# Chapter 136: The Wind Rises Before the Storm
"Who exactly are these black-clothed men?" Zhang Shaochu asked.
Zhang Ruochen looked up the mountain path. All twenty black-clothed men had been killed, and the air was thick with the heavy smell of blood.
"No survivors?" Zhang Ruochen frowned slightly.
Zhang Shaochu sighed. "We kept one alive, but he took poison and killed himself."
With only Zhang Shaochu's strength alone, naturally he couldn't have killed twenty powerful black-clothed men. Thirteen of them had been killed by Xiao Hei.
Looking at the bodies scattered across the ground, Zhang Shaochu couldn't help but shiver. When he looked at Xiao Hei again, there was more fear in his heart.
That cat was far too strong. Its strength wasn't much weaker than Ninth Brother's.
"Search them first. See if there are any clues on their bodies," Zhang Ruochen said.
Zhang Shaochu immediately went to search the twenty corpses, hoping to find some clues.
Zhang Ruochen picked up one of the purple broadswords from the ground, infused his true qi into it, and examined it. "A fifth-rank True Martial Treasure, with twenty-two inscription patterns total, worth one hundred thousand silver coins. Hmm! Not bad!"
He stored the purple broadsword into his space ring.
"Ninth Brother, aside from weapons, these people only have some healing pills on them. Other than that, there's nothing to prove their identity." Zhang Shaochu had found dozens of bottles of healing pills, along with a large pile of True Martial Treasure-level weapons and crossbows.
"These pills and weapons should sell for several hundred thousand silver coins as well." Zhang Ruochen used his space ring to collect all the pills and weapons.
This time, Zhang Shaochu saw it clearly. Those pills and weapons were all taken into a ring.
He thought he had seen wrong and rubbed his eyes. When he looked again, the pills and weapons had indeed all disappeared.
"A space treasure?" Zhang Shaochu exclaimed in surprise.
"Fourth Brother, when your cultivation reaches the Earth Extreme Realm, I can give you a space treasure too," Zhang Ruochen said seriously. "But for now, you must keep this secret for me."
Zhang Shaochu naturally understood the value of a space treasure. He quickly patted his chest. "Ninth Brother, rest assured. Even if I'm beaten to death, I will never speak of it."
Then a smile appeared on his face. "Ninth Brother, when I reach the Earth Extreme Realm, will you really give me a space treasure?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "When your cultivation reaches the Earth Extreme Realm, you'll be among the top experts and have the ability to protect yourself. Of course I can give you a space treasure. But let's not talk about that now. We must leave here immediately. I suspect that the people chasing Liu Chuanshen aren't just this one group. There are other experts too."
The two of them mounted their barbarian beasts and rushed toward Tianyue Pass at top speed.
"We must reach Tianyue Pass before dark. Once we enter Tianyue Pass, we can mobilize some troops to escort us back to the royal capital," Zhang Shaochu said.
Not long after Zhang Ruochen and Zhang Shaochu left, two more groups of black-clothed men arrived at the mountain path where the battle had occurred.
"Half an hour ago, there was a fierce battle here. Green Peak Branch Leader and twenty sect members were completely wiped out. This matter must be reported to the General Leader immediately." One of the black-clothed men, who appeared quite gaunt, stood by the cliff's edge and spoke in an aged voice.
"Could it be that experts from the Martial Market Bank have already arrived in Yunwu Commandery and rescued Liu Chuanshen?" a young black-clothed man asked.
"It shouldn't be experts from the Martial Market Bank. They couldn't have arrived that quickly."
The older man carefully examined the traces on the ground. "The ones who rescued Liu Chuanshen should be two people. They were riding second-rank barbarian beasts. Look at the hoof prints on the ground—they're heading toward Tianyue Pass."
"They went to Tianyue Pass?"
"That should be correct." The old man said, "Pursue them immediately. We might still intercept them on the road."
"Going to Tianyue Pass is walking right into a trap!"
Both groups of black-clothed men chased toward Tianyue Pass at the same time.
Since Zhang Ruochen and Zhang Shaochu were both princes, after entering Tianyue Pass, they immediately went to the City Lord's Mansion.
Then Zhang Shaochu went to the military camp and mobilized five thousand elite troops to protect the entire City Lord's Mansion.
All of this was Zhang Ruochen's idea. After all, even a Heavenly Extreme Realm martial arts legend had been severely injured. This showed that the opposing force was absolutely enormous and couldn't be taken lightly.
The general guarding Tianyue Pass was named Chen Yuchan. He was among the top three strongest in the Yunwu Commandery military and was utterly loyal to the Yunwu Commandery Prince.
Although Chen Yuchan's cultivation hadn't reached the Heavenly Extreme Realm, he possessed an eighth-rank True Martial Treasure and had the strength to contend with Heavenly Extreme Realm experts.
Most importantly, Tianyue Pass had a city-protecting grand formation. Once the formation was activated, even a Heavenly Extreme Realm expert would be killed by it.
Zhang Ruochen didn't tell Chen Yuchan the reason for hiding in the City Lord's Mansion. He only asked Chen Yuchan to strengthen the defenses. Tonight, a bloody battle might break out at Tianyue Pass.
Chen Yuchan was a cautious man. He had long heard about this Ninth Prince's deeds, so he took the matter very seriously, thinking that experts from the surrounding commanderies were hunting the Ninth Prince.
