"Furthermore, some insightful individuals have pointed out that our great nation of Daxia, since the abdication of the Yin Court, has been a dragon without a head. Warlords carve up the land and foreigners bully us, all because there is no true Son of Heaven on the throne..."
"According to reliable sources, the President’s Mansion holds an open attitude toward this proposal and will soon convene representatives from all provinces to discuss matters of state..."
SLAP!
Wei Yuanliang slammed the newspaper onto the low table beside him. The force of the blow nearly shattered the flimsy wooden piece!
"Bastards!!"
He shot to his feet, veins bulging on his forehead and his eyes bloodshot. He looked like a volcano on the verge of erupting!
"Those remnants of the Yin Court just won’t give up! And they have the gall to talk about soliciting opinions from all sectors of society?"
"Solicit my ass! Every last one of those people in the Yanjing City Affairs Bureau up north acts according to President Yuan’s whims!"
"Every single word in this newspaper is probably what that Yuan Datong wants!"
The few cult members kneeling in the inner hall didn’t dare to breathe too loudly.
Once Wei Yuanliang had vented his anger, he slowly turned, his gaze falling upon the two injured Yellow Turban Warriors.
"Miao Gongxu... Never mind his paranoid rambling for now. Find him and bring him back."
The two Strongmen exchanged a look and quickly lowered their heads. "Yes!"
Wei Yuanliang walked over to the divine statue and looked up at the gilded clay figure of the glaring, wide-eyed Yellow Heaven Deity.
After a moment of silence, he continued, "Tomorrow night, gather all the brothers who can fight. We’re raiding the British Concession."
"Kill those foreigners. We’ll use their blood as a sacrifice to our fallen warriors."
The two Strongmen snapped their heads up, a flash of horror in their eyes that was quickly replaced by a fanatical flame.
"The Azure Heaven is already dead; the Yellow Heaven shall arise!"
Wei Yuanliang waved his hand. The three cult members who had delivered the news, as if granted amnesty, bowed and scurried out, gently closing the inner hall’s doors behind them.
"The rest of you may leave."
In the dim halo of an oil lamp, only Wei Yuanliang and the two injured Yellow Turban Warriors remained.
Wei Yuanliang looked at them, his gaze dark. After a moment of silence, he asked, "That Miao Gongxu fellow... he got too greedy again, didn’t he?"
The two Strongmen exchanged a glance. The one on the left said in a low voice, "Incense Master, you see clearly. The Divine Flesh you bestowed upon us last time was, by rule, supposed to be slowly refined. It should have taken at least another half-month to finish consuming."
"But that guy secretly ate the rest of it a few days ago."
Wei Yuanliang snorted coldly. "The damned fool."
The Strongman on the right carefully added, "Incense Master, please calm your anger. He’s always been impatient for quick results, wanting to get fat off a single bite."
"Incense Master, that Miao Gongxu fellow has been spouting nonsense these past few days, saying he sees monsters right next to him. In my opinion, it’s highly likely he ate too much Divine Flesh and it’s addled his mind."
Hearing this, Wei Yuanliang could only shake his head helplessly. "Forget it. Don’t worry about him then. If he’s determined to court death, no one can save him."
His gaze sharpened as he stared at the two men before him, his tone suddenly severe. "You two, remember this: the Divine Flesh has an extraordinary origin. It is no common thing. You must treat it with reverence and proceed step by step. Only then can you reap its benefits without suffering its harm."
"Yes, Lord Incense Master!"
The two Yellow Turban Warriors responded in unison, their eyes burning with an irrepressible fervor.
Ever since becoming the Incense Master’s trusted confidants, the two of them had been bestowed with the legendary "Divine Flesh," and their lives had completely changed.
A black piece of flesh, the size of a fingertip, made their bodies feel as if they were on fire after consumption. Their inner qi and blood roiled for three days and three nights.
Three days later, they leaped from being mere Mingjin Martial Artists across the threshold of the Dark Force realm, becoming the "Yellow Turban Warriors" that everyone in the Yellow Heaven Corps looked up to.
It was practically an ascent to heaven in a single step.
Now, hearing the Incense Master’s warning, though they felt a sense of caution, what they felt more strongly was a deeper craving and reverence for that black flesh.
Who wouldn’t desire power that comes from nothing, especially immense power with no side effects?
The inner hall fell silent once more. Taking the hint, the two Yellow Turban Warriors tactfully withdrew.
Wei Yuanliang stood alone before the clay statue. After a long silence, he carefully took a silk-wrapped cloth from an inner pocket close to his chest.
The cloth was of the finest cloud-patterned brocade, its dark gold base embroidered with intricate cloud patterns.
He unwrapped it layer by layer. There, in the center of the silk, lay a fist-sized piece of black flesh.
It was glossy black, its surface glistening with a faint, moist sheen, as if freshly cut from a living creature.
Even more bizarre, it was pulsating gently, contracting and expanding with a slow, steady rhythm, like a sleeping heart.
