Twilight Boundary

That person hiding in the Ancestral Hall... could it be Sweet Potato? He had mentioned taking action beforehand, which matched what Young Master Lu said.

It's just, this kid was actually a girl?

Earlier, when I heard her voice, it was somewhat high-pitched, more like a woman's. I'd assumed she was deliberately altering it and hadn't given it much thought. Now it seemed she was indeed using her natural voice...

These rookies are so unprofessional!

Of course, even if she concealed this information, Hu Ma couldn't really complain. She had already laid out the fundamentals of her sect and the precautions Hu Ma needed to take. Her gender wasn't a major issue.

However, Young Master Lu noticed his faintly pensive expression, suddenly turned to Hu Ma, and smiled.

"Does Brother Zhou have something to say?"

Hu Ma, also slightly stunned, met his gaze and said simply, "Since we're about to set off, what's the plan? Could our employer explain?"

After asking, he seemed embarrassed and added, "It's not that I don't understand the rules, but it's better to have a clear understanding to be of better help to our employer."

"It was like yesterday; I didn't understand anything and ended up being thoroughly frightened by the old gentleman."

"That's alright."

Young Master Lu glanced at Hu Ma, saw his candid expression, and noticed that many others he had invited also showed signs of suspicion and hesitation. So, he said, "As I mentioned before, I've invited you all here to help me acquire a treasure."

"To be honest, this treasure was planted by my Master over ten years ago."

"And to prevent it from being targeted before it was ready, or any other mishaps, certain measures were put in place around it."

"Now, both my Junior Sister and I intend to claim this treasure and build a proper enterprise from it."

"But our Master said he isn't biased. Who gets the treasure depends entirely on our respective abilities."

"That's what he says, but he possesses three trump cards. My Junior Sister learned two of them, while I only managed to learn one."

"Furthermore, this Junior Sister of mine is one of the most shameless and cunning women I've ever encountered. She's an expert at wheedling the old man..."

"...Master is pleased with her, so she already figured out the situation around his precious treasure and hurried there three days ahead of me."

"Now that I've lost the initial advantage, I have no other recourse."

"We must reach the location before she succeeds, prepare to overcome the measures Master left behind, and also guard against any treacherous traps my Junior Sister may have set. That is why I've invited all of you—to draw upon your collective skills and help me foil her insidious schemes."

Hearing this, the group deeply felt that this sect's rules were indeed quite perverse.

Hu Ma compared this to what Sweet Potato had said earlier and found their accounts quite similar.

It showed that Young Master Lu was not a simple character either.

Those from his past life had already summarized the formula that lies are best composed of seventy percent truth and thirty percent falsehood. Although Young Master Lu was unaware of this formula, he had grasped it intuitively through his own shrewdness.

Now, as he spoke of these matters, he appeared candid, indignant, and aggrieved. Even the most seasoned Jianghu veterans would be unable to find any flaw in his words.

The only thing that surprised Hu Ma was, what on earth had Sweet Potato done to make this Senior Brother so furious?

"Since everyone is helping me, I won't be stingy."

Young Master Lu saw that no one objected, smiled, and said, "Although having this for breakfast might be a bit rich, please make do!"

As he spoke, servants outside brought in a small tray. On it were small blue-and-white bowls, each filled with strips of meat, mostly lean.

"Could this be... Green Tai Sui?"

As the small bowls were placed before them, someone took a sniff, their expression changing dramatically. "Young Master Lu, such generosity!"

"This is nothing," Young Master Lu smiled. "If this business is handled successfully, I'll treat everyone to the finest Secret Blood Wine."

While most of the group appeared somewhat excited, only Hu Ma and a taciturn-looking man showed no particular reaction. The taciturn man poked at the food with his chopsticks, seemingly unsure what it even was.

The others couldn't hold back any longer and started eating heartily. Watching from the side, Hu Ma gained a somewhat clearer understanding of this 'Jianghu.'

It seemed that life for those who roamed the Jianghu wasn't as prosperous as he had imagined. A bowl of this Green Food was clearly a delicacy to them.

But back in the Manor, he had never really lacked such things. Even Zhou Datong could occasionally get a bowl like this to satisfy his cravings.

Yet these men seemed to eat it sparingly, treating it as a rare supplement.

However, Old Monkey and Young Master Lu only ate a few bites before they began to pack.

Hu Ma observed as they led a donkey cart into the courtyard. They loaded it with several bundles and some vividly crafted paper men. The eyes of these paper men were not yet dotted, leaving their sockets looking hollow and pale, while the rouge on their cheeks was a disturbingly vivid red.

There was also a white lantern, the same type Old Monkey had mentioned yesterday, only larger.

It wasn't lit now, so it was unclear if there were any moths inside.

Seeing their employer preparing so earnestly, the hired hands also made a show of getting ready.

The two men with sallow complexions sharpened their weapons; both used knives.

The one who used Flying Blades untied his waist pouch to check its contents. Inside were two rows of Flying Blades, eight in total, all gleaming sharply and ominously.

Only Hu Ma and the taciturn fellow exchanged a glance before lowering their heads and continuing to eat.

