39: Foundation Establishment stage cultivator

"Congratulations on your Breakthrough, Young Master!" Si, who was waiting outside the door, sensed the movement, pushed the door open, entered, and said respectfully.

"Mhm." Lin Mo nodded, feeling the surging power within his body. "How is the situation outside?"

"Last night, Shangguan Yun left the guest courtyard and had a secret discussion with Senior Sikong Xuan for half an hour; the contents are unknown. This morning, they left the Martial Academy and seemed to head towards the City Lord's Mansion."

Si reported, "Regarding the City Lord's Mansion, the blockade on our businesses has been lifted, but street patrols have been strengthened. Li Chongshan claimed to be ill this morning and did not leave the government office."

"Retreating to advance, wait and see." Lin Mo sneered. "It seems Shangguan Yun's arrival has made him cautious. What about Hundred Herbs Hall and the Town Guard?"

"Hundred Herbs Hall has resumed business, but its trade has been somewhat affected. Liu Kui sent word that the Town Guard has expanded to eighty people and is stepping up training."

"Additionally, as per your instructions, the first batch of twenty elites from the Town Guard who have undergone preliminary training, led by Shi Liu, have entered Qinglan City in batches under the guise of applying as escort guards. They are currently stationed at the West Market base."

"Very good." Lin Mo stood up. "Pass down the order: from today, the Zhenyuan Escort Agency is officially established."

"The main office will be located in the West Market, with Liu Kui serving as the public Chief Escort, assisted by White Sand Child. We will start with short-distance transport and cargo escorting from Qinglan City to the surrounding towns."

"Have Nineteen and Twenty draft the regulations and contracts; they must comply with the law."

"At the same time, gradually link the two inns we secretly control in the south of the city and the carriage company in the east of the city with the Escort Agency's business to form a network."

"Intelligence gathering will gradually shift from being directly executed by Death Warriors to being conducted through the identities of shop assistants, escort guards, and drivers from the Escort Agency, inns, and carriage company, making it more covert."

"Yes!" A glint of light flashed in Si's eyes. This meant that the development of their forces had entered a more standardized and covert stage.

"Additionally, let One Hundred and Three (Basic Disguise) start working. Select five Death Warriors with similar builds for preliminary disguise training to prepare for missions that may require changing identities."

"Understood."

With the arrangements made, Lin Mo changed into plain clothes and prepared to head to the West Market to personally inspect the preparations for the Escort Agency.

Just as he left the courtyard, he saw Liu Qingli walking towards him.

"Senior Sister Liu." Lin Mo cupped his hands.

Liu Qingli sized him up, a look of surprise appearing on her cold and elegant face. "You've had a Breakthrough? Great Accomplishment of Muscle?"

"I was fortunate enough to have some insights," Lin Mo said.

"This 'fortune' of yours is a bit too frequent." Liu Qingli shook her head and said seriously, "I'm here to remind you."

"When Shangguan Yun and Senior Sikong left this morning, Academy Master Sun saw them off personally. I vaguely heard them mention the Crimson Flame Mountain Range, ancient Sect ruins, and... Seven-Star Demon Seal."

"Senior Sikong seems very interested in what you saw in the secret land."

"Crimson Flame Mountain Range! Seven-Star Demon Seal!"

Lin Mo's heart jolted.

"Thank you for telling me, Senior Sister," Lin Mo thanked her solemnly.

"Take care of yourself." Liu Qingli glanced at him. "Shangguan Yun has a deep background, and his ambitions are not small. Since you are unwilling to attach yourself to him, you must handle things carefully."

"The protection the Martial Academy can provide is limited, especially when it involves certain ancient taboos."

After saying this, she turned and left.

Lin Mo stood there, his thoughts racing.

Sikong Xuan's attention indicated that the secret of the rusted sword might have already attracted the notice of the imperial court's highest oversight body.

A moment later, he composed himself and stepped out of the courtyard.

"West Market, Zhenyuan Escort Agency preparation office."

"This place was originally a medium-sized warehouse, and it was currently undergoing intense renovation. A plaque with gold characters on a black background for 'Zhenyuan Escort Agency' had already been hung over the storefront; although it hadn't officially opened, it already looked impressive."

Liu Kui and White Sand Child saw Lin Mo and hurriedly welcomed him into the back hall.

"Young Master, look, these are the escort flags, uniforms, and waist tokens designed according to your requirements." Liu Kui presented the samples.

The escort flag had a black background, embroidered with a pattern of golden mountains and crossed swords, looking steady and grand.

The uniforms were uniform deep blue martial attire, convenient for movement. The waist tokens were made of ironwood, engraved with numbers and secret marks.

"Not bad." Lin Mo nodded. "What about the manpower and routes?"

