The Glory of the Tribe

Flying Snow City was far from the Jiang Clan's Earth City, over a thousand five hundred miles in a straight line. Even for a member of a great clan, riding an expensive beast to the Jiang Clan’s territory would take half a day at the fastest.
A beast capable of traveling thousands of miles in a single day was so expensive that the average civilian could never afford it, even after saving for a thousand years. For the people of Flying Snow City, the tribe’s territories were like an unreachable legend, and the tribe's people had the same perception of Flying Snow City.

Half an hour later.
In the Jiang Clan’s Earth City, two figures suddenly appeared in a delicate courtyard.
"Do you live here normally?" The thin old man, with his hands behind his back, walked with a slight stoop, resembling an old man taking a stroll, while observing the surroundings.

"Yes!" Lei Hong respectfully answered.
"This courtyard, from the furniture to the plants and trees, even the materials used for construction, are all a few levels above the other courtyards in Earth City," the thin old man casually remarked, sensing something in his words. "As an Inspector, even in Earth City, you have it quite comfortably."
"My lord, if you have something to say, just speak plainly," Lei Hong replied.

Lei Hong could tell that the City Lord was subtly probing him.
Gods and demons, having ascended from mortals, had different personalities. Some were stern and humorless, others hot-tempered or extremely strict, and some, like the Lord of Flying Snow City, were relatively calm.
The Lord of Flying Snow City was comparatively peaceful, and as long as his subordinates didn’t make major mistakes, he usually wouldn’t mete out harsh punishments.

However, Lei Hong always felt that the "old man" had a strange temperament, fond of speaking in riddles.
"I’ll speak plainly then," the thin old man turned to Lei Hong.
"Please, my lord," Lei Hong nodded.

"Have you taken a liking to some woman from the tribe? Or is this Jiang Xuan your illegitimate child brought from another state?" The thin old man asked seriously. "Think carefully before you answer. If it’s true, I can make some exceptions for you."
Lei Hong’s face froze for a moment.
For that brief instant, he was dumbfounded!

"City Lord!" Lei Hong’s voice rose slightly. "My wife and I are as affectionate as ever, my lord, please don’t speak recklessly. If word of this reaches my wife... cough..."
"And Jiang Xuan!" Lei Hong continued, "His father was the previous number one warrior of Black Pond Mountain, Jiang Hanfeng, and his mother was the ninth miss of the Wei family from Flying Snow City, Wei Baiyun, the third daughter of the Wei family. When Wei Baiyun married into the tribe, it was a sensational event."
"Of course... this is a trivial matter that doesn’t need to concern the City Lord. I wouldn’t be surprised if you didn’t know, but if you wanted to verify it, it’s only a matter of a word. The City Lord’s status is of the utmost importance. Every action you take has great consequences, and if your words were to spread..."

"Enough, enough!" The thin old man interrupted.
"What are you so nervous about? I just mentioned it casually, there’s only the two of us here, no outsiders, what influence could it have? Why are you more old-fashioned than I am?"
If the "City Lord of Flying Snow" was the supreme "king" over a hundred thousand miles of land, then Lei Hong was the favored minister by the king's side. He was the one who dared to offer counsel!
Lei Hong kept quiet.

"I’m just curious," the thin old man continued. "With your salary, even the great families of Flying Snow City couldn’t buy you off. Inspectors aren’t short on money, and most of the resources for cultivation are provided by the court. Based on my experience overseeing Flying Snow City for over a thousand years... what makes an Inspector cross the line is often emotions."
"Either they’ve fallen for some woman..."
"Or for their children or disciples..."

"Without any reason, you’re helping a tribal youth and running to me, saying how strong he is, even wanting me to directly declare him the strongest Innate? It would have been easiest to just have him fight the current strongest Innate! But you didn’t arrange that, and you even want me to give him a special reward. Don’t tell me you’re not taking care of him?"
"I do have a certain personal connection with Jiang Xuan," Lei Hong quickly replied, "But I have never breached my duties as an Inspector."
"‘Love for talent,’ huh?" The thin old man snorted.

He had heard similar words for over a thousand years.
"My lord, once you meet Jiang Xuan, you will understand," Lei Hong could only say. "He’s far more impressive than you imagine, you can’t judge him by the standards of a tribal youth."
"I hope so!"

"In that case, I’ll send someone to bring him here. He’s been in secluded cultivation in the back mountains of Earth City for years, I’ll have the Black-armored Guard bring him..."
"No need, we’ll go ourselves. I’ll first see his cultivation." The thin old man cut in.
"Yes, my lord."

In the back mountains of Earth City, on the edge of the open area with blankets.
"This is what I made today with my own hands. It may not look great, and it doesn’t taste as good as the others make, but you’re not allowed to laugh, you have to eat it all!" Chen Yuanxuan pointed at the dark red meatballs among the ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) fine dishes.
She picked up one herself and handed it to Jiang Xuan’s mouth.

