Twilight Boundary-Chapter 802 - 791: Brotherhood

Miss White Wine, as if facing a formidable enemy, led the four individuals wrapped in paper money, guiding a group of Reincarnators away. Not having been invited, Hu Ma wisely chose not to follow for the time being but rather took a deep look at the ancestral hall before turning and heading towards the old house.

Er Guotou followed him, under the pretense of "watching over him on behalf of the Reincarnator brothers to prevent any mishaps."

However, as soon as they were out of sight, Er Guotou nodded solemnly at Hu Ma, saying, "There are things we brothers ought to lay bare."

Hu Ma also nodded, smiling, "Then accompany me back to the old house."

At present, Shangjing City is in chaos, but the recent departure of the State Preceptor from the capital and the entrance of an evil spirit into the city have frightened many, even driving away the relatives from the old house's doorstep.

"Hot pot, anyone?"

Er Guotou had a belly full of words to say, but upon entering the old house and stepping into the hall, his attention was immediately diverted, and he directly sat down, "Bring me a pair of chopsticks."

Immortal Miaoshan, having finished her meal, glanced at him before leaving the table, instructing the servants to slice more meat. Er Guotou was unceremonious, gulping down some broth before letting out a long sigh.

He said to Hu Ma, "How dare you trust me so?"

As he spoke, he took out a book from his chest—it was the Hu Family's Age Suppressing Book—and placed it in front of Hu Ma.

Said, "Returning the original book to you, but the content, remembered in my mind, can't be given back."

Hu Ma accepted it and tucked it into his chest, saying, "Didn't you take it without a second thought? I should be thanking you."

"If it wasn't for my Master, I wouldn't have had the courage to take it."

Er Guotou's gaze was more serious than ever as he looked at Hu Ma and slowly said, "There's something I've suspected for a long time, but it wasn't until you gave me the Age Suppressing Book that I finally confirmed it."

"Actually, the two of us are fellow disciples."

"The person who taught me this skill is your father."

"..."

"..."

Outside Shangjing City, an eternal disaster fire burns quietly.

Although the ground no longer held anything combustible, the flames persisted, appearing intermittently.

Among the flames, clumps of bizarre and bloated flesh descended from the sky, sprawling on the ground. Anyone who had mingled in the Blood Food Gang could see clearly that these flesh pieces were Tai Sui.

Sitting quietly on an ox cart in a white robe was Monkey Wine. He gazed up at the sky, motionless, and even the ox dared not move…

The disaster fire and flesh painted a bizarre picture, in which Monkey Wine appeared eerily serene, as if part of a surreal oil painting not belonging to this world.

Until a few black shadows, indistinct in form, slowly appeared before him. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Monkey Wine suddenly smiled and said, "I knew that among the ten families, they wouldn't all be fools. There must be someone willing to come and meet me."

The shadows regarded him silently, then someone suddenly chuckled, "Aren't you afraid that we might join forces and eliminate you here?"

"It's not a matter of whether I'm afraid, but whether you're daring enough."

Monkey Wine looked at them indifferently and said, "None of you have the courage; you're not as bold as the person who just left Shangjing. His glance at me carried true killing intent, but he was smart enough to hold back and leave quietly."

Several of the shadows exchanged silent glances before one of them sighed lightly, "It's been a long time since we've seen such an arrogant evil spirit."

"But since you invited us to meet, let's hear what you have to say!"

"What do you want?"

"..."

"I want the ten families' Magic."

Monkey Wine said, "Not ordinary Magic, but your bridges, your soldiers and horses, your layout in the underworld, your understanding of those things, your Purple Tai Sui, the accumulation of your twenty years."

"Everything, delivered into our hands, or rather, my hands."

His words rendered the group silent until a shadow suddenly shouted angrily, "Such audacity, not even..."

"No need to rush to say those words to bolster your confidence."

Monkey Wine cut him off directly, saying blandly, "Within three months, I will visit the Guanshan Zhu Family's door, following jianghu rules, to formally duel with you."

"If you truly have the confidence, you can try to keep me on the mountain before that."

"..."

"You..."

The shadow, or rather the Guanshan Zhu Family Master, fell silent, unable to respond.

At this moment, another figure smiled and said, "No matter what, the words you've uttered are too bold; you know we won't give them to you."

"Just clearly stating each other's needs."

Monkey Wine said mildly, "Aren't you also interested in what we possess? Instead of hiding and concealing, why not speak frankly—it'll help find a genuine solution."

The dark shadows silently exchanged glances, and someone slowly spoke, "According to the State Preceptor's statement, if we all do our best to assist him, then once this ritual is successfully completed, the things we desire will already be in our possession."

