Just as the Luo Family was about to leave the Drunken Flower House, Sun Xuan called out to Luo Tianxiong again. "Brother Luo, my apologies for having you all come here for nothing.
But then again, my Sun Family are business people. There’s nothing that can’t be negotiated.
As long as you’re willing to sit down and talk, Brother Luo, the Luo Family can have their pick of one of those two Profound Tier Inner Strength manuals. That is the sincerity of my Sun Family."
"I wouldn’t say we’re leaving completely empty-handed."
Luo Tianxiong gave a faint smile. "After all, Lu Bai did get to study the *Dragon Elephant Skill* for the time it takes half an incense stick to burn."
At his words, many of the people present once again had strange expressions on their faces.
"HAHAHAHA!"
Sun Xuan suddenly burst into laughter. "Brother Luo, there’s something I forgot to tell you. The *Dragon Elephant Skill* is extremely difficult to cultivate. It doesn’t matter how high your comprehension is."
"What do you mean by that?"
Luo Tianxiong could tell there was a hidden meaning in Sun Xuan’s words.
Sun Xuan slowly explained, "To master the *Dragon Elephant Skill*, one must possess something from an Ancient True Dragon and a Giant Elephant—either their blood or an Inner Core. This must then be refined into a Spirit Pill containing the Blood Qi of an Ancient True Dragon Giant Elephant. Only then can the skill be learned."
Luo Tianxiong’s gaze swept across the faces of the crowd. Seeing their expressions, he knew Sun Xuan wasn’t lying and couldn’t help but sigh internally.
’Never mind whether Ancient True Dragons and Giant Elephants still exist.’
’Even if they did, who could possibly obtain something from such terrifying creatures?’
’Putting this Celestial Tier Inner Strength manual up for auction was a trap from the very beginning!’
Luo Hongyuan and the others looked at Lu Bai, secretly shaking their heads.
It was clear now that the thousand gold Lu Bai had spent was a complete waste.
They had just tried to persuade him, but he wouldn’t listen, and now he had suffered a huge loss.
"Boss Jin, why didn’t you say so earlier!"
Luo Ben, with his straightforward temper, felt that Lu Bai had been tricked. Unable to hold back, he questioned him in public.
Second Master Jin was unconcerned, merely saying with a placid smile, "My young friend, I repeatedly emphasized that the *Dragon Elephant Skill* is very difficult to cultivate."
"Let’s go."
Luo Tianxiong called out. Lingering here and dwelling on the matter would only make them a laughingstock.
The group left the Drunken Flower House and headed home.
Luo Xiao was a little confused. "Grandfather, it’s one thing for the Sun Family to intentionally hide this, but I remember a few other families have also won the auction for the *Dragon Elephant Skill*. They should know it’s impossible to master, so why didn’t anyone warn us?"
Luo Tianxiong said, "The first family to win the *Dragon Elephant Skill* spent tens of thousands of gold and had to suffer the loss in silence. If they had gone around publicizing the matter, they would have only gotten to vent some frustration.
If they chose to keep quiet, others would continue to fall into the same trap.
The more people who are duped, the more balanced they feel inside."
Luo Ben couldn’t help but complain, "These people are horrible!"
Luo Qing noticed Lu Bai’s silence on the way back and said, "It’s not so bad. Compared to those other families, Xiaolu only lost a thousand gold. It’s not like he was completely swindled."
Luo Hongyuan added, "Luckily, Second Master Jin was reasonable and made an exception for him, allowing him to view it for the time it takes half an incense stick to burn."
Luo Tianxiong seemed to think of something. He turned back to Lu Bai and comforted him, "Xiaolu, don’t worry about it too much. We didn’t manage to get a Profound Tier Inner Strength manual this time, but I’ll teach you the *Minor Circulation Skill* later. You can cultivate that first and break through to the Inner Strength Realm.
If we come across another Profound Tier Inner Strength manual in the future, it won’t be too late to buy it then."
"Thank you, Senior Luo."
Lu Bai expressed his thanks.
Luo Ben said, "Grandfather, the Sun Family is too despicable! They ruined Brother Xiaolu’s reputation in front of so many people. Can’t we find a chance to have Lord Li come forward and verify the truth?"
"That won’t be easy. Even if he did step forward, it would be impossible to silence all the wagging tongues."
Luo Tianxiong shook his head. "Everyone is the same. They’re more inclined to believe what they want to believe."
