The Nine Cauldrons
Book 9: Return of Qing Shan Chapter 9: Identity

As Teng Qingshan led a great number of guards and hired men out of Nanxing County, two seemingly ordinary young men arrived stealthily outside the gates of the luxurious mansion.

By the mansion’s entrance, there were two tall and sturdy guards.

“Eh?” One of the two guards, a full-bearded man, swept an indifferent glance at the two young men and said, “Why are you two here?”

“Brother, we are here for an important matter.” The two young man grinned ingratiatingly as they answered.

“Oh.” The full-bearded man flicked a surprised glance at the two young men. He knew the rules of the organization well, and currently, the ranks of the two fellas before him were clearly the lowest level of the organization, Grey Cloak. These two had no right to visit the person which the organization had assigned to be in charge of Nanxing County unless it was really a matter of great significance!

“Go in.”

The full-bearded waved his hand.

The two young men immediately smiled ingratiatingly as they went through the entrance. In actuality, they were cursing inwardly, “What a snob, looking down on people! Aren’t you just a doorkeeper?! Yes, you guard the entrance of the superior’s house. However, when we accomplish great merits and rise to the level of White Cloak, even you who is at the level of Green Cloak will have to treat us with respect!”

A white-haired elder was sitting beneath the pavilion of the luxurious mansion.

“Lord Wang.” The two young men immediately bowed reverently.

“What matter is so urgent that you two actually came to visit the Honorable Protector? Do you not know the rules?” The elder shot a glance of displeasure at the two as he said, “If it’s not a matter of urgency, you two little…”

“Lord, Lord.”

The eyes of the short-haired and seemingly smart young man lit up as he responded hastily, “Weren’t the higher-ups looking for a girl? We’ve found her.”

“What girl?” The elder frowned.

“The girl that they have been searching since three years ago. Presently, the mission hasn’t been revoked, right?” The other honest-looking fellow said in excitement.

“Whew!”

The elder suddenly stood up. He stared at the two young men with piercing eyes and asked nervously, “You’ve found her? Where is she?”

The lowest-leveled members of the organization naturally had no knowledge of the status of the girl which the organization had been searching for. However, the elder was a middle-ranking figure, so he knew it well.

“She’s in Nanxing County!” The honest-looking young men said hastily, “Both of us saw the girl with our own eyes. It’s definitely her.”

“Are you sure you didn’t see wrongly? She is truly in Nanxing County?” The elder was now unstable.

He knew clearly that…

When the superior princess left, it had created a commotion in the organization. The lady had been the best veteran beast tamer which the organization had entrusted the most hope on. Her status had been even higher than that of a Golden Dan Innate Expert. However, this veteran beast tamer had suddenly disappeared. Thus, how could the organization not search the entire world for her?

“Yes, she’s in Nanxing County. We can swear she is,” the two young men answered hastily.

“Alright!”

The elder took a deep breath, endeavoring to calm himself. His eyes flicked a glance at the two young men. “This matter hasn’t been reported, so I will not report it to the Honorable Protector. Follow me, you two. We must investigate this thoroughly. If this is true, you two will definitely rise two or even three levels higher.”

The two young men exchanged glances. Their eyes were alight with excitement.

“Let’s go.”

The elder immediately led the two young men away. Simultaneously, he dispatched some men and launched an investigation on the Li Residence of Nanxing County. The guards and maids of the Li Residence had been hired directly by Teng Qingshan and the others, so they were not that loyal. With powerful and secret connections, the organization easily found the information they needed.

……

Half a day later, in the luxurious mansion:

“Older Brother Wang, are you sure your investigation result is accurate?” The seemingly elegant middle-aged man asked with wide eyes.

“Yes, it’s her highness, the Goddess!”

The elder quickly responded excitedly, “A thorough investigation was conducted. It’s definitely accurate. Her Highness, the Goddess, is named ‘Li Jun,’ while the mansion is named ‘Li Residence.’ Secondly, the Madame of this Li Residence looked the same as her highness, the Goddess. Aside from this, we have discovered through the guards and maids of this Li Residence that a huge eagle dwells in the Li Residence. Although the huge eagle rarely soared in the sky, the guards and maid could still see the massive eagle in the inner court through the doorways and from rooftops.”

