Volcanic Age

Zhou Xuchuan and Jiang Nengchu safely returned to the Blue House.

Vast Gate was dead. Not only had Zhou Xuchuan impaled Vast Gate's heart, but he even beheaded her afterward to make sure she was dead.

He took the corpse away and cremated it separately in preparation for the inevitable investigation by the Dark Heavens Association. In the process, he acquired a few spoils of war.

The Murderous Harlot's resistance on the top floor ended when she learned of the Xia Wu Sect Master's death. She surrendered after confirming the truth.

She initially didn't believe the death of a monster like the Xia Wu Sect Master, but surrendered after inspecting the corpse personally.

Of course, Zhou Xuchuan had no intention of letting her live. As the sole witness, Murderous Harlot had to be disposed of to protect his secret.

Jiang Nengchu threw the Murderous Harlot into the same room where the Viper Sword was imprisoned, promising Zhou Xuchuan that he would kill her after torturing her first.

Sure enough, she died during a torture session two days later.

Thankfully, there had been no other witnesses. Courtesans present that evening all fled when the chaos started.

The incineration of the Southern Fire House and the Murderous Harlot's mysterious disappearance forced several factions eyeing the South to hang back and observe the situation.

However, that was all they did. None dared to make a move. They were too afraid of the culprit behind the Murderous Harlot's disappearance and the Southern Fire House's destruction.

The Tough Bastard, Jiang Nengchu!

Now everyone in Zhengzhou, no, the Black Hand, knew that name. Even the children living under bridges knew it now.

A tyrant who had acquired everything through his strength alone!

Everyone shuddered in dread at the new legend that only needed a few days to be created.

Even the factions with some influence in the center of the Black Hand, Zhengzhou, dared not provoke him and behaved themselves.

This was good, since Zhou Xuchuan didn't want to provoke anyone as the confrontation with the three strongest in Zhengzhou happened not too long ago, and people should still be on edge.

As if he had been waiting for this, Jiang Nengchu acted swiftly and enthusiastically to reorganize his faction.

****

The office was filled with stacks of documents.

Zhou Xuchuan remarked, "You've grown haggard since the last time we met."

The dark circles below Jiang Nengchu's eyes served as proof of his hard work.

"Welcome," he said, temporarily setting down his brush.

"You've acquired the position you wanted, so you could've given yourself a brief vacation. But to think you'd be too busy torturing yourself with paperwork instead of celebrating!"

Zhou Xuchuan was genuinely impressed. Quite literally a tough bastard, indeed! Jiang Nengchu certainly lived up to his title.

"Have you learned anything new on the Xia Wu Sect Master?" Zhou Xuchuan asked.

He wasn't interested in the hidden wealth of the previous Xia Wu Sect Master. He only wanted information about that person.

"Unsurprisingly, the identity of South Red House's courtesan was fake," said Jiang Nengchu. "There isn't any useful evidence left behind. So much so that I have to question if that woman even existed."

Jiang Nengchu wondered if they had a hidden office somewhere, but there was none. Apparently, the Murderous Harlot received orders through written correspondence. Or, in case she wanted a face-to-face meeting, Vast Gate came personally to speak to her.

"As expected."

Zhou Xuchuan didn't have high hopes from the beginning. A woman as secretive as Vast Gate wouldn't have hidden something in a place as large as Zhengzhou.

As for Vast Gate's spies, they must be performing their missions in other parts of the land.

"Are you planning to leave the red light district as is?" Zhou Xuchuan asked.

"I am. It's already difficult to manage the underground arena and the black market by myself. My plan is to focus on this place."

Managing not just one but two highly profitable sources of income was no easy feat. With the Head Madam and the pimps around, managing the Blue House and the Red House shouldn't be that challenging.

But the underground arena to the east faced a chronic shortage of manpower. Reassigning people and managing its operations should consume a lot of time and effort.

"If you want, I'll give you the red light district," said Jiang Nengchu. "I was planning to suppress whoever takes it over, just like the former Xia Wu Sect Master had done, anyway."

"No, I'm good. You can have it."

It wouldn't be a bad idea to take over that place, but the risk was too great. Getting involved would mean Zhou Xuchuan's real identity would get exposed.

Most of all, the Gold Will Merchants could be put in harm's way.

Dark Heavens Association…!

