Chapter 51: Chapter 49: Talent
Body Refining Perfection?
No!
Not just the ordinary perfection of Skin Toughening, even when she faced the poisoned water, it wasn’t so easy. After taking the Poison-Avoiding Pill she always carried, a red mark still lingered, whereas Chen Mu showed hardly any change, the effect was minimal.
This kind of skin membrane, which even the poisoned water could hardly corrode, was not something a common man could achieve even at the perfection of Skin Toughening. It required an inherently gifted individual to develop Copper-Steel Skin, the ultimate limit of the Skin Toughening Realm.
Although Xiao He followed Xu Hongyu out of the Inner City and had seen all kinds of uniquely gifted individuals, some with incredibly high comprehension, some naturally had Copper Skin, Chen Mu’s progress, who had developed his Skin Toughening to this extent in merely half a year, was a very rare presence in her view. What was key was that Chen Mu’s comprehension was not low either, as he had also mastered Blade Momentum!
“…”
Xiao He took a deep look at Chen Mu and, after snapping back to reality, did not immediately pursue the matter but suppressed the shock in her heart. She then turned to Qin Bei, “Head Constable Qin, there is a survivor here. Interrogate him. The rest should search around to see if there are any other exits. We don’t need to release those in the cells for the time being.”
Qin Bei was also somewhat surprised by Chen Mu’s bravery. Even he didn’t dare to charge through the poisoned water like Xiao He did, yet Chen Mu had dared to join her in attacking the formation of the poisoned water team. This elevated Qin Bei’s respect for him. Seeing Xiao He handling the spots on Chen Mu touched by the poisoned water, he took a deep breath, quickly stepped forward, grabbed the survivor from the poisoned water team, and with a fierce look in his eyes, pulled him aside for interrogation.
The rest of the officers, under orders, carefully explored the area.
It was then that Xiao He walked aside with Chen Mu and handed him a white pill, saying, “This is a Poison-Avoiding Pill. It disperses most poisons. Taking one should do you no harm.”
“Thank you.”
Chen Mu expressed his gratitude. Actually, from what he felt, the poisoned water was basically unable to penetrate his skin membrane, which completely blocked it outside, but taking a Poison-Avoiding Pill was still a good precaution.
A moment later.
The interrogation by Qin Bei yielded results. After all, as a Head Constable specialized in interrogation, he finally learned most of the details about the Black Crow Sect’s Main Altar.
The Main Altar was divided into multiple areas: besides the central Forbidden Land, there were prison areas, storage areas, and the usual living areas—four parts in total. They were currently in the prison area, responsible for incarcerating people brought in from outside and periodically drawing some of their blood to send to the Forbidden Land.
Beyond the entrance they came through, there were two other paths leading to the living area and the Forbidden Land, but both of those paths were currently blocked. Their mission was to trap and eliminate Chen Mu and his group.
Having learned the situation.
Neither Chen Mu nor Xiao He were panicked. Such a setup could trap them temporarily at most. Just like the path they had come through was blocked, but it would only take some time to clear it for them; being trapped to death was impossible.
Xiao He quickly had Qin Bei lead the officers to rapidly clear the route to the Forbidden Land.
At the same time.
Chen Mu received a report from the officers saying that on the inner side of this section of the prison, there was another area separated by thick iron plates, also containing some cells, but these held only women.
He immediately followed the officers to check it out and saw about a dozen women imprisoned in a cell constructed from iron sheets, all fairly young, with none more than twenty years old, and contrary to what might have been expected, their clothing was not disheveled.
At that time.
All the women, visibly excited, clustered together.
Initially captured thinking they were being trafficked to some brothel, they ended up in a more terrifying situation, locked in a sunless underground place. Although their bodies hadn’t been violated, someone came daily to draw their blood, leaving them in constant fear and near-despair. The arrival of the officers from the City Defense Division almost felt like a ray of dawn streaming into the depths of the earth.
Chen Mu glanced over them and his eyes stopped on one woman who looked somewhat familiar. He then asked, “Zhang Youying?”
“It… it’s me.”
Zhang Youying responded with a trembling voice amidst the crowd.
She didn’t recognize Chen Mu, as she only had a vague recollection of him from when they were very young and hadn’t seen him since. Especially in such circumstances, with Chen Mu, knife in hand and an imposing manner, the nearby officers all remained silent, not daring to speak any more.
