He could not shake the feeling that something was off.

　　It was not because he had obtained it too easily, but because those martial arts gave him a weird feeling. There had not been a sense of exquisiteness nor grandeur to them. An inexplicably strange aura clung about them instead. It was quite baffling.

　　He had great confidence in his senses. His intuition was far keener than ordinary people because of the Omniscient Mirror.

　　He was not in a hurry to cultivate this secret manual. He remained staring at it, hoping to find out what it really was.

　　He could see every inch of the small book down to its very fiber with the Omniscient Mirror.

　　He could discern the real from the fake. This book had truly been around for a long time. It had not been tainted by others, and it was not forged.

　　After a while, he reached the conclusion that this book had hundreds of years’ worth of history.

　　This book was over a hundred years old, but the martial arts accounted inside were indeed odd.

　　After researching for a while, he decided that he could only try and cultivate it to see what would happen.

　　His inner energy was activated along with his heart technique, but nothing else happened. They circulated his body once, but there was still no response whatsoever. He could not master it immediately as he thought he would. This was something new which he had never experienced before.

　　Ever since he had cultivated the Omniscient Mirror, his power of comprehension became astonishing. He was able to master those common martial arts very easily because he could see through the secrets to master the martial arts right away.

　　This heart technique, however, was not the same. It was weird. He could say that it was not a brilliant technique, but Chu Li could feel that something wonderful was hidden among its depths. On the other hand, it would not do to say that it was a wonderful technique either because there seemed to be something very wrong about it as if it had been shrouded by fog. He could not see it in its complete form no matter how much he tried. This made Chu Li feel uneasy and wary.

　　He suddenly disappeared from the small courtyard.

　　The next moment, he appeared in a courtyard at the Imperial Residence of King Jing and coughed lightly.

　　Lu Yurong pushed open the window, revealing her lustrous jade-like face.

　　She was just cultivating. Her appearance was as lovely as ever. She looked as if she was chiseled from a piece of jade. Her eyes were cool and threatening as if she could see right through everyone’s hearts.

　　“What’s the matter?” Her brows furrowed lightly, and she looked at Chu Li in dissatisfaction.

　　What time did he think it was now? It was already long past midnight, and Chu Li still decided to visit her out of nowhere. Others would think that these two had something else going on. This would naturally inspire gossips and rumors.

　　Chu Li said, “Let’s talk inside.”

　　Lu Yurong frowned and glanced at him. Then, she gestured for him to come inside with a wave of her hand. “Come in.”

　　She knew that it was something important by the look on Chu Li’s face.

　　Chu Li opened the door and entered.

　　The moment he entered the house, a subtle fragrance wafted to his nose. The smell had refreshed his mind and lightened his heart. The furnishing of the house was plain but elegant. It suited her temperament very well.

　　She was dressed in an oversized sleeping gown. Her lustrous hair hung loosely around her frame, black and bright as if it was shrouded by fog. Her beautiful and glittering face exuded a warm luster. It bore little no difference to white jade.

　　Her way of dressing and her casualness suddenly made her seem much more enchanting and less distant and cold. Her exceedingly charming and fascinating aura seemed to have flooded the entire house.

　　Lu Yurong sat in the armchair and looked at him. “It’s the middle of the night. What couldn’t wait until tomorrow?!”

　　Chu Li took the Cloud Slashing Treasure Manual out from his sleeve and handed it to her. “I couldn’t wait until tomorrow.”

　　Lu Yurong reached her hand out and took it. She swept her eyes across the cover of the book impatiently.

　　Her bright eyes sharpened, and she raised her head to look at him.

　　Chu Li said, “I had only just obtained it. I brought it over to you to let you see. That means I’ve kept my word.”

　　Lu Yurong gave him a sidelong glance.

　　He was a man of his word, but he would always have a few tricks up his sleeve by stating a few terms and conditions here and there. It was rather odd for him to abide by his promise this easily. Something out of the ordinary must have happened, or else he would not come here this late at night.

　　She lowered her head and flipped through the book with her eyebrows furrowed.

　　“What do you think?” said Chu Li, “This time I hit the mark on a fluke. I personally went to the Autumn Wind Camp to investigate and found the High Ridge Association by tracking down the killer. The High Ridge Association exterminated the Autumn Wind Camp because of this secret manual. The High Ridge Camp was being exterminated by Hao Ran Faction when I arrived at the scene. I took the opportunity to take this secret manual.”

　　“Hao Ran Faction…” said Lu Yurong. “They are a second-rate faction, but their way of acquiring information was fast. In other words, they have completely paved the way for you!”