White Sand Child chimed in: "Currently, there are forty-five available escort guards, including twenty old brothers from our Qingyuan Town; their strength ranges between Strength Training Perfection and the beginning of Bone Forging."

"The other twenty-five are Martial Artists or retired soldiers from the city recruited recently; their backgrounds are clean, and they are currently under observation."

"Three short-distance routes have been planned: from Qinglan City to Qingyuan Town, to Luoxia Town eighty li to the east, and to Black Stone Fort a hundred li to the north."

"We have made preliminary contact with several trading firms, and there are already some scattered intentions for commissions."

"Safety first, reputation is the foundation."

Lin Mo instructed, "In the Early Stage, the treatment should be generous, but the rules must be strict. Every escort mission must have at least one Muscle stage expert secretly overseeing it."

"At the same time, establish detailed route archives, recording the mountains, rivers, terrain, distribution of forces, and security conditions along the way."

"Yes!"

"Additionally," Lin Mo lowered his voice, "utilize the convenience of the escort missions to establish contact with inns, wine shops, and carriage stations in the villages and towns along the way to develop informants."

"Especially the trade routes leading to the Northern Frontier and the northwest; I want to know about any recent unusual movements."

Liu Kui and White Sand Child glanced at each other, both seeing the excitement in the other's eyes. The Young Master is weaving a giant web!

"Rest assured, Young Master, we are good at this!" Liu Kui patted his chest.

After leaving the Escort Agency, Lin Mo went to Hundred Herbs Hall again. Steward Wu saw him arrive and immediately led him into the inner room.

"Young Master Lin, congratulations on the opening of the Escort Agency." Steward Wu smiled. "Hundred Treasures Pavilion has already been notified; in the future, the transport of some medicinal herbs and valuable items will be prioritized for your agency."

"Thank you for your care, Steward Wu." Lin Mo cupped his hands.

"It's only right." Steward Wu's expression turned solemn, and he said in a low voice, "Young Master, there are two things I need to inform you of."

"First, Shangguan Yun went to the City Lord's Mansion this morning and had a secret discussion with Li Chongshan for nearly an hour."

"The specific details are unknown, but Li Chongshan subsequently ordered the lifting of the blockade on your properties and restrained the City Guard's recent actions."

"Second, and more importantly."

Steward Wu lowered his voice even further. "My employer sent the latest news from the Northern Frontier. The conflict between the Heavenly Sword Sect and Ten Thousand Beasts Mountain has escalated again at the border's Soul-Severing Valley, and it is suspected that Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivators from both sides have taken action!"

"The aftershocks resulted in the destruction of a camp of the Great Qian border army, with hundreds of casualties."

"The imperial court is furious and has urgently dispatched the elites of the Zhenbei Army to the north, and has once again levied a special military tax. This time it targets the wealthy households and trading firms of all prefectures, with the amount... as high as thirty percent of previous years' normal taxes!"

Lin Mo's pupils constricted. Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivators!

"When will the tax levy order reach Qinglan?"

"Three to five days at the earliest, a month at the latest."

Steward Wu smiled bitterly. "By then, prices will surely skyrocket again, and public resentment will boil. If you have the capacity, Young Master, you should prepare early."

"Thank you." Lin Mo thanked him solemnly once more. The information from the master of Hundred Treasures Pavilion was worth a thousand pieces of gold.

It was already afternoon when he returned to the Hidden Dragon Academy. As soon as Lin Mo entered the courtyard, the Death Warrior One Hundred (Formation Identification) came forward, holding a newly drawn sketch.

"Young Master, as per your instructions, combining the Seven Peaks Star-Ring map fragments obtained from the secret land with the northwest geographical records provided by Hundred Treasures Pavilion, we have preliminarily outlined the possible range of the Seven Peaks." One Hundred spread the sketch on the stone table.

The sketch centered on the Crimson Flame Mountain Range, about a thousand li northwest of Qinglan City, marking seven mountain peak areas that suspectedly matched the star-ring distribution characteristics.

The range was still large, but it was much better than searching blindly.

"Among them, this area," One Hundred pointed to a valley in the middle section of the Crimson Flame Mountain Range that was specially marked with a red circle.

"According to the records in ancient manual fragments and recent caravan rumors, there is frequent abnormal ground fire activity here, and explorers have gone missing from time to time in recent years. It is suspected to contain ancient ruins or a dangerous land."

Lin Mo's gaze fell on that red circle. Ground fire... this coincided perfectly with the 'Ground Fire Furnace' mentioned in the rusted sword's thoughts.

"Continue to collect all information about this area, especially whether there have been any large-scale exploration activities in the last few decades, or if the imperial court or Sects have paid attention to it."

"Yes."