Chapter 110 - The Old Man and the Intelligence

Chapter 110: Chapter 108: The Old Man and the IntelligenceKangrei, as the wealthiest demon family, had a courtyard in Tong City that could be considered a city within the city.

Lu Hong looked up at the towering doorway, higher than the city walls, and couldn’t help saying to Ku le, "I say, are you building an Imperial Palace here? Aren’t you afraid of Tong Shuai’s dissatisfaction?"

"Ah, Brother Tu, you jest. How could I forget Tong Shuai? Before our family’s expansion, the first thing we thought of was to expand the residence for Tong Shuai. Now, Tong Shuai’s residence is even grander than this one."

Well, no wonder Tong City doesn’t need city walls. Whether it’s the Kangrei family’s mansion or Tong Shuai’s residence, which one isn’t more solid than a ring of city walls?

"Let’s go, let’s go, Brother Tu, I’ll take you around. If you see anything you like, just take it – don’t be polite with me," Ku Le warmly pulled Lu Hong through the towering doors of the family’s estate.

Stepping through the gate, groups of beautiful women from various races lined up in two rows to welcome Lu Hong’s arrival. At the same time, the sound of nine bell tolls rang out across the Kangrei family territory, announcing to all the arrival of distinguished guests.

Ku Le pointed to a striking face among the throng of beauties, "Look, Brother Tu. That’s a beast race beauty. I spent a good deal of money to bring her back in the day, haven’t touched her yet. Why don’t I give her to you? She’s from a high-ranking species among the beast race, the Bailing clan. Many like the women of the Bailing clan – they appear noble, but once you’ve tamed them, that contrast, it’s absolutely thrilling."

"Heh!" Lu Hong coldly eyed Ku Le’s sleazy expression, "Don’t bother with such useless talk, I’m not into that."

"Brother Tu, you’re mistaken. We live in these troubled times, if we can live another day, that’s a good day, enjoying life to the fullest is the noblest thing to do. How about this, brother decides for you – tonight I’ll choose a few distinctively flavored beauties for you to indulge?"

"Scram! Where’s the intelligence on the Ancestral Demon Eye? Don’t try to divert my attention." After a recent unwarranted disaster, Lu Hong had zero trust in Ku Le.

"Alright, alright, Brother Tu, don’t be impatient, I’ll take you there now," Ku Le, somewhat disappointed, dispersed the welcoming beauties and led Lu Hong straight to the secret chamber in the back garden.

The place where the Kangrei family kept important information was in the southeast corner of the family estate, where surprisingly, other than the cleaning attendants, there were no guards at all.

Lu Hong, slightly puzzled, asked, "Aren’t you afraid of being robbed here?"

"Of course not." Ku Le walked up to a multi-story building and pressed his palm against it, silently chanting a spell, which caused the tightly closed doors to slowly open.

"When we Kangrei family designed and constructed the secret chamber, we paid a hefty sum to hire a Third Transition Peak Magic Array Master. You see, these buildings appear ordinary from the outside, but within, they hide deadly weapons. Without the Kangrei family’s bloodline and secret passphrase as keys, anyone who tries to enter would fall into the Magic Array Master’s death trap, with ten out of ten succumbing!" From Ku Le’s words, it wasn’t difficult for Lu Hong to guess that countless lives must have been buried in the history of these secret chambers.

While introducing the secret chambers, Ku Le led Lu Hong through a corridor filled with boxes of messages. After a great detour, he finally opened the door to a study and said, "This is the place. These are all messages concerning the Ancestral Demon Eye. Brother Tu, feel free to browse through them. All the intelligence here is open to you."

Lu Hong quickly scanned the room, which was filled with papers of all sizes, each one inscribed with dense information. At a rough estimate, there were not a million, then at least eight hundred thousand.

"How long do you expect me to read all these?"

Faced with Lu Hong’s complaint, Ku Le pulled a thick book from beside the door and handed it over, "This book contains indices of the messages. After each index is the corresponding storage location of the messages, Brother Tu can start by checking the index, then carefully review any useful information."

Seeing Ku Le produce such a magical item, Lu Hong was very pleased and began to flip through the thick tome.

The messages in the study were divided into three categories within the book: the first category consisted of information with a believability over eighty percent, the second category ranged from eighty to forty percent, and the last contained messages with a believability of under forty percent, which were almost certainly untrue.

Since Lu Hong had begun to investigate the news of the Ancestral Demon Eye, Ku Le naturally would not just stand there foolishly. He said, "Then, Brother Tu, you stay here and read. If you need anything, just press the red magic device on the wall."

"Got it, you can leave now," Lu Hong nodded and promptly dismissed Ku Le.

Lu Hong had just found an interesting piece of intelligence: in the year 823 of the Demon King Yan era, the Hei Feng King discovered the Ancestral Demon Eye at Eye Lake.

