Martial Dao: Peace by Force

Chapter 49: Chapter 47: Public Prominence, Attribute Enhancement

[Physical Strength: 0.89]

[Intelligence: 0.84]

[Agility: 0.81]

[Endurance: 0.82]

[Power: 0.84]

[Coordination: 0.84]

[Cultivation: Blood Tempering Second Transformation]

...

Wan Ze let out a long breath. He hadn’t expected to enter a state of Deep Meditation again by a stroke of luck. Although it lasted slightly longer than the first time, he still couldn’t avoid that ball of fire.

What amused him now, however, was that Situ Bai’s attitude toward him had become even gentler than before.

’He wouldn’t even treat his own son this well,’ the Zhai brothers secretly thought.

After Situ Bai personally helped Wan Ze regulate his qi, he took out a bottle of Secret Pills and handed it to him, giving him serious instructions for a full half-hour before letting him and the two Zhai brothers go out to eat.

”Junior Brother, your talent is just insane!” Zhai Jia, who was more outgoing than his older brother Zhai Yu, already had his arm slung around Wan Ze’s shoulders.

Coincidentally, the restaurant the three of them were heading to was the same high-end one he had visited with Fatty Zhou just yesterday.

This time, the hotel manager, having heard of their arrival, personally rushed over to serve them. His obsequious, bowing and scraping demeanor clearly indicated that his two senior brothers had extraordinary backgrounds.

But since Zhai Yu and Zhai Jia didn’t mention it, Wan Ze didn’t pry.

”Junior Brother, Master mentioned it at the dojo earlier. Now that your Cultivation has just broken through, you still need a lot of practice. I happen to be free for the next two days, so I can train with you... Also, the Dragon Eagle Secret Martial Arts is all about explosive power. Since you’ve just broken through, you should avoid fighting for the next couple of days if you can.”

Zhai Jia reminded him in a low voice.

Seeing Wan Ze look over, he explained, ”Using the explosive power of Secret Martial Arts puts a heavy strain on the body. It’s like an ordinary person who doesn’t exercise regularly. If you suddenly make them run three to five kilometers, even if they finish, they’ll be gasping for breath and completely exhausted... Once you’ve mastered this power within you and your body maintains a state of balance, activating the Secret Martial Arts won’t have such significant side effects.”

Wan Ze had a sudden realization.

However, he had the Illustrated Guide and could observe the changes in his own Attributes at any time. Besides, he felt that he was in excellent condition.

But since this Senior Brother Zhai had said so, he naturally wouldn’t be so ostentatious as to prove him wrong. He just nodded and agreed, ”Then I’ll be counting on you, Senior Brother.”

Zhai Jia laughed heartily. ”Don’t be so formal! We’re all disciples of the same master, so we’re brothers. We should help each other out from now on. It’s just a shame that Eldest Brother and Second Sister are away. They’ll probably be back before the new year. You’d better work hard. When Second Sister gets back, things are going to get chaotic...”

Wan Ze was taken aback.

’What does he mean?’

Just as he was speaking, there was a knock on the door. Zhai Jia thought it was Lei Ming and was about to get up, but instead, he saw a young man in a blue suit. He frowned slightly.

The man hurried forward, his posture extremely deferential. ”Master Jia, it’s me, Song Tianrui, Xiaosong. My father is from the Song Family! Master Yu, Master Jia, your presence truly brings light to my humble establishment. My staff downstairs are ignorant; I hope you two masters won’t hold it against them... This is a fine wine from my father’s private collection. I brought it for you.”

Song Tianrui gestured, and the hotel manager behind him presented the bottle of wine he was holding with both hands.

”So it’s you.” Zhai Jia looked at the bottle, a playful expression on his face. ”Eighty-year-old Xianmao wine. Boss Xiaosong, you’ve got guts.”

Song Tianrui was all smiles. ”You’re too kind, Master Jia. I’m close friends with Duan Hong. I’ve been hearing legendary stories about you and Master Yu for a long time and have admired you from afar. I just never had the chance...”

Before he could finish, Zhai Jia cut him off. ”Alright, I’m busy today. When I have time, I’ll have Xiaoduan contact you.”

”Yes, yes, of course. I’ll let you get back to it. Goodbye, Master Yu!”

Song Tianrui bowed repeatedly as he backed out of the room. When the waiter had closed the door again, he suddenly stopped, turned around, and looked back at the now-shut door, his gaze filled with a mixture of shock and uncertainty.