"Ah~" she gestured for Jiang Xuan to open his mouth.
Jiang Xuan complied, preparing himself to eat whatever it was, no matter how bad it tasted. But after chewing, he realized it wasn’t bad at all!
"It’s delicious!" Jiang Xuan said.

"Really? Don’t try to flatter me. I’ve tasted it, and it’s not as good as the others make it."
"It’s not worse, it’s just different. Your taste in food is different from the tribe’s." Jiang Xuan smiled. "For your first time making it, it’s a great success! You have a gift!"
"I’m glad you like it." Chen Yuanxuan smiled.

It had been over two months since their marriage. Chen Yuanxuan, with her previously cold aura, now carried a more gentle and alluring beauty, like a blooming flower nourished by rain. Her figure had also subtly changed—her waist remained slim, but in other areas, she had grown more full.
"Here, husband, ah~" Chen Yuanxuan added another piece for Jiang Xuan.
"Mmm… delicious. You eat too." Jiang Xuan took a piece of cake, one of Chen Yuanxuan’s recent favorites, and fed it to her, wiping away the crumbs from her mouth.

The newlywed couple’s affection was growing more intense with each passing day.
In the woods behind them, the thin old man and Lei Hong were watching the "young couple" eating on the animal skin mat.
"Is that his wife? Her cultivation is quite high!" The thin old man whispered, after observing them for a while.

"Uh… yes!" Lei Hong’s expression became strange. "They married two months ago in secret, and I even attended the wedding..."
The Lord of Flying Snow City had met Chen Yuanxuan before, but that was more than ten years ago, when she was just twelve and still a little girl.
He clearly didn’t recognize her right away.

The thin old man had initially wanted to observe Jiang Xuan’s cultivation, but since they happened to be eating, he didn’t mind. Watching his cultivation wasn’t as crucial as understanding his current strength.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two figures appeared about ten feet in front of the animal skin mat.

"Jiang Xuan." Lei Hong called out.
Jiang Xuan and Chen Yuanxuan both looked up and saw Lei Hong and a seemingly ordinary thin old man standing there. They immediately stood up and said, "We greet Lord Lei Hong."
"This is..." Lei Hong began to introduce.

The thin old man raised a hand, signaling him not to bother, and then walked up with his hands behind his back. He circled around, observing Jiang Xuan and Chen Yuanxuan, scrutinizing them.
Chen Yuanxuan furrowed her brows slightly.
This strange old man, why does he seem so familiar?

But she couldn’t quite place where she had seen him before.
"Senior, you are...?" Jiang Xuan couldn’t help but ask. Although this old man seemed unremarkable, he had come with Lei Hong, so Jiang Xuan respectfully addressed him as "Senior."
"Jiang Yaochang," the thin old man introduced himself.

Jiang Xuan... froze. He had never heard of him.
Chen Yuanxuan was also stunned for a moment, then her eyes widened as she suddenly grabbed Jiang Xuan’s sleeve and pulled him to the ground, kneeling with her head bowed, "I, Chen Yuanxuan, greet the City Lord!"
"Uh... Jiang Xuan of the Jiang Clan, greet the City Lord!" Jiang Xuan, pulled down by her, quickly responded.

The City Lord?!
The Lord of Flying Snow City was called Jiang Yaochang?
He was a god or demon?!

Jiang Xuan had imagined the appearance of gods and demons but never thought they would look like this!
The thin old man was also momentarily stunned.
"Chen Yuanxuan? You’re the one from the Chen family of Flying Snow City?" Jiang Yaochang asked.

"Yes, my lord! When I was twelve, I entered the Innate realm. You even visited the Chen family," Chen Yuanxuan answered. She had met the Lord of Flying Snow City before, but his imposing aura had made her too afraid to look up, and she only dared to glance at him when he was leaving.
"You two are... husband and wife?" Jiang Yaochang asked again.
"My lord, it’s a long story..." Lei Hong stepped forward to explain.

Jiang Yaochang glanced at him, then turned to the two of them, "Stand up, let’s proceed with the test."
As soon as Jiang Xuan stood up, he felt his body being controlled by an unknown force, unable to move. After a moment of dizziness, he found himself in the middle of the open space.
The thin old man stood opposite him with his hands behind his back.

"Give me your full strength." Jiang Yaochang said.
Jiang Xuan didn’t have time to say anything. Since the Lord of Flying Snow City had requested it, he had no choice but to comply!
The cold wind howled!

Jiang Xuan used all of his Innate energy, sacrificing his own power, to unleash this strike!
This time, the "Illusory Phantom Ghost Slash" was even more terrifying than when he used it on Lei Hong!