Chapter 219

Chapter 219: Sending a Concubine and Disposing of Stolen Goods

Li Zehou greeted them enthusiastically, showing great respect.

Lin Guang Ming smiled sheepishly. “Brother Zehou, you need not be so courteous.”

“It should be so.” Li Zehou said, shifting his gaze toward Zhou Luo. “Young friend Zhou, it’s been a long time.”

Zhou Luo bowed with clasped hands. “Elder Li.”

“Haha, you truly shone brilliantly that day at our Li Family. I didn’t expect you to come again for this Spiritual Pill Conference.” Li Zehou let out a hearty laugh.

“This time, I might still trouble you a bit, Elder Li.” Zhou Luo replied humbly.

“What trouble do you speak of? Let us also witness how the genius Pill Master refines pills.” Li Zehou expressed his admiration openly before the crowd.

Zhou Luo just smiled without responding.

Subsequently, Li Zehou settled everyone in a courtyard inside the main residence’s core area.

This courtyard could rival the Wang Family’s old one. Zhou Luo only hoped they wouldn’t attempt a beauty trap as the Wang Family had before.

That evening, Li Shuntian, the Li Family head, hosted a banquet for several of them.

At the banquet, Li Shuntian first congratulated the newlyweds, Zhou Luo and Lin Xin, and presented them gifts.

During their last marriage celebration, the Li Family had already given gifts. Presenting more this time was naturally meant to show goodwill.

Although the Lin Family’s overall strength currently fell short of the Li Family’s, in the long term, whether through Zhou Luo, Lin Xin, or the recently emerged Lin Feiyu, all signs hinted that the Lin Family was on the verge of rising.

Therefore, such goodwill gestures were still necessary.

Beyond that, Zhou Luo’s imagined beauty trap arrived, though belatedly.

However, this time the Li Family proved much cleverer than the Wang Family.

Instead of relying on beauties to win him over, they proposed arranging a concubine for him.

Arranging a concubine meant she would marry into the Lin Family.

This seemed less like wooing and more like a small investment.

Later, if Zhou Luo truly became a second level Pill Master, the Li Family might use this concubine to establish ties and profit from him.

Lin Guang Ming, as the elder present, did not intervene.

For now, the Lin Family still needed the Li Family’s support.

The Li Family’s goodwill aligned with the Lin Family’s interests. After all, it was just a concubine—how much trouble could she stir within the Lin Family?

Yet he couldn’t help glancing toward Lin Xin.

Though not the primary wife of the Zhou Garden, Lin Xin had married recently. If she objected, the matter would have to be dropped.

But Lin Xin remained silent without saying a word.

“Young friend Zhou, what do you think?” The Li Family head inquired amiably.

Although Zhou Luo had no aversion to marrying, he still had standards.

So he asked, “Family head, how do you intend to arrange this?”

Realizing it was possible, Li Shuntian smiled. “I have a granddaughter. Though her cultivation level isn’t high, she’s well-educated and reasonable. I imagine you’ll be quite satisfied with her, young friend Zhou.”

Hearing these words, Zhou Luo asked without thinking, "What grade was her spiritual root?"

Although the question was somewhat abrupt, it was still necessary to ask.

After all, if her cultivation level wasn’t high, perhaps her spiritual root wouldn’t be high either.

But he never expected Li Shuntian’s reply to surprise him so much.

"My granddaughter has a fifth-grade spiritual root, but it was damaged while she was in the womb, so her cultivation has been limited," Li Shuntian said, shaking his head.

Beside him, Li Zehou added apologetically, "It’s all my fault. Back when I was traveling with her mother, we were suddenly attacked by bandits, and I didn’t have time to take care of her and the baby."

Hearing this, Zhou Luo’s eyes lit up.

Whether she could cultivate wasn’t important; as long as she had a mid-grade spiritual root and could bear children, that was sufficient.

It seemed the Li Family had long planned for this scenario.

After all, a woman with a damaged foundation but a mid-grade spiritual root could be leveraged to plot for family benefit, fully utilizing her remaining value.

"Sigh, life is unpredictable—Brother Zehou, don’t be too sad," Lin Guang Ming mediated soothingly.

Zhou Luo chimed in as well, "Uncle, this is something no one wants; since it’s happened, it’s best to accept it."

