On a blue stone in the valley, a red-faced man in a yellow robe, with half a leg charred and multiple injuries, lay dying.
"Not dead yet, are you? Tell me, what's your name!"
Yan Qingshan came to the man's side and spoke calmly. The dying man, like a thoroughly steamed shrimp, was red all over and looked like he was about to die.
The man spoke with difficulty, his injuries truly severe. "Uh... Mo, Mo, Mo... Ran..."
A sneer appeared on Yan Qingshan's lips. "Mo Ran, a Mo family member, at the peak of Dou Master cultivation. You must have some status in the Mo family. Very good, very good, it saves me some trouble. Your life is temporarily spared!"
Mo Ran's throat moved, making a muffled sound. Although he was almost unconscious, he vaguely felt that Yan Qingshan didn't have good intentions.
…
Yan City was a major stronghold in the eastern region of the Jia Ma Empire, a vital passage from the empire's interior to the eastern region, with a highly strategic location.
This city, known as the largest city in the eastern region of the Jia Ma Empire, was held by heavy imperial troops all year round.
In Yan City, the imperial military force was the strongest, but the ruler of Yan City was not them, but the Mo family, which monopolized 60% of Yan City's industries.
In any world, monopoly was the most profitable. 60% of the city's industrial profits belonged to the Mo family.
After deducting necessary taxes and money for smoothing relationships, the remaining profits allowed the entire Mo family to expand and develop, gradually becoming a unique force in the eastern region, and in recent years, it had become a bit too prominent.
Although it was prominent, the Mo family was smart and established a relationship with the Misty Cloud Sect. With the Misty Cloud Sect as its backing, even the royal family would not easily cause trouble for the Mo family, allowing the Mo family to expand further.
Today, the Mo family was the undisputed number one force in the eastern region, the local tyrant of Yan City.
If it weren't for the other three families in the eastern provinces checking its development, the Mo family would have expanded its influence to other major cities long ago.
At noon, the sun hung high in the sky. A huge city exuding a fierce aura, like an ancient beast lying on the ground. Eastern Yan City was the number one city in the eastern provinces and a strategic pass of the empire, heavily guarded all year round.
At the city gate of Yan City, dozens of fully armed soldiers stood on both sides of the city wall, their sharp eyes constantly scanning the passersby.
Although the empire's interior had been peaceful for a long time, Yan City, as a heavily guarded military pass, had imperial elite troops stationed here. Their demeanor and appearance were incomparable to small places like Wutan City and Rock Desert City.
A carriage slowly arrived at the east gate of Yan City. The driver was a young man in a green robe, looking no more than fifteen or sixteen years old. He looked quite clean and delicate, though his face was a bit dark. But this didn't detract from his temperament; instead, it added a bit of wildness.
"You can enter the city!"
The soldiers guarding the city gate didn't make things difficult. After checking the carriage and finding only a seriously injured person whose face couldn't be seen and two girls, one large and one small, they let the carriage pass.
Yan Qingshan, with a smile on his face, was about to drive the carriage into the city when he suddenly heard the sound of hooves behind him.
Several men and women on horseback came galloping, scattering dust and gravel along the way, making many people angry.
But when their angry eyes looked at the leading figure on horseback, their anger was immediately swallowed back.
Among the group of men and women, a young woman in tight red clothes was quite attractive. Her exquisite figure was fully displayed by the tight clothes, and her pretty face, with a hint of spoiled arrogance, also had a bit of lively spirit, looking quite likable.
Although she looked likable, the woman and her followers' behavior was truly unpleasant. Without looking at the guards and others at the city gate, they rode their horses straight into the city.
The guarding soldiers, helpless and unwilling, didn't dare to stop them, or even block their way.
They knew the behavior of these aristocratic second generations. If you were slow to dodge and got hit, not only would you not get any compensation, but you might even be remembered, and even your superiors might not be able to protect you.
The sound of hooves gradually faded away, and then some dissatisfied discussions and whispers arose in the crowd. From their discussions, Yan Qingshan learned more.
"Damn it, just because she's the Mo family's young lady, what's she so arrogant about!"
"Exactly, the Mo family relies on licking the Misty Cloud Sect's boots to get its current status. What a bunch of trash!"
"Being a dog and still being so arrogant and causing trouble everywhere, aren't they afraid that one day they'll displease their master and get kicked out? Then they'll be in trouble."
Their words were full of disdain and dissatisfaction towards the Mo family. The Mo family relied on offering a large amount of wealth to the Misty Cloud Sect to gain its current status, monopolizing 60% of the city's industries, which naturally made many people dissatisfied.
