The spring wind stirred, and all things vied for life.
Countless farming families in Baixi Village began loosening the soil and building ridges, raising the curtain on the spring plowing.
A fine drizzle fell from the sky like silver threads, landing on the people working the fields and making them thoroughly uncomfortable.
Liu Fugui was a withered old man in his sixties. At this moment, he carried his hoe and strolled leisurely toward home, humming a cheerful little tune. But when the rainwater seeped through his straw cloak and soaked into his clothes, the old man frowned and muttered a few curses at the heavens.
A few months ago, his grandson Liu Maohou had been suddenly summoned to the clan’s main mansion. Since then, the boy had not come home at night. The clan had told him not to speak carelessly or spread rumors, claiming that Maohou was the Liu clan’s future, a literary star descended from the heavens, and that he was studying reading and writing with Liu Ming in the ancestral hall.
But how could a grandfather not know his own grandson? He knew Maohou was never cut out for studying. Recalling a few fragmented words slipped recently by some clan members, Liu Fugui realized that his grandson might possess an immortal destiny. He was going to become an Immortal Master!
If his grandson was an Immortal Master, then he would be an Immortal Master’s grandfather.
Liu Fugui chuckled happily, his body unconsciously filling with vigor as he strode toward home.
Zhou Hong paced anxiously inside the room, constantly looking into the distance, both hoping Zhou Ping would appear and hoping he would not.
For the sake of safety, he had arranged for two of the household guards to stay in the front courtyard’s side rooms. He had Zhou Hu and Zhou Shi-who had already been with the family for five years-stay in the side rooms flanking the east and west wings, just a single step away from the back courtyard. He had even equipped them with weapons to guard against the unexpected.
The four maidservants were in the back courtyard, accompanying Chen Nianqiu and Madam Huang to help set their minds at ease.
He could not help but feel a pang of regret. How had his family only hired such a small number of guards? It was far too few.
Just then, the door creaked. The sound startled Zhou Hong, and he turned sharply to look outside. Under the veil of night, he saw a withered figure and murmured, “Father.”
The newcomer was Zhou Dashan. He had long aged beyond recognition; his eyes were clouded, and white age spots had spread across his skin. A thick, twilight aura radiated from him, loudly proclaiming that this old man did not have many days left.
“Where is Ping’er?” Zhou Dashan scanned the room, his voice hoarse and aged.
Zhou Hong steadied his nerves. “Younger Brother went out to handle a matter.”
The old man suddenly looked desolate. He sat down with great difficulty beside Zhou Hong, then gently grasped Zhou Hong’s hand and remained completely silent.
Zhou Hong had been worrying over Zhou Ping’s safety, but suddenly feeling the warmth from the back of his hand, his heart trembled.
When he was young, every thunderstorm had terrified him, and Zhou Dashan would hold his hand so he could fall asleep peacefully. After he grew up, Zhou Dashan had never done this again.
“You and Ping’er are both my children. You must both be well.” Zhou Dashan leaned against Zhou Hong, gently and continuously patting the back of his son’s hand, though his pats grew lighter and lighter.
Father and son sat quietly leaning against one another like this, watching the night grow darker and darker until they could no longer see a single trace of light.
Separated from them by only a single wall, the Zhou family women sat quietly on the bed. In their center was a sleeping two-year-old child, Zhou Chang’an.
Madam Huang’s aged face was full of calm, but her frequent glances outside and the worry deep in her eyes clearly revealed her turbulent anxiety. Chen Nianqiu stroked her belly, her eyes tightly shut as she silently recited scriptures, praying to the Buddha for Zhou Ping’s safe return. You are reading on novelping(.)com, the official source.
Though the Zhou brothers had not spoken of it to the family, they already knew in their hearts.
…
Time inched closer and closer to the midnight hour. The entirety of Baixi Village was dead silent, leaving only the sound of splattering drizzle. Even the croaking of frogs and barking of dogs had ceased.
Liu Fugui lay in bed, lost in dreamland. His aged face bore a gratified smile-perhaps he was dreaming of his grandson Maohou becoming an Immortal Master, and himself living the luxurious life of a lord.
But the door to his room suddenly let out a faint creak. The sound was drowned out by the rain, failing to wake him. Two men stood beside his bed, their burly frames casting heavy shadows over the old man.
Then came a dull thud. The old man’s head was smashed open by a blunt object, and bright red blood spurted out instantly, staining the bedding. The old man would never wake again…
And this exact scene played out in several households across Baixi Village.
