Apotheosis Begins with Tai Chi

Cao Zhao quickly went to Cao Miao’s side and whispered a few words in his ear.

Cao Miao’s expression remained placid, but his hands, resting on the armrests of his chair, suddenly tensed and even began to tremble.

And this subtle movement was noticed by the few people nearby; Qin Xiangyun was no exception.

”Lord Hong…”

Cao Miao kept his voice low as he slowly rose to his feet.

”An urgent family matter has come up, and I must return at once to deal with it. It’s truly inconvenient to stay any longer. I ask for your understanding.”

”If Master Cao has urgent business, then you should go at once.”

Hong Jinhai assented, then glanced sideways at Pang Shixun, who was sitting beside him.

For a moment, Pang Shixun’s expression became extremely unnatural, but he quickly composed himself, as if nothing had happened.

He seemed to know the news Cao Zhao had brought.

But what he truly cared about was whether Cao Zhao would be implicated, in turn affecting his granddaughter, and by extension, the entire Pang Family.

With great families joined in marriage, the greatest fear is that what affects one will affect them all.

At this thought, his gaze involuntarily fell upon Chen Cheng. If the situation spiraled out of control, the agreement two months from now...

Meanwhile.

Supported by Chen Cheng and Cao Zhao, Cao Miao walked quickly toward the main gate.

Zhuang Zhen followed closely behind them.

The gazes of the people behind them all fell upon Cao Miao in unison.

For a moment, the old, white-haired Martial Master did his best to straighten his spine, but after only a few steps, a violent coughing fit bent him double, and he did not straighten up again.

In an instant, the hall was abuzz with discussion, a tense undercurrent rippling through the crowd.

...

「In the carriage.」

Cao Miao’s chest heaved. Before he could even catch his breath, he asked urgently:

”Explain it clearly... What in the world happened!?”

Cao Zhao glanced at Chen Cheng and Zhuang Zhen, his lips moving as if in hesitation. This was a matter that shouldn’t be known by too many people, but at this point, he couldn’t afford to be concerned about that.

”The Hall Master was ambushed. The injuries he sustained three days ago at Cangying Hunting Manor have taken a severe turn for the worse. When I left to deliver the message, he had just been carried into the inner courtyard...”

Cao Zhao lowered his voice to a bare whisper.

”I saw it with my own eyes. He was covered in blood and had already lost consciousness.”

”How could this be?”

The color drained completely from Cao Miao’s face, and his voice trembled.

”Who was the attacker!? How dare they commit violence in the Inner City!?”

”It was one of the leaders of the Red Moon Remnants.”

Cao Zhao’s expression was equally grim.

”Senior Brothers Zhao Tianlai and Gu Kaishen were with the Hall Master at the time. They said it themselves—the attacker was a strange figure wearing a conical hat and wrapped in black cloth.”

”The Red Moon Demon People have made it into the Inner City!?”

Zhuang Zhen’s brows furrowed.

Even Chen Cheng’s heart sank.

The greatest advantage of the Inner City was its safety, which was what Chen Cheng valued most.

But now that a leader of the Red Moon Remnants was inside the Inner City, chaos and danger were sure to follow.

More importantly, both the Dragon Mountain Hall Master and Cao Miao, one of the two Transmission of Skills masters from the Upper Courtyard, were now severely injured. They could barely protect themselves, so how could they possibly shelter their disciples?

Chen Cheng’s mind raced. He instantly grasped the implications and began considering how to handle the fallout.

”Why Dragon Mountain Hall again?”

Cao Miao coughed violently, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.

”Previously, in the South Outer City, Ye Yang was also ambushed by this same person...”

Chen Cheng and Zhuang Zhen looked worried and were about to ask about his condition, but he raised a hand to stop them.

This was clearly not the time to discuss his injuries.

”No one can say for sure why…”

Cao Zhao said, his brow deeply furrowed,

”Senior Brother Zhao said it might be because our Dragon Mountain Hall played the largest role back when the authorities eradicated the Red Moon Nunnery…”

”Senior Brother Gu, on the other hand, thinks that what the Red Moon Remnants are looking for might be connected to our Dragon Mountain Hall.”

Upon hearing this, Cao Miao fell silent.

Clearly, he had already considered both possibilities; it was difficult to find any other explanation.

「A moment later.」

Cao Miao spoke again.

”Chen Cheng, Zhuang Zhen, you two get out of the carriage and go home... And stay away from the Upper Courtyard for the time being.”

”Yes.”

The two of them, of course, understood that Cao Miao was protecting them.

This turn of events was too monumental, directly concerning the very survival of Dragon Mountain Hall. With the Hall Master grievously wounded, the situation was highly likely to spiral completely out of control.

Cao Miao didn’t want them to be dragged into the vortex.

Besides, even if the situation were brought under control, there was no guarantee the Red Moon Demon People wouldn’t strike again.

Staying away from the Dragon Mountain Upper Courtyard was, without a doubt, the best choice at the moment.

As for Cao Miao and Cao Zhao, they couldn’t leave—or rather, they weren’t able to.

The Cao Family and Dragon Mountain Hall were deeply intertwined; they would rise and fall together.

...

「After getting out of the carriage.」

Chen Cheng went straight home, while Zhuang Zhen went to find her uncle, Yu Feng, to get more information.

They agreed to meet the next day to share what they had learned.

The moment Chen Cheng got home, he went straight to his medicine room. He carefully took stock of all his important resources and hidden trump cards, sorting and organizing everything.

This way, if a major crisis occurred, he could grab the most important items, get his mother, and flee at a moment’s notice.

While taking inventory, Chen Cheng also concealed several packets of Poisonous Powder and various kinds of Hidden Weapons on his person.

He tucked the small case of Poison Bee Needles securely against his body, vowing not to part with it until the crisis was over.

While organizing his Hidden Weapons, his eyes fell again on the Iron Lump he had taken from Yu An. It was about the size of an egg, its surface covered in irregular bumps.

He had examined it carefully before but had no idea what it was.

For now, he simply placed it with his other Hidden Weapons.

Then, he retrieved the wooden box containing the Profound Iron Treasure Bow and a bag of Profound Iron Bullets and laid it flat on the desk.

This Profound Iron Treasure Bow, aside from its astonishing power, possessed numerous ingenious mechanisms.