Merin and the others enter Anxi Town a day later.
The moment they pass through the town gate, they do not slow.
Horses thunder across the stone streets, hooves striking sparks, dust billowing behind them as the guards shout in unison,
"Divine Guard here! Everyone step aside!"
Vendors pull their stalls back in panic.
Pedestrians scatter to the sides of the road.
Windows slam shut.
They ride straight through the town, not stopping once, until the towering gates of the Shen Estate rise before them.
"Dismount."
The order is crisp.
Merin, Ye Ran, and Captain Zhao leap from their horses as the military guard squadron surges forward.
The estate guards at the front gate barely have time to react before they are subdued, weapons knocked aside, hands forced behind their backs.
More guards flood in, sealing every known exit of the Shen Family compound with practised precision.
Shouts echo through the estate.
Doors open.
Footsteps rush.
Family members gather in the courtyard, alarmed by the sudden invasion.
Most of them are women.
The men present are young—barely grown.
Merin's eyes flick across the scene.
Noon, he thinks.
The older men are likely away.
Captain Zhao strides forward, Merin on his right, Ye Ran on his left.
An elderly woman steps out from the crowd.
Her clothes are elegant, her hair carefully arranged, but terror and confusion flicker across her face.
"What happened?" she asks, voice trembling.
Captain Zhao steps closer, his presence oppressive.
"What happened?" he repeats sharply.
"You're asking me what happened?"
"Don't you know your Shen Family is running an illegal slave ring?"
Shock ripples through the gathered family.
Gasps break out.
Several women cry out in disbelief.
Young men turn pale.
The elderly woman stiffens.
"You must be mistaken," she says hurriedly.
"Our Shen Family is a dignified household."
"We possess a plaque gifted by the King himself."
"How could we possibly do something like this?"
Others echo her words, voices overlapping, desperate to deny the accusation.
Captain Zhao's expression tightens when he hears plaque gifted by the King.
His tone shifts slightly, more cautious.
"Where is your clan leader?" he asks.
The old woman answers quickly,
"My husband went to escort my eldest son to his bride's home."
Captain Zhao pauses.
He glances back at Merin and Ye Ran.
Escorting a son to his bride's home means only one thing.
A matrilocal marriage.
A man becoming a house-husband.
In the Song Kingdom, that is looked down upon.
Merin's eyes narrow.
A family with a royal plaque…
An official family.
Such a family does not need to send its heir into another household.
If the bride's family were noble, it would be political suicide—
The court uses official families to counterbalance noble power.
Official and noble families do not intermarry.
And if it were the royal Song family—
They would have known.
Merin steps forward slightly.
"Who is the bride?" he asks.
The old woman lifts her chin, pride momentarily overcoming fear.
"Yu Diexin," she says.
"From the Yu Family of the Cangzhou Mountains."
A sharp intake of breath is heard.
Captain Zhao's voice breaks the silence, filled with shock.
"The Yu Family of the Cangzhou Mountains?"
The courtyard falls still.
Merin's gaze hardens.
—
Elsewhere, a convoy adorned with red marriage decorations moves westward.
Silk banners flutter from the carriages, bells chime softly with each step of the horses, and armed riders surround the procession in a tight formation.
Inside one of the carriages, Shen Ling sits comfortably, a woman resting on his lap.
He lowers his head and kisses her shoulder, his hand slowly caressing her waist.
The woman leans into him, then speaks softly, a hint of worry beneath her voice.
"Are you not worried?" she asks.
"The Divine Guards would have found your family by now."
Shen Ling smiles, unconcerned.
"Once they hear of my marriage with the Yu Family," he says,
"They won't dare do anything to my family."
"Not before they can confirm our guilt."
The woman traces his cheek lightly with her nail, eyes glinting.
"Then they will follow us to the Cangzhou Mountains," she says.
Shen Ling's smile deepens.
"That is exactly what I want."
He leans back, confidence filling his posture.
"When they arrive," he continues,
"The City Lord of Yulan City will already be in a coma."
"And as the husband of the eldest daughter of the Yulan City Lord,"
"I will act as regent over the city."
He laughs softly, savouring the thought.
"And when the Divine Guards come," he adds,
"They will become my strongest support in controlling Yulan City."
The woman looks at him with new admiration.
"Now I understand," she says softly,
"Why does the lord favour you so much?"
Shen Ling pulls her closer.
