Lu Sheng considered, then took the initiative to approach one of the nearby wandering cultivators.

"Brother, I just want to ask, why are there so many people here looking for things?" Lu Sheng revealed a perplexed expression, flashing a ingot of silver in his hand.

"What do you want?" The man watched him warily.

"You came even though you don't know? Get lost!" The wandering cultivator looked at him like he was an idiot.

Seeing the man about to leave, Lu Sheng took out a gold ingot from his waist pouch and held it out together with the silver. The gold at least made the man halt his steps as he weighed the ingots in his hand. After looking over Lu Sheng's outfit and determining he didn't seem to be here competing over spoils, the man said:

"Why'd you come stir up trouble when you don't even know what's going on? We're here because we heard many powerful exorcists were fighting over a treasure last night. Halfway through, a mystic artifact appeared and everything descended into chaos. One expert escaped with the treasure while the rest chased after them. This place became ruins. Us folks are just here to fish some benefits from the dead."

"Benefits from the dead?" Lu Sheng understood. These people specifically came to dig through corpses for valuables.

He didn't know what exactly happened last night. But being able to attract so many people and forces to gather, it surely wasn't a trivial matter.

"These people like Duan Mowan and Yan Kai all know some inside details for mysteriously coming to Jiulian City. They're likely on the same level as those monsters," Lu Sheng contemplated. After releasing the man, he circled the area a few more rounds. In several spots, he saw some blackened melted steel-like objects.

Without lingering, he swiftly headed back to the Lu manor.

Just as he entered the gates, a servant came to report: "Eldest Young Master, Lady Duan is here again waiting for you in the guest hall."

Duan Mowan came? Lu Sheng's heart shook as he recalled her odd words upon seeing him last time. His spirit bolstered, he strode towards the guest hall in big steps.

Inside, Lu Sheng instantly spotted Duan Mowan's signature silhouette and outfit. In this era, even among the pleasure houses and entertainment quarters, few women dared dress so boldly like her.

She sat on a wooden chair holding a white porcelain teacup, gently sipping tea with her hat placed to the side. Her mourning veil was loosened, revealing the skin-tight black attire inside.

That outfit clung so tightly to every curve of her body it could be considered a second skin, perfectly outlining her figure. Especially the chest and hips - it looked practically no different from being naked, merely lacking the final bare exposure. The surrounding servant girls didn't even dare look straight, blushing in embarrassment.

"Lady Duan, long time no see. I still don't understand what you meant by those words last time. Could you explain clearly?" Lu Sheng directly cut to the chase after entering. He waved for all the irrelevant people to withdraw, staring intently at Duan Mowan with his vigilant gaze completely unaffected by her alluring outfit and dress.

Duan Mowan smiled, raising her head to look Lu Sheng up and down peculiarly. "Young Master Sheng remains hale and hearty. To have survived this great disaster is truly fortunate. Now there's no need to worry, things are much safer."

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"What does Lady mean by this?" Lu Sheng narrowed his eyes. Clearly Duan Mowan knew plenty of inside details.

"Nothing much," said Duan Mowan, setting down her teacup. She lightly clapped once and stood up.

Upon rising, every inch of her figure and skin was perfectly revealed before Lu Sheng's eyes. The faint trembling of her chest, and even the tantalizing peaks, along with the mysterious region between her legs, everything's outline could be seen clearly.

Yet Duan Mowan seemed completely unperturbed. She smiled and said, "Now that there's no one else around and the young lord also didn't die in the earlier disaster, you have the qualifications to know some inside details."

"Please enlighten me." Lu Sheng focused his attention. He feared she wouldn't talk.

Duan Mowan placed one hand on the deadly weapon at her chest, smiling. "Does young lord know - how is it that most common people in the world can still live in stability just like Young Lord's uneventful first ten-plus years of life when monsters run amok and ghosts emerge frequently nowadays?"

Lu Sheng's eyes flashed. "There's someone protecting them?"

"Yes... you could say they're being protected... The living environment is so harsh, people need some hope and consolation," said Duan Mowan, gently shaking her head. She arched her body to sniff at Lu Sheng's nape, her cheeks turning rosy, seemingly moved by desire.

"This world could be said to belong to two great forces."

"Which two?"

"Devils, and nobles." Duan Mowan briefly raised two fingers. "The devils you've encountered are precisely those monsters and ghosts. As for nobles, it refers to people like myself and Yan Kai who possess innate power and ability from birth, able to be exorcists."

Lu Sheng's heart shook. "You mean to say the power is innate since birth instead of attained through later cultivation?" He still clung to a trace of hope.

"No..." Duan Mowan gave a coquettish laugh. "I know Young Lord still harbors some expectations, but unfortunately power to oppose devils in this world cannot be attained through any cultivation methods. We nobles also have no need for such mystic arts. What we cultivate is merely developing and utilizing the special powers innate within our bodies from birth to battle devils. Yet ordinary people will only ever remain ordinary..."

Lu Sheng fell silent. This was the truth he least wanted to hear.

Duan Mowan continued: "There are two types of ruling classes in this world - devils, and nobles. Our strengths are inborn, far exceed mortals. Even the weakest noble would still possess unimaginable might to ordinary people."

"I don't believe ordinary people have no chance," said Lu Sheng, slowly shaking his head.

"Young Lord is truly adorable..." Duan Mowan gave a coquettish laugh. "You must understand, there is no qi or immortal energy or anything in the air we breathe in this world. The only thing we can rely on is ourselves.

"Martial warriors cultivate inner qi through eating food. The innate power and ability we nobles possess comes deeply hidden in our bloodlines. This disparity exists from birth..."

She gently released Lu Sheng and walked to his side, slender fingers gently caressing his sturdy chest.

"There were two major forces in Jiulian City previously fighting over a treasure. One side could control monsters and ghosts with formidable might. It was also the side that chose your Lu family and the Xu family for sacrifice," stated Duan Mowan.

"May I ask which side that was, my lady?" Lu Sheng's spirit bolstered. Realizing this was crucial information, he swiftly inquired after digesting the earlier news:

"The Man Rollers," replied Duan Mowan lightly as she gently rested her head against Lu Sheng's arm. "Their name is Man Rollers. It's an old power that's laid roots here for many, many years. They control quite a number of ghosts and monsters. Earlier, they chose your family head for a sacrifice target. The emergence of such a significant treasure requires numerous sacrifices, many, many..."

"Then, if my father didn't die, might they still come for us?" Lu Sheng asked in return.

"Teehee... If they come for you, come find Mowan... If you make Mowan happy enough, perhaps she could save you once," said Duan Mowan with an sudden coquettish laugh.

"Lady Duan jests. I wonder if you might have any other internal cultivation manuals or mystic arts, not life nourishing techniques?" Lu Sheng didn't know if her words were true or false, but either way, as long as he could squeeze another new, stronger inner art from her, this trip and meeting would still be worthwhile.

"Cultivation methods and mystic arts? Are those things... useful?" Duan Mowan neatened her hair and thrust her chest towards Lu Sheng. "What's fun about inner cultivation? Wouldn't Young Lord prefer having some interesting games with Mowan in the bedchamber instead...?"

"The noble lady jests. Please directly state what price I must pay to attain such cultivation techniques," said Lu Sheng heavily.