novelraw Chapter 76 – Plan
Chapter 76 – Plan
[Hearing that portraits of the Great Wei Founding Emperor are so rare.]
[You are somewhat surprised.]
[Logically, portraits of such a founding emperor, whether for governance or for ritual purposes, should not be so scarce, even if not widely circulated.]
[You ask why this is the case.]
[Lin Manqing says she doesn't know, but according to rumors, the cultivation technique of the Founding Emperor was somewhat mystical, and his physique was extremely unique. Even ordinary Heaven-Human powerhouses couldn't remember his face, forgetting it at a glance, let alone ordinary painters.]
[For these reasons.]
[The portraits of the Founding Emperor are extremely rare.]
Seeing this, Chen Shi fell into deep thought.
The portraits are very rare.
Only a few exist in the world.
Even the other three divine residences don't have them.
So, in this world, in Liangzhou, perhaps only the Song family possesses a portrait of the Founding Emperor?
Even the Qin King's Manor might not have one.
Then...
Could the familiar feeling from the mysterious middle-aged man be due to the portrait?
Is it possible that he truly is the Great Wei Founding Emperor?
He had glimpsed the portrait of the Founding Emperor in the Inner Court that morning.
So, months later, when he saw the middle-aged man in the simulation, did he feel a vague sense of familiarity?
The more Chen Shi thought about it.
The more he felt this possibility was significant.
Firstly, this is the Inner Court, the residence of the Song family members, where outsiders can't enter at all. The Mountains and Rivers Residence is even more exclusive. When he was an Inner Court servant, he never did chores there. The Inner Court is too vast, housing tens of thousands of people, much larger than the Forbidden City of his previous life. The Mountains and Rivers Residence is also extensive, with dozens of halls, and even if one entered, they might not reach the hall with the Founding Emperor's portrait.
Secondly, as a Supreme Golden Bones, and so young, claiming to be a Song family disciple in Liangzhou is very convincing.
After all, being able to see the Founding Emperor's portrait in the Mountains and Rivers Residence.
One must either be a servant.
Or a Song family disciple.
As a Supreme Golden Bones, he obviously couldn't be a servant.
And this portrait of the Founding Emperor, a relic thousands of years old, has been hanging here since the Mountains and Rivers Residence was built. Perhaps this portrait was a gift from the Founding Emperor himself, along with the personally inscribed plaque, to the Song family.
All these factors.
Led to him saying the middle-aged man looked familiar, and the other party chose to believe his identity. Actually, it can't be said to be belief, because the middle-aged man might not care if he is a Song family disciple. The advice to leave the Cursed Land might have been out of old sentiment, a casual warning. What truly prompted the middle-aged man to give him the bronze book was probably the Five Gates of Heaven.
[A few minutes later.]
[Lin Manqing ended the conversation with you.]
[...... Song Fan went out for training.]
[...... You held a grand wedding with Lin Qiushui and Mo Xiang.]
[On February 14th, Lin Manqing told you that the steward who brought Lu Yi into the manor passed away more than ten years ago, so she could only try to find some old acquaintances who had worked with Lu Yi for a long time.]
A quick look at "pawread.com" will leave you more fulfilled.
[On February 27th, an elderly man with a face full of wrinkles came to your courtyard. After some pleasantries, you learned his identity.]
[His name is Li Dian, a beggar who entered the manor with Lu Yi ninety years ago.]
[You asked him about Lu Yi.]
[Li Dian, over a hundred years old, spoke incoherently and seemed mentally unwell, resembling someone with dementia, making communication with him quite difficult.]
[An hour later.]
[You learned that Li Dian's ancestors were among the people abducted by demons from Great Wei two hundred years ago, kept in captivity like livestock in demon-controlled cities until ninety years ago, when the current head of the Song family, Song Tiangang, led an army to defeat the demons, reclaim the homeland, and rescued them, relocating these remnants of Great Wei to the rear.]
[Li Dian encountered a wild man during the migration with the army.]
[That wild man was Lu Yi.]
[Lu Yi had no parents.]
[Disheveled, unable to speak, uneducated, living primitively, these traits matched those of the captives raised by demons.]
[So the leading officer captured Lu Yi and brought him along.]
[They were relocated to the rear.]
[However, intriguingly, Lu Yi appeared near the Liangzhou border, very close to the Cursed Land in your memory.]
[This made you suspicious.]
[Lu Yi might be a reborn individual who emerged from the Cursed Land.]
[But due to certain reasons, he lost his memory, and his starting point was in the deep mountains, leading to his initial primitive lifestyle. It wasn't until he was seventy that he awakened his past life's memories and truly embarked on cultivation... You think, if he is a reborn individual with the foundation of a heavenly spirit, reaching the innate stage at seventy doesn't seem far-fetched.]
"Is it possible that the Great Wei Founding Emperor is also a reborn individual?"
This question arose in Chen Shi's mind.
Lu Yi and the Great Wei Founding Emperor should be the same kind of people. If reborn individuals truly lose their memories, then the Founding Emperor's pursuit of empire-building seems reasonable, just like Lu Yi, who spent most of his life as a shopkeeper.
However...
If they truly are reborn individuals, why do they remain in Great Wei?
Why not cross the Cursed Land to see the outside world?
Could it be that the other side is also a dead end?
[Under your persistent questioning.]
[Li Dian grew increasingly exhausted, and finally, his eyes closed, and he collapsed.]
[You were shocked.]
[You quickly went forward to support him, finding that he had merely fallen asleep, and you breathed a sigh of relief.]
[You asked Mu Jin to help Li Dian to a room to rest.]
[After pondering for a while.]
[You considered verifying the identity of the middle-aged man in the Cursed Land.]
[To see if he is the Great Wei Founding Emperor.]
[However, you soon abandoned this decision because there wasn't enough time. It was now February 27th, a day after the middle-aged man left the Cursed Land, and Lu Yi was about to return to the manor.]
[Considering future crises.]
[You decided to prepare two plans.]
[If the royal time traveler in three years uses the secret of the Spirit Clan bloodline to manipulate the Spirit Sword Sect to take your life, then you might also use this secret to counter and take the Spirit Sword Sect's life.]
[However, this method is too dangerous, and you wouldn't use it unless absolutely necessary. Moreover, you are not sure if the royal time traveler in three years is indeed using this matter to threaten the Spirit Sword Sect.]
[Intuition tells you that the Spirit Sword Sect possesses Spirit Clan bloodlines that enhance human bones, and in the previous life, they even sent dozens of Heaven-Human powerhouses to Si Prefecture to pressure Emperor Wei. Their terrifying foundation might far exceed your imagination, and the royal time traveler might not dare to use such a matter to threaten the Spirit Sword Sect.]
[You also dare not.]
[So this is just a backup plan.]
[Your main plan is to find someone to assassinate Jiang Xun in advance.]
[With your hundred Profound Grade Supreme Spirit Herbs and several extinct Earth Grade Spirit Herbs as bargaining chips, even the ancestors of the four major sects would be tempted, because if these resources were made into alchemy pills, they could give rise to several Heaven-Human powerhouses. However, your strength is too weak, and it's easy to throw away your life, so you are unwilling to rely on the character of others.]
[You thought of asking Lin Manqing for help.]
[But after a brief consideration, you gave up. This woman is determined to support Song Qingwei to ascend the true dragon throne and wouldn't help you with such risky matters.]
[You frowned in thought.]
[After a while.]
[You thought of an old acquaintance—Li Wuyi.]