"CRUNCH... CRUNCH..."

The rhythmic crunch of boots on thick snow echoed as several figures appeared in the woods, quickly fanning out.

"Young Master."

A moment later, someone shouted from a distance:

"Found him!"

The snow was cleared away, revealing a stiff corpse.

"Damn it!" The speaker had delicate features and fair skin, like a finely crafted porcelain doll, yet her voice was incredibly piercing and shrill.

"Yuan Chong? What an inconvenient time to die!"

"Brother."

Zhou Yuanling glanced to the side.

"So this is the home of the ’wonderful husband’ you told me about? You said he had extraordinary Talent and possessed a Body Tempering Treasure. Now, we can’t even find *his* body."

As Miss Zhou of the Zhou Family, she had never liked the marriage her family had arranged. How could the son of a Zhu Family servant possibly be worthy of her?

But then Yuan Bao had managed to cultivate Inner Qi at a young age, showing promising potential. And on top of that...

Zhou Ye had mentioned that Yuan Bao’s cultivation of Inner Qi was thanks to a special opportunity. It was only for the sake of that ’opportunity’ that she had reluctantly agreed.

But who could have known.

That disaster would strike so suddenly!

’I didn’t get a single thing out of it. Instead, I’m stuck with the stigma of a broken engagement.’

"Who killed him?" Zhou Ye ignored his sister’s complaints, his expression grim as he squatted down to examine Yuan Chong’s corpse.

"Yuan Chong never cultivated Inner Qi, but he had successfully achieved Entering the Realm and had a solid foundation. Killing him shouldn’t have been easy."

"Yuan Hu’s headless body is in the courtyard back in the county seat, Yuan Chong has been killed here, and Yuan Bao is nowhere to be found. In all likelihood, he’s dead too," Zhou Yuanling said, pursing her lips.

"The entire family of three has been wiped out. They must have provoked some truly dangerous enemy recently."

Hm?

Zhou Ye looked up.

"Brother."

Seeing his reaction, Zhou Yuanling raised an eyebrow.

"You know something?"

"...The Zhu Mansion." Zhou Ye’s eyes flickered.

"That old servant from the Zhu Mansion died because of Yuan Bao, but the Zhu Family shouldn’t have an expert of this caliber."

"This wound..."

After carefully examining the injury, his eyes narrowed.

"Claw Force penetrated the skull without leaving any finger marks. Only an expert capable of Inner Qi Release could do such a thing. For an expert of that level, capturing Yuan Bao alive would be a simple matter."

(In this world, there was no such thing as releasing one’s Qi Blood, so it was naturally mistaken for Inner Qi Release; after all, judging by the wounds, there was virtually no difference.)

"Inner Qi Release?" Zhou Yuanling couldn’t help but exclaim.

"The Zhu Family has someone of that caliber?"

Zhou Ye’s expression wavered.

The Zhu Family certainly didn’t have such an expert now, but that didn’t mean their connections in the Prefecture City didn’t.

Inner Qi Release!

In Hejian Prefecture, such a person would be considered a major figure. Even Leping County’s former top expert, Sunx Liancheng, had only just reached this Realm.

"Hah..."

Taking a deep breath, Zhou Ye spoke in a low voice, "Let’s go back. We need to discuss this with Father."

"A discussion is certainly in order," Zhou Yuanling said, rolling her eyes.

"Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. Mr. Zhu may be dead, but his connections are still intact. You shouldn’t have been in such a rush to make a move on the Zhu Family Forest. Now, Yuan Bao’s ’opportunity’... is gone too."

...

「The next day.」

Accompanied by his servants, Zhou Ye knocked on the main gate of the Zhu Mansion.

"CREAK..."

Ma Xun opened the outer gate, and his expression immediately soured when he saw the visitor.

"Young friend," Zhou Ye said with a smile, clasping his fist.

"I am Zhou Ye, the new Chief Constable of Leping County. We’ve met before, at the Zhu Family Forest."

"I know," Ma Xun replied, his face cold.

"What do you want?"

"Er..." Zhou Ye’s expression stiffened. Forcing down his anger, he said,

"I was afraid Brother Zhu might have gotten the wrong idea about the incident at the Forest, so I’ve come to explain. I’ve also brought some gifts."

As he spoke, he stepped aside to reveal the lavish gifts held by the servants behind him.

"Wait here!"

"SLAM!"

The gate slammed shut, freezing the smile on Zhou Ye’s face.

A short while later.

Ma Xun opened the door a crack and said,

"My young master says an elder in the family has recently passed away, so it is not a convenient time to receive guests. Young Master Zhou, please return at a later time."

"But..." Zhou Ye rushed forward.

"SLAM!"

But Ma Xun gave him no chance to speak, slamming the door shut in his face.

"Young Master," a servant behind him stepped forward and said,

"The Zhu Mansion is going too far! Should I call some men to smash down their gate for you? That’ll let you vent your anger."

"SLAP!"

Zhou Ye backhanded the servant, sending him flying with the force of the slap.

"You damn fool!"

"We’re here to apologize, what do you think you’re doing? Trying to put me in an impossible situation?"

"Yes, yes," the servant said, kneeling on the ground. Cupping his swollen face, he asked in a low voice,

"Young Master, what do we do now?"

