My Journey to Immortality Begins with Hunting

Chapter 130 – The Great Zhou Treasury Ignites Chaos, Tang Qiu’s Farewell, and Living Life Chronicle - Part 3

Early the next morning.

The maid nicknamed Xiao Lan called from outside the courtyard, “Master, Mister Tang says he has important news and requests to see you.”

“Got it,” Li Yuan answered. He dressed quickly, gave Xue Ning a light kiss on the forehead, and headed out.

In the inner hall, a weathered-looking man sat beneath a tree, gazing off into the distance.

Li Yuan sensed something in Tang Qiu’s demeanor but kept his tone casual as he walked over and patted the man on the shoulder.

“Old Tang,” he greeted.

Tang Qiu inclined his head. “Master, the puppet formation for the Hundred Lotus Manor is complete. I did my best; I can guarantee no one below sixth rank can breach these defenses now.”

Li Yuan simply said, “Good,” then added gently, “How are you holding up?”

Tang Qiu gave a faint smile. “I’ve got two or three days left, at most.”

Li Yuan fell silent.

Tang Qiu continued, “I told Nian Nian I’d be going away on a long journey to visit a senior and study more advanced puppet arts.”

“You’re not worried she’ll be listening at the door?” Li Yuan asked.

A soft smile touched Tang Qiu’s weathered face, as though recalling the bright-eyed little girl from two years ago. “I don’t regret staying,” he said. “Nian Nian’s grown so much; she’s a natural talent in puppetry, far beyond my own. She’s already reached eighth rank, thanks in large part to the demonic beast meat you’ve provided.”

“She’s my goddaughter, too,” Li Yuan replied. “Now that she’s at eighth rank, she can have all the eighth rank demonic beast meat from my share.”

Tang Qiu’s eyes reddened slightly. He made to bow, but Li Yuan caught his shoulders before he could.

“Old Tang, show me your puppet formation,” Li Yuan said. “I’ll be leaving tomorrow.”

“All right,” Tang Qiu agreed. Then he stepped closer, grabbing Li Yuan’s sleeve in sudden urgency. “When I’m gone...please remove my heart and give it to Nian Nian. Don’t let her find out it’s mine. I beg of you!”

Li Yuan nodded solemnly.

Soon after, Tang Qiu let Tang Nian demonstrate the newly installed puppet formation. Eleven years old now, the girl was still slender, but noticeably taller. Immersed in her craft from a young age, she had a calm, unwavering intensity in her gaze. Dressed in a red robe, she began the demonstration.

Li Yuan assembled 200 of his fearless soldiers, armed them with bows, and ordered them to loose arrows in rapid volleys, as if raining down a storm of steel. Yet the puppets sprang into action, deflecting every shaft before it could reach the courtyard. Not a single arrow got through.

There were 16 puppets in total. When idle, Li Yuan couldn’t gauge their strength, but once they moved, he detected combat powers ranging anywhere from 120~220—plus a formidable level of defense. He remembered that, when he first acquired these puppets, they weren’t this capable. Clearly, Tang Qiu had spent considerable effort upgrading them.

“Ordinary puppets can only follow preprogrammed patrol routes,” Tang Qiu explained. “They can’t adapt in real time. But these puppets can respond to Nian Nian’s commands whenever she chooses.”

He raised his voice. “Nian Nian...”

The girl in the red robe took a step forward. From each sleeve, three small iron butterflies shot out with a whoosh, weaving in and out among the puppets. Each time the butterflies struck one of them, that puppet altered its patrol route. It looked cumbersome, but far better than having no flexibility at all—a limitation most puppets naturally had.

Tang Qiu went on, “I’ve also had Nian Nian install a mechanism next to the bed in the main bedroom. As soon as you press it, the puppet formation activates immediately.”

“I know about that,” Li Yuan replied with a nod.

˙·٠✧🐗➶➴🏹✧٠·˙

The next day.

Li Yuan accompanied Tang Qiu on what was supposed to be his long journey. In reality, Tang Qiu went only as far as Little Ink Mountain, where he had already prepared a coffin for himself.

They dug a grave together, then sat by the pit to share food and fine wine late into the night.

