The ancestral hall.
Lu Ming's tightly shut eyes suddenly snapped open, the divine light returning to his pupils. In the next instant, his vision was filled by three figures, who had been waiting anxiously, closing in on him with an overwhelming sense of pressure.
“Ah Ming, you're not hurt, are you?” Lu Qingyan nervously scanned Lu Ming. Only after seeing that there was nothing wrong with him did he secretly breathe a sigh of relief.
“Father, I'm fine.”
Lu Ming smiled and shook his head. Looking at his grandfather Lu Jin's hopeful and curious gaze, he did not conceal the situation inside the black ring's space. After all, this opportunity belonged to their Lu family, and he had no intention of keeping it all to himself.
Thus, he told them everything about the mysterious fire lotus and the three wondrous fire seeds.
“Hiss... A mysterious fire lotus divine ability that can temper a Divine Ability Bone and elevate its grade?!”
“Life's Flame? It can actually extend lifespan and nurture all kinds of herbs?!”
“Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame? Nihility Devouring Flame? These are spiritual fires I've never even heard of.”
Unsurprisingly, as Lu Ming explained, the faces of the three men were instantly overcome with shock. Even the widely experienced Lu Jin could not help but gasp.
If anyone were to find out about any of the items inside this black ring, it would undoubtedly draw countless greedy eyes.
“With such fortunes, it's no wonder our Lu family was targeted,” Lu Jin lamented with a grave expression after a long moment of shock.
Whether it was the fire lotus divine ability that could raise the grade of a Divine Ability Bone, or the three wondrous fire seeds, none of these were ordinary opportunities. They were truly divine items capable of changing one's destiny against the very heavens.
The existence that devoured and plotted against the Lu family might not have known exactly what was inside the black ring, but they could likely sense its extraordinary nature.
“Ah Ming, the opportunities inside the black ring must never be leaked. Otherwise, it will bring a disaster of total annihilation upon our Lu family,” Lu Qingyan solemnly warned.
Even when the Lu family was at its peak, they could not protect this fortune, let alone now.
Lu Ming nodded seriously. He understood the principle that possessing a treasure was a crime in itself. Currently, their Thunderfire Hall was too weak; even a Great Golden Crow Hall could barge in and bully them at will. If these opportunities were exposed, the Thunderfire Hall would face the threat of extermination by the very next day.
He now needed to use this opportunity to grow stronger step by step, until the day he no longer feared the hidden hand plotting against the Lu family.
Since he had obtained this opportunity under the protection of his ancestors, he naturally had to bear the responsibilities and karma that came with it.
“Little Ming, since you possess such a fortune and your own strength is still too low, do not easily reveal your Sub-Heaven-grade Divine Ability Bone in the future.” Lu Jin pondered for a few moments, a trace of caution appearing on his face as he warned.
In Qingyuan Ward, the mere appearance of a High-grade Divine Ability Bone was enough to cause a sensation. As for a grade like the Sub-Heaven-grade Divine Ability Bone, top forces from the entire Fengyang Prefecture and even the Great Luo Territory would probably flock here upon hearing the news.
After all, although it had the word “Sub” in it, it still fell within the scope of a Heaven-grade Divine Ability Bone, which was far beyond what a High-grade Divine Ability Bone could compare to.
If Lu Ming had not obtained the black ring's fortune in the first place, it would be one thing. But now that he bore such an opportunity, attracting the attention of too many top forces might not necessarily be a good thing.
If the secret of the black ring were to be noticed by some Divine Ability Grandmaster, there was no guarantee that they wouldn't harbor greed and malice.
Therefore, before Lu Ming possessed a certain level of strength, he still needed to conceal it.
Although doing so seemed overly cautious, with the Lu family's past tragedies serving as lessons, Lu Jin had to extinguish even the slightest possibility of their family being destroyed again.
“Father is right. We will tell the outside world that you awakened a High-grade Divine Ability Bone. Although this will still draw considerable attention, the shock will be lesser compared to a Sub-Heaven-grade Divine Ability Bone,” Lu Qingyan agreed.
Lu Ming naturally had no objections to this.
“Eh?”
At this moment, Lu Ming suddenly discovered that the black ring originally on his hand had vanished. In its place, a black ring-shaped mark had appeared on one of his fingers.
Lu Ming quickly checked and found that he could still sense the black ring's space, but the ring itself could no longer be taken off.
“I wanted to have you and Father try entering the black ring's space to break the light barriers and take out those three mysterious fire seeds,” Lu Ming scratched his head.
“An opportunity has its master; how can others easily test it? There is no need to rush. Since the fortune is already in your hands, as long as you raise your strength step by step, you will eventually be able to unlock all its mysteries. Our Lu family has waited for so many years, so we do not lack this bit of time.
“Furthermore...”
