Teruno Sect

After the Hu family uncle and nephew left, the small courtyard on the back hill became quiet again.

Lu Guang looked down at the urgent letter pressed on the table.

The envelope was stamped with the seal of Beiyang Prefecture, a vermilion mark that had darkened from the rain.

Lu Guang flicked his finger to open the seal and pulled out the document inside.

One, two, three.

He didn't watch it quickly.

The document begins by describing a major case that occurred in Changluo County.

Then it tells the story of a gray-clad thug who challenged the authority of the imperial court.

Lu Guang had actually heard of this person three years ago. It was during a famous incident involving the search for immortality that the mansion invited him to the scene.

Lu Guang's conclusion can be summed up in just two words: very strong.

Unexpectedly, three years later, this mysterious expert is still in Beiyang Prefecture.

The letter followed by instructions for a thorough investigation and arrest, each word revealing the court's determination, even if the other party was a powerful figure capable of destroying a city.

After laying down the important principles in the first two letters, the third letter simply ordered Teruno Mune to obey.

As a powerful figure in Beiyang Prefecture, Lu Guang should maintain the security of Beiyang and set an example for the people.

Since Zhaoye Zong has been granted an official title by the imperial court, and there are such vicious criminals in Beiyang Prefecture, the sect should lend a hand.

—Shi Qijiang, Prefect of Beiyang.

Lu Guang's eyebrows twitched when he saw the word "role model".

It was as if those two words, once written on the paper, meant that if he didn't fight that mysterious expert, he would be an accomplice, a sinner who plunged the entire Beiyang Prefecture into crisis.

Lu Guang's expression was unreadable. He placed the letter on the table and closed his eyes to rest. After a while, footsteps could be heard outside.

An elder entered the side hall, still wearing the short robe of the Enforcement Hall.

"Sect Master, have the Hu family members come down the mountain?"

"Um."

"Is the little fox really going to become a disciple?"

The elder caught a glimpse of the letter from the prefectural city on the table, and his expression immediately changed.

"Are those bastards in the prefectural city up to their old tricks again, trying to disgust us?"

Lu Guang: "See for yourself."

The elder walked over in a few steps, picked up the letter, read two lines, and muttered a curse under his breath.

"Damn it, they really think they can treat us, the Teruno clan, like constables?"

That's an unpleasant thing to say, but it's not the truth.

Ten years ago, Teruno Munechika and Fujo were not in such a terrible state.

When previous prefects came to the mountain, even if they disliked the sect, they would still be polite on the surface. The Zhaoye Sect gave face to the prefectural city, and the prefectural city also gave the mountain gate a way out. Everyone guarded their own territory.

Ordinary people go to the government office when they have problems, while demons go to Zhaoye Mountain when they have problems. This is the old rule of Beiyang Prefecture.

However, after this new prefect arrived, the old rules gradually changed.

This Prefect is a student of the current Grand Secretary, and has a powerful background.

On the day he took office, he sent a letter of gift to Teruno Munechika.

The letter was written in a gentle tone, but it was full of interrogations: the sect's roster, the register of demon disciples, the weapons in the storehouse, and the land and property at the foot of the mountain.

After Lu Guang finished reading the letter, he threw it into the brazier.

Since then, the prefectural city and the Teruno sect have maintained a seemingly amicable relationship on the surface, but they have clashed many times behind the scenes.

The elder slammed the letter on the table: "They're pushing their luck!"

Lu Guang picked up the cold tea, took a sip, and found the tea to be somewhat astringent.

"Yes, he's endured it for ten years. He can't stand that there's a Zhaoye Sect next to the government office anymore. He wants to force me to come down the mountain."

The elder quickly realized what was happening, and his expression darkened further.

"That gray-clad powerhouse from Changluo County?"

"Yes, the document emphasizes the words 'destroy the city'."

Lu Guang put down his teacup.

"If I go and run into that man in gray, and win, the credit will go to the prefectural city for its effective command; if I lose, it will be attributed to Zhaoye Zong's own incompetence."

"If I don't go..."

"That is because there are madmen running rampant in Beiyang Prefecture, and I, as a powerful figure in the prefecture, cannot sit idly by."

