Next day.


    The sky was adorned with twinkling stars, and the first light of dawn appeared in the east.


    Lying on the cart, Shen Qing leisurely opened his eyes. He sat up, looked around, and gradually gathered light in his bleary eyes.


    In the distance, the morning fields were gently covered by a thin layer of mist. The rice paddies swayed with the wind, full of life, and the croaking of frogs and the drone of cicadas came in waves.


    Shen Qing took a deep breath, catching the fresh scent of earth and flowers in the air, which relaxed him.


    After firming his belief, the events of the previous night no longer bothered him, and his thoughts became clear and untroubled.


    Knowledge is not difficult, only action is.


    A gentleman should be slow in speech but swift in action.


    In Shen Qing''s view, since he had already decided and had a goal, the next step was to put it into action. Sear?h the N?velFire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    He quietly got off the cart, not disturbing Shen the Second and the others beside him, and walked over to Tian Xiaohu, who was on guard, saying, "I''ve rested. You go get some sleep. We''ll set off at first light."


    The events of the previous night had left Tian Xiaohu and the others uneasy, prompting them to insist on keeping watch to be ready to respond to any unforeseen incidents.


    Though Tian Xiaohu had trained in martial arts, and even after a sleepless night remained energetic, showing little sign of fatigue.


    However, he knew the journey was arduous, required conserving strength, and not indulging in momentary bravado.


    Tian Xiaohu nodded, "I''ll lie down for a while; call me when you''re ready to go."


    He found a corner, laid a layer of straw, and slept in his clothes, soon snoring.


    The others, including the uncle and aunt, showed no signs of waking, and Shen Qing had no intention of rousing them. He quietly walked to the side and began practicing the Blood Dominance Technique.


    Without elixirs or various training media, practicing the Blood Dominance Technique was suitable.


    He spread his legs, standing like an old pine, inhaling and exhaling the morning glow of heaven and earth.


    He continued training until the east was fully bright, and the sun rose like fire, then reluctantly stopped.


    Shen Qing focused his mind, summoning the Water Ink Panel.


    [Skill: Blood Dominance Technique (Small Success)]


    [Progress: 801/800 points]


    [Status: Ready to Improve]


    [Note: This is a new martial art you comprehended from the Nine Skills, showing significant progress through continuous practice, aided by demon cores and formulas. Your strength is gradually increasing, your physique growing more robust, continually breaking physical limits.]


    "Phew... finally mastered it."


    As a limit-breaking technique of the Nine Skills Realm, with no one to guide him and no martial arts skills to refer to, he had to rely on exploration.


    This made the progress of this martial art consistently slow, much slower than other martial arts skills.


    With the progress value required for limit-breaking martial art accumulating, Shen Qing could only advance gradually, bit by bit.


    Fortunately, after the earlier phase of continuous cultivation, this martial art finally met the conditions for a breakthrough.


    Shen Qing cleared his mind and centered himself, then focused on breakthrough.


    Suddenly, the progress information on the Water Ink Panel regarding the Blood Dominance Technique began to refresh.


    [Skill: Blood Dominance Technique (the level of mastery)]


    [Progress: 1/900 points]


    As the panel information refreshed, new streams of qi-blood suddenly permeated from all parts of his flesh.


    It was as if squeezing water out of a sponge, merging into a stream, flowing throughout his qi-blood.


    Shen Qing''s already immense qi-blood volume grew more abundant, his muscles becoming more resilient, receiving some enhancement.


    "After achieving the level of mastery in Blood Dominance Technique, my body now feels even more robust. Before stepping into the Qi Hai Realm, if Blood Dominance Technique continues to improve, it might elevate my qi-blood to an astonishing level."


    "With such a physique, breaking through to the Qi Hai Realm will certainly be remarkable."


    Feeling stronger again, Shen Qing was satisfied, returning to the village''s rice ground, full of energy.


    As the day brightened, those resting in the rice ground began awakening one after another.


    After waking, no one seemed idle.


    Shen Xiaoshan cut lots of grass, mixed with some hay and grains, to feed two horses and a donkey.


    Xiao Zhi, the cook, set up a pot to prepare breakfast.


    Everyone performed their duties, creating a lively scene.


    After breakfast, Shen Qing led the others through each household, gathering all the grain, meat, eggs, and salt they could take.


    These had become ownerless, so Shen Qing and the others felt no guilt in taking them.


    Xiao Zhi even used the firewood from these homes to fry a whole bag of rice for rations.


    Once all chores were completed, Shen Qing skinned the three dog demons and took the demon cores, then set fire to the entire village.


    These village houses, made of thatch or wood, caught fire quickly.


    The villagers'' bodies within were gradually consumed by the blaze.


    "Let''s go."


    Shen Qing said little, and the others asked no questions.


    In the raging flames, Shen Qing led the group towards the rising sun with resolute steps.


    …


    With Zhuifeng''s pace, the thousand-mile journey from Taiping County to Yongzhou took about two days.


