Early in the morning, Lu Qing brought Xiao Yan and Xiao Li to the small courtyard halfway up the mountain.
Just then, I saw that the Wei family patriarch was also there, while the old doctor was brewing tea under the plum tree.
"Greetings, Senior Wei." Lu Qing bowed.
"Hello, Grandpa Wei~" Xiaoyan greeted him obediently.
"Good, all good." Wei Shanhai smiled broadly. "By the way, Young Master Lu, the materials you asked me to help you find a few days ago have all been gathered. I've put them in the room. You can check them later to see if anything is missing."
"Have you gathered all the materials?"
Lu Qing was pleasantly surprised.
I went inside and checked, and found that all the materials had indeed been gathered.
He quickly came out to express his gratitude: "Thank you very much, Senior Wei. I will make up for the cost of finding these materials."
"Young master, you flatter me. It's just some materials, nothing to brag about. How could such a small thing possibly repay the kindness you have shown to the Wei family?" Wei Shanhai said with a smile.
Lu Qing declined again, but seeing that Wei Shanhai insisted on not accepting it, he had no choice but to give up.
"Then this junior will shamelessly accept it."
“That’s more like it. But I’m also quite curious, Young Master Lu, some of the materials you’ve requested are rather peculiar. What are they intended to be used for?” Wei Shanhai asked.
"I want to test something, but I'll keep you in suspense for now. Once I succeed, I'll ask Senior Wei for some guidance."
"Haha, then I'll wait and see."
Seeing that Lu Qing didn't want to reveal it for the time being, Wei Shanhai wasn't angry; instead, he became even more expectant.
Last time, Lu Qing asked the Wei family to find materials, and they said they made a very magical fire liquid. It was with the help of that fire liquid that he forged a divine weapon that was rarely seen in the world.
The materials Lu Qing is looking for this time are even more peculiar, and the things he is going to test must be even more extraordinary.
Therefore, he was very much looking forward to it.
"Come, Old Man Wei, have some tea."
At this time, the old doctor's tea was also ready.
Xiao Yan consciously took Xiao Li to the study to read.
Lu Qing also sat down and chatted with the two elderly people.
"Excellent tea!" Wei Shanhai took a sip of tea, feeling the fragrance fill his mouth, and couldn't help but praise, "Dr. Chen, every time I drink your plum tea, it tastes different. Your tea-making skills are truly remarkable."
"It's just that these plum blossoms are rather unique. My tea-making skills are just so-so," the old doctor said with a smile.
Although Wei Shanhai knew this was a humble remark, he couldn't help but nod.
Looking at the plum tree behind the old doctor, I felt a pang of envy.
This plum tree, having been nourished by the essence of heaven and earth, has long undergone a transformation, becoming a rare and precious tree.
He was somewhat annoyed, wondering why he hadn't thought of this when he first entered the Innate Realm.
If he had sought out a good tea tree to make a breakthrough back then, he too could have possessed a precious tea tree.
However, Wei Shanhai also knew that this was just wishful thinking on his part.
When he first saw the opportunity for a breakthrough, he was overjoyed and forgot everything else, focusing only on the breakthrough and fearing that he would miss the chance.
How could anyone think so thoroughly and make so many arrangements in advance?
After drinking a few cups of tea, the group began to chat.
"By the way, Young Master Lu, a considerable portion of the materials you need this time were purchased from the state government. Yesterday, the steward who escorted the materials from my residence also brought some recent major events that have occurred throughout the land."
"Oh, I wonder what interesting things happened?" Lu Qing asked with interest.
With a major upheaval imminent, he remains quite attentive to the happenings in the world.
"The first major event is that in Jeju, a very powerful demon has appeared in the past few months. He likes to hunt down martial arts masters who have achieved mastery of their skills."
This demon, whose cultivation method is unknown, possesses the ability to absorb people's blood, energy, and bone marrow, making him extremely domineering and terrifying.