"What a brilliant two-birds-with-one-stone strategy! Scholars are cunning and shrewd."

Lu Guang narrowed his eyes and gazed at the opposite side of the city, his gaze deep.

"Sect Master, this matter cannot be accepted."

The elder looked at Lu Guang and said, "My Zhaoye Sect has been officially appointed to manage the demons in the mountains and to educate them on behalf of the imperial court. We are not thugs under the government."

Lu Guang nodded: "We definitely have to push it, but we can't push it too hard, since the attitude of that person from Chengtian Prefecture is still unclear."

The elder's jaw clenched, but he didn't argue back. He wasn't afraid of the prefectural city, but the title of Grand Secretary was something no one in Yan Kingdom would dare to disrespect.

Lu Guang made a decision:

"Reply that the disciple-acceptance ceremony is a major event for the sect, concerning the education of the imperial court, and should not be taken lightly or disturbed. After the ceremony, the Enforcement Hall will review the sect's register according to regulations. If any suspicious persons are found, the matter will be reported to the prefectural city for verification."

"drag?"

"It was done according to the rules."

"Sect Master, you've picked up bad habits with your words."

The elder finally chuckled, picked up the document, and walked out. He stopped at the door, "Sect Master, what if that gray-robed man really appears?"

Lu Guang did not answer immediately.

The lamps in the side hall burned quietly.

After a while, he replied, "Let's see what he's here for."

"What if he killed someone?"

"Then stop them."

"What if we can't stop them?"

Lu Guang raised his eyes, his voice not loud: "We still have to stop them..."

The elder bowed and clasped his hands in a gesture of respect: "I'll go reply to the letter."

The side hall fell silent again.

Lu Guang sat in the same spot, picked up the letter from the prefectural city again and looked at it, then suddenly slammed his hand on the table.

With a bang, the teacup jumped up, spilling cold tea all over the table.

"This is outrageous!"

As soon as the four words were spoken, the lamps in the side hall flickered simultaneously.

Lu Guangben tried to get up, but suddenly felt a tightness in his chest. He reached out and grabbed the edge of the table, unable to suppress a cough. He covered his mouth with his hand, and there was a little blood on his palm.

Lu Guang wiped it off with his sleeve; it was a habit he had developed.

When he broke through to the next realm, he was injured in his meridians. Outsiders only saw that he had become a City Destroyer, and few people knew that he had been injured.

No one knew that he was badly injured.

The final step in the breakthrough also cut off half of Lu Guang's path.

Over the years, he has been to Chengtian Prefecture, to the southern waters, and even asked someone to help him get under the tutelage of the Living Buddha Xifan. He has taken many medicines and tried many methods, but in the end, all he got was the same advice: take it slow and recover.

Take it slow and nurture it.

It sounds like a consolation, but it's actually a solution that can't be found.

"Chirp—"

Lu Guang pulled open the hidden compartment under the table and took out a wooden box.

The wooden box had no lock, only an old talisman stuck to it. The edges of the talisman were already blackened. He tore off the talisman, and the box lid popped open automatically.

There was a token lying inside.

The token was entirely black, giving it a sinister and eerie appearance.

Lu Guang reached out and picked it up.

A chilling aura crept into my palm and into my meridians, like tiny insects crawling through my flesh.

The front of the token is engraved with a ghost face with its eyes closed.

Lu Guang stared at the ghost for a long time.

This was something someone brought up the mountain about six months ago.

The newcomer was dressed in a black robe, and his ghostly aura was very faint. He only said one sentence upon meeting the person.

"If Sect Leader Lu wishes to wield the axe again, there are people in Bei Che willing to help."

He drove the people down the mountain that day, but left the token behind.

Lu Guang rubbed the token with his fingertips, and finally a hint of weariness appeared in his eyes.

It took more than ten generations of people in Zhaoye Sect to achieve its current glory. The sect needs him to hold it up, and the disciples outside are all looking to Zhaoye Sect for its few lamps.

The light must not be turned off.

But the lamp oil is almost gone.

Lu Guang's injuries were so severe that he had asked too many people for help, but no one could cure him, and there wasn't even anyone willing to try.

Now, all hope remains is the token in my hand.

"Does it really have to come to this?"

"I am not reconciled."