Luo Mingzhao said, "This move by the Sun Family is an open conspiracy. There’s no way around it.
If Xiaolu doesn’t accept the challenge, he’ll surely attract criticism, confirming the rumors that he’s a fraud. By tomorrow, it will have spread throughout the entire city. If he does accept, Sun Bohan can take the opportunity to avenge his brother and restore their family’s honor."
Luo Xiao asked, "What if we go to Danding Temple and ask that Daoist Li to step in?"
"Nonsense."
Luo Hongyuan frowned. "Daoist Yu of Danding Temple just died not long ago. Are we really going to trouble Daoist Li to come down the mountain again for such a trivial matter? We’d be lucky not to get kicked out."
In truth, among the members of the Luo Family, only Luo Qing and her brothers believed in Lu Bai.
That’s why the brothers Luo Ben and Luo Xiao were so adamant about seeking justice for him.
"This is likely just the Sun Family’s opening move. Be careful, they probably have more tricks up their sleeve."
Luo Tianxiong said in a low voice, "For the next few days, tell our people to be careful. Assign more men to keep an eye on things, and make sure there are no more accidents at the three mines."
Luo Hongyuan and his two brothers quickly agreed.
-----------------
After returning to the Luo residence, everyone went to their rooms to rest.
Having just acquired the *Dragon Elephant Skill*, Lu Bai wasn’t the least bit sleepy. He took Black Dog and left the Luo residence to wander around the city.
After searching for two hours, he still came up with nothing.
’Looks like I’ll have to search outside the city.’
’But the city gates are closed now, so I can’t get out.’
’And even if I did leave the city, without any direction or clues, trying to find Evil Spirits would be like finding a needle in a haystack. The chances are slim; I’d have to rely on sheer luck.’
Just as Luo Tianxiong had predicted, by the next day, the news from the Drunken Flower House had indeed spread throughout Bluestone City.
"It’s a reversal, a total reversal! That Lu Bai isn’t some Black Hand Young Hero at all! He’s just got a ’black hand’, he’s no hero!"
"No wonder people call him Lu Hei. Not only are his methods ruthless, his heart is black, too."
"I knew something was off about him from the start. A teenager, barely in the Root Bone Stage, how capable could he be? And they hailed him as some ’Young Hero’? Someone who was expelled from Bluestone Academy can’t be a good person."
"Exactly. Sun Bohan tested him and exposed him for what he is."
The rumors about Lu Bai being a fraud who deceived the world for fame spread like wildfire.
One day, Lu Bai’s fame was skyrocketing throughout the city, and everyone was singing his praises.
The next, the backlash was swift. His reputation was in tatters, and he was despised by nearly everyone.
Luo Tianxiong had anticipated this. He told Lu Bai to lie low at home for a few days and avoid the trouble.
This kind of gossip would only last ten days to half a month.
As soon as some other sensational news broke, this incident would quickly be buried.
After a year or so, people would gradually stop talking about it.
Of course, recovering his reputation would be nearly impossible.
However, Luo Tianxiong never expected that the major event that would overshadow Lu Bai’s scandal would happen so soon.
And that it would happen to the Luo Family itself.
Three days after the auction at the Drunken Flower House.
Lu Bai found it quite peaceful staying at home.
However, he noticed that something seemed to have happened to the Luo Family in the past two days, as people were frequently coming and going.
Luo Qing and her brothers hadn’t come to see him either.
The previous night, just before the city gates closed, Luo Tianxiong had even rushed out of the city with a large group of people.
Since he was currently living with the Luo Family, he felt it wasn’t right to turn a blind eye.
That afternoon, Lu Bai headed toward the Luo Family’s main hall.
Just as he was approaching the hall, he ran into the two brothers, Luo Ben and Luo Xiao, returning from outside.
Both of them were black and blue, clearly having just been in a fight.
"What happened?"
Lu Bai asked.
"That bunch from the Sun Family at the academy were slandering you. I couldn’t stand listening to it, so I fought them."
Luo Ben grinned. "Brother Xiaolu, I’m not afraid of them. It’s nothing."
Lu Bai looked into the main hall, where the members of the Luo Family all wore grave expressions, seemingly discussing something.
"What’s wrong with the Luo Family?"
Lu Bai asked.
Hearing this, a flicker of fear crossed the faces of both Luo Ben and Luo Xiao.
After a moment’s hesitation, Luo Xiao whispered, "The family’s mines are haunted."
Lu Bai’s eyes lit up.
’Right up my alley.’
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