“Her highness, the Goddess, knows how to tame beasts, Honorable Protector.” The elder stared at the middle-aged man and said, “It’s highly possible that the Madame of the Li Residence is her highness, the Goddess!”

“During these past three years, our leader has been searching for her highness, the Goddess. I didn’t expect that we would be the ones to find her.” An excited grin showed on the middle-aged man’s face. He patted the elder’s shoulder and said, “Older Brother Wang, if we accomplish this mission, they will probably transfer me away from this Nanxing County. By that time, you may be the next protector.”

The elder chuckled.

“This is all thanks to you, Honorable Protector. By the way, Honorable Protector,” the elder said with a frow, “According to our investigation, her highness, the Goddess, is the madame of this Li Residence. This Li Residence also has a young master… The two are husband and wife. This news…”

“Her highness, the Goddess, has gotten married. This is indeed a matter of great significance,” the middle-aged man said with a frown.

The art of beast taming was extremely important.

In the entire Land of the Nine Prefectures, some sects, like the Qing Hu island and the powerful Ying Family, did not know the art of beast taming. This art of beast taming could not be taught to outsiders… According to their principles, Li Jun should not be married to an outsider. Instead, she has chosen to marry a member of the organization.

“Based on the temperament of the Goddess and the information that we have gotten…” While pondering, the middle-aged man said, “The husband of the Goddess should be that powerful expert called, ‘Arada the Demon.’ He is one of the three Foreign Dignitaries, Lord Huhe.”

“Lord Huhe?” The elder froze.

Teng Qingshan had displayed his strength on the God of Heaven Mountain with using the identity of Huhe. He had even defeated the number one Godly General, Borileimu. In the end, the God of Heaven Mountain had invited Huhe to become the third high ranking official of the Heavenly God Palace.

“The search for Lord Huhe is also a matter of significance,” the middle-aged man said as he shook his head. “However, according to the information you found and the description of Master Li given by the maids and guards, this Master Li looks slightly different from Lord Huhe…

That said, human skin masks do exist in this world.

“He might really be Lord Huhe!” The elder smiled and said, “If so, we will have accomplished another meritorious deed.”

“Yes. We must report this news to our leader quickly.”

Later that night, a carrier pigeon was sent flying away from Nanxing County and toward Qingzhou.

While the carrier pigeon was flying toward Qingzhou, Teng Qingshan and the others were heading toward Jiangning County. The journey took three-to-four days. On the afternoon of the fourth day, the group arrived at Jiangning County. However, Teng Qingshan remained leisure and carefree on the way. Throughout the entire journey, he sat in the carriage and cultivated silently and calmly.

His heart was congenial with the vast earth, and he could feel its aura.

His 《Earth Element Fist》 had reached the eighth move. Now, he just needed to create the ninth move, the last move.

……

Inside a dark storehouse of the Gui Yuan Sect in Jiangning County:

“Clang!”

As a loud clang rang out, the third gigantic wooden box was placed on the ground.

“Sizzle~~” The rosin on the torch crackled. A total of six torches lit up the entire storehouse.

Dressed in a loose white cloak, Zhuge Yuanhong ordered, “All of you, leave.”

“Yes, Sovereign.”

The eight disciples of the Gui Yuan Sect, who had carried in the boxes, went out of the storehouse at once. As Elder Wu waved his hand, the doors of the storehouse closed automatically.

Suddenly, Teng Qingshan, Elder Wu, and Zhuge Yuanhong were the only ones left in the storehouse.

“Qingshan, is this the Fiery Gilt Steel you were talking about?” Zhuge Yuanhong stepped before a huge wooden box and patted the lid gently.

Immediately, the nails on the box flew out, and the lid flew to the ground at the side. The big box was opened easily.

“This box is huge. The amount of Fiery Gilt Steel Ores is extremely great as well. Yet, the eight elite disciples could still carry this box in here with ease. The Fiery Gilt Steel Ore must be very light.” Elder Wu walked over and grabbed a blood red Fiery Gilt Steel Ore.