Come dawn, Tang Qiu lay on the ground, his black hair turning gray before Li Yuan’s eyes, his flesh shrinking away as though something inside him had finally shed all restraint and begun consuming his life.

Tang Qiu managed a raspy laugh. “I once basked in my early success...never thought I’d lose my family and end up like this. But it’s not such a bad ending after all.” He exhaled a shaky breath. “Life or death...what’s there to fear? I only regret leaving Nian Nian behind. And that I never found vengeance for the wrongs done to me.”

Li Yuan knelt at his side. “Old Tang, don’t worry.”

A brittle smile clung to Tang Qiu’s face. “I’m not worried. Fate was kind, letting me and my daughter meet you, even in our darkest hour.”

Pain racked him, and he gasped for air. Seizing Li Yuan’s sleeve with trembling hands, he said desperately, “Li... Brother Li, please—take my heart after I’m gone and give it to Nian Nian. Don’t let her know the truth about it. I beg you!”

Li Yuan nodded solemnly.

Tang Qiu released a long, shuddering breath. He lay there a while, gazing up at the drifting clouds. Slowly, his eyes closed for good.

“He’s gone,” Li Yuan said softly.

From behind a nearby tree stepped a red-robed girl, tears streaming down her cheeks. It was Tang Nian. She walked over, bowed once to Li Yuan—her godfather—and then dropped to her knees in front of Tang Qiu’s body, knocking her forehead against the ground in heavy, resounding thuds.

She tried to continue, but her grief overwhelmed her. She gasped and choked back sobs, unable to stop.

“Daddy, dad...” She broke down, wailing in utter heartbreak.

Li Yuan crouched beside Tang Nian, resting a gentle hand on her frail shoulder. “He was your father. He didn’t want you to grieve. Only by keeping you in the dark could he leave with a smile.”

He paused, then added softly, “But sometimes, it’s better to face the painful truth than to live happily in a lie. If you can endure this pain, you’ll find genuine happiness. And all the suffering you go through now will become fuel to make you stronger. That’s what I, as your godfather, hope for you.”

Tang Nian stood up, her face streaked with tears and dirt.

Li Yuan wrapped her in a gentle hug, letting her sob until she had no tears left. Though she eventually stopped, her eyes remained wide and bloodshot with exhaustion.

“Go stand behind the tree,” Li Yuan told her.

Suddenly, the girl bit her lip and grabbed the wine jar her father had been drinking from. With her eighth rank strength, she lifted it easily, raising it toward her lips as the liquor inside sloshed.

Li Yuan reached out and took the jar from her. “You’re still too young for that,” he chided.

Tang Nian struggled to speak. “I...I...” Her gaze was pleading.

Li Yuan sighed and poured a small cup. “Fine. Just this much, no more.”

She drained it in a single gulp, then choked and coughed. After catching her breath, she reached for the blade Tang Qiu had prepared for removing his heart.

“Godfather,” she said, voice unsteady, “let me do it.”

Li Yuan pressed the blade down firmly. “No. This isn’t something you should do.”

Tang Nian looked up, her eyes red and brimming with tears. Despite being only eleven, her expression was a complex blend of anguish, determination, and a raw sort of defiance.

“You said it’s better to face a painful truth than to live happily in a lie,” she insisted. “That pain makes us stronger. Then...please let me experience the most unforgettable pain, so I can truly grow.”

Li Yuan swiftly snatched the blade away. “Absolutely not.”

Tang Nian tried to protest again, but Li Yuan’s face hardened. “I let you see the truth so it would guide you, not break you. Do you really want to become some ruthless demon?”

Startled by his stern tone, Tang Nian faltered. “No...I don’t.”

“Then stay behind me.”

With her head lowered, she shuffled behind him, quietly sobbing. Li Yuan drew the blade, working quickly and carefully to remove Tang Qiu’s heart. It was a peculiar, metallic mass wrapped in bloody strands, partially translucent, with a faint, intricate pattern within.

After gently laying Tang Qiu’s body into the coffin, Li Yuan handed the Daemonheart to Tang Nian.

Tang Nian clutched the heart tightly. Her father had already told her how to use it—just never mentioning that the artifact was, in fact, his own heart.

