The Nine Cauldrons

Teng Qingshan and Zhuge Yuanhong were the only two in the room.

“Haha, there is no need to fear. Gui Yuan Sect has nothing to worry about.” Zhuge Yuanhong couldn’t help but burst out in laughter.

“Yes, Teacher. Qing Hu Island would not have the audacity to give Gui Yuan Sect any trouble. However, if the Heavenly God Palace were to attack Yangzhou in the future, we will be faced with many problems,” Teng Qingshan said with a frown. Although Teng Qingshan was confident, he wasn’t delusional. He knew that he did not have the power to make the Heavenly God Palace give up its intentions of conquering the whole of Yangzhou.

Maybe the Heavenly God Palace would give up on conquering Jiangning County because of Gui Yuan Sect.

However—

Teng Qingshan had the same ambitions. He had hoped to bring the sect of Internal Martial Arts to greater heights. Jiangning County wouldn’t be enough to satisfy his ambition!

“It’s won’t be troublesome. Seeing as you are an ally of the Heavenly God Palace, they will leave Jiangning County alone for your sake. The Heavenly God Palace will give you Jiangning County. Unless the Sovereign of the Heavenly God Palace is stupid, he would definitely agree,” Zhuge Yuanhong said, smiling. “I know that the land of one county is not enough to satisfy you, but be patient. We will take what we can get for now.” Zhuge Yuanhong smiled and said to Teng Qingshan, “We can expand our territory once you become powerful enough that none would be able to win against you in the Land of the Nine Prefectures. It will not be long before that time comes. I believe that both the Elixir of the Northern Sea as well as the Fiery Gilt Steel Armors will be put into good use at that time.”

“Yes.” After a moment of pondering, Teng Qingshan responded with a nod, “We have no choice.”

“However, Qingshan, your fight with the three Emptiness Realm Experts of the Shooting Sun God Mountain and the Qing Hu Island has just ended. If my predictions are correct, many sects in the Land of the Nine Prefectures will be looking for you soon.” said Zhuge Yuanhong.

“What for?” Teng Qingshan asked and immediately guffawed.

Teng Qingshan was not stupid. He knew why his teacher had said that.

“Indeed. The Demonic Wolf of the Shooting Sun God Mountain is already in high demand.” Teng Qingshan said with a smile, “Meanwhile, you have the Bladelike Chi, which flies faster and drills the ground quicker than the Demonic Wolf.”

“Haha, it would not hard to persuade me to help. It all depends on the benefits they can offer.”

“Oh, Qingshan.” Zhuge Yuanhong shook his head, speechless, and laughed.

The laughters of both Teng Qingshan and Zhuge Yuanhong within the study room. It was apparent that this was a happy day! Soon after, on the afternoon of that same day, Teng Qingshan rode the Six Legged Bladelike Chi and returned to Yi City.

Within the colossal mansion in Yi City:

A day has passed since the fight between the five Emptiness Realm Experts at the foot of the northern wall of Jiangning County City. Morning had arrived. In the outer court of the mansion where Teng Qingshan resided were around nine hundred boys. The boys had been divided into two groups, wiith 45 boys in one and around eight hundred boys in the other. At this time, the group of around eight hundred boys were staring enviously at the group of 45.

“Teacher, these forty-five boys are the ones that have managed to cultivate their inner strength,” Teng Shou reported as he stood at the side of Teng Qingshan.

“Oh. It has only been two-to-three days. I recall you saying that there were forty-two boys. Now, there are forty-five.” Teng QIngshan nodded, seemingly pleasant, and fixed his eyes upon the forty-five boys.

Currently, the forty-five boys were rehearsing the moves of the Three Postures repeatedly while simultaneously exercising control over their breathing. It was obvious that the breathing pace and stances of the forty-five boys were executed much more skillfully than the other eight hundred boys. In fact, the group of forty-five boys performed the moves beautifully. Their moves displayed a rhythmic beauty.

As the forty-five boys noticed Teng Qingshan approaching, they began practicing with even more zeal.

“Not bad. That’s more like it.” Teng Qingshan’s face was full of smiles as he commented.

The boys were like seeds.

