The three youngsters followed Grandpa Son deeper into the library. They eventually reached a long hallway with numerous archways on either side that led into other areas. However, each side entrance was covered with a thick chi barrier. Each barrier was the same, nearly translucent silver color.

These barriers had been created to keep out people who had not reached the Hunger Realm. Wu Jian had once asked Grandpa Son about what was behind these barriers, and there were apparently more refined martial techniques and cultivation methods that could be dangerous in the wrong hands.

“Are you interested in learning a martial art because of the upcoming Three Clan Tournament?” asked Grandpa Son.

“… Yes.” Hou Jingshu hesitated for a moment, but there was no point in not telling him. “I would like to take part, but I don’t know any martial arts yet. I need something that will give me an edge.”

“The tournament is only three months away. It normally takes years of dedicated training to master a martial art… but perhaps you, with your Perfect Physique, will be able to do what many cannot. At the very least, you should be able to get the basics down in such a short time,” Grandpa Son said.

While Hou Jingshu said nothing in response, she did gain a determined fire in her eyes.

They soon left the hall and entered a different area. It was not filled with bookshelves. Instead, there were only a few display cases that were locked and protected by seals. The seals, which took the shape of glowing symbols, offered a degree of protection. The only way to break them would be to overwhelm them with more chi than they were designed to defend against. Of course, this also meant only someone at the Hunger Realm could even attempt to break them, and Grandpa Son had said that only an Asura Realm cultivator had enough power to break the seals.

“This is the martial library,” Grandpa Son explained to Hou Jingshu, who had never been here before. “We keep all of our basic martial techniques and styles in here to prevent members of the clan from taking them without our knowledge. The style I think will suit you best is over here.”

He led them to a single glass display with several scrolls lining the inside. Grandpa Son made a number of hand seals. Wu Jian tried to memorize them, but the old man had surprisingly dexterous fingers and moved far too fast for him to see more than two hand seals. When he finished, the old man pressed his glowing palm into the glass, which caused the seals to shine brighter for a moment, then fade away.

“This is the martial art I believe would suit you best, given your desire to wield a weapon,” Grandpa Son said as he removed the scroll and handed it to Hou Jingshu. “You should also consider yourself fortunate. Normally, only the winner of the Annual Wu Clan Strength Competition would be allowed in here, but I have been told by the clan head to make an exception for you, given your status as royalty.”

“I am incredibly grateful. Thank you so much,” Hou Jingshu said. She didn’t take the scroll right away, but offered a traditional martial bow with the fist of her right hand pressed against the palm of her left.

“You are quite welcome,” Grandpa Son said with a smile.

Now that she had her martial art, the group decided to leave the library, get some refreshments, and do some light reading before dinner, when Wu Jian would let Father know he, Wu Meiying, and Hou Jingshu would be heading into Zahn City tomorrow.

***

It only took maybe fifteen minutes to reach Zahn City by carriage. Wu Jian, Wu Meiying, and Hou Jingshu had decided not to use a carriage, however, and instead ran all the way. Even though they were running, it still only took maybe forty-five minutes at Wu Jian’s estimation. By the time they reached the city, Hou Jingshu was gasping for breath, while Wu Jian and Wu Meiying had barely worked up a sweat.

“I thought… haaah haaah… I thought we were… not… exercising… today…” Hou Jingshu gasped between great lungfuls of breath.

“We’re not,” Wu Jian said.

Wu Meiying nodded. “That was just to keep us warmed up.”

“You… you call that… huff huff… you call that a warm up?”

“Yes.”

“That’s right.”

“You two… are crazy.”

Her words resulted in two grins, which made Hou Jingshu realize they were taking being called crazy as a compliment. She sighed and pushed some sweaty hair out of her face. It was a good thing she never wore makeup like most noble ladies in the imperial court, or it would have been running down her face in ugly streaks.

It was a busy day in Zahn City. As they entered from the south, the group was inundated with the everyday life of normal citizens going about their business. A young group of boys ran through the streets. Several women were gossiping by the side of the road. Two old men were sitting at a table, playing a game of xiangqi. The scent of fresh bread filled the air, and Wu Jian took a deep breath as he realized he was hungry.

“Let’s get a snack,” he suggested.

“Glutton,” Wu Meiying teased.

“You say that like you’re not hungry too.”

At that moment, a loud gurgling echoed around them, but it didn’t come from Wu Meiying. She and Wu Jian turned to Hou Jingshu, whose cheeks were lit up like bonfires at a festival.

“Y-you can’t blame me for being hungry after we just ran here,” she said, turning her head.

Wu Jian and Wu Meiying shared a grin that Hou Jingshu could not look at directly. It was too embarrassing.

They bought a basket of steamed buns with a variety of fillings. Wu Jian prefered savory buns filled with pork, but Wu Meiying had a preference for red bean paste, and Hou Jingshu liked the black sesame seed filling. He bit into the steamed bun and allowed the savory flavor of pork and spices to fill his mouth as the three of them walked with no immediate destination in mind.

“After we eat, I would like to hit the local medicine shop to see if they have anything good,” Wu Jian said.

“Then after we see what the medicine shop has, we can go to the library,” Wu Meiying added before looking at Hou Jingshu. “Is there anywhere in particular that you want to visit?”

“Not really.” Hou Jingshu shook her head. “I’m more interested in taking in the atmosphere than going somewhere specific.”

