Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 331 Ancestor Worship (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

Opening the central gate to welcome guests is generally a gesture of respect for distinguished guests, signifying great solemnity.

Not only should the main gate be opened, but the host should also personally greet them as they leave.

Regardless of whether Lu Xingzhou actually holds that position, just considering the public's perception of Huo Shang's identity, having his father personally greet him at the door would be a clear reversal of the natural order.

Unless you are a royal concubine visiting her family, well... then you are representing the "emperor".

Shen Tang hasn't ascended the throne yet.

Uh, no, even if you ascend the throne, are you still a concubine?
Amidst the astonished observation of onlookers, the gates of the Huo family swung open, and Huo Xingyuan led his brothers to personally greet them at the gates, even performing a formal cupped-hand salute: "Young Master Lu is truly a rare guest, please come in."

At least they didn't say that their presence was a disservice to us, saving us a little face.

Lu Xingzhou didn't put on airs too much, and smiled slightly while bowing slightly: "You're too kind, Lord Marquis."

Amidst the differing thoughts of the onlookers, the group entered the Huo residence, and the gates closed again.

Huo Xingyuan led Lu Xingzhou straight to the main hall, saying, "You should have come here when you went to Beijing at the beginning of the year."

"At the beginning of the year?" Lu Xingzhou smiled slightly. "Shouldn't it be ten years ago, when the entire Huo family went to the capital?"

Huo Xingyuan choked for a moment, not knowing how to respond.

He was saying that Huo Shang should go home to visit his family after coming to Beijing, but Lu Xingzhou retorted that he should have brought his child with him in the first place.

There's no way to reply to that.

Upon reaching the main hall, Lu Xingzhou stopped in his tracks: "Why did we come here?"

Huo Xingyuan was taken aback: "Otherwise what?"

Lu Xingzhou smiled and said, "Shouldn't we go and pay our respects to Fourth Brother?"

Huo Xingyuan couldn't figure out his thoughts. He believed that Lu Xingzhou was not responsible for the death of the fourth brother, but wasn't it you who beat him until his bones were broken and he was paralyzed in bed?
Why does he look like he's about to pay respects to his brother?
Speaking of this matter alone, Huo Xingyuan should have sought revenge on Lu Xingzhou. However, during the trial, the charge of colluding with demonic cultivators was leveled against Huo Lu, making him the one who brought it upon himself. Now, even in death, his reputation is tarnished. Few of his colleagues in court came to pay their respects; who would want to mourn a criminal who colluded with demonic cultivators?

However, Lu Xingzhou at least didn't kill anyone to the death. Furthermore, the investigation into Huo Yu's case still concludes that he died at the hands of demons. In other words, on the surface, Lu Xingzhou didn't kill anyone in the Huo family; he only knocked out Huo Heng's teeth.

This reinforced the Huo family's belief that Lu Xingzhou was merely "fighting for his pride."

Huo Xingyuan didn't dwell on it much and quickly nodded: "Then let's go pay our respects to Xiao Si first."

Everyone turned to the mourning hall. Lu Xingzhou stood in front of the coffin for a while, smiled slightly, and even lit three incense sticks.

As he placed the incense in the burner, he said calmly, "Fourth Brother, although we have a grudge, I never intended for you to die."

Lying there like a living dead, feeling worse than death, is the most enjoyable thing.

"After all, we're brothers... No one would think their brother would want you dead, right? You probably never thought of that either."

Huo Xingyuan felt a jolt behind him. What did those words mean?
Huo Qi and Huo Zhang had different expressions.

"Speaking of which, it's rare to find someone as straightforward as you who's willing to fight me in the street. Unlike some people who are always scheming and plotting, and who are also stupid in their schemes, you're much better."

Huo Qi: "..."

"So I quite like you. It's a real shame you died. I was waiting for you to get up and fight me again."

I'll lie down for another ten years then.

These words sounded somewhat friendly, but was this how worshipping someone who was both friend and foe was done? The servants and attendants listening in couldn't tell what was going on; they felt there was something strange about it, and the atmosphere was odd.

