Martial Dao: Peace by Force

Situ Bai didn't reply. He simply lifted his teacup, leisurely blowing on the floating leaves before taking a sip.

Master Qin stared at him for a few seconds, then suddenly laughed at his posture. "Alright, I get it. You've definitely got something up your sleeve."

"Something up my sleeve?" Situ Bai looked up, his smile unchanged. "What could I possibly have planned? Everyone's still staying in the Holy City."

Master Qin scoffed. "Cut the act. When have you, you old fox, ever done something you weren't sure about?"

Situ Bai smiled but said nothing.

The teahouse fell silent for a moment, the only sound the soft CRACKLE of sandalwood incense burning down.

Master Qin shook his head, his tone laced with a hint of emotion. "You really aren't afraid of Wan Ze suffering a loss."

"A loss?" Situ Bai set down his cup, his gaze shifting to the window. "If the Sheng Family dares to make a move, wouldn't that give me a reason to intervene personally?"

He paused, his smile deepening. "But they won't dare."

Master Qin raised an eyebrow. "So certain?"

Situ Bai retracted his gaze, his tone unhurried. "The Sheng Family is domineering, not stupid. No matter how much the Ming Family has fallen, they are still old friends of mine, of Situ Bai. If they really dare to take things to the extreme, aren't they afraid I'll turn on them? I'm sending Xiaozhe this time for two reasons. One, to broaden his horizons and let him see what the grudges of the martial world are really like. Two... it's time for him to build his reputation."

Master Qin was taken aback, but then he understood, a hint of surprise in his voice. "You want him to test the mettle of that Sheng Family's True Dragon?"

Situ Bai chuckled. "I hear the Sheng Family's younger generation is quite arrogant. That True Dragon is said to be their most talented prospect in decades. Refining Viscera Early Stage, not yet thirty. With that Cultivation at that age, he certainly has the right to be arrogant. It's the perfect opportunity for Xiaozhe to go meet him. It's no disgrace if he loses, but if he wins..."

He didn't finish.

But Master Qin understood.

If he won, Wan Ze's reputation as Situ Bai's Closed-door Disciple would be established.

He laughed and shook his head. "You have that much confidence in Wan Ze?"

Situ Bai leaned back in his chair, beaming. "Of course. Just look whose disciple he is."

Master Qin was momentarily speechless at his shameless narcissism, finally cursing with a laugh, "You... still as shameless as ever."

After laughing, his expression turned serious as he changed the subject. "On a more serious note, the Slavic Kingdom... what are your thoughts?"

Situ Bai's smile faded slightly, but he remained silent.

Master Qin continued, "The Secret Palace has intervened aggressively this time, and they're making big moves. It's said they've already found a lot of things; they're about to turn that place completely upside down. Are we just going to stand by and watch?"

A breeze swept past the window, and a few birds zipped by with sharp, clear chirps.

Situ Bai raised his teacup, took a slow sip, and said cryptically, "The world is not yet settled. Let them cause a stir."

Master Qin raised his eyebrows slightly, as if he had thought of something, and also fell silent.

...

"Ah Ze, how's your Secret Martial Arts training coming along?" Tan Xiao asked in a low voice. "Lately, during my Cultivation... I've been feeling like our Dragon Eagle Secret Martial Arts gives us very strong control over explosive power."

"I've had the same feeling," Wan Ze replied with a smile, snapping out of his thoughts.

Tan Xiao couldn't help but sigh with emotion. "I heard Master say before that achieving mastery in the Dragon Eagle Secret Martial Arts is extremely difficult. It's best if we can reach that threshold before we turn thirty... because before thirty, our physical functions and energy are at their peak. After that... we just won't have enough to push for higher levels. So far, in our generation, it seems only about five disciples have reached mastery."

'Five? That's it?' Wan Ze's heart skipped a beat.

He had already raised his Dragon Eagle Secret Martial Arts to the Special Level. With only one last mission separating him from the Ultimate level, he figured he should also be considered to have achieved mastery.

He knew better than anyone just how powerful the mastery state of the Dragon Eagle Secret Martial Arts was.

'To think that besides me, five other people have cultivated the Dragon Eagle Secret Martial Arts to such a high level.'

"If I remember correctly, our Eldest Senior Brother reached mastery in Dragon Eagle at 22, and at 25, he killed a Refining Force expert while at the Refining Viscera Late Stage... He's only 26 now and is already a Refining Force Expert..."

At the mention of Dragon Eagle's Eldest Senior Brother, a look of longing involuntarily appeared on Tan Xiao's face.

Wan Ze's heart leaped.

He had heard of the Eldest Senior Brother, but he'd never had the chance to meet him.

'I'm only 16 now, and already at the Refining Viscera stage... It shouldn't be a problem to catch up to Eldest Senior Brother within ten years.'

Just then, the young girl sitting across from them, unable to stand the boy's chatter any longer, couldn't help but look at Wan Ze. "Are you guys also going to South City?"

"Yeah, are you too?" Wan Ze replied casually.

"Yes, yes! We go to Nanda University. Are you... are you students there too?" the other girl, who seemed more lively, asked.

"...We're just visiting."

Wan Ze faltered for a second but didn't tell them the truth.

The affairs of the Martial Dao Realm truly had a side unknown to ordinary life.

Seeing they weren't university students, a flicker of surprise crossed the two girls' faces, but they quickly dropped the subject.

The one with the ponytail was bolder. She tilted her head, sized up Wan Ze, and smiled. "Oh, so you're tourists. South City might not be as glamorous as it used to be, but there are still plenty of fun places."

