Desolate Devouring Art

Chapter 28 - Turbulance

In the City Lord Mansion, Commander Guo knelt on one knee before a middle-aged man in a purple robe who had a gloomy expression.

“City Lord, you must defend us. That young man has tricked us all; he’s not worthless!” Commander Guo cried. As a first-grade guard of the City Lord Mansion, his clothes were in tatters upon his return. The other guards had only minor injuries on their necks, indicating that Liu Wuxie had shown them mercy.

“Is what you said true?” The City Lord’s name was Qi Enshi, and he had been managing Azure Billow City for more than two decades.

“It’s true! We can all vouch for it!” The ten guards knelt outside the main hall, not qualified to enter. Each covered his neck with right hand, feeling greatly humiliated.

“Father...” A man and a woman emerged from behind the curtains. The woman was young, in her twenties, while the man was older, in his fifties, with a hooked nose.

The woman’s name was Qi Ningyun, the youngest daughter of Qi Enshi, who joined the Imperial Academy two years ago. The old man was Zhao Yuanjia, a high-grade mentor at the Imperial Academy. Although his position may not have been equal to that of Baili Qing, it was still quite high.

The fact that Qi Ningyun was able to have a high-grade mentor as her master demonstrated her exceptional talent. After all, most students could only rely on their own cultivation, and without a strong background, it was hard for them to progress at the Imperial Academy.

“Yun’er, how’s the yin energy in your body?” Qi Enshi asked with concern.

“It’s no longer a serious issue, thanks to my master, who hurried here from the Imperial Academy with a Nine Yang Fruit,” said Qi Ningyun, bowing deeply to Zhao Yuanjia.

Qi Ningyun had returned to Azure Billow City to visit her relatives and used this opportunity to train in Sunset Mountain. However, she was attacked by the Yin Scorpion and injected with yin poison, which could only be treated with powerful yang herbs.

So the City Lord had sent his men to search for yang-attributed herbs while he rushed to the Imperial Academy to inform Zhao Yuanjia about it. Through his effort, the yin energy in Qi Ningyun’s body was finally resolved, and she needed a few days of rest to recover.

“Mentor Zhao, I’m grateful for what you did. I’ll host a banquet today for you,” Qi Enshi said, cupping his fists together at Zhao Yuanjia to express his gratitude. As the City Lord, Qi Enshi’s cultivation was in the first level of the Marrow Cleansing Realm, but it was inferior to the Imperial Academy’s mentors.

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“No need to thank me. How can I stand by and watch when Yun’er is in danger?” Zhao Yuanjia was still happy to be respected, and he stroked his beard, looking like a well-respected grandmaster.

“Father, what’s wrong with the trash?” Qi Ningyun asked in bafflement. She was born with sleek eyes, slim cheeks, and thin lips. Even if she wasn’t ugly, anyone could tell with a glance that she was mean.

Commander Guo quickly came forth and once again explained what had happened. This surprised Qi Ningyun because she had long heard of Xu Clan’s son-in-law. She didn’t expect him to change so much in the two years she was at the Imperial Academy.

“City Lord, since when has our City Lord Mansion suffered such a loss? How can we maintain the prestige of the City Lord Mansion if we don’t destroy the Xu Clan?” Commander Guo exaggerated the matter and even fabricated how Liu Wuxie had insulted the City Lord Mansion in an attempt to get the City Lord Mansion to avenge his humiliation.

“The Xu Clan? I heard Baili Qing is also here in Azure Billow City, and she’s here for a Xu Clan’s woman,” Zhao Yuanjia interrupted. He had left the Imperial City at the same time as Baili Qing, and they briefly crossed paths along the way.

“Yes, it’s the Xu Clan. I received word that Xu Lingxue has already left Azure Billow City with Baili Qing, heading to the Imperial Academy ahead of schedule.”

How could Qi Enshi not tell that Commander Guo had purposely exaggerated the situation? But it was a fact that Liu Wuxie had offended the City Lord Mansion by not selling the Nine Yang Fruit.

