After leaving the hospital, Lu Zhentong headed to the meeting place he’d arranged with his Master, the Demonic Master.
The reason his family had gone through so much trouble, enduring all that pressure to push the project forward, was as expected: they had uncovered something “remarkable” that allowed them to break the deadlock. Of course, this came with guidance from an expert.
And as for who that expert was, there was no doubt.
A few days ago, when Lu Zhentong accepted the earring from his Master—the very same earring he’d once disregarded as worthless—his face drained of color. He instinctively knew that even his cheap Master couldn’t handle this thing! The earring really was rather sinister.
But if you didn’t know its origins and couldn’t fully control it, what good did its strange power do? That was why he’d sold the earring for a good price back then... Now that his Master foisted it off on him again, no matter how much Master explained, it was obvious that he couldn’t handle it either.
His Master’s actions confirmed what Lu Zhentong had always believed about the earring: if even his Master couldn’t rein it in, neither could he! He did have a high opinion of himself, but he wasn’t arrogant enough to sit down on a ticking bomb knowingly.
Luckily, his Master still thought he was useful and wasn’t indifferent to whether he lived or died. He kept the earring with him and explained a grand plan.
It turned out that the bare minimum his Master wanted was a share of the Yunling Grass and its cultivation method. The higher target, naturally, was to completely overthrow the Gu Martial Association! Among the most influential sects in Hua Country, aside from the rare few who only ever followed the Association’s lead, most either supported his Master or watched from the sidelines, unwilling to take sides. His Master even had external reinforcements.
The only thing to be cautious about was that Master seemed to have offended Cheng Jingzhou as well.
It really was the case that “he had also” caused offense.
Honestly, Lu Zhentong regretted now that he’d been so ruthless with Lu Jiuxiao years ago. If only he’d known Lu Jiuxiao’s father was a Divine Doctor, and that Lu Jiuxiao couldn’t care less about the Lu family’s reputation, would it have cost him anything to flatter Lu Jiuxiao a little?
The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. His resentment even swept up Old Master, who had concealed the truth, even though he suspected the old man might never recover from his illness after this.
Lu Zhentong pinched the earring in his pocket, thinking to himself: if the selfish, ruthless old man became a stepping stone to his own advancement, perhaps he could forgive him.
When he met his Master, they confirmed the plan for what to do next. Then he asked, “Can that ruin lure Cheng Jingzhou and Lu Jiuxiao there, too?” He added, “Lin Baiming set my family up because of a personal grudge, but I hear it was also at the instigation of Cheng Jingzhou… My old man is determined to drag Lu Jiuxiao in. Later, the authorities really did question Lu Jiuxiao, but afterward, he just went about his life as usual. It seems Cheng Jingzhou is quite a force to be reckoned with.”
The Demonic Master laughed. “Who would want to offend a Divine Doctor who can cure anything with one touch?” He didn’t hide that he, too, had suffered greatly at Cheng Jingzhou’s hands. “When he made his move, even I couldn’t react in time.”
Lu Zhentong, knowing well his Master’s combat power, was shocked. “He’s that strong?”
“He’s unbeatable one-on-one,” the Demonic Master tapped the table. “Send some medicine recipes his way. He should be interested.”
Meanwhile, on Qin Jingzhou’s side, nothing could shake his routine: he saw three patients a day, not counting follow-ups. Over these days, he’d managed to completely cure at least fifty people.
All of these people were either wealthy, powerful, or both. Most were well-connected, and now, having recovered their health, they were eager to show their gratitude by making connections with Qin Jingzhou. As a result, they’d rush to tip him off about any news as soon as they heard it.
By the time his silly son could do pull-ups dangling from the chandelier, an old client had reached out with a message: there might be a recipe in that much-discussed ruin that could help him.
The Lu family’s construction company had just happened to unearth a former sect’s villa beneath a plot of land that had lain untouched for years. It was clearly orchestrated.
But so what if it was? Gu martial masters weren’t fools, but from what had already come to light, it was enough to tempt old masters whose lifespans were nearly up.
Advancing to Innate in this world almost always required a pill or magic potion made from Yunling Grass. Only rare prodigies could do it on their own—one, maybe two in a generation.
And Yunling Grass remained the main or a critical supplementary ingredient for every known Yan Shou Pill or magic elixir for extending life… What’s more, as the material richest in spiritual energy in the world, it was key for numerous life-saving medicines.
As for the Association—well, more specifically, its upper ranks—they had constricted the supply of Yunling Grass and thus made many enemies, even among their own.
These upper ranks weren’t fools; they knew their policies had roused widespread anger, and the resentment kept building. There might be no easy way out when the critical moment came… The old Innates and postnatal experts in the Association had once believed that “after I’m gone, who cares what happens,” but the Demonic Master’s drive and organizational skills surpassed all expectations. According to reports from Spies in each sect, the Demonic Master was mobilizing far more people than anticipated. The Association couldn’t possibly cope alone.
Now they were caught riding a tiger: they couldn’t just release Yunling Grass into circulation. If they did, how would they get the Yan Shou Pills they needed to survive?
It was then that the ruins “suddenly emerged.” Even though the Association’s upper ranks suspected a trap, they still went to check it out—after all, it might truly improve the situation.
After contacting Old Master Lu, the Association sent in a squad to investigate, and in buildings resembling old staff dorms, they found quite a few cultivation notebooks…
As mentioned, this sect had unique expertise in pills and spiritual plant cultivation, so the disciples’ cultivation notes were extremely valuable. If one included a way to boost Yunling Grass yields, the Association’s crisis could end overnight.
Qin Jingzhou read through hundreds of private messages on the app, then smiled and commented, “The Demonic Master is betting everything this time.”
