Chapter 37: Secluded Cultivation
The Eighth Prince had been assassinated in the royal city, his head even severed. The impact was far too severe. If the murderer was not found and severely punished, wouldn't anyone dare to kill royal clan members in the future?
The Yunwu Commandery King was thunderously enraged. He summoned the ten great generals guarding the royal city into the palace that very night, ordered the city gates closed, and sealed off the martial market. He would rather wrongfully arrest a hundred than let a single one escape.
"How many years has it been? Someone dares to assassinate a royal clan member in the royal city again. Their nerve is considerable." The Yunwu Commandery King let out a cold snort.
In the great hall, the ten generals felt as if a thunderclap had exploded in their ears. Their eardrums seemed about to shatter, and their bodies trembled as they immediately knelt to the ground.
Each of them commanded tens of thousands of troops, held high authority, and possessed formidable martial arts cultivation. Yet, with just a cold snort from the Yunwu Commandery King, they were all intimidated into kneeling.
There was no helping it. The Yunwu Commandery King was a Heavenly Extreme Realm powerhouse, a veritable martial arts myth. Among martial artists, he was like a "heaven" itself.
National Master Xue Jingtian stood respectfully below, saying, "Your Majesty, could this matter be related to the Moon Worship Demon Sect? In the Yunwu Commandery Kingdom, the only ones who dare oppose the royal clan are the Moon Worship Demon Sect and the Black Market."
"Although the Black Market gathers many heinous and evil figures, they generally act only when profit is involved. Killing the Eighth Prince brings no benefit at all—it doesn't match their style."
"On the other hand, the Moon Worship Demon Sect worships demon gods and acts erratically. It is entirely possible they killed the Eighth Prince to provoke the royal clan's authority."
"The Moon Worship Demon Sect?" The Yunwu Commandery King's gaze darkened.
In the Yunwu Commandery Kingdom, the most powerful force was naturally the royal clan, which commanded the realm's troops and experts, ruling the entire kingdom.
Other sects and clans were mere small households before the royal clan, utterly incomparable.
However, some forces could contend with the royal clan, such as the Inscription Guild, the Moon Worship Demon Sect, the Black Market, and the Martial Market Bank.
The Inscription Guild and the Martial Market Bank—one controlled all the alchemists, artifact refiners, beast tamers, and extraordinary individuals in the realm; the other controlled over thirty percent of the kingdom's wealth.
The Inscription Guild and the Martial Market Bank spanned the entire Kunlun Realm. A single word from them could influence the Yunwu Commandery King's decisions.
Of course, the Inscription Guild and the Martial Market Bank complemented and benefited from official forces. Under normal circumstances, they would never oppose them.
In times of peace, the Inscription Guild and the Martial Market Bank symbolically submitted to official forces, accepting a degree of management.
But when it came to core interests, everything was managed by the Inscription Guild and the Martial Market Bank themselves, and even official forces could not interfere.
The Black Market, like the Inscription Guild and the Martial Market Bank, had existed since ancient times and was entirely beyond official control.
The Black Market specialized in all kinds of filthy underground transactions, belonging to the dark side of the world.
They controlled most of the realm's assassins, prostitutes, thieves, wanted criminals, and even a large number of slave traders and dark mercenaries.
To some extent, the Black Market could rival the Martial Market Bank, wielding considerable power.
Official forces could suppress the Black Market to a degree but could never eliminate them. In some other commandery kingdoms, the Black Market even controlled the entire government and military, turning those kingdoms into dark paradises.
As for the Moon Worship Demon Sect, it was even more terrifying. They worshipped demon gods, had numerous experts, and established branches in every commandery kingdom and city, specifically opposing official forces.
They even sought to overthrow the rule of the First Central Empire and control the entire Kunlun Realm.
The Moon Worship Demon Sect would establish a headquarters in every commandery kingdom, appointing a chief. In every city under the kingdom, they set up a branch with a branch leader.
Naturally, the Moon Worship Demon Sect had a presence in the Yunwu Commandery Kingdom.
It was said that the chief of the Moon Worship Demon Sect in the Yunwu Commandery Kingdom was also a Heavenly Extreme Realm cultivator, a martial arts myth.
"If it really was the Moon Worship Demon Sect that killed the Eighth Prince, then it is definitely a threatening signal. They are testing the Yunwu Commandery Kingdom's foundations. It is possible that a large number of demon sect experts are gathering toward the Yunwu Commandery Kingdom, preparing to strike." National Master Xue Jingtian said.
The National Master was the Queen's elder brother, so he naturally knew that the Eighth Prince had been mistakenly killed by people sent by the Queen.
To prevent the Yunwu Commandery King from suspecting the Queen, he had to divert the King's attention to the Moon Worship Demon Sect.
A prince's assassination was a major event, but the Moon Worship Demon Sect was an even bigger matter.
After all, over the past eight hundred years, the Moon Worship Demon Sect had destroyed more than one commandery kingdom. To many rulers, they were like a nightmare.
If the Moon Worship Demon Sect truly planned a large-scale attack on the Yunwu Commandery Kingdom, even if other matters were more important, the Yunwu Commandery King would surely set them aside first.
Hearing the National Master's words, the Yunwu Commandery King's expression indeed turned serious.
The National Master glanced at the Yunwu Commandery King and breathed a slight sigh of relief.
