Seeing his three older brothers disappear into the distance, Xie An reluctantly retracted his gaze. Looking back, he found that the usually lively courtyard had suddenly become desolate and lifeless.
Suddenly, Xie An seemed to sense something and abruptly looked up towards the second floor, where he saw Tang Zhengyang standing on the second-floor balcony, gazing into the distance, staring at the direction his three virtuous brothers had departed.
Although they were more than twenty meters apart, Xie An, with his exceptional eyesight, could still clearly see the white hair at Tang Zhengyang's temples fluttering in the wind, and the glistening in his deep eyes.
Remember, although you and I are sworn brothers, on the path of cultivation, even blood brothers can only offer limited help; it mainly depends on oneself. Do not develop laziness or the idea of relying on others because of this."
Xie An felt this was very reasonable, and he cupped his fist towards the second floor, "Big Brother, take care. This brother will come to see you again in a few days."
Tang Zhengyang waved his hand and said, "Wuqiao Town is only a few dozen miles from here, just a short walk. Don't make it like your three older brothers. Go, go."
Xie An left with a smile, but after walking not far, he suddenly remembered something and returned.
Tang Zhengyang scoffed, "If it's sentimental words, spare me."
"Big Brother, are you aware of the Azurewood Corpse?"
Upon hearing this, Tang Zhengyang leaped down from the second floor, appearing before Xie An in the blink of an eye.
This startled Xie An.
Was this the old man who usually used a dragon-head cane?
"You saw the Azurewood Corpse?"
Knowing that the matter was important, Xie An didn't dare to be careless and recounted the story of the ancestral hall reconstruction in Wuqiao Town in detail.
After listening, Tang Zhengyang's expression turned grave, "These bandits are starting to cause trouble again. But if it's just the Azurewood Corpse, that's still manageable. Go find Qingyun and have him go to Wuqiao Town with you. He knows how to handle it."
… …
After a simple lunch at the Tang family fortress, Xie An, along with Yu He and Tang Qingyun, left the Tang family fortress.
Leaving this place where he had stayed for almost ten days, Xie An felt a bit reluctant.
It's worth mentioning that Little Hongtang also came to see them off. She asked Xie An when he would take her to play, and said that if he didn't come again, she would start her formal education.
Xie An said it would be on her birthday.
Little Hongtang readily agreed, and then, wearing a red cotton-padded jacket, she stood in the snowy ground at the entrance, stretched out her two small hands, and began to count the days on her fingers…
Looking at Little Hongtang like this, Xie An remembered the date and secretly thought that he must take her out to play on her birthday.
"Brother Qingyun, when is Little Hongtang's birthday?"
"The eighth day of the twelfth lunar month."
Xie An: "… …"
He felt sorry for Little Hongtang.
She only had ten little fingers; could she count that far?
When they returned to Wuqiao Town, the shops had already opened, and business was booming. Xie An asked Yu He to call Li Hongming and Chen Lei to his three-courtyard residence to discuss matters.
When Li Hongming and Chen Lei arrived and saw the Second Master of the Tang family was also there, they were greatly shocked and quickly paid their respects. Moreover, the two men keenly sensed that even Tang Qingyun, the Second Master of the Tang family, was very respectful to Xie An.
The two did not know the reason, but they felt that Xie An was becoming more and more extraordinary, and they felt that the decision to include the Xie family into the Wu Ancestral Hall was absolutely correct.
Tang Qingyun carefully questioned Li Hongming and Chen Lei, and finally had a young man named A Liang come to Wuqiao Town, settle in the Wu Ancestral Hall, and oversee the villagers' work.
For this, both Xie An, Li Hongming and Chen Lei were very grateful.
The reconstruction of the ancestral hall could finally continue.
Li Hongming even excitedly stated that after adding the Xie family, the ancestral hall needed to be expanded and made more impressive. Chen Lei happily agreed…
After finalizing the ancestral hall matters, Xie An bid farewell to Tang Qingyun and went to the Li family pawnshop to find his two apprentices. He asked them about their future plans.
