Jiang Chen returned home dejectedly, and in the afternoon, he didn't go to Tang Hao's place to forge iron anymore.
He had just been beaten by Tang San in the morning, and now he was supposed to go lick Tang San's boots? He couldn't swallow that humiliation unless Tang San personally came to apologize.
Without the forging training, in the afternoon, he simply continued carrying the stone millstone and went running.
This time, he directly carried the stone millstone up and down the mountain, suddenly increasing the intensity of his training. After being violently beaten by Tang San, his desire for strength became even more intense.
During his training, Jing Wuming sent good news through their soul connection; the target had been locked onto the Spirit Hall.
Even though Jing Wuming held a special position, it wasn't that easy to find out who had hired the killers that day; he still didn't have the authority to access certain files.
However, locking onto Spirit Hall as the source was already a huge progress.
"Spirit Hall? I've never provoked Spirit Hall before. Why would they want to kill me? Logically, they should be trying to recruit me, so why would they send killers instead?"
Jiang Chen couldn't figure it out, no matter how much he thought about it. This didn't seem like Spirit Hall's usual style of doing things, because he hadn't completely rejected Spirit Hall yet.
Normally, Spirit Hall should still be thinking of ways to recruit him.
Suddenly, a name came to Jiang Chen's mind. "Su Yuntao, he must know something. After all, he was the one who awakened my martial soul."
Immediately, he conveyed the thought to Jing Wuming, instructing him to focus the investigation on Su Yuntao.
...
Two more days passed. Jing Wuming sent another piece of good news: the target had been narrowed down to two people: Ma Xiunuo and Sisi.
Jiang Chen thought back and remembered these two insignificant characters from the original story. One was the girl Su Yuntao had been pursuing, and the other was an old veteran master from Notting City's Spirit Hall.
He really couldn't understand why these two would want to kill him.
Another day passed, and Jing Wuming finally uncovered the whole truth and understood why those two wanted Jiang Chen dead.
Early in the morning, Jiang Chen summoned Jing Wuming to Holy Soul Village to learn the complete truth in detail.
By the river outside the village, the two stood facing each other.
"Young Master, these past few days, Su Yuntao has been drowning his sorrows in alcohol. I got the information out of him. Back then, he gave your information to Ma Xiunuo, wanting to pass it to the Papal Hall. After that, Ma Xiunuo contacted our organization and hired us to kill you."
"Why exactly did Ma Xiunuo want to kill me? And what about that Sisi?" Jiang Chen asked.
"I used my soul skill to sneak into Ma Xiunuo's office and hid there for a whole day and night, and finally discovered their secret."
At this point, Jing Wuming's face suddenly turned red.
Jiang Chen was puzzled. "Continue."
"That old man Ma Xiunuo and that girl Sisi… they are secretly having an affair, doing improper things."
Speaking of this, Jing Wuming seemed to sink into recollection, and a trace of aftertaste actually appeared on his face.
It had been a live erotic show at close range. When he was hiding there, he almost lost control. It was his first time being exposed to something like this, and for a young boy like him, the impact was simply too overwhelming.
Jiang Chen's mouth fell open, his expression extremely colorful. He knew that Ma Xiunuo was already over eighty years old, while Sisi was only around twenty.
The age difference between these two was enough to be grandfather and granddaughter, yet they were actually involved with each other.
Moreover, wasn't Su Yuntao always pursuing Sisi? How could he not even notice that he had been cuckolded?
"How long has this relationship between them been going on?" Jiang Chen asked with interest.
"More than a month."
"And Su Yuntao? Does he know about this?"
Jing Wuming shook his head. "He has been kept completely in the dark and has never noticed."
"Really interesting." Jiang Chen laughed. "Then why did they want to kill me?"
Jing Wuming organized his words and told Jiang Chen about the deal between Ma Xiunuo and Sisi.
Jiang Chen finally understood that Ma Xiunuo wanted to kill him to obtain the position of Hall Master of Notting City.
"What a pitiful Brother Tao." Jiang Chen shook his head.
"Young Master, do you need me to take care of them?" Jing Wuming asked.
"No need."
Jiang Chen's voice turned cold. "Killing them would be letting them off too easily. Wouldn't it be better to make them lose all reputation and everything they have?"
Jing Wuming nodded thoughtfully.
"Come with me into the village. I want to introduce you to someone."
Jiang Chen led Jing Wuming toward Holy Soul Village. Jing Wuming didn't ask who they were going to meet; he only needed to obey Jiang Chen's orders.
At the village entrance, Jiang Chen told Jing Wuming to wait there while he went in and called Tang San out.
Tang San's Purple Demon Eye had seen everything clearly that day, so of course, he recognized Jing Wuming.
A moment later, Tang San looked at Jiang Chen with an apologetic face. "Jiang Chen, I'm sorry. I misunderstood you."
Seeing Tang San bow his head and admit his mistake, some of the resentment Jiang Chen had felt these past days dissipated. He wasn't a petty person. Tang San's actions that day had come from worry for his father and Grandpa Jack's safety.
After the explanation was clear, Jiang Chen brought Jing Wuming forward.
"After you go back, interact more with people your age, and learn how to get along with others. Don't always be so cold and distant, understand?"
Jing Wuming was stunned. What Jiang Chen said was almost the same as what his adoptive father had told him: to learn to be more like a normal person.
In the past, he had been aloof and hadn't paid much attention to his adoptive father's teachings, but now that this was Jiang Chen's order, he had to obey.
"Yes, Young Master." He responded, deeply engraving Jiang Chen's instruction in his heart.
"You don't have to always call me Young Master from now on. Just call me Young Lord."
"Yes, Young Lord."
"Mm, you can go back now. Cultivate well. When I need you, I will contact you."
Jing Wuming accepted the order and returned to Notting City.
Jiang Chen's days returned to calm once again: morning running and training, afternoon forging iron at Tang Hao's shop, evening cultivating his technique.
Ever since Tang San apologized that day, his attitude toward Jiang Chen had noticeably improved, even better than before the misunderstanding.
Seeing Tang San's sincere repentance, the depression in Jiang Chen's heart eased somewhat.
After all, Tang San had acted that day to protect Tang Hao and Grandpa Jack. Thinking from his perspective, if he were Tang San, he would probably have made the same decision.
As for taking revenge on Ma Xiunuo, Jiang Chen hadn't thought of a good plan yet.
But a gentleman's revenge can wait ten years. When he went to Notting City later, there would be plenty of opportunities to deal with Ma Xiunuo.
Time quietly passed in this peaceful life. The villagers of Holy Soul Village had also grown accustomed to Jiang Chen's crazy daily routine, and gradually, they no longer feared him as much as before.
More than two months later, one night, under a bright moon hanging high and hazy moonlight covering the earth, Jiang Chen unusually did not cultivate.
It was already deep into the night; everyone had entered dreamland. Jiang Chen sat cross-legged on his bed, his heart surging with excitement.
Tonight, he was going to absorb his first soul ring and become a true spirit master.
He was very curious, after more than two months of training, with his current physique and willpower, how far could he persist, and what kind of soul ring would he obtain?