The Mirror Master

Luo Qing left first with Xiaodie, heading for Lu Bai’s residence.

On the way, she had Xiaodie tell her what had happened over the last few days.

The two brothers, Luo Ben and Luo Xiao, pestered their older sister, tagging along the entire way, wanting to hear about Lu Bai as well.

They also wanted to thank Lu Bai in person, since they hadn’t gotten the chance when he left with County Captain Li Tianxing just now.

Back in the main hall.

After the younger generation had left, Luo Hongyuan asked, "Father, are you having Lu Bai move in because you value his connection with Li Tianxing?"

Luo Yunxuan said, "From what Xiaoxiao and the others described, it was their first meeting. At most, Li Tianxing admires Lu Bai. Their statuses and cultivation levels are worlds apart; it’s unlikely any real friendship will develop."

"That’s a secondary concern."

Luo Tianxiong shook his head. "What I value more is the boy himself, Lu Bai."

Luo Mingzhao nodded in agreement. "Regardless of whether it was he or Li Yue’er who killed Zhao Wuji and the others, his fight at Bluestone Academy was enough to reveal the boy’s talent."

"He’s only at the Root Bone Stage, yet he can lift an eight-hundred-jin stone lock with one hand and smash people with it."

Luo Tianxiong looked at Luo Mingzhao and sighed. "Mingzhao, Xiaoben was born with unusually strong root bones, far beyond an ordinary person’s, but even he is nowhere near that level."

"But he still dropped out of the academy, after all,"

Luo Hongyuan said. "No matter how great his talent for the Martial Dao, without a suitable Cultivation Technique or a renowned master to guide him, I’m afraid his achievements will be limited."

Luo Tianxiong already had a plan. "At my age, my Blood Qi is in steady decline. It’s impossible for me to break through to the Innate Realm, even if I continue to cultivate. From now on, I will guide his training.

However, we need to find a suitable Inner Power Heart Method for him. Giving him the same Yellow Tier Technique we practice would be a complete waste of his talent. It would be best if we could find a Profound Tier Inner Strength technique!"

"Profound Tier Techniques aren’t easy to find."

Luo Mingzhao mused, "Truthfully, with his talent, he should be able to reach the Innate Realm even with a Yellow Tier Technique."

"A Yellow Tier Technique has a low ceiling, and the cultivation speed is slow. I believe that with this boy’s talent, if he is properly nurtured, he could even have a chance to step into the Golden Core Realm in the future!"

Luo Tianxiong rose to his feet, his voice slow and filled with anticipation. "The truth is, our family’s current predicament stems from the lack of a true Martial Arts Expert. Mingzhao and I are only at the Innate Realm. If our Luo Family produced a True Master Golden Core, would the Sun Family still dare to covet that Profound Iron Ore mine?"

"With a True Master Golden Core watching over us, our Luo Family would be secure for at least two hundred years!"

The three brothers all nodded.

He had a point.

But soon, Luo Hongyuan felt something was off. He couldn’t help but ask, "Father, even if you expect Lu Bai to reach the Golden Core Realm, what does that have to do with our Luo Family? He’s not one of us."

"AHEM, AHEM!"

Luo Tianxiong quickly coughed twice to conceal his thoughts. "Isn’t he moving in? The boy values relationships and loyalty. We just need to treat him well."

---

「Liuxi Town.」

It was just past noon, and the scorching sun hung high in the sky.

A horse-drawn carriage ambled over, its driver hunched over with dark skin and cold eyes. His hands, gripping the reins, were covered in calluses.

The carriage drove down the street and stopped in front of a tavern.

It was the Drunken Fragrance Inn, originally operated by the Zhou Family.

After the incident with the Zhou Family, which resulted in a hundred or so deaths, the remaining family members were all thrown into prison. The Drunken Fragrance Inn had been temporarily taken over by the Government Office and was still in business.

The driver didn’t get out.

A corner of the curtain on the carriage’s side window was quietly lifted.

Half a face appeared in the gap.

Perhaps because it was hidden in the darkness of the carriage, the face’s complexion seemed unnaturally pale.

