Chapter 78 - 57: Zhou Ze Seeks Help
After leaving the tavern, Lu Yuan didn’t go home but headed straight outside the town.
The waters of Jianghu are too deep.
Conflicts have arisen again, and it even involves the internal strife within the Iron Sword Sect, which seems unlikely to be resolved peacefully.
As the leader of Luling’s martial arts world, when Iron Sword Sect is in chaos, the entire Luling will be in chaos as well.
Once the chaos starts, no one knows when it will end.
So, Lu Yuan planned to make another trip to the county town to get some herbs from Doctor Zhou, just in case they become hard to buy once chaos erupts.
He would buy enough herbs for a year and then stay at home to practice martial arts in seclusion.
Regardless of whether the Iron Sword Sect will eventually fall into internal strife or if the Luling martial arts world will go to war, as long as he stays at home, how could the chaos outside still affect him?
This territory is still ruled by Da Yue!
As long as the court and the officials are present, the sky of Luling couldn’t be overturned.
Upon arriving at the county town again, Lu Yuan could clearly feel the atmosphere here was different.
First, at the city gate.
Originally, there were only a few officials guarding the gate, but now there were more than ten men in black. Just by looking at their outfits, one could tell they belonged to the Black Wolf Gang.
These Black Wolf Gang members stood on both sides of the gate, staring fiercely at every passerby who entered or exited, as if they wanted to eat them alive.
“Lu Yuan!”
As he was about to enter the town, someone called out his name. Turning his head, he saw Scarface.
“What’s the matter?”
Previously, he wasn’t afraid of this small gang leader even after only opening one meridian. Now that he has reached the third meridian, being considered a good hand among the Jianghu, he looked down on this little punk even more.
“You…” Scarface was infuriated when he saw his nemesis looking indifferent. He wanted to attack, but considering Lu Yuan’s strength, he didn’t dare to.
However, their posture caught the attention of someone nearby—a slightly thin middle-aged man from the Black Wolf Gang. He took a couple of steps forward and asked Lu Yuan, “May I know your name, sir?”
Lu Yuan glanced at the middle-aged man, seeing that his demeanor was reserved, his back strong, and his stance steady—a clear sign of a skilled martial artist.
However, facing this man, Lu Yuan didn’t feel threatened at all. He probably had only opened one or two meridians and wasn’t worth fearing. Therefore, Lu Yuan calmly replied, “I’m just an insignificant man named Lu Yuan. Who might you be?”
The middle-aged man saw that Lu Yuan didn’t want to reveal much about himself and didn’t press on. He smiled and said, “My name is Tian Mao, an elder of the Black Wolf Gang.”
“Elder Tian.”
Lu Yuan clasped his hands and asked, “Is there anything else? I’m still waiting to enter the city.”
Tian Mao stared deeply at him and then stepped back, gesturing with his hand,
“No, please go ahead.”
Lu Yuan nodded and walked away, disappearing into the city streets in a blink of an eye.
After he left, Scarface approached Tian Mao and said in confusion, “Elder, should we just let him go like that?”
Tian Mao glanced at his subordinate and snorted, “What else can we do? This man’s inner Qi is well-hidden, and his steps are like a swallow, clearly a master with considerable inner energy. To me, he seems no less skilled than a few of our vice leaders. Do you want to mess with someone like that?”
Scarface could hardly believe what he heard, “Are you saying that he’s already a third-rate master?”
“Most likely,” Tian Mao nodded and then asked once more, “Was he really just a mountain hunter a few years ago?”
Scarface responded blankly, “Yes. Back then, he had to call me ‘Master.’ He was definitely a hunter.”
Tian Mao frowned, “That’s strange. How could a mere hunter achieve the realm of a third-rate master in just three or four years? How many vice leaders in our gang spent over a decade or even two decades to reach that level?
Could it be that this kid has some exceptional talent for martial arts and had some fortuitous encounters, which allowed him to improve so quickly?”
The Black Wolf Gang elder’s thoughts were in disarray, but he couldn’t figure it out no matter how hard he tried.
In a state of confusion, he simply ordered a few of his subordinates, “Remember, if you see this Lu Yuan, never provoke him. If anyone offends him and brings trouble, you know the consequences.”
“Yes.” The Black Wolf Gang members immediately nodded in agreement.
Scarface nodded his head like pounding garlic. He knew that when the elder was giving orders to his subordinates, they were mainly directed at him, and he dared not to take it lightly.
In this process, Lu Yuan’s importance in the minds of these Black Wolf Gang members suddenly approached that of the vice leaders in the gang.
He became someone who should not be offended.
After entering the city, the streets were still bustling with people, as prosperous as ever.
However, underneath all the prosperity, one could vaguely sense a turbulent undercurrent and a hint of murderous atmosphere lurking beneath.
As for the source of these abnormalities.
“Not only at the city gate, but there are also more Black Wolf Gang members on the streets,” Lu Yuan observed as he watched the groups of three to five patrolling gang members, becoming more certain about his speculation concerning the internal conflict within the Iron Sword Sect.
If it weren’t for something as significant as an internal conflict, the Black Wolf Gang located in a remote area wouldn’t be so tense.
With this in mind, he quickly arrived at the Medical Clinic.
Upon arriving at the Medical Clinic.
As soon as he entered the door, Lu Yuan noticed that something was wrong with the atmosphere.
At that moment, there was a patient in the clinic, whom Dr. Zhou was diagnosing, but his face didn’t have the usual cheerfulness. Instead, it was filled with worry.
His attitude made the consulting patient feel uneasy.
However, everyone could tell that Dr. Zhou wasn’t worrying about the disease, but rather he had something on his mind.
Therefore, even though the patient felt uncertain, they managed to maintain a level of composure and continued with the consultation.
The tense consultation finally ended, under the strange state of the doctor’s worrying and the patient’s uneasiness.
After finding out the cause of the illness and receiving the prescription, the patient seemed relieved, and quickly left, not wanting to remain in this unnerving place any longer.
It was at this moment that Zhou Ze, who had been distracted all along, finally noticed the presence of another person in his clinic.
“Lu Yuan.”
Seeing him, Zhou Ze did not call him “Young Lu” as he had in the past but simply greeted him hoarsely.
“Dr. Zhou.”
Lu Yuan looked at Zhou Ze and noticed something was wrong with him. He couldn’t help but ask worriedly, “What happened? Where’s Xiaoqing?” He looked around.
Zhou Qing, who should have been helping in the hall, was not there and nowhere to be found.
“Xiaoqing…”
At the sound of his son’s name, Zhou Ze came back to his senses, but his face became even paler. He subconsciously wanted to glance in a particular direction but held it back. He simply said weakly, “He’s in the backyard.
Accompanying his wife.”
Seeing Dr. Zhou’s performance, Lu Yuan had even more questions.
After glancing around, he leaned in a little, and whispered, “Dr. Zhou, what on earth happened? Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Help?”
Zhou Ze looked at Lu Yuan, his pupils moved, and the lifeless look in his eyes suddenly gained some shine, “Yes, you can help. You can help me.” He whispered a few more words, but his eyes grew brighter.
It was as if he had seen the light and grasped hope.
Zhou Ze subconsciously looked around, and after making sure everything was safe, he leaned in a little more and whispered, “Save me, save my family..”