Chapter 295 - 185: Dealings

Chapter 295: Chapter 185: Dealings

With that, she leaped out of Su Mu’s arms again and quickly ran off.

This time, she didn’t come back.

She left the four maids—Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, and Chrysanthemum—staring at each other in bewilderment.

’Did our lady just marry herself off?’

’What about the four of us?’

"Alright, stop indulging your lady’s antics. Go on home."

Su Mu said lightly, waving his hand.

The four maids knew this had all been a huge misunderstanding. They hastily bowed to Su Mu, then gathered their skirts and hurried after Luo Anning.

Under the moonlight, Su Mu watched their retreating figures disappear, shaking his head with a smile. His gaze fell upon the object in his hand.

"A return gift for the Xiaoxiang Rebirth Technique? That’s Miss Luo for you."

A smile played on Su Mu’s lips. He had already figured out the reason for Luo Anning’s visit.

The four maids, plus the thing she had stuffed into his hand before leaving—it was because he had given her the Xiaoxiang Rebirth Technique outside the city. Miss Luo had come to return the favor.

’Only, Miss Luo probably never expected she’d end up throwing herself into the bargain.’

Su Mu was no monk. While he wouldn’t deliberately chase women, he wouldn’t intentionally refuse a good one either.

A man’s ambition: to wield power over the world by day and rest his head on a beauty’s lap by night.

If both he and Luo Anning weren’t still short of Rebirth Perfection, he would have devoured her long ago.

For a Martial Artist, losing one’s virginity too early is detrimental to cultivation.

Once one reaches Nascent Soul Realm Perfection, it’s no longer an issue.

It was just a matter of waiting a little longer. Su Mu could endure that.

’Bridesmaids as part of the dowry... the ancients really knew how to live.’

Su Mu muttered to himself, feeling a faint warmth spread through him.

Pushing the lustful thoughts from his mind, Su Mu stroked the object Luo Anning had pressed into his hands.

It was a Jade Pendant, the size of his palm. It was smooth and warm to the touch, but holding it sent waves of coolness surging into his body.

Su Mu was very familiar with this feeling.

A Gathering Spirit Stone.

Luo Anning’s return gift actually included a palm-sized Gathering Spirit Stone.

Although this Gathering Spirit Stone couldn’t compare to the one he already possessed, it was still incredibly valuable.

Su Mu knew the value of Gathering Spirit Stones. A piece the size of a fingertip was worth a fortune in gold, and it was the kind of treasure that had a price but no market.

A Gathering Spirit Stone the size of a palm would be considered a family heirloom, even for the City Lord’s Family.

This might be the most precious thing the Luo Family could offer, aside from their cherished daughter herself.

He wondered how Miss Luo had convinced her father to part with it for him.

If it were anyone else, Su Mu might have suspected ulterior motives—an attempt to use a small stake to win a big prize.

But with Luo Anning, Su Mu didn’t think she was that calculating.

When they first met, Su Mu hadn’t yet shown his current level of talent, but Luo Anning was already investing in him back then.

Later, when Su Mu became a Taiping Capital Captain, Luo Anning’s investment had seemingly come to nothing.

After that, when Luo Anning gave Su Mu things, it was purely for the sake of the Taiping Bureau, or one could even say, for the greater good.

She never thought about getting anything in return from Su Mu.

’Luo Anning giving me a Gathering Spirit Stone was probably just a case of her being fabulously wealthy...’

Su Mu couldn’t help but chuckle. He secured the Gathering Spirit Stone Jade Pendant close to his body and turned back toward his courtyard.

「The night passed uneventfully.」

Early the next morning, when Su Mu arrived at the Taiping Government Office, Xu Chongyuan and several other Taiping Captains were already waiting.

Besides Xu Chongyuan, Zhao Poni had also arranged for five other Taiping Captains to accompany them.

Even if he hadn’t been on a mission with all of the Taiping Captains from the Wuling Taiping Bureau, Su Mu had become familiar with most of them by sight.

These five Taiping Captains were no strangers, and one of them was particularly familiar.

He greeted everyone one by one, finally smiling as he said, "Congratulations, Senior Brother Zhong, on your promotion to Taiping Captain."

The very familiar Taiping Captain was none other than Zhong Guizheng.

Back then, he and Zhong Guizheng were both Taiping Capital Captains under Lin Qi Huan, but Su Mu had surpassed him, getting promoted to Taiping Captain much earlier.

When Su Mu first became a Taiping Capital Captain, Zhong Guizheng was already at Perfection in blood-swapping. Later, he even comprehended the Gen Mountain Realm. His promotion to Taiping Captain now was a natural progression.

"My promotion was late, and my strength doesn’t compare to yours. You should be calling me junior brother now."

