The Envoy from Marquis Anchan

The Envoy from Marquis Anchan’s Estate?

Doubts filled the minds of Ji Ning, Ji Jiuhuo, Ji Yichuan, and the others. One look at the two large banners on the broad warship high in the air told them what they needed to know. The warship belonged to the most powerful and influential figure in the entire Anchan Commandery—the Marquis of Anchan, of the Northmont clan. But they had submitted a report to the Grand Xia Dynasty, hoping to transfer the elemental ore vein to the dynasty itself. They had been waiting for an envoy from the Grand Xia.

Why had an envoy from the Marquis of Anchan’s estate arrived instead?

“Let’s go up,” Ji Jiuhuo said softly.

“Understood.”

Everyone acknowledged.

Even though the arrival of an envoy from the Marquis of Anchan’s estate was strange, even the Grand Xia Dynasty’s garrison general stationed in Swallow Mountain City, ‘General Dong’, was fawning and flattering beside him like a grandson. How could the Ji Clan dare to offend them?

“Let’s go.” A small boat appeared out of thin air beside them. Ji Ning and the others boarded the boat and flew directly upwards.

On the high-altitude warship, armored soldiers stood with imposing auras, all of them clearly accomplished Zifu Disciples. This made the hearts of Ji Ning and the others tighten. No wonder this was the ‘Marquis of Anchan of the Northmont clan’, one of the eight hundred marquises enfeoffed by the Grand Xia Dynasty when it unified the world. Even a random squad dispatched by this ancient feudal lord, which had existed for hundreds of millions of years, consisted entirely of Zifu Disciples.

“Ji Jiuhuo, your Ji Clan has struck it lucky,” General Dong snorted coldly. “The young master is waiting inside. Go in quickly.”

“Thank you, General Dong.”

Ji Jiuhuo responded with a fawning smile, then led Ji Ning and the others inside.

The members of the Ji Clan walked across the warship’s deck, led by an armored soldier towards the interior.

“What a vessel.” Ji Ning swept his gaze around. He could tell that the warship was covered in complex runic patterns, and a suppressed, powerful energy lurked within the ship. “This shouldn’t be a magic treasure… it’s an organ-mechanism construct!”

The warship deck had three levels.

Following the stairs, Ji Ning and the others ascended to the hall on the second level. The hall was spacious. A young man in black finery stood inside, his hands clasped behind his back as he gazed out the window at the endless clouds and mist. Beside him were two maidservants, and an old man cowered in a corner.

“Dong Fanyu!” Ji Ning was startled. Dong Fanyu was one of the Zifu Disciples of the Swallow Mountain branch of Snowdragon Mountain. Although Ji Ning had never seen him in person, he had seen portraits and intelligence reports.

“Where is True Immortal Xu Li?” Dong Fanyu said in shock as he saw the Ji Clan members enter. “What about Brother Ziqi and the others?”

The Ji Clan members completely ignored him.

“We pay our respects to the envoy.” Ji Jiuhuo was the first to bow nearly to the ground.

Ji Ning and the others behind him all bowed as well.

Only then did the young man in black finery, who had been standing at the window with his hands behind his back, turn around. His face was fair, and he wore a shallow smile, giving the impression of someone easy to get along with. His gaze swept over them. “Rise.”

Only then did the Ji Clan members straighten up.

“Eh?” The young man in black furrowed his brows and smiled. “Just you few? General Dong, didn’t you say earlier that Snowdragon Mountain and the Ji Clan were fighting a battle at Oxhorn Mountain?”

General Dong hastily replied from the side, “Reporting to the young master, it’s true that quite a few Snowdragon Mountain cultivators were fighting the Ji Clan at Oxhorn Mountain. Dong Fanyu even said that the Wanxiang Adept, Xu Li, had gone there. Ji Jiuhuo! I ask you, where are the Snowdragon Mountain people? The envoy from the Marquis of Anchan’s estate has arrived. Do they still dare not to show themselves?”

“Reporting to the envoy,” Ji Jiuhuo said hurriedly. “The Snowdragon Mountain forces wanted to annihilate my Ji Clan. My clan fought with all our might, and in the end, we killed all of the attacking Snowdragon Mountain members.”

