Lu Xingzhou headed in the direction of the ancestral hall, the only path within the Huo manor that he knew.

Last time, he had deliberately asked Huo Xingyuan to take him to the ancestral hall, not to pay respects to ancestors, but purely to familiarize himself with the route and observe any defensive vulnerabilities. It certainly wasn’t for Huo Xingyuan to transfer the soul ring of his deceased wife; that would have no practical significance.

If that alchemical cauldron were in the Huo manor, it would undoubtedly be in the most heavily guarded, most inaccessible restricted area. In terms of cost, it would most likely be placed in the same area as the ancestral hall, guarded together.

This arrangement also wouldn’t arouse suspicion; it’s perfectly normal for the ancestral hall area to be heavily guarded. However, if another place were also heavily guarded, it would seem very strange and immediately indicate that something valuable was there.

So, if the Huo family hadn’t done anything out of the ordinary, the alchemical cauldron could almost certainly be located near the ancestral hall.

The last time Lu Xingzhou came here, he had specifically noted that there were other buildings in the vicinity. He wasn’t sure if it was in one of those buildings, or worse, if there was a secret room underneath the ancestral hall itself.

If it were a secret room inside the ancestral hall, it would be much more troublesome. If it were in one of the adjacent buildings, it would be simpler.

Jiang Yuan followed Lu Xingzhou, watching him suddenly stop, pull her behind a pillar, wait for a patrol of guards to pass, and then dart out again.

Before long, they saw a heavily guarded courtyard, with even guards on the walls.

Lu Xingzhou crouched by the corner of a wall, observing and calculating the guards’ blind spots.

After watching for a while, Jiang Yuan leaned close to his ear and whispered, “Hey, with this level of security, even if we sneak in, once we’re discovered, it’ll be hard for you to pass it off as us just wandering around.”

Lu Xingzhou’s expression was cold and stern, devoid of his usual gentle smile. He replied calmly, “As long as you are with me, Huo Xingyuan will probably assume Gu Zhanting is secretly investigating his affairs.”

Jiang Yuan narrowed her eyes. “You’re using me.”

“Yes.”

“And you’re telling me this, aren’t you afraid I’ll just leave?”

“Miss, you wouldn’t think that just because I compete with Huo Xingyuan, I’m guaranteed to win, would you? This arranged marriage is a bridge between you and Gu Zhanting. I cannot achieve that effect. If you don’t cooperate with my plan, you’ll still have to obediently continue with the bazi exchange.” Lu Xingzhou said calmly, “Since you want to fight for your own life, even if I use you, you have to accept it.”

Jiang Yuan fell silent.

A moment later, she suddenly pulled out a piece of light gauze and tossed it into the air.

Lu Xingzhou watched as the air seemed to twist. Jiang Yuan pulled him, and they glided over the wall like wisps of smoke. “Their vision is distorted; they can’t see us.”

Lu Xingzhou turned to look at her, the wind brushing a few strands of loose hair across her forehead and eyes. At this moment, her peach blossom eyes showed no hint of charm, but rather resolute heroism.

Heh… Lu Xingzhou smiled inwardly as he glided over the wall with her, arriving outside the side wall of the ancestral hall.

Inside the courtyard, there were fewer guards, only an occasional person walking back and forth. Lu Xingzhou hid behind the wall, silently sensing. There were no particularly unusual energy fluctuations around—of course not; there would always be array formations and restrictions to block them.

He thought for a moment, then quietly pried open a window of the ancestral hall and slipped inside.

Looking at the rows of memorial tablets inside, Jiang Yuan whispered, “What exactly are you here for?”

Lu Xingzhou shook his head without speaking, pressing his hand against the floor, silently sensing.

This was perhaps the first time Lu Xingzhou had ever fully unleashed his spiritual sense. Jiang Yuan watched from the side, narrowing her eyes, a little startled.

A spiritual sense that had just entered the second rank… its quality was almost that of the first rank. His spiritual sense wasn’t the overbearing type, not a chaotic spiritual冲击 (chōngjī) or anything, but rather a long-lasting and penetrating one, like water seeping in.

