-old defeating an Earth Ranking expert—no one in the Guiyuan Sect’s thousand-year history had ever accomplished this. Most importantly, Teng Qingshan had cultivated entirely on his own until now, never truly benefiting from the Guiyuan Sect's formalized guidance.

“Which should I teach him first: the Guiyuan Heart Codex or the (Nether Moon Spear Canon)?” Zhuge Yuanhong pondered. “One is our sect’s supreme treasure, a Heaven-rank secret manual, while the other is only Earth-rank, though it pertains to spear techniques! Hmm…” Zhuge Yuanhong seriously considered the best path for Teng Qingshan’s development.