As usual, after completing his morning training and Daoist breathing exercises, Jiang Wang sent Jiang An'an off to school, then made his way outside the city to see Du Yehu off.
In these times, embarking on a long journey was no simple affair—it was always tinged with the sorrow of possible farewell forever.
Humans clustered in villages, towns, and cities not out of mere habit, but largely due to the ever-present threat of wild beasts—vicious and plentiful—some even possessing demonic or monstrous traits, lurking in the mountains and wilderness.
Towns and cities were safe; outside of them, only the official roads offered relative security. Not that the formations carved into the official roads were flawless—Zhuang Court neither could nor would commit that much effort. In truth, most of these formations served more as deterrents.
A more effective strategy was that the Zhuang Court regularly dispatched powerful cultivators to patrol and clear these routes—a process officially referred to as "plowing the ground"—ensuring that even the most instinctively sharp but unintelligent beasts would learn to fear these paths and stay away.
Given Du Yehu's strength, he would be relatively safe as long as he stuck to the official roads.
When Jiang Wang arrived at the city outskirts, Zhao Rucheng and Ling He were already there—no one else. Among their group of brothers, Du Yehu was the most outgoing and had the most friends, but he disliked sentimental goodbyes. So, he hadn't informed the others of his departure, entrusting Ling He to spread the word afterward.
They had set up a small table of food and wine on the open field—clearly Zhao Rucheng's doing.
Jiang Wang pulled out a copy of the Four Sacred Beasts Body Refinement Manual, transcribed overnight, and handed it to Du Yehu.
Du Yehu's eyes lit up after reading just two pages. "Third Brother, this is a gem!"
"Let me see! Let me see!" Zhao Rucheng leaned over in curiosity.
After reading a few lines, he turned away. "Body refinement? That sounds exhausting."
"This is an amazing technique!" Du Yehu shook his head in disappointment. "If you read a bit more, you wouldn't want to let it go."
It was obvious at a glance that this was a complete and enhanced version of the White Tiger Body Refinement Technique, yet Du Yehu didn't ask where Jiang Wang got it from. If Jiang Wang wanted to tell them, he would. Everyone has their secrets—even Jiang An'an had her little secrets she wouldn't share. There was no need to dig.
Nor did Du Yehu intend to keep it to himself. He had already fallen in love with the technique and hoped his brothers could benefit from it too.
Zhao Rucheng waved him off. "Too long, didn't read."
Du Yehu turned to Ling He, who shook his head. "I'm focused on stabilizing my Tongtian Palace through vein opening right now. I can't be distracted by other techniques."
Ling He was steady and methodical. With their combined Dao Merits, they were only about twenty points away from meeting the next threshold. Lately, he had been doing missions to accumulate more, though those requiring higher rank were tough for him. He often had to tag along with senior disciples and do side tasks, earning just a point or two at a time—sometimes none at all. Still, step by step, he was getting closer to the transcendent realm.
Jiang Wang smiled. "I'll also use this method to refine my body. When we meet again, we'll see who has progressed further."
"My swordsmanship can't match yours, but when it comes to a warrior's path... just you wait!" Du Yehu grinned with confidence.
"Then it's settled—see you in Xin'an!"
"See you in Xin'an."
For Jiang Wang and the others, their arrival in Xin'an would mark the beginning of their time at the National Dao Academy. For Du Yehu, it would take becoming a high-ranking officer in the Nine Rivers Black Armor Army before he could step onto the martial field in Zhuangdu.
All their grand visions for the future were spoken like casual banter among young friends.
The brothers ate and chatted briefly. Except for Ling He, who never drank, the remaining three each downed three large bowls of wine in farewell. No one shed a tear.
Then, Du Yehu raised a bowl of wine to the southwest, but said nothing—he simply poured it out.
Everyone knew who he was bidding farewell to.
Du Yehu would leave through the South Gate, via the official road. The path to the Green Willow River lay southwest.
The Nine Rivers Black Armor recruitment was supported by both the Ministry of War and the Dao Academy. This army was considered the pride of the Zhuang Kingdom, so his departure from the City Dao Academy required minimal formalities.
All that needed to be said had already been said. Even the longest journey must end in parting.
"I'm off!"
