[My name is Chen Sheng. When you read these words, I am filled with regret… On the day I arrived in Changshan County, I had intended to visit the old residence to pay my respects to the past. Yet the local magnates, harboring ulterior motives, held a banquet in my honor, making it difficult for me to extricate myself. In the end, I returned to the military camp drunk and muddled, and thus missed a hidden matter. Had I gone that very night, perhaps I might have learned some of the truth…]
This prompt had already appeared upon the Heavenly Book before he entered the city.
Therefore, throughout the entire banquet, Chen Sheng remained vigilant. When the atmosphere reached its liveliest, he found an excuse that would not easily draw notice and quietly left the table without alarming anyone.
As one of the four great gangs of Changshan County, the Seven Stars Gang had its roots deeply planted in the northern part of the city. And as the son of its former gang leader, Chen Sheng’s original self had naturally lived in an unremarkable residence in the north city.
The location of this residence was rather ingenious. It was neither too close nor too far from the Seven Stars Gang’s main hall—convenient for contact, yet sufficiently hidden.
As for his true identity, even within the gang, only a scant few knew of it. Most had only heard his name and never seen the man. Only the old steward, Uncle Yang, and his family knew his background.
It was precisely because of this that, when the old steward was suddenly arrested, the original self had panicked so badly that he had fled the county town in haste without even having time to pack anything.
When Chen Sheng found this familiar residence according to his memories, there was nothing unusual in the surroundings.
Pedestrians hurried through the streets and alleys, and no one paid much attention to this seemingly ordinary courtyard. He observed in secret for a long while, but found no signs of surveillance or anything suspicious.
With a thought, his figure moved as nimbly as a civet cat, silently scaling the wall and slipping inside.
The scene within the courtyard, however, made him pause slightly—this place was not at all as ruined and desolate as he had expected. Instead, it was swept clean. The plants and trees in the courtyard were neatly trimmed, and there were no fallen leaves upon the stone path, as if someone had been carefully tending to it all along.
‘Could it be that after the old steward met with trouble, this place was not implicated?’ Chen Sheng could not help but furrow his brows, doubts rising in his heart.
Just as he was pondering, his gaze was drawn to a figure on the training ground.
That person was practicing a stance art in a steady, meticulous manner, his movements stable and his breathing long and deep. Chen Sheng recognized the origin of that stance art at a glance—the Tongbi Stance Art.
This was precisely the cultivation method Uncle Yang had relied upon to protect himself. In his youth, the original self had also learned it for a time, but because his body was weak and frail, he had never been able to truly enter the door. Over time, he had set it aside.
If not for that, he would not have had to wait until obtaining the Golden Bell Body Forging Method before formally stepping onto the path of cultivation.
“Ah Hu.”
Chen Sheng looked at that familiar yet somewhat unfamiliar broad back and called softly.
In an instant, the figure practicing the stance art stiffened violently, his movements coming to a halt. He abruptly turned around, his gaze shooting toward Chen Sheng like lightning. First, shock and suspicion appeared on his face; then they turned into disbelief. For a moment, he stood rooted to the spot, forgetting how to react.
This burly young man was named Yang Hu, the only son of the old steward, Uncle Yang. Since childhood, he had grown up together with the original self, serving both as a study companion and as a guard. Compared to the original self, who had been frail and sickly, Yang Hu’s aptitude for cultivation was much better.
Back then, he had been the first to learn the news and had risked danger to inform the original self of the terrible news that the old steward had been arrested. It was just that Yang Hu had not fled together with him at the time, instead choosing to stay behind and attempt to rescue his father.
“Young… Young Master?!” Yang Hu finally came back to his senses, his voice carrying a trace of trembling. Enormous shock and undisguisable delight intertwined upon his face. “Is… is it really you?!”
“It’s me.”
Chen Sheng walked slowly forward, calmly sizing him up. The Yang Hu before him was even more robust than in his memories, and there was now a little more weathering and toughness between his brows.
“Young Master! You… you’ve finally returned!”
Yang Hu was so excited that his words became somewhat incoherent. He strode forward, yet stopped a few steps away from Chen Sheng, as if he still did not quite dare to believe it.
“I never went too far. What about you? Uncle Yang, he… what happened afterward?” Chen Sheng cut straight to the point.
At the mention of his father, the excitement on Yang Hu’s face swiftly faded, replaced by deep bleakness and pain.
“My father… he died in prison. I… I couldn’t save him…”
……
As Yang Hu’s low and suppressed account continued, Chen Sheng gradually pieced together the truth of what had happened back then.
It turned out that after the old steward was arrested, he had endured no small amount of interrogation and torture, yet had clenched his teeth from beginning to end, refusing to reveal even the slightest news about Chen Sheng. In the end, in order to preserve the secret, he had actually shattered his own heart meridians in prison and died, so as not to implicate Chen Sheng.
