A thousand enlightenments in one night, starting from being a menial apprentice.

Duan Rong watched Jiang Hanyan leave, took a sip of tea, and felt a bitter taste rise in his heart.

He knew that this was like stabbing Jiang Hanyan in the heart, but he had no choice but to do it. He could only wait for the opportunity to make it up to her later.

As soon as Jiang Hanyan rushed out of the room, she activated her mind, and the Three Flowers Gathering at the top of her head opened and closed continuously, and then flew away from the pavilion of the Judgment and Justice Department.

She wore a purple dress, like a purple orchid, and flew into the churning clouds in the valley.

However, the violet was now covered in cold dew, because the moment Jiang Hanyan flew away from the pavilion, tears had already streamed down her face.

As she weaved through the misty valley, she wiped the tears from her face with her sleeve.

Upon seeing a desolate mountain between Ironstone Peak and Heavenly Pillar Peak, she could no longer resist and landed on a large rock in the dense forest of that desolate mountain.

She sat on the large rock, hugging her knees, resting her forehead on her knees, shaking her shoulders, and cried sadly.

Jiang Hanyan gritted her teeth and sobbed for a long time before finally stopping her crying.

She was so heartbroken because she was convinced that Duan Rong was plotting against her.

Since Ge Rusong's death, Lin Youjian has been in charge of the Office of Transmission for several years now. The Office of Transmission's intelligence gathering in Yongzhou in the Western Regions was already quite effective, and after Lin Youjian took over, he devoted even more effort to it.

After Zhu He took over as sect leader, he had been coveting the intelligence in Lin Youjian's hands. He tried various methods, but Lin Youjian rejected them all. As a result, Zhu He and Lin Youjian had a rather unpleasant argument in the Elders' Council.

This is why, when Duan Rong came to borrow three divine herbs from her last time, Lin Youjian intervened and prevented her from lending them to Duan Rong. At that time, Lin Youjian was taking out her anger on Duan Rong because of her unpleasantness with Zhu He.

At this moment, Zhu He had just forced Yang Sixuan to abdicate and let Duan Rong take over as the head of the Court of Judicial Review. Duan Rong immediately summoned her and brought up the intelligence from the Court of Transmission regarding the secret agents in Yongzhou in the Western Regions.

Jiang Hanyan naturally became suspicious, thinking that Duan Rong was acting on Zhu He's orders and, unable to obtain the sword from her master Lin Youjian, was plotting against her.

What hurt her even more were Duan Rong's words. Just now she asked Duan Rong, "Is this matter very important to you, Brother Duan?" Duan Rong replied that it was almost a matter of life and death.

Duan Rong had done her a great favor, not only saving her life but also helping her avenge a great grudge. She would gladly give her life for him. But she simply couldn't bear this kind of scheming.

What tormented her even more was that, through these interactions, she realized that a part of her heart had already melted away. This unspeakable feeling lingering in her heart was already tearing her apart.

Jiang Hanyan stood up from the large rock, wiped away her tears, and said with red eyes, "That's enough. From now on, we can cut ties completely and stop suffering. If Master blames me, I can just expel him from my sect."

Thinking of this, Jiang Hanyan suddenly felt a sense of relief. Having repaid Duan Rong's kindness, she could finally sever this troubling emotional ties and focus on her cultivation.

After calming down, Jiang Hanyan flew up again and returned to Tianzhu Peak. She took the token, wrote down the code words and contact person by hand, and then went to Duan Rong's room in the Judgment Division and handed it to Duan Rong.

When Duan Rong saw Jiang Hanyan again, he felt that she had become cold. She handed Duan Rong the token and a piece of paper with the contact person and code words written on it, and explained to him in detail how to use it.

Duan Rong said, "Don't worry. I will only use this intelligence myself. No one else will ever know about it."

Jiang Hanyan sneered. She was convinced that Duan Rong had come to steal their intelligence for his master, so she said, "At this point, Brother Duan is actually acting innocent after getting the benefit. Now that we've given you the intelligence, whether you tell others or not is your business, and has nothing to do with me."

Duan Rong was slightly taken aback by Jiang Hanyan's sarcastic words.

Jiang Hanyan continued, "By the way, I should address you as Chief Duan. You have already reached the Cave-Ming Realm and entered the Elder Council. It's presumptuous of me to keep calling you Brother Duan."

"Commander Duan, I, Hanyan, will take my leave." Jiang Hanyan said, bowing to Duan Rong. She raised her head, gave Duan Rong a deep look, and then turned and left.

Duan Rong took the things Jiang Hanyan had given him, his lips moved, but he ultimately said nothing. He put the things in his sleeve and left the Court of Judgment.

He could sense that Jiang Hanyan had misunderstood, but there was no point in saying anything more now. He could only ensure that the intelligence from the spy would not be leaked. At that time, Jiang Hanyan would naturally know that he had no other intentions, but simply wanted to use the intelligence to do what he wanted to do.

