"Are you sure?" Lu Sheng frowned.
Beside him, Hong Shenlu drew a short knife with a fierce look in his eyes.
Lin Shengya almost said the words "I'm not going!", but when she saw Hong Shenlu's actions in the corner of her eye, she immediately got goosebumps all over.
"I'll think about it!" She hastily changed her stance.
"Are you going or not!?" Lu Sheng was impatient.
"I will! I'll go!" Lin Shengya could already feel the cold tip of the blade on her back. She immediately froze. She dared not even move.
"By the way, the person who called me, is she your mother?" Lu Sheng asked another question.
"Yes…" At this moment, Lin Shengya was certain that these people were desperados who were not afraid of anything.
They were even wearing standard uniforms like what the army would wear. It was evident that these men were used to ignoring the rule of law. They did not even care about the federal regulations on military uniforms.
They were operating just like how the legendary Noccent Terrorists would.
When Lu Sheng got the confirmation he wanted, his expression relaxed slightly.
"Alright. Lead the way."
They quickly left Zhao Longkui's mansion. The cellphones of everyone inside the mansion lost their signal. The desk phone cables were also severed. They were completely cut off from any communication with the outer world as they were guarded by the guards.
Lu Sheng and Lin Shengya exited the mansion. Someone brought Lin Shengya's silver sports car over and parked it before the two of them.
Lu Sheng opened the door and entered the car. Lin Shengya and another woman in black sat in the rear.
Hong Shenlu sat in the driver's seat.
A dozen dummy cars of various models followed behind them. They were all driven by guards under Lu Sheng's command.
Lu Sheng gave the order not to lay hands on the main Zhuo Family directly. Instead, his men were to surround the house, and not let anyone enter or exit.
The so-called grandfather of his host should still be with the main family. He would like to see what the situation was in the Zhuo Family.
The Zhuo Family's main house was erected less than 100 meters from where the city's governmental building stood. It was very close to a marketplace and a bus station.
When Lu Sheng and the others arrived, besides the people from the Black Light Hand, there were many ununiformed police.
When Lu Sheng made his appearance, he immediately sensed at least a dozen distant snipers aiming at the path where he had to pass.
"Bring me in." He looked directly at Lin Shengya.
Lin Shengya's expression changed, but she complied.
She had been observing Lu Sheng and his men throughout the journey here. However, she did not see any indication of being flustered in any of them. It was as if they viewed this current matter as something insignificant.
This made her feel greatly puzzled and shocked.
She did not know just how much strength they needed to have to possess such ample confidence while facing off with two giant families, the Zhaos and the Zhuos.
After they alighted, Lu Sheng's request was within her expectations.
As for Lu Sheng's military outfit, she had her own guesses, but she did not prod.
"Let's go." Lin Shengya straightened her clothes and walked naturally as she led the way toward the main Zhuo Family's mansion.
The surroundings of the mansion seemed quiet, but nobody knew how many traps had been laid.
Lu Sheng followed closely behind her. They walked up to the iron gate together and pressed the doorbell.
Beep…
"Who is it?"
"It's me," said Lin Shengya drily.
"Oh, it's Lady Ya."
The iron gate was swiftly opened.
The two of them walked into the mansion slowly. Servants came to meet them immediately.
"Bring me to Grandfather," Lin Shengya said in a deep voice.
"The old master is having a meeting with Mister Hols. They're in the projection room on the right," replied the servant hastily.
Although Lin Shengya's surname was not Zhuo, she was loved much in the family. Even though she had grown slightly distant with her grandfather, she was still a granddaughter of the Zhuo Family.
"Lead the way." Lin Shengya could not help but look at Lu Sheng beside her.
The two of them kept quiet. Lu Sheng only spoke after they were brought to a certain room on the second floor of the mansion's right wing.
"Who's Hols?"
"…The deputy mayor of Kunming City…" Lin Shengya scrutinized Lu Sheng's expression. However, she could not notice any changes in it.
She gave the door a light knock.
"Come in, Little Ya." Zhuo Xincheng's old voice came.
Without waiting for Lin Shengya to open the door, Lu Sheng twisted the door knob and went in ahead of her.
A white-haired muscular old man was in the room. With a staff in hand, he wore a gentle smile.
The other person was an elegant middle-aged man in a white suit. He gave Lu Sheng a shocked glance.
"It was you?" Zhuo Xincheng recognized who Lu Sheng was with a single glance.
"It was me," Lu Sheng replied drily. "Tell me, what's the matter with my father?"
Zhuo Xincheng slowly rose to his feet. He looked at Lin Shengya with an expression that said he was furious from being embarrassed. Then, he looked at Lu Sheng. His gaze lingered on the special military uniform he was wearing.
"Zhuo Zhenyu? What have you come here for? What's the matter? Your father does not know the immensity of the heavens. He provoked the Zhao Family's head, and is stubbornly unwilling to admit he was wrong. He has brought a disaster to the family. Humph! It was a mistake for the eldest brother to leave all the shares to him!"
"What about you? Have you noticed anything?" Lu Sheng noticed that the middle-aged man was staring at his shoulder badge with a frown.
It was clear that Zhuo Xincheng and this man were far-sighted individuals. They remembered the great changes which happened before this, and added it up with the fact that Lu Sheng, who was supposed to be an ordinary student, was suddenly capable of making Lin Shengya bring him here openly.
Anyone would have found something off with this.
