Chapter 37

"Miss Wang, it is a great honor to have you here. I apologize for not greeting you properly. Please forgive me." Seeing that the person leading the group was none other than Miss Wang Cui'e of the Wang family, Zhao Yunbing immediately greeted her with a lukewarm tone.

"Hmph, Master Zhao, you sure have a lot of nerve. We have been waiting for you for a full quarter of an hour. Do you really think the Wang family is of no importance to you?" Wang Cui'e's face darkened, and she responded with a cold snort.

"Miss, you misunderstand. I was in the middle of a crucial training session, which is why I arrived late. Please do not take offense, Miss Wang." Zhao Yunbing immediately laughed it off.

"Master Zhao, I won't say much more. We have already received reliable information that a few remnants of the Lu family have taken refuge in your martial arts hall. Please hand them over, and we will leave with them." Wang Cui'e cut to the chase without further ado.

"Ah? Is that true, Miss Wang?" Upon hearing this, Zhao Yunbing feigned a look of bewilderment, as if he knew nothing about it.

"Master Zhao, let's not beat around the bush. You know better than anyone whether the remnants of the Lu family are hiding in your martial arts hall. I hope you will consider the long-standing friendship between the Wang and Zhao families and hand them over. Of course, if you do, the ten thousand taels of gold reward will be given to you in full." Wang Cui'e immediately said coldly.

"Ha ha, Miss Wang, you underestimate me, Zhao Yunbing. Although I am just the head of the Zhao family's branch hall in Xishui City, I am still a direct descendant of the Zhao family. A mere ten thousand taels of gold reward is nothing to me. Furthermore, there are no remnants of the Lu family hiding in my martial arts hall. How can I hand them over?" Zhao Yunbing's face darkened, and he said with great displeasure.

"Since Master Zhao is unwilling to hand them over, can we search the premises?" Wang Cui'e immediately said with a cold face.

"Miss Wang, please don't push me too far. Although this is just a branch hall of the Zhao family, it is still a property of the Zhao family. The Wang family and the Zhao family are both one of the four major families. What right do you have to search my martial arts hall?" Zhao Yunbing was instantly furious and rebuked her with great displeasure.

"Master Zhao, I have no intention of offending you. I am just worried that the remnants of the Lu family are hiding in your martial arts hall, which could pose a threat to your people. Therefore, I am doing you a favor by searching for them. If we don't find them, I, Wang Cui'e, will apologize to you. If we do find them, it will be a win-win situation. Master Zhao, you have no reason to refuse my good intentions, right?" Wang Cui'e immediately said with a cold laugh.

"Yes, Master Zhao, this time, the Wang family has come with a large group, determined to kill the remnants of the Lu family. Please be cooperative." At this moment, the white-haired old man beside Wang Cui'e also said with a hostile tone.

This person, named Wang Xi, was the tenth-ranked elder of the Wang family, with a strength that had already reached the early stage of the Warlord realm, comparable to Zhao Yunbing's.

In addition to him, there were three other elders, all of whom had reached the War General realm. Wang Qi, who had lost an arm, was also among them.

With such a formidable group, even if Zhao Yunbing gathered all the strength of his martial arts hall, he would still be unable to match them. It seemed that the Wang family was determined to kill Lu Tianyu.

"Miss Wang, what if I don't agree?" Zhao Yunbing, seeing this, still smiled coldly without fear.

"Master Zhao, are you really trying to protect that little brat, Lu Tianyu?" Wang Cui'e's face changed dramatically upon hearing this, and she glared at Zhao Yunbing with a cold voice, seemingly ready to turn hostile at any moment.

"Ridiculous. The people of the Lu family have nothing to do with me. Why would I protect him? Since you don't believe me, go ahead and search. Sixth Elder, Seventh Elder, Eighth Elder, you three, take them to search. Remember, do not damage any part of my martial arts hall. If there is any damage, they must pay double." Zhao Yunbing immediately laughed coldly and instructed the three disciples beside him.

"Yes, Master." The three disciples immediately nodded respectfully and gestured to Wang Xi and the others to follow.

"Search thoroughly. We must find that little brat." Wang Cui'e gave a signal to the people beside her.

"Rest assured, Miss. If that little brat is hiding in the martial arts hall, I will dig him out, even if I have to dig three feet into the ground. Please wait here for good news." Wang Xi and the others nodded in unison and left with the three disciples.

"Serve tea!" Zhao Yunbing walked to the main seat, sat down, and instructed the waiting maidservant.

Soon, the maidservant brought the tea, but Zhao Yunbing did not even look at Wang Cui'e, only coldly said, "Drink your tea," and then picked up his teacup, sipping it slowly.

Wang Cui'e had been observing Zhao Yunbing's expression all along. Seeing his fearless demeanor, she began to doubt whether the information was false and whether Lu Tianyu was really not hiding in the martial arts hall.

After a tense wait of about half an hour, Wang Xi and the others finally returned to the main hall, each with a look of extreme disappointment on their faces.