“Father, what do you plan on doing now? Are you just going to let it go?” Qi Ningyun’s face was cold. Fortunately, her master came over in time to save her, but she was furious that Liu Wuxie disregarded her safety and refused to sell them the Nine Yang Fruit.

“Let it go?” Qi Enshi sneered. No one had dared to slap him in the face for years, and this was the first time it had happened. How could he let it go so easily?

“What should we do? It doesn’t seem right to wipe out the Xu Clan when Xu Lingxue has entered the Imperial Academy with Baili Qing looking after her,” said Qi Ningyun, a hint of a murderous look on her face. It was unacceptable for the City Lord Mansion’s status to be shaken, as it affected her standing in the Imperial Academy. After all, she would only receive attention from the Imperial Academy if she had a strong background.

“That trash offended the Wan Clan and Tian Clan three days ago, and they will erase the Xu Clan from Azure Billow City in a month. So we don’t have to do anything about it. The Wan Clan has become Xue Clan’s lackey, and we can just watch them fight.” The City Lord Mansion had long received the news, and Qi Enshi intended to let Wan Clan do the job.

After all, Baili Qing was notoriously known as the great demon in the Imperial Academy because of her mood swings. Who knew if she would blame the City Lord Mansion because of the Xu Clan? It was best for them to watch while the Xu Clan and Wan Clan fought.

Everyone nodded, and even Zhao Yuanjia agreed with Qi Enshi’s suggestion. It was best not to offend Baili Qing because she was too terrifying, and her notorious fame had long spread throughout the Great Yan Dynasty.

......

Back at the Xu Clan, Liu Wuxie’s attention was on the cauldron. He only had one chance, and he couldn’t afford to fail. He was confident in his skills as an alchemist, but he couldn’t help feeling a little nervous.

The Wan Clan and Tian Clan were threats to the Xu Clan, Lei Tao of the Treasure Pill Pavilion had threatened him that day, the City Lord Mansion loomed over the Xu Clan like a sword, and an outsider tore his marriage certificate. But none of these could strike him down.

The flames blazed beneath the cauldron, and Liu Wuxie released desolate energy from his palm to control the fire and enveloped the entire cauldron. The other herbs had already been purified a few days ago, and he was just waiting to dissolve the Nine Yang Fruit and Scarlet Spirit Grass.

As time passed, Liu Wuxie’s body was covered in sweat, but he couldn’t be bothered to wipe it. He abruptly raised the lid of the cauldron and manipulated the flames to enter it. This final step in refining the Pulse Guarding Pill was known as Forging.

It was rare and risky to let fire enter the cauldron when refining ordinary pills. But Liu Wuxie had to take the risk because he was only in the Houtian Realm and couldn’t refine a third-grade pill yet.

A potent aroma quickly filled the courtyard as two crystalline pills danced within the flames. With each tempering, their medicinal properties were further purified, and impurities were steadily expelled.

Liu Wuxie formed seals with his hands, and a large sum of spiritual runes entered the pills. There were multiple applications for spiritual runes and could be used in alchemy, blacksmithing, and even painting. Once engraved within the pills, they imbued them with spirituality, causing them to spin.

“Let’s end the process!” The flames abruptly died out, and the cauldron rapidly cooled as Liu Wuxie used his true essence to retrieve the two Pulse Guarding Pills.

“It’s a success!” Liu Wuxie’s eyes became a little watery. He had to treat his injuries if he wanted to do more things and speed up his cultivation. He returned to his room with the pills, planning to go into seclusion. He wanted to use the pills to reach the Xiantian Realm in one shot.

......

Hu Shi carried a pile of weapons as he entered the Xu Clan’s main hall with unconcealable excitement on his face.

Many of Xu Yilin’s hair had become grey over the past few days because of the Xu Clan’s Weaponry Workshop. The business wasn’t improving, and they could barely meet ends. If he couldn’t turn the situation around, the Xu Clan would collapse before the Wan Clan dealt with them.