"But you can't accomplish it."

Monkey Wine slowly said, "The ten families cannot possibly all obediently serve that State Preceptor. Those conspiring against the nation are destined to fail."

"Especially since he has pinned his hopes on the descendants of the Hu Family..."

"I know that person; he's one of the individuals I admire. I know he won't approve of what you're doing."

"In fact, if it wasn't for wanting to meet you, I wouldn't have come at all because there's no need."

"..."

Suddenly, everyone fell silent, looked at each other, and someone tentatively asked, "Then, what do you think of that descendant of the Hu Family?"

"No particular view."

Monkey Wine slowly said, "That smart person in the Daluo Dharma Sect did the dumbest thing; he shouldn't have used a stratagem to force him. He doesn't understand that among Reincarnators, there's no such thing as infiltration or not."

"Having obtained our way, they become one of us, and it doesn't matter what immortal fate or such is involved."

"..."

Although their features were indistinct, one could seem to perceive that these individuals were becoming more solemn; after a while, someone slowly said, "So your intention in meeting us is..."

"Don't waste time; your world is already too fragile. You can destroy it, and so can I."

Monkey Wine said indifferently, "Unfortunately, time is very tight, and there's no leisure for intrigues, so there's only one path left for us."

...

...

"In fact, even my name was given by him."

In the old house of the Hu Family in Shangjing City, Er Guotou solemnly looked at Hu Ma and slowly spoke, "I'm ten years older than you, nearly twenty years have passed now. Back then, I met the Master who taught me these skills."

"When Reincarnators arrive here, some have good luck, some have bad. I belong to the latter, wandering from a young age. If it weren't for my past life wisdom, I would have already died on the streets."

"Yet, even with past life wisdom, a child less than ten years old lives with difficulty in this world. It was your father who saved me and taught me survival skills."

"However, after teaching me these skills, he suddenly revealed my habit of talking in my sleep one drunken night and laughed, asking what Mr. Cang meant, what Dark Three-headed Dog meant..."

"By then, I had already contacted other Reincarnators. I was truly startled and even believed my little life was at its end."

"I fled in the night; fortunately, he did not stop me, allowing me to escape and hide my identity for several years, always feeling he was too mysterious, some actions always being bewildering."

"Later, I went round and round and returned to Mingzhou, actually due to this shadow in my heart, always feeling..."

"Back then, it seemed he did not first accept me as a disciple then discover I was a Reincarnator, but rather..."

"...he already knew I was a Reincarnator, thus decided to accept me as a disciple."

"..."

Listening to this, Hu Ma felt it rather new as well, and comprehended why Er Guotou had always been so timid and mysterious.

"I began to slowly realize something was amiss because... the skills he taught me were too useful."

Er Guotou smiled wryly, saying, "In less than three years, I met him a few times intermittently, learning all sorts of skills, even being told the various secrets of the Ghost Walking Sect."

"When I was initially learning the skills, I thought it quite normal until later on, when I traveled more in the jianghu and saw others learn skills with such difficulty, I increasingly appreciated him and understood the weight of this favor."

"But understanding is one thing, I didn't understand why he went all out to teach me these skills until I remembered why he changed my name."

"My original name was Hu Chuan, but he added a 'Shan' character to it, and according to this inquiry, finally understood that the previous generation of Ghost Walking Hu Family's Eldest Young Master was named Hu Shan..."

"Well, he stamped me with a seal just to remind me of the connection to the Ghost Walking Sect's main family one day!"

"..."

Hu Ma listened carefully, finding the synchronicity remarkable as if capricious yet seemingly predestined; had he known earlier, he would not have doubted his ancestors' stance so much before.

The Hu Family ancestors colluded with Lao Junmei, put the Daluo Dharma Sect in a difficult spot, his father secretly taught a Reincarnator as an apprentice, and even imparted true Hu Family knowledge.

All this only indicates one thing: From the beginning, the Hu Family was not enemies with Reincarnators.

But if so, when both sides fought so fiercely with abundant bloodshed, risking life and death, and the truth even Granny was kept in the dark about, what was that for?

Simply to confuse the State Preceptor?

"Only after understanding these, and knowing your matter, did I realize there's no choice."

Er Guotou sighed deeply, saying, "Brother, in the Ghost Walking Sect, some clues that I was muddled about earlier became clear after seeing the Age Suppressing Book; there are words my Master wants me to give to you."

"It's about the first Reincarnator's sacrifice, and..."

"...Tai Sui!"