“Impossible!” Dong Fanyu, who was standing to the side, shouted. “True Immortal Xu Li is a Wanxiang Adept! Your Ji Clan only has these few Zifu Disciples. How could you possibly kill True Immortal Xu Li? I think you used a grand formation to block the sounds from outside. You knew the young master was arriving, but True Immortal Xu Li and the others were inside the formation and didn’t know the young master had come.”

The young man in black stood there without speaking, just watching.

Ji Jiuhuo said, “True Immortal Xu Li is indeed dead. Ji Ning.” Ji Jiuhuo turned his head. “Take out that Dharma treasure seal of True Immortal Xu Li’s and show it to Dong Fanyu.”

Ji Ning flipped his hand, and a large seal, the ‘Earth-Fixing Seal’, appeared in his palm. Just by its appearance, the faint pressure it emitted was extraordinary.

Dong Fanyu was stunned and quickly said, “I… I’ve never seen True Immortal Xu Li use a Dharma treasure seal, but I have ridden in his flying treasure.”

“It should be an Earth-ranked treasure,” the young man in black suddenly said.

Ji Ning flipped his hand again, and a small sailboat appeared in his palm. Even though it was just in his palm, the moment Dong Fanyu saw it, his face turned ashen. “How is that possible?!”

General Dong’s pupils contracted. Then he laughed. “It seems the Ji Clan’s methods are extraordinary. According to the report Dong Fanyu gave earlier, nearly twenty Zifu Disciples, including Dongzi Qi and Tongyu, all died at Oxhorn Mountain. I never expected that even True Immortal Xu Li and the others who went there later would also die at Oxhorn Mountain.”

“Clap! Clap! Clap!” The young man in black suddenly began to clap his hands.

“I am Northmont Baiwei,” the young man in black said with a smile. “I’ve come here this time, as I’m sure you members of the Ji Clan have guessed, for that elemental ore vein within your clan’s territory. My purpose is simple: your Ji Clan will transfer this elemental ore vein to my Marquis of Anchan’s estate. My estate will also give you a thirty percent share!”

Ji Jiuhuo was stunned. “But we’ve already submitted a report to the Grand Xia Dynasty…”

“No need to worry,” the young man in black said, shaking his head. “My Marquis of Anchan’s estate arrived first. Once a contract is signed, it won’t matter even if the Grand Xia Dynasty’s envoy arrives. My estate will handle it for you.”

The members of the Ji Clan all sighed in relief.

Transferring it to the Marquis of Anchan’s estate or to the Grand Xia Dynasty made no difference to the Ji Clan.

Within the territory of Anchan Commandery… the Marquis of Anchan and the Grand Xia Dynasty held the same status. This was the Marquis’s fiefdom. Even the Grand Xia Dynasty found it inconvenient to interfere with some matters the Marquis of Anchan wished to manage.

“Are you willing?” Northmont Baiwei said.

“Willing, willing,” Ji Jiuhuo quickly said. No one in the Ji Clan, including Ji Ning, objected.

“Good.” Northmont Baiwei nodded with a smile. “I’ll send someone to inspect the quality of the elemental ore vein right now. Also, all of you may withdraw. Ji Ning, stay.”

Ji Ning, stay?

The members of the Ji Clan were startled. Dong Fanyu and General Dong, who were beside them, had already bowed and said, “As you command.” They then obediently withdrew. Although the Ji Clan members hesitated, they also obeyed the order and withdrew.

…

“Ji Jiuhuo, congratulations.” On the broad deck, General Dong cupped his hands.

“Just luck, just luck.” Ji Jiuhuo replied with a smile, but a look of surprise was on his face. “We didn’t report this to the Marquis of Anchan’s estate. How could they have sent an envoy so quickly?”

“How would I know?” General Dong shook his head. “Even if I had sent someone to report it, I doubt they would have even reached Anchan City by now.”

Ji Jiuhuo nodded lightly.

The members of the Ji Clan were all a bit worried about Ji Ning, who was still in the hall above. Dong Fanyu, on the other hand, was gnashing his teeth in frustration. The fact that even True Immortal Xu Li had died made him feel extremely bitter.

