Chapter 347 - 183: Refining Spirit
Although his master, Xu Qingshan, had warned Jiang Che not to investigate further, he had not given up on monitoring Xie Songnian.
After returning to his courtyard, Jiang Che immediately immersed his consciousness into his crow subordinate, the one responsible for surveillance.
’I’ll see what tricks this old dog pulls next!’
For the next few days, Xie Songnian acted unusually low-key.
He remained secluded, almost never leaving his courtyard except to handle necessary Sect affairs.
It was as if he were truly disheartened by the pain of losing his son and suffering an "unjust grievance."
However, through the crow’s eyes, Jiang Che keenly noticed something amiss.
Xie Songnian had met someone late at night.
It was a stooped old man dressed in the ordinary clothes of a Servant, appearing utterly unremarkable.
The two of them spoke in the secret chamber of Xie Songnian’s study for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn, after which the old man departed without a sound.
A thought stirred in Jiang Che’s mind, and he immediately ordered the crow to abandon its surveillance of Xie Songnian and focus all its efforts on tracking the mysterious old man!
The crow beat its wings and soared high, like a phantom in the night, silently tailing the old man from a great distance.
After leaving the Cangyun Sect, the old man was seen weaving through streets and alleys.
His gait seemed ordinary, yet his speed was astonishingly fast. He was clearly a deeply hidden master!
He twisted and turned, constantly changing his route, his vigilance extremely high.
If not for the Shadow Iron Eagle, Xiaohei, conducting wide-area reconnaissance from high above and coordinating a relay-style pursuit with the crow, he would have shaken them long ago!
Finally, the old man’s figure came to a stop in a place that made Jiang Che’s pupils shrink.
The General’s Mansion!
The heavily guarded residence that represented the highest seat of power in the Cangzhou Prefecture!
After showing a Token, the old man entered unimpeded through a side door.
...
Inside the meditation room of the Chief Courtyard.
Jiang Che severed his connection with the crow.
Although he had long held his suspicions, seeing the result with his own eyes still made it difficult for him to accept.
’The person behind Xie Songnian...’
’...was actually... truly the General, Qin Fuhu!’
’So, all of this was at the General’s instruction!’
Jiang Che began to recall the scenes that had unfolded before:
’Why could Xie Songnian collude with the Demon Sect yet always get away unscathed?’
’Why did the Demon Extermination Alliance’s cleanup operations always start with a bang but end with a whimper, failing every time?’
’It seems that without General Qin Fuhu backing him and protecting him from behind the scenes...’
’...he would have died tens of thousands of times over!’
’No wonder he was so fearless and arrogant!’
’After all, in the face of a behemoth like the General’s Mansion, so-called evidence and so-called justice are nothing but a ridiculous joke!’
’But... why?’
’Why would General Qin Fuhu do this?’
’As the guardian deity of Cangzhou Prefecture, wielding immense military power and authority, why would he collude with the Demon Sect, destroy his own foundation, and weaken the strength of the entire orthodox Martial World in Cangzhou Prefecture?’
Jiang Che thought it over and over but couldn’t make sense of it.
He could only feel a massive, dark cloud slowly gathering over the entire Martial World of Cangzhou Prefecture!
A storm capable of overturning everything was brewing in the shadows!
’I must... increase my strength as quickly as possible!’
Jiang Che slowly rose from the ground.
His gaze gradually turned cold and resolute.
’Since the rules are meaningless, I’ll use my fists to shatter this hypocrisy!’
’Since no one can uphold justice...’
’...then I will become the one and only justice!’
He then walked out of the meditation room and headed for the Level A Cultivation Room.
He was going into seclusion again!
...
「Inside the Level A Cultivation Room.」
Jiang Che sat cross-legged on a cattail cushion enveloped in Spiritual Mist, his mind calmer and more focused than ever before.
He slowly closed his eyes, and his entire aura seemed to merge completely with the Cultivation Room.
His Top-Grade Root Bone made Jiang Che’s body like a bottomless black hole, greedily devouring the surrounding energy.
Every breath and every heartbeat was accompanied by a massive influx and refinement of Spiritual Qi!
At the same time, the "True Intent Brand" he had obtained from True Master Bai Yi began to emit a gentle golden light within his Sea of Consciousness.
Within it were all the insights from the entire life of cultivation of a True Mastery Realm Great Power!
The once obscure and incomprehensible key principles for cultivating in the Refining Organ Realm now became incredibly clear and transparent in his mind!
Combined with his previous life-and-death battles against top prodigies like Qin Wuya and Gu Qingxuan, his understanding of the Martial Dao was on a completely different level than before!
One could say it was the perfect fusion of theory and practice!
Furthermore, Jiang Che’s current supply of resources had reached the highest tier among the disciples of the Cangyun Sect.
He could consume large quantities of High-Level Elixir Pills and Exotic Beast Meat without any worry.
All of this propelled Jiang Che’s cultivation speed to a terrifying level that could only be described as "exaggerated"!
He could almost clearly "hear" the RUSHING sound, like a surging river, of the Strength growing inside his body!
He could "see" his internal organs, under the constant tempering of pure Strength, growing more and more tenacious, bit by bit!
「A short month passed in the blink of an eye.」
On this day, a strange phenomenon suddenly occurred in the Cultivation Room!
The dragons of Strength swirling around the seated Jiang Che all let out a high-pitched draconic roar before pouring back into his body!
His body, like a balloon inflated to its limit, trembled violently!
BOOM!!!
A majestic aura erupted with a bang!
Refining Organ Realm... Peak!
’Success!’
Jiang Che slowly opened his eyes. There wasn’t the slightest ripple in his profound gaze, as if all of this was just a natural outcome.