The one who had died was one of the bosses, Vast Gate, not just any soldier of the Seven Stars Division. Not just any boss, either, but someone who managed the flow of information for the Dark Heavens Association.

With her death, the Dark Heavens Association had lost its eyes and ears. Zhou Xuchuan couldn't have asked for a better outcome than that. This event alone made it so much easier for him to move.

It's about time Blessed Existence senses something is wrong and makes a move.

Vast Gate hadn't reported anything in since she wanted to take care of it preemptively. That was because people periodically challenging the authority and causing a commotion internally was nothing new. Most of all, though, she didn't want to get scolded for it.

Zhou Xuchuan used a proxy called the Tough Bastard to make Vast Gate drop her guard. Even when people knew him as the Silent Messenger, he deliberately handed his right to choose over to his proxy as if he wanted someone else to decide for him.

Although it might not happen immediately, someone as quick-witted as Blessed Existence should make a move by the end of the night.

That was why he had been erasing all the loose ends that might lead to him.

The Merchant King will be overjoyed if I deliver the red light district's control to him, but the risk is not worth what we can get out of it.

The red light district's revenue was nothing to scoff at. But the problem was that the Dark Heavens Association would target the Gold Will Merchants because of it.

They were already under close scrutiny, after all.

Jiang Nengchu asked, "Are you going to leave this place?"

"Hoh-oh?"

Zhou Xuchuan's expression seemed to ask how he knew that.

"You can't survive in the Black Hand without a sense for such things. Most of all, I couldn't understand why you'd cause such a commotion despite telling me you wanted to hide from the Phantoms. Wait, is that a lie, too?"

Jiang Nengchu hadn't witnessed the battle on the top floor from the beginning, but he had seen Zhou Xuchuan's Vajra qi. An assassin who had reached the Harmony realm? Such a thing was unheard of.

"Well, it doesn't really matter. But I'd like to know how I can help you. However, even if your request is modest, I'm busy this week. Hold it off till later."

"Hahaha!" Zhou Xuchuan couldn't hold back and laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"No, it's nothing."

Jiang Nengchu was a better person than Zhou Xuchuan had thought.

As he prepared to depart, the one thing he pondered most was his relationship with Jiang Nengchu.

Thanks to Zhou Xuchuan's meticulousness, his true identity should remain a secret. His Violet Haze Dawnbreaker should have been too quick for Jiang Nengchu to see, as well.

Most cultivators wouldn't have noticed anything, which made Vast Gate an extraordinary cultivator for noticing the truth when it wasn't even the vivid purple hue, just some opaque light.

In any case…

Zhou Xuchuan originally planned to sever his ties with Jiang Nengchu before leaving. But he changed his mind when the ambitious man he chose as a puppet proved to be far more talented than he had anticipated. He deeply pondered what to do next.

Since things had ended up this way, it might not be such a bad idea to have the current Xia Wu Sect Master indebted to him, which could come in handy later on.

Vast Gate hadn't held the position of the Xia Wu Sect Master for so long for no reason. As far as the information network was concerned, this sect rivaled that of the Beggar Gang.

Zhou Xuchuan chuckled. "For now, I don't have any requests. However, when I contact you in the future, lend me your help."

Jiang Nengchu nodded. "Very well. Let's do that."

"Also…"

Snap!

Zhou Xuchuan snapped his fingers, prompting two Phantoms to appear practically out of thin air to stand guard next to Jiang Nengchu.

"They'll be your guards from now on. Use them as you see fit. They'll serve you as long as your orders don't harm me."

Zhou Xuchuan just experienced a decisive event that put an end to his pondering.

During his reorganization efforts, Jiang Nengchu took in several children that were barely surviving on the streets.

These kids didn't have any parents. Because of constant starvation, they didn't even have enough strength to do any menial work.

Wondering why Jiang Nengchu would take such children under his wing, Zhou Xuchuan investigated the situation, and his findings made him smile contentedly.

"You now have to take care of quite a few children, so you should be more mindful of your safety, Uncle Godfather," Zhou Xuchuan remarked.

"It's not to the extent of calling me godfather," Jiang Nengchu replied, his brows furrowing. "Besides, it's not my will, anyway, but hers."

The man sitting in this office's chair muttered wistfully in a certain direction.

****

The seemingly endless night finally came to an end.