The pair of eyes peeking through the curtain stared silently at the sealed-off Zhou Family estate in the distance.

As the blazing sunlight shone down, a faint, eerie green glint appeared in those eyes.

"Sister, you said you wanted to retreat from the world, to live a pious life of abstinence and prayer, to wash away your sins and live peacefully like a commoner. But in the end, you still met such a fate..."

A woman’s soft murmur, laced with sorrow, came from inside the carriage.

After a while, pedestrians began to cast curious glances their way.

An attendant from the Drunken Fragrance Inn also came out to look several times.

After all, a carriage was parked at the entrance, but no one was getting out. They weren’t stopping for a meal, nor were they staying the night. It was rather odd.

The driver said in a low voice, "My Lady, we should go."

The curtain fell.

The carriage turned around and headed out of town.

Upon reaching the Chen Martial Arts Hall, the carriage curtain was lifted once more. The woman inside gave the building a long, hard look, a cold sneer touching her lips.

"The Chen Martial Arts Hall... Heh. Very good. Very good."

Hearing the voice from inside, the driver asked, "Was it that Chen Tieshan’s doing?"

"No."

The woman said, "That night, my sister used the Paper Effigy Hex. Chen Tieshan could barely fend for himself, so he wasn’t in any position to cause her trouble. Someone else was responsible for her death."

"Then who could it be?"

The driver frowned. "I’ve made inquiries. There aren’t supposed to be any experts in Liuxi Town."

The woman said, "Even if Chen Tieshan didn’t do it, he’s still connected to this affair. He must know something.

Besides, since my sister cast her spell on him, she must have had her reasons.

Now that she is dead, I will finish her business for her."

After a pause, the woman asked, "A mother and son from the Lu Family survived?"

The driver replied, "Yes. I hear they went to Bluestone City."

"Hah..."

The woman laughed. "How perfect."

After a moment, the driver added, "There’s also the Luo Family of Bluestone City. If that Luo Qing hadn’t intervened and severed the arm of a Zhou Family guard, the Zhou Family might not have been vulnerable to attack that night."

"The Luo Family..."

The woman’s voice was haunting. "It doesn’t matter who. Anyone connected to this will accompany my sister to her grave!"

---

"Thank you, Lord Li."

Lu Bai offered his thanks as they left Bluestone Academy.

He said the words, but he didn’t really mean it. ’This guy showed up out of nowhere and nearly stopped me from dropping out.’

"Do you know who I am?"

Li Tianxing asked, looking at Lu Bai with a faint, unreadable smile.

The question clearly wasn’t about his name or identity.

Lu Bai asked tentatively, "Daoist Li Yue’er and Lord Li... are you...?"

"Clever boy. Yue’er is my niece."

Li Tianxing smiled faintly. "You’re the one who saved her life. I actually came here today to thank you on her behalf."

Lu Bai had already guessed it was related to Li Yue’er when he heard Li Tianxing bring it up at Bluestone Academy.

Back then, the only people who had seen him in action were Xiaodie and Li Yue’er.

And the two of them shared the same surname.

After entering the city, Li Yue’er had told him she was going to visit an elder in her family. That must have been Li Tianxing.

"You’re too kind, Lord Li," Lu Bai said politely.

"Yue’er has nothing but praise for you. She said you have the air of an ancient knight—righteous, extraordinarily courageous, and unconcerned with empty fame. At first, I didn’t believe it. I thought she’d been deceived."

Li Tianxing continued, "But I see now that Yue’er wasn’t wrong about you. So many days have passed, and you really haven’t come to the Government Office to report the incident."

Lu Bai was speechless.

’I just wanted to keep a low profile because I’m not strong enough yet.’

Li Tianxing added, "However, Yue’er also mentioned that you’re in dire need of money, so she insisted that I give you the bounty for the incident."

The truth was, the image of Lu Bai in the ruined temple—shirtless, with his butt in the air as he went about looting the corpses—had left a very deep impression on Li Yue’er.

"How much money?"

"Five hundred taels."

’That much?!’

Lu Bai was stunned.

’You should have said so sooner!’

’If I’d known it was five hundred taels, I would have gone to collect the reward the day I arrived in the city...’

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