Martial Arts Overlord - Chapter 36: Suspicion

This mummy was no other than Official Tian.

Official Tian stood straight up at the center of the rooftop. He was completely covered in white cloth and Qi as cold as ice oozed out from his body. His smile was incredibly sinister. “I didn’t expect you to actually save me!”

Ning Xiaochuan picked up a scroll as he continued reading. “It’s my principle to save others, no matter whether they’re good or bad. I’ll save anyone who wants me to save them. Naturally, there is a type of person I insist on not saving.”

“What kind of person?” Official Tian asked.

Ning Xiaochuan replied, “My enemies.”

“Hehe! Your medical skill is incredibly good and I like your attitude as well. I, Official Tian will always repay a favor and since you’ve saved my life, I’ll accept you as my student and recruit you into the Dark Emperor City!” Official Tian’s voice surged strongly with Qi, giving off a strong will one could never defy as he stared at Ning Xiaochuan.

Naturally, Official Tian had his own principles as well. Although he would repay anyone, there was one kind of person that was excluded – the person that would defy him.

He would not mind killing Ning Xiaochuan if the latter were to defy his order.

Naturally, Ning Xiaochuan did not wish to enter the Dark Emperor City, let alone become Official Tian’s disciple. He pondered for a while before he smiled. “Senior Official Tian, you still dare to return to the Dark Emperor City?”

Official Tian was slightly shocked. “Why not? Haha! Kid, do you know just how high my position is in the Dark Emperor City.”

“Official Tian, the leader of the Four Great Officials of the Dark Emperor City. You’re in charge of every matter in the Dark Emperor City’s Imperial City. This includes mobilization, assassination, wealth, arrangement, and even the secret trades amongst the Greater Nobles. All of these are managed by you. I’m afraid you know more secrets about the Dark Emperor City than the Phantom Mayor. You’re the most powerful figure after the Phantom Mayor. In terms of authority and combat power, you’re equivalent to the Grade One Empire Instructor, Taichu Wenhua.”

Ning Xiaochuan flipped the scroll to the page where there was the record of the Dark Emperor City and showed it to Official Tian.

……

Official Tian smiled satisfactorily. “Since you know my identity, you should know that there are many people who have tried to become my disciple.”

Ning Xiaochuan shook his head and responded. “That’s in the past, but now everyone knows that you’ve been killed by the Cloud Marquis, Yue Wuyang. If this news were to spread throughout the entire Imperial City, it’s only natural that the Phantom Mayor has caught wind of it.”

Official Tian’s face turned slightly pale.

Ning Xiaochuan continued, “Who on earth is the Cloud Marquis? Since he’s an incredibly reputable Marquis, it’s only natural that he won’t lie.”

“What are you trying to say?” Official Tian muttered coldly.

Ning Xiaochuan continued. “The Cloud Marquis has announced that you’ve been killed by him. If you were to return now to announce that you’re still alive and were saved by a youngster whose Qi is at Stage Eight, do you think the Phantom Mayor will believe you? Perhaps he’ll think that you’ve betrayed the Dark Emperor City and now serve the Cloud Marquis?”

Official Tian’s expression turned for the worse. He had been serving the Phantom Mayor for many years now and he knew his personality very well. The Phantom Mayor hated traitors so much that he would rather kill them than let them live.

Furthermore, Official Tian knew too many secrets related to the Dark Emperor City. If he were to return to the Dark Emperor City alive now, the Phantom Mayor would certainly be suspicious of him and might even kill him on the spot.

With the Phantom Mayor’s current Cultivation Level, it was nothing but a piece of cake to dispose of him.

Official Tian was a smart man. It was only natural that he would understand his current situation. The only way for him to survive right now was to not appear in public and run as far away as possible.

“Kid, I didn’t expect your chain of thoughts to be this detailed!” Official Tian was rather impressed with Ning Xiaochuan. He had lived for at least a hundred years and yet not thought as detailed as this youngster.

Ning Xiaochuan continued, “Senior, let’s talk about this after you’ve tended to your wounds in the manor! Recently, I’ve heard that the Guardians from the Southern Mountain Cluster have invaded the Southpearl Mountain. My guess is that the people from the court realized that you’re still alive and are trying to locate you. Naturally,if he had heard about it, the Phantom Mayor will think that you’ve teamed up with the court to set up this illusion. Death awaits you if you return to the Dark Emperor City now.”

Ning Xiaochuan continued flipping his scrolls as he stopped.

There were many scrolls that talked about the Dark Emperor City and the majority of them were records that must never be shown to the public. This was not something that could be finished reading in just a night. As Ning Xiaochuan had read through at least twenty scrolls, night arrived and his eyes were incredibly tired.

“Let’s continue tomorrow!”

Instead of resting, Ning Xiaochuan started cultivating his Combat Qi.

…

Imperial City, at Marquis Jiange’s Residence.

The Old Marquis was furious when he found out that Ning Xiaochuan had encountered an assassin. Hence, he had personally summoned Ning Qianwen and Ning Qianwu to scold them.

The two kneeled down obediently under his presence as sweat continuously dripped down from their foreheads. The Martial Supreme’s presence given off by the Old Marquis was so strong that they found it difficult to even breathe.

Their Cultivations were nothing worth noting in front of the Martial Supreme.

The Old Marquis stared at them coldly and said, “Which one of you did this? Step out and admit it!”

“This incident has nothing to do with Qianwen!” Ning Qianwen said.

“This incident has nothing to do with Qianwu!” Ning Qianwu said.