Some were startled awake by men sneaking into their homes, but before they could cry out, they collapsed into pools of blood. Others never even woke up, sinking forever into their eternal slumber.
The thick stench of blood was sealed inside each respective house by the drizzling rain, as if imprisoning the wronged souls of the dead within tiny cages!
Liu Maohou was meditating when he suddenly opened his eyes wide. He looked around in confusion, feeling an inexplicable, terrifying palpitation in his heart.
Liu Ming, who was about to fall asleep nearby, heard the commotion. He hurried over and asked gently with concern, “Hao’er, what’s wrong?”
Because Liu Maohou had the aptitude to become an Immortal Master, even though he was still young, he could no longer be called by the humble, easy-to-raise name ‘Maohou’. Instead, he was called Liu Hao according to the clan genealogy.
Liu Hao shook his head. He was still young after all. “I just suddenly felt a little scared.”
Liu Ming looked suspiciously outside but saw nothing. Suddenly, a clap of thunder boomed, startling him.
So it was just thunder. Well, that made sense-children were naturally afraid of thunder and the like.
“It’s nothing. Your cousin is here,” Liu Ming gently comforted Liu Hao.
Liu Hao was the future of the Liu clan; absolutely nothing could happen to him. Even in the dead of night, he and Liu Xiu took turns standing guard over him.
Just then, a deafening clap of thunder crashed down, jolting awake everyone who was asleep and instantly illuminating the surroundings.
Terrified, Liu Hao slapped Liu Ming’s hand and shouted, “Cousin, there’s someone at the door!”
Liu Ming whirled around, his pupils shrinking sharply. The flashing lightning illuminated the courtyard, revealing more than a dozen men masked in black cloth standing under the veil of rain, their faces twisted savagely as they stared into the room. And the Liu clan members who had originally been hiding in the shadows to keep night watch had already fallen in the rain-soaked earth.
The lightning faded, and everything returned to darkness.
Horrified, he scooped up Liu Hao and bolted toward the deeper parts of the mansion, shouting at the top of his lungs as he ran.
A number of Liu clan members also lived within the main mansion. Hearing the noise, they scrambled up in a panic, only to see several figures surging out from the darkness. The intruders directly stabbed two Liu clan members to death before they even had time to properly dress.
Liu Xiu burst out of his room, snatched up a wooden club, and beat back one of the black-clothed men, roaring in fury.
“Where did you thieves come from? Daring to trespass on my clan’s grounds!”
But in the very next moment, several men surrounded him. Each wielded a weapon, their sharp blades gleaming with deadly intent.
Even though he was a veteran soldier from the army, right now he had neither a handy weapon nor the upper hand. He was still no match for a pack of wolves.
During the fierce struggle, a streak of golden light suddenly shot out from the crowd, piercing straight through his thigh. Blood gushed out!
He instantly lost all his strength. Several sharp weapons from all sides pierced through his body, and with a heavy thud, he collapsed onto the ground.
“An Immortal Master! It’s Zhou Erlang !”
This final thought surfaced in Liu Xiu’s mind before he immediately sank into eternal darkness.
Liu Quan was startled from his sleep. His mind was still groggy and dull as he threw a padded jacket over his shoulders and opened the door.
His eyes turned bloodshot. All that entered his vision was bloody carnage. Several clan members lay lifeless on the ground, while the surviving ones were locked in a life-and-death struggle with the masked men. The situation was critical.
Liu Quan’s head felt as if it were about to explode. The moment he saw those masked men, he knew they were absolutely not bandits-they were the Wang and Sun families!
They must have learned the news from somewhere, and so they had come to annihilate the Liu clan.
“Run! Whatever you do, don’t look back!” Liu Quan screamed hysterically.
Liu Ming, carrying Liu Hao, was fleeing toward the depths of the Liu mansion. “Grandfather, hurry! Come with me!”
Liu Quan’s aged body erupted with a sudden surge of strength as he shoved Liu Ming backward. “As long as you survive, our Liu clan still has hope!”
“Go! You must protect Liu Hao!”
Immediately after, the old man snatched up a hoe from nearby and resolutely charged into the crowd.
He was going to use the last embers of his life to buy time for Liu Ming to escape!
Beside him, the rest of the Liu clan members also grabbed long clubs and hoes, charging with desperate determination to kill the masked men.
In their daily lives, they might have been greedy, lazy, or narrow-minded, but they also understood the bloody bonds of their clan. They knew that only if Liu Hao survived would the Liu clan have a future-and only then could they be avenged!