Under One Person, your rebellious life has reached the heavens?

Upon learning of the effect, Si Chong laughed heartily and happily. In this way, even if his junior brother was traveling around, it would be no different from being in the sect.

Chengzhen was taken aback, never expecting this small magical artifact to have an effect comparable to fire magic. He carefully put it away and said:

"Then, Uncle-Master, I hope you will have a smooth journey down the mountain this time."

"Well, if it's on the way, I might be able to bring you two some foreign gadgets back."

After chatting for a while, Jiang Mo left and went straight to the outside of the mountain gate. The bright moon hung high, and the silvery-gray mountain steps were covered with light frost. Lu Jin was patiently waiting with two packages on his back.

"Uncle-Master, have you made the arrangements?"

"Well, let's go."

Without the ability to ride the wind, Jiang Mo retrieved his luggage from Lu Jin's right shoulder and, taking advantage of the night, strolled down the mountain through the forest.

......

Lu Jin, a scion of a prestigious family, was indeed wealthy. In one day and two nights, he took Jiang Mo on a journey north, visiting various towns and enjoying a variety of snacks and delicacies.

The day before Old Master Lu's birthday, the two arrived in the capital city where the Lu family was based.

Unlike the birthday celebration ten years ago, the Lu family held their birthday banquet this time not in their remote ancestral village in the suburbs, but in a relatively bustling city center.

Night, 7 PM.

Inside the Lu family mansion, many figures were bustling about, busy preparing for the old master's birthday. The butler would come from time to time to inquire about the situation and see if anything was still missing.

Crossing the familiar threshold and greeting the uncles and aunts who had been hired to work, Lu Jin once again felt the warmth of returning home.

"Uncle-Master, come with me. I'll take you to see the old man. My father is probably there right now."

As soon as she finished speaking, Lu Jin was walking around the corner of the corridor when she accidentally bumped into someone.

Before he could even offer an apology, a hearty voice rang out: "Hey, young master's back!"

"Uncle Qiao!"

Lu Jin recognized the person as Qiao Yue, the Lu family guard who had previously informed him.

Where are you going now?

"Check with your father to see where the other guests are. I reckon they should arrive tomorrow? Probably not that soon."

Qiao Yue exchanged pleasantries with Lu Jin and Jiang Mo for a while before leaving in a hurry.

After navigating several corridors, Lu Jin arrived at the old man's study, gently knocked, and said, "Father, Grandfather, are you there? I'm back!"

"Jin'er?! Quick, quick, come in."

An old man's joyful voice rang out from the study. Lu Jin quickly pushed open the door and saw Old Master Lu, dressed in a festive red Tang suit, looking at him with a cheerful smile.

Lu Xuan, who was by his side, also looked up at the door. When he saw that Lu Jin was safe and sound and looked radiant, he felt a pang of sadness in his heart and finally felt relieved.

"father!!!"

"Grandpa, come, let me introduce you. This is my martial uncle—Jiang Mo, the head of the Jiang sect."

"Mr. Lu, it's a pleasure to meet you both."

As Lu Jin's senior martial uncle and the head of the San Yi Sect, Jiang Mo greeted him politely and respectfully.

"So you are Master Jiang. My son is grateful for your care. Please have a seat. I will prepare some tea. Please wait a moment."

Lu Xuan quickly invited Jiang Mo to sit on the golden pear wood chair on the right side of the study, so that he could communicate with Old Master Lu.

"Jin'er, come here quickly so Grandpa can take a look. Wow, you've grown so much taller."

"She's so pretty, what girl wouldn't be smitten?"

Grandpa Lu called Lu Jin to his side, looked him over for a moment, patted his head, and grinned from ear to ear. He then teased Jiang Mo, who was standing to the side:

"Sect Leader Jiang, Jin'er is on the mountain. I hope she hasn't caused you any trouble?"

"Lord Lu is overthinking it; it didn't cause any trouble at all."

"This child is very well-behaved, reliable, and has excellent aptitude and comprehension. He is a fine piece of raw jade, waiting only for the polishing of time. When the time is right, he can become a great man."

Jiang Mo didn't hold back his praise. In the time they'd spent together, Lu Jin's personality and way of doing things were indeed quite pleasing to him.

"Oh, Master Jiang's praise has made my Jin'er's face turn red."

"Grandpa, please give me some face."

Lu Jin was also surprised by his uncle's high praise and was flattered, speaking with a lack of confidence.

"What's there to be embarrassed about? Oh, you're so shy, come sit down."

Grandpa Lu was very talkative. He chatted with Lu Jin and Jiang Mo for a long time, getting more and more excited as he talked. He was especially pleased when he learned the details of how the two wiped out the Quanxing stronghold. He admired the young man's skills even more.

