Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 190 Farewell
Lu Xingzhou arrived at the Yama Palace branch and ordered the assassins to find the accounts related to the western suburban altar.

They didn't have high hopes. The Ministry of Works was a crucial government agency, and this kind of thing wasn't something Huo Heng carried with him; it wasn't something that could be easily obtained. They had previously asked them to find evidence of Huo Heng's embezzlement and bribery, but even now, they had no clue what to do.

Now that there are clear engineering guidelines, why not go and see for yourself? You might gain more insights.

Upon arriving in the western suburbs, we easily found the so-called altar. It wasn't very large, nor was it a particularly high platform. There weren't even many guards; some idle veterans were dozing off outside the door.

Judging from its appearance alone, it is impossible to tell that it is a newly built altar used to pray for the emperor's blessings. It looks as if it was just built and then abandoned, never used and never maintained.

The master and apprentice easily ascended the altar in broad daylight, and the guards were unaware that someone had gone up there right in front of them.

This alone is enough to show that this altar is a waste of money and resources, a complete waste of resources.

In the realm of spiritual cultivation, it is unlikely that altars are merely used for "praying for blessings." They must serve a purpose that can genuinely aid in healing.

Lu Xingzhou observed the altar for a long time, but found no trace of any formations that could help with medical treatment or cultivation, or even any effect of transferring or gathering spiritual energy.

However, there are various auspicious markings, which, in the world of cultivation, have been transformed into a purely superstitious value.

Ah Nuo was very puzzled: "Was it abandoned because it was completely useless after being built?"

“The blueprints must have been confirmed before construction began. If it doesn’t work after it’s built, Huo Heng will probably be held accountable, but there’s no news about that… I guess the problem lies elsewhere.” Lu Xingzhou pondered for a moment: “Look for the mechanism. There should be a door at the bottom of the altar. See what the inside looks like. It shouldn’t be solid.”

The altar was indeed not solid. The two easily found the mechanism, opened the passage below, and crawled inside.

The area below is actually quite formal, with a living area for the altar guardians. The other areas are mostly warehouses and the like, proper architectural design.

Lu Xingzhou tapped and knocked here and there, and he really couldn't see any signs of shoddy workmanship; he felt very reassured.

Of course, it's possible they might try to squeeze a cut on the price, which aligns with the Pei family's assessment that the matter is too trivial.

"The problem now is, what's the point of this thing at all?" Lu Xingzhou was incredulous: "What's the point of building this altar? It's completely useless."

Ah Nuo stroked her round chin: "Maybe it was used by the emperor for his secret affairs."

"...Why would an emperor build something like this to have an affair?"

"Who knows? Some people have their own houses and caves, but they still go to the pond."

Lu Xingzhou: “…”

Just as they were getting nowhere, the temperature around them suddenly turned icy cold.

Lu Xingzhou was instinctively preparing to attack when he saw Dugu Qingli appear before him expressionlessly: "What, you don't even recognize my aura anymore? You want to hit me?"

Lu Xingzhou breathed a sigh of relief: "So you've broken through... You weren't this imposing before. Speaking of which, you bring a cooling aura with you the moment you appear. How are you going to investigate other matters in the future?"

Sensing his concern, Dugu Qingli's expression softened slightly: "Because it's you, I didn't bother to hide anything. It's quite easy to conceal my aura."

Lu Xingzhou nodded: "How did you get here?"

"I was looking for you. My master sent me on a mission that's very far away... so I came to tell you."

"Where?"

Dugu Qingli shook her head: "It's a sect mission, so I can't reveal it. Just know that it's very far away, and this time we might really not see each other for a long time."

Lu Xingzhou fell silent.

Dugu Qingli said indifferently, "Anyway, you're in the capital, having a great time and not thinking about Xiazhou. One minute Pei Chuyun is taking a walk in her wheelchair, the next Sheng Yuanyao is having morning sickness. You probably won't care where I go."

Lu Xingzhou blurted out, "Who said I don't care!" Dugu Qingli just looked at him quietly.

Faced with her calm, azure eyes, Lu Xingzhou finally couldn't hold back his pride any longer and whispered, "I..."

Dugu Qingli suddenly interrupted: "Isn't it good that you don't care? Our accident shouldn't have happened in the first place."

Lu Xingzhou's words were cut off, and he pursed his lips, unsure how to respond.

She and Xiaobai had never talked about love or anything like that. She always treated that kiss as an accident and consistently rejected any deeper relationship. Although she said that, she might not have truly meant it, but outwardly she certainly hadn't gone any further.

From her perspective, "not caring" is of course the best, regardless of which side it is.

Especially now that she's flirting with several girls, Little White Hair probably despises her... her chances are probably even slimmer.

What's even more tragic is that it happened to coincide with her breakthrough. It's obvious that after entering the upper three ranks, the little white-haired girl felt much calmer and no longer had the childish anxiety she had before.

It's hopeless...

But then again, for him, it was just lust at first sight; who wouldn't like white hair and blue eyes? But in terms of feelings, there really wasn't much.

“I am very grateful for your pills… You are indeed my friend.” Seeing Lu Xingzhou’s changing expression, Dugu Qingli said calmly, “That’s why I came to say goodbye before parting.”

Lu Xingzhou finally smiled: "Alright, take care on your journey."

This attitude surprised Dugu Qingli, who had expected him to be persistent and clingy. Database analysis didn't seem to work like this... She subconsciously asked, "That's it?"

Lu Xingzhou laughed and said, "Otherwise? Want a farewell kiss?"

Dugu Qingli took a half step back, her eyes filled with warning.

Lu Xingzhou shook his head and smiled helplessly: "So what do you expect me to say?"

Dugu Qingli was silent.

It's as if saying something excessive is something you don't want to hear, but not saying anything leaves you a little disappointed.

The little robot really can't figure out what this mentality is. It's much more troublesome than practicing swordsmanship. You either know how to do a move or you don't. Why be so complicated?

Lu Xingzhou asked, "When are we leaving?"

"at any time."

"Then how did you know I was here?"

"What Master said was mostly calculated." Dugu Qingli looked around and frowned slightly: "What are you doing hiding down here? Aren't you stuffy?"

"I wanted to investigate the purpose of this altar, but it seems to be just a meaningless decoration at the moment."

Dugu Qingli took out a mirror: "This is a treasure of my sect, specially used to detect traces of witchcraft. If you can't see any signs of immortality, you might as well try this."

Lu Xingzhou was stunned for a moment, and then he saw the mirror emit a soft light.

Soft light shone on the otherwise empty stone wall, and slowly, the stone wall began to reveal patterns like human blood vessels. Upon closer inspection, it even seemed to be pulsating, creating a very strange and eerie scene.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: I had a lot to do today, so this chapter is a bit short. Please bear with it for now, and I'll try to add more tonight.

(End of this chapter)