Longevity Palace suddenly announced it would seal its gates for a hundred years and withdraw from the world, even cutting off some of its most lucrative businesses without a second thought.

It was a stark contrast to their previous way of doing things.

Clearly, they had truly decided to retreat into seclusion.

Only Chunyuan Zhenren knew that Master Longevity was dead and Longevity Palace was no longer as powerful as it once was.

The Lingzhou General and the Prefect had long been eyeing Longevity Palace like tigers. If it didn’t seal its gates, it might very well face annihilation.

...

"Master, Master Longevity went to Huanglong Prefecture."

Chen Qing remained standing respectfully.

Cangsong Taoist’s eyes narrowed slightly.

’The Divine Mansion Sect... it’s the Divine Mansion Sect again.’

Others might not have known that Master Longevity was dead, but how could he not?

’Master Longevity was an expert on my level. If the Divine Mansion Sect could kill Master Longevity, they could kill me too.’

For the first time, he felt a sense of crisis.

’Without a doubt, the only one who could have killed Master Longevity is Dong Wanjun.’

But that Dong Wanjun was truly a remarkable individual. Even he couldn’t find a single trace, and he had previously assumed Dong Wanjun had been in Ling Province the entire time.

The man ranked first on Ling Province’s Heavenly Ranking was indeed the real deal.

Cangsong Taoist had seen many Generals in the Northern Territory, but Dong Wanjun was the first one he’d met who was so formidable.

He even had the strange feeling that Dong Wanjun might be able to hold his own in a fight against a Mingxin Grandmaster.

’A delusion. It has to be a delusion!’

Even the Northern Great Celestial Profound Sect only had three Mingxin Grandmasters, each one an extraordinary, otherworldly individual.

’Challenged by someone of a lower rank?’

That was simply unheard of.

...

「The Divine Mansion Sect.」

The events of that night had no impact whatsoever on Huanglong Prefecture.

Other than Murong Tian, the person involved, no one else knew that he had killed Master Longevity, let alone knew of the great demon’s existence.

It was said that after that night, Murong Tian gave up fishing and threw himself into the Murong Family’s Library Pavilion, vowing to uncover the truth of what happened to the Murong Ancestor back then.

Bai Yuan, however, had no such thoughts.

’With that Tier Eight Great Demon standing guard, what could I do even if I knew the truth?’

’It’s better to spend my efforts on getting stronger.’

"Allocate my points!"

...

[In the 4,300th year of practicing the Rolling Blood Saber, you seem to have an epiphany.]

...

[In the 4,413th year of practicing the Rolling Blood Saber, you are no longer obsessed with practicing the saber. You decide to seal your saber.]

...

[In the 4,900th year of practicing the Rolling Blood Saber, you have finally grasped its true meaning!]

...

Bai Yuan’s eyes snapped open, an endless killing intent bursting forth from them.

[Name: Bai Yuan]

[Class: Demon Hunter, Sword Ghost, Boxer, Spirit Cooker, Skin Painter]

[Skills: Rolling Blood Saber (Legendary), Broken River Saber (Legendary), Returning Mountain (Legendary), Four-Nine Book (Proficient), Demon Qi Attraction (Legendary), Thousand Faces Technique (Legendary)...]

[Enhancement Points: 31]

He had finally practiced the Rolling Blood Saber to the Legendary level.

The Legendary-level Rolling Blood Saber was less a saber technique and more a Body Refining method.

Perhaps the original version of the Rolling Blood Saber wasn’t like this; it had only taken this form after Bai Yuan’s own modifications.

But as long as it was strong enough, it didn’t really matter if it was inconsistent with the original.

And the biggest change to the Rolling Blood Saber after reaching the Legendary level was that Bai Yuan could actually mobilize the power within every single one of his cells!

As a graduate student in his past life, he knew all too well how powerful cells were.

After all, the initial five stages of martial arts were all about maximizing the body’s physical power.

Skin, bone, tendon, organ, and blood—squeezing out every last drop of the body’s potential.

But Bai Yuan went a step further—he was going to squeeze every last cell dry!