The Old Marquis scoffed. “Who else would dare to enter Begonia Manor to assassinate Xiaochuan? He only has half a year left to live. The two of you are his biological Fourth Uncle and First Uncle. Are you guys really not going to let him live his remaining life?”

Ning Qianwen and Ning Qianwu did not dare to refute the claim even though they believed that their enemies were the ones trying to assassinate Ning Xiaochuan.

The Old Marquis sighed in his heart. If this were an incident related to the empire, he would have acted immediately. He would kill all of his enemies no matter how many there were. However, the hardest thing to get rid of was household matters. Would he really be able to kill his own son?

“Since both of you refuse to admit it, I’ve got no choice but to force the two of you to hand over half of your authority!”

The Old Marquis held his own hands behind his back as he looked at the picture on the wall. “Qiancheng led an army of two million to invade the Tianji Dynasty, forcing Queen Tianjie to submit to the Yulan Empire and sign a surrender letter. The messenger sent the message to the Empire yesterday and Qiancheng is now leading the army back to the empire. They’ll arrive back at the Imperial City in three months. When the time comes, the two of you will have to hand over your authorities to Qiancheng!”

The Old Marquis had a total of four sons:

The Eldest Son, Ning Qianwen;

The Second Son, Ning Qiancheng;

The Third Son, Ning Qianyi;

The Fourth Son, Ning Qianwu;

…

The smartest, most talented, and most gifted out of the four was the Third Son, Ning Qianyi. He was also Ning Xiaochuan and Ning Xiner’s father.

Ning Qianyi’s contribution to war and politics were unrivaled in his generation. Even the reputable Cloud Marquis, Yue Wuyang, had lost all four wars against him.

The closest person to Ning Qianyi was the Second Brother, Ning Qiancheng.

Ning Qiancheng was a Martial Arts maniac. His talent in terms of Martial Arts was similar to Ning Qianyi. He’s incredibly straightforward and magnanimous. Furthermore, he would only feel relaxed if he sparred with Ning Qianyi almost every day.

The only thing he fell short in was that he was rather mentally unstable and would do things in an unconventional way.

He focused only on cultivating his Martial Arts and that was the only thing he would ever do.

When he was in the Imperial City, many Nobles and even the royal descendants had been beaten up by him, offending quite a number of people. He was labeled a huge tyrant within the Imperial City. His name was notorious and many Nobles had headaches because of him.

However, Ning Xiaochuan’s parents were found dead in Marquis Jiange’s Residence’s Ancestral Shrine ten years ago.

Ning Qiancheng was so angry that he left the Imperial City out of rage. He enlisted into the military and fought in the war, never stepping foot into the Imperial City for the past ten years.

Old Marquis still felt rather comforted when he received the news. Since Ning Qiancheng was able to lead an army of two million and successfully invaded a Grade Four Dynasty, this meant that not only was his Cultivation incredibly strong, his mental stability had improved drastically as well.

Ning Qianwen and Ning Qianwu were shocked when they heard the news. They were incredibly reluctant to hand over the insignias to him.

It seemed like the Old Marquis had decided to make Ning Qiancheng the successor of Marquis Jiange’s Residence.

“Boom!”

“I can’t believe Ning Qianwen. That idiot sent someone to assassinate Sicken Ning. We’re in deep sh*t now since half of our powers have been stripped away and is going to be given to Ning Qiancheng.” Ning Qianwu was furious when he returned as he kept breaking the stuff in his house.

An elder in his sixties stood by the door. He was dressed in a Taoist Robe with clouds and cranes sewn all over it. He caressed his mustache gently as he spoke,” Fourth Master, please calm down. I believe First Master wouldn’t do something that stupid. Even if First Master did send someone over to assassinate Sicken Ning, I’m sure the assassin would be a powerful man as well. He wouldn’t have given Sicken Ning any chance to live.”

This elder was Ning Qianwu’s adviser, Yu Zhicong.

Ning Qianwu calmed down as he spoke, “Zhicong, who do you think did this?”

Yu Zhicong said hesitantly. “Fourth Master, think about it. Don’t you find it coincidental that Old Marquis received the news that Second Master is returning to the Imperial City when Sicken Ning encountered an assassin?”

Ning Qianwu frowned as his expression became stern. “Are you saying that this is part of Ning Qiancheng’s plan to snatch away half of Ning Qianwen’s and my power without dirtying his hands? No, impossible. Ning Qiancheng only thinks of his brawls. He wouldn’t have acted so intelligently!”

Yu Zhicong said with a serious tone, “It’s been ten years and people change. Second Master was able to lead an army of two million and has successfully raided a Dynasty, forcing Queen Tianjie to submit to the Yulan Empire. This isn’t something a Martial Arts maniac can achieve.”

Ning Qianwu said, “However, Second Brother and Third Brother were always friendly towards each other. It’s impossible for him to send an assassin to kill Third Brother’s only son.”

Yu Zhicong replied, “This explains why the assassin was able to come and go without detection, and yet fail to assassinate Sicken Ning.”

Ning Qianwu took a deep breath as he was rather convinced. He then muttered coldly, “For him to be able to come up with such a strategy, Ning Qiancheng seems to have grown up. It seems like the largest obstacle right now is him. We need to prepare before he returns. Tell the men at Begonia Manor to return immediately! Ning Xiaochuan has no more value to us and we don’t need to spend so much time on a sick man who only has half a year left to live.”

Naturally, Ning Xiaochuan did not know that him trying to hide his secrets had caused the important characters in the Marquis’ Residence to start doubting each other.

The war to become the successor of the Marquis Jiange’s Residence had become even more chaotic!

…