Li Yuan hoisted the coffin onto his shoulder and carried it down the mountain. Since Tang Nian knew the truth, there was no point leaving Old Tang buried in the wilderness. Later that very day, a grave marker was erected just west of Hundred Lotus Manor.

Patting the girl in red on the shoulder, Li Yuan said softly, “He’s still here.”

Tang Nian nodded and leaned against him. Exhaustion washed over her, and before long her knees buckled as she drifted toward unconsciousness. Li Yuan scooped her up and headed back to the manor’s inner residence.

There, Yan Yu was helping Sheng'er walk around. The little girl clung to her mother’s right hand while tapping a small cane against the ground with her left. Tok, tok, tok! The little girl waddled forward maintaining her balance. This time, two wild-eyed crows perched on her shoulders—one more than last time.

Li Yuan paused in surprise. “Sheng’er, can you really control two crows at once?”

Both crows squawked in unison, “Abba, ababa...” Just then, rustling came from the thick foliage overhead, and yet another crow fluttered down to circle above the cane-wielding girl. It cawed as if to say, There aren’t just two, there are three!

Li Yuan felt a jolt of astonishment, for not only had the number of crows increased, their strength had also grown. Previously, that single crow’s combat power had only been 0~3, but now the three were 2~5. Such a change was anything but normal.

Yan Yu looked over at her husband and offered a weary but affectionate smile. She gently stroked their daughter’s hair, her own eyes clouded with worry. She had no idea whether this development was a blessing or a curse. If she had the choice, she would much rather Sheng'er grow up safe and ordinary, free from any unsettling powers.

Noticing Li Yuan carrying the red-robed girl, Yan Yu gave them a quick glance. She already knew what Tang Nian had been through and why Li Yuan had brought her here.

Yan Yu offered, “We have a spare room in our house. Let her move in with us. From now on, I’ll treat her like my own daughter.” Then she leaned down to tease her own child. “Sheng’er, would you like to have an older sister living with us?”

The crows all cawed in unison, “Abba! Ababa!”

˙·٠✧🐗➶➴🏹✧٠·˙

A few days later.

Xue Ning found a way for Li Yuan to travel to Autumnlake County.

It came through an unlikely source, a certain young lady of the Mountain Gang who had fled from Autumnlake.

Located further south, Autumnlake sat on the edge of vast mountains—much like how Gemhill extended westward into forested hills. But unlike the forests near Gemhill, the mountains south of Autumnlake were renowned for an abundance of exotic flowers and herbs, prized enough to be called spirit flora.

These mountains also lead directly to Sunset Rainforest, a veritable paradise for demonic beasts. Any place that could nurture such creatures was often a treasure trove of rare plants as well.

The Mountain Gang specialized in venturing into the hills to gather these spirit flowers and herbs. In Autumnlake County, they had been an even mightier force than the Blood Blade Sect was in Gemhill. Still, strength without a sixth rank master wasn’t enough.

In the end, Zhao Xiantong and his followers crushed them. That victory cost Zhao Xiantong time and effort. After all, not all those spirit plants were for healing; plenty were poisonous. And where raw power fell short, poison could fill in the gap. Such was the Mountain Gang’s calling card.

As for this young lady who once led the gang, she had been away when her forces were wiped out and managed to escape. Now that she knew her family’s stronghold was lost, she’d sold off her remaining valuables and medicinal stockpiles to recruit martial experts for a revenge mission to Autumnlake.

Asked how exactly she planned to avenge them, the young lady only said she would personally see to the act itself; the hired experts merely needed to escort her back to Autumnlake safely.

Her search for support led her first to the Orange Blossom Sect, then the Frost Sword Sect, and finally to the Blood Blade Sect. But none of them were willing to jump into such turbulent waters. So she shifted gears, seeking out freelance cultivators and wandering warriors. Only a handful were willing to take the job in the end.

Upon hearing about this through Xue Ning, Li Yuan decided to join up. He’d been wondering how best to locate Zhao Xiantong after reaching Autumnlake or Bluepond, and it turned out someone was offering to lead him straight there. He’d have happily forked over money himself for such a stroke of luck. So getting paid instead was an even better deal.