The little pig didn’t know whether to call itself Yu Yu or Zhou Zhou. In any case, as soon as Anu finished speaking, Lu Xingzhou stared at it, his eyes emerald green.

The little pig recoiled in terror into Anu’s arms.

Lu Xingzhou found it amusing, “This little pig is probably a bit special. Qinghuang also said it was the most talented in the entire pig clan, and it might have the bloodline of other ancient exotic beasts. I wonder if its talent is devouring heavenly tribulations or obscuring heavenly secrets… Eh?”

The little pig stared blankly as his expression changed from amusement to ecstasy, “Whether it’s devouring or evading, raise it! Feed it the best pills!”

Anu immediately stuffed the excellent Grade 1 pill she had just tested into the little pig’s mouth and said gleefully, “I’ve always raised it like this. I thought Master would scold me for being wasteful.”

“…” If Lu Xingzhou had seen an excellent Grade 1 pill being fed to a pig before, his heart might have bled a little, but at this moment, he waved his hand, “Keep feeding it! If you don’t have enough medicinal ingredients, tell Master! Hmm, I also have a few Grade 1 and 2 pills purely for increasing cultivation. I’ll give them all to you first.”

The little pig’s horrified expression turned ingratiating. Anu rubbed its head, “I told you, Master is the best.”

The little pig nodded.

Lu Xingzhou dumped all the pills he had collected into Anu’s arms and rose in a good mood, “I’ll go practice too.”

Anu stuck out her tongue behind him, “Master is entangled in worldly affairs, so he might not score as high as me in the exam then.”

“What worldly affairs? Is finding a master’s wife for you considered worldly affairs?” Lu Xingzhou stopped, turned back, and smiled, “Besides, my Anu is supposed to surpass her master anyway.”

Anu realized that the increasing number of master’s wives wasn’t entirely due to her backflips; her Master’s words were getting sweeter and sweeter. He himself was swamped with trivial matters and couldn’t focus on studying, yet he ended up expecting his disciple to surpass him.

What kind of person was he?

You better not fail to graduate…

Lu Xingzhou returned to his own courtyard and began to practice. He didn’t even dare to refine Grade 1 pills, only Grade 2, thoroughly outclassed by Anu.

He couldn’t tell Anu this; his pride would be completely shattered…

Wine and women truly made one so haggard. From this day forward, no more drinking!

Lu Xingzhou began his secluded cultivation of alchemy. Jiang Duxu stepped into the Huo Residence and offered incense to the spirit tablets of the many Huo family sons.

Seeing Huo Zhang, Huo Heng, and Huo Jin, all dead in one fell swoop, even Jiang Duxu, accustomed to great storms, found it hard to maintain his composure.

What was most unbearable was that the murderer was enjoying himself half a street away, yet the family of the dignified and “power-wielding” Grand Tutor had made no move for revenge.

This further solidified Jiang Duxu’s determination to change collaborators.

Previously, he wanted to marry his granddaughter into the Huo family, thinking they were strong enough. Now, he saw what a joke they were. Their sons were all dead, and they couldn’t even utter a sound, completely manipulated by Lu Xingzhou through various influences and calculations. If he had really married his granddaughter there, she might eventually be killed by Lu Xingzhou along with the Huo family.

Oh, judging by the way those two were exchanging glances, it might be a different kind of death. For now, they were just ordinary collaborators, with not too much interaction, which was fine. But if they became adversaries, Jiang Duxu had no doubt his granddaughter would be a prime target for a breakthrough.

In fact, there were signs before… Now that Lu Xingzhou had accomplished what he wanted, he let it go, which was fortunate.

However, even if he changed collaborators, the old fox knew he couldn’t show it directly. On the surface, he still had to continue negotiations with the Huo family. Otherwise, if his change of allegiance was exposed, he would surely suffer a severe blow from the Emperor.

So, he specifically came to “mourn” to show goodwill.