    But with Shen Qing bringing family and such, plus past experiences, they no longer casually accepted villagers'' goodwill, choosing instead to rest mostly in the wilds, moving slowly on the road.


    Suddenly, after seven days of travel, they finally reached the borders of Yongzhou safely.


    Seeing the gradually increasing signs of people, Shen Qing and the others breathed a slight sigh of relief.


    They continued onward, reaching a rundown temple by afternoon.


    The temple had several rotten planks hanging loosely in the doorway, with moss and weeds all over the threshold, seemingly abandoned for a long time.


    Luckily, the temple''s overall structure remained intact, providing shelter from wind and rain.


    Shen Qing swept his gaze inside, finding several extinguished campfires and some burnt food remnants.


    The burn marks varied in age.


    It appeared frequently used as a temporary resting spot.


    After traveling in the wild, resting for so long, their bodies reeked. The men managed, however, the aunt and big sister Shen Fang, were almost unable to endure any longer.


    Even living in Hongshan Village, they had never been in such disarray.


    After using the Eagle Eye ability to confirm no danger around, Shen Qing decided to settle here.


    This instantly lifted the spirits of aunt and big sister Shen Fang. Traveling far during their inconvenient times was simply torture.


    The temple had a well, perfect for getting freshwater to wash up.


    It was still early.


    While guarding outside the temple for his sister and aunt, Shen Qing took out a thin booklet to read.


    He had found it on the Huang Tian Sect General.


    He had merely glanced at it before, but now free, he had the time to scrutinize for valuable information.


    This small book seemed like a directory, with no text on the outside cover.


    Shen Qing opened the first page.


    "Yun Yinfeng, male, thirty-two, from Yanyu Town. Orphaned from a young age, adopted and taught martial arts by a martial master from Jianghu. In the third year of Tian Guang, joined our Holy Sect, assigned as a messenger. Skilled at lurking among the common folk, disguising as a merchant, scholar, or beggar..."


    The entire page detailed the life of Yun Yinfeng.


    Shen Qing had no impression of this person, flipping to the next page.


    "Qiao Lan, female, nineteen, from Taifeng County. Born in a martial arts family, but her family was implicated in a sudden political upheaval, hence joined the Holy Sect. Beautiful, highly skilled in martial arts, reliable."


    "Zhang Biao, male, twenty..."


    As Shen Qing browsed, it contained details on individuals with certain statuses in the Huang Tian Sect, describing their abilities, either in detail or briefly.


    Inside the book, a letter that had been opened was tucked.


    Shen Qing removed the letter, laid it open, and felt surprised.


    It was a letter from the Yongzhou Government Office, noting the departure time, route, and number of Yongzhou Guardian Martial Department forces.


    Someone within the Yongzhou Government Office, secretly affiliated with the Huang Tian Sect, had been leaking the Office''s martial department''s movements to them.


    No wonder the Huang Tian Sect could successfully ambush and wipe out the Guardian Martial Department from Yongzhou County en route; it appeared to be due to an inside man.


    The waters within the Yongzhou Government Office ran deep indeed.


    Shen Qing''s expression turned serious as he silently and meticulously stored the book and letter.


    These might prove useful in the future.


    Storing away the directory, he then pulled out a stack of yellow talismans and a triangular flag.


    These were also obtained from the Huang Tian Sect General.


    Shen Qing remembered clearly how formidable these talismans were in the general''s hands, capable of delivering various effects comparable to multiple Nine Revolutions Mysterious Skills.


    Moreover, they seemed very convenient to use, seemingly requiring no rigorous practice, just activation through rituals.


    Shen Qing carefully examined them.


    The talismans were about ten inches long, three fingers wide, edged with a fine red line.


    The talisman surfaces displayed complex and intricate designs in varying shades of ink.


    They depicted dragon and phoenix motifs, cloud formations, and other figures, ultimately categorized into three types.


    These seven or eight yellowed talismans presumably represented three categories.


    However, Shen Qing was unversed in talisman arts and could not decipher their specific meanings.


    Holding one talisman between his fingers, Shen Qing shook it, attempting activation.


    After several tries without any results, he temporarily decided to give up, focusing on the triangular array flag instead.


    His limited knowledge offered no insights into its mysteries.


    At that moment, Shen Qing heard carriage noises in the distance outside the temple. He hurriedly packed away the talismans, array flag, and looked out.


    Ahead, a group appeared with a large flag, marked with "Wu," approaching the rundown temple.


    Shen Qing called back, "Aunt, sister, hurry, people are coming outside the temple."


    "Ah..."


    Panic ensued inside the temple.


    Shen Qing ignored them, signaling to Tian Xiaohu and Xiao Zhi.


    They quickly drew their crossbows, staying alert on the carriage, eyeing the approaching group.


    The leading man from the escort agency, riding a tall steed, was surprised to see Shen Qing and others at the temple entrance.


    "Whoa!"


    He halted the horse, briefly deliberated, then dismounted and walked towards the temple entrance alone.