Chapter 138: I Once Faced Ten Thousand Troops with a Single Sword!

"The Regional Governor has arrived!"

The announcement rang out, piercingly loud amidst the rainy night. The words lingered in the ears of the crowd, refusing to fade.

Accompanied by a middle-aged man whose vitality surged like a tempest, an old man walked into the church, step by deliberate step, leaning on his cane. The moment he appeared, the atmosphere in the hall shifted instantly.

The scion of the noble family—whom Qin Mu had just told to go pick out a grave site in the potter’s field—scrambled to his feet, casting a malicious glare at Qin Mu. So, you thought you were arrogant, threatening to bury a prominent figure of Jiangnan? Now that this Regional Governor, who has dominated Jiangnan for three generations, is here, let’s see how you die!

"Grandfather, save me! This piece of trash almost cut off my hand just now!"

Seeing his savior, Jiang Qi felt a surge of golden hope despite his agonizing pain. Disregarding whether Qin Mu was watching or maintaining any pretense of dignity, he crawled on all fours toward Jiang Shounian.

"Look at the state of you! Is this how a descendant of the Jiang family should behave?" Jiang Shounian struck the floor with his cane, scolding him, yet the heartache in his eyes was unmistakable, quickly replaced by a torrent of suppressed fury.

"What a haughty young man. Such arrogance is rare, even here in the Jiangnan territory." Jiang Shounian looked at Qin Mu, offering a cold, backhanded compliment before shifting his gaze to the center of the red carpet.

"You must be Luo Shui," Jiang Shounian said, looking her up and down with a satisfied nod. "You are truly a hundred times more beautiful than in your photographs. That old fool Luo Daoming is truly blessed to have a celestial flower like you to anchor his house. With this year’s centenary banquet, I imagine the entirety of Jiangnan will bow to him."

He turned his gaze back to Qin Mu. "I, as an old man, will reluctantly take charge. Let Luo Shui marry my grandson, Jiang Qi. I will overlook your past transgressions and allow you, as Luo Shui’s brother, to serve as a guard for the Jiang family. If you perform well, replacing Wu Qiang as my grandson’s new personal steward is not out of the question."

Jiang Shounian spoke with natural ease, his depths unfathomable. He had arranged everything with a calm, calculated hand.

The dignitaries present understood instantly. This old fox, Jiang Shounian, was worthy of his three generations of power; his methods were indeed seasoned. He hadn't rushed to settle scores with Qin Mu. Instead, he had dangled a massive temptation. Not only would he wipe the slate clean, but he would also grant Qin Mu entry into the Jiang family. With the Jiang family as his background, who in Jiangnan would ever dare call him a nameless nobody again? This was a goal many young men dreamed of but could never achieve.

More importantly, by acting this way, Jiang Shounian would not only secure the peerless beauty Luo Shui but also recruit a formidable talent like Qin Mu into his fold. It was a perfect, all-encompassing strategy. This was the mark of a master tactician! Perhaps after today, Jiang Shounian would be able to go toe-to-toe with Luo Daoming, the man known as the King of Jiangnan.

After Jiang Shounian finished speaking, he rested his hands on his wooden cane, gazing at Qin Mu with indifference, waiting for him to bow his head in submission.

Jiang Qi, now helped up by the middle-aged man, glared at Qin Mu with a smirk. No matter how imposing you were, no matter how much you humiliated me in front of the elite of Jiangnan, you still have to lower your head and submit to me now, don't you?

Qin Mu’s eyes narrowed slightly, his expression cold. He tilted his head and asked, "What is your Jiang family worth?"

"What...?" Jiang Shounian was stunned, never expecting such a response.

Before he could react, Qin Mu swept his hand, his blade held in reverse, resting against his back. He stared directly at Jiang Shounian and asked coldly, "And what are you, Jiang Shounian, to think you can make decisions for my woman?"

A gasp rippled through the hall!

Upon hearing this, a sweet smile curled onto Luo Shui's lips. She beckoned to Shen Yue to join her, walked up to the platform, and took Qin Mu’s hand, gripping it tightly. He was truly the man she had chosen. She had feared he might retreat or be unable to stand against the Jiang family, but it seemed she had been wrong to underestimate her own stubborn man.

What did these so-called noble families or powerful elites matter? Could they ever force a man of such spirit to lower his head? Even if death were the price, she would face it with him. At least then, there would be no regrets.

Qin Mu said nothing more. He pulled Luo Shui into his arms, pressing her against his warm chest.

Seeing this, Jiang Shounian did not lose his temper. Instead, he wore an amicable, understanding expression. "A young man is full of vigor; I can certainly understand that," he said. "When I was young, I, too, felt like I could challenge all the heroes of the world with nothing but my spirit. But after experiencing the storms of life, one learns that there is more to this world than just being headstrong."

"I have heard of your martial prowess and how you killed the One-Eyed man and the others the Jiang family had spent a decade cultivating. At your age, such strength is indeed worth being proud of. But, it is only something to be proud of."

Jiang Shounian’s tone shifted, becoming incredibly arrogant. He tapped his wooden cane. "This man beside me is called Han Yi. He stands at the peak of Internal Energy, only half a step away from becoming a Grandmaster of the Transformation Realm!"

At this introduction, everyone’s eyes turned to the middle-aged man with surging vitality and bulging temples. Since he had entered, his presence had been no less imposing than Jiang Shounian’s. While the umbrella he held outside had only covered Jiang Shounian, Han Yi himself had not had a single drop of rain on him. His Internal Energy had shielded him!

"What is the 'peak of Internal Energy'?" some of the younger, less knowledgeable guests whispered to those around them.

"It is a threshold in martial arts. One who masters Internal Energy can focus their strength to a single point and kill from ten meters away," said Su Jianfeng, head of a century-old martial arts family. No one present understood martial arts better than him.

"That terrifying?"

Killing from a distance—wasn't that exactly what Qin Mu had done earlier?

Su Jianfeng shook his head. "Internal Energy is not difficult. If one is devoted to martial arts for ten years, even with poor talent, they can achieve it. But to reach the peak? Among practitioners of Internal Energy, it is one in ten thousand. This personal guard of Elder Jiang has vitality surging to the very crown of his head. While they say he is half a step away, in reality, he is no different from a master of the Transformation Realm."

Su Jianfeng’s words caused the crowd to gasp. If mere Internal Energy allowed for such superhuman feats, then what of a master who had reached the Transformation Realm? Would they not be beyond humanity itself? The younger generation could only stare at Han Yi, their eyes searching for any sign of the impossible.