"That outfit you're wearing, it's the Black Light…?" Hols asked carefully. He remembered that he'd seen this military uniform before. However, the shoulder badges were usually black or red. He had never seen a dark golden badge before.
"Heheh." Lu Sheng did not answer him. He walked toward the center of the room and looked around himself.
"About my father's accident, I'd initially thought that the Zhuo Family would've never let its family's head come to harm no matter what happened. Alas, you have disappointed me." He reached out and picked up a white Japanese rose from the vase on the table.
"Zhuo Zhenyu, looks like you've made quite a name for yourself. However, you must know the level of power you're going up against," Zhuo Xincheng spoke with a gloomy expression and in a low voice. "Do you think that just because you're somebody, you can now join in the open contest of the Zhuo Family?"
He pushed a hidden button on his staff.
"Men!"
It was all quiet outside. Nobody replied.
Zhuo Xincheng's expression remained unchanged. However, his heart sank. Even Hols stopped appearing as collected as before.
"You guys are to weak…" Lu Sheng removed the thorns from the flower's stalk. "Don't you know that only the weak group together? A real expert is always alone. If you form groups, you'll become reliant. When you're reliant, you'll get dispirited, slack off, and cease to improve."
"You're just a suckling child! Preposterous! Men! Men!" Zhu Xincheng tapped his staff forcefully. His expression remained stern, but beads of sweat could be seen forming on his forehead already.
Lu Sheng slowly walked up to him.
"Bam!"
A smack landed on Zhuo Xincheng's head.
The octogenarian Zhuo Xincheng fell backward from his seat from the impact. He crashed onto the decorative chairs to his left.
"Ugh… Blergh!"
He spat out a mouthful of blood. Zhuo Xincheng wanted to prop himself up with his hands, but he could not even put any strength behind them.
"Aren't you overdoing it?" Hols could not restrain himself from standing up with a fierce expression. "He's your grandfather, after all."
"Bang! Bang!"
Suddenly, gunshots were heard in rapid succession. The sounds of exploding grenades were also heard.
The room's floor started to shake.
Lu Sheng tapped on the communicator on his ear.
"Master, the federation finally made its move against us. The God's Eye is also with them, they've sent their Glorious Knights at us!" Hong Shenlu's grim voice reached his ears.
Lu Sheng looked out the window. Helicopters were hovering in the skies nearby.
Even though this room was soundproof, the sounds of the firing cannons were still audible.
"Our forces here aren't enough to fend off the Glorious Knights and the federal High Investigations Department! Master, let us retreat. Our objectives have been achieved. There's no need to incur unnecessary loss," Hong Shenlu suggested hastily.
Lu Sheng's expression remained unchanged.
"Forget it. You guys should retreat. I'm sick of all this." He slowly removed his earphone.
"Aah!"
Suddenly, he heard a scream from his earpiece. It was Hong Shenlu's voice.
"Master, run! It's Augustus! It's Augustus's God's Eye Divine Army!"
With a clack, the connection ended.
Lu Sheng narrowed his eyes slightly. He suddenly looked out of the window at the skies.
With his spirit's senses, he could tell that his Black Hand troops and his own personal guards were being crushed by the sheer numbers of the enemy forces.
There were three lines of defense, and the enemy had broken through at least two of them. The final line of defense, his personal guards, were making a last desperate struggle.
"No… it's not a struggle…" Lu Sheng was suddenly stunned. "Amazing!" His face lit up with admiration.
"Amazing!" he repeated.
Lin Shengya went over and helped Zhuo Xincheng up. They cowered in one corner of the room with Hols. The three of them could tell that the situation was peculiar.
"Give up! You're surrounded by the police," said Hols in a stern tone and expression.
Lu Sheng ignored him. He turned and walked toward the window.
In his mind, huge patches of red spots, which represented his own blood spirit personal guards, were swiftly turning into green spots at a mind-blowing rate.
The green spots represented the forces of the God's Eye.
"Augustus. In terms of talent alone, you're the best out of all the people I've met up until now." Lu Sheng looked at the skies through the window.
Helicopters maintained their positions in midair. A slender figure walked slowly out of the cockpit. He was walking toward Lu Sheng in the air.
White veins appeared all over his body. They covered his face, arms, and neck.
The air solidified into steps under his feet. That was how he was able to walk toward Lu Sheng.
The cannons instantly stopped firing. Everyone could not help but look toward the skies.
'A person's walking on air!?'
The people from the Black Light Hand were not the only ones who were shocked. Even the elites of the Glorious Knights were stunned.
This ability had surpassed the bounds of a simple painter. This was an unprecedented, extraordinary level.
Augustus's short platinum-colored hair stood up. He fixed his cold eyes on Lu Sheng below him. The veins all over his body pulsed with faint, white fluorescent light.
Lin Shengya's jaw dropped. She could almost fit an egg in there. She instantly wondered if she was hallucinating.
After a few painful pinches to her breast, she understood that she was not imagining this.
Zhuo Xincheng applied pressure on the wound on his head. His groggy old eyes looked at the scene, and he could not help but be struck with fear, awe, terror, and finally understanding. He knew now why he had lost.
Everyone underestimated Zhuo Siqing.
Everyone thought of him as an ordinary albeit unconventional painter. Nobody expected there to be a vicious dragon standing behind him.
When they noticed it, they were already covered up by the vicious dragon's immense shadow, unable to escape.