The Nine Cauldrons

Book 8 Chapter 38 – The Ox-Head Mountains in the Eastern Flower Region

Teng Qingshan’s answer evidently led to much disappointment among the people in the vicinity who were confident in their own looks. Among them, there was even Tantai Qing, who was referred to as the number one beauty under the heavens, and Yan Baishou, who possessed three stone inscriptions. Even Wu Baiwei of the Wu Clan had his smile stiffen in place.

“Congratulations, Brother Fu.” Wu Baiwei maintained his smile and cupped his hands.

“Let’s go,” the Martial Saintess said gloomily.

Evidently, in this marriage, the Martial Saintess’ words were more effective.

Meanwhile, Tantai Qing gazed resentfully toward Teng Qingshan with an expression seemingly of disappointment and sadness

……

A moment later, the men belonging to the Wu, Yan, and Tantai Clan had all left. Despite feeling inwardly uncomfortable, they were people who were experienced and had already known when they came; Teng Qingshan would, at most, provide aid to only one clan. Thus, they had already been prepared to return empty-handed.

Inside the house:

“Thank you, mister.” Fu Dao laughed.

Fu Yunzhan’s and Fu Yufeng’s faces were full of smiles. Many people might perhaps have only had a very limited understanding of Teng Qingshan. However, the Fu Clan had a clear understanding of him as Fu Dao had previously informed the Fu Clan’s upper echelons about how Teng Qingshan had defeated him with merely one move. For Teng Qingshan to be able to defeat a fellow Golden Dan Innate Martial Saint with a single move… what sort of strength was this?

His title as the Strongest Martial Saint was absolutely true!

“Thanks, Uncle.” Fu Yuping gazed at Teng Qingshan with gratitude.

“Haha.” Teng Qingshan laughed as he stroked Little Ping’s head. “The reason why Uncle chose the Fu Clan wasn’t only because of you.”

“Mister,” Fu Dao began to speak, “Apart from preparing one stone inscription, please feel free to state anything else that Mister needs. Our Fu Clan will spare no effort in fulfilling your needs.”

Teng Qingshan looked at him, and without concealing his inner thoughts, he said, “Fu Dao, we’ve known each other for quite some time, so I’ll not keep you in the dark. I do not care about money, treasures, nor Spiritual Herbs. However, I need at least a hundred thousand Jin worth of Fiery Gilt Steel Ores.”

“A hundred thousand Jin?” Fu Dao took in a deep breath.

“What, you can’t do it?” Teng Qingshan looked at him.

In fact, Teng Qingshan would want to have as much Fiery Gilt Steel ores as possible, the more the merrier. However, Teng Qingshan planned to ride the Six Legged Bladelike Chi back to the Land of the Nine Prefectures. Even though the Six Legged Bladelike Chi was powerful and possessed strength equivalent to that of Teng Qingshan, Flying for a long distance while bearing a hundred thousand Jin would be extremely laborious.

In Teng Qingshan’s calculations, a hundred thousand Jin worth of Fiery Gilt Steel Ore was probably the most they could transport to the Land of the Nine Prefectures.

“It’s not impossible,” Fu Dao said with a smile. “Mister, our Fu clan only started to gain prominence a year or two ago. Currently, we only own a tiny city and our strength is weak. Even if we include Mister’s assistance, it will be hard to say if we can get hold of the Fiery Gilt Steel Ores. If by chance we are able to acquire it, giving you 20-30% of it would not pose a problem. However——”

“Fiery Gilt Steel is rather precious after all. Several millenniums ago, only two thousand Jin worth of Fiery Gilt Steel were discovered. It was barely enough to cast several suits of armour.

“Although this time, the Fiery Gilt Steel Ore Deposit is huge, it has yet to be examined and excavated. No one knows how much Fiery Gilt Steel has been concealed away under Ox-Head Mountain. Perhaps, the total may not even add up to a hundred thousand Jin,” Fu Dao explained.

Teng Qingshan nodded in understanding.

“Rest assured, I will not make things difficult for your clan.” Teng Qingshan smiled and said, “If there isn’t much Fiery Gilt Steel, I will definitely lower my requirement.”