Being a dog was not a good reputation. There were many outer disciples of the Misty Cloud Sect, but the Mo family was truly unique in reaching this level.
The Mo family's practice of plundering local wealth to offer to the Misty Cloud Sect was actually rare. Few families were willing to curry favor with higher-level forces like this. Not only did they not gain a good reputation, but they were also looked down upon. More importantly, it was detrimental to their own development.
The wealth of a city was limited. If you took most of it to bribe and offer, how much would be left to develop your own forces? The Mo family had reached its limit in occupying 60% of the city's industries.
If they wanted to continue expanding their influence in Yan City, the royal family would definitely not agree.
And if they wanted to develop externally, their reputation was extremely poor due to their plundering model, and basically no small forces were willing to join them.
The other three major families in the east were extremely dissatisfied with their approach and joined forces to stifle their development, leading to the current Mo family having the reputation of the number one family in the east, but its influence was confined within Yan City.
Of course, there were benefits to their stance. At least if the Misty Cloud Sect developed smoothly, the benefits they received as the Misty Cloud Sect's periphery would not be small.
In the original story, if Xiao Yan hadn't suddenly appeared and killed Mo Cheng, the Mo family would have taken advantage of the Misty Cloud Sect's development to suppress the other three families.
Yan Qingshan followed the crowd into the city and found that many shops along the way had signs with the character 'Mo.' The Mo family's reputation as the local tyrant of Yan City was indeed not exaggerated.
The Mo family of Yan City alone could have such power, almost becoming a pivotal force in the eastern provinces. This showed how vast the Misty Cloud Sect's potential influence was in the Jia Ma Empire.
Within the Jia Ma Empire, although many forces seemed to occupy the top, only the Misty Cloud Sect, the royal family, and the Alchemist Association truly occupied the peak, engaging in the ultimate game.
Among these three forces, the Alchemist Association had a detached status, rarely interfering in the empire's internal affairs, only playing a balancing role. The true confrontation was between the imperial family and the Misty Cloud Sect.
As the number one sect in the empire, the Misty Cloud Sect had produced many strong individuals over the years.
Many of these strong individuals, like the Mo family, had their own family forces distributed throughout the empire, influencing all aspects of the empire. These were the Misty Cloud Sect's potential forces.
Taking the Mo family of Yan City as an example, the original Mo family was only a leading family in Yan City. But after gaining the support of the Misty Cloud Sect, it continued to develop and expand, becoming a behemoth that monopolized 60% of Yan City's industries.
The consequence of the Mo family's approach was the loss of the royal family's tax revenue and benefits, while the Misty Cloud Sect gained a large amount of offerings.
The empire's overall production and profit capacity was a relatively stable value. When the Misty Cloud Sect was strong, it took more, and the imperial family's benefits decreased. The game between the two was about the distribution of this large cake. Everyone wanted more.
However, the Misty Cloud Sect, the royal family, and the Mo family's affairs had nothing to do with Yan Qingshan. He had no interest in getting involved in these troubles. After entering the city, he chose an inn to park the carriage and began his plan.
…
Under the starry night, the crescent moon hung overhead. In the Mo family compound in the center of Yan City, teams of patrolling warriors protected the Mo family's base extremely tightly.
The Mo family's headquarters was like a solid bunker. On the tall walls, patrol defenses were set up every few dozen meters.
Each patrol was manned by at least a Dou Zhe, with a Dou Master leading the team and a Dou Grandmaster overseeing the shifts. Even a Dou King expert probably couldn't infiltrate without alerting anyone.
In the Mo family's council hall, the lights were bright, indicating many people were holding a meeting. At the head of the table, Mo Lan, the Mo family head, looked at a kneeling figure below and said angrily,
"Mo Lin, are you still hiding something? The Great Elder has been missing for so many days. Where did he go!"
"Clan, Clan Head, I really don't know!"
Mo Lin was the kneeling person. As Mo Cheng's trusted aide, he usually showed little respect to the Clan Head, but today he didn't dare to put on airs.
Mo Lan's roar was filled with endless anger. "You don't know? You're the Great Elder's most trusted aide. How could you not know? The Misty Cloud Sect's guests are arriving soon. What do you want me to do!"
"Clan Head, Clan Head, I really don't know!"
Mo Lin knelt and kowtowed. The other Mo family elders and leaders felt sorry for him but didn't say anything, because the Mo family was indeed in trouble.
The Misty Cloud Sect had sent a message that a VIP was about to arrive to meet with Outer Elder Mo Cheng to discuss important matters concerning the eastern provinces.
But at this crucial moment, Mo Cheng was missing and hadn't been heard from for nearly ten days, which made them extremely anxious.