"h.e.l.lo, Fei Wu! Are you done?"

Tang Qi Hong sounded cheerful as she skipped into my apartment. I had left the door unlocked, because I didn"t have anything for burglars to steal, and Tang Qi Hong and Tong Xue regularly dropped by for a visit, so there was no point locking the door.

"Yeah. Just about, too."

I ground the last piece of bone into powder and then poured it into a container. Capping it, I rose to my feet and carried the crate to Tang Qi Hong.

"Here they are!"

"Oh! Impressive! You actually did all of them in five days!"

Tang Qi Hong was surprised. I shrugged.

"Yeah, but I probably was sloppy with my work."

I could boast about my speed, but the quality of my work was another matter entirely. I had no confidence regarding that.

Tang Qi Hong smiled wryly as she took out a bottle to sample the powder, stirring the contents with her finger. And no, I sure as h.e.l.l will not be describing her finger as jade. What was it with Chinese xianxia novels and their obsession of describing girls as jade?

"Hmm, it"s far from perfect, but it"s pa.s.sable." Tang Qi Hong nodded in slight approval. "I have to say, for your first time, you did a good job."

"Uh, thanks."

I was sure that Tang Qi Hong was merely being polite, but I felt relieved that she wasn"t angry or something. At least I didn"t screw up too badly, or to the point where even Tang Qi Hong would get mad at the sheer lack of quality.

"But wow, you actually ground all fifty kilograms of monster bones." Tang Qi Hong"s eyes were wide. "Normally most people would need about two to three weeks to grind everything. You"re really, really fast!"

"Huh? Is that so?"

All I did was sit down for six to eight hours a day and did nothing but grind. It was tedious, it was extremely boring, and it was dull, but I just ground over and over and over again until every single bone was grounded into phosphorous powder. What I lacked in skill and talent, I compensated for in patience and tenacity.

"Good job." Tang Qi Hong sifted the contents of several more bottles before nodding. "Well, they are not perfect, but I can polish them up a bit before using them for spirit armor. You should come along and watch my forging methods too!"

"Sure." Since I had taken the trouble to pa.s.s the examination and join the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, I might as well make full use of my time here and learn as much as possible. To be honest, I knew that Tang Qi Hong was merely using that as an excuse to get me to transport the fifty kilograms of phosphorus powder back for her. But I saw that as good physical training, and had no objections in helping her out.

Thanks to spending so much time grinding these d.a.m.ned bones everyday, I ended up cutting the hours I spent on martial arts training…on practicing the Heavenly Draconic Meteor Sword techniques. I should just go ahead and help out with physical labor.

Obliging Tang Qi Hong"s request, I picked up the crate and followed her back to her residence. Unlike me, Tang Qi Hong had an entire house to herself. As expected of an inner sect disciple, even their quarters were on a completely different level from us outer sect disciple.

"Still, I didn"t expect you to pull it off the first time. Even though the quality isn"t topnotch, the quant.i.ty you achieved is staggering. I was joking when I said I wanted fifty kilograms if possible, but I only expected you to do ten to fifteen."

"Well, I"m getting paid for it," I muttered.

"Heh…I see." Tang Qi Hong looked a little impressed, and then she glanced at the crate again, thoughtful. "Still, how did you pull it off?"

"I cheated," I admitted. "I used Google."

"That"s not cheating."

I shrugged at that, but didn"t bother to debate further. The both of us then arrived in her house, and I placed the crate of phosphorus powder in a corner of her elegant and s.p.a.cious workshop. As I said, the inner sect disciples were bestowed privileges and resources that were way beyond that of an outer sect disciple.

"All right!"

Rolling up her sleeves, Tang Qi Hong then began to get to work. Smiling, she turned to me and gestured for me to come closer.

"Watch and learn! I"ll teach you a few tricks in crafting!"

"T…thanks."

Swallowing, I stepped closer and a.s.sisted Tang Qi Hong with her forging, all the while learning whatever I could from her.

*

"Done!"

After three hours, Tang Qi Hong called it a day and dismissed me. Smiling happily at her finished product, she turned to grin at me.

