Chapter 172: Speculation

　　The various aristocratic families in Shangyang raised their defense to the highest level, calling back their experts carrying out tasks outside and sending their heirs and gifted juniors away, lest they met with the same misfortune as the Xingyang family.

　　At that moment, almost all eyes were focused on the Supreme Palace, because after the people who attended the banquet returned, everyone was told about the feud between the Supreme Palace and Xingyang family. Together with the effect of the extreme cold energy, the culprit had been on every tongue.

　　Ding Ling’er of the Tianyuan Trading Company was the only one who had guessed the truth.

　　“What? You said Li Yunxiao did this? Impossible! I’ve gone to the Xingyang family, and I’m certain that all of them were killed in a flash. If Li Yunxiao had such strength, he would have reigned supreme over Firecrow Empire and not been hiding in a mere Yanwu.” Yu Rong looked incredulous as he shook his head repeatedly. Although Ding Ling’er was rarely wrong with her speculations, it was too ridiculous so time that he could not believe at all.

　　Ding Ling’er sighed and said, “You are not the only one. Even I find it hard to believe. But, I’m certain that it must be Li Yunxiao. Ma Tianhe is the strongest man in the Supreme Palace, but he is just a three-stars Martial Grandmaster, and there are only four Martial Grandmasters in his sect. Even if he combines the strength of his entire sect, he is still no match for the Xingyang family.”

　　Yu Rong said, “If the Supreme Palace can’t do it, then Yanwu is even worse. The city’s strongest man is a nine-stars Martial King, so how can they wipe out the Xingyang family? Miss, this is the funniest joke you’ve ever told.”

　　Ding Ling’er paid no mind to Yu Rong’s words. Instead, a strong look of doubt came over her face as she murmured, “How did they do it? This Li Yunxiao is too mysterious. None of the information we’ve come out with is useful, and I’m sure there must be a missing piece…but what is it?”

　　“You think too much, Miss,” Yu Rong smiled. “This cannot be done by Li Yunxiao and his people. Our investigation organization can be ranked in the top ten on the Heavenly Martial Continent, and he is just a prodigal son from a small state. If we want, we can even find out how many times he had wet his bed when he was small. We won’t miss anything.”

　　Ding Ling’er did not say anything but just paced back and forth in the hall. At length, she shook her head helplessly and said, “I can’t think of anything. Sir Yu, from today on, Yanwu will enjoy first-class treatment from me. No matter what they want, as long as we can do it, we will support them fully!”

　　Yu Rong sucked in a cold breath and said shockingly, “First-class treatment? Miss, do you have any idea what you are doing?”

　　He had never doubted any of Ding Ling’er’s decisions, but he really could not help but question her this time.

　　Ding Ling’er gave him a sweet smile and said, “Of course! This could be the biggest and most successful investment of my life!”

　　Yu Rong paused a moment as he frowned, and then asked doubtfully, “Miss, you didn’t fall in love with that Li Yunxiao, did you? Yes, he is handsome and has an elegant bearing, but his status and…”

　　“Sir Yu!” Ding Ling’er snapped shyly, “What nonsense are you talking about!” Then, she stamped her foot and chased Yu Rong out of the hall. A moment later, she heard Yu Rong’s voice coming through the door, “Aye, a grown girl can’t be kept at home.” That only angered her further.

　　After brooding over that for some moment, she suddenly burst into laughter, feeling amused by her own embarrassed look.

　　Meanwhile, at the Cheng family in Shangyang…

　　Inside a grand mansion, the present family head of the Cheng family, Cheng Feng, was studying an incomplete Go game with a zither playing in the background and an incense burning on the side. Across him sat an old man with white hair and a ruddy complexion, who had a smile in his eyes and was not speaking.

　　Cheng Feng held a white stone in his fingers and hesitated about what move to make. After a long time, he finally put down the stone and sighed. “Master Baili’s game is so mysterious. I’ve been pondering over it for half a month, and yet not only am I still unable to solve it, but when I focus on it, my heart is filled with a faint sense of horror. It is too profound for me to understand. Please enlighten me, Master!”

　　Baili Gongjin stroked his beard and smiled. “I can’t solve this incomplete Go game either.”

　　Cheng Feng was stunned, and he said in bewilderment, “Even Master Baili can’t solve it? Then this game…”

　　Baili Gongjin made a gesture as he smiled wryly and said, “You’ve studied it for half a month, but it has been half a year for me. This incomplete Go game is created by Martial Sovereign Throne, Teng Guang, and is called the ‘Game of Heaven and Earth’. It contains his ultimate insight into the Dao of Arrays. Anyone who knows how to solve it can inherit his eight hundred scrolls of the Dao of Arrays and become a Master of Arrays.”

　　As the family head of one of the four major aristocratic families in Firecrow Empire, Cheng Feng was a deep man who rarely showed his true emotions. Even so, he was visibly shocked when he heard that, and he sucked in a cold breath with a terrified look on his face. “Do you mean the Grandmaster of Go, Martial Sovereign Teng Guang, who was given the title of Throne by the Holy Realm and is ranked seventh on the Heaven and Earth Power Chart?”

　　Baili Gongjin chuckled and nodded.

