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nChen Yiming and Chen Yingying stopped at the entrance of the Jinghu district.

nThe entrance of the district was heavily guarded. More than ten security guards were patrolling the area, and each of them was carrying a weapon.

nOne of them was obviously the leader. From time to time, he would give out commands to the others. His figure was clearly bigger than the other security guards by a full size, and one could sense a fierce aura just by looking at him.

nIn addition to the security from the guards, the exterior wall of the residential district was also extraordinary. It was more than ten meters tall, and there were metal barbs on the top that could effectively defend the wall. This would prevent ordinary thieves from climbing over the wall and entering the district.

nThe two of them headed to the guardhouse to register as new residents.

n“Show me your identification cards,” the guard said.

nThe guard responsible for registering the visitors was a man in his thirties. He had well-defined muscles and a pair of sharp eyes.

nChen Yiming and Chen Yingying took out their identification cards from their pockets and handed them over. They had already been informed by Father Chen and Mother Chen that they needed to register before entering the residential district, so they had brought their identification cards with them when they left in the morning.

nThe guard took out the information he had prepared from under the table, and compared the photos on the identification cards with their actual appearance.

n“Sign on this book and you can enter,” the guard said after confirming that there were no abnormalities.

nChen Yiming and Chen Yingying entered the residential district and followed the address Mother Chen had given them. They quickly found their house at Building 6, Unit 1203.

n“Are you done settling your matters? Come in quickly.” Mother Chen heard a knock on the door and looked through the peephole to see her son and daughter outside. She then opened the burglar-proof door. “Everything has been arranged.” Chen Yiming took off his shoes and entered the house.

n“The living room here is so much prettier.” Chen Yingying wandered around the living room as soon as she entered the house.

nThe house’s layout was made up of three bedrooms and two living rooms. It had been undergoing renovation in the past two years, and the furniture was all new, so it looked quite trendy.

n“The landlord didn’t rent out the house yet after the renovations were completed. It’s basically brand new, of course it’s beautiful,” Mother Chen said with a smile. She turned around and held Chen Yingying’s hand. “Come with me, I’ll take you to your room.”

nChen Yingying followed Mother Chen to her room happily. Soon, Chen Yingying’s laughter could be heard.

n“Yiming, there’s a really large balcony next to the living room. Do you want to use it for your morning training?” Father Chen asked.

nThe balcony was designed to be especially large, and was nearly ten meters long and almost two and a half meters wide. There was a door leading to the second bedroom and living room. When Father Chen was looking at the house, the large balcony immediately caught his eye.

nChen Yiming walked across the living room to the balcony and estimated the suitability of the space for exercise.

n“Let Yingying use it. I’ll wake up early and go to the martial arts school for my morning training,” Chen Yiming replied.

nThe space in the balcony was sufficient for a beginner like Chen Yingying, but it was too small for him. He might end up breaking something if he was not careful.

n“Then let Yingying use it,” Father Chen said. Seeing that Chen Yiming had something on his mind, he said, “If you have something else to do, go ahead. Leave the matters here to your parents.”

n“Alright, then I’ll leave first,” Chen Yiming replied.

nThe afternoon was very short, and it had already taken him quite a while to settle his sister’s matters. Zhang Youde had also suddenly invited him to tea, saying that he had something interesting to share with him.

nChen Yiming felt that since they were trainees from the same batch, it would not be good for him to reject him all the time. He had planned to join him after he was done with the move.

n…

nAt Ming Yuan Teahouse, Zhang Youde had booked a private room and was deep in thought as he sipped his tea.

nThere were a lot of tea dregs in the trash bin by the table. Clearly, he had been waiting for a long time.

nChen Yiming entered the private room and sat down opposite Zhang Youde.

n“Why are you suddenly inviting me out, is something the matter?”

n‘”Don’t be anxious. Have some tea first before we talk,” Zhang Youde said calmly.

nHe poured out the old tea and brewed a new pot for Chen Yiming.

nEven though Chen Yiming had rejected his invitation to join the Mutual Aid Association, he hadn’t been too upset. They had had some misunderstanding before that, so it was normal for the other party to not trust him.

nChen Yiming finished his tea patiently and waited for Zhang Youde to speak.

n“I wonder if you know about the Li clan in the south of the city?” Zhang Youde asked directly.

nThe Li clan in the south of the city had a martial arts expert who had undergone seven transformations presiding over them. Their businesses covered all of East Lake City, and they were a martial arts clan that was one level lower than warriors.

n“I spend my time training at the martial arts school every day. I don’t know anything about the martial arts clans,” Chen Yiming admitted.

nThe only martial arts clan he had interacted with was the Wang clan of his Senior Brother Wang. Even so, he only knew a few superficial things about them. “News has just spread that the Li clan’s head died in the wilderness due to an accident. He was an expert who had undergone seven transformations,” Zhang Youde said slowly.

nAfter he spoke, he downed a cup of tea in one gulp. “What about it?” Chen Yiming asked.

nZhang Youde glanced at him and continued, “Rumor has it that the Li clan’s head relied on an incomplete martial arts technique to break through the hurdle of the sixth transformation. However, after him,none of the clan members were able to break through the hurdle. The highest they could achieve was five transformations.”

n“Are you saying that we should seize their sword technique?” Chen Yiming asked.

n“That’s not it. Our cultivation levels are not high enough for us to participate in the fight for the sword technique. That’s something we should consider after we reach the sixth transformation,” Zhang Youde explained.

n“What I mean is that I will work with you to split a portion of the Li clan’s businesses. In any case, the Li clan no longer has the clan head who has undergone seven transformations to lead them. They will give out their businesses to any takers,” Zhang Youde continued.

nThe businesses in East Lake City were divided between the various martial arts factions according to the strength of the experts within each faction. Once a clan fell in power, in order not to be wiped out, they would usually take the initiative to give up parts that were beyond their power.

n“I see. One of us has only undergone one transformation, while the other has undergone two transformations. Will they consider us?” Chen Yiming asked doubtfully.

n“It’s like this. I will represent the Zhang clan as one of their members. You are also a core disciple candidate in the Mantis Snake Sword School. Together, we can just barely be considered to have the power of three transformations.

nAs for the martial arts clans that are in decline, in order to protect themselves, they will definitely split their businesses into as many portions as possible and give them out,” Zhang Youde said in a low voice.

nThe other purpose of cutting off their businesses was to exchange the related benefits for an equivalent level of support to help re-establish the clan’s network of connections.

n“I understand,” Chen Yiming replied. Then, another question came to his mind. “What’s so good about an incomplete sword technique? Can’t the techniques taught by our school be cultivated to the level of the warrior realm?”

nThe head of the school had a cultivation level at the warrior realm, and his main cultivation technique was the Mantis Snake Sword Technique. Chen Yiming naturally thought that he could rely on this sword technique to reach the warrior realm.

n“You didn’t know? The techniques taught by the school do not include the part about breaking through to the warrior realm from the disciple realm. For the missing parts, you have to become a core disciple to have the chance to learn them from the head,” Zhang Youde explained.

n“So that’s how it is. No wonder people are fighting over the missing parts.” Chen Yiming nodded in understanding.

n“That’s true. Besides, even if you have a chance to become a core disciple, if you are not among the top few core disciples who have the potential to break through to the warrior realm, the head would not teach you the part about breaking through to the warrior realm,” Zhang Youde added.

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