It was somewhat like his personality: appearing gentle and refined, yet inwardly firm and resolute, unwilling to give up easily.

After a moment, Lu Xingzhou withdrew his hand, his brows furrowed in thought.

“How is it?” Jiang Yuan asked.

“There’s a secret chamber… but the restrictions are extremely heavy. Someone must be cultivating inside; it should be Huo Liancheng,” Lu Xingzhou whispered. “Worried about him sensing spiritual sense intrusion, I didn’t dare go deeper.”

“Then the thing you’re looking for…”

“It should be in there… very likely.” Lu Xingzhou had a bit of a headache, because merely guessing ‘very likely’ wasn’t very helpful.

Currently, his strength wasn’t enough to directly assault the Huo family. Assuming he asked his master for help to penetrate it, the emperor would surely intervene. So the best scenario would be to directly expose the Huo family’s hidden alchemical cauldron with one strike, and once the emperor saw it, the Huo family would collapse. This required absolute certainty about its location for a decisive blow. If they spent a long time planning, only to break in and find nothing, and then the emperor intervened, there would be no second chance, a wasted opportunity.

Jiang Yuan took out a box.

Lu Xingzhou was startled. “What is this?”

“Our mechanical magic treasures. Inside the box are about a dozen mechanical bugs that won’t leak any aura and can easily drill through some restrictions,” Jiang Yuan said. “They can’t drill underground, but they can check the surrounding rooms. If we can confirm that all other rooms are empty, wouldn’t that indirectly prove the item is underneath here?”

Lu Xingzhou looked at her deeply. “Yes.”

“Alright then.” Jiang Yuan asked seriously, “What is it you’re looking for?”

“An alchemical cauldron.”

“If you see multiple alchemical cauldrons… does the one you’re looking for have any special markings?”

Lu Xingzhou thought for a moment. Although he remembered the aura of that alchemical cauldron, he couldn’t describe it. So, he took out paper and a brush from his ring and drew a pattern. “This pattern.”

Jiang Yuan narrowed her eyes at the pattern. “Longhu Xiangyun Zijin Lu…”

“You recognize it?”

“A counterfeit, right? How could the genuine article be in this lower realm?”

“If you’re so amazing in the upper realm, why are you illegally descending?”

“How do you…” Jiang Yuan’s eyes widened, and she covered her mouth.

“Enough,” Lu Xingzhou shook his head. “Whether it’s genuine or a counterfeit, help me find it, and there will be a generous reward. As you said, even if we can confirm it’s not in the other buildings, that’s fine too.”

Jiang Yuan nodded and opened the box.

Over ten small wooden bugs crawled out, each only half the size of a fingernail. They scurried away, instantly disappearing from sight.

Lu Xingzhou watched Jiang Yuan’s face with a touch of nervousness, his lips tightly pressed together.

Jiang Yuan tilted her head, finding his expression a little amusing. She was accustomed to seeing him composed and in control, but it seemed he had moments like this too.

“Is this very important to you?” Jiang Yuan suddenly asked.

“Yes,” Lu Xingzhou took a deep breath. “Extremely important.”

“If I asked you to let me punch you in the stomach before I tell you the result, would you be willing?”

“…” Lu Xingzhou turned his head. “Then punch me.”

“Never mind,” Jiang Yuan sighed. “Several of the surrounding buildings are actually alchemy rooms, each with an alchemical cauldron, and all carved with the pattern you described. So, it’s safe to say we found nothing.”

Lu Xingzhou was startled. “You’re not going to hit me?”

“You’ve already found nothing, using that to beat you, I imagine you wouldn’t be convinced.”

“Finding nothing doesn’t necessarily mean nothing.” Lu Xingzhou, on the contrary, relaxed. “At least it proves that this item is indeed in the Huo family’s hands, doesn’t it?”

Jiang Yuan looked at him with interest. “It does.”

