Despite this, Feng Ling’s departure still affected Ling Xiao. For the next few days, he set aside more time to spend with Yisha and Ye Zi. This secretly puzzled the two women, who wondered, ’When did this blockhead Ling Xiao start understanding romance?’

「A few days later.」

Ling Xiao received a message from the Imperial Capital. There was finally news about his second older sister, Ling Su!

However, it was bad news. The messenger said that Ling Xiao’s second sister, Ling Su, had discovered some Ancient Ruins in the Zichuan Empire. The ruins apparently contained many valuables, but only Ling Su could open their gate. Now, Ling Su had fallen into the hands of a powerful family in the Zichuan Empire, and they were forcing her to work for them and open the Ancient Ruins.

Ling Su had been stalling for time and found an opportunity to have this message sent. By the time Ling Xiao received it, more than twenty days had already passed!

And Ling Xiao had no idea if this sister he had never met had been safe during those twenty days.

Although Lady Ling was relatively composed and level-headed in a crisis, she was still a woman of her time. The atmosphere in the Imperial Capital had grown tense recently. The old King, for some unknown, crazy reason, had imposed a curfew, forbidding anyone from being on the streets at night. This cast a pall of anxiety over the bustling Imperial Capital. Anyone who didn’t know the real situation would have thought a war was about to break out.

Under these circumstances, if she told Ling Tianxiao, he would undoubtedly insist on going. But his departure would certainly arouse the suspicions of His Majesty the King, who was already wary of the Ling Family. Lady Ling was, after all, a person of this world. She couldn’t be like Ling Xiao, whose very bones held a disdain for secular imperial power. She also couldn’t have possibly guessed that half of the old King’s tension was because of her own precious third son.

Ling Xiao didn’t hesitate for a moment after receiving the message. Besides, Lady Ling’s letter mentioned that the messenger had said this family was immensely powerful in the Zichuan Empire—so powerful that even the King had to show them some deference!

This family also had a world-famous mercenary corps: the Divine Wind.

’Divine Wind?’ Ling Xiao thought back to that miserable carnival. It had been the first major festival he’d attended since arriving in this world, and it was ruined by those bastards from the so-called Divine Wind Mercenary Corps!

Ling Xiao now even had a suspicion. ’Could those people already know my sister Ling Su’s identity? Could it be that even the messenger was someone they intentionally let go?’

’Otherwise, how could a girl like Ling Su, who isn’t even that powerful, manage to secretly get a message out? It would be nearly impossible!’

The more Ling Xiao analyzed the situation, the more he felt something was off. He was now famous throughout the Lanyue Empire; surely, the great families that kept an eye on international affairs would not be unaware of him.

’If so, then for them to still dare to hold my sister and allow a message to be sent back to Lanyue... could it be... they’re scheming against me as well?’

Ling Xiao shared this idea with everyone. He wasn’t one to make decisions alone; on many matters, he would consult with others and listen to their opinions. After all, he might be a genius when it came to cultivation, but he wasn’t an expert in all things.

Uncle Fu, with his vast experience, listened and then said in a deep voice, "Young Master, your suspicion has some merit. However, I don’t think it’s necessarily that complicated. You’ve overlooked one point: Young Miss discovered a set of Ancient Ruins! And only she can open them. First, we need to determine if this part is true."

Ling Xiao nodded. "It’s almost certainly true. My sister has been searching for a set of Ancient Ruins for over a year. By all rights, she should have found them by now!"

Uncle Fu said, "Then that’s it. This means the people from that family in the Zichuan Empire might not know the Young Miss’s identity. If they don’t, the messenger was likely someone she hired for help, or even one of her own subordinates. But if they *do* know her identity and are intentionally luring you there, Young Master, then the motive is even simpler. In just one year of selling the Beauty Pill, you’ve become a tycoon whose wealth could rival a nation’s. I’m certain they are green with envy! Hell, even this old fossil’s heart skips a beat every time I look at the ledgers."

Everyone laughed, but they knew Uncle Fu wasn’t exaggerating. Great wealth stirs people’s hearts; it was hardly surprising that Ling Xiao would be targeted for it.

Besides, Ling Xiao was a Celestial Vein Master whose progress in a single year had been astonishingly fast. For many powerful families who had no lack of money, what they truly coveted were sword skills and Cultivation Techniques. And, of course, there were also those mysterious... strength-enhancing elixirs!

Mo Qing said, "I think, no matter the circumstances, it’s necessary for you to make a trip to the Zichuan Empire, Young Master. So, instead of discussing their motives here, why not just go and see for yourself!"

Ling Wu shouted, "Exactly! Let’s go kill those sons of bitches! They killed so many of my men last year. Young Master, when you go, you should kill them all to pay them back! Better yet... just annihilate their entire so-called Divine Wind Mercenary Corps!"

