Chapter 1 Blood Rain World, Imperial Capital

In the Blood Rain World, the imperial capital…

Upon a colossal pleasure boat, there was but a single esteemed guest this night.

Atop the ship's uppermost deck, a gaunt man with a thin, drooping mustache, draped in a silken robe, sat cross-legged in the main seat, savoring his wine. Beside him sat an elderly man with snow-white hair, his breath completely restrained.

"Judging by the time, tonight, the Black Lotus Sect should be encountering the family escort of our esteemed Lord Fei," the gaunt man said, stroking his mustache, his eyes full of anticipation. "I truly look forward to the expression on Lord Fei's face when he learns that his only two relatives in this world have perished. That expression will surely be splendid, quite amusing!"

The old man remained silent, not uttering a single word.

"Master Liu, do you perhaps believe I am being excessive?" the gaunt man asked, looking at the white-haired elder.

"The law of the jungle prevails. If the Black Lotus Sect dispatches people strong enough to devour Lord Fei's family escort, it is only to be expected," the white-haired old man replied. "There is no excess or lack thereof."

The gaunt man chuckled. "I truly envy Master Liu's state of mind. No matter when, no matter where, no matter what he encounters, he can remain as calm as a mountain."

"Your Highness must cultivate his mind. To attain great achievements in martial arts, one must first possess a powerful heart," the white-haired elder said. "If the heart is not strong enough, how can one perfectly control the body?"

"That is beyond me."

The gaunt man shook his head. "I have trained for so many years, with so many famous instructors, and with Master Liu teaching me, yet I am merely a third-rate martial artist."

"Moreover, in this world, there is more than just martial arts; there are far more interesting things. Life is but a fleeting century; one must naturally seek out more meaningful pursuits," the gaunt man said, a peculiar glint in his eyes, as he drained his cup of wine.

To charter a pleasure boat, yet dismiss all the beauties… This was the capriciousness of ‘Prince Qi.’

…

"Giddy up, giddy up."

In the dead of night, numerous Blood Rain Guards escorted their leader as they rode through the darkness. The leader was a grim-faced, black-robed youth whose palpable chill sent shivers down the spines of those around him.

They all knew that their master was in a foul mood.

"My lord, Lord Wang and the others, with their three horses each, will surely catch up," said a white-haired old man at his side.

"Lord Wang and the others have chosen the finest steeds. Traveling light, they are likely two hundred *li* ahead of us already, and will certainly be able to meet Master Fei and his family," another stout man added.

The black-robed youth rode on, without uttering a word, his icy aura growing ever more intense.

If…

If his father and sister were to die…

Many people in the imperial capital would surely die! All those he suspected would have to die!

"The madmen of the Black Lotus Sect are not afraid of me!" the black-robed youth thought silently. "Someone must be behind this, manipulating those lunatics from the Black Lotus Sect."

"Once I discover who is behind this underhanded scheme, I, Fei Qing, will make sure they understand the consequences of offending me!" Fei Qing's anger blazed within him. He had, indeed, arranged for more than enough expert guards to protect his father and sister's party.

Within the eastern domain of the empire, he was confident. It was where his power held sway, and his father and sister would be safe.

But outside the eastern domain, he was less certain. Thus, he had arranged a second group in Iron Bell City, believing that such a protective escort would be enough to safeguard an old man and a young girl.

Though there were struggles within the empire's upper echelons, there were also unwritten rules: no harm to family!

After defeating an opponent, their family's decline and misery would naturally befall them. There was no need to resort to early assassinations or attacks on their family members. Such tactics were dishonorable and would create a sense of insecurity among many.

No harm to family was a principle generally followed by all parties.

But in this world, there were always those who disregarded the unwritten rules! Fei Qing had too many enemies, and this time, one of them had resorted to such underhanded means.

******

That night, the Fei family's party arrived at an inn in the wilderness, the Fragrant River Inn.

"We shall spend the night at this inn, and tomorrow we will travel to the imperial capital in one go," the steward, Zhang Bo, said to the guards.

"Very well."

The guards dismounted and began to enter the inn.