As the sun climbed higher, everyone wiped their mouths and followed Young Master Lu out of the courtyard. They gathered around the donkey cart, but since it was laden with goods, no one rode on it. Instead, they walked behind it, step by step, leaving the town and heading west.

After traveling for about twenty or thirty li, they found the surroundings growing increasingly desolate. There were traces of old farmland, now completely overgrown with weeds.

Looking up, they saw they had arrived at the foot of a hill. It wasn't a grand mountain range like Old Yin Mountain, more like a large earthen mound, yet it appeared lush and green.

A large expanse of pine and cypress trees grew on it. Although it was late spring, verging on early summer, the place lacked any sense of vibrant life. Instead, the ground beneath their feet was covered mostly with withered and drooping wild grass, creating an unsettling, eerie atmosphere.

Overhead, a dark cloud had drifted in at some point, obscuring even the sun.

Following the donkey cart, they reached the base of the hill. Looking ahead, they saw a narrow path, almost entirely swallowed by wild grass, snaking its way up the mountainside.

For some reason, a faint sense of unease prickled their hearts.

"The Ma Family Ancestral Hall is up on that mountain,"

Young Master Lu also stopped and said to the group, "Although it's daytime, everyone should still be cautious."

"My Junior Sister's methods are formidable, even during the day!"

As he spoke, he took a black cloth strip from his robes and blindfolded the donkey.

The donkey initially tossed its head, refusing the blindfold, but after Young Master Lu slapped it across the muzzle, it stood still and allowed the cloth to be tied around its head.

Once the donkey was blindfolded, he retrieved a copper basin from the cart.

Hu Ma looked at it closely. The copper basin was covered in a fair amount of grime and dark stains, looking as if it had been used for a very long time.

Gazing at it intently, he sensed an unsettling Yin Qi emanating from it. He realized this must be an old artifact. If he could obtain it, it would likely be very useful for practicing the Dharma Methods in the Age Suppressing Book... The Execution Soul Path, he mused, had many similarities with the ways of Walking Ghosts. I'll have to get my hands on that.

The copper basin was placed in the middle of the mountain path. Young Master Lu then took a paper man from the cart.

Holding it in one hand, he used the other to retrieve a small, portable ink box from his robes. He drew out a brush, dipped it into an ink that was bizarrely half-black and half-red—its concoction a mystery—and then gently dotted the brush onto the paper man's blank white eye sockets.

"Go. Scout the path up the mountain!"

After stowing the ink box, he took the lit Fire Stick from Old Monkey and set the paper man ablaze.

The paper ashes fluttered down, landing in the copper basin in front of him.

Only when it was half-consumed by flames did he drop the paper man completely into the basin. He then squatted down, watching it intently.

He waited until the paper man had burned to nothing before picking up the basin. Facing the ashes within, he silently chanted something, then tilted the basin to pour them out.

A flurry of paper ash immediately floated up, caught by the mountain breeze, and drifted towards the higher slopes of the mountain. Having done this, Young Master Lu stared fixedly in that direction, his eyes unblinking.

Those with poor eyesight would only see the ash drift away with the wind and assume it had simply dispersed.

But those with keen eyesight could perceive that some of the flying ash, carried by the mountain wind, remained airborne, never touching the ground.

It rose and fell, drifting and swaying, seemingly making its way towards the mountain peak.

However, it had only flown for a dozen or so yards, not yet even past the bend at the foot of the mountain, when a sudden, cold gust of wind blew down from above. This gust instantly swept the flying ash back, blowing it straight into Young Master Lu's face.

He hastily waved his sleeve to brush the ash away, nearly stumbling in the process. His face had become frighteningly grim.

"My Junior Sister... her cultivation has grown deeper still..."

He gritted his teeth, shot a venomous glare towards the mountain, and said in a low voice, "Gentlemen, let's go!"

None of them knew what the paper man had discovered during its scouting, but it was obvious from the outcome that the attempt hadn't been successful. They began to move forward with hesitant, stuttering steps.

Young Master Lu, however, quickly recovered his composure and turned his head.

His expression softened slightly as he looked at one of the men behind him—the one skilled with Flying Blades. "Master Qiao," he said, "we'll soon be relying on your exceptional Flying Blade skills. As we head up this path, if anything appears near us, pin it with a single strike."

"First, give me your Flying Blades."

The man who used Flying Blades quickly complied, undoing his waist pouch.

Young Master Lu took them, made some motions with his finger as if writing something on the Flying Blades, and then handed them back. No visible change could be seen on the blades.

The Flying Blade user asked in a low voice, "Employer, what sort of talisman did you draw?"

"Not a talisman, it's a curse," Young Master Lu said. "I've cast a curse from our Punishment Soul Sect on your Flying Blades. If my Junior Sister sends any of her creations, your blades normally wouldn't harm them. But with my curse applied, they can injure those things."

"However, my own power is still somewhat shallow. At most, this curse will only last for the duration of One Incense. After that, I'll need to recast it. So, you must be accurate when you strike."

"Yes. Yes."

The Flying Blade user nodded repeatedly, then hesitated before asking, "If this is successful... I don't want any Silver. Instead, could you teach me this curse?"

Young Master Lu glanced at him, slightly surprised, then said flatly, "We can discuss that later."