“May I ask what Mister wishes to do with the Fiery Gilt Steel?” Fu Dao asked puzzledly.

Teng Qingshan’s lips curled up into a smile. “As for this, you do not need to know.”

Fu Dao nodded and did not continue asking. However, that did not stop his thoughts from arising. “Is it possible that there’s a big clan behind Mister Teng? Or perhaps, Mister Teng is accumulating treasures for his descendants? Yes, Mister Teng is so young and yet he possesses overwhelming strength. It is definitely possible for him to become a Martial Immortal!”

“Mister,” Fu Dao began saying with a smile, “The current state of the Eastern Flower Region is extremely chaotic. So, let’s not stay here. Does Mister wish to go with us, or…?”

“I’ll head to the Eastern Flower Region tomorrow at this time,” Teng Qingshan answered.

Fu Dao knew that Teng Qingshan owned a flying demonic beast, so he was not worried in the least.

“Alright, we shall take our leave first then.” Fu Dao cupped his hands, and Fu Yunzhan and Fu Yufeng did the same. Although that young fellow named Fu Yunzhan was the Patriarch of the Fu Clan, it was evident… that Fu Dao called the shots.

“Fu Dao,” Teng Qingshan inquired suspiciously, “As a Golden Dan Innate Martial Saint, why did you allow Little Ping and the others to fall to such a state?”

For an Innate Golden Dan Martial Saint, it was not hard for Fu Dao to protect a clan.

“Oh, right. Fu Dao, why did you allow Little Ping and her branch members to end up like that?” Li Jun asked resentfully, while Fu Yuping kept silent, watching Fu Dao quietly.

Fu Dao stiffened, before smiling bitterly. “Mister, you should’ve heard some things about me…”

“What?” Teng Qingshan frowned.

“Martial arts fanatic,” Fu Dao said gloomily.

Teng Qingshan nodded. “You are a martial arts fanatic, this I know. During our first meeting, you chased me all night just to ask for a chance to exchange pointers.”

“Yes.” Fu Dao sighed, “At a young age, I left home and began my harsh training. At that point in time, the Fu Clan was still concealing itself, so no war banners were raised, nor did we occupy a city. I could delve peacefully into martial arts with all my heart at that time because I knew… I knew that for a powerful sect, a strong Martial Saint was indispensable.

“I was intoxicated with martial arts and had frequent battles with others, eventually earning the nickname, Martial Arts Fanatic.”

Fu Dao lamented, “Only until after the extermination of the Fu Clan’s Beihou branch did I realize my mistake. From that moment onwards, I began to prepare for the rise of the clan, be it establishing good relations with the Rising Sun Trading Company, or the purchase of the Blunt Vanadium Stone Tablets. Everything was for the sake of the clan. At present, my Fu Clan barely occupies a tiny town by the name ‘Yuyang’. As for Little Ping and her family, everything was already too late when I found out.”

Fu Yuping’s eyes glistened with tears.

So close… He was so close—

If Fu Dao had lent a helping hand that year, the Beihou branch would not have ended up like that.

“Forget it.” Teng Qingshan shook his head as he sighed. “How about this this? Fu Dao, you’ll leave first with Little Ping…… and my disciples, Yang Dong and Teng Shou.”

“No problem.” Fu Dao nodded.

The backs of the Whole Gale Eagle and the Blue Luan could not be considered wide and were unable to fit too many people. So, this journey to Eastern Flower Region would not be completed in a day or two. Furthermore, Teng Qingshan was also carrying six stone inscriptions. Hence, he alone sat on the Whole Gale Eagle, while Li Jun sat on the Blue Luan. There was simply no space left for his disciples Teng Shou and Yang Dong to sit.

“Mister, when you’ve arrived, head straight to the Ox-Head Mountain, south of Blazing Flame Territory. In the vicinity of the mountain, there are barracks erected all around. Amongst them, there is one in particular that has the flag with the ‘Fu’ character. It belongs to our Fu clan, so just head there.” Fu Dao said

Teng Qingshan nodded.