"And that"s how you do it!"

"Oh…right."

"Phew…" Tang Qi Hong wiped the perspiration off her snowy complexion and shook her head. Stretching her arms, she turned away with a flutter of her skirt. "I"m going to take a shower. All that work has made me pretty sweaty!"

"…okay."

If this was a h-anime, I would have offered to join her, but this was reality and such a suggestion would earn me a slap in the face, and Tang Qi Hong would probably ban me from coming to her workshop ever again. So I desisted from saying anything stupid and merely nodded with a soft acknowledgement.

"You"re free to go," Tang Qi Hong told me with a smile. "You can have the rest of the day off, though most likely you"ll return to training and cultivating."

"You know me so well, though," I admitted with a grin. She glanced at the empty bottles of phosphorus powder with a thoughtful expression.

"You did devote most of your time into helping me, after all. I"m sure you plan to catch up on all that lost time."

"It won"t take that long," I a.s.sured her with a cheerful expression, so as to not worry her. "I learned a lot from you, too. Thanks!"

"Sure!"

With that, I left the workshop and began jogging back in the direction of my apartment. It had been a while, and I wondered if I should resume my physical training today. While I did practice the Heavenly Draconic Meteor Swordsmanship whenever I could, I hadn"t been keeping up on my 50 kilometer run and 500 pushups and sit-ups for the last five days.

While I was on my way back, I saw a young girl – about thirteen and fourteen (well, she was only a couple of years younger than me) stagger out of a shop with a bunch of scrolls and manuals in her hands. Thanks to her diminutive size, she was struggling under the weight and volume of the stuff she was carrying.

"Whoa!"

She stumbled over the path and almost spilled her stuff into the road. Fortunately, I was nearby and I managed to grab the stuff before she could fall over.

"You okay?" I asked as I picked up the stuff for her. She nodded, embarra.s.sed.

"Thanks."

Now that I had a good look at her, I was slightly surprised by what I saw. The girl was incredibly cute, reminding me of a stuffed animal or a squirrel or something. She had thick, dark brown bushy hair that was tied cutely with a ribbon, and was dressed in a red frilly blouse, a pink cape and a long, black skirt, all of which looked both fashionable and traditional at the same time. Plus her kiddy shoes were gray and seemed a tad too big, yet it suited her aesthetically.

It was almost as if I had encountered a doll who had turned into a human.

"Where are you going? You need help?"

Instead of returning the stack of scrolls that had almost spilled out of her hands, I helped her carry them. The girl looked a little troubled.

"No, I can handle it myself."

"That"s fine. I was about to go home anyway, so I have some spare time. Let me help you."

"…if you insist." Despite her childish looks, the girl was more mature than she looked. She nodded gratefully and gestured toward a nearby car that was parked a couple of yards away. "If you don"t mind helping me stack these in the boot of that car."

"Sure. That"s no problem at all!"

The car beeped as the girl seemed to press a b.u.t.ton on her remote car keys, and the boot automatically swung open. I dumped the stack of scrolls into the boot a little too hurriedly, and tried to tidy them up as they spilled all over.

"No, it"s fine. They"ll just fall over again later!" the girl a.s.sured me, and I obeyed, because quite frankly I had better things to do than waste time and effort on something that was not meant to be. She then bowed deeply. "Thank you!"

"It"s nothing," I a.s.sured her. "Do you need any other help?"

"No, I"m just waiting for my driver." The girl beamed brightly and took both of my hands. "Thank you again!"

"No problem." With nothing else to help with, I saw no reason to linger about, so I took my leave. As I did so…

"FEI WU!"

"Whoa!"

I stepped to the side, narrowly avoiding Tong Xue as he barreled right into me. Tong Xue almost crashed face first to the ground, but then fell over anyway because I decided to meanly hook my foot over his ankle and trip him up.

"Hey!" Tong Xue complained as he threw both hands out to break his fall and sprang back to his feet once again. I gave him an it"s your own fault look.

