The Overlord of Puluo

Lu Dongliang of the Lu Family went alone to the third floor of Qianyue Restaurant.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone present, Lu Dongliang took off his suit jacket and hooked a finger at Qiu Zhiheng, signaling him to come take it. This was not something Qiu Zhiheng needed to do, but since Lu Dongliang had motioned for him to do it, he had no choice but to obey and quickly took the jacket.

Truth be told, Qiu Zhiheng still had not recovered from the shock of seeing Lu Dongliang again. Everyone present was equally stunned. None of them knew where Lu Dongliang had suddenly appeared from.

Duan Shaoxia, Lu Dongliang’s wife, stood up with tears in her eyes and said, ”Dongliang, you’re back, you’re back—”

Lu Dongliang pressed his hand downward, indicating for her not to speak.

Duan Shaoxia noticed that Lu Dongliang was missing a tooth and had scars on his wrist, but she did not ask about them. In front of outsiders, she cared very much about preserving Lu Dongliang’s dignity.

Lu Dongliang focused his gaze on He Yuxiu’s face.

He Yuxiu looked at Lu Dongliang and said, ”You’re still alive?”

Lu Dongliang smiled. ”You want me dead that badly? Too bad you didn’t have the skills to kill me.”

He Yuxiu furrowed her neat, sword-like eyebrows. ”Let’s get this straight. It’s your younger brother who lacked the skills. He’s the one who tried to kill you.”

”How shameless,” Lu Dongliang spat. ”If Dongjun hadn’t been there, I really would have died at your hands that night. He Yuxiu, I never expected you to be this vicious. You actually worked with Zhuo Yuling to plot against me.”

Everyone present was stunned. This did not match the version of events they had heard at all.

He Cunshou, an elder of the He Family and He Yuxiu’s fourth uncle, shifted slightly. He was a level-seven Moralism Cultivator, and he had activated his ability. Anyone who lied before him now would suffer heavy injuries, even a level-nine cultivator like Lu Dongliang.

He Yuxiu stood up and said, ”Lu Dongliang, make yourself fucking clear. Who the fuck worked with Zhuo Yuling? Who plotted against you?”

”That night in my house, the first ones to make a move... Wasn’t it you and Zhuo Yuling?”

Lu Dongliang’s words didn’t trigger a reaction from He Cunshou’s ability. That meant what Lu Dongliang said was the truth.

He Cunshou shifted her gaze to He Yuxiu.

He Yuxiu nodded and said, ”I did attack you, but I never meant to kill you.”

This was not a lie either.

Lu Dongliang nodded. ”You didn’t intend to kill me. The one who intended to kill me was Zhuo Yuling!”

This, too, was not a lie.

He Yuxiu snapped, ”I don’t know what those two were thinking, but I’m not like them. I didn’t try to kill you!”

The two of them went back and forth. He Yuxiu repeatedly insisted she had not tried to kill him that night.

Lu Dongliang repeatedly insisted that He Yuxiu had been the one to strike first that night.

Both of them were stating the truth, yet they argued for a long time until He Cunshou could no longer endure it. The old man was over seventy, and he had kept his level-seven ability active the whole time. Listening to the two of them shout on and on left him drenched in cold sweat.

”Both of you, quiet down for a moment, and let me speak,” He Cunshou said. He looked first at He Yuxiu. ”Xiu, be honest with your fourth uncle. That night, did you attack Dongliang?”

”Yes, I did,” He Yuxiu admitted without hesitation.

He Cunshou frowned, then he turned to Lu Dongliang. ”Dongliang, our Jiaqing was injured by your daughter. You promised you’d give us an explanation. Where is your daughter now?”

Lu Dongliang replied, ”I don’t know where she is.”

Truth, He Cunshou thought.

After asking the two key questions, He Cunshou deactivated his ability, wiped the sweat from his brow, and said to He Yuxiu, ”Xiu, you went to his house and injured him. You were in the wrong. Apologize to Dongliang first.”

He Yuxiu replied angrily, ”I didn’t go there with the intention to attack him. I did it out of self-defence. You can’t blame me for that!”

”You foolish child!” He Cunshou frowned. ”Dongliang, you know Xiu has a bad temper. Don’t take it personally. But we still need clarity about what happened to Jiaqing. When can you give us an explanation about that?”

Lu Dongliang looked at He Yuxiu and let out a cold laugh. ”You’ll have to ask your family’s eldest daughter.”

He Yuxiu exploded, ”Nonsense. Why ask me? I have nothing to do with Zhuo Yuling or Lu Xiaolan!”

