His gaze swept across the muddy road beside him, then around at the commoners nearby. Every one of them was dressed in rags, sallow and emaciated, with large and small bundles strapped to their backs.
The instant the richly dressed young master stepped down from the carriage, everyone lowered their heads. No one dared leave. They all watched the nobleman before them with reverent eyes, unable to understand what he was looking for.
Chen Luo was also among the crowd. At the instant the other party jumped down from the carriage, he clearly sensed a change in the Jade Slip in his bosom—a thread of warm energy had appeared.
Fortunately, he came back to his senses in time and sealed it off with his aura.
All those days of cultivation had not been in vain. Though it could not be used against enemies, it was still enough to conceal an aura.
"Strange."
Nineteen Young Master gripped the jade pendant, his face full of suspicion.
The jade pendant in his bosom was turning hot one moment and cold the next, as though its sensing had gone wrong.
"You lot, open your bundles and let me see."
Unable to find the source, Nineteen Young Master grew irritated. Such a stroke of fortune had come to his door, yet he had actually missed it.
Could it be in the sky?
He subconsciously looked up. Eagles were indeed flying overhead, but they were too high for him to shoot down.
"Go collect all the belongings of the commoners nearby for me."
Drawing back his gaze, Nineteen Young Master gave his men the order.
"Yes!"
The guards beside the carriage immediately began carrying out the command. In an instant, every commoner was in danger, while the middle-aged scholar inside the carriage frowned, utterly unable to understand what absurdity his young master was up to.
Nineteen Young Master paid no attention to the looks around him. He secretly squeezed the jade pendant again and discovered that its warmth had vanished, returning to an icy state.
Could it really be in the sky?
Nineteen Young Master looked up once more at the departing eagle, disappointment rising in his heart.
He had encountered such things before. Some birds that had consumed spiritual materials could also gain powers similar to Immortal Script. In the words of those "Immortal Masters," such birds could be called spirit beasts. They were cultivators just like "immortals."
The guards searched quickly.
Not a single person on the donkey cart was missed, and Chen Luo was searched as well. But with strength nearly equal to a Grandmaster's, dealing with a few ordinary soldiers was far too easy for him.
After confirming that the jade pendant had completely stopped reacting, Nineteen Young Master lost patience.
A short while later, the guards brought over the scraps of junk they had confiscated. After giving them a cursory glance, Nineteen Young Master ordered them thrown away.
At such close range, there had been no reaction. They were surely all ordinary objects.
After this incident, the carriage did not stop again and went straight into the city along the official road.
Once the richly dressed young master had left, the commoners immediately rushed forward to take back their belongings, naturally causing another bout of clamor.
Sitting on the donkey cart, Chen Luo watched the direction in which the carriage vanished, and a thought suddenly arose in his heart.
He had been searching for clues about Immortal Cultivators all this time, yet no one he had come into contact with knew anything. He had originally been prepared to settle for second best and seek out his master, Crippled Ma, for martial arts techniques, but then, just as the willow trees darkened, another village bloomed in bright flowers. A clue had come to his door so quickly.
He did not know the true identity of that richly dressed young master, but that did not stop him from using the other man to inquire for information.
As long as there was a clue, everything afterward would be easy to handle.
Half an hour later, the donkey cart finally entered the city.
With his identity as a corpse burier, entering the city went very smoothly for him.
After entering the city, Chen Luo changed his mind. Instead of seeking out his master, Crippled Ma, he went directly to the county yamen.
Before he even got close, he saw the luxurious carriage he had encountered on the road earlier.
The carriage was empty now. It appeared that its occupants had gone inside to rest.
Opportunities are reserved for those who are prepared.
Chen Luo entered through the main gate. After greeting an acquaintance, he casually picked up a bamboo scroll and headed toward the inner courtyard. To confirm the young master's location, he deliberately paused at the entrance to the rear hall and focused his attention on his ears, listening for quite some time.
"Your Excellency the Heir Apparent has honored this humble official with your presence. It truly fills me with boundless delight. Let this cup of wine serve as this humble official's toast to you." The speaker was Qingya County's newly appointed prefect, who appeared to be entertaining that noble young master.
"This young master has come down this time to handle some matters for Royal Father. Lord Zhou is being too courteous."
Nineteen Young Master was not some useless fop who knew nothing. When speaking with others, he showed none of a noble young master's arrogance. Instead, he gave people an approachable impression.
The education received by princes and nobles since childhood could not possibly turn him into a brainless fool. At most, his temperament was somewhat lacking. Yet even that deficiency was only in comparison to his more outstanding brothers. Compared to ordinary commoners, whether in learning or experience, he was exceptionally remarkable.
"About time."
Chen Luo listened outside for quite a while before deliberately walking toward the inner courtyard with the bamboo scroll in hand.
As he did so, he quietly placed a hand over his chest and released a trace of the aura he had sealed around the Jade Slip.
Hm?
Nineteen Young Master, who was drinking, gave a start. At once, he spotted Chen Luo, who had just entered.
"Stop!"
Just as Chen Luo had expected.
The instant the Jade Slip's aura leaked out, Nineteen Young Master sensed it. Without a second thought, he barked out the command.
At first, he had not paid attention, but after he saw Chen Luo's face clearly, he suddenly came back to his senses.
Wasn't this errand boy the very person he had encountered earlier on Qingya County's county road?
With Nineteen Young Master's memory, it was absolutely impossible for him to misremember someone he had seen within a single day.
Prefect Zhou was also stunned. When he saw Chen Luo at the door, his expression immediately darkened. Thinking Chen Luo had offended Nineteen Young Master, he was just about to reprimand him.
"Brother, did we meet before at the city gate?"
Nineteen Young Master suppressed the excitement in his heart and tried his best to reveal a gentle smile.
Upon hearing this, Prefect Zhou's reprimand, which had reached his lips, turned into an ordinary show of concern.
"What is your name? The young master is asking you a question. You must answer carefully."
"Yes."
Chen Luo quickly stepped forward at those words.
It's on him!
Along with Chen Luo's approach, Nineteen Young Master clearly felt the jade pendant in his bosom growing hotter and hotter. This discovery excited him beyond measure, even quickening his heartbeat.
"In reply to the young master, this humble one is named Chen Ergou. I am a yamen servant of the county yamen. I did indeed meet the young master once outside the city earlier."
"Chen Ergou? Good, good! I dropped something on the road earlier. I wonder if you saw it?"
Nineteen Young Master asked on the surface, but secretly used the jade pendant to sense the area. Very quickly, he found the source of the warm power at Chen Luo's chest.
After confirming it, his gaze locked onto Chen Luo's chest at once.
Prefect Zhou was a shrewd man as well. Seeing this, he immediately motioned for the yamen runners beside him to reach out and take it.
"What are you doing?"
Chen Luo feigned shock and anger, trying to retreat, but the yamen runners seized his arms and successfully pulled the Jade Slip from his bosom.
The instant he saw the Jade Slip, Nineteen Young Master's eyes went straight.
Yet he quickly suppressed that emotion. Looking at the Jade Slip in the yamen runner's hand, he said calmly,
"I thought I would never find it again. I didn't expect to recover what was lost so soon." As he spoke, he reached out and took the Jade Slip, then removed the ring from his finger and handed it to Chen Luo.
"This young master is not unreasonable. This ring of mine is a treasure made by Splendor Pavilion, worth three thousand taels of silver. Consider it your reward."
Before you continue