Chapter 116: Congratulations from All Directions, Seven-Star Dragon Abyss

The failure of the operations by the Sha'e and Rizhao consulates was suppressed, so almost no one learned of it, nor did it cause much of a stir in Jinjin.

On the contrary, the news of the mysterious disappearance of Deng Xiaolin of the Cao Gang, his son, and the four Incense Masters under his command caused quite a commotion and disturbance in the city after it spread.

With the group leaderless, Yulong Hall fell into extreme chaos; thousands of gang members were like wild horses breaking free, and some lower-level leaders began infighting over power that very day. If the two vice-leaders in charge of the Nujiao and Giant Whale Hall branches had not arrived in time to suppress them, nearly half of Jinjin City would likely have fallen into total disarray.

After they suppressed the situation, they immediately began an investigation, and as a result, they discovered from individual gang members who had carried out tasks under Deng Xiaolin's direction that Deng Xiaolin seemed to have colluded with the Rizhao Consulate and had carried out an assassination and retaliation against Lu Yuan last night.

This discovery left them horrified and terrified.

The disappearance of Deng Xiaolin, his son, and even the four Incense Masters was equivalent to death; it was clear that their assassination and retaliation operation had failed completely.

Thus, the identity of the person who took action was self-evident.

And since Lu Yuan had wiped out Deng Xiaolin and his entire force at the Yulong Hall assembly hall, Lu Yuan's strength and methods were even more terrifying than they had imagined.

However.

Although they had vaguely guessed the cause of Deng Xiaolin's death, the Old Dragon Head of the Cao Gang had not yet returned, so these two vice-leaders had to keep their mouths shut, not daring to leak the news in the slightest.

This also caused rumors to fly throughout the city regarding the cause of Deng Xiaolin's death, and many commoners who did not know the truth believed that Deng Xiaolin had met with divine retribution, feeling extremely gratified.

After all, among the three branches of the Cao Gang, Yulong Hall had the worst reputation; their kidnapping, trafficking of opium, and human trafficking had incurred the wrath of both gods and men, and countless commoners hated Deng Xiaolin, the ringleader, to the bone, though they dared to be angry but dared not speak.

Therefore, after the news spread, almost everyone clapped and cheered, and the bold ones even set off firecrackers in the street.

On the other side.

Less than a day later, the Shenluo Consulate also received news through its own unique intelligence channels that the Sha'e and Rizhao operations had failed and suffered heavy losses.

Upon learning that the Sixth Rank experts and Fifth Tier combat elites sent by those two parties had been completely wiped out because the news had leaked, they felt both terrified and schadenfreude.

After all, the personnel configuration sent by the two parties was already fully capable of surrounding and killing a top Seventh-tier expert, yet not a single one had managed to escape; it was hard to imagine what methods Lu Yuan had used.

Previously, Consul Victor and Platinum Holy Knight Williams had lost face because Lu Yuan had set up a ring, and they had considered whether to use some means to eliminate him; they had chosen to wait and see only after hearing that Sha'e and Rizhao were going to take action, never expecting such a shocking result.

However.

As the world's number one power today, the Shenluo Alliance was also constantly facing challenges from up-and-coming rivals, and the great powers were mostly in a relationship of hostile competition; seeing that Sha'e and Rizhao had suffered such a great loss, they treated it as a joke after their initial shock, and even specially sent letters of concern to inquire, adding fuel to the fire.

Of course, at the same time, they also updated the file on Lu Yuan, who had only recently established himself, and officially listed him as one of the most dangerous figures in Jinjin.

Meanwhile, the Sha'e Consulate and Rizhao Consulate, as the two biggest losers, simultaneously faced the backlash of their failed operations.

Whether it was Takov or Guangye Shensi, both received telegrams from their home countries the day after reporting the situation; while being severely reprimanded, they were also relieved of their consul duties on the spot, with the number two person in the consulate acting in their stead until the military sent someone to investigate.

Thus, both consulates were in turmoil, and for a time, no one had the energy to go and trouble Lu Yuan.

Compared to the three consulates.

The Jinjin government's reaction upon learning of this matter was significantly greater.

Especially for Qi Yuanjiang, the Governor, whose first reaction upon learning that Lu Yuan had actually killed the men from both Sha'e and Rizhao was panic, fearing that Sha'e and Shenluo would use this as an excuse to start a war.

After all, looking back at all the wars of aggression the Jin Dynasty had encountered, more than half were started by the great powers using various sudden incidents as excuses to brazenly ignite the flames of war in order to extract greater benefits from the Great Jin.

Once the two countries of Sha'e and Rizhao used this to stir up trouble, to say nothing of anything else, his career as the Governor of Jinjin would certainly be over.

Fortunately, Fan Zhenxiong reported the inside story in detail, and Qi Yuanjiang calmed down after realizing that the two consulates were the ones in the wrong, no longer acting like a bird startled by the mere twang of a bowstring.

But this also shows just how much most officials of the Jin Dynasty feared and dreaded the foreigners and the great powers.

Regardless of these disturbances in the outside world.

Lu Yuan sat firmly on the fishing platform, continuing to practice while preparing for the establishment of his hall.