Seeing them ready to argue again, He Cunshou let out a helpless laugh. ”I’m old, I can’t control these youngsters anymore. Elder Brother Lu, what do you think about this matter?”

The Lu Family had also brought an elder—Lu Dongliang’s eldest uncle, Lu Maoxian.

Lu Maoxian was over eighty. He could hardly keep his eyes open. He casually muttered, ”Let the youngsters decide, let the youngsters decide.”

At that, He Cunshou gave up on intervening and fell silent.

Lu Dongliang looked around at the members of the He Family and said, ”I will continue searching for the whereabouts of Zhuo Yuling and Lu Xiaolan. Sooner or later, I will give you an explanation. While I’m away from home, everything will be handled by Dongjun. If any of you dare lay a hand on him again, don’t blame me for showing no mercy.”

Lu Dongliang snatched his suit jacket from Qiu Zhiheng, turned, and walked out.

Duan Shaoxia stood up and hurried after him. ”Dongliang, where are you going? I’ll go with you!”

Lu Dongliang turned back abruptly and pushed Duan Shaoxia away. ”Don’t follow me. None of you follow me. I can’t trust anyone right now!”

Duan Shaoxia froze, unable to believe he would say such a thing to her. Hatred stirred within her, and her eyes turned bloodshot.

Lu Dongliang did not notice. He swept a glance over the rest of the room and walked away.

The entire room was stunned. He Yuxiu cursed repeatedly, while Duan Shaoxia burst into loud sobs. He Cunshou sensed something was wrong, but this was not the time to ask.

Several important members of the Lu Family also felt something was off. They exchanged probing looks but said nothing.

He Yuxiu murmured under her breath, ”Was that even fucking Lu Dongliang?”

More than one person had doubts about that, yet no one spoke up.

The members of the Lu Family said nothing because if they were wrong, the consequences would be serious.

The members of the He Family also said nothing. They simply watched quietly. After all, they weren’t part of the Lu Family. They were just watching the drama; there was no need for them to worry about anything.

***

”Lu Dongliang” returned to Lu Dongjun’s residence and slipped silently into Lu Dongjun’s bedroom. Facing the mirror, he peeled off the fake skin from his face. Lu Dongjun wore a satisfied smile, believing his performance as Lu Dongliang had been flawless.

He took the false tooth out of the lion’s mouth and placed it into his. Soon after, his cheeks were twitching. He was going to have a persistent toothache for the next three days. This was the price of using the lion.

***

Third Hospital, Yuezhou Province.

Still inside a patient room, He Jiaqing wasn’t smiling anymore.

A familiar voice spoke into his ear. ”Lu Dongliang went to Qianyue Restaurant for the banquet and confronted your eldest aunt.”

Lu Dongliang returned like nothing happened...?

Is Lu Dongliang really still alive?

The voice asked, ”Can you see anything? How did Lu Dongliang survive?”

He Jiaqing shook his head and said, ”I can’t see anything at all. It’s all blurry. Seems like it’s a formidable power. Are you sure that person is really Lu Dongliang?”

”I’ll go check,” the voice replied.

”Don’t go. You can’t expose yourself yet. If that person really is Lu Dongliang, you must be extremely cautious. Don’t publish this news yet. Wait for me to get back to you on this. For now, help me deliver a letter. I’ll find someone to investigate.”

He Jiaqing’s caregiver was fast asleep beside his bed, so He Jiaqing sat up. On the bed, his figure flickered for a split second, then a pen, an envelope, and a sheet of paper appeared in his hand.

He had taken the items from the stationery shop downstairs. The shop owner had not seen anyone enter the shop and had no idea anything had even happened.

He Jiaqing quickly wrote a letter, sealed it inside the envelope with a lick, and attached a stamp. Then he rubbed the envelope between his hands for a moment.

A breeze blew past, and the envelope vanished.

The caregiver jolted awake and looked up at He Jiaqing. He Jiaqing was still lying on the bed, as motionless as he had been before.

***

In the Lu Family’s main residence, Qiu Zhiheng sat inside a small house in the front courtyard without saying a word.

He was a notable figure within the Lu Family, but ultimately, he was still a servant. If it were anywhere else, it would be unimaginable for a servant to have a house of his own in the main residence of the family he served.

Qiu Zhiheng had been given this special treatment because he had followed Lu Dongliang since the age of ten, for a total of twenty-eight years. That had granted him a status higher than many members of the Lu Family.

However, it seemed that he would not be able to keep that status. It had not been a big deal for Qiu Zhiheng to hold Lu Dongliang’s jacket in front of everyone at the banquet. After all, that was something a steward was supposed to do. But Lu Dongliang had shown him not the slightest bit of trust. Lu Dongliang had not sent any word for days and had not informed him in advance before appearing at the banquet. Worse still, Lu Dongliang had even forbidden him from leaving the banquet with him. Qiu Zhiheng simply could not accept that.