　　“I exploited them. I was lucky enough to obtain this secret manual,” Chu Li said with a smile.

　　“The Cloud Slashing Treasure Manual! This small book is the manual?” Lu Yurong shook her head and sighed. “I don’t feel good about this.”

　　“I feel that way too,” said Chu Li.

　　Lu Yurong frowned and pondered. Then, she shook her head.

　　Chu Li said, “I think this secret manual is fake.”

　　“…You feel that way too?” Lu Yurong looked at him. “Could it be that you took a fake book to deceive me?”

　　“I don’t have time for that!” Chu Li said in disbelief. “If I really didn’t want to show you, I would’ve just said that I don’t have it. Why would I use a fake book to deceive you?”

　　Lu Yurong gave a thin smile.

　　Her smile dropped eventually. She heaved a sigh and said, “Looks like there really is something strange about this Cloud Slashing Treasure Manual!”

　　Chu Li said, “Is it really a conspiracy? A trap?”

　　Lu Yurong lowered her head and flipped through the book. She said with a sigh, “It might look legit but turned out to be fake in actuality. It is very hard to confirm that this is a fake. Those who had obtained the secret manual will usually try to cultivate it. If they fail at it, they’ll just begin to doubt themselves, thinking that they had failed because their comprehension and aptitude were inadequate.”

　　Chu Li said, “The person who created this heart technique was definitely not an ordinary person. What’s more, this secret manual has been around for hundreds of years. It really had been through a lot!”

　　“Yes, this indeed is the real book,” Lu Yurong smiled. “Do you think there might be a profound heart technique that even the both of us are unable to realize? We might really miss out on it!”

　　Chu Li grinned. “Then, you can try cultivating it.”

　　Lu Yurong laughed dryly. “What if I really manage to cultivate this? What if the person who used this secret manual to deceive others never thought that book truly had recorded the most profound heart technique? Is it possible?”

　　“It’s very possible.” Chu Li chuckled.

　　How much luck would be needed to be able to encounter something like that? Lu Yurong was really the one to cry for the moon.

　　“Alright, then I shall try cultivating it.” Lu Yurong smiled. “I’m not busy anyway. There hasn’t been anything to do recently.”

　　“Things will be happening very soon! There should’ve been a break to things, but now it seems that a storm is brewing again. There’ll be no more quiet moments. How’s the might of the Ji Public House?” said Chu Li.

　　“The Autumn Wind Camp is situated within the borders of the Ji Public House right?” said Lu Yurong. “We tend to stay out of each others’ businesses. There have been very little conflicts between the two of the houses.”

　　“It seems that they are quite powerful.” Chu Li nodded.

　　Lu Yurong glanced at him but did not refute the statement.

　　The might of Ji Public House was far superior to the Yi Public House in the past. Although it was slightly inferior to the Ren Public House, the difference was not exactly large. That was why the two sides did not act against each other. They were trying to suppress one another’s might.

　　The relationship between the High Duke’s Public Houses was akin to the relationship between countries. It was almost impossible for them to live in peace with each other. There would definitely be some disputes and friction. Fighting with each other and then making peace again was normal between the Public Houses.

　　Lu Yurong said, “You want to snatch the case from the Ji Public House? Isn’t there an Innate Master among them?”

　　According to her experience, there would definitely be an Innate Master involved when it came to a faction extermination case.

　　“There’s an Innate Master among them.” Chu Li nodded.

　　Lu Yurong’s expression darkened. “If there’s an Innate Master then the case must belong to the High Duke’s Public House. What do the Secret Guardians Hall plan to do?”

　　Chu Li said, “I’m only afraid that the High Duke’s Public House isn’t able to hold themselves up and will try to snatch the secret manual for themselves.”

　　“You’re underestimating the High Duke’s Public House!” Lu Yurong laughed dryly. “If that’s no good, they will still do things openly. As for the secret manual, the most they would do is to make another copy of it. They won’t monopolize it!”

　　Chu Li laughed. “That’s not enough?”

　　“Chu Li, you should understand that the High Duke’s Public House will definitely not show mercy on the Secret Guardians Hall should they interfere recklessly, ” Lu Yurong said coldly. “Never mind you, even if it’s Fu Mengshan who personally interferes, the Ji Public House will skin him as well!”

　　Chu Li said, “I didn’t send anyone over.”

　　“That’s for the best.” Lu Yurong’s expression softened.

　　“But I’m planning to send someone over,” said Chu Li.

　　Lu Yurong’s expression grew cold again, and she glared nastily at him.