But if you're asking whether there's anything seriously wrong with what he said, and whether you should forbid him from saying it, then it seems there isn't.

Lu Xingzhou left with the final words: "Next time you're reincarnated, be born into an ordinary family. If you want to experience the life of the powerful and wealthy, just live next door to them; don't get involved yourself."

Then you can also experience what it's like to have your family destroyed and your home ruined by the powerful and wealthy.

To others, it sounds like they're emphasizing infighting among powerful families, which just doesn't sit right with them.

Just as Huo Xingyuan was about to interrupt, Lu Xingzhou turned around and smiled brightly: "Where is the Grand Tutor?"

Huo Xingyuan swallowed back what he wanted to say: "He is in seclusion."

"Trying to break through to the Super Grade? Not easy, you're getting on in years."

"My father is not considered a great cultivator of the first rank."

"What I'm saying is, he was quite old when he broke through to the third rank, he only broke through it in his old age. With that kind of talent, isn't it a bit difficult to force himself to reach the super rank?"

"..." Huo Xingyuan slowly said, "When you are young, life is hard and resources are scarce. This is not a matter of talent. Besides, in the world of cultivation, there are many people who achieve great things late in life. Although Xingzhou has broken through to the third rank at a young age, he should always be humble."

"An old horse in its stall may still be eager to gallop a thousand miles," Lu Xingzhou said calmly, unconcerned by the old man's inability to hold back his lecturing. "Since I can't see the Grand Tutor, shouldn't I see some other people?"

Huo Xingyuan was stunned by his question: "Who else do you want to see?" His wife had passed away a few years ago, so his son had been getting into trouble all this year, and there was no mother to cry and whine. But if anyone was going to mistreat Huo Shang, it was his wife who was also the culprit. The matriarch of a family often determines the atmosphere in the inner quarters.

Actually, there's more to the story behind Madam Huo's death... She was a wife Huo Xingyuan married over thirty years ago. Back then, the Huo family wasn't wealthy, and the marriage was arranged with an ordinary official family. She wasn't particularly accomplished in cultivation, but she was extremely jealous and fierce, to the point that Huo Xingyuan never took a concubine. Finally, she got drunk and raped a maid, which led to this messy affair with Huo Shang.

Over the years, as the Huo family grew powerful, his wife's family became insignificant. Huo Xingyuan truly disliked his wife. Originally, he was already quite old and it wouldn't be appropriate for him to divorce her and remarry, as it wouldn't sound good to others. However, Madam Huo fell ill... If he had put in the effort, no one knew if she could have been cured, but Madam Huo died just like that.

In a sense, this can be considered a small revenge for Huo Shang and his mother.

At that time, Huo Xingyuan had just been ennobled. Although he was quite old, it would have been possible for him to remarry and reunite with another family. However, not long after, he also broke through to the first rank, and his worldly desires indeed faded. So he put it aside until now.

It's understandable that Huo Shang wants to see the mistress who mistreated him and his mother back then, but do you really want to see her in the underworld?

But Lu Xingzhou said, "The Huo family ancestral hall is no longer in the old residence in Xiazhou. I have nowhere to see it. Since I'm here, I'd like to see it."

Huo Xingyuan was pleasantly surprised by these words: "You want to visit the ancestral hall?"

In this world of cultivation, ancestral halls and spirit tablets truly possess a certain spiritual power. Whether you are of the Huo family bloodline or not, the response from the ancestral hall might be different. Regardless of Lu Xingzhou's motives, the fact that he dared to go to the ancestral hall truly dispelled the last trace of doubt about his identity.

"Paying homage?" Lu Xingzhou thought for a moment, "Your Excellency can think whatever you want. I'd like to see him, is that alright?"

"Of course." Huo Xingyuan didn't think he would cause a scene at the ancestral hall; there was no way he would do that. On the contrary, he was quite happy: "Then come this way."

