I can only beat noobs.

Chapter 160 Secret
After Chen Ming left, Peony, draped in a light veil, returned to her room, looked in the direction he had left, and closed the door.

Now that she knew he possessed the sword intent of a Divine Realm expert, she naturally had to give him a wide berth.

She returned to her room and looked at Su Zhining, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed. She had recovered but was still extremely weak. She wondered what Su Zhining was thinking.

……

Chen Ming went straight back to the Feng residence. Upon asking, he discovered that Feng Siyuan had not returned and was probably staying overnight at Tianxiang Tower.

These seasoned veterans of the pleasure quarters would definitely stay overnight in a brothel.

Chen Ming returned to his small courtyard, touching the "sword jade" in his arms, recalling the events of the night, and felt that they were particularly bizarre.

The most beautiful courtesan in the brothel was actually a disciple of the Heavenly Dao Alliance.

The most core cultivation technique of the Heavenly Dao Alliance actually has such a huge hidden danger.

After losing to him twice, Su Zhining actually developed a mental demon and almost died.

There's also the Spirit Jade, sharing a bed and dreams, and using sword intent to slay inner demons...

Chen Ming sensed it and found that the sword intent within the sword jade was still there, which relieved him.

"Fortunately."

This sword intent was his greatest protection. He dared to come to Jiangzhou City to participate in the Qingyun Ranking competition, dared to meet Yu Haitang, and dared to keep his appointment with Pan Dingqian, all because he had this to rely on.

He would be heartbroken if he just used it up like that.

Chen Ming sat cross-legged on the bed, placed the sword jade between his eyebrows, and continued to comprehend the sword intent within it.

……

Before they knew it, it was early the next morning.

After washing up, Chen Ming went next door to check on the two newly recruited maids. After a day and a night of rest, their condition had visibly improved, and their faces had regained some color.

These two maids also practice martial arts. Although they are only at the ninth rank, they are physically strong and recover relatively quickly.

"I've met the young master."

They were already awake, and when they saw him come in, they immediately sat up to greet him.

Hearing their sweet, coquettish voices, Chen Ming's mood brightened considerably. He chuckled, "No need for formalities, lie down. How are you feeling?"

"Thanks to you, young master, I feel much better."

"Congratulations to you, young master, on ranking sixth on the Qingyun List. From now on, your name will be known throughout Jiangzhou."

Chen Ming laughed and said, "You guys found out too?"

Qiu Xiang said, "The whole mansion was buzzing about it yesterday."

"Okay, you guys can rest now."

Just as Chen Ming was about to leave, Dongxiang suddenly said, "Young Master, you'd better be careful of someone."

He asked, "Who are you?"

"Qin Changyuan".

This name was somewhat unexpected to him, and he asked curiously, "Why is that?"

Dongxiang said, "Ever since this person met you once, he has been extremely infatuated with you. This person is narrow-minded. If he knew that you treat him differently, he would be so jealous that he would go crazy and who knows what he would do."

Chen Ming recalled Qin Changyuan's behavior last night and knew that what she said was true.

"Actually, I met this person last night. He seems to be at odds with Pan Dingqian."

At this moment, Qiu Xiang spoke up, "The Qin family is the most powerful family in Jiangzhou and a model of local power. No matter who becomes the governor of Jiangzhou, the Qin family will be at odds with them."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ming understood.

The imperial court established the Six Doors to suppress the power of local aristocratic families and sects.

The Six Doors, driven by their KPIs, are destined to clash with powerful families and sects; conflict between them is the norm.

Places like Qingfeng City, where martial arts have declined and local families and sects are completely suppressed by the Six Doors, are extremely rare.

In Jiangzhou, there are as many as seven factions that could potentially have top-tier experts of the first rank or higher. The governors of the Six Doors are generally first-rank; it's no wonder they can't suppress local forces.

That's why Qin Changyuan dared to be so arrogant in front of Pan Dingqian. This was to let everyone in Jiangzhou know that the Qin family was not afraid of the governor of the Six Doors.

Chen Ming nodded and said, "I understand. You all should take good care of yourselves."

……

As soon as Chen Ming stepped out of the courtyard, he saw the Feng family's butler waiting outside.

"Young master, someone is looking for you and is waiting in the hall."

"Okay, I'll go there now."

He went to the living room outside and saw another beautiful young woman wearing a light red dress.

The young woman, dressed as a maid, bowed to him and said, "Young master, my master invites you."

He asked, "Who is your master?" The girl handed him a name card.

Chen Ming took it and saw that it was indeed a jade begonia. He said, "Please lead the way, young lady."

He was actually quite curious about the secrets about the "Blazing Sun Divine Skill" that she had mentioned a few days ago.

The maid led him out of the Feng residence, where a carriage was parked.

After getting into the carriage, Chen Ming asked, "What is your name, young lady?"

"Young master, just call me Mei'er."

The style of this name immediately suggests it's in the same category as Lan'er and Zhu'er. Plum blossom, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum—there should also be a Ju'er.

Chen Ming had previously heard Jiang Yingxue tell him about Yu Haitang's background and experiences. She was almost killed by her family and fled to Jiangzhou with her aunt for refuge.

