Since Li Leifeng had spoken thus, Zhu Xuanji no longer stood on ceremony. He immediately extended his hand to take Li Leifeng’s pulse, channeling his arcane energy into the elder’s body while his golden eyes shone with divine light.

Swiftly, Zhu Xuanji discerned Li Leifeng’s physical state with perfect clarity, and his face paled.

“Elder Li, you…”

Li Leifeng held on for a moment, then finally succumbed, coughing violently.

His aura plummeted once more, sinking to the Qi Refining stage, and he coughed up blood, his face ashen.

“I am old, my body decayed. Even maintaining breath is exceedingly difficult.”

“Even your gentle arcane energy, Lord Zhu, has caused me no small harm.”

“But, so be it.”

“Had I not stumbled upon a rare encounter in my youth, consuming a lifespan-extending spirit fungus, I would not have lived to this age.”

“I must also thank you, Lord Zhu, for helping to release me.”

Zhu Xuanji sighed, his brow furrowed, unable to hide his remorse: “Elder Li, I am well aware of your contributions to the Orphanage of Benevolence. Why did you have to do this?”

He was a man of keen intellect, and after being caught in the trap, he saw through Li Leifeng’s scheme.

His heart was heavy.

Li Leifeng smiled: “Lord Zhu, if you truly feel remorse, then represent the Imperial Court well and appoint a worthy director for this orphanage. Otherwise, even in death, I shall not rest easy.”

Zhu Xuanji looked up, unable to suppress a sigh.

His primary purpose in coming here was to investigate Li Leifeng.

According to the intelligence he had gathered from the City Lord’s mansion and the three great families, Li Leifeng was undoubtedly the prime suspect.

Although he had not reached the Golden Core stage, he possessed a Lightning Spirit Root, and at his peak, he commanded the Mechanical Tower, possessing the battle prowess of a half-step Golden Core cultivator!

Furthermore, he possessed profound skills in the art of mechanisms, recognized by the Magma Immortal Palace, making him a candidate among Foundation Establishment cultivators to enter the Palace.

According to the records of the four great families, Li Leifeng had entered the Immortal Palace several times, reaping considerable rewards.

And these were only the recorded instances.

In truth, before the Magma Immortal Palace was unearthed, Mount Fire Persimmon was not under martial law, and the path to the Red Flame Magma Cave was fixed, allowing many cultivators to easily disguise themselves and explore the cave.

It was impossible for the four major powers to record all the cultivators who entered the Immortal Palace.

In other words, Li Leifeng had explored the Immortal Palace far more times than recorded.

Zhu Xuanji’s investigation now confirmed that Li Leifeng was nearing the end of his lifespan, with little time left.

And he, a dignified Golden Core cultivator, had been outmaneuvered by Li Leifeng.

Zhu Xuanji sighed inwardly.

He had been targeted by such tactics many times before.

Once he appeared in public, his past experiences and preferences would be thoroughly investigated by those with malicious intent.

Li Leifeng’s actions struck at Zhu Xuanji’s weaknesses.

Small figures have their own ways to survive!

Zhu Xuanji knew that this investigation would shorten Li Leifeng’s life by at least three months.

Feeling guilty, he had no choice but to promise that he would carefully select an outstanding director for the Orphanage of Benevolence in Fire Persimmon City.

Li Leifeng nodded and smiled: “Lord Zhu, after my passing, there will be a bequest, where all my possessions will be gifted to others.”

“I know that you, Lord Zhu, come from royalty, and are also a divine constable, wealthy and of high rank.”

“But I still wish to give you a small token, as a gesture of respect.”

“I naturally have nothing that would catch your eye, such as magical treasures. But I do have a small toy that I acquired by chance many years ago, which is quite amusing.”

“Lord Zhu, please take a look.”

Zhu Xuanji received a wooden board.

The board was the size of a cutting board, very heavy, with a light-yellow color and many natural wood patterns. The surface of the board was crisscrossed with various lines, dividing it into many small blocks of varying sizes.

Zhu Xuanji himself possessed knowledge of mechanisms. At a single glance, he was intrigued.

He tried pressing one of the wooden blocks with his finger and smoothly dragged it to the side.

As he had surmised, these wooden blocks could be moved.

“Interesting,” Zhu Xuanji’s fingers moved rapidly, shifting many wooden blocks back and forth, gradually discovering the clue.

“This mechanical board hides certain information. Only by moving and placing the blocks in the correct positions can we glean some of the information.”

“And only when we obtain all the information can we piece together everything that this wooden board wants to express.”

Zhu Xuanji frowned upon hearing this: “There are so many of these wooden blocks. How long will we have to move and place them before we can glean all the contents?”

Li Leifeng chuckled: “This is just a mechanical toy, like the single wheel, crossed legs, and three hairs I played with in my youth.”

“It’s just very intricate and can pass the time.”

Zhu Xuanji smiled wryly: “What I need most is time. How can I waste it?”

As he spoke, he activated his golden eyes to perceive the puzzle.

With this cheat, he immediately obtained all the information within the wooden board toy: “This is just a tale of immortals and gods? And not even the full story?”

Li Leifeng sighed: “Lord Zhu, this is just a toy.”

“In my opinion, perhaps it was made by a mechanical cultivator in his twilight years, when he was doting on his grandchildren, creating it for his descendants.”

Zhu Xuanji nodded and put the mechanical board back: “I think this wooden board is more suitable to remain in the Orphanage of Benevolence. Elder Li, I’ll take my leave. I will fulfill the promise I made to you.”