Thus, he immediately sent a message back to the royal capital, hoping the Yunwu Commandery Prince would dispatch experts to escort the Ninth Prince and Fourth Prince.
Meanwhile, in a certain residence in Tianyue Pass, bright lights were burning.
A black-clothed man wearing a golden mask entered the residence. Under the guidance of a maidservant, he arrived outside a pavilion.
The black-clothed man took off the golden mask, revealing an aged face. If Zhang Ruochen were here, he would recognize him—it was the manager of Qingxuan Pavilion, Mo Hanlin.
Qin Ya sat in the center of the pavilion. A guzheng was placed before her, and her jade-like fingers plucked at the strings, producing a soft and beautiful melody.
Mo Hanlin waited quietly outside the pavilion, not disturbing her enjoyment.
When the piece ended, the lingering notes faded away.
Qin Ya used white silk to gently wipe her slender jade fingers, speaking casually, "Is Liu Chuanshen dead?"
Her voice was extremely soft and charming, sending a tingling sensation through the listener.
Mo Hanlin replied, "Reporting to the General Leader, Liu Chuanshen... should have been rescued by someone."
Qin Ya smiled. "Oh? Who has such boldness, daring to save someone the Moon Worship Demon Sect wants to kill?"
Mo Hanlin said, "If the intelligence is correct, Liu Chuanshen should have been rescued by the Ninth Prince and Fourth Prince. They are now in the City Lord's Mansion of Tianyue Pass."
"Which Ninth Prince?" Qin Ya's delicate brows lifted slightly, showing some interest.
Mo Hanlin knew that the General Leader was quite interested in Zhang Ruochen, so he reported truthfully, "Zhang Ruochen. Green Peak Branch Leader and twenty sect members encountered Zhang Ruochen and Zhang Shaochu in the Tianyue Mountains and were completely wiped out."
Upon learning that an entire branch's experts had been annihilated, Qin Ya showed no concern at all. Instead, she smiled. "Hehe! I was right about Zhang Ruochen. In less than a year, he already has the strength to kill Earth Extreme Realm martial artists."
"According to news from the Martial Market Academy, Zhang Ruochen not only achieved first place among the new students of the four academies but is also the greatest spiritual power prodigy in the Martial Market Academy's history. It's said that even Luo Xu at the same cultivation level is no match for him."
Mo Hanlin was quite shocked—first by Zhang Ruochen's talent, and second by how much attention the General Leader was paying to Zhang Ruochen's affairs.
"Should we eliminate this child in advance, or try to recruit him into our sect?" Mo Hanlin asked.
Qin Ya stood up, walked to the edge of the pavilion, and gazed at the sky. "The Little Saintess is quite interested in him. She has already sent me a message, instructing me to spare his life."
"Since it's the Little Saintess's wish, then we shouldn't offend him. Besides, even if he returns to Yunwu Commandery, he can't change the overall situation." Mo Hanlin pondered for a moment, then asked, "Then should we still kill Liu Chuanshen? He is a Heavenly Extreme Realm expert. If we let him live, it will surely bring endless trouble."
Qin Ya said, "Anyway, we've already secretly taken over more than half of the Martial Market's industries. We've already controlled half of the economic lifeline of the entire Yunwu Commandery. Let the Black Market people clean up the remaining mess. Besides, Chen Yuchan controls the Wind-Calling Pearl. He won't be easy to deal with. There's no need for us to take risks."
Mo Hanlin nodded. "Then we'll just watch from the sidelines. If the Black Market and the Tianyue Pass garrison both suffer heavy losses, that would be best."
...
At the City Lord's Mansion in Tianyue Pass.
To help Liu Chuanshen heal his injuries, Zhang Ruochen specially sent someone to purchase a fourth-rank healing pill called "Mysterious Calamity Pill," costing six hundred thousand silver coins.
After taking the Mysterious Calamity Pill, the wounds on Liu Chuanshen's body healed at a visible rate, forming scars. Even his severed arm quickly grew a new layer of skin.
Not long after, Liu Chuanshen woke up, though he was still very weak.
External injuries were easy to heal, but internal injuries were difficult to treat.
Liu Chuanshen saw the silhouette of a young man standing in the room. It felt somewhat familiar, and he said weakly, "May I ask, young hero, how did I end up here?"
Zhang Ruochen immediately walked over and asked, "Village Chief Liu, you're finally awake! Who exactly was chasing you?"
Seeing that the one who saved him was Zhang Ruochen, Liu Chuanshen's eyes showed a mix of laughter and tears. He sighed. "So it's the Ninth Prince. I never thought that just a few months later, I would owe you my life."
Liu Chuanshen appeared quite exhausted, but after all, he was a Heavenly Extreme Realm martial arts legend with a deep foundation. Although severely injured, he still got down from the bed.
After circulating his true qi through his body for one cycle, Liu Chuanshen's mental state improved significantly. An imposing martial arts aura emanated from his body, as if it had frozen the air in the entire room.
Liu Chuanshen sighed. "The Martial Market Bank's industries in Yunwu Commandery have been almost completely wiped out. Over ten thousand important members of the Martial Market Bank have been killed. More than three thousand eight hundred shops have been annexed. Mines, pastures, and banks have all been seized. The losses are devastating. The Martial Market Bank has completely lost control over Yunwu Commandery's economy. The foundation built over hundreds of years has been destroyed overnight. I am guilty!"