It sounds pretty tragic, yet he still manages to support such an outstanding maid and win over a young talent like Ji Qianxing. And with just one move, he wields a divine weapon like the "Mingfeng Sword."

Moreover, judging from her tone, she has a way to learn unparalleled martial arts techniques.

Surely her aunt, who became the wife of the Cangyue Sect Master, couldn't have accomplished all this?
In short, this woman is very mysterious.

……

This time, Chen Ming was taken to a quiet house, and in an exquisite garden, he met Yu Haitang, who was wearing a long emerald green dress.

Behind her stood another maid in yellow, who must be the one named Ju'er.

This was their third meeting, and Chen Ming's heart skipped a beat when he saw her. It seemed that every time they met, he was amazed by her beauty.

He unconsciously compared her to the peony he had seen the night before and felt that she was slightly better.

"sit."

Yu Haitang was unaware that he was comparing her to a courtesan. After inviting him to sit down, the maid behind her quickly served tea.

"Your strength is much greater than I imagined."

Yu Haitang looked him over with great interest. "You're really surprising that even Qianxing isn't your match."

Chen Ming said modestly, "You flatter me, young lady."

Yu Haitang said, "Qianxing said that even when his brother Ji Baichuan was at your level of cultivation, his swordsmanship was far inferior to yours. With such talent, it's a pity you're not going to the Nine Extremes Sword Sect."

He said, "The young lady didn't come here just to talk about this, did she?"

"What do you want to know?"

"What does the young lady know? It's related to the 'Mysterious Fire True Skill'."

Yu Haitang suddenly asked a seemingly unrelated question, "Do you know the Emperor of Immortality?"

Chen Ming's gaze turned somewhat suspicious. "You mean, this cultivation technique is related to the Longevity Emperor?"

That's a bit outrageous, isn't it?

The Immortal Emperor is the only immortal being recorded in official history.

Although the "Blazing Sun Divine Skill" is quite powerful, he still felt it was unlikely to be related to the Longevity Emperor.

Yu Haitang continued, "You should have heard the rumors about the nine suspected tombs of the Longevity Emperor. So far, a total of five suspected tombs have been discovered. What many people don't know is that within the fifth suspected tomb, there are clues to the sixth suspected tomb, indicating that it is located within the present-day Jiangzhou territory."

Chen Ming did not interrupt her and listened quietly.

"Do you know when the fifth suspected tomb was discovered?"

He shook his head.

Yu Haitang said, "More than five hundred years ago, in order to compete for this suspected tomb, the previous dynasty's royal family sent out almost all their strongest members. Although they eventually obtained the treasures inside the tomb, they also suffered heavy losses. In the end, this sowed the seeds for the dynasty's downfall."

"Now, five hundred years have passed, and all the major sects and families have sent people to Jiangzhou to search for many years, but to no avail."

"However, I was lucky. When I was ten years old, my uncle gave me a gift, which was the 'Mysterious Wood True Skill'. A few years later, one night, a mysterious powerful man kidnapped me and inadvertently let me learn a secret."

Yu Haitang paused for a moment, then continued, "It turns out that this mysterious powerhouse's surname is Mu, and he comes from a reclusive family that has guarded a place for generations. He is related to the Longevity Emperor."

"It is said that their ancestor was a close guard of the Eternal Emperor, and this ancestor and four other guards each guarded a key. When these five keys are put together, they can open the tomb of the Eternal Emperor."

"These five families were each taught a cultivation technique by the Longevity Emperor: the Mysterious Wood True Technique, the Mysterious Fire True Technique, the Mysterious Water True Technique, the Mysterious Metal True Technique, and the Mysterious Earth True Technique."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ming was speechless with frustration.

The Longevity Emperor lived eight thousand years ago. Eight thousand years means at least several hundred generations have been able to abide by the ancestral teachings and faithfully protect that key.
They've probably already obtained the keys and are going to find the other four families to collect them all before opening the tomb of the Immortal Emperor. Legend has it that the secret to immortality is hidden inside. Who wouldn't be tempted?
Yu Haitang continued, "One of the families suffered an accident and was wiped out. Later, this martial art was leaked out and its name changed to 'Blazing Sun Divine Art'. The person who learned this divine art was noticed by the King of Zhenhai and taken as his subordinate."

Chen Ming thought to himself, "Finally, we're getting to the point."

"However, the 'Blazing Sun Divine Skill' that person learned was incomplete, lacking techniques above the third rank. The King of Zhenhai then mobilized his forces to help him find the remaining techniques. This King of Zhenhai was indeed no ordinary person; he not only found the complete technique but also learned the secret this family had been guarding..."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ming couldn't help but think to himself.

If that's the case, then the death of the King of Zhenhai is related to the suspected tomb of the Emperor of Longevity.
That makes sense. Only a secret of this level could lead to the mysterious death of a prince.

Yu Haitang continued, "Unfortunately, he trusted the wrong person, which led to his death. Twenty years have passed, and you have appeared, possessing the 'Mysterious Fire True Skill.' Naturally, you will attract those who know the past of the King of Zhenhai to your side."

(End of this chapter)