Li Leifeng: “Lord Zhu, farewell. Please forgive my inability to rise to see you off.”

Zhu Xuanji hurriedly waved his hand: “No, no, no. Just rest well, rest well.”

He was afraid that if Li Leifeng saw him off, he would lose another piece of his life.

Leaving the Orphanage of Benevolence, Zhu Xuanji couldn’t help but sigh. He looked up at the sky, thinking to himself: “Heavens, why do you not give the good people of this world more grace?”

Zhu Xuanji felt dejected, filled with regret at Li Leifeng’s impending passing.

As for the time he would have to spend reporting to the Imperial Court, the effort he would have to expend participating in the selection of a director for the Orphanage of Benevolence, and the delay to his investigation, he was willing to do it!

Ning Zhuo slept poorly in Ning Xiaoren’s residence.

In fact, it was even worse than at his uncle’s house.
The one thing that truly gave him a sense of belonging was the small courtyard his mother had left him.

Breakfast was lavish, with a multitude of spiritual foods.

Ning Xiaoren had made a special trip to share breakfast with Ning Zhuo.

He asked with concern how well Ning Zhuo had slept the previous night and whether the food suited his taste.

Ning Zhuo appeared awkward, embarrassed, and at a loss at Ning Xiaoren’s concern.

Ning Xiaoren, perceptive, reduced his warm concern appropriately.

Only then did Ning Zhuo gradually relax and begin to eat the spiritual foods. These things could increase his cultivation!

Ning Xiaoren was surprised to find that Ning Zhuo was eating more and more, faster and faster.

Ning Zhuo devoured most of one plate of spiritual food.

Some spiritual side dishes were small to begin with, meant for savoring a taste. As a result, Ning Xiaoren had barely raised his chopsticks – and they were gone!

“Eat, eat well. If you like it, eat more,” Ning Xiaoren said with a smile.

Ning Zhuo paused slightly in his chewing, a look of embarrassment returning to his face.

Ning Xiaoren laughed heartily, “Good child, good child indeed! Eating more will help you cultivate faster, and you’ll gain more from exploring the Immortal Palace.”

“Th…Thank yoo Shirlaw,” Ning Zhuo mumbled, his mouth full.

Ning Xiaoren laughed again, “I told you, just call me Uncle Ning.”

Ning Zhuo then called him Uncle Ning once.

“Good, from now on we’ll address each other as uncle and nephew.” Ning Xiaoren stood up. “You eat well, eat your fill. Then cultivate, don’t waste the spirit stones. I heard you like mechanical arts, so I’ll send some mechanical art texts for you to read later.”

Ning Zhuo immediately showed a delighted expression, quickly stood up, and clasped his fist in salute to express gratitude.

Ning Xiaoren laughed, waved his hand, and walked out of the room.

Back in his study, his expression turned cold. Not being full – that was a first in his own mansion. He had to order another breakfast for himself and instructed the servants to prepare it.

Ning Zhuo was browsing through the texts.

These texts clearly came from the Ning family’s secret library and were of significantly higher quality than the books in the open library.

Ning Zhuo appeared to be concentrating intently, but in reality, he was absent-minded.

On any other day, he would have been eager to learn, grasping these texts and refusing to put them down.

But now, he was very aware of his situation.

Despite Ning Xiaoren’s kind treatment at this moment, he might turn hostile at any moment and throw Ning Zhuo into a private prison.

Ning Zhuo was taking a risk!

But he had no choice.

Yuan Dasheng’s appearance had forced him to enter the fray, narrowly avoiding exposure, and eliminating this powerful enemy. He almost revealed himself.

Zhu Xuanji’s early arrival and ongoing investigation brought immense pressure, forcing Ning Zhuo to act as quickly as possible.

“When did my situation become so difficult?”

Ning Zhuo traced it back to the beginning, when he decided to blow up the Immortal Palace!

Once he did that, he was like a lone boat entering the sea, needing to cross heavy waves, having to arrive at the shore to call himself safe.

A slight mistake, or even a slight delay, would mean the destruction of the boat and the death of its passenger.

He could no longer disembark.

If the Immortal Palace were to be seized by someone else, they would inevitably investigate the circumstances of its destruction, exposing Ning Zhuo as the true culprit.

He could only move forward, constantly moving forward, gritting his teeth, and enduring any hardship to forge ahead and advance with his life!

“After a long night, Ning Xiaoren still treats me with courtesy and kindness, which means their investigation has yielded results.”

“This is all due to the defenses I’ve been weaving since I was two years old. The many pieces of evidence that I crafted and acted out are naturally distributed throughout my growing years.”

“As long as they investigate these, they will find a reasonable explanation and recognize my talent for mechanical arts.”

“Even if they search the underground workshop, it doesn’t matter, I’ve already cleaned it up. I’ve also left behind many drafts of research and creation of the mechanical fire monkey, as well as failed mechanical prototypes, and so on.”

Although Ning Zhuo was alone and unsupported, he had one advantage.

That was that he had been preparing for over a decade, deliberately setting up many traces and clues during his growing years.

These clues and information could be collected to form intelligence.

And such intelligence was actually Ning Zhuo’s carefully prepared personal defense – who would think that a two-year-old child would start acting from such a young age?

As long as his precocious intellect was not discovered, Ning Zhuo could temporarily hold this defense.

Of course, Ning Zhuo’s love and immersion in mechanical arts were not a facade, but an honest expression of his true nature.

“Ning Zhuo, come out.” Not long after, Ning Xiaohui’s voice suddenly came from outside the room.