"She, well, became an apprentice under the Great Elder Lan Tianyong of the Taixu Sect. I reckon that after cultivating for several years, the girl is almost ready to reach the Nascent Soul stage."

Crack!

Two fingers plunged directly into the floor tiles, relying on no particular skill, just sheer strength, forcing them in and then pulling them out.

Bang—

The stone slab, as big as an iron pot, smashed to the ground, kicking up dust, but it seemed more like it had struck at the hearts of An Xuan and An Si.

Given their current realm and perception, they didn't even think they had the qualifications to interact with such things. Only after hearing Jiang Feng's words did they realize that the path they took past the Yan Mansion wasn't the Qingshui Bridge.

It was the Naihe Bridge.

With their expressions numb, in just the short duration of two minutes of cultivation technique, they were more shaken than in the previous twenty years. It completely shattered their worldview, their eyes turned dark, and An Si, who had just fainted briefly due to holding his breath, almost collapsed on the spot again.

"Don't worry."

"Yu Rou may be unscrupulous in her methods, but she has a good nature, never bullying others by relying on her power."

"Given her nature, she probably wouldn't even tell the family which master she'd apprenticed under. She even went home to pay respects to her ancestors and cleared out some unruly people around a few years back."

"She should be aware of this matter, and the reason she didn't act against you is probably because she considers this my residence, and how to handle it is my concern."

"So... you don't pose a threat to the Yan Mansion, do you?"

Rolling up his sleeves, he began to search through the soil under the floor tiles.

Simply asked if there was any threat, not even bothering to ask if anyone was injured, because if these two dared to harm the Yan family, he wouldn't need to wonder what the outcome would be.

After a few scoops, he dug more than a foot deep, and soon he touched something hard. He raised his eyebrows with a hint of joy in his expression, and directly unearthed it. Under the gaze of several people, Jiang Feng pulled out a foot-long iron box from the ground and began fiddling with it.

"Rest assured, Brother. Even in this borderland, we strictly adhere to the sect's rules, and moreover, Master Yu Ying occasionally sends people to inspect—our management is rigorous, and we absolutely do not dare to do such things! There is no threat at all!"

"Master, we've been here for three years and haven't had any conflicts with the local residents. I even visited the Yan Mansion as a guest once."

Even the young An Rou quietly defended, which reassured Jiang Feng quite a bit.

Though they might act domineering, they still maintain the most basic moral bottom line. As long as they don't oppress the ordinary people, everything's fine, which is precisely why Yu Ying sent him to investigate.

As for oppressing cultivators in the cultivation world...

That's considered your own ability. So long as you can win fights and withstand the enemies, no one cares about your business.

Heading towards the house, the three of them exchanged glances but still obediently followed, opening the iron box and plopping down on the chairs. These were his usual pieces of furniture for hosting guests. Despite someone having moved in, most items in the room hadn't been changed.

"Hm, the furniture on the first floor is still here, all made from fine wood. If any go missing, you'll need to compensate for them in full."

Nodding in satisfaction.

The familiar scent of home remained, though there were more items now, all of which were common household items, like teacups, porcelain decorations, and greenery.

The room was thoroughly cleaned, and the counters were just as remembered, albeit without their original items and ledgers, as they had been stored away after he closed the business.

Looking up at the ceiling, the beams and the second floor showed clear signs of repair, using new materials in a style not too different from before—it was clear that specialized craftsmen were hired for the repair.

"I remember three years ago, when I still lived in Qingshui County, both the walls and the backyard were completely ruined. Even the second floor was torn up with a big hole. Was it you who repaired it?"

After patting the iron box, knocking away all the dust and dirt, the rusted iron lock in Jiang Feng's hands was merely decorative—it was yanked off, and opening the iron box revealed a package wrapped in layers of leather and oil paper lying quietly inside.

"Yes, after two other colleagues left Qingshui County, we received Master Yu Ying's orders less than three days later to come here."

