Simultaneous travel: I am rampant in the domestic area

The next day, early in the morning.

The morning mist was dissipating in the Fan family garden, and the new greenery of early spring adorned the pavilions and towers, creating a vibrant scene.

Russell, who was an early riser, was wielding his white cane like a spear, with a faint aura surrounding him.

Last night, he successfully exchanged his Overbearing True Qi for Fan Xian's Overbearing True Qi using his Fierce Blood Battle Intent.

The Overbearing True Qi is a top-tier martial art that Ye Qingmei brought out from the temple. The original manual of this technique is divided into two volumes, but Fan Xian only has the first volume, which is the basic cultivation method that can expand the meridians by accumulating true qi.

In this world, all martial arts masters only care about the two words "substance" and "momentum". The word "substance" naturally refers to the abundance of true qi in the body, while "momentum" is a description that can only be understood intuitively, somewhat similar to a realm.

For Russell, after merging with the others, his own energy and spirit had already reached an unbelievable level. Although he was still quite a distance from being a Grandmaster, he had already surpassed the other ninth-rank masters by a great margin.

If he can further expand his meridians this time, he will be invincible below the level of a Grandmaster.

Just then, his "mind's eye" sensed that the two were walking towards the garden.

One of them was Fan Xian, and the one behind him, whose aura was calm yet contained sorrow and resentment, was probably Teng Zijing.

"Russell, how's your training going? Have you run into any problems?" Fan Xian approached and asked with concern.

The Overbearing True Qi martial art is quite strange. It's unclear whether it's a problem with the technique itself or if Wu Zhu taught it incorrectly.

Every so often, the internal energy within him would uncontrollably surge through his meridians, causing him to lose control of his limbs and become a vegetable for a period of time until the internal energy stagnating in his meridians dissipated and he could return to normal.

Russell slowly withdrew from his stance, the energy flowing around him quietly receding into his body, and calmly said, "For now, I haven't found any problems."

"Xing, be sure to tell me if there are any problems." After giving this instruction, Fan Xian said to Teng Zijing, "This is the expert I mentioned to you. His name is Russell. Russell, and he is Teng Zijing."

"Him? Really?"

Teng Zijing's gaze fell on the silk blindfold covering Russell and the ordinary white cane leaning to the side, his face full of suspicion.

He had been working in the procuratorate for a long time and had seen all kinds of experts. There were quite a few blind people who had made a name for themselves through martial arts, but when had he ever seen someone so young?

For a moment, he even suspected that Fan Xian had just found someone to trick him in order to stop him from taking revenge.

After thinking for a moment, almost without hesitation, he suddenly made a move, his right hand forming a claw, swiftly grabbing at Russell's Jianjing acupoint.

However, his hand had only extended halfway, not even touching Russell's clothes, when he felt a tightness in his wrist and an irresistible force came through. The next moment, his joints were cleverly locked, and he was pulled forward by a clever force, half of his body becoming numb and unable to move.

Russell remained standing, casually holding Teng Zijing's wrist with one hand, and asked, "What did you say? Really?"

Teng Zijing repeatedly said, "Really! Really!"

Russell then released his grip, and in the process, gently smoothed out the wrinkles on his sleeves, his movements natural.

Teng Zijing rubbed his wrist and quickly clasped his hands in a fist salute to Russell.

Russell nodded slightly in response, then turned to Fan Xian: "Did you need something?"

Fan Xian nodded: "I think there's something wrong with Teng Zijing's family. I plan to talk to Guo Baokun about it."

Russell continued, "What do you need me to do?"

Fan Xian chuckled and said, "When you were an assassin, did you learn how to mimic voices?"

Russell roughly guessed what Fan Xian meant, pressed his throat, adjusted his voice slightly, and when he spoke again, it was already Fan Xian's voice: "That's it?"

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Fan Xian's eyes lit up. This was it!

In Fan Xian's plan, tonight he would have a grand banquet, a spectacle that would be the talk of the entire capital.

When the time comes, let Russell take Teng Zijing to block Guo Baokun's door.

He had already found out that Guo Baokun was returning home after midnight, so he could simply intercept him on the road.

“Okay.” Russell agreed readily.

Seeing Russell agree so readily, Fan Xian became somewhat curious: "Aren't you going to ask me why I insisted on making it so complicated?"

"An assassin's first principle is not to pry into things." Russell turned his head slightly and looked at Fan Xian. Even though they were separated by black silk, Fan Xian could still feel his seriousness.

Well, in Russell's view, investing in Fan Xian was not a bad decision.

He's used to being lazy, so it's obviously not appropriate for him to be emperor. He's not that ambitious guy like Russell from Kyushu.

His greatest wish in this life is to find a place to lie down.

Now I have another thought: to climb to the pinnacle of martial arts.