“Secondly, the Huo family isn’t known for alchemy, yet they have so many alchemy rooms in a vital area, cultivating a bunch of top alchemists. Doesn’t that also tell you something?”

“Indeed,” Jiang Yuan smiled. “Even I, a newcomer, think there’s something fishy about the Huo family.”

“Heh…” Lu Xingzhou was about to say something when his expression suddenly changed slightly. He grabbed Jiang Yuan and pulled her into a corner.

Jiang Yuan was startled and was about to struggle when she heard a voice from outside: “Grand Enshrinement feels something is wrong here, everyone, be vigilant and investigate!”

Immediately after, there was a flurry of footsteps patrolling everywhere. Jiang Yuan tensed up, not even minding that she was pressed beneath a man at that moment.

Lu Xingzhou was also not in the mood to experience holding a woman… Grand Enshrinement, a hunch. The Huo family must have another first-rank expert, perhaps even a peak one, or someone on the verge of transcending ranks, to possess such an extraordinary “hunch.”

The two of them had entered without leaving any traces, and Jiang Yuan’s mechanical bugs’ reconnaissance hadn’t alerted anyone. But powerful cultivators might possess a keen sense that something was amiss, even if they couldn’t pinpoint the problem.

Lu Xingzhou quickly pulled out a set of array flags and set up an array. This array could block spiritual sense detection; if spiritual sense merely swept over it, it would likely feel like there was nothing there. Then, he pulled out the Wan Hun Fan (Ten Thousand Souls Banner) and released a Yin Hun (phantom spirit), which slipped out the window, trying to create a commotion in another direction to divert attention.

A Yin Hun was different from a mechanical bug; its aura was cold, sinister, and malevolent. Before long, it was detected, and someone shouted and chased in the direction of the Yin Hun: “Over there!”

Jiang Yuan breathed a sigh of relief and tried to slip out from under Lu Xingzhou.

Lu Xingzhou, however, continued to hold her down.

Jiang Yuan: “?”

The window was suddenly pushed open, and someone peered inside.

Jiang Yuan’s heart leaped to her throat.

The person’s eyes scanned the location of the two, yet seemed to find nothing. He then closed the window and left. “There’s nothing here, go check over there!”

Jiang Yuan breathed a sigh of relief again. “Can your array block vision too?”

“No,” Lu Xingzhou smiled. “It’s just that he knows me.”

Yang Dechang.

It seemed Yang Dechang had other ideas in mind; perhaps there would be an opportunity to communicate with him.

Only then did Lu Xingzhou release Jiang Yuan, whispering, “Let’s go.”

Jiang Yuan, without a word, slipped out the window. The two instantly left the backyard and scurried back to the garden.

Just a few steps into the garden, Huo Qi and Huo Heng, brothers with expressionless faces, stood before them.

Their hearts skipped a beat when they saw Huo Qi grit his teeth. “Good! Adulterers, truly here under the flowers and moon! Come with me to see Father, let’s see what you’ll say then!”

Lu Xingzhou’s heart eased. He casually took Jiang Yuan’s small hand. “Feel free, just don’t disturb your mother and me while we enjoy the flowers.”

Damn, I thought you saw us running from the ancestral hall. Turns out it’s just this.

Jiang Yuan’s face flushed. She didn’t know whether to shake off his hand or not, so she just turned her head away.

In Huo Qi and Huo Heng’s eyes, it was a shy and bashful look, a clear sign of infidelity. They didn’t know whether to be furious or delighted, and they quickly ran off to report.

Lu Xingzhou watched their retreating figures, finally releasing Jiang Yuan’s hand and cupping his other hand in a bow. “Thank you for today, Miss Jiang.”

Jiang Yuan wiped her hands, her face expressionless. “Mutual assistance, isn’t it? As you said, fighting for myself means accepting being used.”

Lu Xingzhou watched the figures of Huo Xingyuan and Jiang Duxu rushing over from a distance, and smiled slightly. “Now it’s my turn to help you fight.”