Chapter Nine: A Weak Dog Mired in Mud Dares to Covet the Soaring Azure Phoenix

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Spring rain falls once again.
The east wind carries a fine drizzle over Tiger Hill beyond the borders of Suzhou Prefecture, stirring a chill mist that drifts into the city.
Within Suzhou Prefecture, the grass grows leisurely, houses rise in tiers—truly befitting the capital of southern Jiangsu, displaying the prosperity and scenic charm characteristic of the Jiangnan region.
Chen Shuijun walked side by side with General Li Bodu of the Xuantian Capital, crossing the Liuwu Bridge within the city, treading on the bluestone-paved street beneath green tiles and blue bricks.
The two remained silent for a long while, until finally the towering, nine-foot-tall purple-robed general, whose brows and eyes bore an imposing dignity, spoke.
“Eighteen years ago, had you not resigned in anger and come to Suzhou Circuit with… your son, you might have already entered the capital as an official. Chen Shuijun, I told you back then—you have genuine talent. That year at Yankong Academy, only you and Chu Muye caught my eye.”
General Li Bodu stepped over the hollow blue bricks without disturbing the water beneath them.
Chen Shuijun remained silent, simply continuing forward.
Unfazed by his silence, Li Bodu clasped his hands behind his back and said, “Honestly, you’re not old by any means—not yet forty. If you were an official, you could still climb far in your career… Rather than hiding away in a small alley to teach your little son, let me write you a letter of recommendation. You could take a post in Lianzhou, Taixi, Chenma… or even become a county magistrate in Jiutang. In a few years, you could enter the prefectural government…”
“Quite rare indeed,” Chen Shuijun suddenly interrupted, “The famously courageous and straightforward General Li Bodu of the Purple Guards, today not only speaks to me in a conciliatory tone but also tries to flatter me with official positions.”
Li Bodu stopped and turned his head to look at Chen Shuijun.
He saw that Chen Shuijun made no effort to shield himself from the new rain with his internal energy, allowing the raindrops to soak into his garment.
Yet, despite the rain, Chen Shuijun did not appear disheveled.
He stood amidst the rain, letting the wind and storm merge with him.
Li Bodu suddenly recalled their few encounters over the past decade and more, and especially that autumn night eighteen years ago, when Chen Shuijun came to the Li family doorstep bearing two baskets of wedding cakes to propose marriage.
Anger surged within him once more.
Without Chen Shuijun, how could the Li family have become the laughingstock among the capital’s noble houses?
Without Chen Shuijun, Yin Xi would not have secluded herself for eighteen years, nor would she have refused to speak to him, her elder brother, all her life.
These thoughts transformed his anger into a ferocious tiger, just like his namesake.
Bodu—the Fierce Tiger.
In the Xuantian Capital, he was known as the Li family’s Fierce Tiger. How could a fierce tiger tolerate the grievances of mere mortals?
“Chen Shuijun, after eighteen years, you should know well by now that compared to the noble and powerful families of Xuantian Capital, you are like a muddy marsh. A clattering ironware, even gilded in silver, remains but a cheap imitation… I thought that after a few years of poverty, you would see this clearly. Yet you’ve hidden away in an alley for over a decade, your nature unchanged—still overestimating yourself, still trying to pluck the bright moon from the sky with mortal hands.”
His voice turned grim, his brows furrowing slightly. The surrounding raindrops seemed intimidated by his presence, evaporating midair. No rain fell on half the street.
“Yin Xi is the moon in the sky, reflecting on the water. For your base bones to touch her is already your lifelong fortune. Now, the moon must rise beyond the clouds. You… must no longer obstruct her.”
Chen Shuijun turned his head and looked calmly at Li Bodu, as if he did not hear the threat in his voice, though his eyes held a probing gaze.
Li Bodu straightened his chest and said, “The head of the Si family, Si Yuanluo, personally came to propose. He and Yin Xi have been childhood playmates, sweethearts since youth. Had you not inserted yourself, they would not have had to wait until now.”
“Inserted myself…” Chen Shuijun’s tone remained calm, as if speaking of some trivial matter. “General, have you forgotten what I have done for the Li family, the merits I earned, and the promise made by the Minister? The Li family owes me much, but now, whether it is you here today or the Minister in the capital, I fear all have forgotten.”
Li Bodu glanced at him, his tone as usual: “As mother said, it’s your lowly birth, your shallow bloodline that is to blame. Even with some talent, it is nearly impossible for you alone to rise to rival the great houses like the Si family. You are an ordinary man, born worlds apart from the Li family.
This is irreparable… As for the merits you earned, the Li family would have repaid you had we not refrained from killing you.”
“Nearly impossible…” A cicada suddenly landed on Chen Shuijun’s shoulder, and a breeze soon carried it away. “Who in this world can say for certain?”
He no longer spoke of the Li family’s debts to him.

