The next morning, when Jiang Tian got up, he found that Zhao Xueqing had already made breakfast. He was immediately upset and pointed at Zhao Qianru. “Qianru, what are you doing? You lazybones—your sister’s hands shouldn’t even touch water!”
“How was I supposed to stop her? Sis got up at five in the morning—I was still asleep! How could I possibly stop her?”
Zhao Qianru was so frustrated she felt like she’d been hit with a totally undeserved disaster.
Seeing her sister’s aggrieved expression, Zhao Xueqing quickly stepped in. “Jiang Tian, don’t worry. I used your ointment on my hands, and they’re already healed!”
Jiang Tian’s Black Jade Renewal Ointment had astonishing restorative power. Ordinary injuries could heal overnight, and Qing’er had been using the special formula, no less.
“Still, that’s not okay. You should rest for a few more days…”
Jiang Tian sat down to eat, still frowning and grumbling. “Why did you get up so early anyway? It’s not like you have to go to work…”
“Honey, I booked a flight for eight this morning. I need to head back to Linzhou right away,” Xueqing said softly.
“So soon?”
Jiang Tian looked confused, then took Qing’er’s hand, unwilling to let go. “Qing’er, why not stay here for a few more days?”
Beside them, Ye Ziwei also chimed in urgently. “Yeah! Mom and Dad are coming to see you soon!”
“If love lasts long, does it have to be about being together every moment?”
Xueqing’s beautiful eyes shimmered as she looked at Jiang Tian and said gently, “Honey, I really do want to stay with you a few more days. But you’ve been so good to me—how could I let your hopes down? I need to focus on my cultivation, make full use of the Five Elements Spirit Gathering Array, and absorb all its energy. Then I’ll come back to be with you.”
She then turned to Ye Ziwei apologetically. “Sister Ziwei, please give my apologies to Mom and Dad for me. Tell them Qing’er has been unfilial. But I want to make the most of this array, and then I can spend quality time with them properly.”
“Alright then,” Ye Ziwei had nothing more to say and simply nodded.
While they were having breakfast, the doorbell rang.
Ye Ziwei checked through the intercom, asked a few questions, and then said in surprise, “Jiang Tian, Huo Qingtian, Zhao Yuankun, and Wei Feilong are here to see you. Do you want to see them or not?”
“What are they doing here?” Jiang Tian wiped his mouth, stood up, and said, “Let them in!”
A moment later, the three men entered the living room together. They first gave respectful fist-and-palm salutes. “We pay our respects to Grandmaster Jiang!”
Their expressions were reverent, and their eyes were full of admiration—they were clearly observing the etiquette of disciples toward their master.
“You’re too kind. In terms of martial arts, you three are actually my seniors. Please, have a seat,” Jiang Tian said politely.
Still, he was a little surprised inside.
The three men were dressed in tattered clothes, their faces covered in frostbite and sunspots, the soles of their shoes nearly worn through. They looked utterly travel-worn and exhausted—if he hadn’t met them before, he might have mistaken them for beggars.
After they were seated according to rank, Ye Ziwei served tea. Jiang Tian made small talk. “It’s been over half a year since we last met at Poyang Lake. I’ve missed you three greatly!”
“And we’ve never stopped thinking about your remarkable presence, Grandmaster Jiang!” Huo Qingtian laughed.
Wei Feilong glanced at Zhao Xueqing and said, “Grandmaster Jiang, is this your esteemed wife? She’s truly like a celestial being—a dragon among men and a phoenix among women!”
“Greetings to you three seniors!” Zhao Xueqing gave a graceful bow, her movements refined and elegant, like a young lady from a distinguished family of the Republic era.
Jiang Tian suddenly looked at Zhao Yuankun. “Brother Zhao, what happened to your leg? It seems you’ve been seriously injured?”
Zhao Yuankun had been a sturdy, robust man and a martial grandmaster to boot. But now he walked with a noticeable limp. When Jiang Tian swept his divine sense over him, he discovered the man was badly wounded.