Chen Mu looked her over and seeing that Zhang Youying’s mental state was still quite good, he nodded slightly and turned to the nearby officer, saying sternly, “Count the people, names, and guard them well!”
Now was not the time to release anyone, as being outside was a certain death trap. It would be safer to stay within these iron-like cells until they had completely defeated the Black Crow Sect, and then rescue everybody all at once.
Compared to others outside who were half dead or even had perished during the previous rat infestation, the condition of these women was much better, probably because they were being regularly fed and watered.
“Yes, Lord Chen.”
The nearby officers respectfully complied.
Chen Mu nodded, then turned and walked away.
Hidden among the crowd, Zhang Youying watched as the constables didn’t open the prison cells to release them, feeling increasingly uneasy. At that moment, upon hearing the constable’s response to Chen Mu, she suddenly felt a jolt and figured something out.
Was it him?
It was.
Otherwise, why would he specifically ask for her name?
Thinking back now, Chen Mu’s appearance did bear some resemblance to a faint memory from long ago.
“…”
Having deduced that the man was indeed Chen Mu, Zhang Youying finally felt a small relief. Since Chen Mu was here, there likely wouldn’t be any problems, and they should be rescued soon.
Only…
A tinge of resentment rose in her heart.
Chen Mu had asked for her name, surely recognizing her, yet he didn’t stop to talk more before leaving.
She then thought regretfully that had she agreed to Chen Hong’s previous suggestion to discuss marriage with Chen Mu, perhaps she wouldn’t be in this situation now, nor would she have been caught and lived in fear these past few days.
In a whirlwind of thoughts watching the back of Chen Mu as he walked away, Zhang Youying ultimately remained silent.
…
Arriving at the passage leading to the Forbidden Land.
There, Qin Bei was leading a group of constables in clearing the passage filled with a massive accumulation of rocks. With a few strikes from Qin Bei, large rocks were shattered, and then several constables began moving the smaller pieces out.
“Found the person?”
Xiao He turned to Chen Mu and asked.
The City Defense Division’s investigation into the Black Crow Sect began with the disappearance of a relative of Chen Mu. Following clues along the way led them to the Black Crow Sect. Xiao He, who usually handled all kinds of intelligence information for Xu Hongyu, naturally knew this.
Chen Mu nodded, “Yes, no major issues.”
“That’s good.”
Xiao He nodded slightly.
In reality, she knew much more, including who Zhang Youying was, and even that Chen Mu’s aunt Chen Hong had once tried to arrange a marriage between Zhang Youying and Chen Mu. However, she just shook her head faintly at this.
It was naturally expected that the marriage arrangement hadn’t been finalized at that time. Chen Mu’s now apparent abilities and talents were simply not something a common girl like Zhang Youying could match. Not only was his temperament steady and his perception exceptional, but his physical talents were also extraordinary, having developed Copper-Steel Skin in just half a year.
Although Chen Mu’s Copper-Steel Skin, developed later in life, was not as naturally gifted as those born with Copper Skin, the most precious aspect was that Chen Mu also possessed great insight. However, among those she remembered who were born with Copper Skin, most never mastered “Momentum”, and even among those who reached the Tendon Changing Level, many still lacked the skill of Momentum.
And those who managed to master Momentum at a young age rarely also possessed a body of Copper-Steel Skin.
Undoubtedly.
Even though Chen Mu started practicing the Body Tempering Method later than ideal, missing the best few years, having developed a Copper-Steel Skin in just half a year had already compensated for much, and, in addition, he also mastered Blade Momentum. Once he steps into the Tendon Changing Realm later on, he would be nearly invincible at the same level.
With such talents and abilities, even a match with a Yu Family daughter would be worthy.
Thinking of this.
Xiao He couldn’t help but sigh lightly, recalling Xu Hongyu’s father—an extraordinary talent, mastering two kinds of Sword Momentum by the age of nineteen, and entering the Tendon Changing Realm at twenty, stunning the Yu Family. Afterward, he married Xu Hongyu’s mother, a direct daughter of the Yu Family, and even named Xu Hongyu after his own family name.
However, even such a figure had gone missing in an incident eventually, leaving his whereabouts unknown to this day.
Otherwise, Xu Hongyu’s current status would have been much higher, and with such a person supporting, the Yu Family might not have faced such internal struggles and external troubles in recent years, struggling to advance.
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