Chapter 688: Are You Not A Man?
The lamps in the tens of thousands of households in Shanghai were brightly lit as night fell. The resplendent colorful night was like showing a dreamlike fantasy of flourishing prosperity. The streets with their endless traffic and long line of lamplights that resembled shining dragons, while the neighboring 40-story buildings willfully gave out warm currents in the chilling cold winter.
Tomson Villa.
The windows were all open, but the room itself was dim. Then, in the obscure night, a slender figure was sitting by the window on her knees, holding a yellowish book stitched with gold threads and reading it quietly.
“Five angles and six starlights. The stars are interconnected and yet the array formation is folded in layers to form the most mysterious Six Starlight Array. The center is the crux whereas the five visible stars form the gate...”
Under the dim moonlight shining on the yellowed paper, the Six Starlight Array pattern was drawn on it along with flying dragons and dancing phoenixes. If Tang Xiu was here, he would definitely be astounded, since the cluster of Six Starlight Array on the paper was exactly the same pattern he saw in the cave planted with herbs in the Kanas Longquan Swamp, where the Soul Tranquilizer Stone and solidified Dragon’s Eye were embedded on its ceiling.
Xue Yu closed her eyes as her slender fingers constantly moved. A special energy descended down from the sky and covered her. In her eyes, it seemed like the trajectory of the stars was revolving along with the blooming moonlight.
Puff…
A mouthful of blood spurted from her mouth. Her Mutton Fat Jade-ike face seemed to break and turned pale, and a look of frustration and disappointment gradually appeared on her face.
“The Ancestress handed this Six Starlight Array chart to me and I’ve been studying it for a long time, but it’s a pity that I can’t solve the final profound mystery in it. I need to manifest my own value as a woman, as my value in his eyes is close to zero. I must crack this Six Starlight Array to help him open the portal to the Immortal Trove. Ancestress said that my opportunity is on him and that my life is tightly bound with his, for he is the only one able to accompany me in the thousands of years along the fate on the immortal path...”
Xue Yu’s expression gradually turned into tenacious. As she took a white silk handkerchief to wipe off the blood on the corner of her mouth, her eyes then returned to the yellowed book stitched with golden thread.
****
Shanghai, Jingding District.
Located in the Northwest part of Shanghai, the Classical Garden fully reflected the theme of “the beauty of nature”. The environment of the venue was beautiful with stacked rockeries, octagonal pavilions, winding bridges, and sparkling clear lakelets. Despite the pathways in the woods that were supposedly ingeniously constructed with machineries, the intricate application of the various landscaping techniques of imitation, adjustment, and separation of the spaces in the garden landscape created a multivariate and complicated scenery, either small or big sized, resulting in an artistic effect of an alternate and surreal landscape.
Through the folding of layers of hills and waters along with gardens planted with flowers and trees, the Classical Garden was a classical architecture that depicted an enjoyable poetic and pictorial splendorous landscape in and of itself, creating an “urban forest” in which human and nature coexisted in harmony in this bustling metropolis.
And exactly in this place was the Imperial Garden located!
Under the curtain of the night, all the lanes in the Imperial Garden were illuminated with big red lanterns, while the lingering fragrance of eaglewood incense lingered in the air. Dressed in floral plaque coat and feet with embroidered shoes were women scattered around in various small courtyards, holding trays and serving delicacies and delicious meals.
“Young Lord!”
Upon seeing the pale and solemn-looking Chu Yuan, everyone in the Imperial Garden would stop and greet him. Chu Yuan would have nodded and greeted them one by one if it was before, but he was in a hurry today, and his unusual expression made everyone baffled and confused.
In the center of the Imperial Garden, there was only a three-storied classical pavilion. The smell of Dragon Spittle Fragrance pervaded the air in every corner as an old woman with long white hair was there, caressing a three-footed gold ring and facing the meditation cattail hassock she previously sat on before.
Creak…
The wooden door was gently pushed open from the outside, as Chu Yuan entered the room in stride and then sat on the cattail hassock next to the old woman. His eyes were devoid of spirit, dragged away by his thoughts and seemed like a man whose soul was taken away.
The old woman turned her head and was surprised when she saw Chu Yuan’s expression. Her brows suddenly wrinkled slightly, hummed coldly and said, “Heart-fire Cleansing Mantra… ten times.”
Chu Yuan looked startled and then immediately lowered his head and closed his eyes.
Time passed by, and in the blink of an eye, half an hour had passed.
When Chu Yuan finished reciting the Heart-fire Cleansing Mantra in his heart, his eyes instantly opened. But this time, a radiant light flashed in them like a sharp blade.
“Did you have something bothering you inside?” The old woman eyes landed on the three-footed gold ring and asked with a calm tone.
Chu Yuan firmly nodded, “I went to visit Tang Xiu and confirmed that he was the one who killed Jin Sanchi and Jin Sijie. He also sent people to besiege all the sects under the Strange Doors and kill those eight Masters. I’ve also confirmed that he’s a typical cultivator and possess a very terrifying strength. The intelligence system of our Imperial Garden assigned 18 investigation teams to all parts of the country, and only 17 of them came back with intelligence reports. The team we lost contact with was the one that was assigned to investigate the force behind him.”
“You made a mistake.” The old woman shook her head and sighed.
“What did I do wrong?” Asked Chu Yuan with a confused expression.
