"Brother Ren, you are not from a small family like you said?" Li Kun said. The four of them had settled down on the sofas in the hall.

Ming Ren opened his mouth to say but closed, not knowing how to say it. He looked at Mu Chen for help.

Li Kun noticed it and looked at Mu Chen. "Brother Chen, you know? When did you guys meet?"

Mu Chen chuckled. He had been looking forward to this moment. "You guys should be proud. You just beat up a member of royalty."

Hearing this Li Kun almost slipped off his seat. "Y-you…"

"R-royalty?" Xia Ping gawked.

"Gao Ren's real surname is Ming. And he is the crown prince to boot." Mu Chen said. He patted Li Kun on his shoulder and looked at him very seriously. "To beat up a crown prince… others wouldn't even dream of it. You guys have all my admiration. Too bad I can't use a recording stone, or I would've liked to engrave the scene for life."

"W-what?" Li Kun's face turned stiff and as if he had just eaten a fly. Beating up a crown prince, wasn't that treason? "B-brother Ren is magnanimous and broad-minded. He wouldn't mind such petty mistakes?" He looked at Ming Ren, somewhat uncertain. "Right?"

"Brother Kun, you suck at flattering," Ming Ren said, and they all laughed.

"So those guys were sent by you?" Li Kun asked. Those cultivators had come in swiftly and dealt with Tan Jun easily. Only nobody expected Tan Jun was so resolute, he would commit suicide.

"Yes, I was busy so I could only send my men," Ming Ren said.

"I see," Li Kun said. "But how did you know the location?"

"That..." Ming Ren hesitated a bit. "Lanlan told me."

Li Kun grimaced. "Brother Ren, we have been trying to contact you for ages and you didn't even reply. But a girl calls and you immediately respond."

Xia Ping also stared at Ming Ren. "Brother Ren, I thought we were brothers?"

"Cough!" Ming Ren's face was filled with black lines. "The situation...was different." Ye Lanlan had her way to contact him, more reliable than sound transmission tokens which had limited range and were easily blocked.

"Alright, stop pestering him," Mu Chen said. "Ming Ren has something to say, both of you should listen."

Li Kun and Xia Ping shut their mouths. Ming Ren told them about the cause and effect and by the time he finished, Li Kun's forehead was full of frowns while Xia Ping's head was floating in the air.

"It doesn't sound fun to be a crown prince," Xia Ping muttered.

Li Kun rubbed his head. "I feel like my head is about to explode. To think that the situation was so complicated," he sighed. "My troubles are not even worth mentioning."

"Brother Kun, what trouble are you talking about?" Ming Ren said. He was in a good mood now. Having shared his identity, he felt very relaxed not having to mince his words around, always afraid to let something slip.

"Su Rong's getting married," Li Kun said.

Ming Ren opened his mouth and closed it. "Brother Kun, I feel for you," he said. He felt it wasn't enough, so he prepared a few more words in consolation.

"With Qin Huang," Li Kun added.

"Damn! How could this be?" Ming Ren cursed. Even if Su Rong didn't end up with Li Kun, Qin Huang was the last person he would have thought of. What words of consolation? He no longer remembered them.

"Brother Ren, it's your fault," Li Kun said and looked at Ming Ren.

"My fault?" Ming Ren frowned.

"Weren't you going to warn Qin Huang to stay away from Mu Changshou?" Li Kun said. "Now we have to find a way to break the marriage contract. Otherwise, Su Rong would be pushed to our opposite side."

"Warn?" Ming Ren was confused for a while, then realization dawned upon him and he looked guilty. "I remember, I was going to warn him, but then the beast tide happened―it flew out of my mind. Brother Kun, I..."

Mu Chen, who had been patient, couldn't take it anymore. He stood up and walked over to Li Kun and smacked him hard on his head.

"Aaah!" Li Kun covered his head and scowled at Mu Chen. "Brother Chen, why are you hitting me?"

"Because you are asking for a beating," Mu Chen snorted. "What does Ming Ren warning Qin Huang have anything to do with this?" He looked at Li Kun with narrowed eyes. "Tell me, if it wasn't Qin Huang, would you have just accepted the result?"

Ming Ren realized what Mu Chen was hinting at and stared at Li Kun with intensity. Xia Ping was oblivious but also looked at Li Kun curiously.

"I…" Li Kun began, but he didn't have any words and held his head down in embarrassment. Although he hadn't opposed Mu Chen and Liu Fengying's plan, he wasn't enthusiastic about it. Li Kun raised his head and sighed. "I...don't want to cause trouble for everyone."

"Haha, isn't it just the Qin Family?" Ming Ren said. "With me here, you don't have to worry. It would be inappropriate for me to take direct actions, but with the Ming Dynasty name, they at least won't dare make things difficult for you."

"Even Ming Ren has your back," Mu Chen said. "What are you afraid of?"

"I… "

"Brother Kun," Xia Ping said. "Since when is helping you trouble?"

"Look, even Xia Ping understands. Besides, trouble's already at the door." Mu Chen said. "If you continue with such an attitude, you won't be able to win Su Rong's hand even if everyone helps."

"B-but..." Li Kun stuttered.

"When you duel, do you hesitate?" Mu Chen said. "A moment's hesitation divides success and failure—it can be the difference between life and death." He patted Li Kun's shoulder. "This is not even a life and death duel, yet you are fretting over it. This could be your last chance. Will you sit by and let it slip? Do you want to spend the rest of your life in regret?"

