Ye Chongshan’s wake lasted for seven days before the funeral procession. Zhu Ju was invited to attend and would not be leaving Hejian Prefecture for the time being.

"Don’t leave."

On the way back, Luu Pu didn’t ask why the Ye Family had asked him to stay. Instead, he said:

"I know you’ve had some good fortune in Leping County, but it’s a small place, after all. It can’t compare to the Prefecture City."

"Besides..."

"Here, you can also visit your sister more often."

"We’ll see," Zhu Ju said, shaking his head. "My life in Leping County is quite good. I have no plans to move to the Prefecture City at the moment."

"Things are different now," Luu Pu said in a low voice. "You probably don’t know the full extent of it, but the situation in Dazhou has changed. This area could be affected too. The position of Leping County Magistrate has been vacant for a while, hasn’t it?"

Zhu Ju’s gaze flickered. "It has."

It had been two years.

The Leping County Magistrate’s post had been empty all this time. However, since the county was self-governing, most of the common people didn’t feel the difference. In fact, many felt freer without a magistrate.

Still, it was very strange.

Would the Court really allow a county’s chief official post to remain vacant for so long?

"Do you know why?" Luu Pu asked, then answered his own question. "More than a decade ago, there was a change within the Dazhou Royal Family, causing turmoil in several provinces. The situation has intensified in recent years, so a trivial matter like appointing a County Magistrate has been ignored."

"This turmoil is different from before. It could very well lead to the collapse of Dazhou!"

"How could that be?" Zhu Ju asked tentatively. "Doesn’t the Royal Family have the support of *those* people?"

According to Ye Chongshan, the Hall Masters and Vice Hall Masters of San Fen Hall were all Immortal Sect Disciples, though they were not part of the Core True Inheritance.

As the son-in-law of a Vice Hall Master, Luu Pu would naturally have some exposure to the Immortal Sect and the Cultivation Realm.

Just as he thought.

Luu Pu looked surprised.

"You even know about this?"

He stroked his chin and slowly nodded. "The Dazhou Royal Family does indeed have a Cultivation Immortal Sect backing it. However, it’s precisely because that Immortal Sect is showing signs of decline that we have today’s chaos."

"Furthermore..."

"It’s rumored that the Royal Family intends to switch its allegiance to a Demon Sect, which is the root of this disaster."

As for what a Demon Sect was, or why the Immortal Sect backing Dazhou was declining, Luu Pu didn’t know the inside details.

Although he had some contact with the Immortal Sect, it was ultimately limited.

Forget him,

even Vice Hall Master Wan was just an Outer Sect Disciple of the Immortal Sect and couldn’t access the real secrets.

"Let’s not talk about things so far off. Let’s talk about what’s close." Luu Pu pointed north. "You’ve heard of the Blood Flood Dragon Bandits, right? In just over a year, Qingshi County, Panshan County, Yongqing Town..."

"Several counties to the north have been ravaged by the Blood Flood Dragon Bandits. The number of dead and injured is unknown. It wouldn’t be surprising if they set their sights on Leping County."

With the chaos in the Court and bandits plaguing the region, going to Leping County three years ago might have offered some peace and quiet.

Now,

it was indeed no longer as safe as the Prefecture City.

"I’ll think about it." Zhu Ju wasn’t a stubborn man. He fell into thought upon hearing this.

"Whenever you decide to come, just let me know in advance." Luu Pu smiled and patted his shoulder. "Don’t worry about anything after you get here. I’ll take care of it."

"Oh, right!"

He tossed out a small booklet. "With Elder Ye’s passing, some of the things he left behind are of no use to his descendants. They’ll be auctioned off in a few days. See if there’s anything you want."

Zhu Ju reached out and took it.

The booklet recorded Ye Chongshan’s gains over the years. There were potion formulas, various weapons and armor, and even Martial Arts Techniques. Since the Ye Family was putting them up for auction, there obviously wouldn’t be any truly top-tier items, but the selection was still quite rich.

"Huh?"

An item on the last page made Zhu Ju raise his eyebrows. "The Breaking Army Armor? The Ye Family is auctioning this off too?"

Among the older generation of San Fen Hall, a certain palm and a certain fist were equally famous. The palm was Master Zhu’s Mixed Element Iron Hand, and the fist belonged to Iron Fist Ye Chongshan.

Both of them had the Cultivation of Inner Qi Release, but their actual combat strength was in no way inferior to a master at the Qi Circulation Realm.

Their status was second only to the Elders.

Zhu Ju guessed that his own family’s master must have grasped the Mental Realm of the Mixed Element Iron Hand, which allowed him to fight above his Realm.

