Zongwu: Aspiring to be the mastermind behind the scenes

Chapter 237 Regaining Sight, Dual Identity

"Yu Luosha single-handedly established the Rakshasa Sect and oversaw the trade routes in the Western Regions. His reputation was quite renowned even in the Jiangnan region. Who would have thought that such a tiger father would have such a worthless son!"

Hua Manlou couldn't help but shake his head.

The Rakshasa Token of Jade Rakshasa can command the three thousand Rakshasa soldiers within the Rakshasa Cult.

Not to mention the critical moment when Yu Luosha was ambushed and killed, it is extremely important even in ordinary times.

How can you just gamble it out like that?
"So, this Rakshasa token is now in the Silver Hook Gambling House?"

Zhou Ming shook his head: "I heard that the owner of the Silver Hook Gambling House, 'Bluebeard,' didn't dare to take over at all. When Yu Tianbao lost all his silver and was about to leave, he returned the Rakshasa Token to Yu Tianbao."

Hua Manlou nodded: "Although it's a bit frustrating, it's a wise move."

Although Silver Hook Gambling House is considered a major force in the Northwest, it is completely incomparable to Black Tiger Hall and Rakshasa Sect.

Now that Yu Luosha is dead, whoever can obtain the Luosha Token will secure the position of leader of the Luosha Cult.

If people find out that Rakshasa is now at Silver Hook Gambling House, it's likely that Silver Hook Gambling House will cease to exist soon.

Where is Yu Tianbao now?

"No one knows. I heard that he disappeared without a trace after leaving the Silver Hook Gambling House. That was around the time when the news of Jade Rakshasa's death came out. I suppose he received the news in advance and therefore deliberately went into hiding."

"Hide away? Why not just take the Rakshasa Token and go to take over as the leader?"

"Because Jade Rakshasa left a will stating that only the person who arrives at the Rakshasa Sect's headquarters holding the Rakshasa Token on the thirteenth day of the first lunar month next year can become the new sect leader. Not even a day earlier!"

A look of astonishment flashed across Hua Manlou's eyes. After a moment of thought, he nodded repeatedly: "Yu Luosha is indeed extraordinary. She actually came up with such a method to select the next leader!"

Jade Rakshasa's death by ambush was an accident.

This means that he is unable to select and cultivate a successor who satisfies him.

As for his son, Yu Tianbao... Heh, a spoiled brat who can even gamble away Rakshasa cards, who can expect him to inherit the Rakshasa Cult?

I'm afraid that within two years of inheriting the throne, he will have ruined the vast Rakshasa Sect.

But excluding his son, there is no suitable heir.

When she was critically injured and on the verge of death, Yu Luosha came up with this idea.

The conditions for succeeding the leader were set in two parts: a Rakshasa talisman and the thirteenth day of the first lunar month of the following year.

The ingenuity of this method lies in its precise timing.

Anyone who obtains the Rakshasa Token must protect it from the pursuit of the entire Rakshasa Sect and even more martial arts practitioners, and take it to the Rakshasa Sect's headquarters.

Regardless of the method used, after going through this process, the ultimate winner will always be someone who is capable and shrewd.

Even if he cannot maintain the glory of the Rakshasa Cult after succeeding as its leader, he will be able to preserve it.

This was the brilliant idea that Jade Rakshasa came up with at the last moment.

This method is used to select suitable candidates to succeed the cult leader.

He truly deserves to be called a man of extraordinary wisdom, having single-handedly established the Rakshasa Sect as the overlord of the Western Regions.

Even Hua Manlou couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration.

"But what does this have to do with Lu Xiaofeng?"

Zhou Ming smiled and said, "What do you think?"

Hua Manlou was taken aback, then shook his head helplessly: "Our old friend will probably rush in as soon as he sees this excitement."

"Yes, we should hear news of him soon. Of course, that is, assuming he is still in the Northwest."

"Given his personality, even if he has already left, he will probably go back."

"Haha, that's true."

Zhou Ming nodded: "Then, Young Master Hua, would you also be interested in taking a trip to the Northwest?"

"forget it……"

Hua Manlou shook his head: "My eyesight is good now. My father has put me in charge of many things, and I am no longer as free as I used to be."

He said this without a hint of complaint, only with complete certainty.

Her eyes shone like stars.

Without a doubt, he didn't embezzle a single pill of the Yellow Millet Pill that he gave to Lu Xiaofeng; he simply handed it over to Hua Manlou.

However, Hua Manlou was very cautious.

For nearly half a year, he traveled around searching for renowned doctors, and even disappeared for a period of time before returning to the capital.

However, it has already shown signs of complete visual recovery.

Over the years, the Hua family of Jiangnan had been searching far and wide for renowned doctors, hoping to treat Hua Manlou's eyes.