Wei Yuanliang stared down at it, a complex mix of emotions flashing in his eyes: reverence, greed, and a trace of deeply hidden fear.
He recalled the Altar Master’s warning when he had been given the Divine Flesh and muttered to himself, ’Thankfully, I didn’t eat too much.’
’This is no ordinary object; one must not be impatient for quick gains. You must act within your limits and advance step by step to reap its benefits.’
’If you are greedy and rush for more... you will be targeted by *something*. Maybe today, maybe tomorrow, maybe in several decades. In any case, it’s all up to fate.’
Wei Yuanliang looked at the pulsating black flesh in his palm and thought of Miao Gongxu’s paranoid state. The sliver of fear in his heart grew sharper.
’That useless Miao Gongxu is truly more of a liability than an asset!’
He rewrapped the silk cloth, carefully tucking it back into his inner robes. ’When he gets back, I’ll be sure to teach him a good lesson.’
「Nanfu City Pier District.」
The morning light had just begun to spread across the river, painting the entire street in a warm, orange-red hue.
The damp river wind, carrying the stench of fish and coal smoke, swept through the staggered arcaded buildings and swirled along the stone-paved road.
A rickshaw puller was squatting by his vehicle’s handlebars, gnawing on a flatbread, when he heard footsteps and looked up.
An old man in a black Zhongshan suit was standing in front of his rickshaw.
The old man’s eyes were as placid as an ancient well. His right hand rested on a dark purple wooden staff, while his left held a newspaper—that morning’s fresh edition of the *Nanfu City Daily Gazette*.
"To Shuangfeng Gorge."
Hearing this, the rickshaw puller’s eyes lit up. He stuffed the rest of the flatbread into his mouth in a couple of bites, wiped his hands on his shirt, and broke into an eager smile. "Right away! Sir, you’ve really found the right man for the job!"
He slapped the rickshaw’s seat cushion and expertly steadied the handlebars. "Shuangfeng Gorge is the number one scenic spot in Nanfu City! I’ve been pulling this rickshaw for twenty years, taken countless people there. I could get you there with my eyes closed!"
Lu Yun gave a slight nod, stepped into the rickshaw, and settled himself firmly in the seat.
The rickshaw set off at a brisk pace, its wheels making a RUMBLE RUMBLE sound on the stone slabs.
Along the way, a cool morning breeze brushed against his face. Shops on both sides of the street began to open one after another, long lines formed in front of breakfast stalls, and the aroma of fried dough sticks mixed with the steam of soy milk drifted through the air.
Lu Yun leaned back in his seat, his gaze falling on the newspaper in his hand. He had already finished reading its contents.
"Heated Debate Across All Sectors: Should Daxia New Country Appoint a New Emperor?"
The corner of his mouth curved into a faint, unreadable smile. ’A new imperial system?’
’That President Yuan is really pulling this kind of stunt?’
’I’ve only been on a steamship for seven days, and the moment I arrive in Nanfu City, I get this kind of "welcome gift."’
’What a surprise. Let me translate for you what a real goddamn surprise is. *This* is a goddamn surprise!!!’
’This is what you call a surprise!’
It seemed the world had already descended into chaos. Lu Yun could only shake his head helplessly before casually tossing the newspaper to the side of the road.
Just then, a resonant roar came from behind him: "Holy shit! Hey, old man up front! Do you have any civic-mindedness at all? Littering in broad daylight!"
Lu Yun, who didn’t have much civic-mindedness to speak of, naturally pretended not to hear, and the rickshaw continued on its way.
He closed his eyes and silently calculated the time in his head.
’A seven-day voyage to Nanfu, then finding the item and the return trip... even at the fastest pace, it will take half a month. By my calculations, I should be able to get back to Yun Port City before the end of the month.’
’I absolutely have to make it back for that girl Nianshu’s wedding. I can’t miss such an auspicious day.’
Lu Yun hadn’t been idle during his trip. In those seven days, he had devoured the entire batch of potent medicinal herbs he’d brought with him, such as the Centennial Ginseng King, Lingzhi, Polygonum multiflorum, and the like.
’There was no other way. Time was tight, so I had to just force them down. It didn’t matter that they tasted bad; as long as the effect of gaining Modification Value was the same, it was fine.’
After he finished eating them, he had gained exactly 13 Modification Value points.
With a flicker of his thoughts, a ghostly blue screen of light appeared deep within his consciousness.
[Extreme Blue Martial Arts Modifier]
Name: Lu Yun
Sex: Male
Realm: Grandmaster of Huajin (Peak)
Cultivation Technique: Mountain-Breaking Inch Force Fist 3rd Level (Mastery), Hard Qigong 2nd Level (Initiate)
Modification Value: 20
points.
’It’s not much, but it’s better than nothing, I suppose.’
Lu Yun opened his eyes and gazed toward the two opposing green peaks that were gradually coming into focus in the distance.
’Shuangfeng Gorge... is the legendary Immortal Flesh buried by Overlord Chu really there?’

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