Chapter 108 : Red Blood Peak

Chapter 108: Red Blood Peak

After obtaining Shi Manyu’s commitment, there were no major issues left on the sect’s procedural side.

What remained was to find Fang Wuqi and use every ounce of his personal goodwill and limited eloquence to persuade him to join.

Of course, he could not go immediately.

The Heavenly Pivot Pavilion still had a pile of tasks waiting for him to finish first.

Although the work Shi Manyu assigned was not light, the advantage was that this place practiced a flexible work system.

As long as one completed the duties within the time limit, the remaining time could be arranged freely.

As a newcomer, Long Tao was not yet qualified to touch the sect’s core affairs.

What he was responsible for now were audits of accounts from affiliated towns.

First, he organized the income-and-expenditure documents submitted from various regions; second, he cross-checked intelligence from different sides to verify problems and discrepancies.

Through a month of work, he discovered that corruption within the Nine-Xia Heavenly Sect’s territory was about what one would expect.

Places closer to the sect were much more restrained, while those far away, where “the mountains were high and the emperor was far,” saw city lords and stewards acting far more recklessly.

Overall, however, things were still under control—thanks in no small part to the Sect Master and Shi Manyu’s capable governance.

If the sect were likened to a great empire, then she and the Sect Master truly were two tireless chancellors.

Because he now had something to look forward to, he worked with full effort that entire morning, finishing all the account documents before noon and delivering them once again to Shi Manyu.

“Oh?” Shi Manyu, who was organizing a bookshelf, saw him return so quickly and lifted the corner of her lips.

“So efficient today? Were you slacking off before?”

“This disciple would never dare,” Long Tao quickly said with an ingratiating smile.

“It’s just that practice makes perfect.”

“If that’s the case…” A trace of teasing flashed through Shi Manyu’s eyes.

“Then I can assign you more tasks in the future.”

“True Person, please show mercy!” Long Tao pleaded with a bitter expression.

“At least wait until this disciple reaches the Qi-Refining Eighth Layer…”

“Don’t worry, it won’t delay your cultivation.” Shi Manyu casually flipped open the topmost account book.

“First, tell me the general situation. I’ll review the details later.”

“Yes.

The accounts from Umbrella Tower Town and Luning Town this quarter differ from projections by sixteen percent.

Considering margins of error and miscellaneous items, it’s not a major issue.

However, at least nine merchant caravans have reported gang extortion at Luning Town’s docks, and it seems no one has dealt with it for about two months.”

“Mm.”

“The accounts submitted by Yangwu County are a serious problem. There’s no need to look closely—they don’t match the sect’s investigations at all. They probably didn’t even have time to balance the books. Especially the Number Four and Number Five spirit stone mines over there—based on what they reported over the past few quarters versus what they actually handed in, this season even shows negative output.”

“Hmph. They’ve always been audacious. Now the paper finally can’t wrap the fire.”

“As for other villages and counties, most are handled by local gentry, and there aren’t major problems. Only Tianlong County cited insufficient spirit stones and requested to pay with gold and silver instead. I suspect they took advantage of the war with the Wuyi Sect and the rise in spirit stone prices to smuggle out a fair number of spirit stones.”

Shi Manyu sneered.

“Quite the money-makers. That’s enough—you did well. I’ll send people to investigate thoroughly later. Now…” She waved her hand.

“Go handle your own business.”

Long Tao felt as if he had been granted amnesty.

He bowed and withdrew from the room, letting out a long breath, then left the main hall and headed for the Cloud Harbor Docks, setting off toward his destination—Red Blood Peak.

…

Red Blood Peak, though called a peak, was in fact a mountain range stretching for dozens of li.

As the foundation of the Red Blood Great Banner Sect lineage, this place was unmistakably the martial center and holy ground of the Nine-Xia Heavenly Sect.

Because of the Great Banner Sect’s heritage, the Nine-Xia Heavenly Sect differed markedly from other cultivation sects, placing exceptional emphasis on martial foundations.

Any disciple who entered the sect, regardless of background or aptitude—male or female, even the treasured personally transmitted disciples of various Peak Masters—had to undergo a period of body refinement after reaching the Qi-Refining Second Layer.

It was like military training at a university in his previous life; no one could escape it.

Long Tao still remembered the hardship of cultivating the Nine-Xia Body-Tempering Art here.

He had complained endlessly back then—wasn’t he here to cultivate immortality? Why had he ended up practicing martial arts instead? The feeling was like studying hard to get into university, only to discover he had enrolled in a sports academy.

Yet Red Blood Peak’s popularity never waned.

Many elite disciples chose to enter the Dao through martial arts during the Foundation Establishment stage.

After all, that stage already emphasized tempering the body, making it perfectly compatible with martial cultivation.