On that day, Teng Shou, Yang Dong, and Fu Yuping left swiftly with Fu Dao and their cavalry.

Besides the four great clans, other clans had visited Teng Qingshan. However, since he had already promised the Fu Clan, he would not agree to anyone else.

Having stayed till the next afternoon, Teng Qingshan sat on Whole Gale Eagle as he carried a big metal trunk and shouldered the Dark Blaze Rod, while Li Jun rode the Blue Luan. Together, the pair left the Godly Axe Mountain’s Crescent Moon Lake.

……

In the afternoon:

The pair of flying demonic beasts, the Whole Gale Eagle and the Blue Luan, hovered in the skies above Ox-Head Mountain. Both Teng Qingshan and Li Jun looked down from above.

“To think that there would be so many military barracks within a 100 Li perimeter around Ox-Head Mountain,” Teng Qingshan lamented.

“Big Brother Teng, where is the Fu Clan?” Li Jun gazed downward.

“Over there.” Teng Qingshan pointed toward a military barrack erected on a vacant land, south of Ox-Head Mountain. With his vision, he could see the Fu character on the flag clearly.

“It’s that small?” Li Jun’s stature stiffened.

Looking from a high altitude, it was easy to tell the size of the barracks. The Fu Clan’s barracks were evidently smaller in comparison to the other clans.

“Let’s go down.”

Almost immediately, the Whole Gale Eagle and the Blue Luan dived downward.

……

The Whole Gale Eagle and the Blue Luan stopped a Li away from the military barracks. Soon after, they heeded Teng Qingshan’s instructions and strolled freely around Ox-Head Mountain while Teng Qingshan and Li Jun walked toward the barracks.

At the entrance of the military barracks:

“Second Uncle, at what time will Mister Teng arrive?” Fu Yunzhan inquired Fu Dao who was beside him.

The two men had been waiting for Teng Qingshan at the entrance since early in the morning.

“Don’t worry. Mister said he’d arrive today, so he’ll definitely arrive today,” Fu Dao said, appearing very calm. Teng Qingshan’s two disciples, Teng Shou and Yang Dong, were behind them. Fu Yuping was also by their the side. Everyone was waiting and looking around eagerly. The sentries at the barracks were extremely curious. Who was the clan lord waiting for at the entrance?

Then suddenly—

A man and woman emerged up ahead. The tall man was carrying a terrifyingly large metal case on his back with ease.

A slight draft of wind blew about and caused smoke and dust to pervade the air, making the figures in the distance appear fuzzy.

“It’s Mister.” Fu Dao’s eyes lit up. “Yunzhan, let’s go.”

The soldiers looked on with astonishment as the Patriarch of the Fu Clan saluted respectfully toward the unfamiliar man walking toward them.

……

Within the barracks, there was a large tent, and inside it, there was a soft, warm, and extravagant bed. Exquisite luxurious seats had also already been prepared beforehand.

“Mister, this will be your temporary quarters during for these few days. Miss Jun’s tent is situated right next door.” Fu Dao smiled.

Teng Qingshan walked in while lugging the metal case. Looking around, he nodded and said, “Not bad, there was quite a lot of consideration put into this.”

Fu Dao could not help but laugh.

“Fu Dao, when I heard what you said before, I thought you were a modest person. However, today, when I looked from above… Tsk, tsk. Your Fu Clan’s military barracks take up the least space.” Teng Qingshan smiled at him.

Fu Dao replied in embarrassment, “Mister, besides the Fu Clan, the other clans that came to fight for the Fiery Gilt Steel Ores all had dominion over major cities. Our Fu Clan occupies a mere town.”

There are 36 major cities under the heavens and 108 towns.

The type and number of cities a clan occupied reflected the strength of a clan.

“Which is why we’ve invited Mister Teng,” Fu Dao said with a praising smile, “Ah, right. Mister, this is one of the stone inscription of the 《Thirty-six Splitting Mountain Forms》 I mentioned previously.” Fu Dao pointed toward the wrapped up object on the bed.

“Oh?” Teng Qingshan’s eyes shone as he looked over.