Every martial artist he harmed was depleted of qi, blood, and bone marrow, resembling a dried-up corpse—a truly terrifying sight.
Moreover, this demon seems to prefer targeting talented young martial artists who have achieved fame early in life.
To date, dozens of young martial artists have fallen victim to his wickedness, many of whom are disciples of sects in Jeju, including martial arts masters at the Inner Strength Realm.
This matter has already caused a great uproar in Jeju Island. All the major sects have dispatched their experts, determined to slay this demon and avenge their fallen disciples.
"Such a thing is true?"
Both the old doctor and Lu Qing were surprised.
Lu Qing, in particular, was reminded of some unpleasant things by Wei Shanhai's description of the martial artists' deaths.
“This is absolutely true. There is a lot of panic in Jeju now. Many young martial artists dare not travel outside, for fear of encountering that demon and becoming his prey,” Wei Shanhai said solemnly.
Lu Qing's heart skipped a beat: "Senior Wei, I remember your eldest son was studying martial arts in Jizhou, right...?"
"There's no need to worry about that. Half a year ago, Hao'er and several fellow disciples went to Zhongzhou to travel. He's not in Jizhou."
Speaking of this, Wei Shanhai felt somewhat fortunate.
Otherwise, given that demon's cruelty, he really couldn't guarantee that Wei Zihao wouldn't meet with a terrible fate.
The old doctor pondered for a moment and asked, "If it can absorb human bones and blood, could that demon be a demonic master at the Innate Realm level?"
"I don't know either, but I think it's probably not," Wei Shanhai shook his head.
“In the past thousand years, since the establishment of the Holy Mountain, the demonic path has been declining, and there has been no demon in the Innate Realm for a long time. If this demon is really an Innate Realm demon, the Holy Mountain should have taken action.”
"If it's not a demon at the Innate Realm, the Holy Mountain won't take action?" Lu Qing asked.
"Indeed, given the exalted status of the Holy Mountain, it is impossible for them to personally handle everything and manage every single matter."
Aside from some general prohibitions, it basically doesn't interfere with fights between martial artists below the Innate Realm.
Even in wars between prefectures and kingdoms that could plunge hundreds of thousands of people into misery, it would remain a bystander, indifferent and unmoved.
If that demon has not yet reached the Innate Realm, the Holy Mountain will most likely still stand idly by.
After all, the world is too vast, and martial artists emerge in endless streams; it's just a matter of a few dozen young martial artists dying.
This is a big deal in Jeju, but on a global scale, it's nothing special.
Upon hearing this, Lu Qing seemed to ponder, gaining a deeper understanding of the Holy Mountain's stance.
“If that demon is only causing trouble in Jeju, that would be fine,” Wei Shanhai added.
"What I'm worried about is that all the major sects in Jeju have now sent out experts to besiege that demon."
If that demon senses something is wrong and flees to our Cangzhou, then we'll be in trouble.
For example, you, Young Master Lu, must be very careful. That demon likes to target young, talented martial artists, and he might come after you.
Those who follow the demonic path possess strange and unpredictable magical arts, vastly different from the martial arts we cultivate. You must be extremely careful.
Upon hearing this, the old doctor also said seriously, "That's right, Aqing, you need to be careful."
Lu Qing is ranked on the Hidden Dragon List; he is a true peerless genius.
Based on the demon's habits, Wei Shanhai's concerns were not unfounded if he fled to Cangzhou.
"Yes, disciple will be careful," Lu Qing replied earnestly.
Although he was confident, he didn't believe that no one in the world could really do anything to him.
According to Wei Shanhai, if the cultivation method practiced by that demon is indeed as he guessed, then we really can't be careless.
"Besides the Jeju incident, there is another major event."
Seeing that Lu Qing had taken his words to heart, Wei Shanhai felt relieved and continued chatting.
"However, this matter happened in our Cangzhou, and it occurred in the last two days."