These boys are the future of the sect of the Internal Martial Arts. They might seem young now. However, in twenty or thirty years, these boys will be the core members that will support and develop the sect of Internal Martial Arts. As Teng Qingshan watched the boys practice, he could picture how they would stir up a craze for the Internal Martial Arts in the Land of the Nine Prefectures in another dozen years.

“Eh?” Suddenly, Teng Qingshan noticed a boy.

When Teng Shou saw this, he hastily introduced, “Teacher, this youth is Teng Honghou. Although he is the oldest, he is the best among the boys. He is most skilled in the cultivation of the Three Postures and the cultivation of the Monkey Fist. He was also the first to cultivate inner strength.

“Of course I know this,” Teng Qingshan thought to himself. “Teng Honghou is my nephew. Even back in Teng Jia Village, Honghou had been practicing the Tiger Fist. He knows the basics.”

When Teng Honghou saw Teng Qingshan staring at him, he became so excited that his moves changed. He knew that the person before his eyes was the legendary Jing Yi. Albeit Honghou wasn’t old and didn’t know much about Jing Yi, he did hear from his uncle, Teng Qinghu, that Jing Yi was the epitome of skill in the Land of the Nine Prefectures.

Moreover, Honghou could never forget the moment where Teng Qingshan had cracked the earth with nothing more than a stomp.

“This kid.” Suddenly, Teng Qingshan frowned and looked up at the sky.

“Ah Shou, continue teaching them. I am going back to the inner court,” Teng Qingshan instructed, and headed back.

......

At that moment, a streak of flowing light flashed in the sky and pierced through the air. As the streak of light arrived above Yi City, it transformed into a human-like figure. This person donned a green and blue long cloak and wore an azure thumb ring. His hair was completely white and his brows were weirdly shaped, resembling a broom. The squinty eyes below the weirdly shaped brows beamed with joy.

He looked like a wealthy elderly man.

“Eh?” The elder looked below towards Yi City. He furrowed his brows and said to himself, “Jing Yi really is arrogant. He noticed my presence but yet he did not come out to welcome me.... Or maybe he just thought I was passing by.”

Immediately, the elder spoke with the Sound Transmission Technique. “Brother Jing Yi.”

“Hello, brother. Who are you?” Teng Qingshan’s reply sounded in the elder’s ears.

......

Teng Qingshan stood within the inner court and fixed his eyes to the sky. He had detected the presence of this Emptiness Realm Expert within his domain when he was watching the boys practise. At the time, he had assumed that this Emptiness Realm Expert had come in search of him. Ever since that fight, Teng Qingshan and his teacher Zhuge Yuanhong had predicted that someone after the Bladelike Chi would come for him.

Now, it seemed as their predictions were correct.

“I did not expect that there were actually quite a number of Experts that have attained the Culmination of the Emptiness Realm in this Land of the Nine Prefectures. I also did not expect them to send an Emptiness Culmination Realm Expert. It looks like they really respect me,” Teng Qingshan thought to himself, “I wonder which sect sent him here.”

“Haha, this old man’s name is Yu Tonghai. I come from Emperor Yu’s Hall.” A voice sounded in Teng Qingshan’s ears.

“Yu Tonghai?” Hearing this, Teng Qingshan was shocked.

He know very little of the Emptiness Realm Experts in the Land of the Nine Prefectures. However, he was well familiar with Emperor Yu’s Hall. Moreover, the person that has come for him has the surname of ‘Yu.’

“I did not expect to meet a brother from Emperor Yu’s Hall. I am truly honored.” Teng Qingshan said with a smile.

Upon hearing Teng Qingshan’s reply, Yu Tonghai showed a hint of satisfaction. He hovered in mid-air. With a whoosh, he transformed into a streak of azure light and descended onto the inner court, materializing back into a human figure.

As Teng Qingshan focused, he was able to clearly see Yu Tonghai’s face.

“Broom-shaped brows? Squinty eyes?” Immediately, Teng Qingshan grinned and hurriedly approached.

“Brother Jing Yi, where is your demonic beast?” Yu Tonghai said, straight to the point, and chuckled. “Although I was in Yuzhou, I received news of your Demonic Beast. I have been very curious. Please summon it and let me take a look at it.”