As he was pondering these thoughts, Huo Xingyuan approached him and whispered, “Mr. Jiang, when our two families discussed marriage, because that scoundrel… Lu Xingzhou said he was fond of Miss Jiang, as a father, I intended to help fulfill their wish, so I turned to negotiate for him. Who knew this person didn’t cherish it and proposed four women in court, none of whom were Miss Jiang… My Huo family is truly sorry to Mr. Jiang for this matter.”

Jiang Duxu remained impassive, “What do you mean by saying this, Marquis?”

Huo Xingyuan said, “Since the marriage proposal with Lu Xingzhou has been canceled, should our two families revisit the old matter?”

Jiang Duxu said indifferently, “The Marquis’s family has just suffered a misfortune, and you are in this mood? I admire your composure.”

Huo Xingyuan was a bit embarrassed. Of course, he wasn’t in any mood for pleasure. In fact, he had long lost much of his desire for men and women. What he sought now was more fundamental: an heir.

In the current situation, even if Lu Xingzhou was willing to come back and call him “father,” he might still put on a fake smile, but in his heart, he wished Lu Xingzhou dead. He couldn’t kill him now; he was the only remaining bloodline, there was no other way. Even if father and son turned against each other, he was still of the Huo family’s blood. A hundred years later, if Huo Xingyuan wasn’t honored in the ancestral temple, his great-grandfather would have to be.

Therefore, he could only suppress his towering hatred for Lu Xingzhou, grit his back teeth, and swallow it with blood.

But if he could successfully father a child, then it would be different. At that time, he would use all his power to kill Lu Xingzhou.

This matter was urgent, because Huo Xingyuan knew how fast Lu Xingzhou’s cultivation was advancing. In just one year, he transformed from a crippled third-grade cultivator to the peerless young second-grade cultivator he was today, an unparalleled and abnormal genius. Given more time, attaining first-grade was a certainty, and he might even glimpse beyond that, making it even harder to kill him then.

He absolutely had to produce an heir as quickly as possible, the sooner the better.

Since he was considering having a child, besides buying a bunch of concubines to widely sow his seed, he naturally also thought of the Jiang family, with whom he had previously discussed marriage. He had given way to Lu Xingzhou then, but it hadn’t proceeded. Shouldn’t they revisit the old matter now?

Jiang Duxu naturally knew what he was thinking, but he said coldly, “Although Jiang does not adhere to complicated rituals, I understand shame and will not wrong my child. Your family has just suffered a misfortune. If the Jiang family were to marry our daughter into your family now, how would others view it? Would they see the Jiang family as shameless and eager to gain influence, or merely as a tool for good luck?”

Huo Xingyuan hastily said, “No such intention, absolutely no such intention.”

“This old man knows the Marquis has no such intention, otherwise, my words would not be so polite.” Jiang Duxu said coldly, “But gossip is fearful. My Jiang family values its reputation. This matter should not be mentioned again in the short term. We can discuss it again when things have cooled down.”

His reasoning was sound, and Huo Xingyuan found it difficult to argue. He could only sigh, “Mr. Jiang’s concerns are indeed valid.”

He thought to himself that no matter what, he should first buy some concubines.

Jiang Duxu was also too lazy to say more. He cupped his hands in farewell. After thinking for a moment, he went directly to see Lu Xingzhou.

It didn’t matter if the Huo family knew. On the surface, he and Lu Xingzhou had a maritime trade matter to discuss, and it was Huo Zhang, who was considered the most innocent and sensible in Huo Xingyuan’s eyes at the moment, who had brokered the connection.

When he entered, the person responsible for接待 was already Yang Dechang. Seeing the familiar old man at the Lu Residence, who he had once known at the Huo Residence, gave Jiang Duxu a very strange sense of temporal dislocation.

“My master instructed that if Mr. Jiang visits, he should go directly to the back courtyard to see him,” Yang Dechang said with a chuckle, leading the way.

