"Third Brother is missing?"
Hearing the steward's words, Patrol Inspector Zhang Huai was utterly shocked.
Zhang Xinhu was the foremost expert in Siming County. Who could possibly harm him? Let alone make his third brother vanish without a sound or trace—that was simply too difficult!
The steward, Zhang En, bore a panicked look on his aged face as he whispered, "The master has been missing since this morning, and several items are gone from his room. We waited until noon with no word, so I rushed here to find you."
The Zhang family possessed vast estates and businesses, and Zhang Xinhu oversaw everything on ordinary days.
Now that Zhang Xinhu had suddenly vanished, the Zhang family had not only lost a formidable martial artist, but also their leader.
They could keep it hidden for half a day or a day, but if this dragged on, turmoil would inevitably erupt within the family.
The steward had no other choice. Zhang Xinhu had an overbearing, iron-fisted temperament; his word was law in the household.
Everyone else in the Zhang family could only obey meekly, and anyone disobedient had long since been dealt with.
With Zhang Xinhu suddenly missing, the household could not find a single person capable of taking charge.
Left with no recourse, the steward could only seek out Zhang Huai. Though Zhang Huai was not particularly close to Zhang Xinhu, they were family after all.
Furthermore, Zhang Huai was the patrol inspector, and dealing with such matters was his official duty.
"Don't panic. I'll go with you to take a look."
Zhang Huai felt somewhat uneasy inside. His third brother acted with an overbearing hand and had offended countless people.
To say nothing of those further afield, he had already forged a deep feud with Canglong Temple alone.
With something like this happening out of the blue, he could not help suspecting an expert from the branch abbey had made a move...
Zhang Huai did not dare bring any subordinates, following the steward to the Zhang estate alone.
Arriving at the training room, Zhang Huai—who had long heard that Zhang Xinhu possessed a very peculiar training room—was visiting it for the first time.
The sealed room had no windows. Even with the door open, the long corridor outside left the interior exceedingly dim.
The steward brought two torches, and only then did the room brighten.
Zhang Huai took one of the torches and inspected the room thoroughly.
There was no blood on the floor, no traces of footprints, and even less sign of battle.
Given Zhang Xinhu's martial prowess, had he fought with all his might, he would inevitably have left unmistakable marks.
Yet the room was remarkably clean.
Zhang Huai asked the steward, "If this room is so dim, what did he usually use for light?"
The steward pointed toward the upper corners of the walls and said, "There were precious pearls for lighting, bright as day. But the pearls are gone..."
He then pointed at the table. "There was also a painting and a saber here, both gone as well."
As the steward, Zhang En was a few years older than Zhang Xinhu and had grown up alongside him since childhood. He could be considered Zhang Xinhu's most trusted confidant, and he knew a fair bit about the training room.
It was only regarding secrets such as martial heritage that Zhang En remained in the dark.
Zhang Huai specifically walked over to the wall corners to examine them. The ceiling was fifteen feet high, and the spots where the pearls were mounted had specialized brackets with clasps to prevent them from falling. Without a ladder, taking them down would be no easy feat.
He glanced at the wall; there were no footprints.
For an expert capable of killing Zhang Xinhu, taking a precious saber was normal enough, but taking the two pearls as well was somewhat beneath the dignity of a true master.
Besides, Zhang Xinhu was a large man, and with a five-foot saber, carrying him off would have been immensely troublesome.
He had also inspected outside just now and found no damaged roof tiles or unusual tracks.
Were it not for the missing items, he would genuinely have suspected that Zhang Xinhu had left on his own accord.
But now Zhang Huai had a bad feeling: his third brother was probably gone for good...
Yet he dared not jump to conclusions. If Zhang Xinhu were truly dead, the fallout would be immense.
The Li family, county officials, and the Ironclothes Guards would instantly pounce, tearing the Zhang family to shreds and swallowing them whole.
Zhang Huai knew the gravity of the situation, so he warned Zhang En, "Keep this quiet for now. Tell no one. To the outside world, say Third Brother is in secluded cultivation."
Zhang En's face turned pale. "Fourth Master... did my lord truly meet with disaster?"
Seeing no signs of struggle in the training room, he had still harbored a sliver of hope, but hearing Zhang Huai's words, he knew things were dire.