"Master Jiang, in this turbulent time, your annihilation of the Quanxing sect can be described as eliminating a destabilizing factor."

"Nowadays, all the extraordinary people in the martial arts world have elevated your status to an extremely high level. You should know that in previous years, some of the madmen in the Quanxing sect became traitors and caused endless harm."

"Your actions this time were truly remarkable. I can now rest assured that Jin'er will be training under your tutelage from now on."

While sighing, Old Master Lu was also surprised. Jiang Mo was dressed in white with black hair and had not activated the Reverse Life state, yet his appearance looked similar to Lu Jin's. This must be because he had cultivated to the point of returning to simplicity.

Chapter 80 Everyone is responsible

"Lord Lu, you are joking. With Jin'er's talent, even if she doesn't join the Sanyi Sect, she could achieve great things by going to other sects, or by going into business or joining the army."

"As for my struggle with Quanxing, it is merely a personal grudge and has little to do with righteousness."

Jiang Mo and Grandpa Lu chatted happily. Perhaps because they were both familiar with Zuo Ruotong, there was no awkwardness between them even though it was their first meeting.

A moment later, Lu Xuan returned, having brewed a pot of fine Da Hong Pao tea. He hurried over and personally served the tea to Jiang Mo.

"Come on, Master Jiang, you must be tired from your long journey. Have some fresh air to soothe your throat."

"Thank you, Mr. Lu." Jiang Mo smiled and accepted the gift.

"Father, you rest, I'll do it."

Lu Jin was the youngest in the family, so he got up and asked Lu Xuan to sit down while he went to pour tea and water.

"Okay, take it easy."

Lu Xuan smiled helplessly; this was probably the most at ease he had felt in more than half a month.

His eyes were dark from overwork, and his slightly tired face was full of concern. Looking at his child who was safe and well-behaved, he felt gratified as a father, but even more so, he felt a sense of relief.

It felt like a dream. To this day, he still couldn't understand how he had managed to convince his inner obsession and let Lu Jin do what he wanted.

Looking back now, I still feel a bit uneasy, after all, the crimes committed by Quanxing were too numerous to count.

"Grandpa, here." Lu Jin respectfully served tea to the old man.

"Okay, thank you, doll."

Grandpa Lu had kind eyes, a loud and powerful voice, and was full of energy and in good health.

He took a small sip, letting it flow down his throat, feeling a warm sensation. His curiosity was immediately expressed:

"Sect Leader Jiang, there are rumors circulating that your Reverse Rebirth has reached the third level. Forgive me for asking, but is this true?"

"Well, it was a matter of chance that I got through this hurdle."

Jiang Mo saw no need to hide anything, so he simply spoke directly. Meeting the old man's bright, piercing gaze, he said with a smile:

"Not only me, Jin'er also has good talent. If she cultivates diligently in the future, there is a great chance that she can reach the third level."

"Is that so...? Very good."

Grandpa Lu gently brushed the tea with the lid to cool it down, and said sincerely:

"How far this kid can go depends on his fate. You can't force opportunities in cultivation. After all, he chose this path himself, so let him do what he wants."

"By the way, Lord Lu, I heard from Jin'er that you have important matters to discuss for your birthday celebration this year? I wonder if you could tell me which friends in the circle you have invited, and what the matter is?"

Jiang Mo asked the question frankly.

Without beating around the bush, Old Master Lu spoke frankly: "Let me think... Celestial Master's Mansion, Shangqing, Huode Sect, Yanwu Hall, Huangmen, Wang Family, Lü Family, Gao Family..."

"Uncle, the Gao family is busy with the war at the front and can't come over," Lu Xuan relayed the message he had received not long ago.

That's all.

Grandpa Lu continued, "In this day and age, the nation is in imminent danger, and strange people from the East are also arriving on the mainland one after another."

"So, this old man wants to take this opportunity of my birthday to get everyone together, form an alliance, and face the national crisis together. We can't help with things on the battlefield, but dealing with those Japanese weirdos is something we must do within our capabilities."

"What does Master Jiang think?"

"The rise and fall, everyone is responsible."

Jiang Mo sipped his tea, his eyes as calm as a deep pool, and said, "When the head of Wanxiang Hall visited me before, we talked about this topic."

"It's not just their core members, but also a group of disciples from the Celestial Master's Mansion, Shangqing, Wudang, and the Sanyi Sect who went to the battlefield and never returned, which is truly regrettable."

Hearing this, Lu Xuan felt uneasy and couldn't help but sigh, "I wonder if Brother Lü will come this year? There's still no definite answer."

"Oh? Aren't the four of you always on good terms? How come we can't get in touch?" Jiang Mo put down his teacup.