A look of embarrassment flashed across Zhong Guizheng’s honest face as he spoke.

In terms of seniority or strength, he didn’t feel worthy of being called "senior brother" by Su Mu.

"Alright, cut the pleasantries. By that logic, we’d all have to call him senior brother. Who in the Wuling Taiping Bureau can beat him now?"

Xu Chongyuan said, "We’re older than him, so there’s nothing wrong with him calling us senior brother."

"Senior Brother Xu is right."

Su Mu laughed. The "senior brother" and "junior brother" titles were meant to foster closeness, not to establish a hierarchy.

"Senior Brother Xu, everyone’s here. Shall we set off?"

Su Mu asked, looking at Xu Chongyuan.

"I’ll accept you calling me senior brother, but you’re in charge of this mission."

Xu Chongyuan chuckled. "You’re a Fifth-Grade Captain, and we’re all sixth-grade. You give the orders. Wherever you say to strike, we’ll strike."

Xu Chongyuan might joke around, but he never dropped the ball when it came to official business.

"In that case, Senior Brothers, let’s go."

Su Mu didn’t refuse, stepping up to the role without hesitation.

......

In a courtyard, the four maids—Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, and Chrysanthemum—gathered around Luo Anning.

"My Lady, are you really not going to see Captain Su off?"

Mei Jian couldn’t help but ask.

"I’m not going."

Luo Anning said, "You all stand guard outside. Don’t let anyone disturb me. I’m going to cultivate."

’I’m about to break through to the Rebirth Realm.’

’But Rebirth Perfection is still a long way off. I have to work harder!’

......

「In the Wuling Inspection Bureau.」

CREAK. A door opened.

Wu Yiqi walked out.

"Sir, you succeeded?"

Wu Qiuyuan, who had been waiting outside, hurried to greet him.

The dark circles under Wu Qiuyuan’s eyes hadn’t faded yet, making him look somewhat comical.

Ever since the Taiping Bureau asserted its dominance, the Inspection Bureau’s days of prestige were over. He was now idle to the point of panic.

In fact, he hadn’t enjoyed more than a few days of prestige at the Inspection Bureau before he started getting beaten up all the time.

"Yes."

Wu Yiqi nodded. "I’ve awakened a Physical Divine Technique, and I’ve broken through to the True Essence Realm."

His eyes gleamed with fighting spirit as he asked in a low voice, "Is Su Mu in the city?"

"Captain Su seems to have left the city on a mission."

Wu Qiuyuan said, "Sir, now that you’ve broken through, can we be transferred out of Wuling?"

He had joined the Inspection Bureau to make a name for himself, but it was now clear that wasn’t going to happen in Wuling.

"Why would we transfer?"

Wu Yiqi shook his head. "I’m staying here to challenge Su Mu to a duel when he returns.

"If you don’t want to stay in Wuling, a letter came from above a few days ago. The Inspection Bureau in Liang Province is short-staffed. You can go there to help."

"Thank you, Sir!"

Wu Qiuyuan said, overjoyed.

Liang Province bordered the desolate wilderness, and it was said that many Demon Investigators from the Demon Court had been discovered there. The Inspection Bureau acted on behalf of the heavens; if he could uncover a few Demon Investigators, he could surely accumulate merits, earn a promotion, and realize his ambitions.

Most importantly, by leaving Wuling, he would never have to see Su Mu and Xu Chongyuan again.

His experiences with those two were filled with unpleasant memories, and he never wanted to see either of them again!

......

Before Liang Jinglue lay a sand table.

The eight-hundred-li Daxing Mountain lay like a great dragon between the desolate wilderness and the Da Xuan Dynasty.

If the Demon Court wanted to conquer Da Xuan, their only option was to invade through Liang Province, south of Daxing Mountain. From there, they would have to circumvent the mountains and fight their way north to the Da Xuan Capital City.

Alternatively, if they could cross directly through Daxing Mountain, they could emerge in Jingzhou and head east, reaching the Capital City after crossing only two provinces.

The distance was immeasurably shorter than the southern detour.

However, the terrain of Daxing Mountain was treacherous, and it was home to many powerful demonic beasts that did not heed the Demon Court’s command. Moving a large army through it would be no easy task.

"Previously, Demon Investigator 007 sent back a message reporting the discovery of a pass through Daxing Mountain."

Liang Jinglue mused, "But 007 never returned. I don’t know if this path is real or not. We can’t wait for him. We must dispatch another team of Demon Investigators to retrace 007’s route and verify it. If it is truly passable, then I can create a diversion while moving my troops in secret.

"Just when Da Xuan thinks the Demon Court is about to attack Liang Province, they will never imagine that our grand army will suddenly appear in Jingzhou!"