Having obtained the Ten Thousand Crows Fire Scarf and the intelligence from the spies in Yongzhou, Western Regions, sent by Jiang Hanyan, Duan Rong felt that he was almost ready. He then bid farewell to everyone, saying that he was going into seclusion to cultivate. In reality, one night, he used the Ten Thousand Crows Fire Scarf to cover his body and left the vast and endless Changliu Mountains, heading towards Yongzhou, Western Regions.

Yongzhou is a vast and resource-rich region, and its capital is called Xidu Prefecture.

There is an official road in Xidu Prefecture that leads directly to Yumen Pass. Beyond Yumen Pass lies the Western Regions, a vast Gobi Desert with endless yellow sand, which is called Moheyanqi by the people of Yongzhou.

At this time, just as dawn was breaking, the area outside the east gate of Xidu Prefecture was already crowded with people wanting to enter the city. Some were bringing their children to visit relatives, while others were carrying fresh fruits and vegetables from their fields to sell; the scene was bustling and lively.

Among the crowd was a beggar in tattered clothes, reeking of filth. His greasy, disheveled hair was crawling with lice. As he stood there, everyone kept their distance from him.

The beggar's eyebrows and eyes were covered by his disheveled hair; otherwise, you could see that his eyes were very deep and clear, and he was looking at the people around him in the dim light of dawn.

This beggar was none other than Duan Rong, who had come in disguise.

Duan Rong entered Yongzhou from the border area between Liangzhou and Yongzhou. In Xihua County of Liangzhou, he had already disguised himself as a beggar. Then, from Liangzhou, he walked for more than a month to reach this Xidu Prefecture.

Of course, Duan Rong's journey was not for sightseeing or traveling the world. He walked all the way here to thoroughly familiarize himself with the local customs and culture of Yongzhou.

Along the way, he went from being unfamiliar with the dialect and finding it difficult to pronounce to now speaking fluent Yongzhou dialect. The tone and pronunciation of his speech were so pure that he was no different from a seasoned street urchin who had been around the area for years.

Besides mastering the authentic Yongzhou dialect, Duan Rong often squatted by the wall of the teahouse along the way, using his divine sense to eavesdrop on the chatter of the tea drinkers.

He used this information from the streets to gain a deeper understanding of Yongzhou and the Faxiang Sect.

In fact, the Faxiang School is quite unique among the eight major schools of Buddhism in China. Because it is a Buddhist school, its practices and methods of cultivation are completely different from the other seven schools. And this difference actually permeates all aspects of secular life.

The people of Yongzhou are generally devout Buddhists and consider it an honor to become a monk.

Temples were numerous in the various prefectures and counties of Yongzhou. However, in Yongzhou, one had to be a monk to enter the Faxiang School of Buddhism.

In other words, only monks and nuns in temples who have passed a rigorous selection process are qualified to enter the Faxiang School of Buddhism for practice.

Although Yongzhou was a devout Buddhist state, its governance actually separated religion and politics. The Faxiang school seemed to have no interest in governing the secular world.

The governance of the secular world was in the hands of the powerful clans of Yongzhou. Besides the sect itself, the Faxiang sect also controlled temples throughout Yongzhou. The abbots of all temples had to be appointed by the Faxiang sect to have legitimate religious status.

In Yongzhou, people held monks in far higher esteem than the powerful and wealthy.

After the east gate opened, Duan Rong followed the bustling crowd into the city of Xidu Prefecture.

Yongzhou, situated on the Guanzhong Plain, is a land of plenty and prosperity. As the capital of Xidu Prefecture, it is naturally bustling and prosperous.

As soon as Duan Rong entered the city, he hadn't gone far when, at a street intersection, he saw a monk riding an elephant, carrying a flower basket, scattering flowers on the heads of the people. The people along the street immediately knelt down and began to pray and kiss the ground.

After observing for a while, Duan Rong bypassed the street corner and continued walking towards the west side of the city.

The city of Xidu Prefecture was quite large, and Duan Rong measured it on foot. He walked from the east gate to the west gate and didn't arrive until noon.

The midday sun was just right. Duan Rong saw that he had arrived at the western city, so he found a quiet spot by the wall, sat down, and leaned against it to bask in the sun and rest his feet.

Duan Rong had only been sitting there for a short while when a woman with a child passed by him. The woman glanced at Duan Rong, then took a sesame seed cake from the basket she was carrying and stuffed it into Duan Rong's hand.

Duan Rong didn't actually like to eat, but he was fed quite a bit during his time as a beggar. The people of Yongzhou were devout Buddhists, so they often gave alms to beggars and the lonely.

Duan Rong looked at the golden-brown, still-steaming hot sesame seed cake in his hand, sighed, and prepared to take a bite. After all, he was a beggar; he couldn't just refuse food offered to him. He had to play his part completely.