With this foreshadowing, although people were amazed by Hua Manlou's eyes recovering, they were not too surprised.

However, once his eyes recovered, trouble began.

The Hua family, being an extremely wealthy family, has extremely complex internal conflicts. Some people will not let Hua Manlou off the hook just because he is blind.

On the contrary, they will deliberately target him.

Fortunately, Hua Manlou's father wielded immense power within the Hua family, which enabled him to protect him throughout the past.

But now that Hua Manlou's eyes have recovered, a host of new troubles have arisen.

Hua Manlou was unwilling to let his father relinquish other interests to those people because of his own affairs. Even when he was blind, he had already taken over many of the Hua family's affairs.

Let alone now.

This also led to the transformation of the former Young Master Liuyun, who could only tend to flowers and plants and idly observe the changing world, into the current Young Master Hua, who controls a money exchange and whose every glance is filled with wealth.

However, Hua Manlou himself did not have any aversion to it.

After all, his family had raised him for many years, and now that his eyesight had been restored, it was only natural for him to repay his family.

"That's a real pity. I was hoping to invite you to join me in venturing into the turbulent Northwest!"

"Sorry to disappoint you."

Hua Manlou said, "However, the Northwest is in chaos right now. Going there, even just to watch the show, is not a wise move. Besides the Black Tiger Hall, the Rakshasa Sect, and the wandering martial artists, there is probably another force secretly manipulating the situation."

"There's another force? What do you mean by that?"

"Don't you find it strange? The death of Jade Rakshasa is a major event that has shocked the entire Western Regions. If we're not careful, it could even directly affect the safety of the entire Rakshasa Sect!"

And then there's the matter of the Rakshasa Token. Even Yu Tianbao knew to hide, yet the news spread throughout the martial world. Although the Silver Hook Gambling House eventually returned the Rakshasa Token to Yu Tianbao, surely Bluebeard doesn't believe that people in the martial world are all reasonable?

The Rakshasa Cult was founded and developed by Jade Rakshasa, and his importance to the entire Rakshasa Cult goes without saying.

Especially if no heir has been chosen, news of his sudden and unexpected death will certainly be kept strictly confidential.

Even if it can't be completely locked, it will still hinder the flow of information for a certain period of time.

But judging from Zhou Ming's words, it seems that the news of Yu Luosha's death had already spread as soon as it happened.

So who spread this message?
The higher-ups of the Rakshasa Cult? They deliberately spread this news to incite competition among people all over the world. Don't they want the position of cult leader?
And Bluebeard.

Even if the Rakshasa talisman was returned to Yu Tianbao, it had already passed through his hands once.

Once it's done, things become complicated.

Moreover, Yu Tianbao mysteriously disappeared afterward.

This made things even more confusing for Bluebeard.

However, the related news also spread throughout the martial arts world.

Just like Hua Manlou said, does Bluebeard expect all the wandering heroes in the martial arts world to be reasonable and good people?
how can that be possible!
"So, Lao Hua, do you think there's another force behind this, pushing the situation and trying to incite chaos throughout the Northwest?"

"good."

Hua Manlou nodded: "I just don't know who has such an ability?"

Zhou Ming looked out the window, a slight smile playing on his lips: "Yeah, who could it be? It's so hard to guess..."

This question puzzled not only Hua Manlou, but also Fang Yufei.

Fang Yufei, the leader of the Black Tiger Hall, is known as the Flying Jade Tiger.

But almost no one knows that besides being the leader of the Black Tiger Gang, he has another identity: Bluebeard, the owner of the Silver Hook Gambling House!
If one knew these two identities, it would be easy to guess that he was the one who orchestrated all the changes in the Rakshasa Sect.

Whether it was secretly poisoning or ambushing Jade Rakshasa during a gathering of high-ranking members of the Rakshasa Cult, resulting in her severe injuries and death.

It was Yu Tianbao who got addicted to gambling inside the Silver Hook Gambling House, and even took out his personal Rakshasa talisman to exchange for gambling money.

He was the one pulling the strings behind the scenes.

His goal was to obtain the Rakshasa Token, become the leader of the Rakshasa Cult, and thus unite the Black Tiger Hall and the Rakshasa Cult.

And he will become the overlord of the Northwest and Western Regions!

But man proposes, God disposes; too many unexpected things happened to this plan.

The first unexpected thing was that, even when Yu Luosha was critically injured and on the verge of death, she left an order stipulating that only those who arrived at the headquarters of the Luosha Cult with the Luosha Token on the thirteenth day of the first month of the following year could become the leader of the cult.

Those who do not meet these conditions have no chance of becoming the leader of the cult!
This directly shattered Fang Yufei's plan to take the Rakshasa Token and become the leader of the Rakshasa Sect.

