Chapter 636: The Mansion Festival Arrives

Boom! Boom boom!

When the warm sunlight poured over Daxia City, from within the headquarters of House Luolan Mansion came the sound of rousing war drums. Outside the main gate, lanterns were hung, decorations strung up, lion dances performed, and drums beaten—the atmosphere was exceptionally festive.

Li Luo and Jiang Jiang Qinge stood outside the main gate, watching this boiling scene.

Guests bearing gifts arrived one after another. These guests came from various factions, though for the most part they were only subordinates; none of the leaders of the various factions had come. This wasn't because they didn't want to come, but because the headquarters of House Luolan Mansion had that strange array suppressing it, and none of those other Marquis-level powerhouses wished to experience that feeling of being suppressed.

Moreover, among these guests, there were surely not a few who came to spy or harbored ill intentions.

But Li Luo and Jiang Jiang Qinge did not bother to inspect or stop them, because it would serve no purpose. These lackeys did not have the ability to change the direction of today's great contest.

"Of all the Mansion Festivals House Luolan Mansion has held over so many years, this one is probably the most complicated and heart-stopping," Li Luo said to Jiang Jiang Qinge with a helpless smile. The Mansion Festival was supposed to be the liveliest and most joyous occasion of the year for House Luolan Mansion. The high-level members of House Luolan Mansion who were normally distributed across the outside would all lead their people back to the headquarters to report on the year's progress and gains, and at this time, the two Mansion Heads would bestow rewards. This was the day that everyone in House Luolan Mansion looked forward to most each year.

But today's Mansion Festival was clearly different from all those in the past.

Jiang Jiang Qinge nodded slightly and said, "In the future, House Luolan Mansion will surely return to what it once was. These tribulations now will only make it stronger afterward."

"That's a good bowl of chicken soup. I'll drink to it."

Li Luo joked, then raised his head, his gaze sweeping over the towering pavilions surrounding House Luolan Mansion. At this moment, there were probably many gazes from those places all directed at House Luolan Mansion. Today's House Luolan Mansion was undoubtedly the focus of the entire Daxia City.

"I really want to see just how many hungry wolves this tasty morsel of my House Luolan Mansion can lure out today?"

As cold light flickered in Li Luo's eyes, Yuan Qing, Lei Zhang, and other high-level members of House Luolan Mansion loyal to the headquarters also arrived leading their people. Outside the headquarters' main gate, they bowed to Li Luo and Jiang Jiang Qinge.

"Greetings, Young Mansion Head, Young Lady!"

Li Luo and Jiang Jiang Qinge both wore smiles and waved in acknowledgment. Behind them, Chief Steward Cai Wei instructed maidservants to bring cups of hot wine and bestow them upon the crowd—this was the customary rule established by the two Mansion Heads.

The crowd accepted the hot wine and bowed once more.

At this moment, Li Luo and Jiang Jiang Qinge suddenly raised their heads, their gazes directed forward. There, the surrounding crowd was parted, and waves of figures surged forward like a tide, carrying a fierce momentum, pressing straight toward the headquarters' main gate.

"Young Mansion Head, this cup of 'merit-rewarding wine'—won't you share a cup with us as well?" At the head of those ranks of troops, Manager Pei Hao's figure was the most conspicuous. He wore a smile, looked directly at Li Luo and Jiang Jiang Qinge, and spoke.

Seeing this, Yuan Qing's expression turned cold. With a wave of his hand, he led his people forward to meet them, and streams of phase force rose up. The originally festive atmosphere instantly became tense and hostile.

And the troops behind Manager Pei Hao immediately tightened their grips on their weapons, phase force surging.

"Yuan Qing, do you want to break the rules set by the two Mansion Heads? Or do you want House Luolan Mansion to begin splitting apart right here outside the main gate?" Beside Manager Pei Hao, a man with greying hair frowned slightly and said flatly to Yuan Qing.

"Xu Xu Tianling, you still have the face to mention the two Mansion Heads?" Yuan Qing said mockingly.

Elder Mo Chen, also one of the three Grand Elders, chuckled lightly and looked toward Li Luo and Jiang Jiang Qinge: "Young Mansion Head, are you planning to block all of us old veterans of House Luolan Mansion outside during the Mansion Festival?"