And with that, Du Yehu hoisted his bundle and set off, empty-handed.
At that moment, there was no wind, no rain. The clouds parted.
And autumn was nearly over.
Lin Zhenglun, a member of the secondary branch of the Lin Clan in Wangjiang City, had recently become the center of attention.
He had first drawn laughter by marrying a widow—but remained unbothered, and the marriage turned out to be a loving one. Not long after, he broke into the medicinal herb market of Maple Forest City. In business-savvy Wangjiang, that earned him considerable respect and enabled him to start consolidating control over the Lin Clan's internal herb trade.
It looked like a case of a side branch rising to prominence—a sparrow turning into a phoenix.
Only then did people realize the widow he married wasn't so simple. She had brought a generous dowry: the most reputable herb shop in all of Fengxi Town.
Everyone knew that the medicinal trade in Maple Forest City depended on Fengxi's harvests. And in Fengxi Town, the Jiang family's herb shop had long held sway. Of course, now it bore the Lin name.
Back when the Lin Clan struggled to gain a foothold in Maple Forest's herb trade, no one expected Lin Zhenglun to find such a clever breakthrough—through marriage. Many now regretted not realizing it sooner, especially since the widow was also a beauty, never mind her financial assets.
In the famed Wangjiang Tower, overlooking the vast expanse of the Qing River, Lin Zhenglun sat in the main seat, drinking with newly acquired friends. He basked in the waves of flattery from those around him, thoroughly pleased with himself.
Thud—thud—thud!
The sound of footsteps ascending the stairs rang out clearly. Lin Zhenglun turned, ready to scold whoever dared intrude—hadn't he reserved the entire floor?
At a glance, everyone in the room stood up.
"Young Master Lin!"
"Young Master Lin!"
There were many young masters surnamed Lin, but only one could cause such a reaction among so many notable figures: Lin Zhengli, the direct son of the Lin Clan patriarch and the clan's confirmed future leader.
Lin Zhenglun instinctively began to rise but forced himself to remain seated. He smiled and said, "Brother Zhengli, what brings you to Wangjiang Tower today? I've reserved this whole floor—please, make yourselves at home. All expenses are on me."
Yes, technically, he was this young master's elder. In the past, status had kept him silent, but now with real achievements to his name and stepping into the core of the clan's affairs, it was only proper to assert some seniority.
Though he couldn't compete with Lin Zhengli for succession, having gained control of the clan's medicinal business, he now had a legitimate voice.
His words drew chuckles from the young lords behind Lin Zhengli—sons of noble families. Even if Lin Zhenglun didn't understand why they laughed, he couldn't say anything.
Lin Zhengli, however, was calm and respectful. He even gave a formal salute. "No need to be so polite, Brother Zhenglun."
Under Lin Zhenglun's warm invitation, Lin Zhengli took a seat and smiled. "We rarely get the chance to talk. Since we've met today, I have something to discuss with you."
Lin Zhenglun looked around smugly, as if to say: See how much the future clan head respects me?But he said humbly, "You're too kind. Speak freely. I may be older, but perhaps I have a little life experience worth sharing."
"Good, then." Lin Zhengli smiled. "Have you secured the medicinal market in Maple Forest?"
The question hit his sweet spot. Lin Zhenglun laughed heartily. "With me on the job, how could it fail? Just watch—in a couple of years, the entire region's herb trade will bear the Lin name!"
"Excellent, excellent," Lin Zhengli nodded. "In that case, Brother, you can rest easy and retire to Autumn Garden."
"That's right!" Lin Zhenglun responded reflexively, then froze. "W-what?!"
Autumn Garden sounded pleasant, but it was actually where the clan sent elderly or idle relatives. Lin Zhenglun was still in his prime—how could he be asked to retire?
"Brother Zhengli, that's not a funny joke," he forced a laugh.
But Lin Zhengli's smile faded. "I don't joke. I'll be taking over the herb business myself."
The sons of nobles behind him chuckled again—softly, but each laugh felt heavy.
The autumn wind swept over the Qing River and into the Wangjiang Tower, brushing past Lin Zhenglun.
That was when he realized—he couldn't resist.
He finally felt the chill.
So it was already deep autumn, he thought.