Nan Yuchen and Fang Wuqi were classic examples.

Even True Person Mingzhu, such a pure Qi refiner, had not stopped Nan Yuchen, her junior disciple, from taking the martial path.

“You… are you Long Tao?”

He had barely walked two li after disembarking from the cloud vessel when someone called out his name on the mountain path.

Long Tao was secretly surprised.

It had been at least two years since he last set foot here—someone still recognized him?

“Master Liu?!”

Turning around, he saw a bare-chested man wearing loose hemp shorts below the waist and flip-flops on his feet.

Beads of sweat clung to his standard buzz cut.

Most striking were the two massive chunks of black iron boulders strapped to his back.

Anyone who didn’t know better might think he was a mountain porter—but this was no outsider.

He was the instructor who had taught Long Tao the basics of martial cultivation back then.

“It really is you, kid!” Master Liu grinned broadly, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.

“Didn’t you swear back then that you’d never come to this hellhole again?”

Each batch of disciples was taught by veteran Foundation Establishment martial cultivators on rotation, so Long Tao had been among his most recent students.

Combined with their occasional encounters in Qixia Town, their master–disciple bond had never truly broken.

“Haha, foolish words from youthful arrogance. You still remember them, Master?” Long Tao laughed awkwardly.

“I came today to look for Senior Brother Fang Wuqi. I have something I’d like to ask his help with.”

“Oh!” Master Liu raised his brows.

“You can even pull strings with Wuqi now? You’ve really made something of yourself!” He lifted a hand and pointed toward the mountainside.

“At this hour he should be at the martial arena. Just go straight there.”

“Thank you, Master.” Long Tao’s gaze fell on the two massive boulders.

“You’re still training with this method?”

“No choice.” Master Liu laughed heartily.

“For us ordinary folks to form a Golden Core, how can it work without some clumsy effort?”

“You’re only a little over seventy this year, right? Foundation Establishment cultivators live at least a hundred years, and you were a proper Hundred-Day Foundation Establishment. If you take some lifespan-extending pills, living to a hundred and fifty wouldn’t be a problem.

There’s no need to belittle yourself,” Long Tao said seriously.

“Tsk…” A trace of warmth flashed through Master Liu’s eyes.

“That brat who used to complain all day about martial training being too hard has learned how to comfort me now.” He adjusted the boulders on his back.

“Alright, I’ll keep going. You go handle your business.”

“Take care, Master.”

Watching that figure bearing the boulders move forward, Long Tao couldn’t help but feel sentimental, as if he had returned to those bitter days of cultivation here.

Following the winding mountain path upward, Long Tao finally reached Red Blood Peak’s core area—the martial arena.

The scene before him was just as he had expected, bustling to the point of crowding.

With a bit of thought, it was easy to understand why.

The Sect Grand Competition was approaching, and many with ambition were seizing the last bit of time to spar or observe.

Even if they couldn’t personally compete, observing potential opponents’ techniques was never a loss.

Infected by the fervent atmosphere, Long Tao wasn’t in a hurry to look for anyone.

Instead, he strolled along the sidelines with interest.

Besides those Foundation Establishment disciples with deep, steady auras, there were quite a few Qi Refining cultivators sparring as well—clearly preparing for the Minor Competition held alongside it.

Tsk.

People with ambition were already caught up in internal competition from the Qi Refining stage.

He sighed inwardly, his gaze sweeping the field.

Yet after circling more than half the arena, he still didn’t see Fang Wuqi, so he had no choice but to start asking around.

Just then, a tall figure in the distance caught his eye.

Strangely enough, despite the many cultivators present, this figure seemed to carry a natural magnetism, drawing him over unconsciously.

“Senior, may I ask if you know where Senior Brother Fang Wuqi is?”

Before the words had fully fallen, the person turned at the sound.

It was a female cultivator of remarkable height, a full head taller than Long Tao.

Her tight training outfit outlined evenly proportioned, well-defined muscles.

Her legs were especially eye-catching—firm muscles that even long pants couldn’t conceal, truly a cultivation-world version of “Chun-Li.” Her jet-black hair was braided into a thick plait hanging down to her waist.

When she turned, curiosity flashed across her face before she broke into a bright, hearty smile.

What shocked Long Tao even more was that this fit and striking female cultivator was actually a Golden Core cultivator.

“Wow! Such a handsome and beautiful big sister!”

As if possessed, he blurted out what was on his mind.

He hurriedly covered his mouth, but it was already too late.

The Golden Core female cultivator before him only laughed even harder upon hearing it.

“Hahaha, what an interesting little fellow.” She rested one hand on her hip and looked Long Tao up and down with great interest.

“You’re here to find Wuqi?”