“Without an Officiator, don’t tell me the two of you intend to conduct the Ritual Offering yourselves?” Duke Ashoka’s voice was icy.
“The Northern Lands have been in chaos since the Scarlet Dragon Tribulation. Tracking down the culprit is extremely difficult. Our original plan was to gather the Ten Spears of the Evil Jade Crystal… who could have expected everything to collapse? The setback is enormous. We must spare no resources in uncovering the truth.”
“You intend to carry it out personally?” Duke Ashoka asked, startled as the implication dawned on him.
“Between Zhao Rong and myself, one of us will do it,” Ye Moling replied calmly.
Few knew that Ashoka Manor harbored two Snake Realm experts—Duke Ashoka himself, and Ye Moling.
Ye Moling had once been the Lord of Mortal Sweeping Manor, and after its destruction, he had been absorbed into Ashoka Manor. Together with Zhao Rong, he served as Deputy Manor Lord, supporting Duke Ashoka in all matters.
Now, with a crisis unfolding and Duke Ashoka nearing the end of his natural lifespan, their situation was dire. He commanded only five Officiators, and the remaining three were already engaged in crucial tasks; none could be reassigned. For the Ritual Offering to proceed, someone had to take action personally.
Duke Ashoka could not die. His death would invite the ravenous woman from the royal family to descend upon Ashoka Manor like a specter hungry for flesh.
Ye Moling knew he could not stop her. Only the Duke’s position and influence could keep her at bay.
Duke Ashoka studied Ye Moling for a long moment, then slowly nodded.
“Regarding Scarlet District, we’ve finally received news of their District Mistress. She’s been severely wounded and will return to the Northern Lands within a few days. Go to Scarlet District, collaborate with them, and investigate the failure of our Ritual Offering in the Northern Lands. And since their Deputy District Mistress will be there as well, you can inquire about Twin Eagle City at the same time.”
“Yes!”
Ye Moling bowed deeply. “I’ll set off immediately.”
“Bai Jiang was on the verge of breaking through to Seven-Vein. He was the one in the Manor with the greatest hope of reaching our realm. Who would have thought he would fall in the Northern Lands just like that? Whether he lives or dies, we must uncover the truth!” Duke Ashoka growled coldly.
“And if it was the work of Shangyang Jiuli?”
Duke Ashoka halted, his expression darkening further.
“Even if it was the Shangyang Family, do not hold back. I’m nearing the end of my life—what is there to fear?”
A glint of icy resolve flickered in Ye Moling’s eyes. Once forced into exile by the Zhen Family, fleeing the Northern Lands in humiliation, he now saw this as his moment to return.
Neither of them mentioned the Martial League. To their eyes, only League Master Qin Wumian was worth acknowledging. The rest were nothing more than dogs—irrelevant and beneath notice.
For those who wielded the destructive might of the Snake Realm, even the pinnacle of Bind Realm—Seven-Vein Level—could do nothing against their protective black snake.
The hallmark of the Snake Realm lay in condensing one’s black membranous energy into serpents that shielded the body. These black snakes, though inanimate, possessed endless regenerative power. Hence their name: the Indestructible Black Snakes.
Different Noble Families, blessed with different Divine Weapons or Devil Blades, naturally manifested varying abilities. Yet any expert who stepped into the Snake Realm would form these Indestructible Black Snakes.
All injuries inflicted upon a Snake Realm expert were instead borne by these black serpents. As long as they endured, the practitioner could not die.
In other words, once one entered the Snake Realm, the body no longer had weak points or vital spots. A clash between Snake Realm experts became a contest of accumulated power and endurance.
For Bind Realm warriors, no matter how advanced, breaking through an Indestructible Black Snake was simply impossible.
The disparity between the two realms was overwhelming. The power of the Snake Realm was not merely stronger—it was an evolved, entirely different force.
That was why Ye Moling could completely disregard Shangyang Jiuli’s Seven-Vein cultivation.
The gulf between them was far too vast.
…………
Northern Lands, Scarlet District.
