Chapter 141: Chapter 121: The Troubles Continue

Unwelcome guests had descended upon West River Courtyard.

The protective shield from the White Cloud Array, which had once enveloped the entire courtyard, was now gone. The array’s Array Bead and the Array Flags scattered throughout the grounds were all shattered to pieces.

Blood trickled from the corners of Li Hejun’s and Hong Fu’s mouths. They had been beaten so badly they could no longer fight back.

Not far away, a squad of blue-robed cultivators was carrying away the Printing Machine, along with stacks of storybooks whose ink was still wet.

"Tell Lü Zhong to hand over the original manuscript for the story within ten days. Otherwise, he’ll face the consequences!" the leader of the group, a thin, beardless old man in a simple Cicada Robe, ordered the two women on the ground.

Once the sound of footsteps faded into the distance, the two women finally mustered enough strength to struggle up from the ground.

At that moment, Hong Fu’s expression was grim.

The Niu Family was a Foundation Establishment Clan, far beyond their ability to offend.

The reason they had been targeted was obvious: the storybook produced at West River Courtyard, which had become a bestseller in the market. As the plot continued to unfold, its sales were still growing wildly. Even a thousand copies a day weren’t enough to meet the demand.

With the storybook selling so well, the profits it could generate were, naturally, immense.

Hong Fu estimated they could earn nearly a thousand Spirit Stones each month.

But now, all of that was gone.

’With no more books to print, where will my cultivation resources come from?’ Hong Fu’s face grew even paler. She was no longer the naive girl she once was. After tasting the benefits of cultivation, how could she possibly be willing to give them up?

’What do I do? What do I do?’

Just as she was lost in thought, a fierce wind howled and a figure descended from the sky.

Lü Zhong leaped down from the Ox-headed Crane. When he saw the devastation in the courtyard, his good mood instantly vanished. His face became expressionless. His brow furrowed as he gazed at Li Hejun, who was still coughing up blood.

With a flip of his hand, he produced a Healing Elixir and fed it to her. At last, some color returned to her cheeks.

"What happened while I was away?"

"My lord, it was the Niu Family, the Foundation Establishment Clan from Donghui Ridge. After they broke in, they injured me... COUGH, COUGH... us, and then stole the Printing Machine," Li Hejun said, coughing, her little face growing even paler. "And, the Niu Family demanded that you hand over the story’s original manuscript within ten days."

’The original manuscript?’

Lü Zhong’s frown deepened.

’So this day has finally come!’

It was just as he had predicted. The only reason he’d been able to live and cultivate in peace before was because he had nothing worth targeting. His Talisman Making skill couldn’t be stolen, so he had never attracted malice from those on a higher level.

Now that his storybook was a bestseller bringing in astonishing profits, it was no surprise that he had been targeted.

’I still underestimated the story’s impact...’ Lü Zhong had thought he was being careful enough, but he had clearly miscalculated. After all, this wasn’t a world with endless entertainment; diversions were painfully scarce.

But now wasn’t the time to dwell on that.

As things stood, a Foundation Establishment Clan was an entity he could not afford to provoke.

This was especially true for the Niu Family of Donghui Ridge, an entity he absolutely could not afford to cross. It was said that their founding Patriarch had started as an Evil Cultivator and had only managed to whitewash his past later on.

As the saying goes, a leopard can’t change its spots, and there had always been plenty of negative rumors circulating about the Niu Family.

Even so, the Niu Family remained a dominant, unshakable force in the Yongling Area.

There were clearly reasons for this that outsiders were not privy to.

’To think that the ones to target me would be the Niu Family!’

Lü Zhong felt a massive headache coming on.

His gaze fell to the Dharma Robe he was wearing, and an idea sparked in his mind, but he rejected it just as quickly.

’The sect probably won’t stick its neck out for me over such a trivial matter.’

’As for my convenient new master, I don’t know her well enough yet. But going by the common cultivator trait of never acting without personal gain, getting her help won’t be easy. It’s a possibility, but that’s all.’

’What on earth am I supposed to do?’

"My lord, what if we... send the manuscript over right now? Maybe that way we can hold on to our original profits," Hong Fu, who had been silent all this time, suddenly suggested with excitement, as if she’d had a brilliant idea.

Lü Zhong’s face remained impassive.

’How naive!’

’Hong Fu’s idea was pitifully naive.’

He gave her a long, hard look and sighed to himself. ’Truly a hopeless case.’

’Looks like there’s no point in investing any more resources in her.’

He then shifted his gaze to Li Hejun.

’Their dispositions were truly worlds apart.’

’If only she were the one with a Spirit Root, I might really be able to raise a capable helper...’ As the thought crossed his mind, an idea sparked. He turned to the two women and said calmly, "Get on the crane. We’re going somewhere first." 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

"Are we going to the Niu Family’s estate?" Hong Fu asked, her face full of anticipation.

Lü Zhong didn’t answer. His resolve to give up on Hong Fu only hardened.

Li Hejun, beside them, also seemed to realize something. But after a moment’s hesitation, she held her tongue. She would never oppose a decision her lord made—she would only execute it faithfully.

The Ox-headed Crane flew for a while, heading toward the west of the city.

The city’s west side was in the direction of Donghui Ridge.

Standing on the crane’s back, Lü Zhong’s gaze was calm.

The Cultivation Realm, in the end, was a place where strength reigned supreme. Only the strong had the right to exploit others. He had worked so hard to find a source of income, and now someone was here to reap his harvest—and he was powerless to stop them.

’Do I really have to just hand over the manuscript?’

His frown deepened at the thought.

Just then, his gaze fell upon a convoy of carts down below.

On one of the large carts was, unmistakably, his stolen Printing Machine.

He was so certain because this machine was unique; he had personally modified and improved it, boosting its printing efficiency to more than ten times that of the original model.