Dream of the Red Chamber: Starting from Immortal Martial Arts

"There's too little information to make any predictions. Let's assume the worst. First, he's too deeply involved with the Incense Sect, so it's possible he's faking his death to escape. Second, he might be working with other forces to set up a scheme to drag us into it."

As Jia She frowned and carefully reviewed the overall sequence of events, he brewed Yuan tea.

Suddenly remembering something, he threw the teacup, shattering it into pieces.

"The culprit behind your Aunt Min's death!"

Jia Tang's eyes narrowed. If this was indeed the mastermind behind the scenes who would stop at nothing, then he would most likely turn his attention to his relatives in the mansion next.

The two exchanged a glance, and Jia She was the first to confess: "Of the two forces that the Lin family of Yangzhou helped back then, one was mine, and the other was yours, right?"

Although they both knew the truth, neither of them said it outright.

Instead of answering, Jia Tang asked, "What's wrong, Uncle?"

"Some people in the south are investigating this matter. Recently, some of my henchmen have mysteriously disappeared. Be careful and pay attention to the details."

"The other side must have some strength to dare to bite the tail!"

Upon hearing this, Jia Tang's eyes flashed with murderous intent. If this was truly the case, he would send cultivators south.

After discussing it further, Jia Tang returned to Ningguo Mansion and went straight to the study to examine the recent secret letters.

"Find out all the information about the Lin family, and examine each piece of information for anything that seems amiss."

"only."

Jia He took down his old books from the bookshelf behind him and distributed them to the other three, then began to examine them in silence.

Thanks to the classification labels on the secret notes, the four generals could have a clear division of labor: two people would check the family category and those related to the Lin family, while two people would check the regional category and those related to Yangzhou.

Time passed slowly, and Qingwen even came in to refill the tea once more.

"This isn't right."

Jia An pulled out a letter of intelligence, his expression somewhat solemn. It read: "On the ninth day of the first month, three scholars in fine clothes checked into the No. 1 room of the Heavenly Division. The person on the left looks familiar."

"There's one more letter."

The sign read: "January 13th, checking out of Room 1 (Tianzi No. 1). A familiar face, but I couldn't recall who it was!"

Jia Tang narrowed his eyes slightly. The ninth day of the first lunar month was the day Jia Min was poisoned. On the twelfth day of the first lunar month, he killed a sorcerer outside Yangzhou City. The city was under lockdown and patrols were conducted, but the other party escaped on the second day of the lockdown. There must be something wrong.

The tail is showing!

"Find the person who made the record, have him recall the appearances of the three people, and try to create a portrait."

"In addition, we need to find out which high-ranking officials and cultivation clans he has served in all his previous infiltration missions."

"Finally, instruct the retainers to carefully review all intelligence that may have exposed Qingyun Tower and take remedial measures accordingly."

"Qingyun Tower and Qingyun Chamber of Commerce must not be exposed!"

"only!"

...

Five days later, on August 23, Jia Tang rushed to the military camp early in the morning. Today was the day of the grand competition for his battalion, which had been training for more than three months.

On the platform, Jia Tang, dressed in full military attire, was surrounded by his family retainers, including Jia He, as well as a group of fierce and valiant generals: guerrilla commanders Xu Yunshan, Niu Chengxian, and Liu He; and captains Liu Ruoniu, Hou Zunqi, Ma Yong, and Chen Chong…

The officers included Xie Yun'e, Jiang Shuquan, Sun Lu, Sun Wei, and others, as well as Jia family members such as Jia Yun, Jia Jun, and Jia Fen.

Below the platform, all the soldiers of the three battalions stood in formation, their eyes burning with fervor as they looked at the officers of all ranks on the platform.

Thanks to the high-grade ley lines beneath the capital city, the concentration of vital energy within the city, and even the entire capital region, is much higher than in other places, allowing cultivators to progress rapidly, making leaps and bounds in a day.