“Patriarch, these are newly forged weapons. Please have a look!” The ten weapons Hu Shi brought were wrapped in blue cloth to hide them, and the passersby didn’t know what he was holding.

The Xu Clan’s expenses had shrunk significantly. Many guards resigned from their position and joined the other three clans. As a result, the Xu Clan’s status has been dropping in Azure Billow City.

“Hu Shi, you’ve worked hard. You can just put them here.” Xu Yilin waved his hand.

The other blacksmiths were resting; only Hu Shi had been researching a new forging technique. This naturally led to ridicule from those around him, who thought he was overreaching by attempting to research a new forging method as a mere blacksmith apprentice.

“Patriarch, you should take a look at this,” said Hu Shi. Liu Wuxie had only given him three days to study the new forging technique, and Hu Shi had spent the past three days working on it without rest. He had large bags under his eyes, but they shone brightly with excitement.

Xu Yilin had naturally noticed Hu Shi’s performance over the past few days and had been focusing on training him. So he stepped forward and casually drew a sword. To his surprise, the sword was accompanied by a cold gleam and a hint of sword aura.

“This...” Xu Yilin was stumped. As he drew the weapon, the cold gleam and sword aura, previously contained by the blue cloth wrapping, were released.

“What a sharp sword, and it even has a hint of spirituality!” Xu Yilin casually swung the sword, and the sword aura cut through the table and chairs far away. The quality of this weapon was close to being considered a Spiritual Weapon, and it could only be accomplished with Thousand Refinement.

“Hu Shi, where did you get these weapons from?” Xu Yilin held onto Hu Shi’s shoulders. He knew that the Xu Clan couldn’t forge such a high-graded weapon, and he naturally wouldn’t believe Hu Shi forged it.

“I forged it in the past three days.” Hu Shi was a simple and honest person. His hair was disheveled like a chicken coop, and he hadn’t bathed for the past three days, so his body smelled a little. But Xu Yilin didn’t mind at all.

“What?!” Xu Yilin was thoroughly shocked. The Xu Clan gained their foothold in Azure Billow City by forging weapons, and he couldn’t see through the techniques used by Hu Shi, which far surpassed ordinary forging techniques.

“Hu Shi, did you research these weapons yourself?” Xu Yilin asked anxiously as he held Hu Shi’s shoulders in excitement.

“I didn’t. Someone taught me and asked me to research it in three days.” Hu Shi was a little nervous as this was the first time he had been so close to the patriarch. He was just an ordinary blacksmith apprentice, and it was thanks to his father’s job in the Xu Clan he became a blacksmith apprentice, earning some money every month.

“Tell me, who taught you the forging technique? I have to thank him personally!” Xu Yilin was determined to find the person who taught Hu Shi. With this forging technique, the Xu Clan’s position would rise and they would earn a large amount of gold coins. He could buy resources and train an elite group of guards. At that time, they would stand a chance against the Wan Clan and Tian Clan’s threats.

“He...told me not to tell anyone,” Hu Shi stuttered as Liu Wuxie had instructed him to keep it a secret.

“Is he in Azure Billow City?” Xu Yilin was astonished and began to wonder who helped the Xu Clan.

“He is, and he’s currently in the Xu Clan. I’ll take my leave if there’s nothing else, and I’ll have to trouble the patriarch to send this scabbard to the Young Master,” Hu Shi said as he carefully took out an exquisite scabbard.

Afraid that he might accidentally reveal something, Hu Shi quickly turned to leave. He was too honest and feared that he wouldn’t be able to keep the secret if Xu Yilin put even a little pressure on him.

“Hu Shi, you are now the Chief Blacksmith of the Xu Clan. You can ask anything you need, and I’ll do my best to cooperate with you. The weaponry workshop will have to rely on you now.” Xu Yilin was a decisive person, and he soon made a decision. He also had a flash of realization in his eyes as though he had guessed something, but he didn’t dare to be sure about it.