The change from addressing him as Elder Li to Uncle signaled a shift in Zhou Luo’s attitude.

The Li father and son were sharp enough to grasp his meaning and promptly brightened with smiles.

"Nephew Zhou is right—let’s drop this and have some drinks," Li Zehou said with a laugh.

The banquet ended.

Zhou Luo and the others returned to their rooms.

Since they were married, Lin Xin naturally stayed together with him.

"This time, I get to sleep on the bed."

Lin Xin declared proudly as soon as they entered the room.

"Why?" Zhou Luo looked at her with a hint of amusement.

"Because I allowed you to have a concubine," Lin Xin stated confidently.

If she hadn’t permitted it, even if Zhou Luo intended to marry that woman from the Li Family, it would have been much harder and not so straightforward.

She recognized she had no right to interfere in such matters.

But if she could seize this chance to gain some advantage for herself, that was quite ideal.

Zhou Luo’s gaze flickered slightly.

So this little minx had been biding her time for this.

No wonder she had been so obedient during the journey.

"Go ahead and sleep then," Zhou Luo said with a light chuckle.

As though he didn’t care about compassion, anyway, they wouldn’t be staying here long.

The next day, since the Spiritual Pill Conference hadn’t started and Zhou Luo wasn’t planning to attend, he left the Li Family alone.

Lin Guang Ming didn’t stop him; he just gave him a communication talisman and instructed him not to leave Panshi City.

After leaving the Li Family, Zhou Luo immediately retrieved his mask and transformed into the appearance of a middle-aged man, heading straight toward the largest marketplace in Panshi City.

Unlike the Longfeng Marketplace, trading venues within the city tended to be more secure, with prices generally lower than those found outside.

Zhou Luo strolled around for a while first.

Initially, he had hoped to find someone capable of repairing the three top-grade magical artifacts. But while Panshi City was vast, finding a top-grade weapon refiner proved difficult—only the Li Family possessed such expertise.

If the Li Family discovered he possessed three top-grade magical artifacts, he’d be like a sheep walking into a tiger’s den.

Therefore, repairing the magical artifacts had to be postponed for now.

Beyond repairing artifacts, the most crucial task was disposing of the ill-gotten goods.

Common medicinal herbs and materials had already been sold off in Maple Leaf City, leaving only exceptionally valuable items.

Zhou Luo chose not to sell everything at once, as that would draw too much attention.

He planned to sell in batches. While still noticeable, this approach avoided causing a major sensation.

Next, Zhou Luo sold several talismans.

He immediately returned to Tian Xia Restaurant. Wielding his VIP token, he ascended to the tenth floor, assumed a new disguise, and ventured out again to dispose of more goods.

Repeating this process throughout the entire day, Zhou Luo managed to sell half of his items.

Though not particularly fast, the pace prioritized safety.

This continued until the Spiritual Pill Conference commenced.

By then, Zhou Luo had finally sold all his items, profiting nearly two thousand spiritual stones.

However, this triggered a minor stir across Panshi City.

Despite using different disguises for each sale, the quality of the items—upper-level magical artifacts, upper-level talismans, potent potions—was undeniably excellent. This naturally attracted the Li Family’s attention.

Yet, without exception, every one of these sellers entered Tian Xia Restaurant and never reemerged.

Some sensed something amiss and attempted to investigate.

But protected by the VIP token, even the Li Family couldn’t learn the identities of "these individuals."

On the day the Spiritual Pill Conference officially began, Zhou Luo declined to participate, disappointing everyone. Nevertheless, he attended as a spectator.

Representatives from the Five Great Long-Life Families and numerous loose cultivators had already gathered at the conference.

The Lu Family delegation was once again led by Lu Chen.

But he no longer radiated his previous arrogance. Instead, he sat silently, his expression dark and sullen.

Beyond Lu Chen, Zhou Luo spotted another familiar face—Lu An.

Lu An glared at him with undisguised hostility bulging in his eyes.

Zhou Luo remained utterly indifferent.

Now a top-level Pill Master, he stood far above Lu An, who was still a medium-level Pill Master. They were no longer even comparable.

As Li Zehou’s voice resonated, the Spiritual Pill Conference officially commenced.