17: Chapter 17 Guangling County

The rusty scent of blood filled his nostrils, and images of the woman’s dying spasms flashed repeatedly in Su Xuanheng’s mind. The sensation of the longsword slicing through her neck further deepened the impression.

Su Xuanheng tried his best to fight this physiological discomfort, but the more he resisted, the more nauseous he felt.

Suddenly, a warm, large hand landed on his back and patted it gently, miraculously chasing away the physical discomfort.

"Don't dwell on the images of the killing. Instead, think about the consequences if you had died at their hands."

Su Yang’s voice was very soft, as if he were describing a trivial matter. "If we both died, only your mother and your younger siblings, who are under ten, would be left in the Family. Think about what fate they would face. Having the clan lands devoured by other families would be the smallest price..."

He didn't go into detail about the darker scenarios; after all, Su Xuanheng was only ten years old.

However, after this reminder, Su Xuanheng’s expression softened, and his attention was successfully diverted.

But just thinking about what would happen to his younger siblings if they both died filled him with lingering fear.

"Father, how did you know they were enemies?"

Su Xuanheng couldn't help but ask.

From his perspective, whether it was the bandits or the woman, they had acted flawlessly. One could even infer their previous experiences from their appearance and state.

Yet, his father had ordered him to draw his sword at the very first sight of them.

Was it because he lacked experience and couldn't see the obvious flaws in them?

Su Yang crouched down and searched the corpses but failed to find any clues.

He shook his head, stood up, and said, "If you don't look closely, there really aren't many flaws. The woman was in rags and looked disheveled; the three bandits stank and were cursing as they chased her, looking exactly like they'd been splashed with foul water by her, which gave her a chance to escape."

"But they clearly don't know the reality of a bandit's life. It's impossible for a woman to escape a bandit stronghold alone. Once an escape is discovered by even one bandit, the entire group will be mobilized to hunt her down."

"The number of bandits here was too small. Furthermore, if these three were being hindered during the chase, other bandits should have stepped in to take their place."

"Instead, it was still just those three, dragging out the chase for a single woman. It was far too deliberate."

Su Xuanheng fell into thought after hearing this.

"Just based on those points, you were sure they were enemies, Father?"

"Of course not."

Su Yang grinned slightly. "The premise of everything is that I knew we would be attacked once we left Qingyuan County. Besides, when traveling abroad, it's never wrong to draw your sword and be on guard the moment an emergency arises."

Without that premise, he wouldn't have been entirely certain they were enemies, but he would have been on guard immediately.

Su Xuanheng suddenly understood.

He got it!

When facing an incomprehensible situation, one can just draw their sword!

"Can you tell which Family sent them, Father?" Su Xuanheng asked solemnly.

Su Yang shook his head helplessly. "They didn't leave any clues, but there are only a few families capable of hiring three Innate Martial Artists."

It was impossible to determine exactly which one.

Too many people were envious of the Drunken Immortal Tower's profits, and the web of relationships involved was complex. This attack might have been a joint effort by several families rather than just one.

Su Yang didn't bother to investigate further. As long as the Su Family developed, these people would be nothing more than insignificant rabble.

...

A Fireball Technique struck, incinerating the corpses completely, and the father and son set off once more.

The spring breeze brushed against their faces, blowing away the scent of blood that clung to them.

Images of the killing still flashed in Su Xuanheng’s mind occasionally, but the psychological shock was slowly fading.

As the sun set in the west, the twilight painted the road ahead in a golden hue.

In the distance, a range of rolling mountains stood majestically.

A bustling county seat was located in front of the mountain range. They were quite far apart, but from a distance, it looked as if it were nestled at the foot of the mountains.

They had arrived at Guangling County.

That majestic mountain was the Hundred Lotus Mountain Range. Only by looking down from high above could one understand why the range was named 'Hundred Lotus'.

It was said that at the center of the continuous mountains lay a pure land for Yao Beasts, where countless Yao Beasts lived and multiplied.

