Twilight's Threshold Chapter 91: Ascending Stages and Entering the Mansion (Thank you to the new alliance leader, the lis - Novel Cool

Chapter 91: Ascending Stages and Entering the Mansion (Thank you to the new alliance leader, the lis

Chapter 91: Ascending Stages and Entering the Mansion (Thank you to the new alliance leader, the list is attached below)

The innkeeper was sitting in the courtyard, smoking, his expression somber. Suddenly, he saw Hu Ma enter and was momentarily stunned before quickly standing up.

Looking at his expression, all his doubts seemed to vanish, replaced by overwhelming joy, as if the dark clouds in the sky had all dissipated.

"Very good, very good..."

He immediately stood up and came over to Hu Ma, looking him over and then said with some urgency, "I was just worried about some important matters and feared you wouldn't keep up. I didn't expect you to have refined it so quickly."

"How much progress have you made?"

"..."

"I can use it, but it's still a bit stiff. It's not completely refined yet."

Hu Ma responded to each question, twisting his toes a few times and leaving a crack in a blue brick in the courtyard.

"Very good, very good..."

The innkeeper's joy was evident, and even He Mei Mei in the room seemed to have a look of happiness in her eyes.

The innkeeper asked a few more questions, and Hu Ma answered each one without revealing anything, making the innkeeper nod in approval, saying with a smile, "You truly put in a lot of effort. It was worth teaching you this cultivation technique."

"You have great talent. Of the three apprentices I taught before, none of them practiced as well as you did."

"Heh heh, if it weren't for these matters, I would have thought about taking a closed-door disciple."

"..."

Seeing how he praised Hu Ma, it didn't seem fake.

Of course, the three apprentices he had taken in before wouldn't have been taught as diligently, nor would they have had such an abundant supply of Blood Food.

"Indeed, I put in a lot of effort..."

Hu Ma couldn't help but think to himself, "Every day, I have to figure out how to hide my true level..."

With the abundant supply of Blood Food and the Life-bound Divine Statue's illumination, he had already refined both his hands and legs. What he showed the innkeeper was deliberately slowed down, especially his right leg, which was actually already fully refined.

But he couldn't show that. Hu Ma planned every day how far he should seem to have progressed under normal circumstances.

Now, his right leg is half-refined, just enough to pass as a completed refinement.

"I was really worried that you wouldn't be able to learn this."

The old innkeeper sighed, gesturing for Hu Ma to sit down, and then called for the old servant to bring tea. He then said to Hu Ma, "But you haven't let me down. You've made good use of the Blood Food I provided. Now that you've reached this level, I can tell you about my unique skill..."

"Once you learn it, I can arrange for you to do that task."

"..."

Hearing this, Hu Ma was curious, "Unique skill?"

Mr. Wu nodded and said seriously, "In our Age Keeper's cultivation techniques, each step of ascending and entering the mansion has its own unique abilities."

"Of course, not just us, but other cultivation techniques also have their own ways of ascending and entering the mansion, though the methods are different."

"Simply put, you've stolen the method of reviving from death. Whether it's refining a hand, a leg, or even an eye or an ear, these all count as entering the door, which is called ascending a stage in the industry."

"Once you refine your hands, feet, and limbs, you ascend to the second stage. If your talent is deep enough to refine your internal organs and the five Life-bound Spirit Temples, you reach the third stage."

"At this point, in our Age Keeper's cultivation techniques, you're already considered to have deep cultivation."

"As for the mind and soul, those are hard to refine, but if you manage to refine them, it's not just ascending a stage, but entering the mansion gate."

."

"Of course, that's beyond our reach. I've been refining for thirty years and have only reached the third stage. The matter of opening the mansion gate is still beyond my imagination."

"..."

"Sounds like a ranking system?"

Hu Ma couldn't help but think to himself, "If other cultivation techniques also have such, then..."

"What level is Grandma at?"

"..."

As he thought, the old innkeeper then looked at him seriously, "In our Age Keeper's cultivation techniques, the process of ascending stages and entering the Mansion involves different refinement techniques and experiences, each with its unique aspects, which are called unique skills."

"Besides the Age Keeper's cultivation techniques, I also have a unique skill, passed down by my master."

"I wanted you to quickly refine a hand and a leg, as that is the minimum requirement to learn this unique skill."

"

"This unique skill is called the Four Ghosts Bowing at the Gate?"

"..."

"More unexpected gains?"

Hu Ma couldn't help but be surprised, hurriedly standing up and saying to the innkeeper, "Thank you, innkeeper."

"Don't thank me."

Wu Innkeeper waved his hand and sighed, "Because I need you, the time has come."

."

"Teaching you this unique skill is to increase your chances of success. Of course, time is tight, and I don't know how much you can learn."

"

"..."

"Has come?"

"

Hu Ma was deeply surprised. During this period, he had people watching outside, but there had been no unusual activity.