Ye Zi shot Ling Wu a look. "Is killing all you think about? No matter how powerful we are, we’ll be in another country. Do you think you can just kill people there without consequences? You could easily start a war between our two empires!"

"A war is a war! I’m not afraid!"

Ling Wu blustered. The soldiers of the Lightning Legion had seen their strength skyrocket recently after taking the Tongluo Pills. Even the weakest of them had reached the level of Great Sword Master. The current Lightning Legion was so dazzling that any king would drool over it, which was why Ling Wu’s confidence was swelling. In truth, what he really wanted was to take all three thousand of his men, follow Ling Xiao, and storm the Zichuan Empire.

"Don’t forget who the general guarding the border is!" Ye Wen Ni said. "Just because the Lightning Legion isn’t afraid of war doesn’t mean the border garrisons aren’t! It doesn’t mean the civilians on the border aren’t either!"

Ling Wu ducked his head and grumbled, "I was just talking... Why get so serious and jump on my case?"

Ling Xiao waved his hand. "Alright, everyone, stop arguing. I have to make a trip to the Zichuan Empire." He then looked over at Song Mingyue, who had been silent the whole time. "This will be a good chance for us to look for those herbs on the way. If we find them, all the better!"

Song Mingyue said earnestly, "My father’s situation isn’t urgent. Rescuing your sister is what matters most. For this trip, you should let Thirteenth Master and Fourteenth Master go with you!"

Thirteenth Master and Fourteenth Master, who had been sitting with their eyes closed pretending to be meditating in aloof detachment, snapped their eyes open in unison. They stared at Ling Xiao with faces full of anticipation, their eagerness plain to see.

Ling Xiao shook his head. "No, for two reasons. First, I would worry about leaving our home base undefended. My foundation is here. In the future, I plan to bring my parents over. Penzes City will become our territory, one that no one can take from us! That’s why I want to build it up properly. This will be the place that protects my family. I have to ensure complete safety for everyone here. I don’t want a repeat of the bloody carnival night! Second, Thirteenth Master and Fourteenth Master are too powerful. I’m sure the Zichuan Empire also has its share of hidden, powerful families. If we go over with them and they are discovered, it might be interpreted as a provocation!"

This wasn’t a sign of Ling Xiao’s exceptional cunning; it was just that this sort of thing was extremely common in the Cultivation Realm. Most of the time, truly powerful Cultivators didn’t dare to travel carelessly. If they accidentally wandered into another power’s sphere of influence, no one would bother them if their strength was average. The more powerful they were, however, the more guarded others would become.

Furthermore, Cultivators had extremely strong egos, and it was common for fights to break out over a single disagreement. In short, bringing a couple of supreme experts to parade around in someone else’s territory—what could that be but a provocation?

Tiger then asked in his typically honest, straightforward manner, "Young Master... what about me?"

"You? You’re coming along." Ling Xiao rubbed his nose with a self-mocking smile. "Got to have a bodyguard, don’t I?"

Thirteenth Master shot Tiger a look and said indignantly, "Why not take us and leave him here? He’s not even as strong as we are!"

Though a Beastman, Tiger’s mind was sharp. He bared his teeth at Thirteenth Master. "If you’re not convinced, we can go a few rounds later!"

Thirteenth Master immediately clamped his mouth shut, thinking, ’I am a person of status. I won’t stoop to your level!’

In reality, the three of them had been heading out of the city to train together every day. Even though they chose desolate, remote areas, many people had still learned that three peerless experts had appeared in Penzes City.

Though Tiger was constantly on the losing end, getting pummeled like a living sandbag, his improvement was simply divine!

Even Thirteenth Master and Fourteenth Master, who prided themselves on being geniuses, had to admit that the big fellow’s progress was ridiculously fast. It was like he was advancing a thousand miles a day. They were sure he would break through to become a Tier One Sword Emperor in less than ten years.

For two men who had spent over 150 years to become Tier Two Sword Emperors, this was no small blow to their pride. Luckily, the two old masters were able to see the bright side.

"So what if he’s improving fast? We still beat him to a pulp every time, don’t we?"

Meng Li spoke up. "Young Master, our intelligence network is now in its initial stages. Ye Zi’s siblings are truly exceptional! I’ve already used Tongluo Pills to train a batch of them. I’m confident that our intelligence organization will grow much stronger soon, and we won’t have to operate in the dark like we are now."

Ling Xiao smiled and nodded. "That’s excellent. Meng Li, you must keep up the good work! I’ve always had high hopes for you."

Meng Li stiffened slightly, a look of gratitude in their eyes. With a smile, they said, "I understand."