The so-called preparation, aside from creating his own martial arts training methods, did not actually take much effort.

Thanks to the help of the entire Martial Arts Association, there were a full hundred masons renovating and expanding his chosen site according to his requirements, and every three days, one could see a new look.

Thus, after waiting for half a month.

This day.

Whether it was the ring Lu Yuan had set up that once shocked the whole city, or the chaos caused by the death of Deng Xiaolin of the Cao Gang, the resulting storm had long since subsided.

However, in the area of Liu Su Avenue in the outer city, a large number of commoners and curious onlookers had been arriving in high spirits since early morning, and soon the entire avenue was packed with people.

The reason was none other than that today was the day Lu Yuan's Guangwu Hall would officially open and begin recruiting Gatekeepers.

The original site of Guangwu Hall was a small textile mill, and ever since the Jin Dynasty was defeated and forced to open trading ports, under the impact of a large amount of industrial textiles from Shenluo, this small textile mill had gone bankrupt overnight and had been abandoned there for several years.

But now, the factory building and the few houses behind it had been renovated and looked brand new; the perimeter walls, the large courtyard, the martial arts arena, and training equipment like plum blossom stakes were all complete.

Through the publicity of the Martial Arts Association over these days, the recruitment conditions for Guangwu Hall were already known to everyone, so the thousands of teenagers and young people who arrived today all wanted to try their luck.

After all, Lu Yuan had once traded blows with Wu Taidou and was regarded by many as a figure on the same level as a Grandmaster; if one could join the school founded by such a figure, it would be equivalent to being among the first generation of founding disciples, and the future would be simply immeasurable!

It was not just them.

Near noon, a grand dragon and lion dance troupe also appeared on Liu Su Avenue and arrived in front of Guangwu Hall, the sound of gongs and drums reaching the heavens and echoing through half of Jinjin.

This was naturally the arrangement of the Martial Arts Association; under the instruction of Wu Taidou, the Martial Arts Association completely regarded Lu Yuan as one of their own and celebrated for him with the highest specifications.

And at this moment.

In front of the bustling hall gate, Lu Yuan, the main figure, dressed in a simple white long gown, also walked out of the hall surrounded by the helpers sent by the Martial Arts Association to welcome the guests.

One could see that the sea of people on the avenue in front of the hall had been separated into a path by the people of the Martial Arts Association; carriages stopped not far away, and then one figure after another, either wealthy or noble, stepped out of their carriages and walked over with various gifts, offering congratulations with smiling faces:

"Congratulations to Mr. Lu, congratulations to Mr. Lu! I am a Staff Officer for Governor Qi, specially sent to deliver a congratulatory message written by Governor Qi himself, wishing Guangwu Hall prosperity and to bring blessings to all directions!"

"Greetings, Mr. Lu. The Jinjin Railway Bureau congratulates you on the opening of Guangwu Hall. May your martial path be long and rainbow-like, may you govern the world and save the people, may your business flourish across the four seas, and may your reputation spread across the three rivers!"

"Congratulations to Mr. Lu on founding your own school! I am the president of the Taishan Chamber of Commerce. Today, on behalf of all the firms in the Chamber, I congratulate Mr. Lu and specially present a golden Buddha on a jade throne!"

"Mr. Lu, I represent the Iron Fist Martial Arts Hall, Kuangdao Martial Arts Hall, and Baji Martial Arts Hall in congratulating you."

"Mr. Lu, Cao Futian of the Golden Blade Group, specially here to congratulate you on behalf of all the brothers in the group."

In an instant, political, commercial, and Jianghu forces, all kinds of prominent and powerful figures, arrived with heavy gifts to celebrate, which could be called "congratulations from all directions," and he was the hottest figure of the moment.

Including the hundreds and thousands of curious onlookers around, they felt it was only natural while marveling.

After all, Lu Yuan had become famous throughout the world with one ring match, and even Wu Yixian had been forced back by him with two punches on the stage, nearly falling off.

Such deeds had made him a legend; in the hearts of most Jinjin commoners, Lu Yuan was already a figure on par with Wu Taidou, so it was only natural that so many big figures would come to celebrate the day he founded his school.

And in an inconspicuous corner among the crowd.

Beside Lin Xingchao and his disciples, as well as Gu Kanshan and his daughter Gu Yunsheng, whose injuries had all healed, there were three people whose gazes were frozen, staring at all of this like wooden chickens.

They were none other than the master and disciple pair, Li Junxian and Xu Dahu.

"How is it, Senior Brother? Do you find it hard to believe?"

To the side, Lin Xingchao seemed to find this scene quite amusing and said with a smile:

"Did you ever imagine that in just over a month, Lu Yuan would have created such a grand situation here in Jinjin?"

Li Junxian gazed at Lu Yuan, who was the center of attention and surrounded by the crowd in front of the hall gates, his tone dreamlike and surreal as he doubted reality:

"In the letter he sent me, he said he wanted to establish a sect, and I thought he was joking. This..."

Several days ago, he had received the letter sent by Lu Yuan in Fengyang Prefecture.