He had finally diverted the King's attention. If the King ordered a thorough investigation into the Eighth Prince's death, it might actually lead back to the Queen.
"The Eighth Prince could not have been killed by the Moon Worship Demon Sect!" Zhang Ruochen said loudly as he walked in from outside the great hall.
The National Master's gaze sharpened. "Ninth Prince, do you have a different opinion?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "The Eighth Prince was riding in my carriage when he was killed on the way back to the palace. Clearly, the assassins' target was me, and the Eighth Prince was merely mistakenly killed."
The Yunwu Commandery King nodded. "Ninth Son makes sense. The Moon Worship Demon Sect always acts ostentatiously. If they truly intended to provoke the royal clan, it would not be as simple as assassinating Eighth Son. This matter must be thoroughly investigated! Additionally, to be safe, Ge Qian, you will leave the palace immediately and secretly look into the Moon Worship Demon Sect's recent movements."
"Your subordinate accepts the order!"
The Yunwu Commandery King's personal bodyguard leader, Ge Qian, cupped his hands in a bow and withdrew. He left the palace that night to investigate the Moon Worship Demon Sect.
Afterward, Zhang Ruochen and the ten generals also left the great hall.
The ten generals immediately went to investigate the Eighth Prince's death and capture the murderer.
Zhang Ruochen returned to the Yushu Palace. After checking Yun'er's injuries, he entered the inner space of the Time-Space Crystal and continued his cultivation.
"Those assassins were definitely targeting me. Tonight's events were truly perilous. If the Eighth Prince hadn't forced Yun'er to escort him back to the palace, the one who died would likely have been me. Who could it be?"
During the year-end assessment, he had performed too brilliantly, inevitably drawing jealousy.
Those within the palace were the most suspicious.
Of course, the Black Market and the Moon Worship Demon Sect were not entirely impossible. After all, the birth of a top-tier genius in the royal clan posed a considerable threat to them. The best solution was to eliminate that genius in the cradle.
"Why think so much? As long as my cultivation is strong enough, naturally no one can kill me. Besides, the Eighth Prince's assassination has caused such a huge commotion that the other party is unlikely to launch a second assassination anytime soon."
Zhang Ruochen stopped overthinking and took out a Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pill, holding it in his palm.
The Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pill was as large as a dragon's eye, like a ball of burning flame, emitting an extremely hot aura.
A third-rank pill was indeed different, containing an incredibly dense medicinal energy.
A single Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pill was worth a fifth-rank True Martial Treasure. Such a luxurious pill could only be bought in sets of seven by someone like Zhang Ruochen.
Only someone with a physique as strong as Zhang Ruochen's dared to swallow a Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pill. If an ordinary Yellow Extreme Realm mid-position martial artist tried it, they would not only fail to refine the pill but also risk being burned to death by the pill fire.
Swallowing the Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pill into his stomach felt like devouring a small blazing sun. The pain was no less than cultivating in the Barbarian God Pool.
"Sizzle, sizzle!"
Threads of pill fire and medicinal energy surged from the Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pill, burrowing into Zhang Ruochen's meridians, flesh, blood, bones, and five viscera, continuously tempering his body.
It took a full three days for Zhang Ruochen to completely refine the pill fire from the Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pill. His physical strength increased significantly. Moreover, the true qi in his qi pool had doubled.
In these three days, Zhang Ruochen had only fully refined the pill fire; only thirty percent of the medicinal energy had been refined.
Another five days passed, and Zhang Ruochen completely refined all the medicinal energy from the Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pill. The true qi in his qi pool increased further.
"At this rate, after refining two more Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pills, I can perfect the true qi in my qi pool and reach the peak of the Yellow Extreme Realm mid-position."
The Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pill's primary function was not to enhance true qi but to temper the body.
Yet, the pill was so extraordinary that while tempering his body, it also significantly increased Zhang Ruochen's true qi volume.
Zhang Ruochen did not rush to refine a second Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pill. The pill's medicinal power was too violent. Taking them consecutively would be too much even for his strong physique.
"First, practice drawing basic space inscriptions!"
Zhang Ruochen took out his inscription brush and spirit paper, infused true qi into the brush, and repeatedly drew on the spirit paper.
He practiced for an entire day, wasting over one hundred and thirty sheets of spirit paper, without successfully drawing a single inscription.
He was not discouraged and continued practicing and drawing.
Over the next month, Zhang Ruochen stayed almost entirely within the inner space of the Time-Space Crystal, going out only once every three days.
The rest of his time was mostly spent cultivating the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm, the Heavenly Heart Sword Technique, and practicing drawing the eight basic space inscriptions.
One month in the outside world equaled three months in the inner space of the Time-Space Crystal.
In those three months, Zhang Ruochen refined three Heaven Elephant Crimson Fire Pills, finally perfecting the true qi in his qi pool and reaching the peak of the Yellow Extreme Realm mid-position. He could now begin to assault the Yellow Extreme Realm great position.
"With my current physique, it is not far from my previous life. After all, in my previous life, I broke through to the Yellow Extreme Realm great position at the age of six." Zhang Ruochen said.
Zhang Ruochen prepared to begin his assault on the Yellow Extreme Realm great position.
"I wonder how many meridians I can open? In my previous life, at the Yellow Extreme Realm great position, I opened twenty-seven meridians. Can I surpass that in this life?"
Zhang Ruochen's gaze became utterly resolute. No matter what, he had to succeed.