The Martial Doctor

"No."

"Why?"

"The Young Master gave Fei’Er the joy of being a woman, and the freedom she wanted. Why would Fei’Er give up the benefits she has gained?"

"What about the interests of the Ji Family? Didn’t they put you in this position so you could have the opportunity to monitor the Saint Heir?" Lin Miao retorted.

"The Ji Family does have that intention, but I may not be willing to work for them." Ji Fei’Er said. It turned out she didn’t care much about submitting so-called information about the Saint Heir, and now she couldn’t be so forthcoming.

"You have a secret way to contact headquarters, don’t you?"

As soon as these words came out, the temperature under the quilt dropped by three degrees, and the previously soft demeanor stiffened once again.

"You have your difficulties, I understand, but you should know what you should and shouldn’t say." Lin Miao said.

"Young Master, I’ll follow your lead from now on, in responding." Fei’Er said.

"In that case, change your name and stay in the mansion." Lin Miao instructed, "You will be responsible for communication between the mansion and the estate outside the city, as well as the martial arts instruction for the children in the mansion."

"Yes." Ji Fei’Er was stunned for a moment, then nodded in agreement.

...

Miaoxue Residence.

"Senior, it’s time to take your medicine." Lien Yurou entered with a bowl of thick, dark herbal medicine. Inside the room, a brazier was burning.

Jingxin was taking care of Master Dingxian.

Dingxian’s complexion was much better than when she first arrived. After treatment, her injuries had stabilized, and at least her life was no longer in danger.

However, how much of her cultivation could be preserved was uncertain.

"Thank you for your hard work, Madam Lien."

"It’s no trouble." Lien Yurou quickly replied, "This medicine should be consumed while hot for the best effect; our Master specially instructed so."

"Hmm, alright." Dingxian reached out to take the herbal medicine and drank it down in one go. Although it wasn’t her first time drinking it, the bitterness was still hard to swallow.

She understood the principle that good medicine is bitter.

Moreover, after drinking the medicine, she felt warm inside. As a Meridian Passage Realm expert, she could perceive internally that the injuries in her body were slowly recovering under the nourishment of the medicine. Although the recovery wasn’t fast, the ability to sense the recovery indicated it was quite rapid.

She was well aware of how severe her injuries were, and it was incredibly fortunate to have survived.

"Thank you, Madam Lien. Is your Master present in the estate?"

"Oh, he is not. Senior, do you need him for something?" Lien Yurou asked.

"There’s a little matter, but it’s alright." Dingxian was concerned about Jing Hui and her child’s safety. At this moment, she and Jingxin were safe, but if the Blood Demon found Jing Hui and her child, it would be troublesome.

The Blood Demon had colluded with Marquis Lingyang’s Mansion, and if they used the mansion’s power to find Jing Hui and her child, it would be problematic if they were found in Dongshan.

"If the senior needs anything, I can pass on a message for you," Lien Yurou politely offered.

"Understood."

Lien Yurou got up to take her leave, and Dingxian asked Jingxin to see her off.

Si Miaoxue and Yue Mei’Er had already returned to Miaoxue Residence by this time, and they had roughly understood the situation. The purpose of returning was to plan how to monitor Marquis Lingyang’s estate outside the city.

They needed to keep track of movements in order to be ready to save people.

If Pei Jian made a move on the estate, they would have to quietly intervene to save people or act alone.

"We should have brought Yue Wu back; we have too few people available now." Yue Mei’Er grumbled.

"Qilin Castle needs someone to guard it; Yue Wu alone is too weak. Our goal is to rescue people, not to launch a direct assault on Marquis Lingyang’s estate." Si Miaoxue said.

"We’re short on manpower now. In hindsight, we should have asked the sect to send more people over. Miaoxue, haven’t you trained any good hands in Dongshan all these years?"

"My purpose in Dongshan was to find people, and I had to be very cautious. If we made a big commotion, it would be easier to be discovered."

"So what do we do now?"

"Pei Jian likely won’t act immediately. When I return tomorrow, I’ll discuss it with the Master," Si Miaoxue said. "We just need to ensure the Blood Demon is still in that estate."