"Later on, we detected celestial traces left by the Peak Master here, so we explored around and eventually found the Yan Mansion, and its people were willing to help us find craftsmen for repairing."

Nodding, Jiang Feng appeared to be in quite a good mood, it being rarer to come back home only every so many years. Unreservedly, he sat down in front of the few people and began to unwrap the oil paper in front of them.

Taking out each item, one by one.

"Look, it's all in black and white."

"Land deed, property deed, with an unlimited usage period, and this piece of land can be passed on through generations. The front yard, backyard, the residence and surrounding walls together span three acres, including documented construction from back in the day."

"It's clearly written here: Jiang Feng, see that? My name."

"Every single one of these documents was carried out from the government office by me personally, stamped with both Dongzhou Long Country Qingshui County seals and my pressed clay imprint, not to mention my signature."

"You're called An... An, something... Oh right, An Rou, little sister, this should now prove this is my residence, right?"

All documents were laid out in front of them.

In truth, there wasn't even a need to take them out.

When she saw Jiang Feng dig out the iron box, she had roughly guessed what was inside, her expression somewhat awkward, with a flushed face—not in anger, but out of embarrassment.

Despite having a rather crude mother, An Rou hadn't inherited her bad habits. Upon realizing her fault, she immediately lowered her head and cautiously apologized.

Nonetheless, Jiang Feng naturally had no intention of troubling the young girl. Even An Si, who got punched a few times earlier, looked a lot better now, though he had spat out some blood, it was all coagulated blood with no internal injuries.

"Alright, now that I've proven it, it's my turn to ask questions. But first, let me make it clear that this is a bit of a grilling Master Yu Ying asked me to do."

Rapped on the table a few times.

The three immediately stood straight, but Jiang Feng only waved his hand dismissively, pointing at An Rou.

"You don't need to be on your feet, sit down. This has nothing to do with you; you haven't even joined properly yet."

"Oh..."

Responding timidly, but she still sat down cautiously, appearing far more reserved compared to her previous demeanor when practicing martial arts in the backyard.

Not hiding anything, he directly asked, "Recently, many sects have dispatched disciples for training at various places. Given that Qingshui County is a pivotal route from the Southern Border to the Central Plains, many young talents should have chosen to head north these days. What's the specific situation? How many people have you tracked, and have you reported upwards?"

Diving into serious matters, Jiang Feng's expression notably became more solemn; An Xuan merely pondered briefly before answering.

"We've tracked over three hundred seventy people in total."

"Among them, seventy are in the Foundation Establishment Stage, six in Core Formation, and the rest are below Foundation Establishment. The majority of them are headed in the Dongyue direction, which is directly north and northeast of Qingshui County."

"Previously, reports were made every seven days, but recently it's been shortened to every three days. Of the six in Core Formation, five passed through in just the past two months, with the frequency of expert appearances growing more frequent."

"If this continues, trouble will inevitably arise at the border."

"For those below Core Formation, we will intercept them outside the city. Should they wish to enter the city, they must obtain our consent—all have been fairly compliant. However, for those above Core Formation, we have no assurance of stopping them."

"Even if they enter the city, at most we can call out the sect's name to warn them. Just a short while ago, we even engaged with one of them."

"Although we gained the upper hand, it created a considerable commotion. Had such an incident occurred in the past, the reinforcements sent by Master Yu Ying should have already arrived, or she might even personally guard the border."

"But now that Master Yu Ying has returned to the sect, Fengzhou lacks a leader and can barely manage its own affairs. Despite Xu Fu's leadership abilities, he himself is merely at the peak of Core Formation and cannot suppress this bunch of people."

"Brother Jiang, may I ask when Master Yu Ying will return to Fengzhou? If she isn't present, this border will only..."

A bitter smile spread across faces, as recent times have spread everyone too thin, dealing with a slew of cumbersome issues.

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