Their voices fade as they begin kissing, the carriage rocking gently as the convoy continues westward.
—
Back in Anxi Town, the atmosphere turns restrained the moment the Shen Family's connection to the Yu Family becomes clear.
Merin, Ye Ran, and Captain Zhao do not stay.
The city lord and the town guard captain arrive in haste, their faces tight with concern, offering explanations and assurances that are layered with unease.
But this matter has already moved beyond a town's authority.
Merin and the two captains withdraw.
This decision is no longer theirs to make.
They must report upward.
If the Shen Family truly binds itself to the Yu Family, then any further action risks a diplomatic incident.
The Yu Family rules Yulan City.
Yulan City is not part of the Song Kingdom.
It is a sovereign city-state.
The Song Kingdom lies within the fertile Twin Blue–Green River Plain.
Alongside it stand two other kingdoms, each seeking dominance over the same land.
For centuries, none has succeeded.
Whenever one grows too strong, the other two unite against it.
Thus, balance remains.
Cangzhou Mountains cut across the western border of the Song Kingdom, curve southward, and stretch all the way to the Wei Kingdom.
Within those mountains lie four major cities.
Yulan City is one of them.
And it is the closest to Song territory.
It is also a crucial trade partner.
Grain, metal, mountain herbs, beast materials—all pass through Yulan City before entering the Song Kingdom.
Because of this, Merin and the two captains cannot move against the Shen Family after learning of the marriage.
Not without confirmation.
That evening, a messenger pigeon returns.
Its leg bears an official seal.
The order is brief and decisive.
Proceed to Yulan City.
Confirm the marriage.
If the marriage is false—
The Shen Family does not need to exist.
If the marriage is true—
meet with the diplomatic envoys already stationed in Yulan City and act in a way that benefits the Song Kingdom.
No hesitation is permitted.
No independent judgment beyond that scope.
The next morning, the team departs again.
Horses turn westward.
The road stretches long ahead, leading into the rising shadows of the Cangzhou Mountains.
—
A month later, the team makes camp at the foot of the mountains.
Night settles heavily over the land.
The peaks loom like dark giants against the sky, and cold wind slips down from the heights, carrying the scent of stone and pine.
Inside his tent, Merin sits cross-legged on a mat.
His eyes are closed.
In his palm rests the final Snow Ginseng pill.
He swallows it without hesitation.
This pill has been left untouched for weeks—
saved for this moment.
As the pill dissolves, a surge of refined medicinal energy floods into his body, far denser and purer than before.
Merin regulates his breathing.
Slow.
Deep.
Steady.
Blood qi awakens.
It rises from his heart, flowing outward through his veins, no longer thin or scattered but thick and cohesive, as molten iron poured into channels.
Merin focuses inward.
The Second Blood Seal manifests in his perception—
an invisible barrier etched deep into his flesh and marrow, harder and more resilient than the first.
He gathers his blood qi.
Compresses it.
The pressure builds.
His chest rises sharply as he exhales, driving the condensed blood qi forward.
It crashes against the Second Seal.
Once.
The seal trembles.
Again.
A dull pressure spreads through his body, his muscles tightening as veins bulge faintly beneath his skin.
Merin does not stop.
He continues.
Each impact is heavier than the last, blood qi growing hotter, denser, more violent.
A low vibration hums through his bones.
Cracks begin to form.
Not in flesh—
But in the seal itself.
With one final surge, Merin drives everything forward.
The Second Seal shatters.
A silent explosion ripples through his body.
Blood qi surges freely, flooding newly opened channels and rushing into muscles, organs, and bones with unstoppable force.
Merin's body convulses once.
Then stabilizes.
His blood qi thickens visibly, its flow smoother, faster, more powerful.
Each heartbeat sends a heavier pulse through his veins.
His muscles grow denser, fibres tightening and reinforcing themselves.
Bones absorb the excess energy, becoming heavier, sturdier, and more resilient.
Heat radiates from his skin.
Sweat beads instantly, soaking his clothes as impurities are forced out of his body.
Merin's breathing slows.
The violent surge fades into a steady circulation.
The Second Seal is fully open.
Blood qi now flows without obstruction, filling his body with a strength far beyond before.
He remains seated, eyes closed, allowing the changes to settle and stabilise.
Outside the tent, the mountains stand silent.
Inside, Merin has stepped firmly into the second stage of the Blood Seal Realm.