Chương 286: Arrivals

The Blood Moon Enchantress, Zhao Mingyue, officially broke through to the First-Tier. Once again, a peerless genius emerged in the Southern Region! Early in the morning, after returning from tending to his precious Jade Sun Rice seedlings in the fields, Master Song, wearing shorts, a short-sleeved shirt, and barefoot, sat in the courtyard enthusiastically reading this news. Martial World Chronicles, Issue No. 1144. Year 816 of the Great Yan Dynasty.

The latest issue had just been rushed over by members of the Pavilion. This time, his beautiful 'President' could be said to have basked in the limelight. The Ends of the Earth Sea Pavilion even dedicated more than a full page on the front cover just to sing her praises! And the Enchantress's aptitude was absolutely worthy of such acclaim. After reading the commentary in the Martial World Chronicles, Grandee Song couldn't help but feel an admiration for her that flowed endlessly like torrential river waters.

Setting aside her extraordinary beauty, achievements like dancing with a sword at three, writing essays at five, and becoming a martial artist at seven were thrown around so freely they made one dizzy. She was the classic 'child of another family.' But the last two points were the most eye-catching: The beautiful Miss Zhao had officially broken through to the First-Tier at the age of sixteen years and eight months!

Furthermore, she successfully made the Divine Weapon, the Cold Moon Sword, acknowledge her as its master! With her current strength, even an 8th Grade Meridian Opening expert would probably fear to offend her divine might. Truly terrifying! Taking advantage of Zhao Mingyue's breakthrough, the Martial World Chronicles also conveniently educated the Jianghu rookies on some general knowledge.

Breaking through to the First-Tier at sixteen years and eight months couldn't be called completely unprecedented in the long river of history, but Mingyue's aptitude definitely placed her among the absolute top tier of individuals. Currently, in the entire Great Yan Dynasty, those who could be mentioned in the same breath as the Enchantress could be counted on two hands with fingers to spare! Ranking first was the designated successor of the Three Purities Temple: the Dao Obsessive, Lin Kedao.

Following him were the new generation leader of the Dharma Temple, Buddhist Son Xuanwu; the Fourth Prince of the Imperial Xiao Family, Xiao Long; and Taiyi Yiaoming of the Taiyi Family. Finally, there were two of the Ten Great Beauties of the current era—a pair of bitter rivals: Liu Yijia, the successor of the Ends of the Earth Sea Pavilion, and Yue Chan, the Little Demoness of the Yin Luo Faction.

Whether it was due to the prejudice of the Ends of the Earth Sea Pavilion that no one else from the Nine Demonic Sects, aside from the Yin Luo Faction, was mentioned was unknown. But even if there were omissions, the total number wouldn't exceed ten people. These individuals were hailed as the leading figures of the new generation of martial artists in the Great Yan Dynasty, possessing a near-certain probability of breaking through to Grandmaster!

The Martial World Chronicles couldn't hold back from shouting the slogan that a golden age of martial arts was dawning. For so many monstrous geniuses to appear at once was indeed exceedingly rare. The Southern Region monopolizing two of those spots allowed it to steal the spotlight entirely this time. Aside from these seven, there were quite a few other heaven-defying talents under the age of twenty who had broken through to the First-Tier.

However, compared to their peerless brilliance, they paled in comparison and weren't mentioned in this issue. At his current level, Song Que could probably squeeze into the second-tier group. For someone of low birth like him, without a 'cheat,' this would be nearly impossible! Therefore, Grandee Song was quite satisfied with his current situation. He had the confidence to eventually catch up to and even surpass the Enchantress and the others.

When that time came, the entire world would know the demeanor of his Heavenly Saber! Unable to suppress his daydreams about the future, Grandee Song buried his head and continued researching the Jianghu events of this month. Aside from Zhao Mingyue's breakthrough, the only other notable event was the dispute between the Corpse-Driving Faction and the God-Slaying Sect in the Western Region. It turned out that Mao Chenggong's family background was quite extraordinary!

His father, Ma Shixi, was an elder with significant real power in the Corpse-Driving Faction! No wonder this guy could raise a Silver-Armored Corpse with strength equivalent to a First-Tier martial artist. His family literally owned mines! Initially, the Corpse-Driving Faction thought they were in the wrong in this matter. But later on, they felt increasingly suspicious.

Furthermore, ever since Ma Chenggong got mixed up with the people from the White Lotus Cult, there had been no news of him; he hadn't shown his face to this day. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Neither faction was stupid, and they immediately realized they might have been set up! Therefore, they were currently searching the entire Jianghu for the mastermind behind the scenes—Old Demon Song!

Fortunately for him, he had previously obliterated the soul of that Silver-Armored Corpse and frequently kept it stored in his spatial inventory. Otherwise, with the methods of the Demonic Cults, it wasn't impossible for them to track him down! Completely unaware that he had narrowly escaped death, Song Que was still smirking gleefully, watching these demonic cultists bite each other like dogs. Indeed, ignorance is bliss. Stupidity is the original sin!......

While leisurely lying in the courtyard, sipping tea and reading the newspaper, Old Demon Song suddenly raised an eyebrow. The split soul attached to Little Swallow sent back news: that guy Zuo Mu had returned home on his own accord! Although he had given Old Zuo the freedom to roam and party at Heaven on Earth, Song Que hadn't let his guard down in the slightest! He still kept Little Swallow closely monitoring the man 24/7. After all, Zuo Mu knew quite a few of his secrets.

