For a moment, laughter erupted from someone nearby.

It seemed like a child.

But the child was swiftly silenced by someone covering their mouth.

Song Cheng looked over, the morning breeze wafting in through the window, rippling the Ink Sea and stirring the two plain white human figures not far away.

One was a woman of considerable beauty, and the other was a boy.

Song Cheng gestured them over with a wave of his hand.

At once, the air in the dining hall fell eerily quiet.

It had only been half a day since yesterday, but the An Family had undergone a sea change, and the person Miss An had relied on, once seen as a mere "money-making tool," was actually this son-in-law.

Therefore, even if this son-in-law was blind and unsophisticated, he was not someone to be mocked.

Even if the one mocking him was just a child.

Who couldn't see that the previously "almighty" uncle, who carried an air of "intending to inherit the An Family," had been disciplined by the family laws, and now, with both legs broken, was reflecting in the ancestral hall?

The woman hurriedly said, "Son-in-law, I am President An's Aunt, An Hongjuan. Just now, Wei'er didn't laugh on purpose..."

Before she could finish, Song Cheng interrupted softly, with a smile, "Chenyu's aunt is also my aunt. Aunt Hongjuan, I will be serving tea later."

Having said that, he nodded slightly, as a gesture of respect.

The woman named An Hongjuan was taken aback; in her eyes, the young blind man looked clean-cut and exuded sincerity, prompting her to give a small nod.

But after nodding, she suddenly grew fearful.

Putting herself in Song Cheng's position, she felt she would be haughty...

Yet soon after, Song Cheng did indeed uphold the son-in-law's etiquette, serving tea to the senior members of the An Family one by one. While serving the tea, he even sat down to chat casually with each of them.

After this round of pleasantries, he clearly saw the An Family's positive feelings towards him had risen, from an initial 40 or 50 to 60 or 70.

Meanwhile, An Chenyu was busy managing the household affairs and establishing the An Family Scripture Pavilion.

The Cultivation Techniques contained within this pavilion were no longer just the initial "Willow Brushing Force" and "Extreme Force," but also included the "White Snake Force" and "Mysterious Turtle Force" that Song Cheng had dictated and Ling had transcribed, as well as the "Melting Strength Insights" and others.

Martial Artists needed a token to enter the pavilion.

The first batch of Martial Artists to receive tokens was quite numerous. Apart from the "privileged classes" of Tong Jia and Ying, individuals such as Mr. Wang, Wang Tianma, Wan Qing, and other An Family Force Realm Experts, as well as the eleven disciples from the Martial Arts Hall, many talented individuals from the An Family with Power Force had also obtained the right to enter.

But inside, permissions were further differentiated.

For example, beginners with Power Force could only view the "Willow Brushing Force" to build a solid foundation, and so on.

Besides the Scripture Pavilion, An Chenyu also set up a "Martial Artists' Dining Hall."

The meals in the hall, mainly consisting of meat to nourish Martial Artists' vitality, were complemented with vegetables, fruits, and white wheat flour. Quite extravagant indeed.

In addition, this dining hall also provided "Demon Beast meat" and some special Alchemy Pills, which required a token to obtain.

These matters had been discussed between An Chenyu and Song Cheng.

An Chenyu felt that in this Chaotic World, money must be swiftly converted into family power.

Song Cheng suggested setting up "Family Contribution Points," and then use those points to exchange for the right to read Cultivation Techniques and for resource exchange.

However, An Chenyu felt that the current An Family possessions were still scarce, fearing they couldn't support such a system, and decided to first focus on growing and strengthening the family.

Song Cheng merely offered suggestions based on novels he had read in his previous life and didn't want to meddle too much.

Management was a headache with its countless details.

...

An Chenyu was occupied with her endeavors.

Ying and Madam Tong were engrossed in their cultivation.

On Song Cheng's end, there was only Ling, who could "either be involved in everything or nothing at all."

"Let's go outside and have a walk, I want to walk a bit more."

"Sure, son-in-law."

Ling had long since transformed into the shape of the son-in-law.

Song Cheng left the house because he wanted to gauge the strengths of the people outside, as well as to listen in on the situation, to understand the public opinion on "White Camel Estate, Shanhe Martial Arts Hall, Pearl Mountain Taoist Temple," and to see if he could find out "what exactly happened in the Northern lands."

The two of them walked from morning until noon, ate their meal, and continued walking... until they didn't return until dusk.

The harvest wasn't much.

But Song Cheng's grasp of the whole Prefectural City deepened a bit.

In fact, aside from those three major powers, the normal people in the Prefectural City were not much different from those in the county town, all ordinary people. Some martial arts halls and small schools were also not much different from the ones in the county town, with "Force Realm Experts" being the ceiling of martial prowess.

From this, it can be seen how rare "Form Realm" cultivation techniques really are, let alone those above the "Form Realm."

Further thinking about the many "Force Realm disciples" he saw last night walking around outside the White Camel Estate, those disciples must be desperately thinking about attaining the "Form Realm" cultivation technique inheritance, right?

The competition was very fierce.

As for those above the "Form Realm," they're probably the prized treasures of sects like the White Camel Estate.

Initially, Song Cheng had planned to see if the White Camel Estate was worth considering; if it had a good reputation, he might as well give it a try.

After all, if he could see a "Yellow Level Grade A" cultivation technique, it would save him the trouble of figuring it out himself.

But now, he had once again dismissed the idea.

Even if he carried recommendation letters from Chen Hou and Ouyang Fei, he wasn't planning on using them.

Because even if he joined the White Camel Estate, the effort needed to access cultivation techniques above the "Form Realm" would involve an unknown amount of effort and entanglement in untold disputes, and in the end, he might have to become the Estate Master's chosen disciple just to have a chance to see them.

As such, he was not going to go.

The thoughts of the Longevity People always differ from those of normal people.

Normal people think "Without entering the tiger's den, one cannot get the tiger's cubs," "Seek fortune amidst danger."

Song Cheng didn't feel the same way.

He possessed a terrifying patience and an extreme sensitivity to danger.

He would conduct "risk assessments" and "complexity evaluations." If either of these assessments exceeded his psychological expectations, he would not take the risk to become stronger.

As time goes by, hundreds, thousands of years in a flash, isn't it possible to do as one pleases after becoming stronger?

The cost of time is exceedingly high for anyone, but for Longevity People, it is the least important.

Therefore, Song Cheng had determined his approach in the Prefectural City.

One, collect many low-realm martial arts to perfect the "True Form of Xuanwu," forming stronger, more perfect cultivation techniques.

Two, secretly find Form Strength experts to exchange insights with, to improve the chance of deducing a "Yellow Level Grade A" cultivation technique.

Three, use the economic support provided by the An Family and the resources of the Prefectural City for as much improvement as possible.

While doing these things, he wanted to clarify what exactly had happened in the north and then find a place of refuge in the south.

For him, the An Family... this small power, was already enough!

He wouldn't join a bigger power and then exhaust himself climbing up within that power.

...

...

Note: In the future, the two updates will still be combined and posted at noon.

It will be the same after the launch. All updates will be at noon.

Hope everyone is aware.

That said, the next update will be on May 28th at noon.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.