Upon arriving at the ancestral hall, Lu Xingzhou felt a sense of being watched from the shadows. Of course, the Huo family ancestors were far inferior, far from possessing the spiritual connection of a remnant soul capable of communication like those in the Ten Thousand Swords Tomb of the Tianyao Holy Land. Regardless, the ancestral hall's response was very welcoming, making Lu Xingzhou feel like he belonged there, just as he did with Huo Qi, Huo Zhang, and the others.

The Huo family bloodline is unmistakable.

The guards hidden around the ancestral hall are also top-notch, some even possessing the aura of a first-rank official. The initial sense of wariness has now dissipated.

Lu Xingzhou sighed inwardly, "So, a first-grade expert has actually pledged allegiance to the Huo family..."

He came to the ancestral hall for two reasons: first, to deliberately show the kinship of the Huo family bloodline; and second, to probe the strength of the Huo family—the guards of the ancestral hall must be one of the strongest forces in the family. Now it seems that they are indeed of the first rank. The strength of the entire Huo family needs to be reassessed. They are definitely not as simple as the grandmaster and his son on the surface.

Suppressing his joy, Huo Xingyuan's voice became even more gentle: "Come in with me."

None of the Huo brothers were allowed to enter without permission, and they stood outside dumbfounded, watching Lu Xingzhou follow Huo Xingyuan into the ancestral hall.

After exchanging bewildered glances for a while, Huo Zhang sighed, "They really are brothers."

Huo Qi didn't speak, but Huo Heng let out a cold laugh.

She was just a servant who had been bullied since childhood.

Lu Xingzhou stood inside the ancestral hall, looking up at the row of memorial tablets above.

There aren't many, only four floors in total, which shows that the most powerful ancestor the Huo family can trace back to is only four generations above Grand Tutor Huo.

Compared to the densely packed memorial tablets they had glimpsed at the Pei family's residence, the Huo family looked much more shabby. In the Pei family's eyes, they were truly nouveau riche.

Based on the fact that the Maha Secret Realm was created a hundred years ago, Grand Tutor Huo was not born a hundred years ago. Grand Tutor Huo's father was still a teenager, and Grand Tutor Huo's grandfather was a middle-aged man. Therefore, the father's handwritten notes about the Maha Secret Realm "sunrise within" were most likely passed down by Grand Tutor Huo's grandfather or even great-grandfather.

The family division might have occurred between Grand Tutor Huo's father or grandfather, so the common ancestor of the two families would be Grand Tutor Huo's great-grandfather, which is three generations back.

So, leaving aside the bottom two layers, the first three or four generations of the top two layers were indeed Lu Xingzhou's ancestors.

The affairs of later generations are irrelevant to them; the bloodline of their ancestors should still be respected. Moreover, the breakthrough in the Maha Secret Realm was largely thanks to the revelation left by their ancestors, which can be considered the beginning of his journey on land.

Having lived in this world for so many years, it's laughable that this is the first time I've seen the spirits of my ancestors.

This time, Lu Xingzhou sincerely offered three incense sticks and bowed respectfully.

However, he did not kneel down, which is not considered acknowledging his ancestors.

What he was really thinking was, "I'll help you continue the Huo family bloodline, that's enough, right?"

This is what we really wanted to say about this ancestral worship ceremony.

A gentle breeze swept by, its meaning unknown.

Huo Xingyuan, standing to the side, couldn't help but ask, "Since you've met your ancestors, why don't you kneel?"

Lu Xingzhou turned to look at him, and after a long while, he said coldly, "My surname is Lu now."

Huo Xingyuan remained silent, assuming that Lu Xingzhou meant that their grudges hadn't been resolved yet. He finally sighed and didn't press the matter, his voice softening slightly: "What are your demands?"

Lu Xingzhou smiled slightly and pointed to Madam Huo's memorial tablet on the lower level: "My first request is to move this tablet out and remove it from the family genealogy."

He could collect his own debts slowly, but since he used Huo Shang's name, he could at least help Huo Shang collect his debts as well.

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.: Please vote for me with your monthly tickets, sob sob~
(End of this chapter)