If this guy harbored thoughts of escaping, Master Song wouldn't be soft-hearted! Fortunately, a few days had passed and Old Zuo had remained very honest. Aside from eating, drinking, partying, and sleeping with beauties all day, he hadn't made any crazy moves, which put Song Que slightly at ease. But today, this guy didn't continue his blissful life in the city and voluntarily ran back to Plum Manor. Grandee Song was extremely curious about what matter he had.

"Young Master! Young Master! Something big has happened!" Before the person even appeared, the divine swindler's voice boomed out like a cracked gong. Bang! Waiting for the guy to hastily push the door open and run into the courtyard, Song Que finally frowned and scolded:"Alright, take your time and speak slowly! Panicking and rushing like this, where are your manners?! Have you forgotten what I taught you before?

'Devising strategies within a command tent to ensure victory a thousand miles away!' You must remember that you are now an intellectual general, a genius tactician! You cannot lose your image!" Recalling the demeanor of an omniscient, demon-like idol that his Young Master had drilled into his head a few days ago, 'Zhuge Zuo Mu' immediately shuddered.

He hurriedly adjusted his clothes and appearance to look immaculate before finally getting into character, leisurely cupping his hands in a bow:"The Young Master is absolutely right. My state of mind cultivation is still lacking." A teachable child! Teacher Song nodded in satisfaction:"Mhm. Now, tell me, what matter has made you so anxious?"

Slowly sitting down on the chair opposite him, the divine swindler poured himself a cup of tea, took a sip, and then stroked his beard contentedly before speaking:"Young Master, when I woke up on the pleasure boat this morning, I accidentally saw an unfamiliar ship passing by on Silver Wave Lake. Out of curiosity, I took a few extra glances. Unexpectedly, I discovered a First-Tier expert on board!"

Without waiting for Song Que to ask what was so special about a First-Tier expert, Old Zuo continued:"Originally, I thought it was just an expert passing by by chance. But my curiosity got the better of me, and I couldn't help but keep paying attention. Who would have expected me to discover something important?!"

"Young Master, the destiny above the Qinghe Branch of the Linjiang Gang unexpectedly surged significantly within a single day! Based on my experience, there can only be two reasons for this: either their Gang Leader broke through in strength, or the overall strength of the entire gang increased! Regardless of the reason, I felt it was imperative to rush back and inform you so that the Young Master can prepare in advance."

Having stayed here for a few days, Zuo Mu naturally knew that his Young Master's and the Moon-Lacking Pavilion's primary rival was the Linjiang Gang in the neighboring county town. Thus, his rushing back this morning to report showed highly commendable loyalty. As expected, hearing his words, Song Que's expression grew much heavier.

"Did you get a clear look at the face of that First-Tier expert?"

"Young Master, the distance was too far, and I wasn't paying close attention at the time, so I didn't see clearly. But I remember seeing that thief Du once before. I can confirm it wasn't him this time!" Knowing what his Young Master was thinking, Zuo Mu shook his head affirmatively.

"Today on the boat, I saw two people: the First-Tier expert I just mentioned, and another who was only at the 2nd Grade. However, they were shielded by a massive cloud of golden destiny! This was a genuine shielding! At the very top of the cloud, a trace of blue could even be seen! Therefore, it can be deduced that their true identities are extraordinary!"

"The faction behind them must be enormous, perhaps only a hair's breadth away from a Super First-Tier faction! It's absolutely not the Linjiang Gang!" So that's how it is! A sharp glint suddenly flashed in Song Que's eyes, and an answer formed in his mind. Even Nie Feng, who had secretly approached upon hearing the commotion earlier, realized something. Frowning, he spoke:"Young Master, could it be people from over there?" He pointed toward the distant west.

Song Que had previously relayed the warning Yun Xi gave him last time, and even instructed Old Nie to increase personnel to gather intelligence. He himself frequently used Lightning's vision to observe the western branch of the Hong River for any suspicious passing vessels, but unfortunately, there had been no news until now. It seemed he had been careless these past few days. Focusing his entire mind on monitoring Zuo Mu had allowed someone to slip in!

Indeed, a person's energy is limited; he couldn't guard against thieves every single day! Having a restless neighbor who constantly sought to stir up trouble like Old Du left Master Song feeling mentally exhausted. He really wanted to slap him to death with one palm and be done with it! Nodding at Nie Feng in confirmation of his thoughts, Song Que turned with a kind expression and patted Old Zuo's shoulder:"You did very well this time. This Young Master is extremely satisfied!

I'll record this merit for you first; there will be layers of rewards for you in the future." With this guy, one had to use both the stick and the carrot. Moreover, he was beginning to show his value and hadn't caused any extra trouble. Master Song felt this was enough. Praising Zuo Mu satisfactorily until the divine swindler felt overwhelmed by the unexpected favor, on the other end, the Night Swift, Little Swallow, had long since transformed into an arrow, shooting straight toward the docks in the south.

I wonder if the surprise Du Ruhui brings me this time will be a pleasant one, or a terrifying one?