Young hero, stay put and don't be reckless.

Chapter 107 Young Master Helian

Jiang Xun didn't answer him immediately. After thinking for a moment, he suddenly asked, "I heard that the sword guardian used to live in Shuofeng City for a while and was an old acquaintance of Helian Quan?"

"That's true." Ying Qi nodded slightly, a hint of admiration in his eyes. "Ten years ago, the great demon Yin Wuxie ravaged the Northern Border. Sword God Lu Qingfeng pursued him for thousands of miles and finally killed him after several months."

Afterwards, the Sword God stayed in Shuofeng City for a few days, residing in the City Lord's Mansion.

Jiang Xun listened with great excitement, never expecting that the Sword God had such a past.

Why has no one ever mentioned this before?

Even Chen Lei and Ye Qingying seemed to be unclear about it.

"How come I've never heard anyone mention this before?" Jiang Xun asked.

"Because this happened in the North, and the North deliberately kept it a secret, naturally not many people in the Central Plains know about it."

Why?

"Because of Yin Wuxie."

"And who is this person?"

"A bloodthirsty madman." Shadow Seven's voice lowered a few decibels. "Legend has it that in order to cultivate the Great Nirvana Heart Sutra to the ninth level, 'All Laws Return to Nothingness,' he caused more than three hundred people from an entire tribe to die silently in their sleep in one night. Their bodies did not decay, but their faces turned ashen white as stone."

Fearing it would cause panic, Da Han suppressed the matter. Therefore, not many people knew that the Sword God had slain this fiend.

Jiang Xun was stunned.

The Great Extinction Heart Sutra?

The image of Tuoba Feng suddenly flashed through his mind—could it be such a coincidence?

He shook his head, quickly dismissing the thought, and asked again, "I heard that the Sword God disappeared ten years ago..."

"That's right." Ying Qi understood what he meant. "After the Sword God left Shuofeng City, he went to the Sword Ruins."

"Sword Ruins?"

"That's where the Sword God passed away. Legend has it that he left behind all his life's knowledge there."

Jiang Xun now understood—the Sword God's legacy that Huang Hu mentioned must be hidden in that Sword Ruins.

He was silent for a moment, then suddenly raised his head, a sly glint in his eyes: "Shadow Seven, do me a favor."

…………

The next morning, Jiang Xun went out.

The mornings in Shuofeng City are even colder than those in Tiebei Pass.

The breath I exhaled condensed into a cloud of white mist in front of me, dissipating and then gathering again, gathering and then dissipating again.

There weren't many people on the street. A few vendors heading to the morning market were walking towards the East Market, their necks hunched, hands tucked into their sleeves, and hurrying along.

Jiang Xun followed behind, also hunching his shoulders and tucking his hands in, looking no different from the locals.

The house I rented yesterday is not far from the East Market; it's just two streets away.

Before I even got close, I could hear the commotion coming from over there—the neighing of livestock, the shouts of merchants, and the clanging of hammers from the blacksmith's shop, all mixed together, creating a warm and lively atmosphere that somewhat diluted the chill of the morning.

Compared to yesterday, the East Market is much busier today. A main street runs from east to west, with seven or eight alleys branching off on both sides, each filled with stalls.

There were vendors selling leather goods, medicinal herbs, ironware, cloth, tea, spices... a dazzling array of products that made one's head spin.

Several merchants from the Hu region squatted by the roadside, displaying colorful items in front of them, some resembling gems and others herbs, none of which Jiang Xun could name.

A complex smell filled the air—horse manure, roasted mutton, spices, and leather all mixed together. It wasn't exactly pleasant, and after a while, it could even be a bit intoxicating.

The city lord's mansion set up a management point in the East Market, in the middle of the main street. It was a low wooden platform with a flag on it bearing the two large characters "Helian".

Several guards in black stood below the platform, with curved swords at their waists, their eyes warily watching the people coming and going.

There was someone collecting taxes at each stall; it wasn't much, and it seemed to be a percentage of the value of the goods being sold.

The vendors paid their taxes without showing any dissatisfaction; some even smiled and greeted the guards who collected the taxes.

"The city lord is benevolent; the taxes are 30% lower than elsewhere, so everyone is happy to pay." A fur merchant nearby, seeing Jiang Xun watching, chimed in, "After paying the taxes, the city lord's mansion takes care of security. Doing business here is reassuring."

Jiang Xun nodded, thinking to himself that this Helian Quan was indeed a capable person.