The whole time, he had been talking to Zhai Jia. The person sitting on the left was Zhai Yu... he recognized him, aloof and observing coolly, just as the legends described.

As for the person on the right... he felt a strange sense of familiarity.

’It’s as if I’ve seen him somewhere before.’

Even though the man hadn’t said a single word, he seemed to be the Zhai brothers’ guest of honor!

’What kind of background must he have for the two young masters of the Zhai Family to treat him like this?’

Song Tianrui walked slowly, frowning in thought. He didn’t even hear the manager carefully reporting to him. It wasn’t until he reached the door of another private room that he suddenly remembered the people Zhou Xianchuan had treated to dinner yesterday... It seemed one of them looked a lot like that person.

A jolt of shock went through him.

The more he thought about it, the more stunned he became.

But the problem was...

’How is that possible?!’

When they met yesterday, he had immediately assessed the attire of the group in the room. The quality of that young man’s clothes clearly showed he wasn’t from their circle.

”Fucking hell, I guess the real masters don’t show their faces these days!”

He hurried away.

...

The atmosphere in the room relaxed once more.

Neither Zhai Yu nor Zhai Jia let Song Tianrui’s arrival ruin their good mood. After Lei Ming showed up, the four of them enjoyed a cheerful and harmonious meal.

When the matter of the Tiger Talisman was brought up, Lei Ming covered his face in shame. ”It’s all my fault. I was too quick to trust that kid. If I’d known, I would have listened to Master and finished them all off in one go. Then this wouldn’t have happened...”

”You can’t be blamed for that. Those people from the Secret Palace are cunning by nature, and they had set up a trap in advance. The fact that you managed to cripple two Blood Tempering Third Transformation experts is impressive enough,” Zhai Jia said with a comforting smile.

Lei Ming waved his hand, a sense of helplessness welling up inside him.

It was one thing that he couldn’t defeat Lie Qi, who was at the Blood Tempering Third Transformation, but to top it off, that bastard Lie Hu had mocked him to his face. It had nearly made him explode with anger!

”Is Professor Song okay?” Wan Ze asked.

Lei Ming sighed and shook his head. ”They just managed to save him this morning. I’ll take you to see him in a couple of days.”

Wan Ze nodded.

The topic soon turned to the Tiger Talisman.

Zhai Yu said thoughtfully, ”For the Secret Palace to be so desperate for the Tiger Talisman, they must have some concrete information.”

”It’s got to be about that ruin in the Slavic Kingdom,” Zhai Jia said with a pout. ”Rumor has it that the legacy of a path beyond the Body Refining Realm was found inside... but it’s not clear if that’s true or not. The Imperial Mausoleum is one of the most mysterious tombs of our East Sea civilization, with a history so long it predates even the founder of the Celestial Harmony Palace... It’s only natural to speculate that it holds the legacy of the Qi Refiners.”

”That’s all too far off,” Lei Ming lamented.

”Yeah, too far off.” Even Zhai Yu felt it was a distant prospect. ”The Three Body Refining Gates are Blood Tempering, Refining Viscera, and then Refining Force... What comes after Refining Force, no one can say for sure.”

”Legend says that the ancient Qi Refiners even possessed the Creation Technique. Who knows if it’s true or not, but if it is...” Zhai Jia’s eyes were filled with longing. He had grown up hearing many legends of the Martial Dao and naturally yearned for it.

Today, all the experts in the Martial Dao Realm believe in the existence of Qi Refiners, but no one knows how to walk that path.

”But if the Two Tiger Talismans can really lead to the Imperial Mausoleum... not even the Secret Palace could withstand the pressure that would follow. We’ll just have to wait and see. By the way, Junior Brother, let’s exchange contact info...”

...

「Night fell.」

As a sense of clarity spread through his mind, Wan Ze opened his eyes.

[Illustrated Guide: Mystic Round Innate Qi Cultivation Technique] (Intermediate Mastered)

[Effect: All Attributes +0.02]

[Skill High Level Satisfying Conditions: Deep Meditation for 1 hour] (Progress 0%)

...

”An increase to All Attributes?”

Wan Ze took a deep breath.

The power inside his body surged wildly!

...

A moment later, in the backyard, two figures moved in a blur, crossing paths.

Sun Fan collapsed onto the grass, exhausted.

He gasped for breath, ”No more... I really can’t go on...”

Outside the gate, Zhai Jia, who had come looking for a sparring partner, stared with wide eyes. He silently marveled at how badass his junior brother was, then quietly turned and left.