Chapter 178 - 120: The Lu Family’s Repayment

Chapter 178: Chapter 120: The Lu Family’s Repayment

Lu Jing’an made his decision so swiftly that Mr. Xu, sitting across from him, paused his fingertips imperceptibly.

Mr. Xu picked up the half-cooled porcelain teacup. Feigning a sip, his gaze quietly swept over Lu Huaiqian, Lu Huaisan, and Chen Xuan. Not a single person voiced any opposition. Even the usual scrutiny or questioning expected from elders toward a junior making such a monumental choice was entirely absent.

Lu Jing’an’s status within the Lu Residence was likely much higher than he had initially estimated. This was not just a favored eldest legitimate son, but more like the true backbone who could decide family matters with a single word. In his mind, Mr. Xu silently adjusted his assessment of the young man upward.

"Lu Xiaoyou is so decisive." Mr. Xu set down his teacup. The porcelain base lightly tapped against the rosewood table, emitting a crisp CLACK. "It seems... you’ve harbored thoughts of assassinating Bai Ting for quite some time now?"

He didn’t directly answer Lu Jing’an’s inquiry about how to strike. Instead, he threw back a question, a hint of probing hidden in the fine wrinkles at the corners of his eyes.

Lu Jing’an leaned back, his spine resting against the back of the Huanghuali wood chair, his expression so placid it bordered on cold. "Mr. Xu, at this point, there’s really no need for such probing words."

He paused, his gaze as still as deep water. "Let’s stick to the practicalities."

His tone held none of the impatience of youth, nor any anger at being offended; there was only an uncompromising directness.

Hearing this, the smile on Mr. Xu’s face actually became a bit more genuine. He nodded. "You are right, my young friend. I was overcomplicating things."

Dropping his subtle probing, Mr. Xu’s expression turned serious as he cut to the chase. "The most reliable, and the toughest nuts to crack around Bai Ting, are the three Personal Guard Camps: Tiger, Leopard, and Wolf."

His voice lowered slightly, and only his steady narration and the faint sound of the wind outside could be heard in the study. "Among the three camps, the Tiger Camp is the strongest, followed by the Leopard Camp, and then the Wolf Camp.

"I imagine you have already learned the backgrounds of the Leopard and Wolf Camps recently, so I won’t waste words on them. Let us just talk about the Tiger Camp."

At this point, Mr. Xu subconsciously sat up straighter. "This is the true elite under Bai Ting’s command, and one of his greatest pillars of support. The path they take is completely different from the Leopard Camp, which leans toward Void World mechanical modifications."

Seeing Lu Jing’an still listening quietly, Mr. Xu continued, "The Tiger Camp practices the method of ’Demon Beast Grafting.’ Whether by swapping limbs with demons or fusing with the Essence Blood of ferocious beasts, they forcefully blend humans and demons together.

"Those created by this method are mostly deformed monsters—neither entirely human nor fully demon. Each of them bears deep-seated physical and mental defects that are difficult to heal. Some even have chaotic minds, left with nothing but the instinct to slaughter. But there is no denying that their combat prowess is downright terrifying."

Mr. Xu lightly tapped his fingertip against his knee. "Even the weakest Demon Martial Artist in the camp is comparable to a Martial Cultivator who has achieved success in Muscle Training. As for the strongest among them, codenamed ’Bai Hu’... he once tore two experts of the Inner Breath Realm to pieces with his bare hands in an encounter. His Cultivation is unfathomable."

Mr. Xu raised his eyes again to look at Lu Jing’an.

The youth sat as straight as a pine, not even a twitch in his brow. It was as if he were just listening to idle chatter about the weather being decent today. This composure made Mr. Xu think even more highly of him.

"Apart from the Tiger Camp, Bai Ting is also accompanied year-round by a group of Cultivators." Mr. Xu took out a neatly folded piece of Xuan paper from his chest and handed it to the old butler standing nearby. "Their numbers, Cultivation, and the Magic techniques they excel at are all recorded here."

The butler took it with both hands and quickly brought it to Lu Jing’an.

Lu Jing’an didn’t reach out to take it. He merely lowered his eyes, his gaze sweeping across the paper. On it were neat, regular-script characters listing about twenty names, followed by brief annotations. Lu Jing’an read extremely fast; in just two or three breaths, he lifted his chin.

Understanding his meaning, the butler respectfully returned the paper to Mr. Xu.

Mr. Xu put the paper away and continued, "Finally, there is Bai Ting himself.

"This person lives in seclusion and rarely takes action personally, so his true Cultivation remains a mystery. We can only estimate based on the worst-case scenario," Mr. Xu said, his tone growing heavier. "We must guard against him as if he were a Martial Artist at the peak of the Inner Breath Realm, or even Grandmaster Level.

"The above is a general overview of the defensive forces surrounding Bai Ting."

Lu Jing’an listened quietly, slightly furrowing his brows, and asked, "Has Mr. Xu overlooked a certain force? Under his command, Bai Ting still holds an army of tens of thousands of new troops."

Seemingly expecting this question, Mr. Xu answered calmly, "You need not worry about that, Lu Xiaoyou. Naturally, someone will stall those tens of thousands of troops for us."

"Who?"

"The rebels." Mr. Xu spat out the two words, a trace of coldness flashing across his face. "Doesn’t the Bai Family love using the pretext of ’exterminating rebels and maintaining local order’ to carry out actual annexations and expansions? Well then, this time, we’ll let the real rebels play with them.

"When the flames of war rise from all sides, the trusted troops Bai Ting can mobilize will not exceed two thousand at most. Once those two thousand are scattered along the three-hundred-mile Canglan River, they will be of no concern."

Lu Jing’an’s eyes flickered.

He naturally knew the true nature of the rebels. They were a group of desperadoes even more ruthless and destructive than bandits; wherever they passed, not a single blade of grass usually remained.

To bring down the Bai Family, the Hu Family was actually willing to invite wolves into their own home, taking the initiative to lure this group of scourges into their own territory.

This ruthlessness and resolution was indeed fitting for the status of a century-old noble family.