Free Web NovelChapter 23: Chapter 23: This Name Is Frightening
"The final payment is the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Primordial Yang Swords!"
"If I can get the Heavenly Destiny Bone of an Innate Demon Beast within two days, I will give you the First Six Primordial Yang Swords."
As Lu Chao spoke, Uncle Leng instinctively glanced at the orange-clad woman in the carriage. ’Three swords as a down payment... The temptation is immense.’
But he quickly turned back. "Even so, it’s impossible to do that in two days..."
Before he could finish, the orange-clad woman cut him off. "Uncle Leng, I’ll take it from here."
With that, she fixed her gaze on Lu Chao again. "It’s not safe out here. Please, Hero, come inside the carriage."
Uncle Leng couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
’The Young Miss is actually letting this young man, who just threatened her with a sword, back into her carriage? Isn’t that too risky?’
But then, Uncle Leng looked back at Lu Chao, a cold sneer on his face.
’He definitely won’t dare.’
But Lu Chao didn’t hesitate. He stepped forward, flashed onto the carriage, and entered with complete composure.
Inside the carriage, Lu Chao and the orange-clad woman sat across from each other.
The woman spoke first. "May I have your name, Hero, and where you’re from?"
Lu Chao barely lifted his eyes, making no attempt to hide anything. "Lu Chao. I’m a man with no home."
’Such a brief introduction...’ The orange-clad woman ignored the second part of his answer, assuming he simply didn’t want to elaborate. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
However, when she processed the first two words of his name, she nearly leaped out of her seat, completely startled.
But Lu Chao spoke at once. "It’s just a coincidence. You needn’t worry, Miss."
He knew, of course, exactly why she had reacted that way.
’She must be thinking of the Great Martial Emperor Star who died at the foot of the Blood Stele.’
The orange-clad woman let out a long breath and settled back into her seat, still shaken. "You’re right. That person is already dead. They say his bones were ground to dust and his body was turned to pulp. Many people saw it happen."
Lu Chao nodded but didn’t continue the conversation on that topic.
The orange-clad woman then got down to business. "I can get you what you want within two days, but I want all Nine Primordial Yang Swords."
Lu Chao had only offered the First Six Primordial Yang Swords.
But in business, one must always haggle.
Lu Chao agreed without hesitation. "Fine. But I have one more condition. A very simple one..."
Lu Chao then stated his condition. As the orange-clad woman stared in astonishment, he wrote down the incantations and drew the stances for his down payment—the Three Primordial Yang Swords—and handed the paper to her.
With the deal settled, Lu Chao took his leave.
Just before he left, the orange-clad woman suddenly called out, "Hero Lu, you still don’t know my name."
By the time she finished speaking, Lu Chao had already vanished into the night.
He had no time to worry about her name.
He had been away from the dilapidated hut for a while now, and he was anxious to get back and check on Cheng Yunsu.
The carriage curtain was still open. The orange-clad woman muttered in frustration, "My name is Wu Caicai, you..."
She trailed off, swallowing the rest of her words. He was already long gone.
As he watched Lu Chao disappear, Uncle Leng turned back to her. "Miss, did you really promise to get him the Heavenly Destiny Bone of an Innate Demon Beast in two days? Even the closest Hundred Flames Trading Company can’t deliver that quickly."
Wu Caicai averted her gaze.
"Have you forgotten, Uncle Leng? My mentor, Fan Jinhua, is near Yangzhou City."
"I recall he has the Heavenly Destiny Bone of a Fire Attribute Innate Demon Beast. We just need to get it from him."
Uncle Leng finally understood. No wonder the Young Miss had been so bold as to agree.
"By the way, Miss," Uncle Leng asked, "this man has the Nine Primordial Yang Swords. Who in the world is he?"
Wu Caicai’s brow furrowed at the question.
"He’s the prospective grandson-in-law of Yangzhou City’s Cheng Family. They’re to be married soon. That’s all he told me."
"However, he’s also being hunted by the Yangzhou City Lord’s Mansion..."
"Go ask around. You should be able to find out what’s going on quickly."
Upon hearing this, Uncle Leng vanished from the carriage without a moment’s hesitation.
Just as Wu Caicai predicted, Uncle Leng returned a short while later, having evidently learned about Lu Chao’s circumstances.
But the expression on his face was utterly bizarre.
When he told Wu Caicai what he’d learned, she was just as dumbfounded... A man secretly loved a woman, and after she became a cripple, he went to her family home to marry her, defying pressure from the City Lord’s daughter.
As for his background, none of the people Uncle Leng questioned could offer any concrete information.
"I don’t believe he has no backing. Otherwise, how could he have such a decisive burst of power?"
"More importantly, he possesses the Nine Primordial Yang Swords."
Wu Caicai offered her judgment, then added, "And don’t forget, he has a rather frightening name: Lu Chao!"
Hearing this, Uncle Leng replied instinctively, "Lu Chao? That’s a common name. What’s so scary about... Holy shit!"
He caught on halfway through his sentence, and his face went pale.
"It’s just a coincidence."
Seeing Uncle Leng’s expression, Wu Caicai gave him a playful wink. "Two days from now, at this very time, he wants me to deliver the Demon Beast’s Heavenly Destiny Bone to the Cheng Mansion. We need to hurry and contact my mentor."
At her words, Uncle Leng immediately spurred the horses, and the carriage moved forward.
Suddenly, another thought struck him. "Miss, did he agree to give you all of the Nine Primordial Yang Swords?"
"He did. But on one condition... we must attend his wedding to the Cheng Family’s eldest daughter and offer our congratulations."
"He will give us the final Three Primordial Yang Swords at the wedding itself."
As Wu Caicai spoke, Uncle Leng thought, ’What kind of ridiculous condition is that?’
’Regardless, the Nine Primordial Yang Swords are as good as ours,’ he mused. ’Three swords as a deposit, three at the exchange, and the last three for attending a wedding.’
"By the way, Miss," Uncle Leng asked, "he just threatened you. Are you just going to let that go?"
"What choice do I have but to let it go?"
"He has the Nine Primordial Yang Swords. Even though I don’t have the Heavenly Destiny Primordial Yang Bone, my own Destiny Bone combined with the Nine Primordial Yang Swords will grant me immense power. It’s certain to help me break through to the Innate realm."
...
Meanwhile, Lu Chao returned to the dilapidated hut. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw that Cheng Yunsu was still in the same condition as when he had left.
He gave the still-unconscious Cheng Yunsu some water before entering a state of cultivation.
He took out several vials of Bone-Nourishing Spirit Pills. Then, just as Wu Caicai and Uncle Leng had witnessed earlier, Lu Chao tossed several pills into his mouth at once, swallowing them as if they were a meal.
As a Reincarnator, he could withstand the violent medicinal energy.
Even so, the medicinal power tore through his meridians, which weren’t yet resilient enough to handle the strain, causing him excruciating pain.
Lu Chao gritted his teeth against the agony, using the powerful control he possessed as a Reincarnator to refine the medicinal energy. He had to succeed. He had to reach the Postnatal Fifth Layer before the wedding.
He would do it, even at the risk of future complications.
The next morning, Lu Chao was drenched in sweat, but he had already reached the Postnatal Third Layer.
By nightfall, he had reached the Postnatal Fourth Layer.
By noon on the third day, he finally reached the Postnatal Fifth Level. By this point, Lu Chao’s entire body was completely soaked in sweat.