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“Did Yin Xi refuse?” Li Bodu pressed the point. “If Yin Xi had agreed, with the pride and status of General Li Bodu, she would not have come to a small courtyard on Qihuang Street.”
Li Bodu continued, “The head of the Si family holds the post of Minister of War and is a perfect match for the Li family. Second Young Master Si Yuanluo, General Si, has the cultivation to ascend to greatness. The emperor has always favored him. After his great victories at Iron Buddha Pass and Lihe River, he was granted the title of Killing Buddha Marquis, commanding the Jade Armor Army, at the height of power in court!
It is a blessing for Yin Xi to marry the Killing Buddha Marquis.”
Li Bodu’s tone was resolute, but Chen Shuijun frowned. “Si Yuanluo is already married, with a son and daughter. His lawful wife… is apparently not deceased. You want Yin Xi to be a concubine?”
Li Bodu’s expression remained unchanged. “Yin Xi’s reputation has long been destroyed by you. It is fortunate she can marry into the Si family at all. And General Si would naturally treat her well. It’s better than… hiding in the Li family, slandered all her life.”
Chen Shuijun’s face, usually calm as still water, finally showed anger. “Yin Xi and I were truly in love. The Li family’s aristocratic prejudice rejected me, leaving us both with regrets for life. And now, you want her to become a concubine?”
“So what?” Li Bodu snorted coldly. “Better to be a concubine to Si Yuanluo than to marry you and live as a county magistrate in barren lands, producing mediocre offspring like that child in your courtyard, toiling all your life!
Chen Shuijun, you and Yin Xi are fundamentally different. Your clinging is nothing but a desperate attempt to hitch your fortunes to the Li family’s power. But your humble birth, a weak dog in the mud, trying to touch the soaring phoenix—truly overestimating yourself!”
“One day, you will learn he is no mediocre child. His name is Chen Zhi’an, and he is Yin Xi’s son.” Chen Shuijun took a deep breath, speaking each word deliberately, his gaze like a blade piercing Li Bodu’s eyes.
Li Bodu was momentarily stunned. He sensed a sharpness from Chen Shuijun unlike his usual demeanor.
“Chen Shuijun, with your mere Puyu level cultivation, how could you possibly radiate such sharpness?” he thought. But his words grew sharper. “He is not Li family blood, only an accidental child born from our oversight. He is your son, destined to spend a mediocre life with you on Qihuang Street.”
“I can also give him a future, ensure his life is secure—if only you write a letter for Yin Xi.”
“Chen Shuijun… don’t be selfish. Think of it as doing this for Yin Xi, and for your mediocre son’s sake.”
“I will find Zhi’an’s path myself.” Chen Shuijun cut him off. “General of the Purple Guards, I am preparing to travel far. When I return, I will find you and write carefully about the word ‘bastard.’”
Li Bodu suddenly laughed aloud. “Chen Shuijun, you hold a grudge and intend to settle accounts with me later?”
“If I hadn’t promised Yin Xi, I’d wish to crush your skull today.”
Chen Shuijun lightly brushed his sleeve; another cicada landed on his shoulder. He looked coldly at Li Bodu. “Why don’t you try?”
The spring breeze blew again.
The river wind cut to the bone.

