Chapter 329: This Is What the Righteous Path Is Like
Ning Zhuo’s small courtyard.
A pair of mechanical arms, as if made of ice crystals, glistened, crystal-clear and delicate, with graceful curves.
The ten fingers were long and slender, smooth as jade.
The talismans on the palms and backs of the hands resembled ice flowers, exuding an aura of coldness and sanctity.
It was a mechanical component—the Frosted Ice White Jade Hands.
Innate Talent—Ice Jade Hands!
Chilling air enveloped the Buddhist Doctor, Meng Yaoyin, rapidly freezing her.
To enhance the power, Ning Zhuo activated a temporary formation.
The core of the formation was an Ice Heart Jade Pot! He had specifically borrowed it from Ning Jiufan.
With the combination of the Ice Jade Hands and the Ice Heart Jade Pot, the Buddhist Doctor, Meng Yaoyin, was encased in a massive block of ice, with the dents on her body quickly repairing.
Moments later, the ice shattered and melted away.
Meng Yaoyin stood up, completely motionless.
“How is it?” Sun Lingtong, who had helped oversee the formation, stepped forward with a face full of nervousness.
Ning Zhuo carefully inspected the mechanism of the Buddhist Doctor, seeing that there was still a trace of purple light within Meng Yaoyin’s spiritual essence, and the surface of her Golden Core was still clouded with swirling purple hues.
He slowly shook his head.
Sun Lingtong couldn’t help but let out a sigh.
Ning Zhuo turned to comfort him, “Boss, wasn’t this outcome something we had already anticipated?”
“My mother was a Golden Core cultivator during her life. Even after becoming a puppet after death, she was still able to fend off Zhu Xuanji head-on. She was definitely extraordinary.”
“For her to have fallen due to this injury, and for us to think we could solve the fatal wound that took her life with just a treasure and a bit of innate talent—it’s nearly impossible.”
Sun Lingtong nodded, “Yes, if it had been possible, your mother would have already taken the Ice Heart Jade Pot from Ning Jiufan to heal herself.”
“No.” Ning Zhuo shook his head again, “My mother was a righteous person. How could she have stolen something from someone for no reason? She definitely would have made a deal with the family's ancestor to borrow it.”
Sun Lingtong: ……
He couldn’t help but mutter to himself, “Judging by the way your mother acted in the Lava Immortal Palace, she didn’t seem like a good person.”
However, he also understood Ning Zhuo very well.
In Ning Zhuo’s heart, his mother was naturally different from others!
So, Sun Lingtong just let out an “Oh,” and agreed, “You’re right.”
Ning Zhuo looked at Sun Lingtong with eyes full of apology, “Boss, I’m sorry for hiding so many things from you. I…”
Sun Lingtong looked at Ning Zhuo in surprise, then waved his hand, “Didn’t you already apologize before? It doesn’t matter!”
He chuckled, resting his hand on the back of his head, “To be honest, I never thought that my injury back then was caused by your mother. So, you saved me.”
“Your mother was really ruthless!”
“But, it was understandable. After all, I was snooping around near your family’s place.”
“No wonder I became obsessed with bad luck during the final fight for the Immortal Palace and developed such hatred and resentment towards you.”
The day Ning Zhuo gave the position of Palace Master to Meng Kui, he had privately confessed everything to Sun Lingtong.
After hearing everything, Sun Lingtong finally understood and angrily shouted, “You brat, you kept so many secrets from me and made me worry for nothing!”
Looking at Ning Zhuo’s sincere face and the way he was staring at him, Sun Lingtong couldn’t help but forgive him.
Of course, he had to forgive him!
Now, hearing Ning Zhuo apologize again, Sun Lingtong reversed the roles and comforted him, “It’s nothing. These are all small matters.”
“I was the one who kept asking you to keep your secrets and not tell me anything.”
“You did a great job, Little Zhuo.”