“You should have not sent people to investigate him since you already guessed that what happened to the Strange Doors and the one who made Jin Sanchi and Jin Sanji meet their miserable fate was related to him,” said the old woman. “You should’ve ceased your involvement in anything related to him. In this era, our Imperial Garden doesn’t have the power to raise a Dragon to become an Emperor anymore. We can only defend our old-fashioned ways in silence and hide beneath the light and obscurity. But he… or his world is more brutal and cruel, more than the experience of the numerous generations of the Imperial Garden’s ancestors have gone through. It was a good opportunity the likes of a carp leaping through the Dragon’s door and yet also an extremely deep abyssal hell of the world of mortals.”
Chu Yuan fell silent. His expression constantly changed and a look of madness was revealed in his eyes as he said in a deep voice, “Hiding in obscurity to buy time will only make my blood flow slower and my heart to become more depressed. I want to be like him and look forward to seeing what his world looks like.”
The old woman’s fierce gaze instantly landed on him. She retracted back the coverage of her weak spiritual power toward all direction to eventually stretch a few meters away.
“Have you thought it through?”
Chu Yuan replied categorically, “I have.”
The old woman shot him a deep look and slowly closed her eyes. After a long while, she clapped her palms and four hazy figures appeared in front of them. The tone and expression of the old man turned much colder than before and her momentum soared, “Pass on my decree. Chu Yuan is no longer the Young Lord of the Imperial Garden from today onwards. He will also resign from the opportunity to inherit the position of Imperial Garden Master in the future. Notify Lord Bo of the Imperial Affairs Room to hang his name as the Imperial Garden’s Foreign Affairs Elder. Also, spread this news.”
“This….”
The four old men who showed up lightning fast looked surprised. They had been watching as Chu Yuan developed and grew up. It could be said that he was the most outstanding youth among the younger junior generation in the entire Imperial Garden. What’s more, his father was the Imperial Garden Master and this old woman was his grandmother.
But why? Why should he be annulled of his inheritance rights?
“GO!” The old woman shouted in a deep and heavy tone.
The four old man’s expression slightly changed and immediately nodded and left.
The atmosphere inside the room was a bit solemn, and the smell of Dragon Spittle Fragrance could no longer make people feel relaxed. After a long while, the old woman sighed, waved her hand and said, “Other than the business you yourself have strived to set up, you will hand over the rest of the affairs to the other people in the Imperial Garden! Afterward, you are not to come back to the Imperial Garden unless it’s a holiday or due to a matter of importance. Being a Foreign Affairs Elder is nothing but an idle job, thus you’ll be free in the future.”
Chu Yuan took a deep breath and knelt down to pay a kowtow thrice to the old woman and said, “Please take care and stay healthy, Grandma. The Imperial Garden is my home, and I’ll come back to see you whenever I miss you.”
Following that, he got up, sorted out his clothes and walked out of the door. He did not know that just as his figure disappeared outside the door, the old woman’s cold face was replaced with a bright smiling face, and even the wrinkles on her face stretched out.
“Pass my command to try to find out information regarding cultivators. Assign people to make a business deal with them. Do that while concealing their identity, and they have to get an ancient manual of a cultivation technique even if they must pay more. My grandson has made up his mind, so we’ll let him dash through this hardship and temper himself. Maybe he will open the gate to the future for our Imperial Garden,” said the old woman with a smile.
“Understood.”
An indiscernible tiny voice came out a few meters away. The spiritual energy around slightly fluctuated before returning to normal.
****
Shanghai, Bluestar Villa Complex.
Tang Xiu was struck with a headache seeing the smiling Ouyang Lulu in front of him. He held an invitation in his hand that was just handed over, wanting him to accompany her to attend the Venus Music evening party tomorrow night. In Tang Xiu’s eyes, music was just a seasoning to spice life up, but there was no need to go over to see a show. Not to mention that his attainments in music were far beyond those of today’s music standart by several times.
“Tang Xiu, you agreed to accompany me when we talked on the phone back in the winter holiday,” added Ouyang Lulu suddenly after seeing the reluctance in Tang Xiu’s expression.
“Just consider it as I’m afraid of you. Alright, I’ll go tomorrow,” said Tang Xiu with a forced smile.
Ouyang Lulu laughed in a carefree manner and untied the button of her coat, took it off and threw it to the side. She then sat beside Tang Xiu and said, “I’ll stay here tonight?”
“What are you gonna do here?” Asked Tang Xiu with a more depressed tone. “I still have classes tomorrow.”
Rolling her eyes at him in a charming manner, Ouyang Lulu directly pulled his arm and rubbed it over the two big lethal weapons on her chest, saying, “Don’t lie to me. Tomorrow is Saturday, you don’t have classes at your campus at all.”
Tang Xiu did lie to her, but never did he expect that she would straightly expose it. He had already promised to accompany Mu Wanying to her company tomorrow. How could he have the time to stay with Lulu? It was unlikely he would agree if that music soiree was held tonight either.
“You… can you just sit on your own spot?”
Tang Xiu was not Liu Xiahui. But the feeling of constant rubbing of Ouyang Lulu’s plump breasts on his arms, and then glancing at the snow-white deep trenches outlined by her low collar underdress immediately sent a heat flowing into the lower part of his abdomen.
Ouyang Lulu stared blankly for a second and then looked down at the part where she and Tang Xiu had physical contact. She blinked her eyes and, not only did she move away, she even snugged more tightly instead. “What? Did you get aroused or something? I’ll be yours sooner or later, Tang Xiu. Tell me, are you still a man? I have been eagerly delivering myself to your door and yet you’ve been shilly-shallying and declining with all sorts of excuses all the time. How about you take off your pants and let me see if you are still a man?”
“Ho… Holy shoot!”