However, Tong Xue ignored me and grabbed my shoulders. I winced and resisted the urge to tear away from his grasp.

"Do you know who you just talked to?!"

"A girl," I replied dryly.

"That"s not what I"m asking!"

"Obviously." I sighed and rolled my eyes. "Anyway, I don"t, but I have a feeling that you"re going to tell me."

"She"s Zi Xiao Ji! The daughter of the sect leader and sect mistress of the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect!" Tong Xue was practically yelling into my face, and I recoiled, trying not to breathe in the air he was exhaling. The guy was too close.

"Cool."

"Cool?! Is that all you have to say?!"

"What do you want me to say then?" I was getting irritated. "Should I be overawed and start clamoring over what a miraculous encounter that was?"

"…you don"t know who Zi Xiao Ji is, do you?" Tong Xue looked at me incredulously. I shrugged.

"The daughter of the sect leader and sect mistress of the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, Zi Xiao Ji, right? You just told me."

"That"s not what I mean! You do know who Sect Leader Zi Shou De, and his wife, Sect Mistress Su Da Ji…I mean, Zi Da Ji, are, right?!"

"Of course I do," I replied irritably. I knew that much at least, given how famous those two were. Zi Shou De was one of the most skilled blacksmiths and Spirit Engravers in the Great Zhou Empire, and most likely all of the Middle Continent. He was also known as the Spirit Engraving Zhou Emperor. His wife, Su Da Ji, or now Zi Da Ji after her marriage to Zi Shou De, was the most powerful martial artist in the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect and was the one who developed the Nine-Tailed Fire Fox Formula martial arts techniques to new heights. She was the ultimate bodyguard who escorted and protected her husband whenever he showed up to release a new spirit engraved gear. The two of them were legendary and without peer, and were the sole reason why the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect was established as one of the eight major sects.

So that girl earlier, Zi Xiao Ji, was their daughter.

"Wait a second…"

I suddenly realized something. Tong Xue sighed in relief and shook his head.

"So it finally hit you, huh?"

I paid no attention to him and instead responded with a question of my own.

"Isn"t Tang Qi Hong slated to be the next sect leader of the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect? But if the Sect Leader and Sect Mistress already have a daughter, shouldn"t Zi Xiao Ji be next in line to succeed that position over Tang Qi Hong?"

"Wouldn"t that be nepotism?" Tong Xue retorted, annoyed. "Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, and a vast majority of martial arts sects today practice meritocracy. The practice of inheriting leadership positions from parents has died out long ago, because it always resulted in the demise of the sect whenever the only surviving heir turned out to be incompetent, and it always encouraged corruption and factional infighting. So Tang Qi Hong is selected to be the next sect leader based purely on her ability and solely on merit."

"I see…" I nodded. Given how this was an alternative timeline set within contemporary times, it was natural that such outdated concepts such as primogeniture would die out long ago. "But Zi Xiao Ji is also a disciple of the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, right?"

"That"s right." Tong Xue threw an arm over my shoulders. "Don"t judge her by her appearance. She may be small and innocent-looking, but she"s talented as well. Even though she"s not as gifted as Tang Qi Hong or Hu Mei Er, she more than holds her own against the majority of the inner sect disciples and is constantly ranked near the top. Top ten or top twenty inner disciples within the whole of the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect."

"Whoa…"

"Yup." Tong Xue nodded. "She might not be up there with Tang Qi Hong or Hu Mei Er, or even Liang Shao Yang, but she"s fairly competent and intelligent. She"s quite a good catch, to be honest. Most guys find her extremely adorable and cute." He grinned. "But I already have Lian Rou, so I couldn"t care less. And even if you"re not in an official relationship, I"m sure Tang Qi Hong wouldn"t appreciate you looking at other women."

I shrugged his arm away in annoyance. "Whatever."

"Speaking of which, you"re done with Tang Qi Hong"s a.s.signment?"

"Yeah," I affirmed. "Going off to train now. What about you? Done with Lian Rou"s task?"

The crestfallen expression on Tong Xue"s face told me everything I needed to know. Far from being sympathetic, I coldly bade him farewell and returned to my apartment to get ready for my physical training.

