The Quest for Immortality

Mo Hua mused, ”It seems they found a way to silence the matter...”

”Yes,” Lu Ming nodded. ”It was Miss Zhu...”

”Miss Zhu doesn’t allow anyone to mention the matter of the Family Head marrying into the clan.”

”Those in the know have all been silenced, forbidden to speak of it to outsiders. The personal maids and attendants have all been replaced as well.”

”To outsiders, they only say that the Family Head is from a collateral branch of the Lu Family, whose parents died early, but who has great talent, which is why the Old Ancestor had him marry Miss Zhu.”

Mo Hua expressed his doubts: ”Is it permissible to marry within the clan if they share the same surname?”

Lu Ming nodded, ”Within the same clan but different branches, beyond three generations, the blood relation is diluted. After verifying the family tree, marriage is possible.”

Mo Hua slowly nodded, then asked:

”How did Lu Chengyun, a man who married into the family, become the Family Head?”

”Because of the mines.”

Mo Hua’s gaze sharpened slightly, ”The mines...”

Lu Ming said, ”Miss Zhu is wholeheartedly devoted to the Family Head. With her support, the Family Head quickly gained some actual power and began to manage some mines...”

”At first, there wasn’t much of a difference, but after a while, the profit from the mines managed by the Family Head was nearly one-tenth more than the other mines of the Lu Family...”

One-tenth more...

Mo Hua’s gaze turned icy.

For no reason at all, how could someone make one-tenth more than the others?

Mo Hua thought of the zombies in the mines.

Initially, he only suspected, but now he was almost certain.

Lu Chengyun practiced Corpse Refinement indeed for mining!

It’s likely that from the moment he was in charge of the mines, Lu Chengyun secretly refined zombies and used them to mine...

Others used the living for mining.

Lu Chengyun would use the living to mine by day and the ”dead” by night, which naturally yielded higher profits for the mines.

He also used this to gradually gain actual power within the clan.

To the clan, profit was the most tangible thing.

If Lu Chengyun could use zombies for mining and double the mine’s profits, even the Lu Family Old Ancestor must have looked at him with new respect.

As for the means used by Lu Chengyun.

Given the character of the Lu Family Old Ancestor, even if he knew, he may not care.

”So, Lu Chengyun became the Family Head because of the high profit from the mines?”

Lu Ming nodded slightly, ”It seems so.”

”It seems so?”

Mo Hua’s gaze shifted slightly, noticing that Lu Ming hesitated to continue, and said:

”Is there something else you want to say?”

Lu Ming hesitated somewhat, his brow furrowed, and he slowly said:

”I also heard a rumor...”

Mo Hua nodded, signaling him to go on.

Lu Ming said, ”It is said that the Old Ancestor… indulged in excesses, depleted his vitality, damaged his foundation, and then was mortally wounded by a sneak attack from an enemy.”

”Before his death, the Old Ancestor wanted to decide on the next Family Head.”

”At first, the clan proposed, and the Family Head decided by the Old Ancestor was actually not Lu…”

Lu Ming felt it disrespectful to directly call the Family Head by name, but seeing that Mo Hua showed little reverence for Lu Chengyun, he braced himself and continued:

”…it was not Lu Chengyun, but rather... Elder An from within the clan.”

”Elder An was in the initial stage of Foundation Establishment, not yet 150 years old, young and strong, with sufficient experience, acted in a steady manner, and held high prestige. Everyone unanimously thought that Elder An would become the Family Head.”

”But unexpectedly, something happened, and right before his death, the Old Ancestor suddenly changed his mind.”

”He stubbornly insisted on making Lu Chengyun the Family Head, and no one’s opposition mattered.”

Mo Hua frowned.

Did Lu Ming strike some deal with the Lu Family Old Ancestor?

What kind of deal could there be right before death?

Given Capitalist Lu’s selfish and profit-driven nature, this deal should not involve the interests of the Lu Family but be concerned only with his own benefits.