Lu Jin's expression became extremely serious as he stared at the space between Lu Ming's brows. “Although the heritage left behind by the Lu family ancestors has temporarily isolated the Spirit-Sealing Curse for you, this does not mean the issue of the Spirit-Sealing Curse on your body has been completely resolved.”
Upon hearing this, Lu Ming's expression shifted slightly. “Grandfather, do you mean the Spirit-Sealing Curse will erupt again?”
Lu Jin sighed, his tone deep with resentment and dread. “How could the methods of an existence that even the Lu family could not deal with during our peak be so easily resolved once and for all?
“According to the warnings left by our ancestors, the blood-bone fire ring formed by their heritage will be corroded by the Spirit-Sealing Curse in two to four years at most. At that time, it will likely lash back at you with an even more violent fury. After all, its mission is to shackle our Lu family bloodline below a High-grade Divine Ability Bone. How could it tolerate the appearance of a Sub-Heaven-grade Divine Ability Bone?”
Beside him, Lu Qingyan and Lu Jinglei also paled, worry filling their eyes. After all, the last bit of heritage that their ancestors had painstakingly accumulated had already been consumed. If the Spirit-Sealing Curse erupted then, Lu Ming would likely face an extremely fierce backlash. Perhaps his Divine Ability Bone would not even be able to maintain a Mid-grade.
Lu Ming fell silent for a few moments and took a deep breath. Under the illumination of the candlelight in the ancestral hall, the youth's slightly tender face revealed a stubborn resilience. “Our ancestors have already poured out their blood and bones in a desperate situation to win me a good head start. Therefore, I must face the hardships and perils ahead on my own.
“Since there is no extra heritage to protect me, I will rely on myself to build my own foundation!
“As long as I become a Divine Ability Grandmaster, I will eventually be able to shake this Spirit-Sealing Curse. If a Grandmaster cannot do it, then I will reach above Grandmaster!
“I refuse to believe this Spirit-Sealing Curse can keep my Lu family trampled in the mud and dust for generation after generation!”
The youth's voice, though young but filled with unyielding determination, echoed through the ancestral hall, moving Lu Jin and the other two. They exchanged looks, and a deep sense of gratification welled up in their eyes.
“Good! As expected of my Lu family's Divine Ability Child!” Lu Jin laughed heartily. In his view, only a Lu Ming possessing this unyielding resilience, driven by his talent, could walk further and higher on the great Dao of divine abilities.
After a brief contemplation, he spoke again, “If you truly have this courage, once our Thunderfire Hall upgrades to a Tier 4 hall in the future and obtains the qualification to participate in the Great Luo Territory's Hundred Halls Profound Meet, you can seek a divine ability called the Great Sage Fire Rune in the Great Luo Territory's Divine Ability Tower. This divine ability can only be cultivated by someone with a High-grade Divine Ability Bone. While it might not completely break the Spirit-Sealing Curse, it can provide some counterbalancing effect.”
“Great Luo Territory, Hundred Halls Profound Meet, Divine Ability Tower... Great Sage Fire Rune?”
Lu Ming was slightly startled. Their Qingyuan Ward was one of the wards under the jurisdiction of Fengyang Prefecture. Fengyang Prefecture, in turn, belonged to the Great Luo Territory, being one of its prefectures.
As for the Great Luo Territory, it was one of the seven territories of the Great Shang.
“It requires a High-grade Divine Ability Bone to cultivate? That's incredibly demanding.”
As if realizing something, Lu Ming asked in surprise, “Grandfather, is another reason you poured all of the Thunderfire Hall's resources into nurturing Zhang Yue to obtain this Great Sage Fire Rune divine ability?”
Lu Jin nodded and said calmly, “This Great Sage Fire Rune is a secret my father's generation went to great lengths to obtain. Originally, I thought that if our Thunderfire Hall became a Tier 4 Divine Ability Hall one day and secured this divine ability, Zhang Yue might, out of gratitude for our hall's devoted nurturing, take action to slightly counterbalance the Spirit-Sealing Curse on our family members, giving us a moment to catch our breath.”
Only then did Lu Ming understand. Previously, he had wondered why Lu Jin, who had met countless people, would be so devoted to an outsider like Zhang Yue, and why even his father and second uncle had no objections to it. It turned out this was their ultimate goal.
As far as he knew, for a Divine Ability Hall to reach Tier 4, it required two Divine Ability Masters to preside over it. His own father and second uncle, limited by the grades of their Divine Ability Bones, had long been unable to become Divine Ability Masters. Thus, Lu Jin could only pin his hopes on Zhang Yue. Moreover, the latter possessed a High-grade Divine Ability Bone, which was a prerequisite for cultivating the Great Sage Fire Rune.