After conducting an investigation, the Seven Stars Gang failed to find any trace or news of Chen Sheng. Coupled with the complexity of the internal transfer of power within the gang, the search for him gradually slackened.
As for Yang Hu, because his identity had never been made public, he was spared.
To avenge his father, he concealed his name and identity. Relying on his solid skills and fierce determination, he actually found a way to join the Seven Stars Gang, starting from the very bottom.
After fighting and maneuvering for the better part of half a year, he had actually climbed step by step to the position of hall master. Though he was not part of the core upper echelon, he had still gained a certain amount of strength and intelligence.
“During this time, I’ve been secretly investigating news about the Master and you.”
Yang Hu’s voice was low. “After you left that day, there was no news of you at all. I searched in many ways, but found nothing. As for the Master…”
He paused, a sharp gleam flashing through his eyes as he lowered his voice.
“Regarding the cause of the Master’s death, I made secret inquiries and discovered that there was another hidden truth. The Master did not die as the outside world says—killed personally by Vice Gang Leader Ma during an internal rebellion in the gang.
“In fact, according to the information I obtained, when the Master was murdered, Vice Gang Leader Ma was not present at all. It was only after the Master died that he, with the Gao family’s full support, swiftly quelled the chaos and took the position of gang leader.”
“The Gao family?”
Chen Sheng’s gaze focused. He had only just heard this name tonight—at the banquet in Juxian Tower, the head of the aristocratic family who had proposed a marriage alliance was precisely the head of the Gao family.
“That’s right.”
Yang Hu nodded heavily, his tone certain. “Behind the Seven Stars Gang, there has always been the shadow of the Gao family. I suspect that the Master’s death is something the Gao family most likely cannot wash their hands of. They may even have been the true masterminds behind the scenes! Vice Gang Leader Ma is nothing more than a puppet they pushed onto the stage!”
Chen Sheng listened in silence. These inside details were indeed things he was learning for the first time. In the original self’s memories, the details of the gang’s internal struggles were extremely vague.
“Is there more?” Chen Sheng pressed. He could tell that Yang Hu still seemed somewhat hesitant.
Yang Hu hesitated for a moment, but in the end, he nodded. His voice dropped even lower.
“There is… From what I have observed, the gang has actually never completely given up searching for you. It seems… before the Master died, he left behind something extremely important, something that Vice Gang Leader Ma—or rather, the Gao family behind him—cares about greatly.
“Back then, when they pursued you, on one hand, it was to cut the weeds and eliminate the roots. On the other hand, I fear it was because they wanted to find clues to that item from you…”
“A precious treasure?” Chen Sheng’s heart stirred. Perhaps this was the “hidden matter” that the Heavenly Book of Seeking Fortune and Avoiding Disaster had warned him about, the one he had nearly missed.
However, he rapidly searched through the original self’s memories, yet came up with nothing. The original self’s father had rarely mentioned gang affairs to him, let alone anything about some precious treasure.
When he had fled in panic back then, aside from bringing some gold, silver, and valuables, the only thing he had taken with him was the piece of ancestral warm jade he wore close to his body.
That jade had been something his father had gone to great effort to obtain for him, to nourish his body and make up for his innate deficiencies. He had worn it since childhood, and it could indeed faintly nourish his qi and blood. But after wearing it for so many years, he had never discovered anything extraordinary about it.
“According to my conjecture, that should be the case.”
Yang Hu said, “Otherwise, it would be hard to explain why they still refuse to give up even now.”
“Do you know what exactly that thing is?”
Yang Hu shook his head, shame appearing on his face.
“As for what it specifically is, I could not find out. Although I am now a hall master, in the end, the time has still been too short. I have not truly entered the core circle. This is already the limit of what I can come into contact with.”
“You’ve worked hard during this time.” Chen Sheng patted his shoulder, his tone softening somewhat.
“Young Master, please don’t say that.”
Yang Hu hurriedly replied. Then his expression turned grave again. “Young Master, forgive me for speaking plainly, but the storm over the Master’s matter has not yet subsided. For you to return at this time is truly too dangerous! Listen to my advice and leave Changshan County as soon as possible! As for the blood feud of my father and the Master, I will avenge it! I will absolutely not betray the grace of the Master’s upbringing and teachings back then!”
“How do you intend to avenge it?” Chen Sheng looked at him and asked calmly.
Yang Hu clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white from the force. A terrifying ferocity and resolve burst from the depths of his eyes.
“I… I am already close to breaking through to the Bone Forging Realm! Once I successfully break through, I will have enough strength! I will find the right opportunity and personally kill that dog thief surnamed Ma! I will also exterminate his entire family, old and young, to offer sacrifice to the spirits of the Master and my father in heaven! I… I will also seize the entire Seven Stars Gang. In the future, if I have the ability, I will definitely make the Gao family repay their blood debt in blood!”
His words carried a madness and hatred born of staking everything on a single throw. Clearly, this past half year of endurance and planning had already allowed the flames of revenge to burn through his entire mind.
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