Of course, it was impossible at his current level, but just scratching the surface had more than doubled his power.

’Scientific cultivation?’

Perhaps it was precisely because of his knowledge from his past life that he had walked down this unique path.

Just then, lines of small text appeared before Bai Yuan’s eyes.

[New Function Unlocked: Synthesis!]

Seeing "Synthesis," Bai Yuan’s eyes lit up. After grinding for so long, he had finally unlocked a high-tier feature.

The most appealing part of the *Great Martial Artist of a Chaotic Age* mini-game, besides the thrill of mowing down enemies, was its diverse skill synthesis system.

Sometimes, even synthesizing common skills could produce unexpected effects.

It had extremely high replayability.

To unlock the synthesis function, one had to possess at least three Legendary-level skills of the same category.

Bai Yuan looked at the three Legendary-level saber techniques he had painstakingly mastered.

"Synthesize!"

The three lines of gilded text on the panel slowly floated up and then collided.

[Congratulations! You have obtained a new skill: Chaotic Blood Hidden Tiger Saber!]

[Name: Bai Yuan]

[Class: Demon Hunter, Sword Ghost, Boxer, Spirit Cooker, Skin Painter]

[Skills: Chaotic Blood Hidden Tiger Saber (Entry), Demon-Seeking (Legendary), Demon Qi Attraction (Legendary), Thousand Faces Technique (Legendary)...]

[Enhancement Points: 31]

An endless stream of saber intent flooded Bai Yuan’s mind.

There are no perfect people in this world, nor are there any perfect saber techniques. To become stronger, one must make sacrifices.

The Chaotic Blood Hidden Tiger Saber fused the saber intents of the Rolling Blood Saber, Returning Mountain Saber, and Broken River Saber. It even incorporated concepts from the Blood Tiger Saber and the Tiger Form and Crane Style.

In the end, he chose ultimate speed.

The power stimulated by the Rolling Blood Saber was ultimately expressed as speed in the saber technique. As long as one was fast enough, anything in the world could be severed.

It was like the sniper rifles Bai Yuan had seen in his past life. It wasn’t that the bullets themselves were anything special; rather, their lethality increased with their firing velocity.

A great master once said that in all of martial arts, only speed is unbreakable.

Except for skills in the bedroom, everything should be fast.

The Chaotic Blood Hidden Tiger Saber was meant to be the fastest saber art in the world.

Bai Yuan looked at his panel.

His Demon-Seeking Technique was just one Legendary-level cultivation technique away from unlocking synthesis.

Unfortunately, there were too few Demon Hunters in the world, and their legacies were hidden deep within the endless mountains of the Southern Border. Even Zhou Siming had only managed to find a single copy of *Demon Qi Attraction*.

’Still too few cultivation techniques...’

He was probably the only person in the world who possessed dozens of cultivation techniques and still felt it wasn’t enough.

...

One day, Bai Yuan received a letter from Lu Shanshan.

"Lu Yu?"

The letter said that Lu Yu had already returned to Huanglong Prefecture.

Lu Yu had said he would be back soon before he left. He hadn’t expected it to actually be true.

When he arrived at the Lu Family estate, the first thing he saw was Lu Yu’s signature cheeky grin.

"Brother Bai, I’m not so shabby myself anymore."

"Oh?"

Bai Yuan’s interest was piqued.

The Lu State Fang Family was a major clan. It seemed unreasonable for Lu Yu, a man who had married into the family, to return to Ling Province so quickly.

Lu Yu chuckled. "Brother, let me give you some inside information. The Imperial Court is about to make a big move. The situation in the Northern Territory will be turned completely upside down. The Fang Family sent me to Ling Province to make preparations in advance."

"What kind of big move?"

Bai Yuan pressed.

The Fang Family had many high-ranking officials in the Imperial Court; they certainly knew more than he did.

Lu Yu said, "Can’t say."

Bai Yuan rolled his eyes. ’He probably doesn’t know the specifics anyway.’

Not long after Lu Yu arrived in Ling Province, several other great sects from the Northern Lands quietly sent people to Ling Province as well.

