Ning Xiu Fu

After parting with Li Fuchan, Ning Xiu Fu headed straight up Chisu Mountain.

The mountain was quiet and secluded. Ning Xiangyi had already returned and was sitting behind his desk, holding a volume of the Purple Firmament Thunder-Script Treasure Register.

Hearing footsteps, he lowered the book, raised his head, and asked, "How did it go?"

Ning Xiu Fu stepped forward and bowed, then reported everything that had happened the day before.

When he reached the part where Yang Bozhuo had openly invited Li Fuchan to defect to the Yang Family, a trace of a smile rose to his face. "Guest Elder Li certainly made Yang Bozhuo swallow a bitter loss. Still, that was rather unwise. Yang Bozhuo might not be able to help him obtain the Qifu Essence Marrow, but if he wanted to spoil things, it would be all too easy."

Ning Xiangyi shook his head. "Yang Bozhuo's cultivation is low, and his reputation within the Yang Family is in tatters. It is only because he is a fifth-generation descendant of the Great True Person that he wants for nothing. He has no say in matters concerning spiritual treasures. If Li Fuchan can offer something worthy in exchange, Yang Bozhuo will not be able to interfere." He paused, then added, "You can spend more time accompanying him from now on. Whenever something requires contact with the Yang Family, he will not keep it from you."

Ning Xiu Fu nodded thoughtfully.

Ning Xiangyi changed the subject. "What do you think of the attendant accompanying him?"

Without a moment's thought, Ning Xiu Fu blurted out, "A man of few words who obeys every command. Honest and decent, with no shortage of talent for business. He is exceptionally good at reading people, and his methods of managing trade are likely no worse than Uncle Ji Hai's. If we could bring him under our Ning Family's authority, he could easily manage three markets."

"It is just a pity."

Ning Xiangyi's brows stirred slightly, and he asked with a smile, "What is there to pity about such talent?"

Ning Xiu Fu's face grew still as water, his voice icy. "For all his virtues, the one thing he should never have done was let me recognize him. He was the leader of the demonic cultivators who attacked Eastwood Market a few days ago. I heard someone call him Li Hua."

Ning Xiangyi brushed his fingers over the words "Purple Firmament Thunder-Script Treasure Register," his gaze heavy. "A mere Outer Scenery cultivator, yet even allowing for the thunder at his disposal, he subdued six Demonic Cultivators and made Li Hua turn against his fellows and trust him. His methods are far from ordinary. A report arrived from the Lake yesterday saying that he reached Great Night Lake four days ago and encountered that great monk on the shore. After hearing the monk's name, he turned into lightning and fled. He likely knows quite a few secrets as well."

Ning Xiangyi was not a hidebound man, nor was the Ning Family the cold, unreasonable household that mistreated rogue cultivators in outside rumors. Li Fuchan was indeed useful, and he cultivated Li Thunder. Naturally, Ning Xiangyi would not turn his anger on him over a single Li Hua and keep him a thousand miles away.

Of my four sons, Xiu Cong is stern and possessed of extraordinary gifts, his heart set on quiet cultivation. His talent lies in cultivation, and he should not be burdened with clan affairs. Xiu Qing is fierce, brave, resolute, and decisive, wielding spears and halberds—a talent suited to forging ahead.

I could have him cultivate the Purple Firmament Thunder-Script Treasure Register. With Li Fuchan here, there should be no great difficulty. He should also be glad to see a direct descendant of our household cultivate Thunder Arts, so that we can lend him a hand. Xiu Rang is gentle and kind, but lacks authority—a white deer deserving of compassion and pity, ill-suited to managing our affairs as they stand. Only Xiu Fu is cautious and steady without lacking boldness. I have placed great hopes in him, and this matter offers a good opportunity to test him.

Ning Xiangyi looked down at him and asked:

"He has colluded with a Demonic Cultivator and entered our service. In your view, Xiu Fu, should we keep him?"

Ning Xiu Fu's thoughts raced. Recalling what his father had just said, he already had some idea of his intentions.