Knock, knock, knock!

Someone knocked on Qiu Zhiheng’s door, and he told them to come in. Large support hook Zuo Wugang entered the house.

”Chief Qiu, I brought you a jar of wine. I want to have a drink with you.”

Qiu Zhiheng froze. He saw the look in Zuo Wugang’s eyes and understood the reason behind this drink. ”You’re leaving?”

Zuo Wugang nodded. ”I want to leave. But that still depends on your word.”

”Why do you want to leave? Are you afraid Master will blame you for what happened?”

Zuo Wugang set the wine jar down and sat opposite him. ”If you want to talk about being afraid... Yes, I was afraid before. If Master had really died, I couldn’t have escaped responsibility. But today, Master came back. I greeted him at the door, and he didn’t even look at me, let alone blame me. Just from that, I know the Lu Family no longer has a place for me.

”Chief Qiu, from the start of the incident until now, I haven’t complained once. I’m only saying this to you. None of this was my fault, not a single thing from the beginning to the end! And it wasn’t your fault either. I really can’t understand what Master meant. I’m leaving. With our cultivation levels, we can make a living anywhere. Chief Qiu, if you want to leave, we can go together.”

Qiu Zhiheng stayed silent for a long moment, then he shook his head. ”I can’t leave. My life belongs to the Lu Family. Take care of yourself.”

Zuo Wugang said nothing more and rose to take his leave. Upon reaching the door, he noticed a letter stuck in the door gap.

”Chief Qiu, there’s a letter here.”

Qiu Zhiheng was startled. ”You wrote me a letter?”

Zuo Wugang waved his hand, dismissing the notion. ”I can only recognize a few words at most. How could I possibly write a letter? Besides, I’m right here. Why would I write to you instead of talking to you?”

He handed the letter to Qiu Zhiheng, then he turned and left.

Qiu Zhiheng tore open the envelope, scanned the contents, and froze.

The writer of the letter claimed to be Lu Xiaolan, and the handwriting did indeed look like hers.

The letter read: The Lu Dongliang you saw is fake. He used my necklace. There are scars on his wrist. Anyone who uses that necklace will have scars on their wrist.

***

Li Banfeng headed to the New Land to fetch binding clay.

On the way, Li Banfeng asked, ”Brother Ma, have you ever seen a level-two Wanderlust Cultivator?”

Ma Wu nodded. ”I have.”

”What kind of abilities does a level-two Wanderlust Cultivator have?”

”You shouldn’t be asking me. Aren’t you a Wanderlust Cultivator yourself?”

Li Banfeng said seriously, ”I’m a level-one Wanderlust Cultivator, so of course I don’t know level-two abilities.”

Ma Wu said, ”The level-two ability for Wanderlust Cultivators is called Traceless Quick Steps.”

Li Banfeng blinked. ”Is it a qinggong[1] skill?”

”It’s not qinggong. It allows a Wanderlust Cultivator to steal an extra step while moving. If a Wanderlust Cultivator and their opponent are three steps apart, the Wanderlust Cultivator might suddenly move one step closer or one step farther away in the middle of combat. This step almost takes no time at all. It’s so quick that even a Spycraft Cultivator at the same level won’t catch the footwork, so it often catches the opponent completely off guard.”

Li Banfeng thought of Huang Guangshi, the level-two Wanderlust Cultivator whom he had killed.

Huang Guangshi had been able to move in an instant. During that fight with Li Banfeng, he had held every advantage. Li Banfeng had not known Huang Guangshi’s cultivation level and had assumed he was using some extremely advanced ability.

It was indeed a powerful ability, but how was he supposed to use it?

Ma Wu thought about it for a moment. ”I once heard a Wanderlust Cultivator say that their abilities are not complicated in principle. The difficulty lies in controlling the distance precisely. Traceless Quick Steps seems to rely on the mind guiding the feet. The cultivator must firmly believe they can take that step and must truly want to take that step for it to work.”

Li Banfeng frowned. ”So the ability can’t be used just because you want to. If your resolve wavers at a critical moment, it might not work?”

Ma Wu nodded. ”Exactly so, Brother Li. I once heard about a level-three Wanderlust Cultivator. In the heat of battle, he wanted to retreat one step, but in his panic, he stepped forward instead and ran straight into his opponent’s sword. He died on the spot.”

1. Sometimes translated as “lightness”. It’s a movement technique - think of it as swift, light steps. More info here. ☜