The Fiery Gilt Steel Ore was purely red, without a hint of other colors. It was extremely beautiful.

“It is very light.” Elder Wu weighed it and said, “It’s much lighter than the typical steel, so it’s apparent that battle armor made of this material will indeed be very light.”

“Teacher, Elder Wu.” Teng Qingshan stared at the Fiery Gilt Steel Ores and said while grinning, “Now, in the entire Land of the Nine Prefectures, the hardest ores should be the Ten Millennium Coldsteel, which can only be found in the bottom of the North Sea, and the Tungsten Bloodsteel.”

The Ten Millennium Coldsteel could be found in the Frost Jade Pool of Great Yan Mountain as well. However, the Ten Millennium Coldsteel in the Frost Jade Pool couldn’t be extracted.

“However, be it the Ten Millennium Coldsteel or the Tungsten Wood Steel, both are extremely rare and extremely heavy.” Teng Qingshan picked up a piece of Fiery Gilt Steel Ore and elaborated, “In terms of toughness, the Fiery Gilt Steel is only slightly inferior to the Ten Millennium Steel. However, it is much stronger than Darksteel. Even the strike of a Hollow Dan Innate Expert cannot pierce through this Fiery Gilt Steel Ore!”

Zhuge Yuanhong squeezed the piece of Fiery Gilt Steel Ore forcefully. Yet, the Fiery Gilt Steel in his hand showed no changes. He tried again with his utmost force.

“Crack~~”

It was only then that a crack appeared on the Fiery Gilt Steel Ore.

“Tsk, tsk. It is very tough. Using one hand, I had to squeeze it with all my strength to crack it.” Zhuge Yuanhong was elated as he spoke, “If it were pierced with a sword, only the sword strike of a True Dan Innate Expert would be able to pierce through it.”

“Teacher and Elder Wu, the most important thing now is… the refining method!”

Teng Qingshan elaborated solemnly, “In the Land of the Nine Prefectures, no one has ever refined the Fiery Gilt Steel Ores. Moreover, the forging of the Fiery Gilt Steel is not easy. It will require some time.”

Different ores required different methods to be forged into weapons. Some metals might be hard, but their melting point might not be higher than the softer ones.

“The Gui Yuan Sect has many proficient craftsmen and blacksmiths. We can definitely forge these Fiery Gilt Steel Ores into battle armor,” Zhuge Yuanhong said.

Although that’s what he was saying, he understood something after witnessing the characteristic of the Fiery Gilt Steel Ores.

A troop of cavalrymen equipped with Fiery Gilt Steel Armor would be even more terrifying than the Northeast King, Hong Tian! The sword strike of a Hollow Dan Innate Expert wouldn’t be able to pierce through the armor of the cavalrymen. Thus, if such cavalrymen amounted to over a thousand, who could stop them?

Amongst the treasures that Teng Qingshan had brought, the Fiery Gilt Steel Ores were undoubtedly the most significant!

……

On that night, the Gui Yuan Sect assigned six veteran craftsmen to analyze the Fiery Gilt Steel Ores and forge a suit of armor with the Fiery Gilt Steel Ores.

“This isn’t right. The Fiery Gilt Steel Ores just won’t melt!”

“The steel dissolving chemical isn’t correct.”

Teng Qingshan’s inauspicious remark was right. It was extremely difficult to forge using the Fiery Gilt Steel. The weapon craftsmen and blacksmiths tried many methods, but the melting point of the Fiery Gilt Steel was extremely high. Although Teng Qingshan remembered the method used in Duanmu Continent, many necessary materials could not be found in the Land of the Nine Prefectures.

Standing in a corner, Teng Qingshan frowned and whispered to Zhuge Yuanhong, “It seems like there is some trouble.”

Zhuge Yuanhong responded with a nod. His anxiousness could be seen through his knitted brows.

“It will be fine. When the Tungsten Bloodsteel and the Ten Millennium Coldsteel were first discovered, a great amount of time was spent on searching for the way to forge weapons with those two materials. If such rare treasures of the heavens and the earth could be forged into weapons, then I am certain that the method to forge this Fiery Gilt Steel Ores into weapon will be found within ten days,” said Zhuge Yuanhong.