According to ancient documents obtained from the secret realm, the earth veins are also divided into nine levels, and each level is further divided into four grades: lower, middle, upper, and extreme, accommodating different numbers of cultivators of the same level.

The grade of the earth veins beneath the city of Xianjing is unknown. They emerged naturally after the great changes in the world. Moreover, due to the lack of formations such as the Yuan Gathering Formation and the Yuan Locking Formation to organize and condense the Yuan Qi, it is impossible to designate a cultivation treasure land, which allows the entire region to benefit immensely.

The soldiers of Jia Tang's three battalions are like this. Many of the elite cavalrymen from Liaodong and the elite infantrymen from Jiangnan have recently broken through to the third realm, and some have even entered the fourth or fifth realm. The newly formed third battalion has also made rapid progress, with most of them entering the second realm, and some even starting to train their muscles.

"Beat the drums, the competition begins!"

"only!"

dong dong dong~

The war drums thundered, and the soldiers shouted in unison.

The first thing to happen was team combat, with each battalion taking turns to send out sentries. The three sentries from different battalions engaged in a melee, with the focus on the battle between the two veteran battalions. This also served as a demonstration for the Third Battalion on how to fight small-scale skirmishes.

As soon as the competition began, some of my colleagues from the army came from outside the main camp to observe.

Seeing this, Jia Tang ordered Jia He to invite everyone up to watch the grand competition performance together.

···

In Hong County, Fengyang Prefecture, Jiangnan, on the banks of the Bian River.

The river, winding and coiling like a serpent, lies hidden in the earth, stretching for over a thousand miles. A thin white mist hangs in the air above, shimmering with golden light under the sun.

The Wuyin team of the Qingyun Exploration Team, with more than 30 members, sat around the campfire, quickly eating food and taking a short rest.

Suddenly, the two middle-aged men leaped up, swung their large hands across their waists, and sent streaks of dark light piercing through the thin mist, shooting towards the woods on one side.

"Ding~"

"Duoduo~"

The sounds of hidden weapons being deflected by sharp blades and embedding themselves in tree trunks rose one after another, incessantly.

The squad, which was resting, immediately stood up, some hiding and others forming formations, and dispersed in twos and threes.

"Tap tap~"

Footsteps sounded, and a group of thieves shrouded in black robes strolled away. The leader laughed, "You stole our things in the secret realm, and you think you can get away?"

"Our people are responsible for all the major roads and thoroughfares in Fengyang Prefecture."

The leader of the Wuyin Squad, his face grim, said, "We only took some spirit stones from the secret realm, and you're still not letting it go?"

"Ambush and kill outside the secret realm will be punished!"

The bandit leader waved his hand dismissively: "No one will know who we are, or where you all died!"

"Let's do it!"

As soon as he finished speaking, thin veils of blood-red mist appeared on the limbs of the dozen or so thieves, which were quite conspicuous in the white fog!

They were all at the fifth level of blood refinement!

Their team only has two fifth-level cultivators; they're in trouble!

The two sides clashed on the riverbank in the blink of an eye, and within the short time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the Wuyin Squad was almost completely wiped out.

The two team leaders were surrounded by four fifth-realm warriors. They tried to break through the encirclement several times but were injured instead.

The bandit leader stood aside, coldly observing the encirclement and slaughter, when he suddenly spoke up and asked, "Is Yangzhou City yours?"

The two members of the Wuyin Squad felt a chill run down their spines, and instantly realized that the other party was not there to ambush them because of the secret realm, but rather that they had been targeted by the enemy.

"What Yangzhou? We brothers have never been there. If you want to kill me, then come on up. I'll take a few of you down with me when I die."

The bandit leader shook his head and sighed, "I remember your voice. The day Lin Jia was poisoned, you shot me with a crossbow. I will never forget your voice and movements that night."

"Speak! Tell us your origins, and I'll spare your lives."