*

"Hmm…"

In the end, I met up with Tong Xue again so that we could head to the cafeteria for dinner together. It was much better to eat with company than to eat alone, after all.

"Ugh…so tiring…"

Despite not running fifty kilometers like I did, Tong Xue looked utterly exhausted. Evidently Lian Rou was pushing him hard.

"At least I completed my task too…" Tong Xue turned to glare at me. "How did you do it so fast? I almost died just to catch up with you!"

"Why are you trying to catch up with me to begin with?"

Tong Xue winced. "Lian Rou heard from Tang Qi Hong how you completed her task in record time, and she couldn"t help comparing me with you…"

"Oh. My bad."

"You don"t sound sincere!" Tong Xue growled. I grinned and shrugged nonchalantly to show that I didn"t care. "How mean!"

His complaints were drowned out by an altercation in the cafeteria. There was a loud noise and suddenly something exploded at the back of the cafeteria, with tables and chairs flying in all directions, accompanied by debris of food.

What a waste of food, I thought as I watched the stuff got pasted to the floor next to broken furniture and splinters.

"You b.a.s.t.a.r.d!"

However, a cry caught my attention. Craning my neck, I caught sight of one of the seniors confronting a very familiar figure.

"Do you think you"re so impressive? Remember, you"re just a newbie who only entered the sect a week ago! What is with your att.i.tude? You think you can get away with disrespecting your seniors, huh?!"

Liang Shao Yang raised his head to stare at the bigger senior coolly, his eyes as cold and indifferent as ice.

"Respect has to be earned, not demanded, Senior."

"Perhaps!" the guy growled. "And maybe I don"t deserve respect. But that"s no reason to disrespect my sister."

"Oh, wow…"

Tong Xue shook his head in sympathy as he watched the conflict unfold. All the other disciples were watching, fascinated by the dispute and eager to see blood spilt. While I was curiously spectating from the sides, I was not as enthusiastic to witness violence right before a meal. Well, I would rather not see violence even if I wasn"t about to eat.

"Of all the people to p.i.s.s off, that Liang Shao Yang just had to go and offend Senior Pang Feng. Is he an idiot?"

"Why?"

"You don"t know who Pang Feng is?" Tong Xue"s jaw dropped. I shrugged.

"Should I know him?"

"Dude…""

Tong Xue buried his face in his palm. I frowned. Hey, I knew about Zi Shou De and Su Da Ji (now Zi Da Ji), and I knew all the famous and legendary figures in the Great Zhou Empire, and I was pretty sure my knowledge of history far surpa.s.sed his, but he was acting like I was an ignorant fool just because I didn"t know any of the supposedly promising martial artists and cultivators of our generation. I would say that I had my priorities right.

Turning my gaze back to Pang Feng, I tried to a.s.sess him. He was a huge guy, over two meters tall, had a handsome face, and was dressed in dazzling golden armor. How extravagant. Those polished surfaces would lose their shine in a real battle, which was often full of mud, soil and sand. I didn"t understand why people bother to color their armor gold, but whatever.

But it wasn"t his armor that concerned me.

The guy was br.i.m.m.i.n.g with st.u.r.dy qi, and even from this distance I could sense how tough his physical body and endurance were. He exuded sheer strength, his muscles coiled and densely packed. Most likely he cultivated a powerful defensive martial art.

"That guy is pretty strong," I murmured out loud.

"Of course he is." Tong Xue laughed bitterly. "Pang Feng is the Cloud Sky Mountain"s most talented disciple for years. His Golden Indestructible Body Formula is outstanding, and he has built up quite the terrifying reputation for being unbreakable. The sect leader of the Cloud Sky Mountain also has high expectations of him. When he informed everyone that he would be accompanying his sister to the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, he caused a commotion in Cloud Sky Mountain. Even the sect leader stepped in personally and tried to convince him to stay in Cloud Sky Mountain, promising to give him every resource the sect possessed…"

"I take it that he failed to persuade this Pang Feng," I commented dryly. Tong Xue nodded with a smile.