Duan Rong was holding the sesame seed cake, about to put it in his mouth, when suddenly a shadow of a stick flashed before his eyes. It turned out that a beggar had jumped out from the corner of the wall, holding a bamboo stick, and knocked his sesame seed cake away with one blow.

The sesame seed cake fell to the ground and was picked up by another beggar. The beggar took a bite, looked at Duan Rong with a big smile, and said, "Not bad, it smells really good."

Two beggars blocked Duan Rong's path from the front and the back.

Duan Rong tossed his messy hair aside and looked at the two people in front of him.

Although the two were beggars, dressed in tattered clothes, one fair-skinned and the other dark-skinned, they were both quite robust. This was typical of the people of Yongzhou; beggars were rarely thin.

Because the Guanzhong Plain is fertile, and the people of Yongzhou are quite charitable due to religious reasons, beggars in Yongzhou have become a common sight.

In Yongzhou, begging is a profession, unlike in other places. In the urban areas of each prefecture and county, there are beggar leaders in every area; not just anyone can become a beggar.

Duan Rong had been beaten a lot along the way, and he usually let himself be driven away, but this time was different. He made a special trip to this western city to meet the beggar leader in this area.

The burly beggar with a fair complexion swallowed the sesame seed cake in his mouth, then spat a mouthful of thick saliva next to Duan Rong and yelled, "You idiot, where do you come from? Who gave you permission to beg here?"

Duan Rong shifted his position against the wall, glanced up at the sky, and said, "Is this blazing sun yours? Am I bothering you by sunbathing here?"

"Damn it!" the beggar cursed. "Where did this scoundrel come from? Are you looking for trouble?!"

The beggar cursed and kicked Duan Rong in the waist.

Duan Rong rolled over like a carp and suddenly stood up. The fair-skinned beggar missed his kick, and Duan Rong took the opportunity to sweep him off his feet, making him do the splits on the spot. Then, he flipped over and sat on the beggar's shoulders.

Although the beggar was strong, he was not a martial arts expert. When he did the splits, his crotch cracked, and then Duan Rong sat on his shoulder and pressed down on him, making him scream in pain.

Upon seeing this, another dark-skinned beggar immediately swung a bamboo stick at Duan Rong.

Duan Rong reached out and grabbed it. For some reason, the dark-skinned beggar felt his hand slip, and the bamboo stick was gone. When he looked closely, the bamboo stick was already in Duan Rong's hand. The tip of the bamboo stick, which was shining in the sun, was bloody and glistening with blood.

Only then did the dark-skinned beggar feel a sharp pain in his palm. Looking down, he saw that his right hand was covered in blood.

The dark-skinned beggar's face was ashen, and he looked at Duan Rong with terrified eyes. He now knew that the man in front of him was a martial arts expert, and without saying a word, he turned and ran.

Duan Rong was just playing around with the two beggars. If he really wanted to get rid of them, a single strike of his law would turn them to ashes.

The fair-skinned beggar, who was sitting beneath Duan Rong, had also witnessed the situation clearly. Now that the pain from the splits had subsided, he dared not cry out anymore and kept begging Duan Rong for mercy.

Duan Rong said, "Shut your stinking mouth. If you utter another word, I'll cut off your arm and roast it to make a substitute for my pancakes."

Upon hearing this, the fair-skinned beggar immediately shut his mouth and dared not utter another sound.

About half an incense stick's time later, three beggars were seen surrounding a middle-aged lame man, who limped into the quiet alley.

Among the three beggars following the lame man was the dark-skinned beggar who had been injured by Duan Rong; at this moment, a tattered strip of cloth was wrapped around his right hand.

Duan Rong glanced at the lame man and knew that this was the person he was looking for.

The dark-skinned beggar stood at the alley entrance, pointed at Duan Rong, and said, "Boss, this is the idiot."

The lame man glanced at Duan Rong, his murderous aura subdued, and he slightly bit his cheek.

The fair-skinned beggar, who was being sat on by Duan Rong, immediately cried out upon seeing someone approaching, "Boss, save me..."

Duan Rong reached out and yanked, dislocating the fair-skinned beggar's arm. The beggar was in so much pain that he was covered in sweat and screamed in agony.

Duan Rong said, "Say it again, and I'll grab your arm again."

The fair-skinned beggar, who had just been yelling incoherently, suddenly fell silent.

Seeing this, the lame man's face turned as black as soot. He walked up to Duan Rong and clasped his hands in greeting, saying, "Friend, I am the leader of the beggars in this area. I can see that you are also a skilled fighter. If you want to make a living in this area, you can pay your respects to me. There's no need to fight."

Duan Rong's divine sense had already penetrated the man's dantian. This cripple was at the second level of inner energy cultivation, which matched the information Jiang Hanyan had given him. (End of Chapter)