Edited by Aelryinth

"Jiang Xia? Isn't he Jiang Feng's father?" Mo Fan asked curiously.

Wasn't Jiang Feng Little Flame Belle's mother? Yan Shi was Jiang Feng's mother, Chen Yi's grandmother!

When Chen Yi's grandmother was fighting the demon tree on Mount Kunyu, her strength was extremely close to that of a Forbidden Mage, and had almost toppled Mo Fan's understanding of how strong a Mage could be. He still remembered the shock he felt when he saw her destructive spells falling down from the sky like meteors!

However, the thing that touched Mo Fan the most was not her magic that was close to the level of a Forbidden Mage, but the remorse she had shown at the very end, the final words she had uttered with all her might while grabbing his hand.

Tang Zhong had no idea that Mo Fan had already met Lu Yi, who had changed her name to Yan Shi to conceal her identity.

Mo Fan described his encounter at Mount Kunyu to Tang Zhong. Tang Zhong was quite convinced that the Yan Shi whom Mo Fan mentioned was actually Lu Yi, the woman that had brought the Enforcement Union to its utmost brilliance.

"She betrayed the hopes of the people around her when choosing to pursue the path of a Forbidden Mage. It's true that becoming a Forbidden Mage was meaningless for her in that case. For a long time, I couldn't understand why she chose to give up in the end, but I finally know the reason now," Tang Zhong sighed.

Don't let the people around you down!

Those were the final words of a half-Forbidden Mage to Mo Fan!

Sometimes, people only had themselves to blame for being left all alone in the world...

'What about the Tree of Vows?" Mo Fan asked.

"It was Senior Lu Yi that brought the Tree of Vows back. It was to ensure that the members of the Enforcement Union would devote themselves to their duties. If Senior Lu Yi is no longer around… maybe you can talk to old Councilman Jiang Xia. They worked on many operations together, and the Tree of Vows was one of them," Tang Zhong said.

"Where is this Jiang Xia?" Mo Fan asked.

"Here in Hangzhou! He rarely involves himself in worldly affairs. He's preparing for his retirement, but I wouldn't recommend you talk to him," Tang Zhong said.

"Why is that?"

"Jiang Xia's second wife is from the Lu Clan. He was the one pulling the strings behind the Beiyu Enforcement Union. I doubt he will go easy on you, considering what you did at Beiyu Mountain," Tang Zhong said.

"I will never apologize for what happened at Beiyu Mountain," Mo Fan said seriously.

"It sounds like trouble," Mo Fan said.

"It's your call, there's nothing I can do to help you," Tang Zhong shook his sleeves clean. He had no intention to put aside his pride and ask the old Councilman for help on behalf of Mo Fan!

---

Mo Fan asked Chen Yi about her grandfather. She told him that she had only met Jiang Xia once in her life, during a clan meeting held by the Zhao Clan. Jiang Xia was only there to go through the motions.

Mo Fan actually knew more about Chen Yi's grandfather than she did!

Mo Fan's head was hurting even more. According to Tang Zhong's description, Jiang Xia was a stubborn old man with a foul temper. If he knew Mo Fan was thinking of visiting him, he was already giving the national team and Shao Zheng face if he did not welcome him with Mages lined up in formation. There was no way he would let Mo Fan in!

Ever since Mo Fan had left the Pyramid, he felt like he was ready to break through the barrier of the Advanced Level.

He just needed a strong supply of energy to help him break through the sturdy walls of the Star Galaxy. If he could find a Totem Beast and let Little Loach acquire its power, Little Loach could provide him with the energy for the breakthrough!

Mo Fan relied heavily on Little Loach to improve his cultivation. However, as his rank increased, only the power of the Totem Beasts could satisfy its appetite now!

There were ancient sources of energy in the Pyramid, but that energy was not suitable for him, doing Mu Bai a huge favor instead. Mo Fan had no choice but to keep searching for the Totem Beasts!

His Demon Element was still in deep slumber. Mo Fan did not feel confident with his cultivation stagnant at the Advanced Level. He now realized how important it was to reach the Super Level. Otherwise, he would have to admit that he was inferior to a scum like Zu Xiangtian!

Yan Shi was right, he should not let anyone down... including idiots that deserved a beating!

------

The Dongfang Clan was the closest to Mo Fan in Hangzhou. Mo Fan went to visit Dongfang Lie. He happened to be in Hangzhou at the time.

"Dongfang Lie, how close is your clan to Jiang Xia?" Mo Fan asked him.

"Jiang Xia? The old Councilman who retired?" Dongfang Lie repeated.

"Yeah, him," Mo Fan nodded.

"That old prick, he's been pissing us off lately. He's still governing from behind the curtain after he's retired. He will only be willing to let go of his power when he's finally lying inside a coffin!" Dongfang Lie was enraged.

"Uhh… what happened?" Mo Fan had to ask.

"It actually has something to do with your Fanxue Mountain, too. That Jiang Xia has been ignoring us ever since we began working closely with your Fanxue Mountain. Our clan is well-known for our blacksmiths and armorers. As long as magic Equipment has our logo on it, most of them will be sold out within a day!

"Recently, one of our masters invented a magic shield made of Steel Rock. It will earn us a great fortune as long as we have the material. We had already reached a deal with Fanxue Mountain. You will be selling the Equipment, while we will focus on making it," Dongfang Lie informed him.

Mu Ningxue nodded. She did know about this cooperation with the Dongfang Clan. Since Fanxue Mountain and the Dongfang Clan were tied to the same boat, she had agreed to proceed with the cooperation without having to take a close look at the details. However, she was preoccupied with the incident of the children's hearts before she had time to ask what the deal was about.

As for why she decided to look for armorers overseas to craft the magic Equipment for her men on the Quartz Reef Island, it was because the Dongfang Clan was running short on workers to process the raw materials, hence Mu Ningxue had no choice but to look for other options. The funny thing was, the people she planned to cooperate with in Athens turned out to be unreliable, and she only learned about Huo Tuo after returning to the country. She had basically wasted a lot of effort. In simpler words, they were still lacking in connections!

"What is the problem?" Mo Fan asked.

"The materials! There's only one Steel Rock mine. It's owned by the government, and Jiang Xia is in charge of it. Jiang Xia told us that we will have to pay a special tax for the Steel Rock. Seriously, I have never heard of a tax like that! Anyway, it greatly increases the cost to craft the magic Equipment. The Steel Rock Shield is appealing because of its price. It's only worth a shot if we target Basic and Intermediate Mages, but now, it's no longer profitable because of Jiang Xia!" Dongfang Lie spat.