Chapter 63
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Chapter 63: Family Ancient Precepts
Sure enough, when Lou Yun took out this token, his vision blurred for an instant. An old lady with white hair and a youthful face had already appeared right before him.
This was unmistakably Granny Bai Cao. But she did not reach for Lou Yun’s token, only leaned in closely to scrutinize it. "How do you have this token? What is your relationship with him?"
Old Man Feng answered for Lou Yun. "They have no relation at all; it was just a brief encounter. That fellow gave him the token himself!"
Granny Bai Cao clearly didn’t believe it. She asked suspiciously, "Would he part with something like this to give to someone?"
Old Man Feng spread his hands. "That puzzles me too!"
Granny Bai Cao pondered for a moment, then shook her head. She obviously still hadn’t figured out the reason.
"Kid, this must be all your belongings, right? Quickly pick one thing out!"
Lou Yun didn’t hesitate at all. He handed the jade token in his hand to Granny Bai Cao. "This is it!"
Granny Bai Cao paused in surprise, then burst into laughter. "Haha, kid, do you realize the value of this token?"
Lou Yun nodded. "I know. It’s made from the Heart of Ice, it can cure all poisons, and it repels all fire. But as long as you agree to save my fiancée, I’m willing to exchange this token for her help."
Granny Bai Cao finally showed a kind smile upon hearing this. She reached out and gently patted Lou Yun’s head. "Little one, this rule I set was merely a test of human nature. Do you think I could be short of anything? Your words make it clear how much your fiancée means to you. Keep this token securely; never flaunt it before others again later on. Actually, its true worth isn’t in its material."
After speaking, Granny Bai Cao casually beckoned. A piece of the most ordinary forging material flew into her palm. "Use this for the exchange!"
This outcome both surprised and delighted Lou Yun. He immediately bowed to Granny Bai Cao. "I, a junior, express my gratitude to you, Granny!"
Granny Bai Cao waved her hand dismissively. "I told you already, you’re giving something in return. There’s no debt between us—why thank me at all?"
Old Man Feng suddenly interrupted. "Old witch, even though you agreed to the kid’s request, I still need to make it clear: he didn’t come here for medicine, but for you to go with us. I alone can’t heal that young girl; I absolutely need your assistance!"
Granny Bai Cao didn’t acknowledge him. She just turned and headed toward her thatched hut. Old Man Feng grew frantic. He called out loudly, "Hey, old witch, I’m serious! There’ll be time later to settle our differences, but this time you must promise this kid and come help me save Little Lan!"
By then, Granny Bai Cao had reached the hut’s door. She turned around and glared fiercely at Old Man Feng. "Quit nagging me! At least I need to bring something along!" After saying that, she entered the room and forcefully shut the door.
Old Man Feng paused briefly, then sighed in relief. He chuckled, tilted his head back, and took another swig of wine. Then he looked at Lou Yun. "Lou Family boy, remember what you just claimed: Little Lan is your fiancée now!"
Lou Yun assumed Old Man Feng was saying this deliberately for Granny Bai Cao to hear inside the hut. He nodded hastily. "Yes, senior, Little Lan is my fiancée!"
Old Man Feng nodded contentedly. "Finish packing this stuff up, quick. Oh, and don’t forget what the old witch said about the token earlier. Its functions like detoxification or fire repulsion are minor; its true value really isn’t in those things. But since that old coot chose not to tell you, I won’t spill it either—he surely has his reasons for that!"
Lou Yun was completely baffled by this. Yet he dared not press for more details. He could only nod. "I do understand that."
After Lou Yun packed his things, Granny Bai Cao emerged from the hut. She walked over to Lou Yun and said warmly, "Little one, let’s go now!"
Saying this, she took Lou Yun’s hand and walked off without even a glance at Old Man Feng. Old Man Feng showed no embarrassment. He grinned and hurriedly caught up.
Outside the bamboo forest, they boarded Old Man Feng’s large gourd again. The three set off flying toward the Ancient Weapon Academy.
