In the inn, Miao Youfang let out a satisfied yet pained sigh.

Since following Xu Qi An—his nominal master but actual teacher—the latter had been helping him collect herbs to temper his physical body.

And teaching him unique qi circulation methods to aid his advancement.

After daily medicinal baths, enduring pain like burning fire and corroding acid while silently circulating qi, he finally crossed the threshold, advancing to Sixth Rank Bronze Skin Iron Bones.

He stood up from the bath, examining himself. His bronze-colored skin surface flickered with a faint divine light.

His strength and senses had improved significantly, and his qi was much more vigorous, but what delighted this martial artist most was his now weapon-proof physique.

There was a saying in the jianghu: “Sixth Rank county magistrate, Fifth Rank prefect, Fourth Rank marquis.”

Using official positions to describe martial artist ranks, a Sixth Rank could dominate a country, without even the government not daring to provoke them.

A Fifth Rank could strut about proudly in a prefecture.

The Fourth Rank referred to those who could rule like a feudal lord over a region.

Of course, this saying only applied to dominance in the jianghu, not involving the imperial court.

Miao Youfang looked down—in the wild grass, that salted fish gleamed with divine light, like a peerless divine spear.

He exclaimed with delight:

“Well, well, just as I expected.”

“From now on, with my spear sweeping across the land, won’t the ladies be crying for their parents… Hey, Brother Li, you must be envious, right?”

“Only martial artists can deal with martial artists.”

Li Lingsu glanced at him and said flatly:

“An embroidery needle is still an embroidery needle, no matter how hard it gets.”

“Oh, you think you can make the ladies hurt a bit more?”

Miao Youfang flew into a rage, straightening his waist: “Want to compare?”

Li Lingsu crossed his legs and sneered: “I only show mine to beauties, I won’t lower myself to compete with an embroidery needle.”

At this moment, Xu Qi An pushed open the door, swept his gaze over them, and said expressionlessly:

“Pack up, we’re leaving Jiang Province.”

These two clowns… Xu Qi An muttered in his heart as he turned to leave.

He wasn’t in the best mood, having not expected that Jiang Province, as a provincial capital, would only have scattered dragon qi hosts.

……

Yu Province.

Xiang, Jing, and Yu provinces bordered the Yan Nation. Following the principle of proximity, Nalan Tianlu first “gathered” dragon qi hosts from these three provinces.

His decision was undoubtedly correct. After some time collecting, they gathered eight dragon qi hosts in Xiang Province and two in Yu Province.

On the highest floor of the city’s finest restaurant, in the “Heaven” private room.

Dong Fang Wanrong, wearing a low-cut peach-red dress that exposed her snow-white chest, sat sideways on a couch drinking tea.

The door opened, and her sister Dong Fang Wanqing, identical in appearance but with a cool temperament, stepped over the threshold, accepting the tea her sister handed over while saying:

“Caught a spy, or more accurately, he came to me voluntarily.”

Dong Fang Wanrong’s delicate eyebrows raised in surprise:

“A spy from the Great Feng court?”

Dong Fang Wanqing shook her head: “He claims to be from the Heaven’s Mechanics Palace.”

Heaven’s Mechanics Palace… Dong Fang Wanrong frowned slightly, unfamiliar with the name.

At this moment, an elderly, gentle voice transmitted in her mind: “Let him in.”

While relaying their teacher’s order, Dong Fang Wanrong asked in her mind:

“Teacher, you know of the Heaven’s Mechanics Palace?”

After a few seconds, Nalan Tianlu answered:

“An intelligence organization established by a Second Rank Artificer. They’re spread throughout the Central Plains and even the Nine Provinces. During the Shanhai Pass Battle, this organization played a crucial role.”

“Wei Yuan suffered greatly because of them back then.”

Dong Fang Wanrong grew more confused: “A Second Rank Artificer, yet standing against Great Feng?”

In her impression, artificers were synonymous with the Celestial Observatory, which belonged to the Great Feng court.

Nalan Tianlu sighed:

“The Shanhai Pass Battle was essentially an outbreak of increasingly intense conflicts between various forces in the Nine Provinces continent. But if not for two people’s persuasion and instigation, it might have been delayed by over a decade.”

“Of those two people, one was the Heavenly Poison Elder, leader of the Poison Sect, and the other was this Second Rank Artificer.”

The Second Rank Artificer and the Poison Sect worked together to promote the Shanhai Pass Battle. Dong Fang Wanrong heard this inside story for the first time, both amazed and bewildered:

“Why did that Second Rank Artificer do this?”

Nalan Tianlu said slowly: “Of course, to replace the Observatory Master and advance to First Rank.”

Replace the Observatory Master… Dong Fang Wanrong suddenly understood:

“No wonder you want to meet the spy. That Second Rank Artificer could be a potential ally.”

Nalan Tianlu snorted:

“A temporary ally at best. He’s an extremely dangerous character. I was trapped in the Pagoda for twenty years, and upon returning to the world, he had already made Great Feng such a mess.”

