Chapter 5

Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW

You can buy coins here to unlock advanced chapters: https://gravitytales.com/coins-purchase-page/

The Huo Family’s Past

Qingli, expressionless, stated, “I witnessed the events at the Danxia Gang earlier. Your so-called manor is the former site of the Danxia Gang. It’s been vacant for a long time and is practically falling apart.”

Lu Xingzhou asked, “Is the size suitable?”

Qingli remained silent.

Their “remnant forces” arriving in Xiazhou didn’t consist of many people, of course. Since the location was originally a gang stronghold capable of accommodating hundreds, its size was clearly sufficient.

“Since the size is suitable, renovating and repairing it won’t take much effort,” Lu Xingzhou said with a chuckle. “I have money, you understand.”

You just embezzled quite a bit of money… Qingli thought coldly. “Why should we wait for renovations?”

“Because it’s cheap. I believe you couldn’t have brought much money while fleeing, so every bit saved counts.”

Qingli fell silent.

In truth, they were quite wealthy and wouldn’t haggle over such a small price. However, it wasn’t appropriate to flaunt their wealth to a newcomer like him. Moreover, Qingli simply wasn’t the type to haggle over money with anyone, let alone this annoying man who seemed to harbor peculiar thoughts about her.

But given Liu Yan’er’s previous self-important display, which had made everyone laugh, Qingli truly couldn’t discern what this man’s intentions were. She didn’t want to make a fool of herself by being overly presumptive.

Then, Shen Tang spoke with interest, “First, take us to see the place, so we can decide.”

Qingli slightly frowned, her gaze towards Shen Tang showing a hint of surprise.

Are you really planning to continue getting entangled with this person?

The Huo manor was built against a mountain, an independent, large estate with no immediate neighbors. The Danxia Gang’s original site, though said to be “adjacent to the Huo manor,” was actually separated by a large expanse of fields.

The group arrived at the entrance of the Danxia Gang’s original site. Lu Xingzhou didn’t enter but instead turned to look back.

His gaze swept over the vast fields, where the sprawling Huo manor was vaguely visible in the distance, its green tiles and moss-covered roofs partially hidden by willows.

Lu Xingzhou’s gaze deepened.

“Is this your manor?” Shen Tang’s voice sounded beside him, with considerable interest. “The place is quite good—secluded, quiet, and spacious all around, very convenient for martial arts practice. But if we were to practice martial arts, what about the neighbors there…?”

Lu Xingzhou withdrew his gaze and said calmly, “At least in the short term, that neighbor won’t have the leisure to concern themselves with our affairs.” He paused slightly, then suddenly chuckled. “If your esteemed sect wishes to develop, this manor alone won’t be enough. Tell me, aren’t those sprawling farmlands backed by mountains an excellent direction for expansion?”

Shen Tang chuckled. “That would certainly be good, but unfortunately, even if others were willing to sell, our current strength wouldn’t be enough to acquire them.”

“One must still have dreams…” Lu Xingzhou said. “Furthermore… that large manor has peculiar spiritual energy, containing a trace of the wondrous power that can bring the dead back to life and grow flesh on white bones (活死人肉白骨). Especially for external injuries like broken bones and severed tendons, treatment there is twice as effective.”

Qingli was slightly stunned. Shen Tang’s eyes suddenly gleamed, and she instinctively placed her hand on her broken knee.

Carefully sensing the condition of that estate, she indeed felt a faint, indistinct sensation, as if it were true.

Whether such peculiar spiritual energy alone could heal was one thing… The crucial question was, according to Lu Xingzhou, was there a treasure beneath the Huo manor? If they could obtain the treasure, would there be even greater hope for healing?

As if seeing through her thoughts, Lu Xingzhou smiled faintly. “There is no treasure. Perhaps there once was, but it has been taken away. Now, only the lingering spiritual energy remains, not yet dispersed.”

Shen Tang decisively stated, “We’ll rent it.”

“Miss Shen needs to understand, the residual spiritual energy is at the Huo family’s old manor over there, not here on our side.”

“No matter,” Shen Tang said, casting a meaningful glance at Lu Xingzhou. “Master Lu also struggles with mobility; perhaps our goals will be very consistent.”

Lu Xingzhou smiled, showing his teeth. “Then I’ll need to charge more.”

Qingli: “?”

Shen Tang couldn’t help but ask, “Didn’t you say this place was cheap?”

“If I hadn’t said that, how would you have come to view the property and personally experience the spiritual energy over there?”

“…”

“With Liu Yan’er’s example in mind, Miss, don’t easily assume anyone has a fancy for anyone else, although I truly do like white hair…” Lu Xingzhou gestured for the little Daoist boy to push his wheelchair, and they wheeled away. “The renovations here are just replacing some beams and painting. You can move in within three to five days. Five days from now, we shall meet again here.”

The little Daoist boy turned and waved. “Goodbye, older sister.”

Watching the master and disciple disappear towards the city, Shen Tang and Qingli exchanged glances for a long time, both expressionless.

After a long while, Qingli finally whispered, “Do you really want to get involved with this person? He seems too mysterious and unpredictable, only inviting complications.”

