novelinnhs Chapter 357 Rusty Blade, Thanks and Apologies
Chapter 357 Rusty Blade, Thanks and Apologies
The biting north wind followed the path of the fading sunlight and, under the cover of night, arrived at the town at the foot of the mountain where Toutian Cave was located.
As dusk fell and the last rays of the setting sun dipped below the western horizon, pure white snowflakes began to fall from the sky. Initially, they resembled scattered fragments of light falling from the heavens, but the snowfall gradually intensified with the darkness of night. In less than two hours, the entire town was blanketed in snow.
Bright, dazzling lights spread along the road, and the sounds of people bustling about interspersed among the lights, adding a fiery warmth to the cold wind and snow.
Groups of young people walked together, while the elderly sat by the roadside reminiscing about the past. The scenery here was even more vibrant and colorful than when Lü Qian first visited Northeast China.
"Look, those two are really strange."
"Yeah, in this freezing weather, an old man carrying a knife and a young man with his hair tied up, wearing only a thin shirt and holding a black umbrella, is this some kind of popular cosplay? But I can't tell what characters they're cosplaying."
The once quiet old town suddenly became noisy, and people watched the old man and the young woman walking from a distance, and a cacophony of discussion slowly rose up.
"You little brat, are you sure you're not messing with me?"
Lu Ci, carrying the demon sword Hiruma on his back, followed behind Lu Qian with his hands tucked into his sleeves. He was no longer wearing the floral cotton-padded jacket, but a black outfit that Lu Qian had specially taken him to a clothing store to pick out.
The black clothes worn by the white-haired Lü Ci did not make him look old; on the contrary, they made the old man look sharp and spirited. Coupled with the rusty knife on his back, no one would doubt that this old man was a ruthless character who would kill without blinking an eye.
Meanwhile, Lü Qian, who was leading the way, was wearing an old-fashioned white long gown embroidered with a blooming peony. The peony was embroidered with bright red silk thread, which looked lifelike against the white clothes and the snowy scenery.
"No, I just saw these two outfits in a shop on the street and got on a whim to have some fun with you."
Lu Qian smiled with a slightly gentle expression, and the gold-rimmed glasses on his face added a touch of refined elegance as his smile blossomed.
In his right hand, he held a black paper umbrella with twenty-four ebony ribs, which was a whisk that Lü Qian had specially used to conceal the changes after the transformation.
He looked at Lü Ci and his own unique attire, then suddenly shook his head. "It's still a bit lacking; it's not accurate enough."
"But it's enough to deal with tonight's situation."
Lu Ci listened to Lu Qian's rambling words, then glanced at the tourists taking pictures all around him, and frowned.
"You weren't wrong, kid. That demon Eita was ultimately killed by a little girl with a wood-chopping knife?"
Standing before the gaping hole, after Lü Qian explained the outcome of the duel, Lü Ci felt both gratified and somewhat incredulous about the fate of the demon sword and the demon man.
Back then, Eita the Demon and the Demon Sword, despite being misunderstood by everyone, managed to kill many skilled opponents on the battlefield, but that doesn't mean this sword-wielding duo was weak.
In an attempt to kill him, the experts of the Tang Clan joined forces with Lü Ci, but in the end, they still managed to let him escape. Lü Ci had thought all these years that the other party might still be alive, but who would have thought that he would be killed by a little girl who was just an ordinary person.
Behind his glasses, Lü Qian's eyes revealed a mysterious pattern, the four discs rotating to guide them to their destination—the current address of the young woman, Xiuju.
"Of course that's right. So what if it's rusty iron? Even if the person wielding the knife is an ordinary person, at that moment, her heart in wielding the knife was no longer that of a little girl. She wielded the rusty iron blade with boundless resentment, and she was killing beasts."
"Our Lü family owes them a debt of gratitude and an apology for the innocent loss of their father."
"Found it!"
Lu Qian twirled the umbrella handle in his hand, the dark umbrella surface spinning and scattering the falling snowflakes, which shimmered brilliantly under the lamplight.
The figures of the Lu family grandfather and grandson suddenly disappeared under the dazzling light. This exit, which resembled a magic show, made their images widely circulated on the internet.
"They've found the demon sword."
"Don't make a move yet; it's not the right time."
"But......"
"No buts. We, the Fish and Dragon Society, made a promise with them decades ago. Now, let's wait patiently."
"Hi!"
Not far from the street where the two members of the Lü family disappeared, in a slightly dark alley, two figures blended into the darkness, monitoring the internet while reporting to their leader on the other end of the phone.
They seemed to fully acknowledge and firmly believe in the so-called agreement from decades ago, and the agreement they referred to was a deal that the Tang Clan made through Xiaozhan before the Battle of Toutian Cave.
The Yulong Society of Japan provided information on Hira-nin, while the Tang Clan handed over the demon sword Hirumaru to the Yulong Society for destruction after the war.
The two parties did indeed make an agreement, but the Lü family was not included in the agreement.
In the past, Lu Ci, unable to destroy the demon sword, might have accepted the agreement with this third party by releasing the soul absorbed within it.
But now, with Lü Qian by his side, Lü Ci's decades-long experience as a powerful and ruthless figure has changed his mind.
Moreover, many of Lü Ci's old friends have been contacting him these past few days after learning that he had set off for the Northeast, wanting to ask him for the demon sword. As for why, Lü Ci knew perfectly well.
Such a sinful demonic sword should be kept by Lü Ci; his family just happens to need a footstool.
As for his other old friends who wanted the Demon Blade, Lü Ci planned to make them wait in line until he had used enough of it before it was their turn.
After the Lu family grandfather and grandson disappeared from the spot, they walked out of an empty alley and finally stopped in front of a rather old-fashioned house.
"Let's go, sir, let's go thank this benefactor and settle our debts from back then."
Lu Qian put away his black umbrella, led Lu Ci up the stairs, found the door of the old woman named "Xiuju", and rang the doorbell.
"They're here."
With a brief greeting, an elderly man stood behind the peephole in the door panel. He seemed to be Xiuju's husband. The old man glanced at the two members of the Lü family standing outside the door and asked in confusion.
Who are you looking for?
"Hello, Grandpa, we're looking for Xiuju."
Lu Qian bowed slightly to the old man behind the door, making his face clearer in front of the cat, and patiently added with a smile.
"We have come to repay a debt of gratitude and to apologize, and we have brought with us the murder weapon used by Xiuju's father's killer."
Clang!
An old woman who had been secretly carrying a kitchen knife behind the door, fearing that a thief might come, was stunned for a moment upon hearing this. The knife slipped from her hand, and the handle hit the ground with a crisp sound.
"Who are you?"
The sound of the cleaver hitting the ground startled the old woman. Her tone was somewhat cold and hard, quite different from the gentle and warm demeanor her husband remembered.
Lu Qian, standing outside the door, was not in a hurry. He continued to explain, "Back then, we fought against the Japanese at the Toutian Cave in the mountain. I never expected it would affect your family."