Lu Jiuxiao interjected, utterly nonchalant, “So next up, some rare pill formula will come to light. Dad, he wants you to take the bait so he can catch everyone at once.”
Qin Er said, “He wants to seize your inheritance, Uncle Cheng. He’s set on it. I honestly can’t tell whether the Demonic Master is more eager for the Yunling Grass or for your legacy.”
Qin Jingzhou nodded, “You’re spot on.”
Clamoring for Yunling Grass, overturning the Association, and becoming the top Gu martial figure in Hua Country—all of that was just surface. After reading the app’s high-credibility leaks, Qin Jingzhou was pretty sure the Demonic Master planned to sacrifice the earring, Lu Zhentong, Lu Jiuxiao, and Gu Su, the three Fate’s Sons, plus the life force of any postnatal and innate masters present, in an attempt at transcendence.
The Demonic Master was shooting for the stars this time.
Perhaps that slap all those days ago was the push he needed.
But it didn’t matter. Qin Jingzhou would clean up the mess when the time came. He looked at his silly son. “You have to win.”
Lu Jiuxiao was shocked. “What? My destined showdown with Lu Zhentong is coming so soon?” After a pause, he asked, “If I lose, does that mean I’ll be stuck at the postnatal stage forever?”
Qin Jingzhou answered, “Yes.”
Lu Jiuxiao let out a howl, leapt off the chandelier, and bolted straight to his room. “I’m going to go cultivate.”
That evening, as they were about to eat, a haggard-looking Lin Baiming invited himself in.
He got straight to the point. “I advanced, but this is where I stop, for this life.”
Qin Jingzhou sent Lu Jiuxiao to pour tea. Watching his son fill a cup for both him and Lin Baiming, he lifted the steaming tea. “Let’s use tea in place of wine, and drink a toast to your father.”
Lin Baiming gave a bitter smile. “You saw through it, just as I thought you would. My father dispersed his own cultivation to pass it to me. He even cleared out the demonic energy lodged in Xuan Wei’s dantian… Though his lifespan is now short, and he can no longer fight at full strength, he chose to ensure the future for me and Xuan Wei. Still, I…”
Qin Jingzhou patted Lin Baiming on the shoulder. “You’ve faced some criticism in the Association lately for going after the Lu family, haven’t you? But without that, Lu Zhentong wouldn’t be desperate enough to cooperate with the Demonic Master. And your old man’s greatest wish is for the Association not to decline during your stewardship… Who knows, you might even end up better off.”
Lin Baiming’s eyes lit up. “Really?”
Don’t be fooled by the fact that Cheng Jingzhou had only “come out of retirement” less than a year ago. Lin Baiming believed the man’s strength and network already far surpassed his own. He smacked his forehead. “You know my dad can’t control a lot because so many of those old-timers in the Association are stronger and have deeper roots… I’m not even as good as my dad!”
Qin Jingzhou smiled. “Perfect time to fight for fame in one battle.”
A month and a half later, the ruins made headlines again: an ancient Dan Sect’s herb field was found, complete with its matching pill furnace.
Qin Jingzhou looked at the low-resolution photos his “gossip grapevine” sent him. “Honestly, if I were just an Innate Divine Doctor, I’d absolutely fight for that pill furnace.” He pointed at a few spiritual runes in the image and specifically explained to Lu Jiuxiao and the others. “This pill furnace doesn’t really match the rest of the ruins. The Demonic Master is fishing with his best bait, worried even the pill recipes might not tempt me enough.”
Lu Jiuxiao asked, “So you want both the recipes and the pill furnace?”
Qin Jingzhou ruffled his silly son’s head. “That’s right.”
Then, Qin Jingzhou openly posted on the app, announcing he was going to the ruins and would take at least a day off.
The Demonic Master saw the post and hurried to put his plans in motion.
During this period, Lu Zhentong carried the earring everywhere and met with many people. He harvested a torrent of negative emotions, and while the earring basked in the efficiency, it completely lacked the ability to digest it quickly.
Once enough negative emotion built up, it would all explode at once. Even if it didn’t utterly corrupt Cheng Jingzhou, it could at least seriously reduce his fighting ability.
When Qin Jingzhou and Lin Baiming both appeared at the entrance to the ruins with their families in tow, they “just so happened” to see Lu Zhentong and Gu Su holding hands, passing through the stone gate. Gu Su’s eyes were vacant, her mind obviously not her own.
Xuan Wei frowned. “I have demonic energy in my dantian, so I still have some awareness most of the time. Gu Su seems to have demonic energy in her brain. By rights…” As a former magic path martial artist, the young woman was no novice. “She’s a Fate’s Son. She shouldn’t fall this easily. She was even planning to settle down in the Association.”
Qin Jingzhou shoved his silly son forward. “Time to play hero and save the beauty. Off you go.”
Caught off guard, Lu Jiuxiao was shoved and sent flying, tracing an arc through the air, landing with precision—right on Lu Zhentong’s head.
Gu Su remained motionless, her gaze empty.
Lu Zhentong, for a moment, forgot the Demonic Master’s instructions to lure the enemy deep inside. Overcome with uncontrollable rage, he prematurely ignited the spiritual runes carved on his body. His fate erupted, and then Gu Su’s fate, and part of Lu Jiuxiao’s fate, all at once surged toward the earring in his pocket.
The earring adored Fate’s Sons, but when three came together, it split open instantly. All the accumulated negative emotion burst forth in a torrent. As it swept over Lu Zhentong and Gu Su, it followed hidden runes on the ground and roared toward Qin Jingzhou.
Seeing this, Lin Baiming leapt to shield Qin Jingzhou.
Qin Jingzhou easily pushed him aside, allowing the hurricane of negative emotion to engulf him.
Lu Jiuxiao knocked Lu Zhentong out with a punch, then screamed, grief-stricken, “Dad!”