By the time they arrived at the Ancient Weapon Academy, it was already the next morning. None of them paused to rest, heading directly to Xia Zhilan’s room. There they ran straight into Xia Guanqiu.
This marked Lou Yun’s first glimpse of Xia Guanqiu. Unsure who he was, Lou Yun didn’t offer a greeting.
As soon as Xia Guanqiu spotted Granny Bai Cao, he froze momentarily before beaming with joy. "Senior Granny Bai Cao, you’ve come! Wonderful—now Little Lan can be saved!" Clearly they knew each other already.
Granny Bai Cao seemed unexpectedly pleased too. "So Little Lan is actually your granddaughter?"
"Indeed!" Xia Guanqiu nodded repeatedly.
Granny Bai Cao smiled cheerfully and pointed at Lou Yun. "Your future grandson-in-law invited me here!"
Xia Guanqiu, naturally unaware of the previous events, paused in confusion. "My future grandson…"
At this moment, Old Man Feng suddenly gave Xia Guanqiu a hard push. "Enough, enough," he said. "There will be plenty of time for reminiscing later. Right now, saving Little Lan comes first."
The three of them entered the house to begin treating Xia Zhilan. Lou Yun dared not leave either and patiently waited outside.
Unexpectedly, this wait lasted three whole days. On the evening of the third day, Old Man Feng’s weak, exhausted voice finally came from inside the house: "Kid, get in here!"
Three days of waiting had Lou Yun’s heart rising in his throat. Hearing those words, he urgently pushed the door open and rushed inside.
Several oil lamps lit the room, illuminating it quite brightly. Old Man Feng and the other two were seated at a table. In the lamplight, Lou Yun could see each of them looked extremely pale. Old Man Feng, especially, slouched over the table without any regard for decorum. Clearly, healing Xia Zhilan had drained them of both their spiritual energy and their stamina.
Old Man Feng nodded towards the bed with his chin. "Little Lan’s fine now," he said. "Go take a look."
Lou Yun obediently responded and walked to the bedside. Xia Zhilan hadn’t yet awakened, but her face was rosy, her breath even, and her condition was vastly improved compared to before. She was clearly out of danger.
However, when Lou Yun used his spiritual sense to examine the magical weapon within Xia Zhilan’s body, he suddenly got a shock!
Originally, Xia Zhilan’s cultivation had been that of a primary three-star magical weapons master. But now, it had actually become intermediate one-star magical weapons master!
Lou Yun thought his spiritual sense must be faulty. He steadied his mind and looked again urgently, but the result was the same. Xia Zhilan’s magical weapon had truly advanced to the intermediate one-star realm!
"This…" Lou Yun pointed at Xia Zhilan, stupefied, and looked towards the three of them.
Old Man Feng chuckled. “No need for surprise, you saw correctly. Little Lan’s cultivation really has risen to intermediate one-star. The three of us took action, naturally we had to give Little Lan a little benefit. Besides,” he grinned, “the higher her cultivation gets, the more she matches you, eh?”
Lou Yun didn’t register Old Man Feng’s last sentence at all. His mind was entirely overwhelmed by disbelief. The cultivation of a magical weapons master had to proceed step by step, methodically and sequentially. While certain precious medicines could indeed enhance one’s cultivation level, nothing could make a magical weapon master leap three grades in one go, bridging an entire major rank!
Despite knowing Old Man Feng and the others surely meant Xia Zhilan no harm, he couldn’t help asking, “Senior, forcefully enhancing her cultivation so much like this…. could it adversely affect her future training?”
Far from displeased by Lou Yun’s question, all three brightened visibly. Old Man Feng grinned so widely his eyes became slits as he turned to Xia Guanqiu. “Look at this!” he exclaimed. “See how much the lad cares for Little Lan!”
Evidently, Old Man Feng had already told Xia Guanqiu about trapping Lou Yun in their scheme. While Xia Guanqiu thought it was slightly improper, recalling Xia Zhilan’s genuine, deep affection for Lou Yun, he had ultimately accepted it.
Granny Bai Cao smiled warmly. “Worry not. The technique we chose was extremely safe. As for your fiancée’s future cultivation, it will indeed be affected– though positively!”