The umbrella girl staggered into the courtyard, her hair disheveled and her clothes torn. The red umbrella in her hand—once pristine—was riddled with holes, its frame twisted and broken.
Right before the evil jade erupted, she had waited for the Crimson Whale Sect to depart before slipping out of Twin Eagle City, hoping to avoid being noticed by Lu Sheng. But that hesitation had cost her dearly. The explosion had caught her at the edge of its radius, inflicting severe wounds.
Yet she lived.
She shuddered as the memory resurfaced: Ghost Hair, the Officiator, his head smashed repeatedly into the ground until he could no longer resist. Compared to their earlier confrontation, the Lu Sheng she witnessed then no longer seemed human. Had he always possessed such terrifying strength? Or had he broken through only after their previous fight?
She had no way to know. What mattered now was delivering her warning to Ashoka Manor and her District Mistress.
Stumbling, she made her way to the old well in the corner. When she caught sight of her own disheveled reflection floating on the water’s surface, tears burst forth. She collapsed beside the stone rim, sobbing and whimpering.
With the District Mistress absent and most of the subordinates slain in Twin Eagle City, Scarlet District was Scarlet District in name only. Aside from a few stray ghosts wandering under her tenuous control, nothing remained of its former strength.
And those ghosts possessed no intelligence—they drifted, hunted, and killed by instinct alone.
A crushing loneliness settled over her. Surrounded only by dim-witted or mindless ghosts, she thought back to the days when the District Mistress presided over everything. The memory only deepened her grief, and she wept harder.
Eventually, her crying softened, then ceased.
“The losses in Twin Eagle City are… too great. Ashoka Manor will definitely… send men to… investigate. That Lu Sheng… ruined everything… must… kill him!”
Her voice trembled with fear and hatred alike.
She didn’t understand how things had spiraled so disastrously, but she did understand this: unless Ashoka Manor sent stronger reinforcements soon, Scarlet District was nothing more than undefended prey—vulnerable to the Shangyang Family, and to that monstrous cultivator from the Crimson Whale Sect. If word spread that she knew of Lu Sheng’s true strength, she might die before help ever arrived.
“That freak… hid so much… he must have some agenda…” she whispered, staring vacantly at her warped reflection on the surface of the well.
For now, there was nothing she could do except wait for Ashoka Manor’s expert to arrive.
…………
Mountain-Edge City, Lu Manor.
Lu Sheng sat at the head of the hall, occupying the main seat reserved for the family’s most honored member. Beside him were his father, Lu Quanan, along with relatives and long-time family friends.
Tonight’s banquet celebrated the successful transfer of his Eldest Uncle, Lu Anping, from Nine Links City to Mountain-Edge City. Eldest Uncle sat on a seat equal in height to Lu Sheng’s, beaming as he accepted toast after toast from well-wishers.
At the main table, Lu Sheng occupied a seat second only to those of Lu Quanan and Lu Anping.
By now, most of the family had pieced together the truth about his status. Though Lu Quanan had no direct connection to Crimson Whale Sect’s upper echelon, that didn’t stop Lu Sheng’s subordinates from visiting frequently—each time making excuses to “pay respects,” each time revealing just a little more about Lu Sheng’s standing.
After a few such encounters, Lu Quanan finally understood.
His son was no ordinary member of the Crimson Whale Sect—he was someone of considerable weight.
The hall glowed brightly under lantern light. Servant girls and housemen hurried back and forth, serving dish after steaming dish.
At the main table, aside from Lu Quanan and Lu Anping, several Mountain-Edge City officials were seated—men who oversaw matters affecting the Lu Family’s businesses. They had been specially invited to share in the celebration.
Yet their eyes kept drifting toward Lu Sheng, their expressions tight with unease. Only Lu Anping’s frequent toasts prevented the atmosphere from turning unbearably awkward.
Lu Sheng raised his wine cup—not for wine, but for the tea he sipped calmly. He was probably the only person who drank tea from a wine cup.
Since returning home, he had not rushed to break through. Instead, he spent his days cultivating quietly, circulating his Qi to stabilize the Yin-Yang balance within him.