“The greatest beneficiaries of the Shanhai Pass Battle, besides the Buddhist sect, were he and the Heavenly Poison Elder. Although Great Feng won, half their national fortune was stolen. If it were just that, things wouldn’t have fallen to this state.”

“But that person schemed for twenty years, eliminating the Northern Marquis and Wei Yuan one after another. The Northern Marquis was one thing, but when Wei Yuan died, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.”

Nalan Tianlu suddenly fell silent, and Dong Fang Wanrong looked toward the door.

Creeak~ The door opened again, and Dong Fang Wanqing led in a mysterious person wearing a cloak and hood.

“Greetings to both Palace Lords. I am ‘Wind’, a Heaven’s Mechanics Palace spy responsible for Yu Province territory.”

A deliberately hoarse male voice came from under the hood: “Please allow me to introduce, the Heaven’s Mechanics Palace…”

Dong Fang Wanrong coldly interrupted: “Get to the point.”

Spy “Wind” was silent for two seconds, then laughed: “I see the Great Palace Lord already knows our background.”

He reached into his robes, took out a letter, and presented it with both hands.

Dong Fang Wanrong beckoned, and the envelope automatically flew into her hand and then opened.

After about ten seconds, she placed the paper on the table and smiled:

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

Spy “Wind” bowed:

“The Great Palace Lord is wise. The Young Master also said that when encountering Xu Qi An, avoid if possible and wait for opportunities.”

“Heh, dragon qi has the characteristic of mutual attraction. As we collect more dragon qi, all factions will inevitably meet. When that time comes, we can plan greater things together.”

After a pause, he said:

“Next, I have intelligence to share with both Palace Lords.”

“Of the nine crucial dragon qi, Xu Qi An has obtained three: from Lei Province, Xiang Province in Zhang Province, and the wandering knight Miao Youfang from Qing Province.”

“Yong Province has none of the nine dragon qi hosts.”

“Currently, we know Yu Province has one, and Yun Province has none. Of Great Feng’s thirteen provinces, only Jiang Province, the northeastern Xiang, Jing, and Yu provinces, Jian Province, Chu Province, and the capital territory remain. The remaining five dragon qi are distributed among these six provinces.”

In Great Feng’s official administrative divisions, the capital was also considered a province.

“Xiang Province has none!”

Dong Fang Wanrong shook her head.

Spy “Wind,” said: “Then Jing and Yu provinces must have one, or even two if they haven’t been intercepted by Sun Xuanji of the Celestial Observatory.”

“I understand,” Dong Fang Wanrong said.

Spy “Wind” nodded and continued:

“After the Palace Lords finish with the three northeastern provinces, what remains are Jiang, Jian, and Chu provinces. We and Xu Qi An will likely clash in one of these three.”

“Is the Spirit Wisdom Master of the Witch God Cult nearby?”

He tactfully hinted that without transcendent realm strength, one couldn’t get involved in battles at this level.

Dong Fang Wanrong smiled sweetly: “No need to worry about that.”

……

Yu Province.

Xu Yuanshuang extended her arm, letting the carrier pigeon land on her forearm. She extracted the small note from the thin bamboo tube tied to the pigeon’s leg.

After unfolding and reading it carefully, a slight smile appeared on her delicate face. She turned and said:

“The Azure Dragon Seven Mansions have captured that dragon qi host in Yu Province. Though there were some complications and he nearly escaped several times.”

“But with preparation beating spontaneity, plus assistance from Heaven’s Mechanics Palace spies, and the Seven Mansions’ strength, it was ultimately successful despite the close calls.”

It was one of the nine crucial dragon qi.

Liu Hongmian and the others sighed in relief. Ji Xuan smiled: “Next, we should contact the two Vajra.”

……

In Qing Province, near Yun Province, Jingxin and Jingyuan had walked thousands of miles, finally meeting with Vajra Dunan and Dufan at an abandoned temple in a county on Qing Province’s border.

The Vajras wore cloaks and hoods to conceal their dark golden skin.

“Master! Uncle Master!”

“Respected Uncles!”

Jingxin and Jingyuan clasped their hands in greeting.

Jingxin detailed everything that happened after their capture to the two Vajras:

“Xu Qi An released us as promised.”

At this point, even as a Chan master, he could no longer call that person Buddha’s Son.

His heart was wrapped in resentment.

“Three years…”

Vajra Dufan sighed: “Fortunately, the Asura King’s son has returned to his position.”

Even the Buddhist sect couldn’t afford to lose a Second Rank Arhat.

Jingxin and Jingyuan were overjoyed.

The latter asked: “Master, Uncle, what are you doing here?”

Vajra Dunan said slowly: “An avatar of Bodhisattva Karura is in the Hidden Dragon City of Yun Province. We might receive orders soon. We two are waiting here for messengers.”

Jingxin asked puzzledly: “Why not go in?”

Vajra Dufan said in a deep voice: “The Observatory Master is watching Yun Province.”

Jingxin and Jingyuan exchanged shocked glances.

……

Ten days later, Jiang Province City.

After wandering about, Xu Qi An had covered all of Jiang Province, returning to this provincial capital.

He had caught all the dragon qi hosts in Jiang Province but still hadn’t found one of the nine crucial dragon qi hosts.