Zhang Huai glared sternly at Zhang En. "If you dare blab, I will kill you!"
Zhang En shuddered and hurriedly said, "My grandfather worked for the Zhang family, and generations of our family have eaten from the Zhang table! Rest assured, Fourth Master—if I blab, you may slaughter my entire household!"
"This is a grave matter and must be planned with care. From now on, keep me informed of everything that happens."
Zhang Huai's expression softened slightly. "If something truly happened to Third Brother, I will do my utmost to protect the Zhang family—and protect you."
"Yes, yes. From now on, I will follow your lead in everything." Zhang En was a clever man and immediately understood the implication.
If Zhang Xinhu were truly dead, siding with Zhang Huai meant he could claim a share of the Zhang family's vast wealth...
***
Three days later, Centurion Zhang Yunfeng returned to Siming County with his troops.
Zhang Yunfeng had intended to meet with Zhang Xinhu, but upon hearing that he had vanished, he was equally astonished.
He had gone so far as to invoke Zhang Banshan to stand firm against Yizhen precisely because he valued the man's martial prowess and deemed him very useful.
He had not expected that after being away for only a few days, something would happen to Zhang Xinhu—with his life or death unknown...
Zhang Yunfeng also went to inspect the training room, accompanied by Platoon Commander Wu Di.
After looking around, Zhang Yunfeng asked Wu Di, "What do you think?"
Wu Di replied hesitantly, "Not a trace left behind. If someone truly struck, the culprit's martial arts must be far superior to Zhang Xinhu's."
Zhang Yunfeng nodded, then asked, "Could it have been Zhou Wuji?"
"Impossible. Zhou Wuji was so heavily injured that not even the Celestial Master himself could have healed him immediately."
Wu Di shook his head. "Besides, even if Zhou Wuji were completely unharmed, he wouldn't have this kind of ability!"
Having interacted with Zhou Wuji several times, he acknowledged Zhou Wuji's competence, but he did not believe Zhou Wuji could be powerful to such an inhuman degree.
"It might be an expert from the Arctic Sect who took action..."
Though there were no outsiders in the room, Wu Di instinctively lowered his voice to voice his deduction.
Zhang Yunfeng's expression grew conflicted. He was naturally infuriated, and he was nearly certain the branch abbey had made the move.
Zhang Xinhu had kept a low profile in Siming County, but his martial arts were stronger than even his own. For such an expert, there were few in the branch abbey who could slay him!
Not to mention leaving behind zero traces—the methods were exceedingly clever.
Over the past few days, Yizhen had been with him the entire time, so it could not have been Yizhen.
A stronger expert from the branch abbey could only be Prior Zhiyuan. Yet he was very old, avaricious, and timid; it was unlikely he would travel hundreds of li specifically to kill Zhang Xinhu!
Thinking back and forth, it could only be an expert from the Arctic Sect passing through the area who eliminated Zhang Xinhu in passing.
The Arctic Sect was one of the seven Daoist sects. The seven sects stood exceptionally united against outsiders and had the backing of the Celestial Master Mansion, wielding immense influence even in the imperial court.
Just like Zhang Xinhu scheming against Zhou Wuji, without solid evidence, the matter could only be dropped.
There was no need for him to stick his neck out for a dead man. However, suffering such a massive loss could not simply be swallowed!
The branch abbey went back on its word and didn't take their Zhang family seriously, so they wouldn't be polite either!
The pressing task now was to see how much grease they could scrape from Zhang Xinhu's household...
Zhang Yunfeng thought for a moment, then instructed, "Keep an eye on Zhou Wuji. If an opportunity arises, eliminate him."
"Understood," Wu Di answered respectfully.
He did not know why Zhang Yunfeng wanted Zhou Wuji dead, but by coincidence, he harbored the same desire; their thoughts coincided completely.
If he killed Zhou Wuji, Zhang Yunfeng would even owe him a favor.
Wu Di was unconcerned about his own safety. He was a platoon commander in the Pacification Office, an official Rank 7 court officer.
The Arctic Sect received stipends from the court. Slaying a local despot like Zhang Xinhu in secret was one thing, but without a blood feud, the Arctic Sect would never secretly assassinate him.
