Chapter 176 – What One Cannot Ask For Is Also Fate

The first Lingbao left Lu Liangsheng fairly satisfied. Though it had been forged with the sole purpose of countering Pudu Cihang, it would prove tremendously useful in other circumstances as well. So long as the opponent possessed hearing, they would not escape its influence.

“I wonder if this might be a little too sinister,”

Such things could only be known in time. By now, the sky had brightened fully; human voices began to rise from the village below, and from afar, the clear crowing of roosters echoed between the mountains.

“Cock-a-doodle-doo…cock-a-doodle-doo…cock-a-doodle-doo—”

Sunlight pierced the sea of clouds, pouring forth in golden rays. Lu Liangsheng fastened the scroll Netherworld’s Soul-Calling Burial at his waist, then turned toward the eight spiritual swords that were still resonating in the air.

Each sword differed in form, and every one bore its own distinct spiritual essence. To fuse them all into the Veiled Moon Sword at the center was not an easy task for Lu Liangsheng in his current state.

He sat cross-legged before the refining array, circulating the Heavens and Earth Righteous Path, while observing the seven swords revolving around the Veiled Moon Sword. His consciousness drifted leisurely from sword to sword. The original owners who had once forged these weapons had each imbued their blades with different essences. To merge them into one truly was rather—

Snap!

Just as Lu Liangsheng was thinking of the difficulty, a stream of power in the refining formation suddenly broke off. His brows furrowed; in the next instant, several other lines of force snapped as well. The eight swords that had been floating tip-down instantly lost support, clattering noisily to the ground.

“Seven days of effort… it seems all for naught.”

He sighed, rose to his feet, and went to pick up the Veiled Moon Sword. After a brief inspection, he found that both the blade and its inner essence remained unharmed.

“I’d better go back and look through the books again—perhaps I’ve overlooked something.”

There was no need to bring the swords along. With a wave of his hand, Lu Liangsheng embedded each one into the nearby boulders. After tidying up, he realized he had already missed breakfast. Taking his time, he strolled down the mountain back toward the village—only to find quite a crowd gathered there.

The busy farming season had passed, and the villagers, old and young alike, were all gathered together. Old Master Lu sat dozing in a chair, basking in the sunlight. Not far away, some villagers were squatting on the ground, bowls in hand, slurping noodles and gnawing on flatbread while chatting idly.

“Hey, did you all hear it early this morning?” “Aye, we did! Thought Old Master Lu had died—was already getting ready for a village feast, but turns out nothing happened at all!”

“Whose family was playing that sound anyway? Hearing it at dawn like that was downright unlucky.”

“Eh, eh, Liangsheng’s back—ask him, he might know.”

The sturdy men and women of the village, along with the children, all called out greetings when they saw the scholar returning from outside. Even Lu Pan, who had been squatting nearby eating noodles, stood up at once.

After all, the good days Lu Family Village had enjoyed in recent years were all thanks to this young scholar. He had even once smashed the Emperor’s own Golden Throne Hall—now that was a feat beyond imagining.

“Liangsheng, you’ve been up to Mount Qixia again, have you?”

“You woman, if you can’t talk proper, best not talk at all. Liangsheng’s master cultivates on that mountain—of course, he has to go there!”

“Right, Liangsheng, what was that sound this morning? It gave me chills just hearing it. What happened? Tell us, will you?”

Everyone loves a bit of gossip and a fresh story. Lu Liangsheng didn’t mind it—in fact, he rather enjoyed the villagers’ warmth. After all, they all knew one another well, and everyone already knew he practiced Daoist arts, so conversation came easily.

“It’s nothing, just a bit of spellwork that made some noise. It’s all fine now.”

After chatting for a while, Lu Liangsheng walked over to Old Master Lu, who was still sitting in the sun, and took his pulse. The old man opened his eyes and glared at the young man squatting before him.

“Which thief are you, that you dare make a move to test me before this General!”

Across from him, Lu Liangsheng withdrew his fingers and replied with a smile, “This General is Yang Jian of Northern Zhou.”

The old man’s body was fine—only his mind had grown muddled. These days, if he walked a few zhang from home, he would forget the way back entirely.

“Yang Jian? And who is Yang Jian?” Old Master Lu tilted his head, blinking in confusion. “Eh… why am I here?”

Propping himself up with his cane, he stood and began to wander slowly about.

“Where’s my home?”

Lu Liangsheng couldn’t help but laugh. There were plenty of people around—someone would see the old man home soon enough. Just then, Lu Pan finished his breakfast and came over, wiping the oily broth from the corner of his mouth. Following behind his nephew, he thumped his broad chest proudly.