“If Jiang Province’s dragon qi host is a wandering knight, they might have traveled elsewhere by now, just like Miao Youfang.”

Xu Qi An led his mare, walking with Miao Youfang and Li Lingsu toward the porridge stalls set up outside the city.

A long line had formed there, with poorly dressed commoners and refugees holding broken bowls and bamboo tubes, waiting for porridge distribution.

City defense troops maintained order roughly, readily scolding and beating the crowding poor.

Though the method was crude, it did maintain stability.

And those suffering from cold and hunger, though their faces still showed numbness and pain, had light in their eyes when looking at the porridge stalls.

Honestly, Emperor Yongxing’s disaster relief measures greatly improved Xu Qi An’s opinion of him.

Great Feng had reached a point where most local officials only paid lip service while secretly defying orders. When a dynasty reaches a certain level of corruption, it’s not something an emperor alone can change or even the capital’s master.

Difficulty in implementing policies had always been the biggest headache for all dynasties.

According to Huaiqing, Emperor Yongxing had adopted Xu Erniang’s suggestion, dispatching all capital censors to supervise various provinces, giving provincial governors authority to execute first and report later.

Each governor was also assigned a white-robed artificer for supervision.

As everyone knew, white-robed artificers were famously proud and wealthy, greatly reducing the likelihood of collaborative corruption.

But because low-ranked artificers were weak, to prevent governors from succumbing to temptation and silencing witnesses, the court added an iron rule:

If the artificer dies, the governor faces execution.

As for local officials, the court encouraged neighboring counties to monitor and report on each other.

Once verified, the informant would be promoted to one rank, while the reported official would be dismissed or executed depending on the severity.

There were many other policies to prevent officials from embezzling relief grain, such as “if chopsticks float, heads will roll” for the porridge pots.

As for dealing with those who posed as refugees to claim relief grain, the crafty Prime Minister Wang’s solution was:

Seven parts rice, two parts chaff, one part sand.

These measures still couldn’t eliminate corruption, but they had a significant deterrent effect.

Li Lingsu looked at the porridge stalls and smiled: “Although compared to the disasters across the Central Plains, the court’s efforts have limited effect, at least it’s given people hope.”

Miao Youfang, unusually, didn’t argue, watching the scene with gentle eyes.

The group entered the city, planning to rest for a night before heading to Jian Province next.

……

At night.

Xu Qi An moved the candle from the round table to the desk, spread out the inn’s provided paper, and wrote:

“Xiang, Jing, Yu, Jian, Chu.”

Mu Nanzhi came over hugging her little white fox, peeked at it, and asked: “Where are all these places?”

“Don’t you read the ‘Great Feng Geographic Records’ every day?” Xu Qi An asked back.

“I forget right after reading, who remembers that stuff?” Mu Nanzhi pouted.

Female academic underachiever… Xu Qi An thought privately.

If this woman lived in his era, she’d probably have two paths:

One: Marry a rich boss as a trophy wife, using her transcendent beauty.

Two: Enter entertainment, becoming a B-movie queen who never quite makes it big.

Why wouldn’t she make it big? Because the Flower Goddess reincarnation wasn’t the type to endure hardship.

Xu Qi An didn’t have many expectations of her though. Apart from being overly proud, she was essentially kind-hearted, reasonable when it mattered, and wouldn’t drag him down.

For a woman to be willing to wander the jianghu with you was already the most precious quality in Xu Qi An’s view.

“The remaining six dragon qi are basically in these places.”

Xu Qi An stroked his chin, analyzing for her: “But we can’t judge whether forces like the Witch God Cult, Buddhist sect, and Hidden Dragon City have picked the fruit early.”

Mu Nanzhi nodded solemnly, her expression serious, like a good student paying attention in class.

“If they got one of the nine dragon qi, they’d immediately return to their base—that’s the most troublesome situation.”

She asked anxiously: “Then what should we do?”

“There’s no solution,” Xu Qi An shook his head: “My bottom line is losing two crucial dragon qi, making up for it by accumulating scattered dragon qi.”

Mu Nanzhi immediately frowned: “Then how can we compete with them?”

Xu Qi An smiled:

“No rush. I carry half the national fortune, so my chances of encountering dragon qi are higher than theirs. If I haven’t encountered any, they certainly haven’t either. At most, they might find one or two.”

“I have a feeling that Jian Province will have one of the nine dragon qi hosts.”

Just then, he sensed something and took out his sound transmission conch.

“At—”

Just as Sun Xuanji’s voice began, Xu Qi An quickly answered:

“At Lai Fu Inn in Jiang Province City, third floor facing east, third room.”

The other end fell into prolonged silence.

Xu Qi An waited patiently for an hour. Finally, clear light rose from beside the bed, weaving into a young man in white robes, of average height and ordinary features.

“Senior Brother Sun, what’s the matter?”

As he spoke, he respectfully offered paper and brush.

If it could be done, he’d never let Senior Brother Sun talk.

Sun Xuanji took the brush resignedly and wrote:

“Dragon qi intelligence summary!”

After a pause, he wrote again: “I’ve discovered something strange.”