“It’s easy to do things in the shadows, but difficult in the light. The reason you succeeded is because you hid things so well, right? The fact that you managed to keep even me in the dark is why, despite being so weak, you were able to surprise everyone and win such a great victory.”
“This excellent habit of yours—you should definitely keep it up!”
Ning Zhuo quickly promised that he would continue to do so and praised Sun Lingtong for being a good teacher.
Sun Lingtong proudly put his hands on his hips and laughed, “You think flattering me will make me happy, huh?”
He had mentored Ning Zhuo and could be said to have raised him from a young age.
This experience, like that of an elder brother acting as a father, left him with no jealousy. He felt proud and gratified by any achievement Ning Zhuo made from the bottom of his heart.
At that moment, Ning Chen came to the door to report that the handover of the Zheng family’s ancestral land had been completed.
Sun Lingtong straightened his posture, “Alright, time for me to take care of some business. I’ll go with Yang Chanyu to sweep the Zheng family’s ancestral land one more time to see if there are any hidden vaults. If we find any flaws, we’ll report back to you.”
It turned out that when Ning Zhuo, Meng Kui, and Zhu Xuanji made their pact, they had already divided up the Zheng family.
According to the agreement, the Zheng family’s ancestral land was to be handed over to Ning Zhuo and become the territory of the Ning family’s branch family!
Sun Lingtong quietly left.
On the surface, Ning Zhuo had already severed ties with Sun Lingtong and the Bukong Sect.
So, they had to avoid suspicion.
This split was thanks to Zhu Xuanji’s guarantee, which made the separation deeply convincing to others.
Even during the final moments, when the "Entry Standard" claimed the Immortal Palace, figures like the Booklord and others believed that “Entry Standard” referred to Sun Lingtong and didn’t associate it with Ning Zhuo.
Additionally, many Golden Core cultivators remained in the Secret Pavilion. Even when Chi Dun, Zhou Nongying, and others arrived, they were wary of the ferocity of the giant serpent sickle and didn’t use the portal to enter the main hall.
This gave the three of them—Ning Zhuo, Meng Kui, and Zhu Xuanji—a great opportunity to privately agree to keep the secret.
Of course, there were flaws.
For example, Meng Kui had lifted the roof of the main hall, so the situation inside might have been spied upon by outsiders.
But it didn’t matter at all!
Even if others found out, so what?
The three involved parties had already agreed, so who would the public believe?
Even if the public didn’t believe Ning Zhuo, would they doubt the City Lord’s Mansion? And if they didn’t trust the City Lord’s Mansion, would they still doubt the Royal Detective Zhu Xuanji?
Even if they doubted everything, what could they do?
Would it affect the cooperation between the three sides?
Sun Lingtong met up with Yang Chanyu, and they concealed themselves as they arrived at the Zheng family’s ancestral land, just in time to see Ning Yong and others replacing the plaque on the gate.
The plaque bearing the Zheng family’s name was taken down, and in its place, one bearing the Ning family’s name was hung.
This scene stirred a lively discussion among the passersby at the gate.
“It’s changed! They really changed it to the Ning family’s plaque!”
The rumors circulating were deliberately spread by Ning Zhuo.
“I heard this is the territory of the Ning family’s branch family. Did you know that the head of the branch family is Ning Zhuo?”
“Ning Zhuo? That name sounds familiar.”
“He’s a genius of the Ning family, very young, only sixteen years old!”
“What? Sixteen? How much cultivation could he possibly have at that age?”
“He’s only at the mid-level of Qi Refining.”
“With such a level of cultivation, he can serve as the head of a family? What kind of status does he have?”
“He’s just from an ordinary branch family, and he’s been oppressed for over a decade. You must have heard about the disputes between the Ning family’s main branch and side branches, right?”
“Then why can he serve as the head of a family? Even if it’s just a branch family head, I don’t understand!”