Li Kun trembled. The conflicted look in his eyes slowly disappeared and they were filled with resolve. "I will do it."

Ming Ren and Xia Ping clapped. Mu Chen also breathed a sigh of relief.

"Haha! Let's toast in hopes of Brother Kun's success in love and marriage." Ming Ren winked at Li Kun. He pulled out a bottle and a few glasses from his ring.

Everyone cheered. After they downed a few glasses, the atmosphere became harmonious.

"You guys haven't told us what's the deal with this place," Li Kun said.

"I asked Ming Ren to take care of the spiritual vein for us," Mu Chen said. He had discussed it with Ming Ren when they met in the palace. With Tan Jun's suicide, there weren't any leads. It was impossible to know if anyone else had found the Old Shi's abode. If the news of the spiritual vein was somehow leaked, they wouldn't be able to protect it.

"I have taken care of the details," Ming Ren said, as he took out a bunch of papers with the royal emblem on them. He handed them to Mu Chen. "Fortunately, Old Shi had all the paperwork or it would've taken longer. From now on this spiritual vein is officially yours, but you will have to give fifteen percent of the proceeds from the spiritual vein to the Ming Dynasty as tribute every year."

"Fifteen percent isn't much," Mu Chen said. By just paying fifteen percent to the Ming Dynasty, they could continue to use the spiritual vein without the fear of having it snatched by others. Of course, it was only because of their relationship with Ming Ren that they were able to enjoy such privilege. Or else, the Ming Dynasty would have been the first to snatch it away.

"I also had an array master lay down several arrays." Ming Ring tossed a hexagonal piece of metal to Mu Chen. "This is the master token, keep it safe."

Mu Chen took the token and flipped it. "What about Old Shi? Did you meet him?"

"I did." Ming Ren sighed and his expression turned despondent.

Mu Chen raised his brow. "You didn't find anything useful?"

Ming Ren shook his head. "It's too early to make conclusions." He smiled bitterly, "But what he told me made me realize just how rampant corruption has been."

Mu Chen sighed. Judging from Ming Ren's expression, the mastermind's influence was really widespread.

"Speaking of Old Shi," Li Kun said, "has he recovered?"

"Let's go see him," Xia Ping said.

Mu Chen and Ming Ren had nothing else to do so they agreed.

"Wait!" Ming Ren paused as he seemed to recall something. "Brother Kun, Brother Ping... After everything is said and done, I still feel a bit guilty for dragging you all into this mess." He took out two boxes from his ring and handed them to Li Kun and Xia Ping. "This is for you, guys."

Li Kun and Xia Ping opened the boxes and were stunned. Lying inside were dozens of precious talismans, pills, and other items.

"Brother Ren, this…" Li Kun's face turned a bit awkward. "You don't need to do this. We have already made sufficient preparations," he said.

"Yes, Brother Ren," Xia Ping said. "We don't hold a grudge against you for what happened."

"I know," Ming Ren said. "But the secret realm is dangerous. No amount of preparation will be enough…" Seeing Li Kun and Xia Ping were still reluctant, Ming Ren added, "How about this? Keep this stuff with you, if you don't end up using it—just return it later."

"Just take it," Mu Chen said. "There is no need to be so modest when it could save your life."

With even Mu Chen speaking up, Li Kun and Xia Ping no longer hesitated and took the boxes.

Li Kun and Xia Ping were first to leave. Mu Chen followed them, but before he could leave Ming Ren called him.

"Brother Chen, wait for a moment," Ming Ren said.

Mu Chen stopped and looked at Ming Ren in puzzlement.

Ming Ren took out another small wooden box and handed it over to Mu Chen. "Brother Chen, this is for you."

"For me?" Mu Chen shook his head and didn't take the box. "You know I can't use that stuff." At most, he would give it to Zhou Mei and Liu Fengying, but Su Rong had already helped them get what they needed, so it was redundant.

"Brother Chen," Ming Ren said, "It's not the same."

"Not the same?" Mu Chen raised his brow and looked at the wooden box in Ming Ren's hand. Unlike the ones he had given Li Kun and Xia Ping, this one looked old. Several talismans had been plastered over it. Mu Chen tried to probe it with his sword sense, but to his surprise found that he couldn't peek into the contents of the box. This was enough to pique his curiosity, so he asked. "What's in the box?"

"Something that will help you," Ming Ren smiled but didn't explain.

Perhaps it was his intuition, but Mu Chen thought he knew what was in the box. His heart began to speed up and his hand reached out on its own to grab the box. But before he touched it, he stopped. Mu Chen took a deep breath and shook his head. "I can't take it. It's too valuable."

"Brother Chen, I know what you are thinking," Ming Ren said. "Since you own a spiritual vein, you think you can buy what you need. But some things can't be weighed in spirit stones."

Mu Chen sighed. It wasn't as if he was unaware of such a basic principle. Rather, it was precisely because he was aware of it, that he was reluctant to accept Ming Ren's gift.

Seeing Mu Chen's expression, Ming Ren understood and said. "I know that Brother Chen knows this truth. But you don't know…"

Ming Ren's words left Mu Chen stunned. Taking advantage of Mu Chen's momentary relapse, Ming Ren left the room, leaving the box in his care.