“Liangsheng, we eight have been practicing that thing you taught us for four years now. Even that little Daoist priest can’t land a blow on us! One time I went up the mountain and ran into a lone wolf—guess what? Its teeth couldn’t even bite through my skin! I tossed it straight up, two zhang high! … So, how about teaching us something else? Or maybe find us some work to do?”

The scholar walking in front halted in surprise, his expression momentarily blank.

Even the Daoist couldn’t beat them?

…These eight elders must have been training every single day. Lu Liangsheng turned around. Lu Pan’s shoulders flexed as he bared his chest, the two bulging muscles bouncing proudly left and right.

Lu Liangsheng: “…”

It seemed he really did need to find them something to do—if they kept training like this, they’d end up practicing themselves into trouble.

On the way back to his fenced courtyard, he first told Lu Pan to put his clothes back on, then suddenly remembered the outer boundary.

“How about this, Uncle Pan—over on Mount Xiaoquan and the other two hills nearby, I’ve placed paintings as wards. You and the others can take turns guarding them for an hour or two each day, just to make sure no one takes them down.”

“Good, good!”

Lu Pan rubbed his rough hands together in excitement, nodded eagerly, and after bidding his nephew farewell, went to find the other seven. On the way, he came across Old Master Lu and asked what he was doing there. The old man pointed at the picket fence ahead, where morning glories were blooming.

“Going to have a look.”

At the small courtyard beyond, the Daoist was under the old tree, flailing through a set of disordered punches. After a yawn, he dropped onto a stool and grinned when he saw Lu Liangsheng return.

“No sword on you—didn’t manage to finish it, did you?”

“Hee–haw!”

The old donkey came prancing out of the straw shed, seized the scholar’s sleeve in its mouth, and swung the halter hanging from its neck, urging him to take it for a walk.

Lu Liangsheng shot the Daoist a glare, then reached out to untie the rope from the donkey’s neck.

“Go by yourself. Be back before dark.”

“Ahee–haw~!”

With a loud bray, the donkey bolted out of the courtyard, its joyful cries fading into the distance.

Lu Liangsheng greeted the Daoist in passing, then went straight back into his room, took out the book on artifact refinement, and sat at the table to read. The Toad Daoist crawled up the table leg, picked up a small bowl, scooped a few bites, and glanced at the open pages.

“The artifact refinement failed?”

“Mm.”

The soft rustle of paper sounded as a page was turned. Lu Liangsheng gave a quiet reply, his gaze scanning the text for anything of use. After a moment, he added:

“It’s my first time encountering this sort of thing. I’ll study it more carefully—perhaps I’ll find a solution. What one cannot ask for is also fate, after all.”

Hearing his disciple’s words, the Toad Daoist shook his head, set down his empty bowl, climbed down from the table, and began waddling toward the door with his webbed feet.

“Refining artifacts is unlike ordinary cultivation. Better that I, your master, go and see what went wrong.”

Hoisting the gourd onto his back, he poked his head out to make sure Li Jinhua wasn’t beneath the eaves, then, belly gleaming white, scuttled swiftly toward the courtyard gate. Just as he rounded the corner—

Thwack!

A pear-wood cane came thrusting straight at him. The tip of the staff smacked squarely into the toad’s face, sending his small body bouncing away like a rubber ball. He rolled twice on the ground before scrambling up in a sorry state, a red welt streaked across his face, looking utterly ridiculous.

When he saw it was Old Master Lu from the village, the Toad Daoist cursed furiously,

“Your mother’s—!”

He started to go around him, but Old Master Lu’s cloudy eyes suddenly lit up at the sound of his voice.

“You’re my father?”

The Toad Daoist thought the old man was mocking him and snapped back over his shoulder, “Hah! Old me is your ancestor!”

“Ancestor…”

Old Master Lu echoed weakly.

“Hahahahaha—!”

Inside the fenced courtyard, Sun Yingxian clutched his stomach, laughing so hard tears streamed down his face. The Toad Daoist puffed up his cheeks, utterly helpless against the old man’s confusion, and stomped off toward the mountains in a huff.

---

Morning light spread across the sky, streaming through the clouds toward the northern region of Fulin Prefecture. Amid the sharp cries of “Hyah!”, a mounted team of over ten riders galloped along the road. Before long, they reined in their horses to rest nearby.

“Father! Have some water.”

Min Yuerou dismounted, took a waterskin from one of the guards, and handed it to her father. Watching the old man lift his head and gulp deeply, she pressed her lips together, unable to hold back her question.

“Father, what exactly has happened? Where are we going?”

Min Changwen wiped the water from his beard and sat down on the ground, silent for a while.

“Heading south. But, Yuerou, you and I—father and daughter—must part ways here.”

He paused briefly, then continued:

“You are to go to Mount Qixia and find someone.”