Shen Tang said, “The National Preceptor’s divination (国师卦象) guided us to Xiazhou… The more unpredictable something is, doesn’t it more likely align with the divination?”

Qingli said reverently, “Yes.”

Shen Tang’s gaze was profound. “First, understand the opponent. Do your best to investigate all information about this person.”

“Commander, Old Grand Tutor Huo’s family had no major incidents in recent years, nor any known enemies.” Inside the Demon Suppressing Bureau, a veteran constable, well-versed in Xiazhou’s past, reported to Sheng Yuanyao. “Back then, Grand Tutor Huo lost imperial favor, and his family was idle in the old manor in Xiazhou. In that situation, they were extremely cautious and didn’t dare to be too overbearing. How could they have offended such a brutal enemy?”

Sheng Yuanyao listened, disbelieving. She said coldly, “Given their status in this remote border town, their ‘caution’ would be limited indeed. There are no Huo family members here, so there’s no need to cover for them.”

The old constable was a bit embarrassed. “If you mean slight oppression of the local villagers, it wasn’t entirely absent… Cough. But if they offended someone over such matters, it would truly be impossible to trace.”

Hearing that, it clearly meant there were too many instances to even bother looking. And yet, they claimed to be cautious… Sheng Yuanyao’s face hardened. “Aside from that? Were there no other peculiar incidents? Even I, in the capital, heard that Young Master Huo Qi died prematurely ten years ago.”

The old constable wiped his sweat. “How could outsiders know the details of such internal Huo family matters, other than the servants who served the Huo family for over a decade? The rumors from the Huo family simply stated he died young from a serious illness.”

Sheng Yuanyao’s heart suddenly skipped a beat.

Servants who served the Huo family for over a decade… Weren’t those precisely the people who died in this murder case?

Sheng Yuanyao pondered for a moment, then asked, “How much do you know about Young Master Huo Qi’s life before he died? In the capital, I heard Huo family members mention a name called Huo Shang (霍殇). Was that him?”

The old constable replied, “That’s right, it was Huo Shang. At the time, we also muttered about why the Huo family would name their child something like that… But it was said to be a name divined, so it wasn’t too strange.”

“Hmm, anything else?”

“This Seventh Young Master’s birth mother was reportedly a lowly maidservant. She was taken after the Huo family head had too much to drink one time… and was later elevated to a concubine. In this regard, the Huo family could be considered decent; they treated this Seventh Young Master equally and raised him well. Unfortunately, he died suddenly at the age of eight from an illness, and his mother also died of depression.”

Sheng Yuanyao stroked her chin, understanding why the old constable said the Huo family was “decent” in this aspect.

If it were a family with few heirs, an unexpectedly conceived son like this might be a pleasant surprise. But the Huo family had abundant offspring; this was already their seventh son, not to mention countless cousins. In that situation, it was far more tragic.

Given abundant offspring, a child conceived by accident with a lowly maidservant, let alone being inferior to a legitimate son born to a proper concubine, might even be worse off than a bastard son born to an outside mistress. After all, concubines and outside mistresses were usually quite favored. But a child conceived by accident with a lowly mother, who clearly held no favor, would often have a status not much different from a household-born servant and would frequently be an object of bullying by various branches of the family.

To still nurture him equally could indeed be praised as “benevolence.”

But in a world of cultivation, with the medical and cultivation advantages of prominent families, children weren’t as prone to early death as in ordinary households. For him to die suddenly at eight years old—it’s likely the care was limited. Whether this “equal treatment” was merely for outward show was hard to say…

“Were there any other unusual events around that time?”

The old constable recalled for a while, then said, “Those years, there were severe natural disasters across the land, and harvests were poor everywhere. It seems that not long after the Seventh Young Master died, the Old Grand Tutor advised the court to search overseas for sweet potatoes (红薯). They were later found, and the Huo family was reinstated due to this merit, moving their entire clan to the capital. It’s said that this policy, beneficial to both nation and people, was proposed by the Eldest Young Master Huo.”

Sheng Yuanyao’s heart stirred. “Are you sure it was not long after the Seventh Young Master died?”

“It should be around that time, or perhaps just before? Anyway, it was definitely around that period.”

Sheng Yuanyao narrowed her eyes and pondered for a long time, finally nodding. “Understood. Hmm… What do you know about the former Danxia Temple on Danxia Mountain?”

“Danxia Temple used to be a dilapidated Daoist temple. There was only a solitary old Daoist priest inside, and no one knew his Daoist name. He just refined elixirs and told fortunes to get by, though he wasn’t supposedly very accurate. No one paid much attention to when he disappeared.”

“Did he ever take in a disciple?”

“In his last few years, there seemed to be a Daoist boy by his side, looking very weak and sickly. He was often just seen sitting on the ground.”

Sheng Yuanyao quickly asked, “Sitting on the ground, was it because of a disability?”

The old constable said apologetically, “We didn’t pay attention to such details back then; we just saw him sitting on the ground. We don’t know if he was disabled. If the Commander wants to know more details, you could ask other elders who visited Danxia Temple.”

Sheng Yuanyao nodded. “One last question… Do the timing of the Daoist boy’s appearance by the old Daoist priest’s side and the time of Young Master Huo Qi’s death coincide?”

– Mochinuna.