Lu Hong immediately found the detailed record of this intelligence by following the noted location:

In the year 823 of the Demon King Yan era, the Hei Feng King discovered the Ancestral Demon Eye at Tong Lake. Word reached Demon King Yan who personally went to Tong Lake to demand the Ancestral Demon Eye from the Hei Feng King. The Hei Feng King refused to hand it over, and the two engaged in fierce battles. The Hei Feng King pressed the Demon King with the power of the Ancestral Demon Eye and wished to slay him when the strong Poqi of the beast race and Mei Hong of the Human Race descended from the sky, suddenly launching a surprise attack, and heavily defeated the Hei Feng King.

Hei Feng King was defeated. Demon King Yan was severely injured and lacked the strength to reclaim the Ancestral Demon Eye. Afterwards, Poqi and Mei Hong trembled, struggling to determine a victor for a time. At this moment, the Ancestral Demon Eye suddenly grew agitated, transforming into a shooting star that vanished into the night sky, leaving its whereabouts unknown. Subsequent investigations suggested that it might have been acquired by Tong Shuai, hidden in an undisclosed location.

Kangrei family servant’s memoir, Dada Ka

"Was this Ancestral Demon Eye previously discovered?" mumbled Lu Hong as he finished reading the secret report, "It says here that Tong Shuai obtained it, but who knows if it’s true. If it is, then surely someone should have bought the information from the Kangrei family by now. There’s no way Tong Shuai could still be sitting comfortably in his own mansion.

Could it be that Ku Le, after receiving this secret report, chose not to divulge it? After all, he too belongs to Tong City, such a thought makes sense. But what puzzles Lu Hong is, if Ku Le feared Tong Shuai too much to share the information, then why would he let him see it without any precautions today?

Does he want to use me to spread the word that Tong Shuai holds the Ancestral Demon Eye? That way, he could save face and...

Lu Hong quickly dismissed the idea. There was no enmity between Ku Le and Tong Shuai, and there was no need to scheme against him unless there was some secret between the two that nobody knew about.

As Lu Hong brainstormed, a withered hand slowly reached out to his shoulder, yet he was completely unaware of it.

"What are you doing, young man?"

A hoarse and aged voice sounded from behind. A gentle pat on the shoulder startled Lu Hong, causing him to turn and reflexively strike out with his hand.

Yet the punch that could severely injure someone of the Second Transition Level 4 was stopped by a single finger from the person behind him, not advancing an inch.

"Who are you?" Lu Hong hastily retreated, putting distance between him and the gaunt elder, his gaze fixed intently on the figure before him.

"Me? I am a forgotten one." The old man smiled faintly, his grin conveying an inexplicable eeriness despite its warmth.

"A forgotten one? Are you from the Kangrei family?" Lu Hong recalled what Ku Le had mentioned earlier; aside from those brought in by someone from the Kangrei family, outsiders could not enter here.

"I haven’t asked you yet. You’re not from the Kangrei family, are you? Why are you here in the secret chamber?" The elder’s tone was mild, yet his questioning instilled a sense of fear in Lu Hong.

This elder was definitely no ordinary person!

"This is part of a transaction between Ku Le and myself, not an intrusion," Lu Hong clarified.

Hearing Lu Hong’s explanation, the elder nodded, "In that case, there’s no problem. I apologize for the disturbance," he said, preparing to turn away.

"Who exactly are you? I haven’t heard of such a strong person in the Kangrei family," Lu Hong hastily inquired.

"Young man, is it that this old man’s words aren’t clear, or is your memory failing? I told you, I am simply a forgotten person," the elder replied, his tone now somewhat unfriendly.

"I don’t mean to offend; I’m just curious. If the Kangrei family had a powerhouse like you, how could they be bullied by others?"

"Heh, the affairs of the Kangrei family are none of my concern. What does it matter to me whether they live or die?" The elder scoffed coldly, "Some things are better left unknown. Don’t meddle or you might jeopardize your own life."

That was most definitely a threat! Lu Hong took the hint; this elder was surely one of the elders within the Kangrei family who must have received unjust treatment in the past, leading him to observe the family’s plight dispassionately.

"Well then, since you are here for information on the Ancestral Demon Eye, let the elder give you a hint. Go check the last piece of intelligence," the elder said, and then closed the door of the study. He hobbled away, his stooped figure slowly disappearing into the corridor.

The last piece of intelligence? Lu Hong paused, reflecting. By the method of sorting information here, the last piece of intelligence should logically be the least reliable.

With some doubts, Lu Hong took out a piece of yellowing parchment, which bore only one sentence: The Ancestral Demon Eye is within your right eye!

Within my right eye? Bah! Anyone would read it the same way. What, is there an Ancestral Demon Eye hidden in everyone’s eye? As expected, the least reliable piece of intelligence. Lu Hong discarded the parchment, continuing to search the catalogue for other, more credible news. It seems like the old man’s memory isn’t what it used to be.