After wrapping up his business, Zhou Xuchuan left Zhengzhou like a man on the run. He remained vigilant of his surroundings to ensure he wasn't being pursued.

Thankfully, he didn't encounter any problems. After taking off the stuffy skin mask, he headed west.

He initially thought about delivering the Prajna Divine Art first. However, since the Hainan branch of the Valley of Phantoms wasn't too far away, he decided to deal with the situation there first.

Traveling directly west from Hainan, would lead one to Luoyang city, which was located between the Yellow River and the Luo River.

Not only was it famous for being the capital of nine dynasties, as well as a stage from the Records of the Three Kingdoms, but thanks to various scholars such as Laozi, Li Bai, and Du Fu's presence, its eyes for culture and literature had developed early.

Luoyang was also the home to the Longmen Grottoes, the greatest artificial caves that took around four centuries to complete. The grottoes here numbered an astonishing 1350!

"It's over here, sir."

When Little Ghost guided him to the Longmen Grottoes, Zhou Xuchuan was taken aback. Despite minute differences, all the Valleys of the Phantoms he had seen so far were all located within valleys, but not this time.

Its Hainan branch was actually hidden in the Grottoes. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Phantoms used not just one but several grottoes.

"We pay respect to the Phantom Sovereign!"

Hainan's Phantoms comprised of thirty men and women. Meanwhile, the number of trainee Phantoms was fewer than other branches.

Excluding the trainees, however, this branch's combat strength was comparable to the others, with a good mix of First Class assassins and Transcendents.

Zhou Xuchuan addressed the Phantoms. "I'll be in your care for the next few days."

He decided to stay here for the time being, not because of any pressing matters, but to exchange a few moves with the Phantoms of Hainan.

Neither the Hidden Nether Flying Dagger Art nor the Phantom Steps Art had reached the fifth stage yet. He wanted to train diligently until they did.

He wondered if different branches trained differently, but there wasn't much difference.

Makes sense. It would be strange if it was different.

Once a Phantom completed their training, they would abandon their own will, unless they gave up mid-way during the Mind-Killing process and became pseudo-Phantoms.

By sticking close to the Phantom Art and the inherited manuals on a Phantom's conduct, one couldn't progress beyond a certain stage.

This blocked the path to the Harmony realm, which required an enlightenment to reach. As proof of this, no Phantom had broken past the Transcendent realm to enter the Harmony realm in the organization's three-century-long history.

"Besides all that. Regardless of where I go, it's always been grain pills. To think I'm fated to eat this for the rest of my life. No wonder my heart can't take it anymore."

Zhou Xuchuan seriously pondered if the Mind-Kill process included consuming grain pills and nothing else as one's meals.

He nearly shed a tear of pity for Little Ghost and the other Phantoms, who were unaware of the joy of good food.

"This is enough training. Shall I start gathering information now?"

That was one thing Zhou Xuchuan had to do when he visited a new branch. At least in this regard, there had been noticeable differences between different branches.

The information he was looking for were records of clients and all the assassinations that had been carried out, plus other information the individual branch had collected.

Branches exchanged correspondence containing key information with each other. But this method wasn't effective for sharing sundry information.

As such, information deemed low-tier was only exchanged when necessary or upon request from another branch.

"Hyah, he's not the Merchant King for nothing."

Li Yicai's name frequently appeared on the recent list of requests. Considering he had business interests throughout the country and raked in a lot of money, it was unsurprising to learn that he got entangled in many matters as well.

As a result, competing merchants often requested his assassination.

"Deliver this information to the head merchant," Zhou Xuchuan said.

That's why he compiled a list of people who posed a potential threat and entrusted it to Hainan's Phantoms. He couldn't trust the carrier pigeons and wanted the Phantoms to deliver the list personally.

"Also, I want someone from this branch to observe Zhengzhou from afar."

If he had to prioritize what he wanted to learn, Zhou Xuchuan wanted to stay up to date with Jiang Nengchu's news, particularly individuals who approached him.

Since Blessed Existence is a cautious man, he won't make any rash moves. There's no need to worry about him for now.

Blessed Existence, no, the Dark Heavens Association had lost their eyes and ears. In that sense, one could say Zhou Xuchuan held the upper hand in the information network.

Things won't unfold according to your plans, Dark Heavens Association!