Chapter 207: Finally Discovered

At dawn, the streets held few people, and the light was dim, as if a faint mist still hung in the air.

A procession emerged from the mist; the lead soldiers carried placards reading “Silence” and “Keep Clear,” accompanied by the clanging of gongs and chanting announcements.

This mode of travel is called “lubu.”

It was an ancient ritual, originally reserved solely for the Emperor, but over time and dynastic changes, it was gradually granted to lower ranks, known as the minor lubu.

Now, officials of third rank or higher, as well as princes, may also use it.

But the scale is naturally much smaller—three hundred is the upper limit, and a hundred or so is typical.

Yet no matter how small the scale, anyone using a lubu is unmistakably a noble.

Seeing such a procession, ordinary people would feel as if they’d encountered a ghost, and even martial artists avoided getting close.

Zhou Qingqing sat inside a paper sedan, gazing through the window at the guards and maids surrounding her, watching the envious glances cast from afar, and sighed softly:

“For an ordinary woman, this is the most glorious, most triumphant moment in life. But alas—it’s fake.”

Tears glistened in her eyes, her face a mix of longing and disappointment.

Li Lin said nothing… because it was not his responsibility.

If Huang Qing or Hong Luan had said this, he might have pondered whether it could be done; but for Zhou Qingqing… it had nothing to do with him.

Zhou Qingqing unconsciously turned her head to look at Li Lin; seeing his cold indifference, she abandoned all thought and merely stroked her son’s head.

On the other side, Ji Feng and An Xin had already made contact.

Both now stood atop the tallest inn in the city, surveying the surroundings while chatting casually.

“I didn’t expect your Tianyi Sect would be interested in such rumors,” Ji Feng smiled, his face still pale.

An Xin glanced around as he replied: “I never encountered it before, so I didn’t believe it or care. Now that I have, I accept it.”

“You’ve met an immortal?”

“No, only a cultivation family.”

“The Ding family?”

An Xin chuckled: “To be honest, the Dings are ordinary. Everyone knows they’ve spent a hundred years trying to cultivate, yet no one truly respects them.”

Ji Feng burst into laughter.

Because An Xin spoke the truth.

The Ding family is indeed a century-old clan, but the problem is—they’ve achieved nothing.

Their most famous claim is the dual-cultivation technique!

Then spirit dust, and only after that their self-proclaimed “cultivation” label.

After laughing, Ji Feng asked: “So who from this cultivation family did you meet?”

“The Li family.”

Ji Feng paused. “Which Li family?”

“The Li family connected to cultivation—there’s only one!”

Ji Feng sucked in a sharp breath: “No way—the Jincheng Li family vanished decades ago.”

“A hundred-foot worm dies but doesn’t go cold. Especially a family so large—they must have left some legacy.”

Ji Feng nodded lightly.

Qingcheng Sect isn’t a major school, but even we have two or three hundred years of history; how much more so a true great clan? They wouldn’t vanish so quickly.

“How was your contact with the Li family?”

An Xin paused for a moment before saying: “Let’s just say—they live up to being one of the original three surnames. The one I met truly deserves the title of a nobleman from an ancient family.”

“That high an evaluation?”

“Wait until you meet him, spend time with him—you’ll understand. He’s truly unlike anyone else.”

Ji Feng pondered briefly, then said: “Speaking of unusual young men, I met one these past few days—he’s truly…”

He was about to continue when a strange sound came from afar.

“Nobles on the move—commoners keep clear.”

Then came the clanging of bronze gongs.

Both turned their gaze.

Two streets away, through the dimness, a procession moved forward, faint smoke curling around it.

“A noble out so early?” An Xin stared in disbelief: “Is today some special day?”

Ji Feng shook his head: “I don’t know.”

They watched for a moment, then looked away.

Commoners don’t fight officials… and martial artists avoid them too, especially a procession with such obvious high-official pomp—there’s surely someone hidden nearby protecting the noble inside the sedan.

The procession continued forward, heading toward the city gate.

They paused briefly at the gate, then all exited.

An Xin turned back, staring at where the lubu procession had vanished—he felt something was off.

But he couldn’t tell what.

Ji Feng felt the same.

They remained on the rooftop, waiting for their people to continue searching Yuecheng.

Time quickly reached noon.

Still no trace of the “Flower Queen” or her only son.

An Xin looked up at the blazing sun overhead and said: “It’s noon. Want to grab a bowl of vegetarian noodles? My treat.”

“Vegetarian noodles?”

“Add a plate of white-cut chicken.”

“Fine.”

As the two prepared to descend from the roof, a young man in Tianyi Sect attire leapt down.

“Senior Brother, we’ve made a new discovery?”

“Found the Flower Queen?” An Xin asked.

The young man shook his head: “No. It’s Little Sister who noticed something odd.”

“What?”

The man opened his palm, revealing a sheet of white paper with strange markings, stained with gray ash.

“What is this?”

The young man said: “Little Sister says it’s debris left by a paper doll.”

“Exactly!”

Tianyi Sect’s Little Sister studied thunder arts and has just begun mastering paper-folding techniques—she’s one of their most valued inner disciples.

Paper doll debris?

An Xin asked: “Where was it found?”

“That street over there,” the young man pointed ahead.

Hm?

Both An Xin and Ji Feng now felt something was wrong.

The young man continued: “Also, early this morning, Little Sister smelled the scent of burned talisman paper—it led all the way outside the city.”

At that moment, a flash of insight struck An Xin’s mind.

“Minor lubu!”

An Xin and Ji Feng shouted together.

“After them!”

An Xin said: “You go notify everyone—pursue westward immediately. I’ll leave markers along the way—I’ll catch up soon.”

Meanwhile, Ji Feng flipped off the inn, crossed the courtyard, returned to his room, and said: “Wife, notify all disciples immediately—head west. We’ve found the target. I’m going ahead.”

“Understood!”

Ji Feng descended the stairs to the courtyard, but slowed his pace, acting as if nothing were amiss.

Only after leaving the inn dozens of paces did he activate his light-body technique and speed forward.

Even so, several other martial artists quietly followed behind him.

(End of Chapter)