She started counting on her fingers. "If it's your first time, you definitely have to visit Xun Ancient City. The city walls were left by previous generations, supposedly hundreds of years old. The green bricks are worn smooth and shiny. When you stand on the gate tower and look down, you can see all the tiled roofs along the street. It's beautiful."

The girl with shoulder-length hair nodded along, adding in a soft voice, "Right, right, especially when it's foggy in the morning. The gray walls and black tiles look just like an ink wash painting. Last time we went, we even saw someone sketching there..."

"Yes, and there's Wang Shunshan..." The ponytail girl's eyes lit up. "And the new Mei Garden, built in the last two years, is right at the foot of the mountain. It's covered in plum blossoms. There's a winding stone path up the mountain to the summit, and vendors sell candied hawthorns and roasted sweet potatoes along the way..."

Getting excited, she couldn't help but lean forward. "If you like snacks, there's an old teahouse at the summit. Their osmanthus cakes are especially fragrant. You can eat them with tea and sit there all afternoon."

The girl with shoulder-length hair gently tugged her friend's sleeve and whispered, "Hey, maybe they don't like those kinds of things."

The ponytail girl realized she had said too much. Her face flushed slightly as she shrank back into her seat, but she still couldn't resist adding a final summary in a low voice, "Anyway... anyway, it's really worth visiting."

Tan Xiao listened intently, then scratched the back of his head and looked at Wan Ze with a simple-minded expression. "Ah Ze, that sounds pretty good. Why don't we check it out after we finish our business?"

Wan Ze agreed with a smile.

The boy across from them cleared his throat, apparently wanting to steer the conversation back to international affairs, but the two girls clearly didn't notice him, their eyes fixed on Wan Ze's face.

The boy finally got anxious and raised his voice slightly. "I was born and raised in South City. I know this place like the back of my hand."

One of the two girls nodded. "You're a local? I heard South City has a lot of good food, but we don't know where to find it. Can you give us some recommendations?"

The boy smiled immediately, leaning back and relaxing his posture. "Then you've asked the right person. This place, South City, it may not look big, but it has a long history..."

As he spoke, he caught a glimpse of Wan Ze, sitting diagonally in front of him, seeming to tilt his head their way, but he didn't think anything of it.

Seeing how enthusiastically the boy was talking, Wan Ze said nothing more and returned his gaze to the window.

It's unclear what topic the boy moved on to, but he suddenly started bragging about his relatives. Turning to see Wan Ze's indifferent reaction, he wasn't annoyed. Instead, thinking the guy probably didn't believe him, he added, "Don't just dismiss it. My cousin works at the South City Transportation Bureau, and his friend is at City Hall. Anyway... they can get things done."

Wan Ze just gave a faint "Mm."

The boy: "????"

'What's with the "Mm"?'

The boy thought Wan Ze didn't understand what he was implying and began to explain it specifically. But Wan Ze remained completely calm, so the boy, his mouth dry from talking, decisively stopped.

「A few hours later.」

The train began to slow down, and an announcement for the arrival at South City sounded over the intercom.

People in the carriage started to get up and gather their luggage.

The boy stood up, took a backpack down from the luggage rack, straightened his collar, and smiled at the two girls. "When you get out of the station, walk east. It's cheaper to get a taxi over there. The west side is all private pickups, so the traffic is terrible."

The two girls nodded and followed him toward the door, waving goodbye to Wan Ze. The boy, however, didn't even glance at him.

Wan Ze rose unhurriedly, holding his small backpack.

Tan Xiao followed behind him.

The station exit was brightly lit.

The boy was in the middle of showing off to the two girls behind him when he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

At the edge of the station's front plaza, six black vintage sedans were parked in a neat row. Their bodies were polished to a gleam, reflecting a deep, dark light under the lamps.

Seven or eight people stood beside the cars, all dressed in black formal suits. The man in the lead, who looked to be in his fifties with meticulously combed hair, was looking toward the station exit.

"Holy crap..." the boy muttered under his breath.

The two girls didn't understand what was happening.

Just then, the whispers of passersby drifted over:

"Aren't those the Ming Family's cars?"

"Definitely. Those license plates are one of a kind in all of South City."

"Who is the Ming Family picking up? This is quite a reception..."

"Who knows? Anyone who gets President Ming to pick them up personally must be a big shot."

The boy's heart skipped a beat when he heard this.

He knew perfectly well how influential the Ming Family was in South City. They were on a completely different level from the "cousins" and "buddies" he usually bragged about.

He couldn't help but stare, feeling a pang of envy.

'I wonder what kind of hotshot could make the Ming Family put on such a display.'

Just as he was thinking this, he heard footsteps behind him.

He subconsciously turned around and saw Wan Ze walk past him unhurriedly, heading toward the line of cars.

When the middle-aged man in the lead saw Wan Ze, he immediately hurried over to greet him. "Mr. Wan, Mr. Tan, you must be tired from your journey. The old master specially sent me to receive you."

Wan Ze nodded, his expression as calm as ever, as if this were all perfectly normal. "Thank you for your trouble."

Someone beside them had already opened a car door. Wan Ze bent down and got in. The door closed softly, and Tan Xiao slipped in from the side.

Then, the six black sedans slowly started up and drove off into the night.

The boy stood rooted to the spot, his mouth slightly agape, his face feeling as if it had just been lightly slapped.

The two girls beside him looked at the departing convoy, then back at him. One of them asked in a low voice, "Didn't you just... offer to introduce him to some people?"

The boy didn't say a word. His throat bobbed, his face beet red, utterly unable to speak.

In the distance, some passersby were still discussing it. "Who was that with the Ming Family? He looked pretty young."

"I don't know, but he's definitely not an ordinary person."

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