Charles Howard's face flushed red, and he was at a loss for words. Samuel Howard glared at him and waved his large hand: "Pass down my order: from this moment until the start of the Xiushan Autumn Gathering, Edward Howard is not to take a single step outside the Hong residence! No matter who comes to visit, the gatekeepers are to turn them away directly, without reporting it!"

Charles Howard was a bit worried. "But Grandfather, you know how stubborn the second brother is. The more you do this, the more he'll want to go out..."

"Enough nonsense! It's only three months. He absolutely cannot be allowed to go out and fool around with those good-for-nothing friends again!"

Charles Howard could only shake his head helplessly and withdraw. Samuel Howard's expression was stern as he sat upright, unmoving, waiting for Edward Howard to come and make a fuss.

……

Edward Howard had originally been worried that some of the original owner's old friends would come to bother him during this period, but instead, he received the news from Thomas Howard that he was under house arrest.

He hadn't planned on going out for these three months anyway; he wanted to stay home and study the Novice Monk Dharma Form and the Primordial Demon Elephant Totem. No one disturbing him was just perfect. So Edward Howard calmly replied, "I understand."

Thomas Howard waited for a moment, but seeing that Edward Howard had no further intense reaction, he stood there in surprise. Edward Howard asked in confusion, "Uncle Shen, is there anything else?"

Thomas Howard quickly shook his head. "N-no, nothing..."

A dignified third-rank Manifest Saint, and he was actually stammering! After leaving, Thomas Howard could only smile wryly and shake his head, feeling even more puzzled inside: What on earth is going on with Young Master Yu?

When Samuel Howard heard Thomas Howard's report, he was even more surprised. "He agreed just like that?"

"Yes, General!"

Samuel Howard stroked his chin suspiciously. "Something's not right. That little brat must be up to something!"

Thomas Howard secretly pursed his lips, not quite agreeing. With Edward Howard's previous intelligence, he was always the one being schemed against, not the one doing the scheming.

"You, go and keep a close watch on that little brat. Don't let him pull any tricks. If anything goes wrong, I'll hold you responsible!"

"Yes, sir!"

……

After receiving the military order from Samuel Howard, Thomas Howard returned to the military library to hand over his duties, then quietly made his way to the courtyard where Edward Howard lived.

Although there were many servants in the Hong residence, for a third-rank Manifest Saint, hiding his presence was all too easy.

He slipped silently into the courtyard, but suddenly frowned: why was there no one in the small building?

At Thomas Howard's level, his spiritual sense naturally extended ten zhang beyond his body. If he focused, even thirty zhang away, he could sense an ant moving its leg under the soil.

So as he walked along, he knew exactly how many people were in the surrounding rooms without even looking. After entering the courtyard, he instinctively tried to sense his target, but the three-story wooden building where Edward Howard lived was completely empty!

Just a moment ago, Thomas Howard had been certain that Edward Howard couldn't possibly pull any tricks, but now, upon entering the courtyard and finding Edward Howard missing, he was truly shocked. In a flash, he appeared on the third floor of the building, about to rush in, but suddenly stopped short.

Through the window, he saw Edward Howard lying peacefully on the bed, sound asleep.

Thomas Howard stood at the window like a ghost, staring at Edward Howard on the bed, his brows deeply furrowed.

The moment he saw Edward Howard, he immediately sensed Edward Howard's presence. But how could this be? He was absolutely sure he hadn't made a mistake—when he first entered the courtyard, he clearly couldn't sense Edward Howard's aura at all!

Could there be something wrong with his own cultivation technique?

Someone like Edward Howard couldn't possibly escape his spiritual sense. That left only one possibility: his own technique was not yet perfected, and there were still flaws hidden within it that he was unaware of!

Thomas Howard broke out in a cold sweat, but now was not the time to reflect on his cultivation. He had a military order to carry out and had to keep a close watch on Edward Howard.

He sighed quietly and sat cross-legged in a corner of the courtyard. A few clumps of green bamboo shielded his figure, and with the strength of a third-rank Manifest Saint, even if someone passed right by, they wouldn't notice anyone sitting there.

Once seated, Thomas Howard thought for a moment, then, to be safe, extended his spiritual sense thirty zhang, covering the entire courtyard.

Now, there were only two people in the courtyard: Edward Howard and Thomas Howard. The servants all kept their distance.

Tonight, the starlight was vast. After sitting for a while, Thomas Howard began to circulate his cultivation technique. His "Starlight Divine Furnace" method cultivated starlight itself, so every starry night was extremely precious to him.

Fortunately, he could release his spiritual sense to monitor Edward Howard's every move while cultivating at the same time.

As he circulated his technique, he transformed the starlight above into threads of pale golden energy, which he absorbed through his pores and converted into pure martial qi.

Chapter 5: Starlight Divine Furnace (Part 1)

The whole process was slow but steady. With the third-rank technique "Starlight Divine Furnace," and his outstanding talent since childhood, Thomas Howard steadily improved step by step. By now, he was already a strong cultivator at the early stage of third-rank Manifest Saint. Even Samuel Howard would not simply regard him as a mere servant.

However, Thomas Howard knew in his heart that the "Starlight Divine Furnace" was only a third-rank technique, and at most could be cultivated to the peak of third-rank Manifest Saint. Once one reached the Manifest Saint level, progress became extremely slow. There was even a saying: "The third-rank path is endless."