However, in all of China, the number of people who could injure Zhao Yuankun could probably be counted on one hand.
Zhao Yuankun gave a wry chuckle. “It’s nothing major. Let’s get down to business first.”
“Heh, we three never visit without good reason. This time, we’ve come to see you, Grandmaster Jiang, with some excellent news to report!”
Huo Qingtian’s gaze sharpened, and he got straight to the point. “Grandmaster Jiang—we’ve found news of the Emperor’s Daughter Flower!”
As soon as he said this, the entire room fell silent. No one made a sound.
“Really?”
Jiang Tian could hardly believe it. His heart nearly leaped out of his chest, and his hands trembled with excitement.
Huo Qingtian pulled a photograph from his pocket and handed it to Jiang Tian. “Grandmaster Jiang—please take a look!”
“This is the Emperor’s Daughter Flower—and it’s five hundred years old, nearly ripe. Where is it?”
Jiang Tian was even more shocked.
In the photo, towering snow-capped peaks stood in the distance, the land frozen for thousands of miles, like jade dragons soaring through the sky, while heavy goose-feather snow drifted down.
But in the foreground, a crimson flower, half as tall as a person, bloomed defiantly in the cold—like a fiery phoenix dancing in midair.
The photo had clearly been taken at a bitterly cold, high-altitude location. The surrounding mountains were precipitous and stretched on endlessly, covered in white snow.
Even more astonishing was that, despite the freezing environment, the area around the flower was lush with grass, blooming with trees, and swarming with butterflies and bees. A babbling stream flowed past—it formed an oasis where spring seemed to reign year-round.
“This really is the Emperor’s Daughter Flower! Our efforts weren’t in vain!”
Wei Feilong and Zhao Yuankun slapped their thighs in relief and joy.
“Finally found it… now I can finally cultivate…”
Zhao Xueqing was overcome with emotion, weeping tears of joy. Large drops of tears welled up in her beautiful eyes, and her body went weak—she nearly lost her footing.
“To report to you, Grandmaster Jiang—this flower grows on the northern slope of Mount Everest!”
Huo Qingtian smiled. “To us in the martial arts community, your affairs, Grandmaster Jiang, are the most important matters! After we parted ways at Poyang Lake last year, the three of us exhausted every possible means to find this flower. Based on the information you provided—that the flower thrives in extreme cold but emits a scorching aura—we led our disciples into the plateaus, climbed snowy mountains, and visited famous peaks and rivers. Finally, we found it!”
China’s territory is vast, with thousands of mountains and tens of thousands of peaks stretching across the land. Finding one tiny Emperor’s Daughter Flower among all those snow-capped peaks was no easy task—it was like searching for a needle in a haystack.
Jiang Tian didn’t need Huo Qingtian to describe it in detail—he already knew just how monumental an effort this had been.
Huo Qingtian smiled bitterly. “When the three of us scaled Everest together and finally found the flower, we were about to pick it. But then a monk attacked us and fought us fiercely…”
“Alas, that old monk was incredibly powerful. I was no match for him—he landed a blow on me, and that’s how my leg ended up like this.”
Zhao Yuankun sighed, shook his head with a wry smile. “We knew we couldn’t win, so we had no choice but to retreat. We didn’t bring the flower back. I hope you’ll forgive us, Grandmaster Jiang.”
“If I were to laugh at you for that, Brother Zhao, would I even be human? I’m deeply in your debt for this favor!”
Jiang Tian stood up and gave a deep, respectful bow with his fists clasped.
“You’re too kind, Grandmaster Jiang!” The three quickly rose and returned the bow.
“Brother Zhao, let me take a look at your leg.”
At Jiang Tian’s gesture, Zhao Yuankun immediately rolled up his pant leg.
On his leg were strange patterns forming layers of stacked green lotuses.
The lotuses radiated an intense cold aura, causing the temperature around them to plummet. Mist swirled in the air, making it look eerie and sinister.
The muscles on his injured leg had atrophied severely, looking like skin and bones. Some parts had even rotted, giving off a foul stench.
“This is a form of mental attack—a symbol formed by concentrated spiritual power.”