“Ah, that’s something you don’t know. This is a brilliant move by the Ning family. The Zheng family has been wiped out, and their prime land is now vacant. The Ning family wants it, but they already have their own ancestral land, so they have no legitimate reason to take it.”
“So, they split the family? Using this as an excuse to seize this prime territory? Makes sense! So, Ning Zhuo is actually just a puppet they pushed forward?”
“Exactly. You’ve got the right idea. When Ning Zhuo was pushed to become the master of the black market, wasn’t it the same story?”
“Then why didn’t the Zhou family split like that?”
“Ah, they were just a step too late and didn’t react in time. The Ning family beat them to it. The Zhou family’s cultivators are all too stubborn, you know that!”
The passersby were engrossed in their conversation, analyzing with conviction.
Their so-called insights into the truth were actually far from reality.
The real division of benefits was much colder and more brutal than the low-level cultivators imagined. Many of the rumors being spread were intentionally fabricated by high-level cultivators.
Sun Lingtong and Yang Chanyu worked together, secretly searching the area several times, but they didn’t find any hidden vaults, though they did discover many flaws in the formations.
Some flaws were old and decaying, while others were newly added.
Clearly, the City Lord’s Mansion hadn’t been honest during the handover and had done many manipulations.
All of this was reported to Ning Zhuo.
The ancestral land formations needed to be redesigned, and all these flaws had to be fixed.
Ning Zhuo knew he was about to establish his own household. Since his true strength had already been revealed, showing strength would earn respect and fear rather than inviting further greed and exploitation.
The greatest advantage of the Zheng family’s ancestral land lay in its smelting and forging conditions, which were the best in Huoshi Immortal City.
Even the City Lord’s Mansion couldn’t compare!
At the Zheng family’s ancestral land, Ning Zhuo hosted a public ritual.
He recited the eulogy with emotion, his voice choking with tears, “The heavens weep, and the clouds and winds lose their color. Today, we gather here to mourn our fallen kin.”
“...Ning Xiaoren, Ning Ze, Ning Xiangguo…”
“You were all wise and brave in life, virtuous and noble, and your brilliance illuminated all directions, bringing prosperity to the family and peace to the neighbors.”
“Alas! Now you return to the dust, and your heroic souls descend to the underworld... May your spirits find peace in the heavens, and may you protect future generations, ensuring that the Ning family enjoys eternal peace!”
After Ning Zhuo finished the recitation, all the clan members in the hall were deeply moved.
In a sea of mourning clothes, the sound of sobbing gradually grew, accompanied by the mournful music.
“My husband, my son!” Wang Lan was so grief-stricken that she fainted.
Ning Zhuo was startled and hurriedly attended to her himself.
He was incredibly anxious and personally pushed her meridians and fed her medicinal pills, reviving her.
Such filial piety moved everyone.
Many clan members who were unaware of the truth began to feel a deep sense of respect for him.
Even if he was currently lacking in cultivation, a branch family head with such kindness and filial piety couldn’t be all that bad!
“Ning Chen, quickly help my aunt to the rear courtyard to rest.”
Ning Zhuo had specifically chosen a large mansion within the Zheng family’s ancestral land and offered it to Wang Lan as her residence.
After settling the matter, he continued to preside over the ritual.
When the formal ceremony ended, he warmly consoled the family members of Ning Xiangguo and publicly gifted them many spirit stones.
He fondly recalled Ning Xiangguo’s various contributions in the black market, listing them all in detail.
This deeply moved Ning Xiangqian and the others, who felt that all their efforts had been recognized by Ning Zhuo. It was all worth it!
Hidden in the shadows, Yang Chanyu leaned against the corner with a face full of scorn, “Rest in peace? Didn’t he kill these people himself? Can they really rest in peace?”
“Hypocrite! You little brother of mine, you’re such a hypocrite.” Yang Chanyu’s tone was full of disdain.
Sun Lingtong, sitting invisibly on the wall, rolled his eyes at her words, “What do you know? This is exactly what the righteous path is like.”
(End of chapter)