Once he reaches the Grandmaster level, he will venture into the North Pole and search for the temple.

"Okay!" Fan Xian didn't think so; instead, he felt a sense of guilt.

Russell trusted him so much, yet he still let others investigate Russell—what a sin, what a sin…

……

End of Hai hour.

Guo Baokun has been in a bad mood these past few days. First, he was outshone by Fan Xian at the poetry gathering yesterday, and now he's been humiliated by his father. It's really making him feel terrible.

As for the Crown Prince, he still needs to think about what fun things to bring to the palace for him tomorrow.

Just as he was lamenting the hardships of life, Guo Baokun noticed that the sedan chair had stopped.

Caught off guard, and for some reason feeling dizzy, he bumped his forehead against the front of the sedan chair, causing a sharp pain. Through the curtain, he angrily cursed at the sedan chair bearers outside, "You bastards, how are you carrying this sedan chair?"

No one answered him. It was quiet outside the sedan chair. Guo Baokun climbed out of the sedan chair, which was about to topple over, and found the street quiet. It was Niulan Street, which he had to pass through before returning to his residence.

Surrounding the sedan chair were two men in black, their faces obscured by straw hats, while the sedan chair bearers and guards from the Guo family lay on the ground, their fates unknown.

Guo Baokun thought he had encountered robbers along the way and was scared half to death. He wondered when the security in the capital had become so bad.
Trembling, he demanded, "Who are you? What do you want?"

Niulan Street is usually quiet, especially after nightfall, when there are hardly any pedestrians. Guo Baokun was also somewhat desperate and did not expect that shouting loudly would attract someone to save him, so he spoke very softly.

Russell and Teng Zijing exchanged a glance; one took out a brick, and the other took out a burlap sack.

"This...isn't necessary! What grudge could there be?"

Guo Baokun was shocked and tried to crawl out using both hands and feet, but Teng Zijing grabbed him and put him in a sack, giving him a good beating.

Russell then used Fan Xian's voice to ask about Teng Zijing's wife and children.

The sack had a faint, pleasant fragrance that cleared Guo Baokun's drowsy mind. However, this only made his situation worse. He was subjected to a brutal beating, with punches and kicks delivered without mercy, until he screamed in pain.

He was actually quite aggrieved. Who was Teng Zijing anyway? Why should he risk being punished by his father and have his whole family killed? What good would that do him?

Teng Zijing found it strange that Guo Baokun's words were indeed true.

After knocking Guo Baokun unconscious, Russell suggested that they go back and ask Fan Xian about the situation, as there might be something wrong with the case files. Teng Zijing had no other choice but to agree.

"Hey! You thief in front! Stop right there!"

Just as the two were about to leave, they both stopped in their tracks.

At the end of Niulan Street, a woman in red stood excitedly, hands on her hips, looking at them with the eyes of a hungry wolf eyeing a sheep.

"This is?" Teng Zijing frowned. "Miss Ye from the Ye family."

Ye Ling'er was also very excited. She had just returned from Lin Wan'er's place and was worried about Wan'er's long-standing illness. However, she did not expect to encounter this classic scene from a storybook on her way back to the mansion: "masked villains attacking court officials".

Yes, she recognized it as the Guo family's sedan chair.

Right now, she had no thoughts in her mind. All she could think about was that this scene was a perfect opportunity for her to vent her frustrations and fulfill her dream of becoming a female knight-errant. This was just wonderful!
Guo Baokun deserved that beating!
Without saying a word, Ye Ling'er circulated her inner energy, and with a swift movement, she swooped down towards Luo Su and Teng Zijing like a nimble red sparrow.

"What should we do?" Teng Zijing asked.

"You go first, I'll stop her," Russell said calmly.

No matter how incompetent Ye Ling'er is, she is still the daughter of Ye Zhong, the garrison commander of Kyoto, the grand-disciple of Grandmaster Ye Liuyun, and a famous daughter of a military family in Kyoto with a profound family tradition. Teng Zijing is just a martial arts practitioner, and he is far inferior to her.

"Okay." Without any hesitation, knowing his own limitations and that staying would likely be a burden, Teng Zijing immediately used his movement technique and ran away, disappearing into the dark alleyway in a few leaps.

Seeing one of them escape, Ye Ling'er became even more anxious and shouted, "Don't even think about escaping!"

A pair of slender, jade-like hands transformed into countless palm shadows, enveloping Russell's vital points—the very starting stance of the Ye family's ultimate technique, the Great Coffin-Splitting Hand.

Russell didn't flinch, and just picked up his white cane and started trying out the so-called "coffin-splitting hand".

Since I'm just killing time anyway, it wouldn't hurt to spar with this young girl and stretch my muscles a bit.