***
Daoist Yizhen, having returned to Yunlong Branch Abbey, soon received word from Siming County as well.
Daoist Yizhen knew very well that while Yunlong Branch Abbey had many experts, none could kill Zhang Xinhu without a sound.
Even if the prior intervened in person, he might not have accomplished it so cleanly and neatly.
He was also astonished—who on earth had done this?
Recalling the murderous aura in the flute melody Zhou Wuji had played, he faintly felt this matter might be connected to him.
But to say Zhou Wuji had done it was simply too bizarre...
He felt perhaps an expert of their sect had truly intervened. Since it posed no hindrance to them, there was no need to look into it too deeply.
***
The news of Zhang Xinhu's disappearance could not be concealed forever and soon spread throughout Siming County.
Even Wuzheng hurried over in high spirits to find Zhou Wuji and share the joyful news.
As for who carved up the Zhang family's vast wealth, Wuzheng had no interest.
He was a Daoist; he could hardly go down and scramble for the Zhang family's estate alongside the mundane crowd.
The Daoist sects had their own principles and did not chase after every coin.
Precisely because they cherished their reputation, the Daoist sects enjoyed a far better standing in the martial world than the Buddhist sects.
With Zhang Xinhu dead, everyone in Siming County believed it was the handiwork of the branch abbey, treating Canglong Temple with even greater deference.
Prominent families flocked to offer incense, donating handsome sums of incense money.
This put Wuzheng in an even better mood.
Naturally, Wuzheng also remained very vigilant regarding the incident.
Even someone as strong as Zhang Xinhu could vanish without a trace, showing just how terrifying the perpetrator was...
Once he found some free time, Wuzheng gave Zhou Wuji two books: one titled *True Explanation of the Golden Elixir*, and the other the *Nine-Revolutions Dragon-Tiger Scripture*.
Both were important classics on alchemy, forming the theoretical foundation of Daoist pill refining.
Whenever Wuzheng was free, he would come over to explain the knowledge in the texts to Zhou Wuji.
The branch abbey also sent ten Three-Revolution Purple-Gold Pills as a reward for Zhou Wuji.
Third-revolution Purple-Gold Pills possessed remarkable efficacy for replenishing blood and strengthening the body, specifically treating fractures and external injuries.
Over a month passed like this. Using the Purple-Gold Pills as a pretext, Zhou Wuji claimed his injuries were healing splendidly, tossed aside the stabilizing bamboo splints, and sent Shangxin—who had been attending to him constantly—back to his normal cultivation, telling him there was no need to shadow him every day.
After maintaining the facade for so long, Zhou Wuji found that no one was paying him any special attention, and he was tired of pretending.
That night, Zhou Wuji opened the Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment.
Ranked at the very top was Zhang Xinhu's destiny pattern: three liang nine qian, the highest destiny pattern he had ever acquired.
Such a valuable destiny pattern naturally could not be squandered recklessly.
Though the Five Tigers Fist was simple, it was an orthodox martial heritage. The fist scripture in his possession was sufficient for him to cultivate up to Rank 6.
The Northern Emperor's Book of Heavenly Punishment also held a large number of low-grade destiny patterns. To make full use of them, Zhou Wuji broke the Five Tigers Fist down into five separate routines to cultivate individually.
He first invested two destiny patterns worth over one liang each into Iron Tiger Fist. Purple light swirled, and Zhou Wuji's mind immersed into a miniature realm to begin practicing the fist.
By the time the purple light faded, Zhou Wuji's mastery of Iron Tiger Fist had already reached the proficient level.
Clenching his fists, his entire body's flesh, skin, tendons, and bones naturally mobilized to exert force in unison.
In this state, his body became exceptionally tough, and he could even exert a certain degree of control over his internal organs.
Such as accelerating or decelerating his heartbeat, controlling the expansion and contraction of his lungs, or forcefully regurgitating consumed food on command.
That two low-grade destiny patterns could yield such remarkable results was primarily due to his solid foundation.
His swordsmanship had reached the realm of perfection, granting him an exceedingly high level of control over his body and true qi.
Cultivating hard kung fu like the Iron Tiger Fist in turn became effortless...
Chapter 62