Jiang Duxu asked, “Lu Xingzhou knew I was coming?”

“My master knew the Huo family would certainly discuss marriage again, so Mr. Jiang would naturally come.”

Jiang Duxu chuckled wryly.

In the back courtyard, Lu Xingzhou was refining pills, looking very focused. “Mr. Jiang, please sit for a while. Old Yang, please offer Mr. Jiang some tea. I’ll be finished soon.”

Jiang Duxu sat down at a stone table nearby and watched Lu Xingzhou refine pills.

This was his first time seeing Lu Xingzhou “doing serious business.” How to put it… if this were back in the ancient world, a young man like Lu Xingzhou would indeed be Jiang Duxu’s preferred choice for a grandson-in-law. Reaching the second-grade at such a young age, and with a specialized skill like alchemy, would ensure the safety of his family. Unfortunately, his court marriage proposal didn’t include his granddaughter.

While it proved that he wasn’t swayed by lust with Jiang Yuan, Jiang Duxu wouldn’t shamelessly pursue that marriage any further.

What a pity.

“Wait…” Jiang Duxu watched for a while and suddenly asked, “What kind of pill is this?”

Lu Xingzhou smiled slightly, “It’s for promoting fertility, the male version.”

Jiang Duxu’s expression was odd, “For your own use?”

“Naturally for Huo Xingyuan. The Huo family has recently been secretly refining this kind of pill, but those suitable for first-grade cultivators are not easy to refine. I’m helping out by refining a few more.”

Jiang Duxu said, “But why does it look like a sterilization pill to this old man?”

Lu Xingzhou turned to look at him, quite surprised. “Mr. Jiang can tell just by sniffing? The ancient world’s techniques are indeed stronger than I imagined.”

Jiang Duxu retorted, “It’s because this old man is strong.”

Lu Xingzhou: “…”

Jiang Duxu said, “Are you planning to bribe an insider, replace the pills, and effectively sterilize Huo Xingyuan?”

Lu Xingzhou said, “I have that idea, but it might not be implemented. My main concern is his big picture, not this minor issue. Anyway, I’ll prepare the props just in case they can be used.”

“…And you tell me so directly? Aren’t you afraid I’ll tell Huo Xingyuan?”

Lu Xingzhou finally smiled, “The choice has been made. Would Lu still doubt Mr. Jiang’s wavering on such a matter? Why would I?”

Jiang Duxu felt comfortable in his heart. He stroked his beard and watched him for a long time, then suddenly asked, “What do you need this old man to do?”

“There’s nothing you need to do… However, there’s one thing. In a few days, I will return to Xiazhou to get married. It would be my honor if Mr. Jiang could attend the ceremony.”

Jiang Duxu generally knew what he was worried about and nodded slightly. “That is certainly proper, as partners.”

As they spoke, the alchemical furnace opened, and the pills emerged.

A sterilization pill, Grade 2, excellent quality… Jiang Duxu’s mouth twitched.

If this pill were thrown into a river, it would probably sterilize all the fish in the entire river, yet on the surface, it looked like a fertility-promoting pill. Unless specifically examined, it would be very difficult to tell the difference.

Lu Xingzhou handed the pills directly to Yang Dechang and then said to Jiang Duxu, “Mr. Jiang, last time we discussed a collaboration to seize the Huo family’s alchemy furnace. At that time, you seemed to have little interest?”

Jiang Duxu said, “Indeed, my interest wasn’t very high. Although it might be a celestial-grade alchemy furnace, this old man doesn’t have a high demand for it.”

“To make judgments based on need, rather than being greedy at the sight of treasure, Mr.’s demeanor is truly elevated. Please forgive my imprudent words that day.”

“No need for flattery. What exactly do you want to say, feel free to speak directly.”

Lu Xingzhou grinned, “Mr. Jiang doesn’t want the alchemy furnace, but I do. If I were to ask you to help seize this item, what would be the price? Let’s discuss it?”