Only Got My Martial Arts Modifier in My Old Age
Chapter 273: Chapter 143: Infiltrating the Lu Family
"Ah Fu, is Jingyao still in the West Courtyard?"
Devastated by Niu Dagang’s death, Lu Jingyao had been hiding there for the past few days.
Niu Dagang had lived in a small courtyard in the West Courtyard, so Lu Jingyao had simply locked himself away inside it.
Lu Fu replied in a low voice, "Yes, my lord. Shall I go and try to talk to Young Master Jingyao again?"
He had already tried to console him several times. He knew that when someone suffered such a heavy blow, no one could help unless the person was willing to move on themselves.
Lu Yun was silent for a moment before he spoke slowly, "Three days from now, have him come see me."
"Yes, my lord," Lu Fu said.
In that small courtyard within the West Courtyard, a young man with messy hair sat under the eaves of the porch, staring blankly at the sky.
He kept thinking about Niu Dagang and the soldiers who had died. ’If I hadn’t told Brother Niu to go downstairs back then, would any of this have happened?’
Time passed, and night began to fall. Near the high walls of the West Courtyard, a dark figure drifted down from a tree to the ground.
The figure was dressed in a long, grayish-white robe. This was Elder Fakong, and he had been standing here all day.
Ever since that morning, when a group of believers started causing a disturbance a kilometer away from the Lu Family’s estate, he had managed to slip inside and hide in this very tree.
"Changing shifts! Thanks for your hard work!"
On a nearby walkway, a dozen or so men armed with live ammunition were in the middle of the handover.
Because Lu Jingyao was staying in the West Courtyard, security had been doubled.
But no matter how many people there were, there would always be blind spots. Elder Fakong had found such a weakness. He hid in the shadows of the trees and bushes, squinting as he sized up the moving figures in the distance.
Just then, three men who had just finished their shift walked toward him. They were talking and laughing, their steps casual, their rifles slung over their shoulders. Not one of them glanced toward the bushes.
Farther away, several hidden sentries could be seen on patrol, their eyes ceaselessly scanning the surroundings.
Witnessing this, Elder Fakong murmured to himself, "To think this place is so heavily guarded... Could there be someone important here?"
Before coming here, he had only known that this was the residence of Lu Yun of the Lu Family, and that it was under extremely tight security. If he hadn’t sent a large number of believers to cause trouble outside that morning to draw everyone’s attention, it would have been very difficult for him to get in.
At this thought, the wrinkles on Elder Fakong’s withered face deepened, and a slight smile slowly curved his lips. "Interesting."
Then, he slowly took out a white, lotus-shaped candle from his robes, its surface covered in intricate runes.
"By my blood, I summon the spirit."
A dozen or so drops of essence blood dripped from Elder Fakong’s fingertips onto the candle, quickly seeping into the grooves of the runes.
He then quickly produced a white Talisman. It was as thin as a cicada’s wing, and on it was painted a lifelike white lotus with layers upon layers of petals.
With a flick of Elder Fakong’s finger, the Talisman burst into flame. He brought the ball of fire close to the candle’s wick.
The flame flickered to life. In a blur, a spectral soul—neither quite lotus nor quite shadow—emerged, shrouded in a hazy white light.
Elder Fakong looked up at the spectral soul in the air, a satisfied smile spreading across his withered face. He then lifted a finger slightly and whispered, "Go."
The spectral soul drifted out silently, floating toward the three patrolmen ahead.
A light breeze swept by. In the distance, the three patrolmen, who had been perfectly alert a moment before, suddenly felt a gust of chilling wind wash over them.
At the same time, a terrifying, savage ghostly face was reflected in the pupils of all three men.
Just like that, their eyes instantly went vacant, as if their souls had been ripped out. The three of them began to walk mechanically, step by step, until they stood before Elder Fakong.
Elder Fakong looked at the three controlled bodies and gave a cruel smile. He stretched out his withered hands, and his five fingers on each hand pierced through the hard skulls of two of the men like iron spikes.