…

Inside the hall, only Northmont Baiwei, Ji Ning, and the two maidservants remained.

“Young master, is there something you wish to see me about?” Ji Ning said respectfully.

“No need to stand on ceremony.” Northmont Baiwei sat down directly and pointed to a black chair not far away, of lower status. “You sit over there too. Also, my name is Northmont Baiwei. You can just call me Baiwei. I don’t hold any official position.”

“Thank you, Young Master Baiwei.” Ji Ning sat down to the side.

Northmont Baiwei sat there looking at Ji Ning. “At the age of eleven, you killed the wanted criminal ‘Beizi Shan’, who was on the Yinglong Guard’s list. And this year you should be sixteen. If I’m not mistaken, your Ji Clan was able to turn the tables and make Snowdragon Mountain suffer a silent loss… it was probably all because of you, Ji Ning.”

Ji Ning was startled.

This young master, Northmont Baiwei, knew quite a lot. He even knew about Ji Ning killing Beizi Shan.

“No need to worry. I didn’t investigate you deliberately,” Northmont Baiwei said with a smile. “To be honest, this is the first time I’ve been sent out by my father on a mission. Since it’s my first time, I naturally have to be cautious. Although this matter seemed simple, I still had your Ji Clan thoroughly investigated.”

Ji Ning was secretly alarmed.

The Northmont clan of Anchan was an ancient tribe that had existed for almost as long as the Grand Xia Dynasty’s imperial clan. The children of a tribe like this were indeed different. Even when going to a small tribe as an envoy, they would investigate all the details in advance. This showed their level of caution.

“Killing Beizi Shan at eleven, and Tongyu, Xu Li, and the others at sixteen,” Northmont Baiwei sighed with emotion. “Even if you used formations, achieving such a record is still admirable.”

“Desperation, along with a bit of luck,” Ji Ning said with a sigh. “We came very close to all dying at Oxhorn Mountain.”

Thinking back to the twists and turns of the successive great battles on Oxhorn Mountain, Ji Ning still felt a lingering fear.

“You have luck, but you also have strength,” Northmont Baiwei said. “A genius like you is wasted in a small place like this. With such talent… without a powerful master to guide you, it will be difficult to achieve much. For example, without a top-tier cultivation technique, even becoming a Wanxiang Adept will be hard.”

Ji Ning nodded. “I do plan to travel abroad and even take on a master, but I need to wait a while longer.”

Northmont Baiwei nodded. He flipped his hand, and a token appeared in his palm. “If you go to Anchan City, you can come find me.”

Ji Ning was taken aback.

A token?

Accepting this would mean incurring a debt of gratitude. But Northmont Baiwei was of noble birth, yet he was cautious in his actions. Treating a Zifu Disciple from an ordinary tribe so courteously… someone like this was worth getting to know.

“Thank you, Young Master Baiwei.” Ji Ning hesitated for a moment, then accepted the token. The front of the token read ‘Northmont’, while the back read ‘Black Tiger’. This made Ji Ning mutter softly, “Northmont Black Tiger?”

“That’s my father’s name,” Northmont Baiwei said with a smile.

Ji Ning immediately said, “When I go to Anchan City, I will definitely come and pay my respects to Young Master Baiwei.”

“My men will need some time to inspect the quality of the vein. You and I can listen to some music and wait slowly,” Northmont Baiwei said, gently clapping his hands.

Immediately, from behind the curtain at the side door of the hall, a group of maidservants walked out. Each one carried or held a musical instrument, and every single one was devastatingly beautiful. Soon, the sound of music began to play. Other maidservants also brought in delicacies.

After a while of simple conversation, Ji Ning’s good impression of Northmont Baiwei grew considerably.

Suddenly—

“The Yinglong Guard is conducting an investigation. We wish to apprehend members of the Ji Clan for questioning. I ask the owner of this warship to grant us passage.” A cold, harsh voice directly penetrated inside, echoing throughout the entire warship.

Ji Ning and Northmont Baiwei, even inside the hall, heard it clearly. Ji Ning turned his head and looked out the window. In the distance, standing on a red cloud in midair, was a youth in red robes, staring coldly at them.