"What about that one over there?" He gestured with his chin towards a spot not far away.

A young man was strolling through the market with several attendants.

He was in his early twenties, with a cold and hard face, and wore a black leather armor, but the material was noticeably better than that of the other guards.

He was followed by four guards dressed in the same uniform, marching in unison and exuding a menacing aura.

"That's the young city lord, Helian Jun. He's in charge of everything in the market." The merchant lowered his voice. "Don't let his youth fool you, he's ruthless. A while ago, a foreign merchant came to cause trouble, and he caught him on the spot and hung him up at the city gate for three days as a warning."

Jiang Xun glanced at Helian Jun again.

The way this man walked and the way he looked at people exuded arrogance—he wasn't the kind of spoiled brat who only knew how to show off; he was someone who had actually been in charge.

He continued walking forward, when suddenly a commotion broke out ahead.

"Get out of the way! Get out of the way!"

The crowd seemed to be split open, and they all scrambled to both sides.

Several men dressed in Northern attire rushed out of the crowd. The one in the lead was bald, wearing a dirty fur robe, with a full beard, and stood there like a bear.

The men behind him were also burly and strong, clearly not to be trifled with.

"Damn it, how dare they sell me counterfeit goods!" The bald man shouted in broken Mandarin, his voice so loud it could be heard halfway down the street.

Across from him was a porcelain merchant from the Central Plains, whose stall had been overturned.

The merchant squatted on the ground, his face flushed red, trembling all over: "I...I really sold good goods, it was you...it was you yourself..."

"Bullshit!" The bald man kicked over the stool next to him.

Several people behind him started making a fuss, cursing and swearing, and some of them had already stepped on the stall.

There were quite a few onlookers, but no one dared to intervene.

Jiang Xun frowned.

This bald man was clearly a herdsman from the Great Han, with wolf teeth hanging from his waist and wolf heads tattooed on his wrists—a tribal symbol from the grasslands.

"stop."

A voice came from behind the crowd, not loud, but clear.

The bald man's hand froze in mid-air as he looked back.

Helian Jun walked over with several guards, his face not looking too good.

"Who are you?" The bald man still had that menacing look.

"Helian Jun".

The bald man's expression changed instantly.

The son of the city lord of Shuofeng City, who in this area doesn't know him?

"Young Master Helian..." The bald man rubbed his hands sheepishly, his arrogance immediately diminishing. "I didn't mean to cause trouble, this old man is selling counterfeit goods..."

"He's selling counterfeit goods; you can report him to the City Lord's Mansion," Helian Jun interrupted him calmly. "Acting violently in the street—according to the rules of Shuofeng City, what is the punishment?"

Sweat rolled down the bald man's forehead.

A middle-aged man, around forty years old, walked out from behind Helian Jun. He had a pair of iron rulers hanging from his waist and a long scar on his face.

Jiang Xun recognized him—it was the same guard from the city lord's mansion he had seen at the city gate yesterday.

"Sun Xing, teach him some manners," Helian Jun said.

Sun Xing nodded and kicked the bald man in the back of the knee.

The bald man screamed and fell to his knees.

Sun Xing twisted his arm behind his back with a backhand motion, then pressed his knee against his lower back, all in one smooth motion.

"The rules of Shuofeng City—" Sun Xing's voice wasn't loud, but each word seemed to pierce the bald man's ears like nails, "Those who commit violence in the street will be fined ten taels of silver. Those who injure others will be fined an additional ten taels. Those who damage property will have to pay for it at the original price."

He increased the pressure on his hand, and the bald man winced in pain, begging for mercy, "I'll pay! I'll pay!"

Helian Jun looked at the merchant: "Are you selling counterfeit goods?"

The merchant shook his head, trembling, "No, it's not fake, it's top-quality porcelain. He thought it was too expensive and insisted on lowering the price, but I refused, so he..."

"Alright," Helian Jun interrupted him, turning to the bald man, "Pay him ten taels. Add another twenty taels as a fine. If he can't pay, hang him at the city gate for three days."

The bald man's face turned pale.

The companions behind him looked at each other, none of them daring to utter a sound.

Finally, someone pulled out a money pouch from their pocket, counted the money, and handed it to Sun Xing.

Sun Xing took the money bag, weighed it in his hand, tossed part of it to the old man, and put the rest into his pocket.

"roll."

The bald man scrambled away, and cheers erupted from the crowd.

"Young Master Helian is just!"

"With the city lord here, we can rest assured!"

"..."