This mountain range separated the two countries of Great Wei and Great Qi.

Some joked that if Great Wei and Great Qi wanted to go to war, they would first have to work together to level the Hundred Lotus Mountain Range.

"Is this Guangling County? There are so many people!"

Su Xuanheng looked around, deeply captivated by the continuous stretches of magnificent buildings and the bustling traffic.

"In the future, I'll take you to Cultivation Markets and Immortal Cities. The things there will overturn your understanding of the world."

Su Yang rubbed his son's head, a hint of reminiscence surfacing in his eyes.

As the sun set completely, the lights of ten thousand homes lit up in Guangling County.

Many Cultivators and Martial Artists returned from the battles in the Hundred Lotus Mountain Range. They radiated a strong aura of blood, with bright smiles on their faces, and the large trailers behind them were loaded with Yao Beasts as large as houses.

The people around them quickly made way, filled with constant wonder.

This was the first time Su Xuanheng had seen a Yao Beast. His eyes sparkled, and he felt a sudden urge to fight one.

Su Yang rented a room at a nearby inn and instructed his son:

"You can stay in the room or wander around nearby, but don't go far. If you encounter overbearing Cultivators or those with strange auras, avoid them immediately. If someone tries to harm you, hide inside a shop."

Su Xuanheng nodded obediently.

Unfamiliar with the place, he didn't dare to wander aimlessly, at most just watching the excitement nearby.

Su Yang felt at ease with his eldest son.

After leaving the inn alone, he headed straight for the Immortal Treasure Tower.

With many Cultivators in Guangling County, the Immortal Treasure Tower wasn't as quiet as the one in Qingyuan County. Not only was it crowded and lively, but there were also beautiful, fair-skinned attendants to greet and serve guests.

Su Yang sold all his stockpiled Talismans and Medicinal Pills and asked the attendant for a Tier 2 Alchemy Legacy.

The value of Tier 2 Pill Formulas circulating in the market wasn't very high; they were mostly common consumable pills.

Truly valuable Pill Formulas were monopolized by major powers.

For example, the foundation establishment pill. Although the effects of the pill were the same, the contents of the Pill Formulas were completely different.

Thus, every foundation establishment pill recipe was part of a Family or Sect's Legacy.

If Su Yang could obtain or develop a foundation establishment pill recipe, the Su Family would have the foundation of a Foundation Establishment Family. Just selling foundation establishment pills every year would bring in massive profits.

"Do you have any High-Tier Breath Concealment Arts here?"

After purchasing several Qi Refining Cultivation Techniques of different attributes at the Immortal Treasure Tower, Su Yang asked about his primary concern.

"I'm very sorry, esteemed guest. The Immortal Treasure Tower does not have High-Tier Breath Concealment Arts for sale. Such techniques are very rare in the cultivation world and generally do not circulate in the market."

The attendant's answer disappointed him greatly.

However, the next words he heard enlightened him.

"Actually, you could purchase multiple Breath Concealment Techniques to learn from one another. Perhaps you could comprehend a better concealment technique from them. Those Cultivators who possess powerful Breath Concealment Techniques created their High-Tier Breath Concealment Arts through this very method."

Every Cultivator has secrets. Breath Concealment Techniques exist not only to hide one's presence but also to protect those secrets.

Only by not being seen through can one make others wary.

Therefore, Cultivators who create High-Tier Breath Concealment Arts generally do not sell them, resulting in very few being available on the market.

Since they couldn't be bought, the only option was to create one himself.

The difficulty of creating a technique was indeed extremely high, but Su Yang had the support of the [Heaven Rewards the Diligent] Fate.

With perseverance, success was inevitable!

Perhaps the concealment technique he created at first wouldn't be very strong.

But after performing Fusion with more Breath Concealment Techniques in the future, he could increase the grade of the technique step by step.

What was impossible for others, he could achieve simply through hard work!