Mo Hua’s gaze turned cold.

He thought of the bizarre thing on the golden altar, covered with yellow cloth and offered spiritual meat by an incense burner, which looked like a mix of human, demon, and zombie...

A chill began to creep into Mo Hua’s heart.

”What about that Elder An?” Mo Hua asked again.

”Gone missing...”

”Dead, or just missing?”

Lu Ming shook his head, ”I’ve only heard that he went missing. It’s said that after Lu Chengyun became the Family Head, Elder An, feeling marginalized and dissatisfied, never returned from an errand he went out on.”

”Some also speculate that the Family Head killed Elder An.”

”But with no evidence, the matter just faded away…”

Mo Hua nodded.

So, this Elder An must have died.

Lu Chengyun, seemingly gentle, was actually vengeful, and would undoubtedly eliminate any threat, killing Elder An.

He would likely not just kill him but also use his body for Corpse Refinement.

Within those iron coffins of the Formation of Ten Thousand Corpses, the remains of Elder An are probably placed.

That was it.

That was all the information Lu Ming had gathered.

The rest were just minor, insignificant details, unrelated to the whole situation.

Mo Hua took out a blanket and handed it to Lu Ming:

”I’m honoring our agreement, I’m saving your life.”

”But don’t even think about escaping anytime soon. You won’t get far, and you’d better stay put for a while.”

”This blanket has a Formation on it that can conceal your presence.”

”Should anything unexpected happen within these Corpse Mines, find a corner, cover yourself with this blanket, and stay put.”

”After the storm passes, look for your chance to slip away.”

”Survival will be up to your own fortune.”

”This is as much as I can help you with.”

Lu Ming clutched the blanket, feeling nervous, and couldn’t help asking, ”What... what kind of unexpected event?”

”Don’t ask; knowing too much could cost you your life.”

Lu Ming shuddered with fear and expressed his concern:

”But is this blanket truly useful?”

”The Formation on it is my work; of course, it’s useful.”

Mo Hua responded confidently.

Looking at Mo Hua’s small face, Lu Ming felt inexplicably reassured.

Mo Hua reminded him again:

”Forget about learning Corpse Refinement, and don’t go refining any either. If you happen to kill someone and refine a zombie and fall into demonhood, I won’t be able to save you. It’s possible that one day, out of necessity, I might even have to slaughter you…”

Lu Ming nodded repeatedly.

After leaving Lu Ming, Mo Hua made another trip to the Ten Thousand Corpses Sacrificial Altar.

It was deep into the night now, and no one was at the altar.

Mo Hua still controlled Big Tiger, opened the doors of the hall, and used the small zombie to open the door of the mural, arriving before the golden sacrificial altar.

This altar was glittering with gold, extravagantly luxurious.

Mo Hua had not paid attention before.

Now that he thought about it, all these things were very much in line with the tastes of the Lu Family Old Ancestor.

Could it be that…the one enshrined upon this altar was none other than the Lu Family Old Ancestor?

And the cruel and ferocious half-human, half-corpse face on the mural, could it also be him, ”Capitalist Lu”?

It’s a good thing I didn’t lift the yellow cloth.

Otherwise, there might indeed be danger.

But without lifting it, how can I confirm my guess?

Mo Hua was in a quandary.

At that moment, there was a disturbance at the mural by the entrance.

Mo Hua’s heart tightened, ”Someone’s coming?”

Who would visit the altar at this time?

Zhang Quan or Lu Chengyun?

Mo Hua made the small zombie lie honestly in the coffin, then, with Divine Sense scanning the surroundings, finding no trace of anyone, he concealed his form and reduced his breath to the bare minimum, stealthily hiding behind the altar.

Soon, the ink on the mural began to ripple, forming an entrance.

A cultivator clad in brocade robes, with a gentle face, walked in.

It was indeed Lu Chengyun.