"Alright, alright, Qinghong Jie, what did my mother say? Did she pressure you?" Jiang Xuan wiped his mouth with the handkerchief Jiang Qinghong handed him and looked up at her.

"Master Wife didn’t pressure me."

Jiang Qinghong sat back down, speaking calmly, "She said that you like me and wanted to ask me if I could accept you. Then she said, if I can accept you, would I be willing to marry you this month, before the life-and-death battle next month, and consummate the marriage as soon as possible. That way, if you die in the battle and by some stroke of luck, I might get pregnant with your child."

"If I agree, Master Wife promised that she would take me away from the tribe before next month's life-and-death battle."

Jiang Xuan’s mouth slightly parted in shock.

He hadn’t expected his mother to take such a step.

But… then again, the whole tribe was on the brink of annihilation. Wei Baiyun, as a mother, couldn’t save the tribe, or even save her son, who was determined to die standing. Wanting her son to leave behind an heir was something that could hardly be criticized.

Jiang Qinghong said all of this with a calm, mature older sister demeanor.

It was Jiang Xuan who, for a moment, couldn’t find the right words.

"So, Qinghong Jie, you…" Jiang Xuan finally spoke.

"I’m still thinking about it," Jiang Qinghong, sensing his confusion, directly answered, "I’ve already told Master Wife that I’ll give her an answer when she returns."

"Ah, I see..." Jiang Xuan blinked.

"Can you still sleep?" Jiang Qinghong, however, was far more relaxed than Jiang Xuan. She even teased him.

"I... I’m not sleeping..." Jiang Xuan replied, "I’ll go back to the back mountain after dinner and continue my cultivation."

"Then eat more, you need to be full to have the strength to practice your skills." Jiang Qinghong added more food to his plate, and she no longer brought up the subject of the "marriage consummation." Jiang Xuan didn’t dare to bring it up again either, and they could only discuss the current situation within the tribe.

Jiang Xuan could feel how "cruel" this situation was for Jiang Qinghong!

If she didn’t agree, Jiang Qinghong knew the fate she would face if the tribe lost the life-and-death battle.

If she agreed, she would marry him, but then be widowed when he died in the battle and would become a fugitive—living a life of wandering and hardship with a child.

No one believed that Jiang Xuan could win the tribe’s life-and-death battle next month. Jiang Xuan couldn’t prove anything right now.

So...

Actually, unlike the other women of the Jiang tribe, Jiang Qinghong had a third option. She was known as the most beautiful woman of Heitan Mountain, and many men from influential backgrounds secretly adored her. Many were even willing to "redeem" her ahead of time. As long as she let it slip, even if the Jiang tribe lost the life-and-death battle, the Shentu tribe wouldn’t touch her, and she could be sold at a good price.

However, Jiang Xuan knew how loyal Jiang Qinghong was to the tribe.

"I’m full."

After the meal, Jiang Xuan left his house and headed back to the back mountain.

Walking along the forest path, Jiang Xuan muttered to himself, "Qinghong Jie must be having a hard time deciding."

He didn’t know how Jiang Qinghong would choose, and it was hard for him to guess. He had always felt a sense of awe toward her, and this awe wasn’t just because she was older than him, or because he had secretly admired her, but because of her talents.

Who was the true genius of the Jiang tribe over the past hundred years?

It wasn’t Jiang Xuan.

It was Jiang Qinghong!

In the tribe, women rarely received any cultivation resources. The laws of the tribe’s life-and-death battle required the cultivation of men, so women had a very low status, no matter how talented they were.

During the peak of the Jiang tribe, there were hundreds of innate warriors, but among them, there were only a handful of female innate warriors. These women had cultivated purely based on their innate talent, without using any tribe resources. They broke through to the innate stage around thirty or forty years of age.

Jiang Qinghong, without any cultivation resources, reached peak post-natal at seventeen, and at twenty, she remained at the same level.

Wei Baiyun had lamented this situation for Jiang Qinghong years ago, saying that if Jiang Qinghong hadn’t been born into the tribe, but into a noble family in the city, her talent could have allowed her to become innate by fifteen.

"Qinghong Jie is beautiful, has a good character, and her talent is even higher than mine before I practiced breathing techniques! Someone like her, yet she faces such a cruel fate just because she was born into the tribe..."

"It’s unacceptable!"

Under the moonlight, Jiang Xuan, standing in front of the sound transmission stone, pulled the long sword stuck in the ground, and thought resolutely, "For my mother, for my sister, and for Qinghong Jie, I must master the ninth style as soon as possible!"

Whoosh!

The sword light erupted!

He practiced his sword!