He must hold onto the Rakshasa Token for a full year before he can become the leader of the Rakshasa Cult.

This is a really big problem.

The second unexpected event was the leak of information.

Whether it was the news of Yu Luosha's death or the news of Yu Tianbao losing the Rakshasa talisman in a bet.

The sudden leak spread throughout the martial arts world, forcing Fang Yufei to urgently adjust all his plans.

"Who?!"

"There's an invasion!"

"Hahahaha... This is the famous Silver Hook Gambling House? I don't think it's anything special."

"Hehe, let's start our journey to fame from this Silver Hook Gambling House!"

"Brother is absolutely right!"

Suddenly, a commotion erupted outside, with three loud voices that exuded boundless arrogance.

Fang Yufei immediately changed his disguise, transforming into a fat man with a full blue beard.

Upon opening the door, one could see the gambling den's thugs lying on the ground, while three figures stood tall amidst the crowd.

A man dressed in red, with short, golden hair and bright blue eyes, was clearly from the Western Regions and had an arrogant demeanor.

The other person was dressed in blue, with black hair and blue eyes, and his features also had a distinct Western Region appearance, so he was probably of mixed race.

The last person was dressed in black, with black hair and black eyes, and looked exactly like a person from the Central Plains.

"Three...three heroes, what brings you to my gambling den? You can't just want to fight the thugs here, can you?"

Bluebeard said with a smile, "My gambling den is a business, and harmony brings wealth. If the three of you have any needs, just let us know. Why bother with physical violence?"

The man in red from the Western Regions said, "You... are you Bluebeard, the owner of the Silver Hook Gambling House?"

"I am the humble one."

"Heh, we've beaten up so many of your men here, don't you have any complaints at all?"

"That's because they're blind."

"You're supposed to be the head of a major power, how can you be so spineless?"

"It's not that I'm cowardly, but the three of you exude an aura of dominance and heroic bearing, and I... dare not offend you lightly!"

"Ha ha ha ha……"

The Western Region man laughed loudly, glanced at the blue-clad mixed-race man beside him, and said, "Brother, you always say that the Central Plains is full of hidden talents, but I think they're all just a bunch of amateurs. How could such a bunch of people be able to establish the Silver Hook Gambling House here? Judging from this, those other so-called overlords aren't much better."

The man in blue clasped his hands in greeting and said, "Bluebeard, I am Blue, this is my second brother Red, and my third brother Xuanse. The three of us brothers are all members of the Western Regions Demonic Sect. We have come here for no other reason than for the Demonic Sect's Rakshasa Token!"

Bluebeard hurriedly said, "The three heroes are wise. I returned the Rakshasa Token to Yu Tianbao long ago."

"Oh? I heard that you were the one who murdered Yu Tianbao and stole the Rakshasa Token?"

"I'm innocent! Everyone in the world knows about the Rakshasa Cult these days, and the Rakshasa Token is at the very center of this storm. How could my humble Silver Hook Gambling House dare to lay a finger on the Rakshasa Token!"

Blue frowned, but Red didn't hold back at all and said bluntly, "Brother, with this piece of trash's appearance, I don't think he has the guts to embezzle the Rakshasa Token."

Bluebeard hurriedly replied, "Yes, yes... However, if it's just about the Rakshasa Shield, I do have some information about it."

"Oh? Say it quickly."

"This..." Bluebeard glanced around and said, "Please, three heroes, come with me to the inner hall to discuss this further."

"Ok?"

Upon hearing this, even the arrogant Red instantly sensed something was amiss.

To the inner hall?
Who knows what you're hiding in your inner chamber?
What if dozens of experts are lying in ambush, just waiting for your order to attack them?
Bru said, "No need. If there's anything, we can talk about it here."

Bluebeard seemed to realize something was amiss and hurriedly said, "Yes, yes, someone, bring tables and chairs from the inner hall and serve tea!"

So the four of them began to drink tea in the middle of the courtyard.

Even so, the three brothers only took a small sip after Bluebeard had drunk it, and did not drink much more.

Even the most arrogant and unrestrained person will have the most basic caution when navigating the world.

“Gentlemen, in my gambling den, there are often some incorrigible gamblers who bring some stolen goods... Not long ago, a gambler brought a jade pendant, but when I looked at it, the jade pendant looked very familiar. It seemed to be one of the collateral that Yu Tianbao took out when he was gambling.

I immediately sensed something was wrong, so I had someone arrest the gambler and interrogate him thoroughly. That's when I found out that he had dug up a corpse in the wild and peeled it off the body..."

"Ok?"

Bru instantly realized the problem: "You mean, Yu Tianbao... is already dead?!"

(End of this chapter)