Everything seemed to be a sign of things to come.

...

「Autumn of the 41st year of Yuanding.」

To consolidate the front lines in the Northern Territory, Emperor Xuanyang followed the example of a previous dynasty and established the position of Jiedu Envoy to oversee the northern states.

The Northern Territory was comprised of thirteen states in total. The Imperial Court dispatched four Second-Grade Officials to serve as Jiedu Envoys.

These four Jiedu Envoys held nearly absolute power of life and death over the Northern Thirteen States.

Previously, the Generals and Prefects had kept each other in check. Now, the Jiedu Envoys held both military and administrative authority, making them undisputed regional hegemons.

Naturally, only the confidants of His Majesty the Emperor could hold such important positions.

After all, the tales of Jiedu Envoys from previous dynasties rebelling were now written in the books of the Imperial College.

Ling Province, Qingzhou, and Yu State formed the Shuofang region.

The high official overseeing Shuofang unexpectedly established his Traveling Mansion in Ling Province rather than the more prosperous Qingzhou. As for why, no one knew.

But just as Lu Yu had said, the skies over Ling Province were truly about to change.

"Brother Bai, what do you think? I didn’t lie to you, did I?"

Lu Yu looked at Bai Yuan smugly.

News of the Jiedu Envoy had already reached Huanglong Prefecture.

In truth, he himself had only just realized how big the "big change" the Fang Family spoke of really was. The appearance of the Jiedu Envoy would inevitably alter the landscape of the Northern Territory, and it was highly likely the three states would be unified.

The major powers that had made arrangements in Ling Province beforehand now began to reveal themselves.

A single, small Huanglong Prefecture now housed four Sensing Powerhouses. Such a grand gathering was truly unprecedented.

The Shuofang Jiedu Envoy was already on his way north. The waters in Ling Province would only grow deeper.

It was said that the Lord Prefect of Huanglong Prefecture had already been transferred, and a new Prefect would soon take his place.

After all, as Ling Province’s status rose, so did the importance of Huanglong Prefecture. A prime position in such a key location would naturally not be left to an incompetent person.

The Huanglong Prefecture Magistrate’s Office was now the most powerful seat in the entire Shuofang region.

Countless Dukes and nobles in the Imperial Court were vying for the position of Huanglong Prefecture’s Prefect.

"Is there any news about the new Prefect?"

Bai Yuan asked.

Lu Yu shook his head.

"I hear they’re still arguing about it in the Imperial Court."

He had now transformed into the Fang Family’s spokesperson in Huanglong Prefecture, a position of considerable status. Of course, he still had a Chief Steward in Ling Province above him.

Still, with the Fang Family’s financial resources, he had truly made a comeback.

He was far more influential now than he had been as the young master of the Lu Family.

Bai Yuan nodded. He was more concerned about his neighbor, the Prefect, than the distant Shuofang Jiedu Envoy in Ling Province.

In fact, it wasn’t just Huanglong Prefecture; the Prefects of several other prefectures in Ling Province had also been replaced, and numerous factions had poured in.

Ling Province had surpassed Qingzhou in a single leap, becoming the strongest state in the Shuofang region.

The former Prefect was just an ordinary Advanced Martial Artist; of course, he couldn’t control so many powerful outsiders.

No matter who the new Prefect was, their strength would certainly not be lacking.

This position involved too many vested interests and, more importantly, was tied to the Northern Garrison Army’s most crucial supply route. Naturally, many people were fighting over it.

It was inevitable that another storm would soon brew in Huanglong Prefecture.

Bai Yuan gazed out the window at the river’s surface.

The situation in Ling Province was just like the Ling River outside his window. Though calm on the surface, it was full of roiling undercurrents, ready to devour someone at any moment.

Now, with the addition of all these powerful players, the situation would only become more confusing and unpredictable.

Even Old Dong would have a hard time protecting the entire Divine Mansion Sect.

’If I want to secure my place in such chaos, there’s only one way: to have enough strength.’

Bai Yuan’s gaze became resolute.

’Carve out a path with blood?’

’A good idea. That’s something I’ve always been good at.’