Several hours later, in the early hours of the morning, Jiang Xuan stopped to rest, drenched in sweat. He entered the forest, walking southwest. After traveling a long distance, he suddenly found himself in an open area. It was a small lake surrounded by trees, the water sparkling in the moonlight. Jiang Xuan, still in his clothes, jumped into the lake to wash up. Once out, he used his innate spiritual energy to quickly dry his clothes.

He had been coming to this spot whenever he needed to wash up during his seclusion.

This place wasn’t very safe anymore, as it was on the edge of the tribe’s soil city.

"Jiang Jingsheng was right. You really came here. I thought I was going to wait in vain tonight." A soft female voice suddenly rang out.

"What are you doing here? Don’t you fear me killing you?" Jiang Xuan wasn’t surprised by the sudden voice. He had sensed someone hiding when he got close to the lake.

The person’s cultivation level wasn’t higher than his.

"Kill me?"

Shentu Yu walked out from the forest about ten meters away, smiling at Jiang Xuan. "You’re the last man of the Jiang tribe. During the life-and-death battle, if you kill members of your tribe outside the arena, do you want your tribe to lose even faster?"

Jiang Xuan glanced at Shentu Yu. Though they hadn’t met many times, she wasn’t unfamiliar to him. Compared to Jiang Qinghong, Shentu Yu was also well-known. She was praised for her intelligence, often called a talented woman. At a young age, she even had a widely recognized nickname—"Jade Fox."

"Just you?" Jiang Xuan casually asked, his gaze scanning the surroundings.

"Don’t worry, it’s just me." Shentu Yu smiled softly, stepping toward Jiang Xuan. "Let’s cut to the chase. I want to make a deal with you."

"A deal?" Jiang Xuan asked.

"Let’s get married. You marry into the Shentu tribe, and the two tribes will merge, ending all wars and killings!" Shentu Yu looked at Jiang Xuan.

Jiang Xuan raised his eyebrows, his expression strange.

In just a few hours, this was the second woman to propose marriage! Could practicing breathing techniques really bring me good fortune with women? It was a fleeting thought, but Jiang Xuan knew that Shentu Yu wasn’t joking.

"You want me to surrender? To join the Shentu tribe?" Jiang Xuan stared at Shentu Yu.

"You can think of it that way."

Shentu Yu didn’t deny it, but added, "However, if you join the Shentu tribe as my husband, you’ll have a chance to inherit the tribe leader position. As long as you take the Shentu surname, our two tribes have been intermarrying for generations. In terms of blood, we are already intertwined. You need not worry about your identity being unrecognized."

"Although you killed my little uncle, my father still values your talent. As long as you call him ‘father,’ he will fully cultivate you and help you become the tribe leader!"

"Your Jiang tribe is on the brink of extinction, and our Shentu tribe has also suffered greatly. If you agree, we can end this war immediately. No more deaths. I promise that after the Inspector-General announces the results of the life-and-death battle, our Shentu tribe will cancel the three-day celebration and treat the women of your tribe kindly…"

"Your fake smile is getting stiff." Jiang Xuan suddenly interrupted Shentu Yu.

"What?" Shentu Yu didn’t quite catch it.

"I said your fake smile is getting stiff." Jiang Xuan looked at her. "If you want to seduce me, at least stop making it so obvious."

Since she appeared, Shentu Yu had been trying to act coy, but now, her smile disappeared, and her gaze turned cold.

"Done with the act?" Jiang Xuan asked.

"Actually, you all know this is a game. What I just said doesn’t matter." Shentu Yu, who had been resisting this idea, stopped holding back and said, "What matters is! If you agree, you will survive! You’ll live well! I can’t guarantee that all the women of your tribe will remain unharmed, but at least your mother and sister, no one will touch them… as long as you marry me!"

"I can marry you." Jiang Xuan said.

"What?" Shentu Yu was stunned. Jiang Xuan’s sudden agreement caught her off guard.

"But it’s not me joining the Shentu tribe. It’s you coming to the Jiang tribe and becoming my secondary wife. I also need all the men of your Shentu tribe to surrender. From now on, there will only be the Jiang tribe, no Shentu tribe. I’ll treat the women of your tribe well. What do you think?" Jiang Xuan said seriously.

His stance was clear: no negotiations.

"Heh!" Shentu Yu sneered. "You really don’t fear death!"

"Oh, and one more thing. Since your father is the one who started this war, others might survive, but I’ll have your father executed! However… if you agree to become my secondary wife, I’ll leave your father’s body intact!" Jiang Xuan added.

"My father will tear you to pieces in the arena! Don’t say I didn’t warn you! You really aren’t afraid?" Shentu Yu’s eyes turned cold.

"I’m not afraid of threats." Jiang Xuan replied, his expression unfazed.

"I’ll give you one last chance!" Shentu Yu raised her chin. "If you agree, I’m yours! You won’t die!"