"We’re leaving!" Zhou Ye took a deep breath.

"If someone in the Zhu Mansion has passed away, then we’ll come back in a few days. He can’t keep his doors closed to visitors forever."

...

「A few days later.」

A servant of the Zhou Family once again knocked on the outer gate of the Zhu Mansion.

Ma Xun opened the door, raising an eyebrow slightly when he saw who it was.

"Young friend..."

"Bad timing!"

Ma Xun shrugged, cutting Zhou Ye off.

"My young master has gone to the Prefecture City. He’s attending the one-hundred-day celebration for the eldest young miss’s child. He’s not here today."

"What?" Zhou Ye’s brow furrowed, his gaze turning strange.

"What a coincidence?"

"It is indeed a coincidence," Ma Xun said with a raised eyebrow.

"Believe it or not, my young master is not in the mansion today. Young Master Zhou, perhaps you can try again another time."

With that, he moved to close the door.

"Wait!" Zhou Ye held up a hand to stop him.

"When will Brother Zhu be back?"

"Three days at the earliest. If it takes longer, I’m not sure," Ma Xun said, shaking his head.

"How could we servants presume to know our master’s movements? We just follow orders."

"SLAM!"

The gate slammed shut.

...

「Several more days passed.」

Zhou Ye appeared before the gates of the Zhu Mansion once again, his men in tow.

"You again!"

Opening the door, Ma Xun wore a peculiar expression.

"Young friend."

Zhou Ye clasped his fist.

"You’re not going to tell me that Brother Zhu isn’t home today, are you?"

"That’s right," Ma Xun nodded.

"The young master isn’t here today."

"Nonsense!" Zhou Ye’s face flushed with anger as he said coldly,

"I specifically had men watching outside the city. Brother Zhu returned yesterday evening. He was seen with their own eyes."

"That’s right," Ma Xun grinned.

"The young master did return to the mansion yesterday. But he went out again today."

"Where did he go?" Zhou Ye stepped forward, barely able to contain his fury.

"I am not someone to be trifled with. You’ve blocked me from seeing Brother Zhu time and time again. What is the meaning of this?"

"Believe it or don’t!" Ma Xun retorted, taking a step back.

"He went to the Forest today, and he also has a banquet with the young masters of the Hex and Leng families. My young master is a very busy man. What’s so strange about him not being home?"

"The Forest, a banquet?" Zhou Ye’s eyes flickered.

"So, you’re saying Brother Zhu will definitely be home tonight."

"Can’t say for sure," Ma Xun said.

"We servants have no say in the young master’s plans. You can never be sure if something unexpected comes up."

"Hmph!" Zhou Ye snorted.

"I’ll trust you one last time. I will wait right here today. If Brother Zhu doesn’t return..."

"...you’ll regret it!"

"Suit yourself." Ma Xun slammed the outer gate shut.

’Go ahead and wait!’

*

*

*

South of Leping County lay countless mountains, their peaks shrouded in dense miasma and crawling with venomous creatures, making them the perfect place to hide someone.

「In a certain mountain forest.」

Zhu Ju’s figure appeared before a simple thatched hut.

"Young Master."

The Snake Nurturer, Sangx Er, walked over, cradling an earthenware jar.

"This is medicinal wine made with the Pusique Snake. Drinking it will refresh your spirit and greatly increase your strength."

"It was by drinking this every day that Yuan Bao managed to cultivate his Inner Qi."

"Mm." Zhu Ju took the jar, sniffing the rich, lingering aroma of wine before asking,

"Have you settled things with your family these past few days?"

"..." Sangx Er nodded repeatedly.

"It’s all thanks to the silver you gave me, Young Master. When my wife saw the silver, her eyes lit up. She didn’t even ask where I’ve been for over a year."

"At least she took good care of our child. If she doesn’t care about me, then so be it."

He added,

"Rest assured, Young Master. I haven’t told a soul about the Yuan Family’s affairs. If I run my mouth, may I be struck by lightning and die a horrible death!"

He was filled with gratitude for Zhu Ju, who had not only rescued him from the clutches of the Yuan father and son but had also given him a monthly payment of two taels of silver to continue raising the snakes.

After all,

the Yuan father and son had forced him to raise snakes without paying him a single coin, and had frequently beaten and cursed him.

Now, not only was he free from fear, but he also had a stable job. He no longer had to worry about providing for his family and could finally see a future for himself.

As for betrayal...

Sangx Er had seen enough of the world to know the strength of his new patron. He would never be foolish enough to go around talking carelessly.

"Pusique Snake!"

Zhu Ju lowered his gaze.

This was a type of Treasure Snake recorded in medical texts. Its body shimmered with a faint golden light, it had a fleshy horn on its head, and it moved like the wind, making it extremely difficult to capture.

By consuming the medicinal wine made from the Pusique Snake, Yuan Bao had managed to cultivate Inner Qi despite his second-rate Martial Skill. Furthermore, his foundation was as solid as that of any disciple from the great families of the Prefecture City. This was the only reason the Zhou Family had taken an interest in him as a son-in-law.

For Zhu Ju, the Pusique Snake was an equally rare Treasure, especially given its miraculous effects on Body Tempering.

However, he would have to try it for himself to know its true effects.