With the deaths of the Hu father and son, the matter of the Hu Clan Mine came to an end.
The truth had been uncovered, the mastermind had been brought to justice, and there were also the Xi family's compensation, the Hu family's assets, and the reparations from the five small families of Jia City...
Whether in terms of truth, benefits, substance, or appearances, everything had been accounted for.
The incident involving the exhaustion of the Celestial Azure Stone vein could be considered a complete success. No one could find fault with it.
It had laid a solid foundation for him to take over and integrate all of the Chongxuan family's businesses in the State of Yang later on.
Jiang Chen had also established his authority at the Hu Clan Mine.
Authority rested on two things: prestige and trust.
Killing the Dog-Mask wearer had established his prestige.
Releasing Su Xiuxing and pursuing Hu Shaomeng had established his trustworthiness.
After this battle, no one at the Hu Clan Mine would ever doubt Jiang Chen's words again.
The submission of the miners and martial artists went without saying, and Zhang Hai had repeatedly expressed his loyalty.
He arranged for the mine to resume operations, inventoried the relevant resources, and contacted Chongxuan Sheng to send people to take over...
His goal was to integrate all of the Chongxuan family's businesses throughout the State of Yang and turn this place into Chongxuan Sheng's base. The Hu Clan Mine was the foundation for achieving that goal.
After finishing all the necessary tasks, Jiang Chen returned to his room. Only then did he have time to sort through his own gains.
Of the reparations from the five small families, Jiang Chen handed all the resources other than the rare cultivation arts over to Chongxuan Sheng.
That included the Hu family's assets and the Xi family's compensation. Jiang Chen kept not a single coin.
Of course, how much Chongxuan Sheng skimmed off and how much he passed on to the family was Chongxuan Sheng's own affair.
His own gains consisted of one Celestial Azure Cloud Sheep, the spirit of the Celestial Azure Cloud Stone; four hundred and fifty Dao Essence Stones; one Treasure Light Art; and a precious mirror that greatly enhanced illusions.
Of these, he planned to give half of the Celestial Azure Cloud Sheep to Chongxuan Sheng. Although he had seized it back from someone else, it had ultimately come from a vein belonging to the Chongxuan family.
The Celestial Azure Cloud Sheep could be directly absorbed and digested. It could greatly enhance the absorber's control over Wood-attribute primordial qi and strengthen talents related to the Wood element. Even half of it was not to be underestimated.
It could be regarded as an advanced effect of completing the Azure Dragon Chapter of the Four-Spirit Body Refining Art.
However, to avoid throwing the Five Elements too far out of balance, Jiang Chen planned to use it after completing the White Tiger Chapter and bringing the Four Spirits together.
The Treasure Light Art allowed the caster a certain chance of seeing "treasure light." The strength of the treasure light reflected the value of the treasure it contained.
The precious mirror Hu Shaomeng possessed was called "Hongzhuang." After studying it, Jiang Chen discovered that it inherently contained an additional illusion art capable of creating illusions. This was also why Hu Shaomeng could appear and disappear so unpredictably.
Although the illusions had no combat power, their ability to appear completely real alone made them extremely valuable.
Not to mention that "Hongzhuang" also contained a mirror world where one could hide.
However, once someone entered the mirror world, the mirror itself lost its protection. Until he had completed refining it, Jiang Chen had no intention of entering it personally to explore.
After entering the Ethereal Realm and communicating with Chongxuan Sheng, Jiang Chen pushed open the door and stepped outside.
As expected, Xiaoxiao was standing outside the door. Judging by her appearance, she had been there for quite some time.
"Master, I wouldn't dare deceive you. Feeding the flesh of Hu Shaomeng and that monster to the dogs was my own decision. Miss Zhu only helped me cover it up. They were your enemies, and I heard that if someone is eaten by beasts, they can never be reborn. I didn't want them to have a chance to seek revenge against you in their next life."
She lowered her head and quietly awaited judgment.
Jiang Chen was not surprised in the slightest.
Someone like Zhu Biqiong, who had grown up in a greenhouse, would find it difficult to come up with such a cruel idea.