"Well, Pang Feng is an orphan. His parents were famous Cloud Sky Mountain martial artists who were killed in battle a long time ago. His sister is the only family he has left right now. So she"s everything to him. He basically raised her up single-handedly when the two of them were forced to grow up together on their own."

"That sucks." I was glad I still had my parents. Family was such a precious thing. You never realize how important they were until you lose them – at least in my case, anyway.

"Yeah. Well, Pang Yun always expressed an interest in forging armaments and Spirit Engraving, and she aims to become a reputable Spirit Engraver. That led to her deciding to join the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect. Pang Feng resolved to follow her here, just to make sure he can continue to look after her. For that reason alone, he even rejected the Cloud Sky Mountain"s sect leader"s offer to take him personally as his direct disciple."

"Blood is thicker than water," I remarked sagely as I pushed my gla.s.ses up my nose. Tong Xue chuckled at that.

"Very true."

"So, uh…you think this Pang Feng will beat Liang Shao Yang into a pulp?" that wasn"t some random thought, but something I picked up from the conversations all the other spectators were having. They were all talking about Liang Shao Yang"s folly and mourning his defeat even though the battle hadn"t even begun.

"It"s highly unlikely that Liang Shao Yang will be able to avoid getting beaten up one-sidedly," Tong Xue replied. "But it"s strange…Pang Feng has a good reputation, someone who"s supposed to have an upstanding character and earned everyone"s respect through his strong sense of justice." He frowned as he a.s.sessed the situation. "It appears that Liang Shao Yang has provoked or offended his sister, which is why he"s so angry."

"That Liang Shao Yang just loves to p.i.s.s everyone off," I muttered under my breath, remembering how he destroyed all the spirit engraved columns during the second stage of the outer sect disciple entrance exam. Tong Xue chuckled.

"You"re right about that. But he chose to offend the wrong person this time."

"So you mean there"s a correct person to offend?"

"That"s not what I mean," Tong Xue laughed. "But Pang Feng is on a different level from everyone here. Both Pang Feng and his sister, Pang Yun, were outer sect disciples when they first arrived, but within a couple of years Pang Yun revealed her talent in Spirit Engraving and was accepted into the inner sect. the inner sect elders personally taught her and regarded her highly, not unlike that of Hu Mei Er and Tang Qi Hong."

"Heh…"

Like I cared, since we were going to forget who the h.e.l.l these characters were a few chapters later, but it never heard to pretend to listen.

"On the other hand, Pang Feng has no interest in forging equipment, and only wishes to devote himself to martial arts. His mastery of martial arts and combat was unrivaled in his generation. He will most likely join the Blood Blades, the venerable combat division of the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect."

"Blood Blades?" I asked, finding the term unfamiliar. However, for the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect to possess their own combat division was not surprising. I just hadn"t heard of the t.i.tle Blood Blades before.

"The Nine-Tailed Fox Sect is not solely a blacksmith sect, after all," Tong Xue explained gravely. "With many branches all over the Great Zhou Empire, they need competent staff and members. The transportation of Spirit Engraved gear and armaments, for example, have to be escorted and protected by powerful martial artists. Given how there"s also a high number of inner sect disciples who specialize only in forging equipment but aren"t very good at fighting, they require bodyguards whenever they head outside Tushan City. That"s why Nine-Tailed Fox Sect requires powerful martial artists to protect the sect. there is a branch of the sect dedicated solely to this, which is the Blood Blades. It"s responsible for combat, military missions, a.s.sa.s.sinations, escort, bodyguard duties, protection, subterfuge, intelligence and counterintelligence. Pang Feng is aiming to join the Blood Blades when he made the decision to join Nine-Tailed Fox Sect. he will not hesitate to use his martial might to protect his sister whenever he deems it necessary."

"Oh, just like how Sect Mistress Zi Da Ji is the bodyguard who protects the Sect Leader, Zi Shou De." I nodded in understanding. Tong Xue grinned.

