Light Fortress
Chapter 555 - 132: Him in the Darkness

Chapter 555: Chapter 132: Him in the Darkness

"Pat."

A droplet of water fell.

It landed on the woman’s face.

The woman closed the page of the book she was holding, slowly raised her head, and looked towards the ginkgo trees in the courtyard. The annual day of ancestor worship was approaching, and the ancestral hall was becoming busier with people coming and going, their voices growing louder.

One year.

For most people, a year is three hundred and sixty-five days.

But for Bai Lu, this year was just a year.

She had done only one thing, which was to read every word of the ancient books stored in the ancestral hall.

After closing the book, Bai Lu could hear the voices of those people far away in the ancestral hall... they were talking about her.

Many found it incredible.

The most restless woman of the Bai Family had changed dramatically, spending an entire year confined within the ancestral hall, going nowhere.

She wondered where these people had heard such things.

Some said it was the Divination Inheritor from Qingzhong who had divined her fortune, predicting imminent misfortune and advising her not to leave the ancestral hall. Thus, she spent her days reading and drinking tea under the ginkgo tree, cultivating purity and desirelessness.

Actually, it was to avoid disaster.

Others said that Bai Lu had reached "that age" when one could no longer be frivolous without tarnishing the image of the Bai Family, hence, she was ordered by the Family Head to meditate, spending the year in tranquility, cultivating her character.

Bai Lu heard all these whispers.

She shook her head.

Having read for a year, she was always aware of these voices.

Initially, she thought it would only be at the beginning.

But later, she realized... people of this world are always so trivial.

The reason for Bai Lu’s seclusion and a year of reading wasn’t so complicated as others assumed.

Just like the troubles she had stirred up in Snow Forbidden City before.

She wanted to do it.

So, she did it.

Of course, the matters of this world, even without reason, always have some clues to follow.

If one really wanted to trace the origins...

The reason for Bai Lu’s one year of seclusion was also very simple... because Little Xiuzi spent this year also in meditation, secluded within Snow Forbidden City.

She closed the book, took one last sip of tea, and left the ancestral hall.

The alleys of Snow Forbidden City are many and it’s easy to get lost.

But Bai Lu was very familiar with this path.

She arrived at the place where Little Xiuzi was staying, which the Bai Family had deliberately chosen for him, the quietest courtyard.

No one would come to disturb him there.

Bai Lu stood at the entrance of the alley, she didn’t even dare to approach the courtyard, she just watched from afar.

"Little Xiuzi has been in seclusion for a year,"

a deep voice said beside her.

Bai Lu was slightly startled and turned to see a familiar, kind face.

"Second Elder."

Bai Lu hurriedly bowed, which was stopped by the latter.

"Little Lu..."

Bai Zesheng smiled and said, "You are thoughtful."

He knew.

This year, Bai Lu certainly hadn’t stayed under the ginkgo tree in the ancestral hall every day; she had walked around Snow Forbidden City daily... and every time, as if led by some spirit, she ended up in this alley, pausing at a distance to gaze at the courtyard where Little Xiuzi was.

A year ago.

Little Xiuzi had completely locked himself inside the courtyard.

The news received by the Bai Family was.

He was attempting to break through to the fourth stage... if successful, it was almost certain that Bai Xiu would become the youngest "Titled" in East Continent since he was only twenty years old until now.

According to the Five Continents Council’s big data analysis.

Being able to reach the fourth stage of the Transcendent before thirty was already a rarity reserved for geniuses, as this was a level most Transcendents could only hope for but never achieve.

The fourth stage signifies the maturity and consolidation of one’s domain, making such Transcendents akin to elevated figures clearly separate from the "ordinary", undergoing a true change in nature.

They could freely control their powers and even develop advanced abilities.

They were considered the "high-end combat forces," the "pillars" of the extraordinary world!

The Five Continents Council would maintain a respectful attitude towards such Transcendents, their opinions would be considered, and such figures, no matter where placed, would be the much-attended "important figures," even in Changye or Da Du, representing top-tier combat capability.

The three schools and five major families of East Continent had, over the years, established such a complete system of combat capabilities cultivation.

Actually, their goal was never to nurture someone who could walk to the end of the path and become a "Titled," but to cultivate enough controllable "fourth-stage Transcendents."

...

...

"Many people are concerned about Little Xiuzi’s cultivation, but to care as much as you do... there’s probably only one in the entire Bai Family,"

Bai Zesheng reached out and gently patted his younger relative’s shoulder, speaking kindly.

"I grew up with Little Xiuzi..."

Bai Lu looked complex, "It’s evident, the assassination in the Tundra had a profound impact on him."

In fact, every time she came to this alley, she wasn’t concerned about Bai Xiu’s cultivation.

What kind of person was Bai Xiu?

A monster who could overshadow the whole Changye!

With startling genius, sweeping through enemies, his path of cultivation had never seen any failure! Such a genius was destined to become a Titled figure!

How could she worry that Bai Xiu, in breaking through to the fourth stage, would encounter difficulties?

What she worried about... was the "evil thought" that might have arisen in Bai Xiu’s heart due to the assassination incident in the Tundra.

A year ago, on the day when the streets were empty to welcome Little Xiuzi’s return, Bai Xiu had silently come to the ancestral hall.

Everyone had left.

But only Bai Lu was in the courtyard reading, thus she bumped into Bai Xiu, covered in blood.