Glancing at the old man in purple robes, Ke Mo slightly cupped his hands and said, “Junior pays respects to the head of the Murong family.”
Murong Hai stroked his beard and smiled, “Please, take a seat.”
“I assume this is the famed Xuanbing Chixiao.”
“Looks like the Qingyuan Sect is about to produce a couple of sword immortals!”
The old man in purple chuckled, showing no airs of authority as the mansion lord.
Certainly, the Da Yu Dynasty was the ruler of the realm.
However, aside from the Central Divine Continent, the rest of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths were governed by sects.
It resembled the feudal system from a past life.
Da Yu was like the Zhou Dynasty, while the sects were various lords claiming their territories.
Ke Mo had also read history books.
The previous dynasty was not like this; it was a true land under the kings.
Later, the Martial Emperor of the Yu Dynasty rose up, promising a share of power after unifying the realm, and received countless responses from sects, successfully changing the world order.
However, on paper, the other party was still a mansion lord, sharing the stage with the Qingyuan Sect master.
Ke Mo didn’t forget his manners.
After some polite exchanges, afternoon rolled around.
The mansion hosted a lavish banquet.
On the tables were all sorts of delicacies—flying in the sky, walking on the ground, swimming in water, everything under the sun. Each guest had a beautiful maidservant by their side.
“Xiao’er, you haven’t slacked off in the Qingyuan Sect while I wasn’t watching, have you?”
Murong Hai took his grandson’s hand and felt it for a moment before letting out a light gasp:
“This doesn’t seem like a body tempering method from Shenbing Peak, does it?”
“You noticed it,” Murong Xiao said with an awkward smile. “This was given to me by Ke Ge, but I’m still just starting out.”
The grandfather and grandson exchanged glances.
The former hesitated slightly while the latter looked a bit sheepish in his inquiry.
Ke Mo smiled and didn’t mind:
“Show it to your grandfather, it’s not like it’s a restricted tome from the library, there’s no fear of it spreading.”
With that, Murong Xiao was relieved and took out the text.
“‘Golden Bell Shield’…”
As Murong Xiao squinted at it, the light in his eyes intensified.
He was also a warrior at the Observation Realm and immediately recognized it as a body tempering method with Buddhist influences.
Not only could it temper the body, but it could also eliminate distractions and cleanse the soul.
It was the perfect fit for Xiao’er!
In fact, he had been searching for similar martial arts during this time, yet had found nothing.
This ‘Golden Bell Shield’ was likely quite precious even among other superior martial arts…
“Ke Xiao friend, this method is valuable, yet one should not share it lightly…”
“I have a deep friendship with Murong Ge, and this ‘Golden Bell Shield’ is just right for him.”
“Consider it finding a successor for this martial art, otherwise, it might fade away.”
Ke Mo noticed Murong Hai’s hesitation.
Regardless of being a major sect or a minor faction, they took their martial arts seriously and forbade any external sharing.
Learning martial arts secretly could lead to dire consequences if discovered—whether d*ath or becoming crippled.
The old man was concerned about the origins of the martial art.
Hearing Ke Mo say so, Murong Hai’s furrowed brow finally relaxed.
He hadn’t heard of any major sect in the realm that was renowned for this top-tier martial art.
But he was certain of one thing.
This Ke truly understood Xiao’er, including his bloodline…
“Ke has a great fortune. Could it be that you encountered a powerful person who passed it on to you?”
The mansion lord, who hadn’t spoken much, suddenly asked.
“Sort of,” Ke Mo nodded lightly.
“I, Murong family, shall remember this great kindness in passing down the art.”
Murong Hai smiled warmly, “Since you’ve come to Ziyang Mansion City, stay a few more days, and let us extend our hospitality.”
Saying that, he looked at his grandson:
“Xiao’er, from now on, treat Ke Xiao friend as your older brother, understood?”
He didn’t care who was older; it wasn’t important.
The person before him, this Ke, was not only gifted but also conducted himself quite well. He would surely not be a simple character in the future.
As long as nothing unexpected happened, he was bound to rise to a high position in the Qingyuan Sect.
Perhaps even as the sect master.
Even without passing down the teachings, it was beneficial to maintain good relations.
Murong Xiao bobbed his head like a chick pecking at rice.
Did he even need to be reminded?
“You and Xiao’er must have come down the mountain to carry out a task from the sect, right?”
“Right, Grandpa! I need to find ten stalks of bl**d-Root Grass, and Ke Ge is after the criminal Cui Peng.”
“Cui Peng…”
Murong Hai stroked his beard, deep in thought.
The old man in purple seemed to recognize the name: “He used to be a disciple of the Jinyang Blade Sect, then betrayed the sect and became a highwayman.”
“He fled to Ziyang Mansion and indeed killed a few officers, which is why this matter reached the Qingyuan Sect.”
As the mansion lord, he only handled ordinary folk.
Affairs regarding martial artists were taken care of by the Qingyuan Sect.
“I’ll send someone to inquire about this.”
“Ke, if you need any assistance, just speak up.”
Murong Hai commented casually.
For him, chasing down a highwayman at the Internal Breathing Realm was no big deal.
Ke Mo wasn’t going to pretend to be modest: “Actually, I do have a request, but it’s personal.”
“Feel free to share.”
“I have a family obligation to do good once a year, so I wanted to borrow some manpower from you to open a charitable hall in the city to serve porridge and distribute rice…”
Young Ke’s initiative was, of course, to aid the Ice Chunk in finding someone.
Since the target was a little beggar, the best way to attract attention was to hand out food.
According to Ice Chunk, the person she was looking for should be living in dire straits now.
If news got out, they’d probably come around.
At that moment, he would activate his fateful divine eye and wait for the target to come right into his trap.
Moreover, he could make a good investment.
Though there might not be any significant gains,
still, there’s that saying: even mosquito legs are meat!
“Ke Xiao friend has such kindness; it’s truly rare.”
“Come, bring the wine! I want to drink with Ke Xiao friend!”
Murong Hai banged the table, as if he had met a kindred spirit.
The atmosphere of the banquet became increasingly harmonious and lively.
“Ke Xiao friend, I toast you a cup!”
“Bottoms up!”
“Ke Xianzhi, another cup!”
“I’m in!”
“Ke, you’re quite the drinker.”
“Where’d you get that idea, bro?”
Watching the old and young enjoy their drinks and chat heartily.
Murong Xiao was like: “??”
Wait a minute. This doesn’t add up!
“I shall take my leave first.”
The mansion lord stood up, greeted everyone, and headed for the exit.
Just as he was stepping outside, his peripheral vision caught sight of Ke Mo and narrowed slightly.
That day, the inheritance that had sparked a glow was not in his hands…
PS: Organizing the plot took longer—my apologies! More updates today, I promise!