There was no need to ask; they had all returned empty-handed, having found no one.

"What happened?" Wang Cui'e's face had turned as dark as water, and she glared at Wang Xi with displeasure.

"Miss, I apologize. We have searched the entire martial arts hall, even the training chambers, but found nothing. It seems that the little brat is not here." Wang Xi immediately explained in detail.

"Did you really search the entire martial arts hall? Are you sure you didn't miss any place?" In her extreme disappointment, Wang Cui'e could not help but shout in anger.

"Miss, there is one place we did not dare to go." At this moment, a middle-aged man beside Wang Xi suddenly spoke up.

"Master Zhao said you could search freely. Is there any place you dare not go?" Wang Cui'e stood up abruptly, speaking with hatred.

"Miss, that is the memorial hall Master Zhao set up for his son. We did not dare to go there out of respect for the deceased." The middle-aged man immediately explained.

In the Divine Wasteland Continent, there was always the concept of "respecting the dead." The memorial hall of the deceased was a place that outsiders dared not enter without permission, as it would be a violation of the deceased and a great disrespect to the family of the deceased.

If they had searched the memorial hall of Zhao Yunbing's son, it would certainly anger Zhao Yunbing. If the matter escalated, the Zhao family might hold them accountable, and even the Wang family might not be able to protect them.

Therefore, Wang Xi and the others were still aware of their limits and did not dare to search the memorial hall, which was also the main reason why Zhao Yunbing had hidden Lu Tianyu and the others there.

"You did the right thing." Wang Cui'e's anger subsided upon hearing this. Even she did not dare to enter the memorial hall of the deceased, but that did not mean she had no other way.

"Miss Wang, since you didn't find anyone, shouldn't you keep your promise and apologize to me?" At this moment, Zhao Yunbing put down his teacup and looked at Wang Cui'e coldly.

"Not yet, Master Zhao. Since such a major event has occurred in your family, I should represent the Wang family and offer incense to your son first, don't you think?" Wang Cui'e's eyes darted around, and she said with a hostile tone.

Outsiders could not enter the memorial hall without permission, but since she represented the Wang family, she could enter under the pretext of offering incense. Even Zhao Yunbing could not refuse, as refusal would imply that he had something to hide.

"Of course, please go ahead." Zhao Yunbing immediately responded with a generous tone, leading the way and taking Wang Cui'e and the others to the memorial hall.

"Seeing this old man's calm demeanor, could it be that the little brat is really not here?" Wang Cui'e glanced at Zhao Yunbing, her heart filled with doubt about the information she had received.

However, she was determined to kill Lu Tianyu and would not give up until she had searched the memorial hall. If not, she would not rest easy.

Lu Tianyu was a cultivation genius with the Five Elements Spirit Root, like a fish bone deeply embedded in her throat. If she did not remove it, she would be unable to sleep or eat in peace.

Under Zhao Yunbing's lead, they finally arrived at the entrance of the memorial hall.

Wang Cui'e and her subordinates were about to enter the memorial hall, but at this moment, Zhao Yunbing suddenly stopped and turned to Wang Cui'e, saying, "Miss Wang, this is my son's memorial hall. I do not want him to be disturbed by outsiders after his death. Therefore, only you can enter, and the rest must wait outside." Although he spoke in a consultative tone, his words were firm and left no room for negotiation.

"Alright, you wait outside. I will go in alone." Wang Cui'e thought for a moment and immediately nodded. Zhao Yunbing's request was not unreasonable, as no one wanted their loved ones to be disturbed by outsiders after their death.

"Alright, Miss." Wang Xi and the others immediately responded respectfully and stood there, not following her in.

Entering the memorial hall, Zhao Yunbing immediately instructed his disciples to close the door.

Wang Cui'e entered the memorial hall, and her eyes immediately darted around. In the center of the memorial hall, a new black coffin was placed, and beside it, four women were kneeling and weeping bitterly. Behind the four women, several maidservants were standing. Apart from them, there was no one else.

"Miss Wang, please go ahead." Zhao Yunbing could not help but laugh coldly and gestured for Wang Cui'e to proceed.

Wang Cui'e secretly sighed in disappointment and walked to the coffin, taking three long incense sticks from a maidservant, lighting them, and holding them in her hand. She bowed three times to the coffin, muttering, "Nephew, I represent the Wang family to offer incense to you. I hope you can help me find the remnants of the Lu family quickly. Thank you." She then immediately inserted the three incense sticks into the incense burner in front of the coffin.

"Miss Wang, now that the incense has been offered, I represent my son to thank you for your kindness. If there is nothing else, let's go." Zhao Yunbing said slowly.

"Alright..." Wang Cui'e's eyes were filled with disappointment, and she nodded, about to turn and leave.

But at this moment, Wang Cui'e's gaze suddenly fixed on one of the women weeping beside the coffin. The woman was Li Xianghui, but because she was kneeling and weeping, her face could not be seen clearly.

Seeing this, Zhao Yunbing's heart suddenly skipped a beat. Could it be that Wang Cui'e recognized her?