Hearing Granny Bai Cao repeatedly call Xia Zhilan his "fiancée," Lou Yun felt powerless to refute her. But in any case, Xia Zhilan had managed to turn a calamity into a blessing this time. His heart finally settled, and he nodded. “Then thank you for your work, Seniors. I won’t disturb your rest any longer. I must take my leave now, I’ll return another day to visit Miss Xia.”
Old Man Feng’s expression hardened sternly. “‘Miss Xia’? That sounds so distant! From now on, you have to call her ‘Little Lan’ or ‘Lan’er’, understand?”
Lou Yun managed a slightly helpless nod of agreement, then turned towards the door. But just as he was about to leave, Xia Guanqiu suddenly spoke, “Lou Yun…”
Before Xia Guanqiu could finish, Granny Bai Cao abruptly stood up, her gaze fixed intensely on Lou Yun. “Your surname is Lou?”
Granny Bai Cao’s strange behavior baffled the other two. Lou Yun nodded blankly. "Yes, my surname is Lou. My given name is a single word: Yun."
Granny Bai Cao stared at Lou Yun as if trying to see straight through him. After a long moment, she gave the barest nod. “It’s nothing. You may leave.”
Utterly bewildered, Lou Yun left.
Once Lou Yun was gone, Old Man Feng stared at Granny Bai Cao, baffled. “Old hag! What was that just now? Why did hearing the boy’s surname is Lou agitate you so?”
Granny Bai Cao sat back down, ignoring Old Man Feng’s question. Her eyes remained fixed on the candle flame flickering on the table, lost in heavy thought.
Old Man Feng and Xia Guanqiu exchanged a confused glance. Neither understood what was happening, but neither dared question her further. They could only sit there silently, replenishing their spiritual energy while waiting awkwardly.
A long time passed before Granny Bai Cao finally snapped out of her deep thought. She heaved a long sigh before speaking in a low, distant voice. “This concerns my family. You wouldn’t understand.”
Seeing Granny Bai Cao so unusually grave and somber, Old Man Feng dropped his usual teasing tone. “Your family? Martial Sister… could you have finally found your birth parents?”
So it was revealed that Old Man Feng and Granny Bai Cao were in fact martial siblings. Had Lou Yun been present at that moment, combined with what Granny Bai Cao had scolded him about earlier regarding the term "martial sister," he surely could have deduced that certain memories still painful for both these martial siblings lay between them.
Xia Guanqiu stood up. “Seniors, please excuse me. I have some matters to attend to; I’ll take my leave now.” He knew matters concerning their martial lineage or specific family secrets were not something an outsider like himself could rightly overhear.
However, Granny Bai Cao waved her hand dismissively. “It’s fine, sit down. These are just dusty old stories of no consequence. Nothing forbidden to hear.”
Xia Guanqiu had no choice but to sit back down. To be honest, he was intensely curious—after all, Lou Yun could be considered his potential grandson-in-law now. Matters connected to him were relevant.
Granny Bai Cao lapsed into silence once more before finally speaking. “I was originally an orphan,” she began slowly. “My master found and raised me. And several years ago… I did finally find my true family. They were hidden deep within remote mountains. I stayed with them for a time and learned much about my lineage.”
“Within my family,” she continued, her tone growing heavy, “there exists an ancient dictate: we must kill every person surnamed Lou in the world.”
“WHAT?!” Old Man Feng and Xia Guanqiu cried out simultaneously, utterly shocked.
“Martial Sister!” Old Man Feng exclaimed, aghast. “What kind of absurd, senseless dictate is that!? Even if someone surnamed Lou offended your ancestors, how does that justify killing everyone with that surname!”
Granny Bai Cao shot him a sharp look. “I said it’s ancient, didn’t I? I know nothing of its origins. However… I’ve heard that this decree wasn’t passed down only within my Jiang family.”
“How many are there?” Old Man Feng asked urgently.
Granny Bai Cao’s reply was chillingly precise. “Counting my Jiang family, there are exactly nine clans.”