"Ah, take a look!"

"

Wu Innkeeper then sighed, stood up, and went into the main hall, taking out a light yellow envelope. a hole, as if it had been nailed somewhere. At the bottom, there was a crudely drawn jar, with an odd symbol on it, which seemed to be the character 'Imperial Command.'"

He glanced at it, seeing the rough writing that said something like, "We're good friends, we know you're thinking of us. Seven days from now, we will visit, please prepare some wine and dishes." He looked up at Wu Innkeeper in confusion.

"Last night, I was asleep when a flying knife pinned a letter to the table."

Mr. Wu slowly shook his head and said, "These fellows have been gone for a year, and they've only gotten stronger."

"Left a letter in the middle of the night?"

Hu Ma was indeed surprised upon hearing this. Last night had been peaceful, and neither he nor the apprentices in the outer courtyard had noticed anything. Even the Old Shopkeeper, who stayed in the inner courtyard, didn't seem to have noticed. If they could sneak into the inner courtyard and pin a letter to the shopkeeper's room, and then leave without a sound, then it was also possible that...

"Don't worry."

Mr. Wu waved his hand and said, "It's not hard for them to silently deliver a letter, but it won't be easy for them to kill me silently."

"I'm not worried about you..."

Hu Ma thought to himself, "If they're this skilled, couldn't they just slaughter the apprentices in the manor at will?"

"Even including myself?"

"..."

Of course, he couldn't say that. After a moment's hesitation, he asked, "What did the letter say?"

The shopkeeper sneered and said, "It says they know I miss them and will visit in seven days."

"Of course, they also mentioned that they lost two people and are here to settle the score."

"..."

The shopkeeper seemed quite relaxed, as if he didn't take it seriously. But Hu Ma felt a bit uneasy. He hadn't been able to track down the Vat Sect, but they had actually issued a challenge?

This was even stranger. Clearly, their goal was to reclaim the Blood Food. Wouldn't it be better to do it quietly?

"Why make such a big fuss?"

"Hmph, that's where they're being clever..."

The shopkeeper sneered again, "I know why they're back. They initially thought I might not know, but after losing two people and even their souls, they guessed."

"Knowing I'm waiting for them, they simply issued this challenge and set a date. But whether they'll really come, and when, is uncertain."

"Perhaps they'll come on the set date, or they might do it earlier, or they might just keep us on edge for a day or two and then attack unexpectedly."

"After all, expecting these scum to keep their word is foolish..."

"..."

"Or perhaps it's a test?"

Hu Ma suddenly thought, "They issued the challenge to see if the shopkeeper would report it to the city?"

After all, anyone else would likely seek help from the authorities, but this Mr. Wu was stubbornly incomprehensible.

"You don't need to be afraid."

Mr. Wu looked at Hu Ma and said, "I've been waiting for them for a year and have prepared for a year. No matter what tricks they play, I don't care. No matter when they come, I will go and meet them."

"But because of this, I have an important task that I must entrust to you. From the beginning, teaching you the skills of an Age Keeper was for this very task."

Hu Ma's heart sank, and he looked up at the Old Shopkeeper, "Just tell me."

"Since I've received your teachings and you're going to teach me your unique skill, I will do my best, no matter what it is."

"..."

"A good man, but unfortunately, we met at the wrong time."

The shopkeeper sighed when Hu Ma said this, waved his hand to stop him, and looked out to the manor's exterior. It was still early, and the large red lantern was sitting by the door.

"It's simple. I need you to guard this lantern for me."

"..."

Seeing the surprise in Hu Ma's eyes, the Old Shopkeeper said, "Normally, when an enemy visits, the first thing they do is extinguish our red lantern. This is the overt sign of defeat, but it's also crucial in secret."

"I need to meet these enemies, and I don't want the authorities to know unless absolutely necessary. But if I really can't handle them, I will need to summon the Red Lantern Lady for rescue..."

"Similarly, the Vat Sect will try to extinguish my lantern to cut off my retreat."

"So, what I need you to do is, on that day, you need to bring people here to guard, do not open the main gate, do not leave the manor, and no matter what happens, you must guard this lantern to the death and prevent it from being extinguished. If you do this, the task will be complete."

"..."

"Guard it?"

Hu Ma was greatly surprised, and his suspicions rose, but he hid them well. He subconsciously asked, "And where will you be, Mr. Wu?"

"Where I go, you don't need to ask."

The shopkeeper's face suddenly turned serious. He paused, his expression cold, and looked at Hu Ma, "In any case, as I said before, as long as you help me with this, you won't owe me anything."

Hu Ma was speechless for a moment, then slowly said, "I've already promised the shopkeeper I won't go back on my word."

The shopkeeper's expression relaxed, and he smiled, "Since that's the case, I'll tell you about my unique skill!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end

Report