The group traveled to the local medicine shop, which was called Won Ju’s Medicine. A powerful herbal scent filled the air as they entered. It was overpowering and caused Hou Jingshu to cough and hold her nose. Wu Jian and Wu Meiying smiled upon seeing this, as they had done the same thing the first time they entered.

“Ah. If it isn’t young Master Wu Jian and Lady Wu Meiying. Welcome. Welcome,” said the man standing behind a counter. He was tall and reedy, with brown hair that hung around his face and sharp eyes. Most people would have mistaken him for a dishonest merchant with his looks. However, Wu Jian and Wu Meiying had been coming to his shop for several years now and he had never tried to cheat them.

“Won Ju, it’s good to see you. Do you have anything new for us?” asked Wu Jian as they walked up to the counter. Hou Jingshu was pressing the sleeves of her hanfu to her nose, but she was also looking at all the ingredients located in jars that lined the shelves with interest.

“Has something caught your eye?” asked Wu Meiying.

“Oh, no.” Hou Jingshu shook her head. “I was just wondering why these ingredients weren’t sealed in jade or a spatial box.”

Wu Meiying shrugged. “Probably because this isn’t the capital. Jade and spatial boxes might keep items fresh for centuries, but they are very expensive. I doubt even the Wu Clan would be able to afford more than a single jade jar.”

“Oh. Right. I guess I didn’t consider the cost,” Hou Jingshu murmured.

Won Ju shook his head and said to Wu Jian, “Nothing new today, unfortunately. Stock has been low and my supplier from Dahua City hasn’t been delivering in recent months.”

“That is unfortunate,” Wu Jian said. “In that case, can we just get the usual?”

“Of course.”

“Also, we need one extra set of pills.”

Won Ju glanced at Wu Meiying and Hou Jingshu, then cast Wu Jian a sly grin. “One set of pills for each flower? You’re pretty generous for one so young. It’s no wonder you have a woman on each arm.”

While Hou Jingshu looked away, embarrassed by the words, Wu Meiying merely grinned. Wu Jian ignored the man’s words—at least, on the surface.

“How much?”

“For three sets of recovery pills? Sixteen silver spirit coins.”

“That’s three more silver spirit coins than I expected.”

Won Ju shrugged. “Like I said, my supplier hasn’t been delivering lately. I’m already running low on stock.”

“Hmm. Okay.”

While sixteen silver spirit coins was steep, and it would demolish what was left of this week’s allowance, Wu Jian paid for it anyway. He received three boxes in return. The boxes were unadorned and looked plain, but they contained recovery pills made by an alchemist. Whoever made them had only been an apprentice, which was why they were so cheap, but recovery pills were supposedly not hard to make. Even a low-ranking apprentice could refine them.

“Thank you for your business. Be sure to come again,” Won Ju said as the trio left the store.

“Can pills this cheap really help us?” asked Hou Jingshu. As the imperial princess of the Shang Kingdom, she was used to taking high level pills. While Grandpa Son believed her unique body composition was due to this Perfect Physique she supposedly possessed, Wu Jian was convinced part of the reason she was so strong was because her father had bought her alchemy pills that increased her physical prowess without the need for her to put in any work.

“We have been taking pills like this for several years now, and you know how strong we are. What do you think?” asked Wu Jian.

“I… suppose you bring up a good point.”

Wu Meiying and Wu Jian were both stronger than Hou Jingshu. This was a fact that she couldn’t deny.

As they continued down the street, a loud shout rang out.

“How dare you sell me this crap! Who the hell do you think you are?! I’ll have you groveling on the ground and calling me father for this!”

The group turned as one and looked at a small street vendor whose stall had been knocked over, the man on his hands and knees, bowing to a young man who still had his leg extended from when he kicked the stall. It was Ming Shen. And he was not alone. Standing on either side of him were several other members of the Ming Family, though Wu Jian didn’t know their names.

There was also one other person with them. A beautiful girl with long auburn hair styled into looping braids around her head. She had a swan-like face of the purest white, an elegant neck and collar bone, and delicate fingers that held a battlefan in her hand, which she was using to hide her smiling lips.

The dress she wore was more complex than the hanfu worn by Wu Meiying and Hou Jingshu. This one was red, featured several layers, and had golden dragons traveling across the length as if they were ascending up her body. While the embroidery and design was certainly complicated, showing it cost a small fortune, Wu Jian thought it was also overly gaudy.

“That’s Ming Shen, and it looks like he’s not alone today. Juishi Meirin is with him,” Wu Meiying said with a scowl.

Wu Jian sighed. “Come on. Let’s go the other way. It would be better not to get involved with them.”

And yet before he had even spoken those words, Hou Jingshu was moving toward the group. He didn’t even realize she had left his side until a shout reached his ears.

“What do you people think you’re doing?! Cease acting like a couple of uncivilized barbarians at once!”

Blinking several times, Wu Jian realized that not only had Hou Jingshu left his side, but she was now confronting the group of Ming Family members and Juishi Meirin. He scowled a bit, but then looked at Wu Meiying. She smiled at him.

“Let’s go help her. I’m not too fond of letting that spoiled turd do whatever he wants in our city anyway,” she said.

“Yeah. Okay.”

Wu Jian had been trying to avoid trouble because he knew nothing good could come from it, but he also did not approve of what Ming Shen was doing. That said, he expected nothing less from a brat so spoiled he smelled of his mother’s rotten milk.

With a determined fire igniting inside of him, Wu Jian and Wu Meiying caught up to Hou Jingshu and stood on either side of her just as Ming Shen and Juishi Meirin turned in their direction. A confrontation was now inevitable.