　　Cheng Feng glanced at the game in horror and asked doubtfully, “From where did Master Baili get such a precious treasure?”

　　Baili Gongjin laughed when he saw the nervous look on Cheng Feng’s face. “Don’t be so cautious, Brother Cheng. This is already known to everyone in the Holy Realm, and there are at least thousands, if not tens of thousands of people studying it now. I haven’t heard of anyone who could gain insight into the Dao of Arrays in it though. Still, many people have comprehended higher-level martial essence from it, which improved their cultivation base significantly. It’s a pity that I am not an expert in martial arts, so I can’t gain anything out of it. You are much stronger than me, Brother Cheng, and I think perhaps you can learn something if you put in more effort to study the game.”

　　Cheng Feng was somewhat surprised. With a wry smile, he said, “It gave me a fright. If this game had only one copy, the Cheng family would be pushed to the teeth of the storm and be wiped out at any time.”

　　As the saying went, a man’s wealth was his own ruin by attracting others’ greed. The Cheng family was powerful in Firecrow Empire, but it was merely an ant in the whole Heavenly Martial Continent. Such an amazing treasure was not something they could have laid a hand on.

　　“Haha!” Baili Gongjin laughed. “If this were the only copy, I would have been killed and my body would have been thrown somewhere unknown. This Martial Sovereign Throne wanted to take in disciples, but none of those who went to him was gifted enough, which is why he had come out with this idea. Anyone who can fully understand the mystery in the game can become his disciple and inherit his Dao of Arrays. In my opinion, even if we can’t fully solve it, we will still benefit a lot by learning just a part of it.”

　　Cheng Feng was slightly amazed, but then he said in a somewhat disappointed voice, “I don’t think I can fully solve it when all the other geniuses on the continent have failed to do so.”

　　Baili Gongjin smiled and said, “It’s not easy, indeed, but sometimes, it’s all about a fated chance. Perhaps someone in the Cheng family is fated to solve it. If so, your family will be able to move up another level and no longer have to stay in a small empire in the south.”

　　That tempted Cheng Feng. If anyone of his family could inherit Martial Sovereign Throne’s legacy, then no one in all three empires south of the continent would be his match, and he could even trample the Jutian Sect. At that moment, he decided to call upon all the family members later and give each a copy of the game to study.

　　“It occurred to me that someone might try it,” Baili Gongjin said suddenly.

　　“Who?”

　　“We all know that Lord Yang Di had left behind a painting in Tianshui and said that he would do anything for the person who could solve its mystery. Both you and I had seen that painting, and we couldn’t find anything out of it. But, some time ago, a young man in Tianshui solved the mystery. It proves that he has a very high level of comprehension, so we can make him try.”

　　A look of displeasure flashed across Cheng Feng’s face. He snorted coldly and said, “I’ve heard that, too, and the fool had given the amazing gift to the Wang family to save the princess of Tianshui!” He ground his teeth as a glimmer of disdain flickered in his eyes. “That fool was just lucky to have guessed the answer. It is said that the answer is a hidden poem Gu Feiyang wrote to scold Yang Di.”

　　“Luck is also part of strength, and Yuan Hao has a very high opinion about the young man,” said Baili Gongjin noncommittally. “You might want to find him and make him try, Brother Cheng!”

　　“Hmph! I’ve already planned to send someone to find this guy even before this.” Cheng Feng’s eyes flickered as he said, “He is now the City Lord of Yanwu, and his name is Li Yunxiao. In the last Thousand Treasures Trade Fair, he had killed a junior member of my family and Xingyang Jie, the heir of his family. I thought the Xingyang family would finish him, so I didn’t pay him any mind. Little did I expect that the Xingyang family would be struck with such a catastrophic disaster.”

　　Baili Gongjin’s eyelids twitched suddenly as an absurd thought came to him. “Brother, do you think what happened to the Xingyang family is related to Yanwu or Li Yunxiao?”

　　Cheng Feng paused a moment before bursting into laughter. “Haha! You are too imaginative, Master Baili! Yes, there is an unresolvable feud between them, but Yanwu is just a small city of Tianshui while the Xingyang family is so strong that it cannot be annihilated even with the strength of the whole Tianshui. Besides, you have seen the ice sculpture, and you know that even a Martial Emperor of the Seven Constellations realm would not be able to escape that power.”

　　Baili Gongjin nodded slightly in agreement. “There is something very strange about this incident. Everyone agrees that the Supreme Palace did it. It was said that Xingyang Ming had robbed the Supreme Palace’s treasury during Ma Feibai’s banquet and killed many people before fleeing, and more than a dozen people had seen it with their eyes. They said it was an act of revenge, which I find reasonable. It’s just that I didn’t expect the Supreme Palace to have such a mighty power that could wipe out the Xingyang family in a flash.”

　　Cheng Feng’s face grew serious as he said worriedly, “The Supreme Palace has only been established for a little over a hundred years, and its Palace Master—Ma Tianhe—is only a three-stars Martial Grandmaster. Had it not been because of its mysterious origin, which seems to be related to some super sect in the north, it would have been wiped out by the others. But now, it seems that this is not the case at all!

　　“Their real strength is far above what they have shown us! I even begin to wonder if they are deliberately sent here by the sect in the north?”