Chapter 0430: The Real Target

In one of House Luolan's halls.

Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e hurried in and saw a middle-aged man seated comfortably. He was well-muscled, his hair long and braided into a neat ponytail. He was dressed in a simple shift, and his strong features were calm, his eyes bright. He reminded one of a majestic lion, radiating power even while he sat neutrally.

A powerful Heavenly Dipper General.

This middle-aged man was the only Heavenly Dipper General expert still loyal to House Luolan, to Li Luo, and to Jiang Qing'e. One of the three ancestors, Yuan Qing.

Yuan Qing looked up as they entered, and his eyes softened when he saw Li Luo. In his youthful face he saw the image of two people that he respected above all else.

"Yuan Qing greets the Young Lord," he said, rising from his seat and cupping his fist towards Li Luo with a small bow.

Li Luo was very surprised by the huge respect that he was being shown. "Uncle Yuan, you are an elder of House Luolan, so there's no need to stand on ceremony," he said hurriedly. "My youthful frame can't withstand the weight of such respect."

Yuan Qing's creased face crinkled in a smile. "Ah, the Young Lord has grown so much in the years that we've been apart."

He turned to Jiang Qing'e with a smile. "As has the Young Mistress. Even when far abroad, your name was one that often reached my ears."

Jiang Qing'e shook her head modestly. "Rumors travel faster than the wind, which proves that they are even more insubstantial."

"Honestly speaking, I should not have spent such a long time away from the house," Yuan Qing said apologetically. "Otherwise, that dog Pei Hao would not have been so bold."

There was a murderous anger in his eyes when he said Pei Hao's name.

"Uncle Yuan, I heard you were attacked on the way back?" Li Luo asked concernedly.

Yuan Qing nodded darkly. "Mo Cheng had a hand in it as well. That old devil has a heart as black as his name. If not for the two house lords granting him all the cultivation resources he needed, he would never have made it to Heavenly Dipper General. Now that they have disappeared, his gratitude has vanished as well. Helping Pei Hao to take down House Luolan? Disgusting!"

Mo Cheng was the ancestor that supported Pei Hao the most.

Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e exchanged a look. They could sense his murderous intent.

"They did not harm me in the ambush, but I think I was never their goal in the first place. It was my disciple. They kept me occupied, isolating her and poisoning her with something strange."

Yuan Qing turned to a young girl with short hair. Her pretty features were pale as she sat listlessly in the chair. Black mist was rising out of her alabaster skin at intervals, before burrowing back down like worms. She coughed weakly, and Yuan Qing immediately rose and went to her side. She looked at him, face pale. "Master, Master, don't worry about me."

Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e approached cautiously as well.

"This is my disciple, Guo Ling," Yuan Qing said tenderly to the two.

"My... my respects to the Young Lord and Young Mistress," Guo Ling said in a faint voice. Li Luo waved to show that she need not worry herself with courtesies. "Poison. Truly Pei Hao's favorite method. Not the first time he's chosen it."

His last poisoning had wreaked havoc at the Suncreek Villa, sending poisoned people and hoping that they would die and ruin the villa's reputation.

"That dirty bastard! I'll hang him up by his feet and break every bone starting from his head!" Yuan Qing swore, his resonant power pulsing around him as he was on the verge of losing control.

"Pei Hao has declared his terms," Lei Zhang said in a low voice. "As long as Yuan Qing swears to leave House Luolan and Xia City, he will provide the antidote."

"Not everyone is as spineless as he is." Yuan Qing sneered coldly.

Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e shared a look. Pei Hao sure knew how to pick his moments. There was only half a month left until the Holy Grail Meet. Both of them would be away from Xia City at that time. Once they were, House Luolan would need someone to hold the fort. Ox Biaobiao had been the ideal choice, but he was busy making the miracle paste for Li Luo, and it was best not to divide his attention. Moreover, he could not leave the headquarters grounds, which made things inconvenient.

Yuan Qing was the next best answer, and he was also strong enough that Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e would be happy to leave with peace of mind.

Pei Hao must have guessed the same thing, and so he was trying to frustrate their plan to bring Yuan Qing back.

𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"That thankless wretch is a viper indeed. Or maybe a python, because I seem to feel him on my neck every second," Li Luo grumbled.

"Uncle Yuan, don't worry. Let me try to deal with the poison in Guo Ling's body. I managed to deal with Pei Hao's poison once before."

In the last few months, his understanding of poisons had deepened even further through his healing of the little emperor. In a way, he had become a bit of an expert at antidotes. Of course, it was thanks to his water and wood resonances, which had anti-poison properties.

Yuan Qing looked at him in surprise. "Young Lord, you can nullify toxins?"

"I have some experience," Li Luo answered modestly.

Yuan Qing turned to Jiang Qing'e, who nodded reassuringly. His doubts cleared. "Then I beg you to do your best, Young Lord."

"Bring her to the bedroom," Li Luo ordered, and serving girls hurried up to do his bidding.

"Young Lord," Guo Ling said faintly when they were alone together in the bedroom, "Please..." She gestured for him to come closer.

"If the poison cannot be removed, please let me know and I will take my own life so they cannot use me to threaten my master. I know that he will not betray House Luolan."

Li Luo was moved by her words, then he smiled down at her reassuringly.

"Don't worry. I'll help you."

...

In a room somewhere else in Xia City.

Pei Hao leaned on the brick window sill, enjoying the afternoon scenery. The hot sun lit up the streets below, while passers-by scurried back and forth in the shaded avenues.

He swung back to the room, taking a moment for his eyes to adjust to the relative darkness. He walked over to the table and picked up his tea cup, then sat down opposite an elderly man in black robes. It was the other House Luolan ancestor, Mo Cheng.

"You put a Hellish Caterpillar on the wench? What a waste of a rare poison," Mo Cheng lamented. "It's such an expensive and exotic one. You could even have used it on Yuan Qing himself. It'd have crippled him."

Pei Hao snickered softly. "You think Yuan Qing is worthy as a target?"

"What are you talking about? How is the kid any more of a target than Yuan Qing?" Mo Cheng asked, puzzled.

Pei Hao smiled mysteriously.

"My target was never Yuan Qing or his disciple from the start."

"Wasn't the plan to threaten Yuan Qing to leave House Luolan by poisoning his disciple?"

Pei Hao took a sip of tea. "Yuan Qing is a bother, but nothing to fear. His strength has long fallen within our calculations."

"But Li Luo..."

"He likes to neutralize poisons, doesn't he? Let him try this one."