“I know,” Qin Ye exclaimed. “We should raid the Furious Whale Gang!”

  Lu Qingshan nodded. That was also what he had in mind. But Li Fanghua looked hesitant to agree.

  “We’re not going to take the money they took from the commoners,” Lu Qingshan said. “I know you’ll want to return those silver taels if possible. But their weapons, armors, and medicines are all able to be sold. It’s not a bad idea - we can’t use too much of their equipment or it’ll paint a target on our gangs.”

  “Ah,” Li Fanghua said. "That makes sense."

  “But too much killing can taint who you are.” Lu Qingshan peered at the two's faces. They were bright and clear - positively glowing. Most martial artists accumulated a trace of ruthlessness on their faces as they participated in more and more conflicts, but these two were naturally charming. “Those travelers were probably more convinced by your countenance than anything else,” he muttered.

  “What do you mean?”

  “I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but as immortal cultivators, your appearances are superior to most. It’s also been almost a year since your last major battle, right? You both look soft. Most would underestimate you two. It makes for a good disguise,” Lu Qingshan said.

  As immortal cultivators, their bearing became more ethereal the more they cultivated. It was unlike those demonic cultivators he previously encountered. When he really focused and calmed his blood energy, a feeling of satisfaction arose while he looked at them, as if staring at a beautiful work of art.

  “I don’t know how much killing it takes to alter an immortal cultivator’s bearing. You can participate in the battle though. It’ll be a good lesson for you to control how you appear to others. Try and retain your current tranquility or we won’t be able to recruit those travelers,” he emphasized while looking towards Li Fanghua.

  She nodded, her face determined. Qin Ye followed suit.

  “Good.” Lu Qingshan himself knew how to suppress the power of his aura thanks to Tiger Stalks Prey along with the level four Roaming Tiger Breathing Method. While it wasn’t enough to completely cover his ferocity, it made him look more like a guardian for these two.

  He moved to stand up, but Qin Ye was still sitting down. “Maybe we shouldn’t attack the Furious Whale Gang,” the young man murmured, suddenly changing his mind.

  “Why’s that?” Lu Qingshan asked.

  “Have we considered attacking the other two gangs instead? A family? Or the sects? We can take our revenge on the Jade Skies Sect right now.”

  “I forgot to tell you. The sects might have something special going on with their martial arts inheritance,” Lu Qingshan said. “Liu Yingting discovered that two of the sects probably use parasites to help develop their sect. So they might have experts on par with me.”

  “Then the families?”

  “Too high profile a target for too few gains.”

  Qin Ye looked upset. “Is that really true?”

  “Yes. Don’t take what Liu Yingting got from the Liu family as the average. First of all, we had to deal with a demon. The Liu family was hiding secrets. A single raid isn’t going to uncover that level of treasure,” Lu Qingshan reassured. "Second of all, these families are concentrated in small places. They won't be easy to attack without exposing ourselves to the public."

  “But the Barbarian Whale Gang didn’t give anything even after its destruction. I don’t think the Furious Whale Gang will be any different.”

  Lu Qingshan grew suspicious of the young man's true reason behind bringing this up. “We’re not aiming to destroy an entire force this time. Qin Ye, you’re acting differently. Did something happen?” he asked.

  “I... lost to Liu Yingting the other day in a spar,” Qin Ye said, a hand scratching his chin. “I don’t understand. I broke through to the same level as that first demonic cultivator you fought. I slew a demon. Shouldn’t I be as strong as them?”

  Lu Qingshan sighed. “You need to understand that having a high cultivation realm isn’t everything. There are lots of factors that come into play during a battle. Such as experience, for example. Did you know what to do at every moment in the fight?”

  “No,” Qin Ye admitted. “I lost pathetically. I couldn’t even react in time to his attacks.”

  “You’ll have to learn. One of the ways is to just practice. Continue sparring with Liu Yingting. It’ll help you grow rapidly as you adjust to his speed.”

  Qin Ye still looked unhappy.

  “I know what you want. Treasures. Things like the Hundred Poisons Elixir, right?”

  The young man nodded.

  “Even if you did have those things, and the martial arts manual, I’m not entirely sure you’d win. He has a decade more experience compared to you. Your primary advantage is your fast growth, and powerful techniques, so you’ll be able to catch up sooner or later, but for now you still need to put in the work like we have.”

  Qin Ye continued to slowly nod, but Lu Qingshan wasn’t sure he was understanding. He sighed again. “Remember what happened to the owner of that sword on your waist,” he said. “That’s what happens when you're not adequately prepared.”

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  It was a bit unfair to bring up what happened to the two Qi Refiners that Lu Qingshan killed. After all, they had seemingly tried their best. They had even managed to escape from being surrounded by five monster beasts of the same level. However, Lu Qingshan was certain they could've done multiple other things before entering the forest to increase their chances of surviving that situation. Advantages took time to build up slowly, and he was attempting to push that principle into Qin Ye's mindset.

  "You're probably right about the Furious Whale Gang being too weak to provide much value," Lu Qingshan said. "But in the next six months, attacking them carries the least risk until we start making a move on the Blade Shadow Valley and the Lower Mountain School. We also have our own leverage on them to make it an even easier choice - by blaming them for their past attacks. Still, this is an option I would like to never use until the last moment."