As for Ye Chongshan...

besides his powerful Hard Skill, it was also because of a suit of armor.

The Breaking Army Armor!

The Breaking Army Armor, weighing several hundred pounds, combined with his terrifying Physical Body, made him unstoppable on the battlefield.

No one in the same Realm could stand against him!

The Breaking Army Armor had accompanied Ye Chongshan his entire life and helped him achieve great military merit. For his descendants to now put it up for auction was a rather sad state of affairs.

"Heh..." Luu Pu chuckled lightly. "Once the birds are gone, the good bow is put away. Once the cunning hare is caught, the hound is cooked."

"No one in the Ye Family’s next generation has cultivated the Thirteen Body Refinement to the Inner Refinement level, and they don’t plan to walk the path of Body Refinement in the future. The Breaking Army Armor is naturally useless in their hands."

"You want it?"

"Yes," Zhu Ju nodded. "I’ve heard the Breaking Army Armor was forged with a special metal that can resist a certain degree of Inner Qi attacks and can also adjust its size. How many silver taels do they want for it?"

"Three thousand taels!" Luu Pu said. "If you want it, the Ye Family will probably give you a discount. I’ll go figure out a way to scrape the money together and we can buy it directly without going through the auction."

"I have the money," Zhu Ju said with a wave of his hand. "I’ll have to trouble you to ask, brother-in-law. I want it."

Luu Pu looked astonished. Three thousand taels of silver was no small sum. He hadn’t had that much himself before marrying Wan Wenxin.

To think...

’Could it be that the Old Master left something for Zhu Ju in Leping County? Otherwise, how could he have changed so much in just three short years?’

As the thought crossed his mind, Luu Pu nodded. "I’ll go ask."

「...」

A side courtyard of the Luu Mansion.

When he heard that Zhu Ju wanted the Breaking Army Armor, Ye Xingxian voluntarily lowered the price, and they settled on two thousand six hundred taels of silver.

Of course,

right now, Ye Chongshan’s bones were not yet cold, so his belongings couldn’t be traded for some time. The armor was not yet in Zhu Ju’s possession.

"Mental Realm?"

"I can’t understand it at all!"

Flipping through the booklet Ye Chongshan had left behind several times, Zhu Ju sighed in frustration. "Elder Ye organized his own learnings. Old Master, why didn’t you leave anything behind when you passed?"

"You left in such a hurry..."

"Well, that’s that then!"

Master Zhu had most likely comprehended a Mental Realm. If he had been able to leave behind his insights, they would certainly have been clearer than Ye Chongshan’s.

As it was,

the description of the Mental Realm in the booklet was shrouded in mystery and truly difficult to understand.

"Mental Realm, Mental Realm, Intent..."

"The Demon Saber!"

Zhu Ju’s gaze flickered, and he picked up the Cross and Vertical Saber at his side.

The Demon Saber emphasized intent over force. All four of its forms—Shocking God, Abstinence, Shattering Passion, and Cleaving Karma—were based on the principle of intent preceding the move.

When Zheng Hong had used the Demon Saber, the mere aftershocks of his technique could make one’s heart tremble with fear. It must have been related to a Mental Realm, but the so-called Mental Realm of Qi Blood Martial Arts was clearly different from the one here.

The Mental Realm Ye Chongshan spoke of, once comprehended, could draw upon the Power of Heaven and Earth, making its might unimaginably great—not merely something that could shake one’s spirit.

"What a pity!"

"I don’t have the Heart Method for the Seven Emotions and Six Desires Cross Method. If I did, comprehending a Mental Realm would probably be easier."

Shaking his head, Zhu Ju steadied his mind and tried to execute the Shocking God Form.

This time was different from before. He no longer obsessed over the saber technique or the variations of the moves, but instead carefully tried to feel the Mental Realm that the Demon Saber Technique pointed toward.

Shocking God!

First startle yourself, then injure the enemy.

The mind and spirit are startled; the Divine Soul stirs.

Shock, anger, sorrow, fear, panic, joy... all of these could alter a person’s emotions, causing them to become flustered and confused. This was the essence that the Shocking God Form was meant to express.

SWISH!

The gleam of the saber vanished in a flash.

A thoughtful expression appeared on Zhu Ju’s face. After a slight adjustment, he swung the saber again, one strike after another in a continuous blur.

Shocking God!

SWISH!

The saber’s light flared.

The figure charging forward with the saber abruptly vanished.

A few breaths later, just as suddenly as he had disappeared, Zhu Ju’s figure reappeared in the practice area.

His expression was strange.

A mix of astonishment, pleasant surprise, and confusion...

"A second world!"

"I never thought that trying to comprehend the saber technique’s Mental Realm would actually open a second world."