"We’ve already alerted them; will the Blood Demon stay in that estate?"

"Dingxian and Hui are hiding for a reason, probably because they have significant secrets. The Blood Demon dared to capture the nuns of Heaven-Reaching Temple deliberately to lure them in, so he shouldn’t fear exposing himself." Si Miaoxue speculated.

"He’s not afraid? The Blood Demon is already wanted by the court; by then, he’ll be pursued by both the Inspection Department and the Arresting Department."

"He is a Meridian Passage Realm expert. If he wants to hide and escape, there are few in the world who can catch him. Moreover, he has a Celestial level expert backing him, along with Marquis Lingyang’s Mansion, so he can act fearlessly."

"The Master wants us to monitor that estate and act appropriately. He likely intends to be the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind."

"The Master doesn’t want to expose his identity and avoid direct conflict with the Blood Demon and the Celestial expert backing him," Si Miaoxue said.

"Alright, I’ll go personally," Yue Mei’Er said.

"Okay, that works."

...

Xiangyang Old Shop.

The external liaison office of the Blade Catching Alliance; there is one branch in each city, and no multiples.

The Blade Catching Alliance is considered a major force in the martial world. It’s seen as a loose cultivator alliance because only loose cultivators are willing to accept official or private commissions.

Most criminals the court cannot catch are given to the Blade Catching Alliance, and of course, the bounty is substantial.

But becoming a blade catcher isn’t easy; you must have a clean record yourself. You can’t be a court-wanted criminal and become a blade catcher; that would be a joke.

Blade catchers are semi-official in nature; they are only responsible for capturing wanted criminals and collecting bounties. They have more freedom than constables in the Arresting Department.

The Blade Catching Alliance has plenty of capable individuals, including Meridian Passage Realm experts. This time, the court suddenly issued a warrant for Blood Demon and his men, with a bounty of ten thousand taels of gold.

It naturally caught the attention of many experts in the Blade Catching Alliance.

The Blade Catching Alliance, being well-informed, had already learned that the Blood Demon was wanted by the court due to attempting to assassinate the Crown Prince and Crown Princess Consort.

The Crown Prince and Crown Princess Consort had quietly left and returned to the capital, with their destination being Dongshan City.

So when the warrant was issued, Dongshan City became the destination for many blade catchers, and even some experts within Li Hen City were eager to act.

The Blade Catching Alliance also has a branch in Li Hen City, where tasks can be received and completed for bounty collection.

Dongshan City is the largest city in the northwest, so the branch here carries significant weight. The person in charge here is Chen Xiaodao, the Blade Catching Alliance’s manager in northwest Da Li.

At the same time, Chen Xiaodao is also a Meridian Passage Realm expert. However, he was already fifty years old when he painstakingly reached the Middle Grade Meridian Passage Realm. With such cultivation, he could at most become an elder without real power in a first-class sect.

But within the Blade Catching Alliance, he is a regional lord. Of course, to be the northwest manager, it takes more than just cultivation; one must have skill and capability.

"Shopkeeper, you have an urgent letter, three goose feathers!" Chen Xiaodao lay squinting in a lounge chair. Upon hearing "three goose feathers," he immediately sprang up and landed on his feet: "Bring it here."

Chen Xiaodao opened the envelope, which contained only one piece of paper with a single line: "Blood Demon’s hiding place, outside the city at Xue Estate."

Xue Estate!

Isn’t that Marquis Lingyang Xue Chunlai’s estate? Could it be that the assassination of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess Consort was instigated by Marquis Lingyang?

Chen Xiaodao was shocked. Although everyone had speculated as much, there was no solid evidence. If the Blood Demon indeed hid in Xue Estate, there would be no denying it.

"Le, who delivered the message?"

"I don’t know. According to the rules, we do not ask for the source when we receive information," said the assistant, Le. The Blade Catching Alliance indeed had this rule to protect the informants providing information.

"I understand. Go fetch Cai Jin, telling him I have urgent matters to discuss!" Chen Xiaodao ordered.