"Kill your father! Then you’re mine! I won’t die either!" Jiang Xuan fired back. His words were clear: if he won the life-and-death battle, the women of the Shentu tribe would be at his disposal, including Shentu Yu.

"I’m giving you one last chance!" Jiang Xuan stared at Shentu Yu. "Marry me as my secondary wife! If you don’t accept my proposal, I’ll kill every man in the Shentu tribe!"

"Crazy!"

At that moment, Shentu Yu, who had been angered by Jiang Xuan’s defiance, suddenly relaxed.

She thought Jiang Xuan must have lost his mind under pressure, otherwise, why would he say such crazy things? Jiang Xuan was only a half-step innate, and the Shentu tribe had dozens of innate experts and hundreds of post-natal warriors. Any one of them could crush him!

"Then wait for death!" Shentu Yu no longer said another word and turned to leave.

Jiang Xuan watched her disappear into the forest, his face changing, a frown settling on his brow.

"Strange, why is the Shentu tribe so eager to end the war?" Jiang Xuan thought to himself, "How fast am I improving? Only the senior from the Odd Stone Cave knows. The Shentu tribe couldn’t have known. If they did, they wouldn’t underestimate me like this... In their eyes, they can clearly kill me next month, so why the rush to marry me?"

"Do they value my talent?" Jiang Xuan could sense that it wasn’t that simple.

And what was hidden behind this, Jiang Xuan couldn’t figure out just yet.

Three days later, in the afternoon.

"The ninth style of Chasing Wind Blade, its name is the same as the technique, called the Chasing Wind Style! What is chasing the wind? It’s like the wind chasing the wind! And what is like the wind? When the wind rises, it is everywhere—sometimes a gentle breeze, sometimes a raging gale, sometimes brushing past your face, sometimes violently swift. Chasing the wind is like the wind, the blade shadows vanish..."

Jiang Xuan practiced his sword in front of the sound transmission stone, his blade light like a torrential downpour, slashing in all directions, reaching a point where nothing could penetrate. At the same time, there were sharp, thunderous sounds, as if ten thousand whips were striking in unison, intense and fierce.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!!!"

"Boom! Bang!!!"

Whoosh—

The wind howled, a deep hum, and the spiritual energy of the surrounding world seemed to be instantly drained. Jiang Xuan’s figure became a blur, moving several times faster than before, instantly shifting more than ten feet!

"Finally! This is more like it!" Jiang Xuan stood still, incredibly excited.

After practicing for three days without sleep, he had finally grasped the basics of the ninth style.

Although it was just the beginning...

Even just the basics had made a qualitative change in his offensive techniques! Compared to the full version of the Chasing Wind Style, this was just the beginning!

"That last strike was barely at the level of a full force, early innate stage attack!"

Jiang Xuan looked at the sword in his hand, "The innate spiritual energy consumption wasn’t much, and the true Chasing Wind Style will make the sound disappear and the blade light vanish. Within several meters, it will slice everything like the wind. Even someone with higher skill, like my father with his 'Heavenly Human Momentum,' would have a hard time detecting the blade’s shadow, let alone where the weapon came from. How could they defend against it?"

"The Chasing Wind Style is so complex, yet it ultimately returns to the Dao. If I can master it, understanding the ‘Heavenly Human Momentum’ might not be difficult for me."

"Xiao Xuan!"

A crisp voice interrupted Jiang Xuan’s thoughts.

Jiang Qinghong stood by the edge of the trees, carrying a meal box. She had been bringing him meals these past few days.

"Qinghong Jie, what’s for lunch today?" Jiang Xuan walked over.

"It’s all your favorites," Jiang Qinghong replied.

A beast skin blanket was laid on the grass. Jiang Qinghong and Jiang Xuan sat down together, opening the meal box... She hadn’t just been sending him meals these days, but also eating with him, every meal. Jiang Xuan felt like Qinghong Jie was actively trying to bond with him, though he wasn’t entirely sure.

Halfway through the meal, Jiang Xuan suddenly remembered something and asked, "Qinghong Jie, hasn’t my mother returned yet?"

"No," Jiang Qinghong shook her head.

A flash of concern appeared in Jiang Xuan’s eyes.

No matter what the outcome was with her maternal grandfather, after settling Jiang Yao, his mother should have returned to the Jiang tribe. It had already been four or five days. How was there no news at all?

He needed to send someone to inquire.

Half an hour later.

In the tribe's soil city.

A black-armored guard hurried into the finely decorated courtyard and approached the Inspector-General, Lei Hong, who was drinking tea, to report: "Master, Jiang Xuan, the tribe leader of the Jiang tribe, seeks an audience."

"Mm?" Lei Hong paused, then thought for a moment. "Let him in."