"Sigh... Half a year ago, we received news that ninjas and samurai from Mount Hiei in the East had landed. After that, the four families, the three temples of Putuo, Shangqing, and Longhu joined forces to ambush them, intending to eliminate them in advance."

Lu Xuan looked dejected, pressing his left hand to his temple, and said with some distress, "But things didn't go as planned... These beasts are really skilled. Even though we had the advantage of striking first, we still suffered casualties on both sides."

"They have a special method that allows them to detect ambushes in the surrounding area in advance. We were unaware of this at the time until later, when Mr. Liu from Jianghu Xiaozhan obtained intelligence from Japan and learned that it was the ninja technique 'Ren' used by Hieiyama for assassination, which could avoid lurking dangers within its range."

"Besides that, there are other complicated methods. The ninja leader's strength is also unfathomable. He was surrounded by his guards and there was no way to make a move."

"The fierce battle took place in the suburbs. It was a bloody and brutal fight that took a heavy toll before the ninja was forced to reveal his true identity."

"The situation was urgent at the time. They outnumbered us far and could not be taken down in a short time. Some of the wounded were evacuated first, while the rest continued to attack and cover our retreat."

"Among the Lu family, two of my close brothers were killed. They were not weak, but they died under a hail of knives, and their bodies could not be found. Although they were guards, they had grown up with me since childhood and were like close friends."

"When I see their widows and hear their young children crying uncontrollably, how can I not feel heartbroken and guilty?"

"In order to take care of these orphans and widows, I not only gave them pensions, but also arranged for them to live in the Lu family's house to avoid the chaos outside and the calamities of war and bandits."

Even so, I still have no face to face them.

"Both Longhu Mountain and Shangqing suffered casualties, with several disciples sacrificing their lives. If they had encountered the bandits one-on-one, they might not have met with such misfortune."

"In the Wang family, an elder and several young people died on the spot. The Gao family also suffered many deaths. Some of their compatriots who fell into the hands of the enemy did not hesitate for a moment, but directly used their Qi to sever their heart meridians and commit suicide. They were indomitable."

"The most serious case is the Lü family. Their most outstanding young talent, Lü Ren, was being groomed as their successor. He was extremely capable and of exceptional character. Unfortunately, he was killed by a foreign alien while covering the rear."

"Originally, it wouldn't have been difficult for him to leave, but according to later survivors, he was being targeted by the enemy's ninja leader and a strange young man wielding a demon sword."

"In order to cover the retreat of the few remaining members of the tribe, I had no choice but to stay behind and cover their retreat."

"As soon as the news spread, the head of the Lü family immediately suffered from angina and vomited blood, fell into a coma, and lay in bed for a full month, so weak that he was almost dead."

“I visited him, and he was in terrible condition... This old friend was heartbroken, and I couldn’t comfort him. I had so many words stuck in my throat, and I couldn’t say them, nor could I change that bleak reality.”

Lu Xuan looked somewhat ashamed.

However, in reality, not only him, but also the elders and relatives of the Lü family, tried to comfort him in vain. After all, the pain of losing a son is different for everyone (every father and son is different), and who can truly empathize with him?

"Later I heard that Brother Lü's child, Lü Ci, went to the Sky-Piercing Cave with the Tang Clan and fought against the Japanese monsters. As a result, the ninjas and samurai were almost wiped out, which can be considered revenge."

"I just don't know how well Brother Lü's health is recovering. If it's inconvenient for you to travel, it's alright if you can't attend his birthday celebration."

Lu Xuan could understand his old friend's difficulties.

Old Master Lu frowned, displeased, and said coldly, "These foreigners from the East are like locusts, invading us repeatedly. I can't stand it if we don't get rid of them."

"It's not just Higanbana, but also other martial arts masters from other Eastern schools. In recent years, they have been causing trouble in various provinces. We have lost countless skilled fighters trying to intercept and kill them."

"It's a rare opportunity that you, Master Jiang, have resolved this hidden threat within the Quanxing Sect. That's why I wanted to get everyone united and concentrate our forces to wipe out these thieves."

Jiang Mo looked at Old Master Lu with a calm gaze and said, "Since you have considered so much, then this junior should also do his part."

"I accept your invitation, but on one condition: once I have accurate information, you must hand over the most troublesome supernatural beings to me. How about it?"

"Good! Good! Good! That's quite bold of you! I promise you, old man."

Upon hearing Jiang Mo's clear answer, Old Master Lu was extremely excited. He quickly took Jiang Mo's hand, his face beaming, and said:

"With the assistance of Master Jiang, the Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain, and the help of experts from Huode Sect and Yanwu Hall, we will surely ensure that those troublesome ninjas and samurai never return!"

"of course."

Jiang Mo chuckled and replied, "Lord Lu, you have considerable prestige in the industry. I'm sure everyone will agree with this suggestion."