The family head must intend to keep him. This man cultivates Li Thunder, so he cannot possibly be some utterly wicked villain. If he had truly committed evil deeds, the Thunderbolt would have struck him dead long ago. He probably would not dare touch even a trace of Blood Qi. As a rogue cultivator from overseas, coming alone from so far away, he must have struggled to find suitable people with whom to link turbidity. Only after reaching the Lake and hearing of our Ning Family's reputation did he write out his cultivation art from memory and offer it to us, entering our service. All he wants is for someone in our household to cultivate these Thunder Arts alongside him and find upright people with whom he can link turbidity.

As for Li Hua... though he is a Demonic Cultivator and mostly engages in buying and reselling goods, he has also consumed Blood Qi. Guest Elder Li is an outsider, so it is hardly strange that he sought out someone familiar with the situation around the Lake. Since Li Thunder has yet to turn against him, he must already have used some means to keep Li Hua firmly under control.

Having settled his thoughts, Ning Xiu Fu voiced his conjectures one by one.

At the end, he said gravely, "Guest Elder Li is useful."

He paused, and his tone abruptly chilled, taking on a vicious, ruthless edge. "As for Li Hua, we will simply pretend we do not recognize him. Whenever something dangerous comes up, we can use him. Sooner or later, we will grind him to death."

Only then did Ning Xiangyi nod. A rare trace of satisfaction appeared on his face, and he did not stint in his praise:

"Years ago, when the ancestor was in seclusion, the entire generation of Qing Su and Xin Hua perished as the Demonic Cultivators swept south. Only my third granduncle remained. He was a man whose talents could overturn disaster. He preserved the Ning Family and raised my branch from a lesser lineage to the main lineage. As he lay dying, he called me to his bedside. He had taken too many inferior medicines to advance his cultivation and poisonous medicines to prolong his life during those difficult years. Black blood streamed from his seven orifices. He gripped me tightly and said, 'Fortunately, we have Xiangyi to rely on.' Later, thankfully, my youngest uncle reached the Outer Scenery Great Accomplishment, allowing me to live up to my granduncle's hopes."

Though Ning Xiangyi spoke with a smile, his eyes reddened and stung, as though he were once again seeing the old man's pain and relief as he died.

"Of my four sons—Cong, Fu, Rang, and Qing—I now have Xiu Fu to rely on as well. We will do as you say."

Ning Xiu Fu had read the clan histories and naturally knew what a painful age that had been for the Ning Family, when every step had to be taken with the utmost care. His expression grew solemn, and he bowed deeply. "For household and clan, I will grind my bones and scour my guts, devoting my entire life. Should I ever break this oath, I would sooner die!"

Ning Xiangyi nodded, then instructed him further. "The Yang Family has yet to achieve its aim of establishing its authority by hosting the Lakeside Market. There should be further moves to come. But from what I can see, emboldened by Yang Houjia's breakthrough into Inner Scenery, they even intend to meddle in affairs to the north."

Ning Xiu Fu frowned at this. "Those northern sects are far from docile. Who knows how many schemes they carry on their backs? The Yang Family may be drawing fire onto itself."

Ning Xiangyi inclined his head slightly, his gaze deep. "Those Ancient Chu Remnants wish to head south by way of the route the Wisdom King took north. That will take considerable effort. They must first wage a war to sweep away the Great Compassion Spirit Miasma. Otherwise, the moment anyone sets foot there, they will end up eating vegetarian meals and chanting Buddhist prayers. They will also have to send people along the route to hunt down the Ming Beasts that emerge unseen, lose their minds, and go mad. All told, it will take at least thirty years to accomplish."

He changed tack, his voice growing grave. "Yang Houjia is a cautious man. But some in the Yang Family have lost their heads. If no one stops them for too long, his own thinking may have gone astray as well. Over the next few days, try to coax more information out of Yang Bozhuo, so we can prepare early. We must not become the bird that sticks its head out, falling prey to someone's schemes without even knowing it."

Ning Xiu Fu's expression tightened, and he cupped his hands in a bow. "I will remember." As he straightened, however, he hesitated briefly. "But... what about Li Fuchan?"

Ning Xiangyi picked up the Purple Firmament Thunder-Script Treasure Register again. He had already thought this matter through. "Invite him to teach Xiu Qing these Thunder Arts. That will put his mind at ease as well."