Chapter 146 - 135: Mother Palace Blood Tree_4

Words : 1129 Updated : Sep 21st, 2025

Chapter 146: Chapter 135: Mother Palace Blood Tree_4Yun Ziliang once again flaunted the prominence of his ancestors. The four of them were in high spirits when, halfway through their journey, they heard the faint sound of an elderly person crying. Following the sound, Zhou Xuan spotted a store with a sign hanging above it—He Family Wreath Store. "The one crying is Lao He." Lv Mingkun said. "I know, it’s the elder who snitched to the Liao Ghost and was targeted by the kidnapper for a reckoning." Zhou Xuan sighed, there was so much chaos in the world, allowing kidnappers to be this arrogant... "Alas, the materials for raising zombies might just walk through the door by themselves these days." Zhou Xuan thought of this and his mood lightened even more. ... Back at the store, Zhou Xuan hung Yun Ziliang’s painting on the wall of the first-floor shop. "Can’t you show a little respect for me? I am descended from the State Preceptor! At least deserve a decent room for myself, don’t I?" Yun Ziliang was very dissatisfied with his treatment. "There are only three rooms upstairs, one for each of us; there’s no room for you. Besides, you’re just a painting, what does it matter where you hang!" Zhou Xuan comforted him further: "Make do for now, once the business takes off and we get a bigger place, I’ll hang you in a room all to yourself." "Hmph!" Yun Ziliang threw a tantrum and went back into the painting to snore. "Lao Yun really is steadfast; angry as he may be, it doesn’t interfere with his napping." ... The next morning, Zhou Xuan held an "early meeting" to assign tasks. "Our shop is about to open, time is tight, tasks heavy, I’ve made a preliminary plan, let’s follow the plan. We still need a signboard and some tables and chairs, among other things. Fuzi, you’re in charge of purchasing today." Little Fuzi asked, "Young Master, we can have the signboard made, but what will the store be called?" "Do we need a special name for the Jingyi Shop? Just like the wreath shops, what about He Ji, Ma Ji, let’s call it Zhou’s Purification Shop." "Understood." Little Fuzi acknowledged and then left to handle the matters. "Senior Brother Lv, you come with me. We’ll first buy a Bone Needle and get some human skin along the way; I also need to practice." "Got it." Lv Mingkun stood up, waiting for Zhou Xuan to lead the way. "Lao Yun!" Zhou Xuan called out again. "What? You have something for me too?" Yun Ziliang, who was eyeing a basket of steamed buns with great relish, was startled by the call. "I’m not even part of your shop, and you still want to boss me around?" "You live in my shop, aren’t you going to do some work?" Zhou Xuan patted Yun Ziliang’s shoulder and said, "You go back to the Old Painting Pavilion, clean up the dirt we dug up, tidy up the shop." "I have a germ phobia, I won’t do it." "I didn’t ask you to do it; get someone else to, there’s plenty of labor for hire on East Market Street." Zhou Xuan handed over fifteen coins to Yun Ziliang. Lao Yun took the money, grumbling, "Xiao Zhou, you really are cut out for business, even a dog sitting in your shop has to shoulder two bundles of dirt!" "Senior Brother, let’s get going!" Zhou Xuan locked the door and left with Lv Mingkun to buy supplies. ... Zhou Xuan had already completely mapped out Mingjiang Prefecture. He knew all the streets and alleyways, where to take a carriage, where to find courtesans, everything. But he truly didn’t know where to buy a Bone Needle or human skin. None of those composing the "Blind" obsession dealt with the underworld or worshipped in the dark, naturally not knowing where to buy the "goods". But Lv Mingkun happened to know; he had "handled things" in Mingjiang Prefecture and dealt with the underground black market. "However, there are many places that sell the goods, with different levels, I only know two places that deal in small goods." Lv Mingkun said. "Let’s take a look then," Zhou Xuan replied. On the way, Lv Mingkun shared information: "The tattoo Tangkou, like our Wuzuo, uses tools as weapons; thus, the raw materials for the tools are very important—they’re used for many years, so you can’t be sloppy or stingy when choosing." "That I certainly know." Zhou Xuan understood all too well that "you get what you pay for." ... The two got off the rickshaw and Lv Mingkun led the way to a small alley where they found a place called "Luo’s Clothing Store." A clothing store is a type of pawnshop that deals in clothes; people who are desperate for money or urgently need cash with no other option pawn their clothes. Running such a business, the shop would naturally not look impressive. One of the shop’s windows was missing a glass pane that they couldn’t afford to replace, so they nailed a plastic oilcloth over it just to keep out the wind. "Young man, pawning clothes?" The owner of the clothing store was already sizing up the long robe on Zhou Xuan. "Not pawning clothes, I want to buy a couple of thick bones, stew a couple of pounds of meat." Lv Kunming’s words served as a code for purchasing goods. "Need Blood Veins too?" "Both." "Turns out you’re customers buying goods, please come inside." The shopkeeper gestured towards a passage inside the shop and Lv Mingkun and Zhou Xuan entered. It was a long passageway, and Zhou Xuan already smelled a faint scent of blood. They reached the end of the passageway, where two workers opened an iron cover on the ground, and a stronger scent of blood wafted up. Zhou Xuan wrinkled his nose and turned back to walk out, saying, "Fifth Brother, let’s go, this shop isn’t safe." Just as Lv Mingkun caught the eye signal from Zhou Xuan and turned to leave, the attendants standing in the hallway suddenly had their throats sliced open, followed by their heads falling to the ground, and their bodies collapsing. The room immediately filled with a chilling, mischievous laughter. "Hee hee hee hee!" With the laughter, Zhou Xuan saw a dark shadow ahead of him and, turning back, he saw a white shadow not far behind him. Both shadows wore dramatic costumes with helmets and cloaks, their faces deathly pale. Upon closer inspection, they turned out to be two Papermen, and in the hands of the white paper man was a very long, wide pair of scissors—the attendants’ heads had been snipped off... ps: This update is 6600 words, no separate Chapters today.

Chapter 146 - 135: Mother Palace Blood Tree_4

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