"Who are you? Why are you attacking an official of the imperial court?!" Ye Ling'er demanded sharply as she attacked.

Now that Guo Baokun is unconscious and Fan Xian has finished his instructions, Russell naturally stopped pretending and said in his own voice, "I hit him because he deserved it, there's no need for so many questions."

"While you're absolutely right, take a look at my palm!"

Ye Ling'er first agreed, and then unleashed all her true energy, her cultivation at the seventh rank.

In terms of the seventh rank alone, Ye Ling'er is already considered a top-tier expert.

The Great Coffin Splitting Hand technique was a true inheritance from Ye Zhong. The palm wind howled, and the force was both fierce and domineering, yet also agile and varied. The moves were connected smoothly and seamlessly. If Teng Zijing were here, only thinking about escaping, he probably wouldn't be able to do anything to her for the time being.

Of course, this is under the premise that she is only thinking about escaping. If it were a life-or-death struggle, Ye Ling'er would definitely die.

This woman's martial arts style is orthodox and her foundation is solid, but in actual combat, she reveals a kind of naivety that has not been tempered.

Well, she has a strong desire to perform.

They are just like those young people who are fresh out of school and full of dreams of becoming knights-errant.

After finishing a set of moves, he would observe the opponent's reaction. While his ability to adapt to changing situations was smooth, he did not escape the fixed framework of his moves.

In other words, Russell was willing to play along with her.

After finishing one set of the Great Coffin Splitting Hand technique, Ye Ling'er took a breath and then prepared to start the second set.

Russell, however, no longer simply dodged; he picked up his cane and began a one-on-one teaching session.

One collapse, one provocation, one deflection.

Then he would hit her head, stomach, arms, and legs. Basically, as soon as Ye Ling'er showed any weakness, he would strike her hard with his staff.

Ye Ling'er became increasingly frightened and frustrated as the fight progressed.

The opponent didn't seem to use any powerful moves, and his speed didn't seem to be much faster than mine, but I just couldn't hit him and I ended up taking a lot of hits for no reason.

Now she's in a bind; she should have known better than to rush out so impulsively.

It's all that damned Guo Baokun's fault. Where did he get such a master?

"Tsk, Miss Ye chickened out already?" Russell chuckled.

"Me, a coward?" Ye Ling'er was clearly not done being beaten, and upon hearing this, she immediately perked up again.

Well, then he got beaten up enough, rubbing his arms and backing away. Seeing that Russell had no intention of pursuing him, he took off running, ignoring Guo Baokun on the ground.

Russell shrugged, ignored her, and turned back.

……

Ye Mansion, Study.

The candlelight was bright, and Ye Zhong, dressed in casual clothes, sat at his desk, holding a military treatise in his hand.

"boom!"

The study door was pushed open rather roughly, and Ye Ling'er rushed in, panting heavily.

Her hair was slightly disheveled, and her cheeks were flushed from the intense exercise she had just done.

Ye Zhong looked up and saw his daughter's impetuous appearance. He habitually frowned and said in a somewhat stern tone, "You're all married now, you should be more mature."

Normally, Ye Ling'er would have muttered a few words of rebuttal, but at this moment she didn't care at all. She walked quickly to the desk, her tone urgent yet filled with excitement and lingering fear: "Father, when I came back just now, I encountered a master on Niulan Street!"

"Hmm?" Ye Zhong put down the military book, raising his eyebrows slightly. He knew his daughter's skills; with her seventh-rank cultivation and the Ye family's authentic Great Coffin Splitting Hand, she wasn't too bad.

Then, Ye Ling'er recounted everything that had just happened.

These words finally made Ye Zhong take it seriously. He knew that although his daughter was impulsive, she never boasted about her martial arts skills. If she could be whipped around like a top, she must be at least at the ninth rank.

How did Guo Baokun offend a ninth-rank martial artist?

Guo Baokun was a follower of the Crown Prince. Although he had already clearly sided with His Majesty and kept his distance from the Crown Prince, this matter also concerned the safety of the capital, so he should investigate it thoroughly. He then inquired about Russell's characteristics.

Ye Ling'er thought for a long time but couldn't come up with any significant features, which made Ye Zhong somewhat disappointed.

Ye Ling'er herself was also a little annoyed, feeling that she hadn't been of any help.

Her gaze wandered unconsciously, trying to sift through fragments of memory. Suddenly, a detail flashed into her mind.

Under the moonlight, when the other person turned their head to avoid her palm strike, it seemed as if they were wearing a blindfold under their veil.

She added uncertainly, "Oh, right, Father. I think I saw a layer of black silk covering his eyes? Yes! Silk! He seemed to be blind..."

"Clap!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Zhong froze on the spot, a look of astonishment on his face. (End of Chapter)