The battle in Twin Eagle City had taken its toll. Detonating a drop of liquefied Qi had placed a great strain on his body. Rest was necessary.
Fortunately, news of his Eldest Uncle’s transfer had arrived during this period of recuperation, and the family had invited him home to attend the celebration.
He had not seen Lu Anping in a long time, which was why he returned to attend the banquet. But his arrival had been sudden, and the atmosphere had grown stiff and uneasy the moment he sat down.
“Oh right, where’s Yingying?” Lu Sheng scanned the hall, but saw no sign of the pregnant Lu Yingying.
At her name, Lu Quanan’s expression darkened. He said nothing.
Eldest Uncle glanced at his younger brother, then let out a strained smile. “She’s in the backyard.”
Lu Sheng could tell immediately that something was wrong, but he chose not to question them here. The strange tension in the hall was already grating on him. He stood up. “I’ll go take a look.”
Whatever mistakes Yingying had made, the child she carried was innocent.
From a nearby table, Eldest Uncle’s son, Lu Hongying, leaned over and whispered, “Brother Sheng, Yiyi’s with her in the back.”
“What exactly happened?” Lu Sheng asked, frowning.
Lu Anping lowered his voice. “That scholar… he just married a wife.”
Lu Sheng froze.
If the scholar had taken a wife, then Yingying—pregnant with his child—could only ever be a concubine.
It didn’t matter how she felt about it, or whether she was willing. The implication was clear.
How could Lu Sheng’s sister become someone’s concubine? If this spread, what would others say of the Lu Family? The sister of the Crimson Whale Sect’s Sect Master, carrying a man’s child, yet relegated to concubinehood?
His rage erupted.
“SCOUNDREL!!”
BAM!!
His palm slammed against the table. The hall echoed with the explosive impact, a deep palm print carved into the wood.
The festive banquet was shattered by his outburst. Silence swallowed the hall.
No one dared meet Lu Sheng’s gaze. That towering figure of muscle, the nearly shaved head, the tyrannical aura, the blade-like eyes—his fury alone was suffocating.
The invited officials trembled uncontrollably, their faces drained of all color. The younger generation, the Second Mistress, Third Mistress, and all the female relatives held their breath, afraid even to move.
Lu Quanan’s face twisted with discomfort, but he remained silent. It was Eldest Uncle, Lu Anping, who slowly rose and gently placed a hand on Lu Sheng’s shoulder.
“Little Sheng, your father and I were furious about this matter as well. But there was nothing we could do. That scholar’s family background is rather powerful…” Eldest Uncle said with a weary sigh.
“Just leave it to me.” A familiar, savage grin tugged at Lu Sheng’s lips. “I’ll handle this personally. I want to see which family dares refuse to show me face.”
From another table, Second Mother Liu Cuiyu quickly stood up. “Little Sheng, this is your Eldest Uncle’s celebration banquet…” she chided sharply.
Realizing he had overshadowed the occasion, Lu Sheng immediately bowed and apologized to his Eldest Uncle. His presence was too overwhelming—he had unintentionally stolen the spotlight on a day meant to honor Lu Anping.
“Doesn’t matter, doesn’t matter. We’re all family,” Eldest Uncle Lu Anping said with a warm smile, waving his hand dismissively. “Little Sheng, if you’re not too busy, there’s a gathering later. Spend some time with your younger brothers and sisters. In the days to come, they’ll be relying on you.”
“That’s not a problem at all.” Lu Sheng nodded. “I’ll go check on Yingying and Yiyi first.” He pushed back his chair and rose.
“I’m coming too!” Zhang Xiuxiu suddenly announced, standing beside Lu Tianyang before hurrying after Lu Sheng.
A few of the younger cousins followed as well.
Lu Sheng was now the pillar of the Lu Family; naturally, everyone wanted to stay close to him.
Meanwhile, the older generation gravitated toward Lu Quanan instead. Given their seniority, directly currying favor with Lu Sheng would be inappropriate, but no one would fault them for showing respect to his father. After all, a son would never disown his father.
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