Li Luo's gaze stared indifferently at Manager Pei Hao, Xu Xu Tianling, Elder Mo Chen, and the others, then swept over the vaguely familiar faces behind them. These had all once been veterans of House Luolan Mansion; when he was young, they had even given him gifts.

"You are indeed all veterans of House Luolan Mansion. You once rendered meritorious service for House Luolan Mansion as well."

Li Luo was briefly silent, then looked at everyone seriously and said, "Out of consideration for your past service, I want to ask you one last time here. For this Mansion Festival, are you truly determined to follow Manager Pei Hao all the way to the end?"

The pavilion masters and other high-level members behind Manager Pei Hao had expressions that were slightly unnatural.

Seeing this, Manager Pei Hao smiled faintly and said, "Young Mansion Head, at this point, why bother with such naive words? Do you really think we still have a way back?"

Everyone behind him fell silent.

Li Luo simply shook his head and said no more.

"However, Young Mansion Head, if you truly do not wish for conflict to break out in House Luolan Mansion today, the proposal I mentioned at Spring Lake Restaurant that day still stands," Manager Pei Hao said.

His proposal was, naturally, that he and Li Luo share the burden of being Mansion Heads.

"Bai Yanlang, at this point, why bother with such naive words?" Li Luo smiled, returning Manager Pei Hao's earlier words to him verbatim.

The corner of Manager Pei Hao's mouth twitched slightly, but the smile on his face remained, though the warmth of that smile grew somewhat cold and sinister.

"Elder Yuan, let them all in. Although those who come are not guests, everything still needs to be done according to the rules." Li Luo finally waved his hand. If Manager Pei Hao were truly prevented from entering the headquarters to attend the Mansion Festival, that would instead invite more trouble. The hidden hands behind him would absolutely not sit idly by and let such a thing happen, and by then, the situation would only be worse.

After Li Luo finished speaking, he and Jiang Jiang Qinge walked straight back into the headquarters.

Hearing this, Yuan Qing could only snort coldly at Manager Pei Hao, then waved his hand to dismiss the guards.

Manager Pei Hao treated Yuan Qing's icy gaze as if it didn't exist. He stared at the headquarters' main gate for a moment, then with a wave of his hand, led everyone flooding into the headquarters.

After both sides' forces had fully entered the headquarters, the continuous sound of war drums rose once more, though this time, the drumbeats seemed to carry an added note of martial hostility.

On a plaza within the headquarters.

The various parties took their seats. Li Luo and Jiang Jiang Qinge sat at the head position. On the row of seats to their right were Yuan Qing, Lei Zhang, Cai Wei, and others, while on the left side were Manager Pei Hao, Xu Xu Tianling, Elder Mo Chen, and others.

Hobbies

At this moment in the venue, a series of atmosphere-warming preliminaries were underway—these were also the customary procedures of past years.

However, this year, not a single person cheered for these preliminaries. Beneath the seemingly lively atmosphere, the undercurrents surging made the mood feel especially oppressive. Everyone's eyes were filled with cold intent, because they all knew that no matter how lively and festive the atmosphere, it could not conceal the war of secession that would erupt within the headquarters today.

Today was destined to be a calamity for House Luolan Mansion.

Outside the headquarters, atop a certain lakeside pavilion.

A slightly tall and sturdy middle-aged man in a blue robe sat cross-legged. Before him, a small fire warmed hot wine. He watched the festivities inside House Luolan Mansion's headquarters with a smile, then poured himself a cup and chuckled lightly: "Li Taixuan, this cup is to see off the House Luolan Mansion you created."

On his robe were flame patterns—the mansion crest of Extreme Flame Mansion.

And the man in blue was precisely the Mansion Head of Extreme Flame Mansion, Zhu Zhu Qinghuo.

Pouring a cup of hot wine onto the ground, Zhu Zhu Qinghuo looked once more toward the interior of House Luolan Mansion's headquarters. In his pupils, flames seemed to slowly kindle.

"That Marquis-level powerhouse hidden here in House Luolan Mansion—this time... I can finally have a true bout with you."