  Revealing the secret of the Furious Whale Gang's hostile actions too early would lose an important advantage. to sway other forces into allowing their attack. If they kept silent on that matter and allowed the Furious Whale Gang to dig themselves a larger hole, Lu Qingshan believed he could turn public opinion on them, enabling him to destroy them freely. That might prove a better option than raiding them occasionally, which would heighten their awareness.

  "We will attack the Broken Ring Society instead," he stated. "Wu Ruoling has some knowledge of that area and can guide us through there. She'll be of great help."

  He had also heard rumors of that gang being backed by the city's leadership. This included many among the seven families. Wu Ruoling didn’t know anything about the gang, but perhaps she had family members who did.

  Still, getting anything out of them would be difficult. She hadn’t met up with her family after her return, only some of her maids and retainers. After all, if her family had any disagreements with the current Seven Mysteries Gate, there was a very real chance of them being wiped out in her lifetime.

  The last time Lu Qingshan spoke to her, she had been more subdued than normal. He guessed she was able to tell his current level of marital attainment early. The Wu family held secrets of their own, though he didn’t force anything out of her as she was in his sect. Hopefully, she would give them up willingly once she was convinced by his potential.

  Night had fallen by the time the three of them reached Wu Ruoling’s home. The swordswoman was speaking with her three maids and two male servants when she saw them walk by her window.

  Wu Ruoling opened the door to let them inside. “What brings you here, sect master?” she asked, giving him a bow. But she only gave Li Fanghua and Qin Ye a small nod. It was clear that even immortal cultivators weren’t immediately worth her respect.

  “We’re going on a little trip through the royal quarters,” he said. “Can you help us?”

  “I can.”

  “Even if it’s against the Broken Ring Society?”

  Wu Ruoling hesitated. Then, she nodded. “We can ambush one of my uncles from a distant side of the family. He definitely knows something.”

  “Are you sure this is wise?” One of her maids spoke up. This one was the most powerful of them, a Bone Tempering expert who had guarded Wu Ruoling during childhood. The other four were Flesh Tempering helpers.

  “Yes,” Wu Ruoling said.

  “Very well,” the maid said. “Then we’ll help as well as best we can.”

  Lu Qingshan watched silently and gave them a nod. The Wu family was the third most powerful family in the city. They were only overshadowed by the Gongsun and Shang families who both had a much longer history in the city.

  Naturally, the Wu family knew many things about the noble quarters that they shared with their descendants. Lu Qingshan digested the bulk of the information while Li Fanghua and Qin Ye listened in as well. Most notably, there were conflicts, especially in the past few years. A lot of conflicts.

  “The family would’ve never sent an heir to such a small sect like yours,” the maid said. “But the nearby families were beginning to increase the scale of their attacks.”

  Lu Qingshan heard what she said. His face turned bemused as he stole a glance at Wu Ruoling. It seemed she hadn’t told them all of his secrets, which he liked.

  “Wu Ruoling is a martial artist of great potential. Consider your own great fortune to have accumulated karma with her.” Lu Qingshan tuned out the rest of the maid’s lavish praise for her master. Instead, he began thinking about the nature of those conflicts.

  “What you’re saying,” he interrupted, “is that the fighting began unexpectedly? Nobody knew the reason behind why it started?”

  The maid looked perturbed at the interruption but answered him anyway. “Not that I know of. The family heads might know more but I’m not that respected to come into contact with them.”

  Lu Qingshan furrowed his brow. Something didn’t seem right about the situation. The waters in the noble quarters might be murkier than the rest of the city.

  Still, he decided to press on. “Who is the person we are to ambush and what are his qualifications?”

  This time, it was Wu Ruoling who spoke. “Wu Chang,” she said. “He’s considered an honored expert in the family. I’ve seen him in many social events around our territory. But he’s rumored to be petty and ruthless behind closed doors. If anyone knows something about the Broken Ring Society, it will be him.”

  “Understood. Take me to where he is, then.”

  Their group of five ventured into the darkness and emerged inside the noble quarters. From the maid’s movements, she had done this many times. Lu Qingshan remained vigilant of betrayal the entire time with his Bloodseeker Flies scouting the path ahead.

  Wu Chang didn’t live with the rest of the Wu family in their manor lands. Instead, he had several smaller homes dotted around the city. Supposedly the man traveled around a lot, and Wu Ruoling had remembered where he was supposed to be this time of the year.

  “That’s a small house?” Lu Qingshan muttered as they slowed down to a stop. No matter how he looked at it, the house in front of them was large, not small. It had pavilions, shadowy figures busily moving around, and sizable amounts of foliage for a garden.

  “It is,” Wu Ruoling said. “He’ll be in his study.”

  Lu Qingshan cloaked himself in a thin veil of smoke. He then sent his flies to see who was inside. They looked like normal people to him. Some were cleaners, others gardeners, and a few were workers who lifted heavy items.

  “Are they all assassins?” he asked Wu Ruoling.

  “I don’t know,” she said. Neither did the maid, who frowned.

  "Stay here." Lu Qingshan approached the house from the side. A few of his flies had flown inside an empty window a few minutes before, encountering nothing. He tried peeking inside, then immediately shot himself backwards.

  The sword that emerged from the shadows almost pierced Lu Qingshan’s head. But it missed him by a thread. A figure leaped out the window the next moment, poised to chase.

  “A true expert,” Lu Qingshan murmured. His head turned upwards - a manic grin on his face. “I was beginning to think there were none left!”