But no one expected that just as the Thunderfire Hall had sold everything and poured all its resources into nurturing Zhang Yue to the Dharma Inscription Realm, making him a great expert of divine abilities with hopes of entering the Divine Ability Master rank within a few years, Zhang Yue would suddenly leave the Thunderfire Hall. He had even used the prestige of the Great Golden Crow Hall to force their Thunderfire Hall to swallow its pride, making them the laughingstock of Qingyuan Ward.
“Hmph, that ungrateful wolf! He consumed so many of our Lu family's resources, yet not only did he fail to repay us, but he even brought in outsiders to suppress and humiliate our Thunderfire Hall!” Second Uncle Lu Jinglei's face turned livid, filled with extreme anger.
“Actually, I don't blame Zhang Yue for wanting to leave the Thunderfire Hall. With his High-grade Divine Ability Bone, staying in our Thunderfire Hall indeed limited his potential. Originally, I thought that as long as he obtained the Great Sage Fire Rune and helped our Lu family bloodline catch a breath under the suppression of the Spirit-Sealing Curse, I would recommend him to other high-level Divine Ability Halls if he wished to leave. But I didn't expect him to be unable to wait even for this final stretch of time.”
Lu Jin's elderly face remained calm, showing little anger in his eyes. At his age, he had experienced too much; this minor setback was nothing.
“Zhang Yue's High-grade Divine Ability Bone is likely not ordinary, or else that noble young lady from the Great Golden Crow Hall wouldn't have valued him so highly. But no matter, he is just a passerby in the end. Now that Little Ming possesses a Sub-Heaven-grade Divine Ability Bone, he will reach the Dharma Inscription Realm even faster than Zhang Yue.” Lu Jin stretched out a withered hand missing a finger and gently patted Lu Ming's hair.
Lu Ming nodded and said in a low voice, “Grandfather, rest assured. I will help our Thunderfire Hall upgrade to a Tier 4 Divine Ability Hall and obtain the Great Sage Fire Rune. Once I master it, I will try to help ease the suppression of the Spirit-Sealing Curse on all of you.”
There was also his younger sister, Lu Mengmeng. Since the family ancestors' heritage had been completely exhausted by him this time, if Lu Mengmeng underwent Bone-Opening in the future, she would inevitably face the suppression of the Spirit-Sealing Curse. Thus, Lu Ming would also need the Great Sage Fire Rune to break through her predicament.
Hearing this, all three of them showed gratified expressions.
“Our Thunderfire Hall might have a bit of a rough time in Qingyuan Ward for a while, but you don't need to pay attention to those matters. Leave them to your father and second uncle to handle. Your top priority right now is to complete the remaining two bone refinements as quickly as possible and step into the Dharma Inscription Realm.”
“As for cultivation resources, don't worry. Although the Thunderfire Hall was drained of much by Zhang Yue, my old bones can still move. Even if I have to go out and hunt demons and monsters, I won't let your cultivation fall short,” Lu Jin said.
Hearing this, Lu Ming suddenly smiled. “Didn't that noble young lady from the Great Golden Crow Hall leave a high-grade Bone Refining Pill to trade for him earlier?”
Lu Jinglei frowned. “What do we want that filthy thing for? That woman only did it to humiliate our Thunderfire Hall. A single high-grade Bone Refining Pill in exchange for a High-grade Divine Ability Bone—hehe, the greater Zhang Yue's achievements in the future, the more our Thunderfire Hall will be laughed at. She is truly a venomous woman.”
“Second Uncle, there's no need to be angry. I was thinking that since they want to use this malicious method to humiliate us, we can naturally turn it back on them.”
The wild pride of youth flickered in Lu Ming's eyes as he spoke with a straight face, “If I use this high-grade Bone Refining Pill and step into the Divine Ability Grandmaster rank before Zhang Yue in the future, I will definitely pay a visit to that Great Golden Crow Hall to demand an explanation for today's matter.
“At that time, I'll have to tell that noble young lady that it was thanks to the high-grade Bone Refining Pill she gave today that I was able to cross the Bone Refining Realm a step earlier. Thus, she contributed a 'helping hand' to my Grandmaster position.
“I imagine... the Great Golden Crow Hall's expressions will be quite spectacular then, won't they?”
Lu Jin and the other two were stunned, their eyes flashing with brilliant light. Just thinking about that scene brought an incredibly satisfying sense of relief, and they immediately burst into hearty laughter.
“Good, good, good! You really have a way with words, kid! Your second uncle will be waiting for that day!”
Lu Jinglei laughed so hard his brow smoothed, and the gloom in his chest dissipated quite a bit. He then took out that high-grade Bone Refining Pill and tossed it to Lu Ming.
Lu Ming caught it. Looking down at the round pill, the faces of Jiang Ling and Zhang Yue flashed through his mind, and a trace of coldness appeared in his eyes.
Those resources of the Thunderfire Hall were obtained by Grandfather and the others risking their lives. Now that you've consumed them for free...
I'm just afraid that in the future, you won't be able to pay us back.
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