After some hesitation, Han Li said he wanted to practice martial arts, and He Chunli also expressed the same intention. However, they did not ask to follow Xie An to the Blood Ridge Black Market, but instead took out the silver given to them by Madam Li and planned to try out the Chen family martial arts school in town.
"That's good; it's good to have your own ideas. I'll say hello to Chen Lei later so he can take care of you a bit. When you're out and about, it won't be as simple as in the pawnshop. You must be careful in everything, and restrain your temper a bit. Don't rush to be the first to do everything, or you might provoke some bad people."
The two apprentices were even more moved to learn that their master was going to greet Chen Lei to take care of them, and they prostrated themselves on the ground.
"We will obey Master's teachings."
"I will definitely practice martial arts well, learn something, and repay Master's great kindness in the future."
Xie An was quite touched, helped the two up, and taught them earnestly, "When you get to the Chen family martial arts school, you must be humble and diligent. You are both people who can endure hardship. Maintain this original intention, and you will surely achieve something in the future."
… …
When he returned to the Blood Ridge Black Market, it was almost dusk.
It was just in time for the annual opening day.
Unlike in the past, Xie An was now a Branch Leader, and the Black Market was twice the size as a year ago. The reopening inevitably involved some activities, decorations, and as a Branch Leader, Xie An needed to attend and give a speech, encouraging the merchants and shopkeepers, and reassuring everyone.
The Black Market was as lively as ever, and Xie An's life returned to peace.
Although Xie An had achieved a lot this year.
He became a Branch Leader, became a local worthy, entered the Wu Ancestral Hall, and became sworn brothers with Tang Zhengyang and a group of big brothers like Long Xia, Yi Qiutang, and Chen Donghai.
But Xie An knew very well that these were all external.
What Old Master Tang said was very reasonable.
Cultivation depends on oneself; external blessings are very limited.
Even Long Xia, Yi Qiutang, Chen Donghai, and several other Inner Strength martial artists, despite being sworn brothers with Old Master Tang for decades, did not rely on each other or become lazy and idle. Instead, they each pursued their own future, sought their own opportunities, met once every few years to exchange experiences and insights, and sparred with each other to promote progress.
This was the true brotherhood.
Mutual encouragement, mutual promotion.
Xie An liked this atmosphere very much.
Even though he had recognized Old Master Tang as his big brother, Xie An also knew that he could not rely on the other party too much and that he had to rely on himself in everything. At most, he could ask for help in a critical moment.
If he stagnated from now on, relying on Old Master Tang in everything, flaunting Old Master Tang's prestige outside, and being unenterprising, not only would Old Master Tang look down on him, but Xie An himself would also look down on himself.
The boring days passed by day by day.
Xie An practiced martial arts during the day, and he no longer needed to sleep at night. He directly used the Fetal Breathing Method to cultivate the Bright Jade Skill. He spent very little time patrolling the Black Market, and most of his time was devoted to practicing.
Xie An could endure the torment and even enjoyed it.
Xie An took the thousand-year-old wild ginseng given by his second brother to the pharmacy shopkeeper of the hall and incorporated it into the Tiger Meat Essence Soup in a certain proportion. Then, Xie An took it in batches to strengthen his foundation.
As for the treasure bone of the fish demon and the black iron, Xie An kept them, planning to find an opportunity to forge them into magical weapons.
His third brother, Yi Qiutang, had said very clearly before that he needed to find a martial artist blacksmith to forge the treasure bone.
During this period, Xie An had also specially taken the black iron to Liang Xiang. Liang Xiang was shocked the moment he saw the black iron, shouting that he had never seen such good treasure iron in his life. Then, after fiddling with it for a long time, he said that he could not forge it and that an Inner Strength martial artist was needed.
So Xie An had to put it aside for the time being.
A blacksmith who is an Inner Strength martial artist… where is that so easy to find?
Of course, although Xie An became a Branch Leader, he didn't put on any airs. Every few days, he would personally go to the Black Market to take a walk, actively drink tea and eat with the shopkeepers, and ask if they had encountered any difficulties. If there were any difficulties that did not violate the regulations, he would help if he could.