He had not exposed her at the time to give Xiaoxiao a chance. If she did not seize it herself, that chance would be gone.
In this cruel world, people's bottom lines had fallen lower than ever before. Some people died for honor, while others knelt for money.
What put Jiang Chen on guard was not Xiaoxiao's bottom line, but the fact that she had concealed it from him.
"If there is a next time, don't call me Master," Jiang Chen said as he walked away.
"There won't be a next time." Xiaoxiao stopped behind him and bit her lower lip.
...
Having gained nothing at the Hu Clan Mine, Xi Zichu slunk back to the city with his soldiers and no longer had the energy to maintain his image.
He crept silently into his home.
The death of a clan elder at the Soaring Dragon realm was by no means insignificant to the Xi family, which had only four combatants at that realm.
But compared with the Hu family's fate, it seemed much easier to accept.
The City Lord's Mansion was heavily guarded, and the atmosphere was extremely tense.
They had offended the Chongxuan family. Although the reparations seemed to have eased the conflict, such a reaction was hardly surprising from the weaker side.
Thinking this, Xi Zichu walked to his father's study.
The armored guards stationed outside did not dare stop him and let him knock on the door.
"Come in." Only after a pause did a voice come from inside.
Xi Zichu pushed the door open and entered. The first person he saw was Master Liu, seated with his back to him. His father, Xi Munan, sat behind the desk, his face half-clouded.
Around them sat the commander and deputy commander of the City Guard, the officers in charge of public security and their deputies, and the Xi family's elders who held real power... When they saw Xi Zichu, they all saluted.
It seemed they had been discussing something important.
Xi Zichu himself, however, knew nothing about it.
He could not help feeling uneasy.
"Father, what happened?" he asked.
Xi Munan glanced at him and waved his hand. "Go do things as I said earlier."
"This student takes his leave." Master Liu rose first, cupped his hands in salute, and led the way out.
He came from the Confucian school and did not wish to hold an official post. In front of City Lord Xi Munan, he often referred to himself as a student to show his respect.
Toward Xi Zichu, he merely gave a slight nod, which counted as a greeting.
Whatever he truly felt, Xi Zichu did not dare be negligent on the surface. He returned the salute carefully, then cupped his hands to each of the others as they filed out.
When the last person had left, the door was pulled shut.
Looking at his father's unreadable expression, Xi Zichu could not help asking again, "What happened, Father?"
Xi Munan avoided the question. "Tell me about your own affairs."
"I lost. I lost completely. I gained nothing at the mine. The treasure Hu Shaomeng had been plotting to obtain was the spirit of the Celestial Azure Cloud Stone, the manifested Celestial Azure Cloud Sheep. Jiang Chen got it."
Xi Zichu did not shirk responsibility. He admitted directly, "The family suffered heavy losses this time. The responsibility is entirely mine."
Xi Munan looked at him quietly for a while, looking at his only son.
In his early years, he had had two other sons, but one had died young and the other had been killed by an enemy.
For this last son, in whom he had placed all his hopes, he had not been excessively indulgent. Instead, he had disciplined him extremely strictly.
That discipline did not concern speech or moral conduct. It focused mainly on strategy and adaptability, cultivation and combat, and the ways of the world.
In his view, being a ladies' man was not a bad thing. Being able to spread the Xi family's branches and leaves and make its descendants flourish was the proper path.
Pride was not a problem either. The problem was having the ability to match it.
"The clan elder who died at the Hu Clan Mine... even I had to call him Clan Uncle," Xi Munan said. "He could have stayed home and enjoyed his blessings. He was at the age when he should have been enjoying his twilight years. He should have died peacefully in a warm bed, not been killed in a cold mining district."
"He was the only Soaring Dragon realm combatant the Xi family could still mobilize. I asked him to come help you, and he was very willing. Because you are a descendant of the Xi family, the future of the Xi family. Because he was your grand-uncle!"
Xi Munan pressed a hand to his forehead. "But I... didn't even get to see his remains brought back."
Le Wen