Jiang Tian observed curiously. “This lotus-shaped talisman has sealed and drained the qi and blood in your body. It’s quite different from the true qi used in Chinese martial arts.”
A sharp glint flashed in his eyes, and he asked calmly, “Which monk did this to you? Who is he, exactly, that even all three of you together were no match for him?”
“Yeah, I’ve taken so many tumbles along the way—I can barely walk right anymore!” Zhao Yuankun said with a bitter laugh.
“That man should be the number one monk of India—the Green Lotus Master. Thirty years ago, he once came to Shaolin Temple in China to preach. I met him once back then.”
Huo Qingtian’s expression was grave.
“Over the past decade, he’s taken over the summit of Everest, claimed the Emperor’s Daughter Flower as his own, built a dojo there, and drinks the spiritual spring and absorbs the spiritual energy day and night—cultivating some sort of divine skill. He has countless followers in India and draws on their collective faith and spiritual power. He’s ranked fifth on the Southeast Asian Power Rankings—a peerless figure whose cultivation probably rivals the peak grandmasters of China’s transcendent realm. Far beyond the likes of us!”
“Oh, an Indian monk, eh? What right does he have to claim a heavenly treasure like the Emperor’s Daughter Flower…”
Jiang Tian smiled faintly, a flicker of killing intent in his eyes. He then asked, “The Southeast Asian Power Rankings—what’s that?”
“Oh, that’s a ranking of top experts drawn up by Wang Chongyan, the president of the Singapore Chinese Association. Anyone who makes it to the top is an absolute master.”
Huo Qingtian’s face grew solemn as he explained.
“Those ranked in the top thirty all have combat power comparable to China’s martial grandmasters!”
“I see…” Jiang Tian nodded slightly.
“Grandmaster Jiang, can the symbol on Brother Zhao’s leg be removed?” Wei Feilong asked anxiously, his heart full of worry.
“It’s no trouble for me!”
Jiang Tian smiled faintly, formed hand seals, and began channeling his divine powers, directing them toward Zhao Yuankun’s injured leg.
“Fire-type technique!”
“Gentle Flame Nourishing Talisman!”
As Jiang Tian formed the hand seals, streaks of red light—strange, glowing talismans—materialized in the air, brilliant and solid.
The crimson light particles seemed to carry the primordial aura of the beginning of time. They flickered like distant stars in the depths of the universe, eventually forming layer upon layer of complex, arcane runes.
These runes were densely connected and radiated warmth and pure life force—like a miniature world teeming with vitality, rotating endlessly, generation after generation.
“You’ll recover within fifteen minutes.”
With calm confidence, Jiang Tian pressed the talisman onto Zhao Yuankun’s injured leg.
Zhao Yuankun let out a low, comfortable groan.
It felt as if his injured leg were soaking in warm water—tingling and warm—while streams of heat seeped into the meridians and acupoints of his leg.
In truth, this was the restorative power formed by the demonic flame energy within Jiang Tian’s body, carefully harmonized to dispel all talismanic curses—especially those of the ice element. It worked like a divine blessing.
Under the incredulous stares of everyone present, the green lotus symbols on Zhao Yuankun’s leg crumbled and shattered piece by piece. His withered muscles swelled back to life, and his severed blood vessels visibly reconnected before their eyes.
The living room was bathed in rays of auspicious light, a radiant glow shimmering like heaven itself, with red mist swirling in the air.
In just five minutes, Zhao Yuankun’s leg was completely healed—and even stronger and more robust than before.
“Thank you, Grandmaster Jiang, for your healing grace!”
“Grandmaster Jiang’s magic is even more formidable than the Green Lotus Master’s!”
The three men were filled with gratitude and admiration. They bowed to Jiang Tian with the utmost respect they could muster.
“Don’t be so formal!”
After they all sat down again, Jiang Tian immediately rolled up his sleeves, looking eager and impatient. “I’m going to go get that Emperor’s Daughter Flower now. No letting that thieving old monk eat it first. Do you three want to come?”