Such an approachable Branch Leader really made all the shopkeepers and stall vendors in the Black Market feel flattered, causing everyone to feel a sense of belonging, and naturally work harder to do business.
The Black Market's business was getting better and better, and the cohesion was also very good.
… …
A year passed quickly. It was December again.
The hall's pharmacy.
"Shopkeeper Wang, two servings of Tiger Bone Essence Soup."
"Two servings of Tiger Bone Essence Soup, Branch Leader Xie, here you go…" Shopkeeper Wang suddenly reacted when he was about to prepare the medicine, "Tiger Bone Essence Soup?"
Xie An nodded, "Yes."
According to Xie An's treatment, he could receive two servings of Tiger Bone Essence Soup every three months.
The market price is two hundred taels per serving.
This was a treatment only available to Branch Leaders.
Shopkeeper Wang smiled awkwardly and changed the medicine, handing it to Xie An with both hands, "Congratulations, Branch Leader Xie, you have reached the Great Completion of the Refined Flesh Realm so quickly. Here's the medicine."
"Thank you."
Xie An thanked him and turned to leave.
Xie An didn't take Shopkeeper Wang's congratulations to heart. Nor did he explain anything.
After a year of hard work, plus the effect of the thousand-year-old wild ginseng, Xie An's strength had broken through the Five Viscera Realm a month ago. His strength had improved further. Coupled with the power increase of the Nourishing Life Skill, his current punching power had reached a terrifying level.
It's just that Xie An felt that these achievements were nothing.
After all, his four older brothers were already Inner Strength martial artists long ago.
He was really holding them back.
So when Shopkeeper Wang congratulated him, Xie An didn't feel there was anything to explain.
As for this Tiger Bone Essence Soup, it was for Lin Yun.
After the Blood Ridge Black Market battle came to an end, Lin Yun's inner demons were dispelled, his mind became clear, and his strength progressed rapidly, already reaching the Minor Accomplishment stage of the Refined Flesh Realm. Xie An had come in advance to ask for two doses of medicine to prepare for Lin Yun.
After Xie An left, the shopkeeper Wang of the medicine dispensing room hurriedly handed over his work to the shop assistant and left in a hurry, heading straight for the central courtyard.
Entering the central courtyard, Shopkeeper Wang saw Fang Baiyu personally teaching Wang Liuhe and Xu Bin martial arts in the courtyard.
He waited for a moment by the side, not daring to disturb them.
Shopkeeper Wang's position in charge of the medicine dispensing room in the hall had a benefit: he was very clear about the progress of the strength of each branch leader and deacon.
In the past year, the progress of the major branch leaders had been significant.
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Xu Bin had received a lot of martial arts resources because he had surrendered to Fang Baiyu early on, and his progress was rapid, having entered the Refined Flesh Realm early. Wang Liuhe was stimulated by Xu Bin's matter, and later racked his brains to please Fang Baiyu, finally gaining Fang Baiyu's appreciation, and now he has also stepped into the Refined Flesh Realm.
Shopkeeper Wang originally thought that the progress of these two people was the greatest, and secretly praised them for being smart and knowing how to adapt to the times.
But today... he was a little shocked by Xie An's actions.
After waiting for two quarters of an hour, Fang Baiyu stopped teaching and led Wang Liuhe and Xu Bin into the living room for tea. Shopkeeper Wang hurriedly walked over and said, "Hall Master Fang, I have something to report."
Fang Baiyu sat high in the chief seat, picked up the teacup and took a sip of tea, glanced at Wang Liuhe and Xu Bin, and said, "They are all our own people, you can say anything directly."
Shopkeeper Wang told the whole story about Xie An's request for Tiger Bone Essence Soup.
Fang Baiyu, who was enjoying his tea, suddenly stopped, and heavily put the teacup on the tea table. He immediately felt that the aged tea he had treasured for many years was no longer fragrant, and his face became very ugly.
"Shopkeeper Wang, the hall master already knows, you can go down first." Wang Ziweng walked out at this time and stuffed a small ingot of silver to Shopkeeper Wang, "Thank you for your hard work."
Shopkeeper Wang took the silver and hurriedly thanked him before leaving.