In the letter, Lu Yuan only briefly mentioned that he had made a name for himself in Jinjin by setting up a ring, defeated the foreigners in the Concession, and was preparing to establish a sect.

Just this alone had already made Li Junxian feel it was unbelievable, so he simply brought Xu Dahu along to investigate, arriving in Jinjin just this morning.

Upon arriving in Jinjin, he sought out Lin Xingchao immediately, and was then brought here to see this grand scene of congratulations from all directions, which made him start to doubt reality.

After all.

It had only been a little over a month since he left Jinjin; at that time, in his impression, Lu Yuan's martial arts cultivation seemed to be merely comparable to a Fifth Realm Martial Artist. How, in just over a month, had he transformed into a figure of the same level as a Grandmaster?

At this moment, Xu Dahu could not help but look from afar at Lu Yuan, who had short hair and the bearing of a Grandmaster, and felt his scalp tingle as he said:

"Junior Martial Uncle, did A Yuan really exchange blows with the True Martial Grandmaster of Jinjin on the ring?"

"Tens of thousands of eyes saw it with their own eyes that day, how could it be fake?"

Lin Xingchao smiled helplessly:

"Don't talk about you; even I haven't figured out what is going on. I only suspect now whether he has been possessed by some Immortal or deity; otherwise, there is no way to explain it."

Li Junxian and his disciple fell into deep silence and suspicion, unable to speak.

And they did not know that Li Junxian and the others had also arrived at the scene.

In the center of the main gate, over a hundred guests of significant status and standing presented their gifts one after another. Although Lu Yuan no longer cared much for worldly possessions, he still returned the gestures with a smile and proper etiquette.

At this moment, he suddenly heard a martial artist from the Martial Arts Association acting as a greeter call out loudly:

"Deputy Chiefs of the Grass Gang, Zhong Jinlong and Li Sanquan, have arrived—"

The people who arrived today were either rich or noble, so even Martial Arts Masters were nothing unusual, and the thousands of onlookers did not think much of it;

However, a few guests had their expressions change slightly upon hearing these two names.

The news that Deng Xiaolin's Yulong Hall had been wiped out by a mysterious figure had long since spread like wildfire. Ordinary citizens of Jinjin did not know the details, but there were a few sharp-eared and well-informed individuals who suspected Lu Yuan.

After all, anyone with the ability to kill a Martial Arts Master like Deng Xiaolin at the Yulong Hall headquarters must be a top-tier expert at the level of a True Martial Grandmaster.

Added to the rumors circulating in the streets, the evidence pointed vaguely toward Lu Yuan, making it hard not to suspect him, though there was no proof.

At this moment, Zhong Jinlong, who managed the Angry Dragon Hall, and Li Sanquan, who managed the Giant Whale Hall, were seen walking along the red carpet with their attendants to Lu Yuan, cupping their hands with extreme courtesy:

"Congratulations to Mr. Lu for establishing a sect in Jinjin; becoming a Grandmaster of a generation is not far off. We have been ordered by the Old Dragon Head of the Grass Gang to specially present a congratulatory gift!"

As he spoke, several attendants behind him lifted a red cloth, revealing a Golden Martial Saint Guan Yu Statue nearly a foot tall, reflecting brilliant golden light in the sunlight:

"The Old Dragon Head did not know Mr. Lu's preferences, so he had this statue of the Martial Saint crafted for you. We hope Mr. Lu likes it."

"In addition, the Old Dragon Head heard that the Yulong Hall had some misunderstandings with you, Mr. Lu, previously, and hopes to have the opportunity to invite you to the gang to have tea and resolve the misunderstanding."

Kou Zhongtian, the Old Dragon Head of the Grass Gang, was considered a figure of equal fame to Wu Yixian in Jinjin. Lu Yuan showed a smile, and under these circumstances, he still gave him face:

"Easy to say, easy to say. I will certainly visit when I have the chance."

Zhong Jinlong and Li Sanquan cupped their hands in a salute together, placed the golden statue in the gift area, and then walked to the side to wait.

And it was at this very moment.

A black carriage stopped at the end of the red carpet, and then the titan of the Martial Arts Association, Wu Yixian, along with veteran masters and elders of the Martial Arts Association such as Zheng Shan'ao, Huang Shihu, and Ouyang Heng, walked in with a group of people.

The crowd of onlookers was in an uproar. Lu Yuan did not neglect them and personally went up to meet them, smiling:

"Senior Wu and all the other masters of the Martial Arts Association have graced us with your presence. My small Guangwu Hall is truly honored today!"

"Young Friend Lu has established a sect at the age of twenty, achieving the status of a Grandmaster of a generation and creating history for our Jinjin Martial Arts Association. How could we not come at such a significant moment?"

As Wu Yixian spoke, he had already taken a long black wooden box from the arms of an attendant behind him and presented it personally:

"I observe that Young Friend Lu has profound Sword Technique but no sword by your side. This Seven Star Dragon Abyss is one of the ten great famous swords of the previous dynasty; it can blow hair and sever it, and cut iron like mud. It is the treasure of our Martial Arts Association, and today I gift it to you, Young Friend!"

(End of this chapter)