Chapter 117 - 83: Absolutely Unrivaled Below Outer Gang!

Chapter 117: Chapter 83: Absolutely Unrivaled Below Outer Gang!

In Lotus Water Township, the Lu family’s Dock Fortress.

Today was the auspicious sixtieth birthday of Master Lu.

Although Blood Refining Martial Artists had reached the peak of physical conditioning and could easily live to a hundred, Martial Artists naturally fought fiercely and ruthlessly. Because of this, the vast majority bore hidden injuries. These hidden ailments could be mostly cleansed upon reaching the Outer Gang Realm. Unfortunately, the Martial Artists capable of cultivating to the Outer Gang Realm were extremely rare, and Master Lu was naturally not among them.

At sixty, Master Lu was already showing his age. Gazing at the hall full of esteemed guests, he felt deeply moved.

Unlike the Gentry in other towns and villages, Master Lu, Lu San, was the very first generation to build the Lu family’s fortune. The very land beneath his feet had been seized through force and extortion.

His first pot of gold had come from the Black Mountain Bandits.

He used to be a member of the Black Mountain Thieves, living a carefree and unrestrained life. Later, the mountain’s chief provoked Lu Hao, who had just entered Black Mountain, and was struck dead by Lu Hao’s palm. Lu San had then swept up the gold and silver from the stronghold, fled down the mountain, and established the Lu family in Lotus Water Township, the settlement furthest from Black Mountain.

Thinking back carefully, twenty-five years had already passed. At this thought, Lu San couldn’t help but let out a long sigh, feeling the immense difficulty of his journey.

For this grand birthday celebration, the Lu family had prepared five tables for a banquet. It wasn’t many, as Lu San wanted to keep a low profile. He had only invited a few people with deep ties to the Lu family, all of whom were prominent Village Heroes from nearby towns.

For instance, the Huo family’s second son from Huping Village and the Liu family’s fifth son from North Village. These were influential figures in their respective towns and talented Blood Refining Martial Artists.

Lu San actually had a few other close friends: one named Zhao Jun, another named Xu Heng, and County Magistrate Tian Zhenyuan, with whom he shared a deep connection. It was just a pity that all three of them had died in the county town, leaving Lu San quite regretful.

At this moment, Huo Erlang suddenly stood up and offered a toast. "I respectfully wish Uncle Lu good health, longevity, and ever-increasing glory!"

"Then I thank you, Huo Erlang."

Smiling faintly, Lu San drank his cup of wine before looking around. He noticed Yuan Yaoyang sitting silently to the side. Immediately stepping down from his seat, he walked over to him and asked, "Brother-in-law, why the deep frown?"

"Eldest Brother."

Hearing his inquiry, Yuan Yaoyang—the renowned Lotus Water Sword of Pingzhang Commandery—immediately looked up and replied with utmost politeness. "For some reason, my mind has been restless lately. I keep feeling that something major is about to happen."

"You worry too much, brother-in-law. What major event could possibly happen? My Dock Fortress is impregnable!"

Lu San didn’t take it to heart. After toasting Yuan Yaoyang with a cup of wine, he stopped speaking, slowly stood up, and swept his gaze across the crowd in the hall. Smiling, he pressed his hands down in a placating gesture.

Instantly, the noisy atmosphere gradually quieted down as gaze after gaze shifted toward him.

"It is an honor for this old man that all of you could attend my birthday banquet," Lu San finally said with a smile, seeing that everyone’s attention was on him. "For this banquet, aside from celebrating my birthday, there is primarily a major matter I wish to discuss with you all."

Upon hearing his words, the crowd in the hall perked up their ears, wanting to listen carefully while also pondering what Lu San was planning to do.

"I have three sons. My second son conducts business outside year-round. After returning not long ago, he informed me of a massive event!

"The Roving Bandits that ravage Xuanzhou, led by the ’Great Righteous King,’ seem to have changed their direction recently and are heading straight for our Bozhou. If those Roving Bandits arrive, how will we manage?"

"What? The Great Righteous King?!"

"You mean that Great Righteous King, Zhang Ni? The one who coerces the common folk, robs everyone he meets, spouts nonsense about equalizing land and sharing wealth, and claims no grain taxes will be collected once he arrives?"

"Uncle Lu, is this true?!"

The hall erupted into a flurry of shocked gasps.

The moment these words were spoken, the guests attending the banquet were severely startled and filled with immense panic. After all, everyone knew exactly what kind of scum this Great Righteous King was.

What absolute bullshit about benevolence and righteousness! The bastard burned, killed, and pillaged anyone in his path. Any city breached by him might as well have descended into Hell. The poor had nothing worth stealing, so they were simply coerced into following him to plunder the next city.

But for Gentry landlords like them—those who wore shoes—they were the very targets of this plundering!

They had heard that the landlords in Xuanzhou had met miserable fates. Once conquered by this Great Righteous King, their heads were hung on the city gates, their wives and daughters were humiliated to death, and all their wealth and grain were looted empty.

Just thinking about such days was enough to make one’s blood run cold!

"Uncle, what do you suggest we do?" Huo Erlang was already scared out of his wits and immediately cupped his hands to ask Lu San.

Liu Wulang beside him was no different, looking toward Lu San as if he had found his pillar of support.

"PHEW."

Lu San let out a breath, knowing his plan was already more than half successful. He immediately lowered his voice and said, "What I am about to say must not reach a third pair of ears."

After saying this, Lu San turned to Yuan Yaoyang. "Yaoyang, my dear brother-in-law, please go wait at the main entrance and guard it to prevent any scoundrels from eavesdropping."

"Understood."

Hearing this, Yuan Yaoyang immediately grabbed his sword and left without the slightest hesitation. As a Qi Storage Martial Artist, Yuan Yaoyang was actually not very interested in these matters. If the Great Righteous King attacked, he could simply offer his allegiance at worst. With his Cultivation in Qi Storage, he could thrive anywhere.

After Yuan Yaoyang left, Lu San repeatedly confirmed the surroundings were secure before beckoning everyone closer. He continued in a low voice, "I hope you all can pool some wealth together to fund my trip to another State, so I can buy a premium ’skinny horse’ concubine with Mastery in the four arts of zither, Go, calligraphy, and painting."

Hearing this, the crowd couldn’t help but freeze in stunned silence.