In the hall, the atmosphere was terribly heavy.
Fang Baiyu clenched his fists tightly, and his knuckles had turned white because he was using too much force.
Wang Ziweng said, "Hall Master Fang, although Xie An is old, his martial arts progress is too amazing. Now he has reached the Great Accomplishment stage of the Refined Flesh Realm. He is requesting Tiger Bone Essence Soup, I am afraid he is preparing to attack the Iron Bone Realm. Once he succeeds in breaking through, this White Feather Hall... I am afraid no one can suppress him. Even the hall master's position will be unstable."
Huff!
Fang Baiyu took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing the veins popping out on his forehead, "I remember that Xie An didn't come to celebrate my birthday the other day, right?"
Wang Ziweng said, "He didn't come. He only asked Wang Xiang to send a gift."
Pa!
Fang Baiyu slammed the table, "Chen Qing came, but he didn't come? So he thinks that he is about to break through to the Iron Bone Realm, so he doesn't take Fang Baiyu seriously. If this guy continues to develop, I'm afraid he will really become too powerful to control."
Immediately, Fang Baiyu got up and paced back and forth in the room, finally slapping the table, "Xie An, this person, cannot be kept!"
Hiss.
The other three people in the living room took a deep breath.
Who didn't know Xie An's strength during the examination?
Who didn't know the relationship behind Xie An?
They never expected that Fang Baiyu would be so extreme.
Wang Liuhe said, "Hall Master, I heard that Xie An went to the Tang Family Fort during the New Year... I'm afraid his relationship with the Tang Family Fort is extraordinary. Should we reconsider this matter?"
"No need!"
Fang Baiyu flatly denied, "Blood Ridge Black Market is about to be promoted to a commercial center. Before that, I must firmly grasp the White Feather Hall. No hidden dangers can be left behind. I held a birthday celebration to test Xie An's intentions. Since the other party didn't come, then he is cutting off his own retreat.
Xu Bin, Wang Liuhe, how have I, Fang, treated you?
Faced with Fang Baiyu's serious questioning, Xu Bin immediately got up to express his position: "The hall master's kindness to me is like rebirth. Even if I have to go through fire and water for the hall master, Bin will not hesitate."
Wang Liuhe hesitated a little, and after a little thought, he also made a decision, "I am also willing to go through fire and water for the hall master."
"Good, very good!"
Fang Baiyu quickly helped the two up, "It is already dusk, the wind is strong tonight, it is a night for killing. You change into night clothes, join Wang Ziweng, plus myself. The four of us will intercept and kill Xie An on the way back to the Black Market, and send him on his way.
So what if he has the Tang Family Fort behind him? People die and birds fly upwards, who will know?
"Go and prepare immediately, I will come after changing my clothes."
Leaving a sentence, Fang Baiyu turned and entered the back hall.
The back hall is a separate courtyard. Usually, except for Wang Ziweng, no outsiders can enter. Moreover, the side room in the southeast corner of the courtyard has always been locked, as if it is abandoned. Even Wang Ziweng doesn't know what is inside.
At this moment, Fang Baiyu opened the door of the side room and slowly walked in.
Thump!
Entering the dark and lightless side room, Fang Baiyu directly knelt on the ground, "Little one Fang Baiyu, greetings to the Jade Copper Envoy!"
In the dark depths of the room, no one can be seen, but a pair of green eyes bloom with a captivating light, which is particularly terrifying. Then the owner of the green eyes let out a hoarse and low voice, "Hmm. Have you thought about it?"
Fang Baiyu bowed to the ground, extremely respectfully saying, "Little one has already decided. I will never disappoint the Jade Copper Envoy, I must firmly grasp the Black Market in my hands and contribute to the plan of the Great Envoy. Tonight, I will intercept and kill Xie An. Eliminate the last hidden danger in the Black Market. When the Black Market is transformed into a commercial center in the future, little one will definitely offer it with both hands and do his best for the Great Envoy's plan!"
Hmm.
