Chapter 21

Standing in front of the Liang family villa, Lu Li gazed at Xue Shouye, who was about to knock on the door, his expression filled with complexity.

Six hundred years had passed since the time of Xue Tianshi. All of his comrades from back then were long buried, probably even their bones had rotted away, yet he was still alive. More accurately, he was living in another state.

Although he was often teased by Zhang Jian for being a philosopher, he actually didn't understand philosophy at all, let alone the true essence of what it means to be human.

The reason he was who he was—was it because of the existence of his memories, or because of his self-awareness? Even the most top-tier philosophers might not be able to answer this question.

As the door quietly opened, Lu Li finally came to his senses and, upon a closer look, a faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Why overthink it? They were, after all, the descendants of those brothers. Even for the sake of the promise made back then, as long as they showed their sincerity, he wouldn't go back on his word.

Through the wooden door, he quietly observed the opposite side, where Xue Renzhi and others were also looking at him. Xue Renzhi's gaze was incredibly complex, filled with surprise, doubt, and more importantly, eagerness.

"Mr. Lu, please come in."

Seeing both sides staring at each other without a word, Liang Zhenbang, the host, sighed inwardly and broke the silence first.

"Oh, right. I am Xue Renzhi, the current head of the Xue family. Please come in." Xue Renzhi clenched his teeth and said.

"Hello."

Lu Li smiled and nodded, following Xue Renzhi and the others into the living room.

After they were seated, no one spoke, and the atmosphere was filled with an eerie silence.

Xue Renzhi observed Lu Li for a moment and then said gently, "Lu Li, I heard from Shouye that you have the last two levels of the Xue family boxing technique. Is this true?"

"It is true."

"How did you obtain it?" Xue Renzhi asked eagerly.

Lu Li blinked and said strangely, "Head of the Xue family, are you sure you want me to say this here?"

Xue Renzhi was taken aback and suddenly realized something. He turned to Liang Zhenbang and instructed, "Zhenbang, can we use your study?"

"Sure, Uncle, feel free to use it."

Hearing Liang Zhenbang's agreement, Xue Renzhi stood up and glanced at Xue Weiguo, "Weiguo, come with me. The rest of you, go back and rest."

Liang Shouye, sitting on the side, opened his mouth, his face full of disappointment. He could easily guess that the three of them were about to discuss the Xue family's secrets, but his status was not high enough. Despite his curiosity, he was powerless.

As one of the top entrepreneurs in Haicheng, Liang Zhenbang's study was simply decorated, with a redwood desk and two walls lined with bookshelves filled with books.

Lu Li and the other two entered the study, and Xue Weiguo, lagging behind, locked the door carefully, showing great caution. Even Xue Shouye could understand the significance of this.

After closing the door, Xue Weiguo noticed the old patriarch's furrowed brows and his hesitation, which startled him. He looked at Lu Li and smiled, "I am Xue Weiguo. Lu Li, how did you come to know the last two levels of the Xue family boxing technique?"

"I already knew it, and it's not the Xue family boxing technique, but the San Yang Quan."

"San Yang Quan?" Xue Weiguo seemed to understand and continued, "How did you know the last words of our ancestor Xue Tianshi?"

Lu Li looked at Xue Weiguo with a playful gaze but didn't answer directly, "I have my ways. However, I promised to give you the last two levels of the Xue family boxing technique. If you need it, just let me know."

"Is that true?" Xue Weiguo's eyes lit up in surprise.

"Weiguo!"

Before Lu Li could respond, Xue Renzhi suddenly called out to him. Xue Renzhi's hands trembled as he undid his shirt pocket and pulled out a folded piece of parchment. The parchment was yellowed, clearly very old.

He gently unfolded it, looked at Lu Li, and handed it over.

Lu Li was surprised and couldn't quite understand what Xue Renzhi was up to. However, he took the parchment and looked down, his brows immediately furrowing.

The parchment had a map drawn on it, with simple lines depicting mountains, rivers, and vegetation. At the center was a fiery red triangular pattern. Due to its age, the pattern appeared dark red, like blood.

"A military map?"

Lu Li had once been a general in the Ming Dynasty and was very familiar with military maps.

Recognizing it as an ancient military map, he glanced at Xue Renzhi in confusion and then examined it closely, his expression becoming complex.

"The Helan Mountains. I never thought I'd see this map again!"

Hearing Lu Li's sigh, Xue Renzhi's body shuddered violently, and he quickly asked, "Do you know the origin of this map?"

"Xue Tianshi served as a scout commander in his third year in the military. During a campaign, he was scouting enemy positions when he unexpectedly encountered a thousand Mongol soldiers. His hundred elite troops were almost completely wiped out, and Xue Tianshi was severely injured and unconscious. He was later saved by two of his guards. This was the closest Xue Tianshi ever came to death, and the two who saved him later became the commander and deputy commander of the personal guard."

After finishing, Lu Li's face showed a bitter smile.

Everyone said that Xue Tianshi was invincible and never lost a battle, but that wasn't the case. Although Xue Tianshi came from a military family, he had never fought before joining the army. How could he have never failed, going from a soldier to a general? It was just that his reputation wasn't prominent at the time, so few people paid attention.

"You—You?" Xue Renzhi's face was full of shock, pointing at Lu Li, unable to speak.

Lu Li came to his senses and asked in surprise, "How do you have this map, and how is it so well-preserved?" He was indeed curious, as this was one of his few defeats, and he had almost been killed. Later, seeing the map made him feel depressed, so he casually threw it to his guards and never thought about it again.

"Take a look at this."

Xue Renzhi clearly didn't want to answer Lu Li's question and quickly pulled out a damaged iron plate from his pocket. The iron plate was square, and the characters on it seemed to have been deliberately erased.

"Let me see."

Lu Li was full of curiosity, realizing they must have been well-prepared.

Taking the iron plate, he examined it from all angles and smiled, "This is the identity plate of the personal guard. I see a corner has been cut off by a sharp weapon. It's probably Wang Erzhu's identity plate. He once blocked a sword for me. If it weren't for this identity plate, he would have died long ago."

Seeing two items from his past, Lu Li gradually immersed himself in his memories, not noticing the loophole in his words.

However, Xue Weiguo heard everything clearly and was instantly shocked, his eyes wide open, almost falling out.

"Could it really be the reincarnation of our ancestor? How could he know so clearly?"

He stretched his neck to see the identity plate in Lu Li's hand but couldn't see it clearly, only able to stare in frustration.

Xue Renzhi was completely stunned, even feeling the urge to urinate.

Realizing he had frightened the two, Lu Li suddenly lost interest. He flipped the identity plate and tossed it to Xue Renzhi, saying casually, "I'll write down the last two levels of the Xue family boxing technique for you later. As for the future, we'll see."

Xue Renzhi fumbled to catch the identity plate, glanced at it, and his face turned deathly pale.

He shakily stood up, his knees buckling as if he was about to kneel. But having once held great power, he resisted the urge to kneel. His voice hoarse, he said, "Xue Renzhi, the fifteenth-generation head of the Xue family, pays respects to our ancestor."

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