“Sure. Come, Brother Yu. Sit.” Teng Qingshan led Yu Tonghai to a pavillion where the two sat, facing each other.

“Bladelike Chi.” Teng Qingshan turned and called.

Yu Tonghai promptly turned and looked towards a nearby house. As a matter of fact, through the control of his domain, he had already known that the Six Legged Bladelike Chi was in that house. The Six Legged Bladelike Chi appeared at the door. Its entire body was black and its eyes were bloodshot. Its two lower limbs and four arms were like six war blades. The appearance of the Six Legged Bladelike Chi was daunting.

Yu Tonghai’s focus was on the hundred sharp-pointed spines on the bladelike arms of the Six Legged Bladelike Chi. These edged projections were like sleeves.

Yu Tonghai knew—

These acute spines have instantly killed several thousand Silver Dragon Soldiers.

“Roar~~” The Six Legged Bladelike Chi’s bloody red eyes shot a cold glance at Yu Tonghai and returned to its dwelling place.

“Old Brother Yu, the Bladelike Chi has a bad temper. When I first met it, we had a great fight. After several combats, however, we eventually became friends. Please, I hope you can ignore its temper,” Teng Qingshan said with a smile. Yu Tonghai shook his head and said, “I don’t care. It’s an Emptiness Realm Demonic Beast. Naturally, it would be proud.”

Yu Tonghai has seen many proud Emptiness Realm Demonic Beasts.

This was because there were many of them in Emperor Yu’s Hall.

“Brother Jing Yi, through the Intelligence Agency in Emperor Yu’s Hall, we have found out that you have not joined any sects.” Yu Tonghai smiled as he looked towards Teng Qingshan. “Even when you were in the Heavenly God Palace, you presented yourself only as a Foreign Dignitary with the pseudonym Huhe. Am I Right?”

Though he was astounded, Teng Qingshan remained calm.

Only a select few people knew that Jing Yi was in fact Huhe. Teng Qingshan did not focus much on disguising himself. However, to be able to uncover Jing Yi’s identity as Huhe truly shows the strength of the intelligence agency of Emperor Yu’s Hall.

“As expected of the oldest sect in the Land of the Nine Prefectures.” Teng Qingshan thought to himself.

“Yes. I do not belong to any sect,” Teng Qingshan said with a smile.

“Haha, Not being part of any sect is a good thing,” Yu Tonghai said while grinning. “You can be free and do whatever you want. Moreover, Brother Jing Yi, you possess such a powerful Emptiness Realm Demonic Beast with which you can also travel the wide lands of the Nine Prefectures fearlessly. I too am envious.”

Teng Qingshan was not swayed by the praises. He knew that Yu Tonghai had not yet revealed his true intentions.

“However—”

“There are also negative aspects,” Yu Tonghai said with a sigh. “For example, if you are not part of any sects, how are you going to care for your future generations? Although we Emptiness Realm Experts have a lifespan of five hundred years, we never know what will happen after we die. The legendary Immortal Grass is of no use to us. We can only live five hundred years.”

Teng Qingshan nodded in agreement.

The Immortal Grass has no effect on Emptiness Realm Experts. This was something that has been recorded in the books. Emptiness Realm Experts have a lifespan of five hundred years. This was a law of the heavens and the earth. It was impossible for them to live beyond that. The Immortal Grass can only heal and save their lives.

However, if Innate Experts, Postliminary Realm Experts, or ordinary human beings consumed the Immortal Grass, their lifespan would increase by two hundred years.

“Moreover, if an Emptiness Realm Expert encounters a powerful enemy, they have to flee. Even if they had an Emptiness Realm Demonic Beast, they wouldn’t be able to kill the enemy.” Yu Tonghai sighed.

Teng Qingshan nodded again.

“However, things would be different if you joined a sect...” Yu Tonghai’s eyes beamed as he looked at Teng Qingshan. “Emperor Yu’s Hall is the oldest sect in the Land of the Nine Prefectures. Our sect has existed for so many years. Thus, I believe you already know well of the benefits you will receive if you were to join our sect.”

Teng Qingshan nodded slightly.

Yu Tonghai smiled and continued, “If Brother Jingyi is willing to join Emperor Yu’s Hall, we will give you a valuable and precious gift.