"Yup! The perfect combination of Spirit Engraved artifact forging and martial combat mastery! The most talented Spirit Engraver in the Great Zhou Empire, coupled together with one of the strongest martial artists in the Middle Continent! That"s exactly what allows Nine-Tailed Fox Sect to flourish in the present and establish their status as one of the eight major sects!"

"Cool."

"Just so you know, Sect Mistress Zi Da Ji is the leader of the Blood Blades," Tong Xue informed me proudly. Then he dropped his voice into a whisper. "I"m also aiming to join the Blood Blades. I"ve no interest in forging Spirit Engraved gear. But I want to protect my Lian Rou, so I did my best to learn forging methods."

"Good for you."

"Come on, I know you joined the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect for Tang Qi Hong." Tong Xue nudged me mischievously. I sighed.

"Actually, no. I never thought about joining the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect at all, but I got scouted by Elder Zhao, who asked me to try out the outer sect disciple exam. I thought I might as well give it a shot, and…well, here I am. I didn"t expect to pa.s.s the examination."

"Well, most of the stuff they asked was taught in alchemy cla.s.s in school."

Tong Xue didn"t seem surprised. He patted me with a grin, but then frowned.

"Then where did you learn that Spirit Engraving from? Elder Zhao seemed pretty impressed by it."

"Uh, that…" I obviously couldn"t tell Tong Xue, and I tried to think of an excuse. Fortunately, I was saved by a sudden crash.

Pang Feng and Liang Shao Yang had come to blows. The latter had blasted the former with vicious sword qi, his qi materializing in the air as blades that sliced and cut at the heavily armored martial artist. However, Pang Feng"s golden armor was much st.u.r.dier than its ornament appearance suggested. The blades left no mark on the enchanted armor.

Of course! I realized. That golden armor is Spirit Engraved gear!

"Oh, wow…amazing. I knew that Pang Feng was a pretty formidable martial artist, but Liang Shao Yang surpa.s.ses my expectations as well."

Along with gasps and shocked outcries from the crowd, Tong Xue added his own commentary. I glanced at him, and he shrugged.

"Pang Feng is at the peak of Flowing Qi Stage, yet Liang Shao Yang is able to match him blow for blow. Don"t you think that"s impressive?"

"Is there any meaning to all these stages and levels when all of you guys have been receiving artificial qi?" I grumbled under my breath. Tong Xue ignored me.

"Fei Wu, you should be careful. If you really want to get close to Tang Qi Hong, you have a difficult path ahead of you. She is much harder to woo than Lian Rou and you have countless rivals vying for her attention as well. If I"m not mistaken, that Liang Shao Yang, who"s from the mysterious and terrifying Divine Shadow Sect, is also targeting Tang Qi Hong. So you had best be on your guard against someone like him."

That warning was better meant for someone else. For, while the two exchanged furious blows with each other, Pang Feng"s golden gauntlets smashing against Liang Shao Yang"s shadowy swords (which, I noted with interest, was similar to my Ghost Shadow Sword) to produce ma.s.sive shockwaves that buffeted the spectators and sending more chairs and tables flying. The ground beneath their feet cracked, unable to withstand the tremendous impacts that their duel generated.

Boom!

Pang Feng finally gained the upper hand and delivered a powerful punch that drove Liang Shao Yang back despite the latter successfully defending it with a pair of crossed swords. Skidding to a stop, Liang Shao Yang narrowed his eyes and infused his newly created swords with more qi before charging forward.

Undaunted, Pang Feng met his challenge head on, bellowing as he countered with a charge of his own. He threw a powerful punch that produced sonic booms as his arm hurtled forward, his gauntlets getting ready to meet the double slash that Liang Shao was executing with hi dual swords.

"STOP!"

Right before the two weapons could collide, however, someone appeared between them.

Zi Xiao Ji.

The diminutive, cute little girl had intervened, jumping right in the middle of the battling two to halt the battle.

Both Pang Feng and Liang Shao Yang widened their eyes, but they were unable to stop their weapons from striking the unfortunate and reckless Zi Xiao Ji in time.