The Fragrant River Inn was quite large and had a good number of staff. In this day and age, to run an inn in the wilderness required some ability. But when the Fei family's party produced a Blood Rain Guard black blood token, the inn immediately became very cooperative, even helping to coordinate and asking the other guests to vacate their rooms, ensuring that the Fei family's party obtained the rooms they desired.

Many rooms were situated close together, protecting Master Fei and Miss Fei.

Xu Jingming shared a room with two other guards. As he was one of the few first-rate experts in the party, he was given a bed. The other two Blood Rain Guards, both second-rate experts, simply made do with makeshift beds on the floor.

"Once we reach the imperial capital, we'll be able to relax."

"Let's just make do tonight."

Xu Jingming and the two Blood Rain Guards ate a simple meal, washed up, and then retired to bed early. The long journey had indeed been tiring. Xu Jingming also chose to 'smart hang-up,' his consciousness leaving the Blood Rain World.

In the blink of an eye, it was late into the night, and the wind grew colder.

"Swish, swish, swish…"

A group of people quietly appeared, watching the inn in the distance.

"Dharma King," a scout knelt beside him, reporting respectfully, "Confirmed, the Fei family's party has checked into the 'Fragrant River Inn' ahead. Besides the Fei family's party, there are about thirty other guests at the Fragrant River Inn, as well as a dozen or so staff members."

"The Fragrant River Inn? Is this inn run by the Fragrant River Gang?" a black-haired man asked curiously.

"It is an inn built by the Fragrant River Gang," the scout responded respectfully.

"The Fragrant River Gang even cooperated with our Black Lotus Sect last time," the black-haired man shook his head. "But today, we need to capture the Fei family, father and daughter. There's no helping it! I believe the Fragrant River Gang leader will understand us. Just set the place ablaze. Burn the inn and capture the Fei family, father and daughter."

Forcing their way into the inn would result in greater losses. Though the Black Lotus Sect was said to be a group of madmen, only those with brains instilled fear.

The Black Lotus Sect clearly wanted to capture the Fei family with minimal losses.

"Yes," the others responded.

The Black Lotus Sect disciples very skillfully surrounded the area, carefully lurking, and then each lit a fire arrow. The arrowheads were soaked in flammable liquid. Once lit, they immediately released the arrows upon command.

Numerous fire arrows soared into the sky, *bang, bang, bang!*

Some struck the wooden planks, some struck the haystacks outside the inn, and some shot into the stables, kitchen, and other places behind the inn.

Many flammable materials inside the inn, such as hay, wood, cotton cloth, and so on, quickly burst into flames. The inn's buildings were mainly made of wood. Once the fire spread, it would naturally engulf the entire inn.

The Dharma King's eyes reflected the massive flames in the night, yet remained as calm as a frigid pool, as he ordered, "Kill anyone who comes out! Except for the Fei family, father and daughter, leave no one alive!"

…

After Xu Jingming smart hung-up…

In his personal space martial arts training ground, a planet scene was virtually created. This planet had only Xu Jingming as a life form. At this moment, Xu Jingming sat cross-legged on the mountaintop, performing the mind-refining technique, naturally sensing the flow of blood within his body, sensing the subtle changes in metabolism throughout his entire being.

His progress in cultivating the five volumes of spearmanship from the upper section of *Hua Guang* was quite smooth. But mental cultivation could not be relaxed in the slightest. Xu Jingming had read in the scriptures that… the mind determined how far one could go on the path of evolution.

"Buzz." Suddenly, a notification came from the Blood Rain World.

Xu Jingming abruptly opened his eyes, breaking free from the state of mind refinement.

"What's going on? Something's wrong?" Xu Jingming vaguely sensed something amiss. When his body in the Blood Rain World was asleep, it was on smart hang-up. Once he woke up, he would immediately receive a notification, allowing him to quickly enter the Blood Rain World.

According to Xu Jingming's estimation, there should have been about five more hours until it was time to wake up and set off.

Waking up so early meant something unexpected had happened.

"Whoosh."

Xu Jingming did not hesitate. With a thought, he immediately entered the Blood Rain World.

As soon as he entered, Xu Jingming realized that he was already standing on the second-floor corridor of the inn.

——

I was busy all day today, so this chapter has fewer words. I will definitely write more in tomorrow's chapter.