"This envoy did not pamper you in vain. Because of your carelessness that day, an accident occurred in the ancestral hall of Wugiao Town, which almost ruined this envoy's plan. This time, I will give you a chance to make amends."
"Thank you, Great Envoy!" Fang Baiyu kowtowed on the ground, trembling, and said, "However, Xie An has now reached the Great Accomplishment stage of the Refined Flesh Realm, and there is also a martial arts girl next to him. In order to ensure nothing goes wrong, I still need to ask the Great Envoy to come forward and oversee the battle.
There is only one chance. If I can't kill him this time, he will be prepared in the future, and with the Tang Family Fort behind him, I am afraid it will be difficult to find another opportunity."
After speaking, Fang Baiyu kowtowed on the ground, cold sweat streaming down, and his body was trembling.
Since his failure in the examination a year ago, Fang Baiyu's mentality shattered, and since then he has surrendered to the Jade Copper Envoy in front of him.
This is also the reason why he dares to assassinate Xie An, even though he knows that Xie An has the Tang Family Fort behind him.
After a long time, a voice came from the darkness, "Okay."
"With the Great Envoy taking action, it will be foolproof!"
...
It is said that Xie An took two doses of Tiger Bone Essence Soup, and got into the carriage at the door, driven by Yu He, heading towards the Blood Ridge Black Market.
It was already dusk, and the twilight was closing in. The prosperous Water Lantern Town was brightly lit, and the streets were full of people, full of the smell of fireworks.
Passing by Granny Wang's shop again.
Xie An smelled the familiar smell, so he opened the side window to take a look, but Granny Wang's shop was overcrowded and there were no empty seats.
Xie An had to give up the idea of asking Yu He to have a meal.
At this moment, Chen Qing walked over in a hurry.
Xie An immediately asked Yu He to stop the horse, intending to go down and say hello to Chen Qing. Suddenly, he saw Chen Qing take a step forward, approached the side window and whispered: "Branch Leader Xie does not need to get out of the car, I have been waiting for you here for a long time. I have something to tell you."
Seeing his solemn expression, Xie An knew that it was not a trivial matter, "Branch Leader Chen, please speak."
"Recently, Fang Baiyu has been trying to win people's hearts and eliminate dissidents. The operation is quite direct, and it seems that he has a strong background. Wang Liuhe and Xu Bin have already defected. My broken pier doesn't have much profit, but your Black Market is a sweet treat. He may go to extremes, you have to be careful."
Leaving a sentence, Chen Qing left.
Xie An was stunned for a moment.
After another year of low-key development, I have reached the Five Viscera Realm, and with the Health Cultivation Technique, I can withstand a master of the fifth level, the Blood Rushing Realm.
You Fang Baiyu... are going to mess with me now?
...
From Water Lantern Town back to the Black Market, you need to pass through an uninhabited mountain road.
Under the night, at a narrow intersection, Xu Bin and Wang Liuhe were hiding behind a large rock.
Wang Liuhe was carrying a large broadsword, while Xu Bin was holding a heavy bow, and the two were vigilantly watching the road ahead.
They recognized Xie An's carriage.
They ambushed on the left side of the road, while Wang Ziweng and Fang Baiyu were on the right side. As soon as the carriage appeared, they would directly pull up the heavy bow and shoot continuously, killing Xie An and the girl on the spot.
Although Wang Liuhe was a little scared, since he had chosen to surrender to Fang Baiyu, there was no turning back.
Since he had made a decision, he no longer hesitated.
Suddenly, Wang Liuhe pointed to the corner of the road ahead and said, "Xu Bin, Xie An's carriage is here. Get ready."
Xu Bin nocked an arrow, pulled the bow to the full moon, and aimed at the carriage, "Hey, why is the coachman a man? Isn't it that girl?"
Wang Liuhe didn't take it seriously, "It's freezing cold, the girl may have hidden in the carriage with Xie An. It doesn't matter, in order to avoid startling the horse and causing accidents, shoot the horse first!"
"Okay!"
Whoosh!
The bowstring rebounded, the arrow roared out, and slammed into the horse's head!
The horse fell to the ground with a bang before it could neigh, and the carriage also overturned, making a loud noise...