——

Chen Zhi’an sat at the desk, gazing at the two martial classics laid out before him.
“Shen Haohai is the granddaughter of the Iron Arm General. These two secret manuals he gave me must surely have some significance.”
Chen Zhi’an took a deep breath.
As he inhaled, he vaguely felt a current within his belly subtly flow and then disperse throughout his body, vanishing without a trace.
He knew this was what was called “blood qi.”
He had drunk ginger tea brewed from Red Central Ginger. In his naïveté, he had produced blood qi but did not know how to wield it.
“The Great Snow Mountain Ginseng Qi Manual… judging by the name, it must be a cultivation method to control blood qi.”
Chen Zhi’an slowly opened the manual. On the first page was a line of writing:
“Iron Buddha Pass is snowbound year-round. I listen to the snow, observe the snow, and comprehend the way to nurture qi—Accumulating yin becomes great snow, falling wildly; blood qi resonates on cold nights, cloaking the body to nurture the Yellow Bell!”
He lowered his head and carefully studied the Great Snow Mountain Ginseng Qi Manual. Unconsciously, two hours passed; evening had come. The sun had set, and the last rays of dusk illuminated the wall, leaving only a faint light.
Chen Shuijun had long since returned. He prepared dinner, summoned Chen Zhi’an to eat, then went out again, unknown to where, only saying he was going to meet an old friend.

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Chen Zhi’an hastily ate a few mouthfuls, then returned to his room to study the Great Snow Mountain Ginseng Qi Manual until midnight.
Though not entirely neglecting sleep and meals, he was exceptionally focused.
Beside the manual was a cup of ginger tea. Chen Zhi’an sipped the tea brewed from Red Central Ginger as he read.
Late into the night, Chen Zhi’an finally closed the manual, stood, and stretched.
“Observing snow to nurture qi, transforming and nourishing qi, attending to both true essence and spiritual reserves—truly a fine cultivation method.”
A gleam sparkled in his eyes. This manual detailed the path of ginseng qi. Remarkably, it included many annotations, apparently to enlighten practitioners. It was not obscure or difficult; many technical terms were thoroughly explained.
“This Miss Shen is thoughtful. Had she given me other manuals without notes, with my background I might not have understood a word.”
He thought so as he pulled from under his bed a silver note he had obtained from Zhou Xiujing.
“No wonder the cultivation path cannot spread widely among common folk. Besides the deliberate suppression by the carnivorous lords, ordinary people’s economic foundation cannot support systematic cultivation.”
Chen Zhi’an looked at the silver note worth two hundred taels of gold, feeling somewhat relieved.
“The Great Snow Mountain Ginseng Qi Manual records a detailed recipe for a medicinal decoction named Yellow Bell Qi Circulating Soup. Though not mandatory, daily consumption can greatly accelerate the transformation and nurturing of qi, speeding blood qi accumulation!”
His thoughts then turned to the other boxing manual, Tiger Embrace Fist Revised.
“I wonder if Tiger Embrace Fist also requires accompanying herbal medicine?”
He flipped through the Tiger Embrace Fist manual and indeed found a set of prescriptions.
“Blood Mansion Resolving Stasis Powder…”
“When practicing Tiger Embrace Fist, beginners suffer intense muscle pain, fascia twisting, and bone dislocation with blood stasis accumulation. The revised form reduces muscle, fascia, and bone damage significantly, but one must still take Blood Mansion Powder to alleviate symptoms, supplemented by Mangxiao Qi Circulating Powder to disperse knots, to advance rapidly.”
“Just these two medicinal formulas alone must be costly. Taking them daily, even a modestly wealthy family might be financially strained… this two hundred taels of gold is truly timely aid.”
Chen Zhi’an finished his ginger tea in one gulp, feeling the blood qi flowing within him more distinctly. Only then did he sit cross-legged on his bed, hands resting on his knees, eyes closed, following the manual’s method to sense the blood qi inside his body.
In an instant, Chen Zhi’an seemed to fall into a void, where a streak of blood-red coalesced and drifted about.
“Hm? I can already sense the blood qi within? The manual says one must capture the breath with both spirit and flesh deeply settled to perceive blood qi. For beginners, this usually takes one to three months…”
“But I sensed it in an instant. Could this be the merit of the Red Central Ginger?”
Chen Zhi’an smiled proudly in his heart.
“Or am I a natural cultivation prodigy?”
As he indulged in this thought, the blood-red streak in the void slowly dispersed, filling the entire chaotic space.
Chen Zhi’an clearly felt his limbs, bones, and internal organs growing hot, his blood flow accelerating, producing a richer blood hue.
“Circulating blood to nurture qi… this is the nurturing qi stage!”
Startled, Chen Zhi’an recalled the manual’s description, increasingly convinced of his exceptional cultivation talent.
At that moment, the blood color in the void suddenly contracted, his mind refocused, and a clear image appeared in his mind:
The Celestial Jade Capital Map!