Chapter 71

The territory of the Zhu family in Chilong Prefecture is almost as large as five counties, which can be considered a small country spanning a thousand miles.

As the face of a top-tier aristocratic family, the roads within the territory are naturally wide and spacious, and the ground has been leveled by the Zhu family's qi cultivators using magic, comparable to modern asphalt roads.

Ordinarily, the private citizens under the Zhu family are not allowed to use these roads; only the Zhu family's merchant caravans and clan members can use them.

The road is wide enough for three or four large carriages like the one Zhu Lingwu is riding in to travel side by side, so it wasn't long before other carriages pulled up alongside his.

Those who could ride in such carriages on the official road were naturally all members of the Zhu family. The clan members in these carriages couldn't help but ask their servants outside the carriages who was sitting inside.

After all, it was the end of the year, and as fellow clan members, they couldn't help but exchange greetings. However, when they learned that Zhu Lingwu was in the carriage, mocking voices inevitably came from the other carriages, calling him "the clumsy boy," "the family's laughingstock," "he was even struck by lightning," and "overestimating himself," among other things.

This wasn't just one person speaking; almost every time a carriage passed by Zhu Lingwu, he could hear such mocking voices.

"It seems that my ears won't have a moment's peace this time I'm back home!"

Zhu Lingwu couldn't help but feel a bit depressed as he rubbed his forehead. Unfortunately, many of the things he had taken from Meng Yishi were of no use to him now, so although he saw the potential, truly embarking on the path of qi cultivation was not easy.

Chuyang, Xiayang, and Qiuyang naturally also heard such remarks. The three girls looked at each other, unsure of how to talk to Zhu Lingwu. Although they all felt that Zhu Lingwu had changed a lot in the past half year, they were still worried that he might cause trouble. After all, even though he wasn't a qi cultivator yet, he had practiced some good martial arts, and who knew what kind of big trouble that might lead to.

"Master, let Xiayang sing a song for you! Don't listen to those idle remarks!"

After some thought, Xiayang decided to use singing to divert Zhu Lingwu's attention.

"Never mind, Xiayang. We'll be home soon, and there will be a lot to do. If you sing and someone hears, it might cause trouble! It's fine, let them talk. If they dare to say it to my face, I'll make them regret it! Hmph!"

Zhu Lingwu could only say this on the surface, even waving his small fist for show, but in his heart, he just smiled faintly. He was someone who aspired to cultivate immortality; how could he care about such words?

Besides, if he could really succeed in cultivating qi and laying the foundation, these words would become stones that would bite their own tongues. It seemed that many novels in his world often used such plot devices, first suppressing and then elevating the protagonist.

Zhu Lingwu didn't expect that this would happen to him as well. Fortunately, his adoptive father treated him very well, and at least no one in the family treated him badly. Even the old ancestor who had reached the Foundation Establishment stage would fly thousands of miles to save him.

So his situation was definitely better than that of the protagonists in those novels. After all, this was the real world for him, not a fictional one.

After another half an hour, Zhu Lingwu's convoy finally arrived at the main gate of the Wu Castle, the ancestral land of the Zhu family.

In front of the main gate stood a flagpole several zhang high, with a base wide enough for two people to embrace. At the top was a large banner reading "Zhu Family," fluttering in the wind.

The banner was made of some special material, clearly resistant to wind and rain, and immune to dust. It was unclear how long it had been flying there.

In front of the Wu Castle gate was a moat two or three zhang wide, with clear water. The water below was filled with countless sharp rocks, arranged haphazardly. If someone fell into the water, they would likely be cut by these rocks.

Three wide wooden bridges spanned the moat, connected to the Wu Castle walls by chains. In times of war, they could be pulled up.

Beyond the bridge was the entrance to Wu Castle, equally tall and spacious, divided into three sections. The largest central gate was only for Zhu family members and distinguished guests from outside; ordinary peasants and servants could not easily pass through and had to use the side gates.

However, although the entrance to Wu Castle was wide, it was equipped with dragon-cutting stones. In the event of an attack, the dragon-cutting stones could be dropped to completely seal off the main gate of Wu Castle.

Of course, in this world, such a setup could only prevent ordinary soldiers. If they encountered qi cultivators or martial arts experts, they could easily climb the walls of Wu Castle. These people would naturally be dealt with by the Zhu family's qi cultivators and guests.

No one came to greet Zhu Lingwu at the main gate. Instead, the gatekeeper of Wu Castle stopped the leader of the convoy, Liu Ping, to check the token he presented. After verifying it, the gatekeeper ordered Liu Ping to disband the private soldiers he had brought directly at the gate.

The interior of the Zhu family's Wu Castle was naturally safe, and there was no longer a need for Liu Ping to continue guarding Zhu Lingwu with his private soldiers. Even Liu Ping himself had to take his token to the military post inside Wu Castle to report and return his orders.

Although Liu Ping was a commander of the private soldiers under the Zhu family, he was not a formal officer of the Chong'an Kingdom. However, the private soldiers under the Zhu family also had a perfect military system.

As for the other wagons and people who had accompanied Zhu Lingwu, they were led by several managers to the warehouses on the outskirts of the Zhu family's Wu Castle. The items on these wagons would be inspected before being sent to their respective destinations.

After Liu Ping bid farewell to Zhu Lingwu at his carriage, only the servants and attendants around Zhu Lingwu continued to escort his carriage to the residence of Zhu Junyan within Wu Castle.

The layout of the buildings within the Zhu family's Wu Castle was also well-organized, though it was different from ordinary towns. This was a place where the family lived, so there were no commercial shops or similar places.

According to the different branches of the Zhu family, each branch had built its own residence in a designated area within Wu Castle. The main branch of the Zhu family occupied the central area with the densest spiritual energy, while other branches also occupied areas with dense spiritual energy and favorable feng shui.

After entering the Zhu family's Wu Castle, Zhu Lingwu immediately felt the dense spiritual energy around him. Breathing here felt fresher than outside.

Clearly, the walls of the Wu Castle also had special restrictions that kept the spiritual energy within, ensuring that it did not dissipate.

The little white fox in Zhu Lingwu's carriage also immediately sensed the difference. It had been pretending to be lazy, but it suddenly became lively, jumping out of Chuyang's hands and running to the window of the carriage...