Afterwards, Elder Fakong closed his eyes, his lips moving as if he were chanting a Spell. He then reached out and grabbed the head of the man in the middle.
When Elder Fakong finally let go, the three bodies collapsed heavily to the ground.
"Hehehe... Heaven itself is helping me. I never expected that old monster Lu Yun’s son would be here. This saves me a lot of trouble."
He had originally been worried about the risk of approaching Lu Yun. Others might not know, but Elder Fakong was well aware of the power of a Grandmaster of Divine Intent.
Those old monsters possessed Divine Sense. With a single sweep, every blade of grass, every tree, every insect, and every bird within a radius of several hundred meters would be within their perception.
’Who knew if that old monster Lu Yun would detect me the moment I got close?’
But now, things were much better. Elder Fakong planned to first recruit Lu Yun’s son into the Holy Sect and then take him back to see the Sect Leader.
’As long as I have this young man under my control, won’t I have a bargaining chip to use against Lu Yun?’
’If tonight’s mission is a success, the Sect Leader will surely reward me handsomely.’
The main room of the courtyard house was lit by a few oil lamps. Lu Jingyao sat at a wooden table, holding a book in both hands. His gaze was fixed, as if he were reading, but also as if he were in a daze.
It was a book he had brought back from his time studying in the Western World. The cover was frayed, and its corners were curled from being turned so many times.
Lu Jingyao had read it many times before; he knew every page of the book by heart.
But flipping through it now, he found new meaning between the lines. Words that once seemed inspiring now felt heavy, and sentences that once felt uplifting were now tinged with bitterness.
Perhaps it was because he himself had almost died. Someone who has faced death sees everything differently.
He suddenly spoke, as if to the empty air, "Brother Niu, I think I’ve mostly figured things out. Everyone has to die sooner or later. I can’t keep wallowing in despair like this."
As he spoke, Lu Jingyao slowly closed the book, pulled back his hands, and stood up. He wasn’t as fragile as others might think; the blow had simply been too great.
Anyone who had watched their brother die before their eyes, who had seen the people protecting them fall one by one, would need a few days to recover.
Now, Lu Jingyao had recovered. He couldn’t just sit here any longer. He couldn’t let Brother Niu’s death be in vain, nor the deaths of those soldiers.
Just then, the latch on the room’s main door lifted on its own, as if held up by an invisible hand.
Finally, the two doors swung open slowly. Lu Jingyao, of course, noticed this unnatural event. He stared at the empty doorway. "Who’s there?"
At that moment, Elder Fakong walked in from outside, staring sinisterly at Lu Jingyao. "Like father, like son, indeed. Worthy of being Lord Lu’s son, so calm in the face of danger."
Lu Jingyao’s pupils contracted. Without a second word, he pulled a pistol from his clothes.
After all, Lu Jingyao was no fool. A strange old man in bizarre clothing suddenly appearing late at night—it was obvious he was an enemy.
Elder Fakong looked at the gun, and the smile on his face grew even colder, as if he were looking at something filthy. "Those Westerner guns again. Hmph, vile and crooked ways. The Holy Sect will slaughter all these Westerners one day."
Just as Lu Jingyao’s finger closed on the trigger, he saw a pair of white pupils materialize out of thin air in front of him.
Lu Jingyao’s finger froze. It wasn’t out of fear; his body simply wouldn’t obey him.
Elder Fakong stood perfectly still, knowing victory was already in his grasp.
At this moment, a malicious whim struck Elder Fakong. He wanted to see if Lord Lu’s son was truly afraid of nothing.
Coincidentally, the Lifeless Lotus Seal and Lotus Shadow Divine Attendant he cultivated could invade the depths of a person’s mind, creating illusions to draw out their deepest fears.
The purpose was to completely shatter the target’s psychological defenses and brainwash them into a loyal believer of the Holy Sect.
Elder Fakong saw Lu Jingyao’s dazed expression and grew expectant.
’What is it that Lord Lu’s son fears most? Is it death? Loss? Or something else entirely?’ He was eager to find out.

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