Chapter 52: Li Hongzhuang's Secret!

"This isn't a good place to talk. Let's head to my hidden spot in Nanyang," Li Hongzhuang said as she turned to leave.

Lu Changsheng quickly followed after, and soon the two arrived at a secluded courtyard in the western part of the city. He looked around and said calmly, "They say a cunning rabbit has three burrows. I'd wager you have more than that, Miss Li."[1]

Li Hongzhuang sat down while clutching her wound, then took a few pills and sighed wearily. "The jianghu is treacherous, especially for a woman. If I weren't better prepared, I'd have been killed long ago."

Indeed, survival in the jianghu was especially difficult for women.

"By the way, Miss Li, do you happen to possess a manual for a Divine Strength Realm martial art?" Lu Changsheng asked. After all, that was the real reason he sought her out, and even saved her.

"The Divine Strength Realm?" Li Hongzhuang looked at him intently. After a moment of silence, she gritted her teeth and said, "I do."

Lu Changsheng's eyes lit up. He took a deep breath and said, "Name your price. How many silver taels?"

At the moment, he had over ten thousand silver taels. Even if the manual cost that much, he believed it would be worth every tael.

However, Li Hongzhuang shook her head. "I don't want silver taels. In fact, I can give it to you for free."

Lu Changsheng's expression hardened. He knew better than to trust something that came without a price. No one would give away a martial arts manual for the Divine Strength Realm just like that.

"Go on," he said bluntly. "What do you want me to do?"

Li Hongzhuang smiled and lifted her veil, revealing a refined, elegant face. Under the dim candlelight, her smile seemed to brighten the whole room.

"We've met several times,” she said, "but I still don’t know how to address you."

"You can call me Shisan," Lu Changsheng replied.

When traveling through the jianghu, a codename was something everyone needed. Lu Changsheng chose the codename "Shisan" because back when he was a beggar, he had been the thirteenth apprentice taken in by Miaoshou Garden.[2]

"Well then, Brother Shisan, the reason I returned to Nanyang Prefecture this time was to find you."

"To find me?"

"That's right." Li Hongzhuang nodded. "I came to ask for your help. I've been wandering the jianghu for ten years without finding a single person I could truly trust. But when trouble came knocking, the first person who came to mind was you."

Her voice was gentle and sincere, but Lu Changsheng wasn't moved. To him, their relationship was simply transactional. Li Hongzhuang was merely someone he bought manuals from, nothing more.

"What does Miss Li need from me?" he asked. He really wanted a martial art of the Divine Strength Realm, but if the price was too high, he would walk away.

Li Hongzhuang took a deep breath and clenched her jaw. "Brother Shisan, you must be curious as to why I have so many manuals for martial arts and techniques in my possession, even one for the Divine Strength Realm."

Lu Changsheng nodded.

"It's because my Li family was once a renowned family specialized in the studies of martial arts, with a history spanning centuries. Over the years, our martial arts knowledge and techniques grew deep. One of my ancestors was even a Divine Strength Realm expert. Not only did this ancestor leave behind a Divine Strength Realm martial art, he also left behind the Marrow Transformation secret technique and formula for the Marrow Transformation Pill.

"But a traitor in my family leaked them to the Cui Clan of Jubei City. The Cui Clan schemed for years and managed to build a close relationship with Elder Lu Tong of Xuanjian Manor, who then helped them destroy my family.

"Lu Tong is a Divine Strength martial artist. When he struck, my family was wiped out overnight. More than two hundred members of the Li family were slaughtered. I was the only one who was lucky enough to escape. I changed my name and have been wandering the jianghu ever since."

Lu Changsheng nodded. He understood now: Li Hongzhuang carried the weight of her family's massacre, something not uncommon for those traveling through the jianghu.

"So you want me to take revenge for you?" he asked.

"No," Li Hongzhuang said. "I shall take my revenge myself! I only want you to come with me to the Cui Clan and help me seize the Marrow Transformation Pill from them.

"With my aptitude, reaching the Divine Strength Realm under normal circumstances is nothing but a pipe dream. But if I undergo Marrow Transformation, there's a small chance I might succeed. That's why I need the pill."

Lu Changsheng's heart stirred. He wanted that Marrow Transformation Pill too.

"But are you sure the Cui Clan has the pill?" he asked, staring intently into Li Hongzhuang's eyes.

"I am," she said firmly. "My father once made me memorize a martial art of the Divine Strength Realm, a secret technique for Marrow Transformation and its pill formula. Many of the ingredients in the formula are nearly impossible to find. Someone like me, wandering the jianghu alone, could never gather them. But a family like the Cui has the wealth and power to gather everything.

"I've been watching them for years and noticed they've been gathering rare ingredients one after another. A few months ago, I discovered they'd finally obtained the key ingredient needed to make the Marrow Transformation Pill. By then, I'd become an Organ Refinement martial artist, so I tried to steal one, but I failed.

"Even so, I learned that they succeeded in refining thirteen pills! Brother Shisan, if you help me secure those pills, I'll give you a Divine Strength Realm martial art and Marrow Transformation secret technique. With your current level, if you use the pill together with the secret technique and succeed in Marrow Transformation, your chances of reaching the Divine Strength Realm would increase greatly."

With that, Li Hongzhuang looked at Lu Changsheng, a faint hope flickering in her eyes. She had just revealed one of her biggest secrets to him—something she never would have done had she not been backed into a corner.

She went on, "Brother Shisan, the ingredients for the Marrow Transformation Pill are incredibly rare—almost impossible to find. Even with all their wealth and connections, the Cui Clan have spent ten years gathering them to refine a single batch. If we wait too long, they might use the pills or give them away."

Lu Changsheng closed his eyes and weighed his options. Both the Marrow Transformation secret technique and the Divine Strength Realm martial art were things he urgently needed.

If he could obtain one of those pills and succeed in Marrow Transformation, he would have completed the latter and also Blood Replacement before opening the Profound Gate of Life and Death. This would not only increase his chances of breaking through to the Divine Strength Realm but also grant him overwhelming combat power once he reached it. He would stand unmatched among others in that realm.

He couldn't deny it: what Li Hongzhuang offered was deeply tempting, and refusing her was the last thing he wanted to do.

After a long silence, Lu Changsheng opened his eyes and asked coldly, "The Cui Clan doesn’t have a martial artist in the Divine Strength Realm, correct?"

"Of course not."

"And what about Lu Tong of Xuanjian Manor? What's their relationship like?"

"Hmph. The Cui Clan only clings to him for support. Lu Tong wouldn’t step in for them without a good reason."

Lu Changsheng nodded. In any case, he couldn't disregard the connection between Lu Tong and the Cui Clan. It would certainly be troublesome if the Cui Clan managed to get Lu Tong's support. But then again, once he obtained the secret technique for Marrow Transformation and a Divine Strength Realm martial art and reached that realm, there would be no reason for him to fear Lu Tong.

"I want the martial art and secret technique first," Lu Changsheng said flatly. "If you trust me, hand them over. If not, we'll pretend this conversation never took place."

With that, he fell silent, waiting for Li Hongzhuang's response. Without first seeing the manuals for himself, he wouldn't take the risk.

𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

1. This is a Chinese idiom: Jiǎo Tù Sān Kū (狡兔三窟) that means a clever or wise person has multiple contingency plans or escape routes. ☜

2. Shisan in Chinese means "thirteen." ☜