Chapter 167: Showdown

Yes, a show.This is the Bai Family's ancestor worship after all.

And with the grandeur of a prestigious family like the Bai Family, how could they miss out on festive performances during the ancestor worship day?

So various performances were presented one after another.

There were opera performances, dances, and musicians playing on the side.

The atmosphere looked quite unusual.

If you didn't know, you would think this was a celebration.

Well, in the case of ancestor worship, whether it is a joyous occasion or a somber one, it's hard to say.

Chen An could only go with the flow and watch the show.

Let's not even mention it.

In his past life, Chen An was not interested in dramas like Peking Opera, thinking that those were things only older people enjoyed watching.

He couldn't see the fun in it.

But since he came to this world and stayed here for a long time, he gradually started to appreciate the charm of it.

Well, he was forced to.

Without games, comics, or novels, the only pastime he could indulge in at this time was watching the opera.

He couldn't do anything else.

After accompanying others for a long time, he naturally began to appreciate its charm.

So, people are forced into things.

Chen An sighed inwardly, but his eyes were bright as he watched ahead.

The ancestor worship continued.

The Bai Family is a prestigious family and a large clan.

Being a large family meant that there were many rules and formalities, making things quite complex.

Leaving aside the specific intricate rituals, Chen An couldn't understand them anyway.

Normally, the Family Head should personally lead the ceremony with the others.

But in the end, the Family Head was not seen, indicating that he was still in seclusion.

So it was the four elders who took charge and began the ancestor worship with the Bai Family members.

As for the other elders, they only stood for a while and then left one by one.

It all looked quite busy.

First, the elders led the people up the mountain, and then the members of each branch of the family knelt one by one.

After the entire process was completed, most of the day had already passed.

There was no choice, the Bai Family had too many people.

What could be easily done by ordinary families would take a long time in the Bai Family.

Chen An was fine, after all, it was his first time, and he found it quite novel.

But beside him, Bai Zhilan already had a hint of impatience on her face.

She seemed a bit bored.

But she had to endure it.

She couldn't help it.

It was the ancestor worship, and in case of any mishap, it wouldn't be enjoyable.

Standing there all this time, surrounded by serious-looking people, without anyone daring to speak, made Chen An think of the military training he had in university in his past life.

Maybe it was even more miserable here.

But martial artists have much stronger physical fitness than ordinary people, so enduring for such a long time was relatively easy for them.

That's another story.

Chen An stood there silently, quietly observing the surroundings.

But gradually, he suddenly felt something was wrong.

"Hmm?"

A strange feeling emerged in his heart.

What kind of feeling was this?

It was somewhat familiar but also unfamiliar.

No!

Chen An suddenly woke up, realizing what this feeling was.

It was the taste of source power!

Was there a spirit nearby?

Chen An looked around suspiciously, but after looking for a long time, he didn't notice anything.

This shouldn't be.

Spirits were attracted to living beings and were instinctively drawn to them, but once there were too many people around, the spirits would usually retreat and not linger.

They preferred to attack those who were alone.

In a place with so many people and many powerful martial artists like here, it wasn't an environment that spirits would like.

And the aura of a spirit was very distinct.

If spirits were really around, with Chen An's sense of energy, he shouldn't have failed to detect them.

So, what was happening now?

Chen An was puzzled, unable to understand.

The ancestor worship continued.

The crowd moved forward.

After a while, Chen An suddenly discovered that the feeling he had earlier had suddenly disappeared.

Yes, it just disappeared.

Without any sign.

Chen An frowned, feeling even more puzzled.

He had been thinking of investigating further after the ancestor worship ended, but now that sense had suddenly vanished.

It was inexplicable.

It was disappointing for Chen An as he had spent so much time in this area, not gaining anything.

It seemed that continuing to wait here would just be a waste of time.

He couldn't help it.

"Sigh."

He sighed and prepared to leave.

It seemed that exploring and searching for treasures was not suitable for him.

If he wanted to make money, it was better to go and find trouble with the spirits.

Although troublesome, at least it was practical.

However, just as he was about to leave, he made a new discovery.

Not far away, he saw two shadowy figures passing by.

"Indeed, this is the place."

In the dead of night, Chen An was searching around the Bai Family's ancestral grounds, looking like he was searching for something, "Why did the sense suddenly disappear?"

Yes, he was still thinking about the sensation he had during the day.

But now, at this moment of time, his senses were extremely sharp towards source power, he wouldn't have sensed it incorrectly.

The feeling he had earlier was definitely the aura of source power.

But strangely, even though he had sensed it earlier, why did it suddenly disappear?

Unwilling to give up, Chen An sneaked into the Bai Family's ancestral grounds alone, attempting to search around.

Fortunately, this place called the Bai Family's ancestral grounds was actually just some scattered tombs, and although there were guards, their strength wasn't that strong, allowing him to sneak in.

Otherwise, if it were the Bai Family elders guarding, he would probably have been caught red-handed.

After searching around, Chen An couldn't find anything substantial even after a long time of searching.

It was frustrating.

Chen An felt surprised as the two people he had encountered didn't seem to find anything valuable either.

Gradually, they turned and left.

Chen An was even more astonished.

Because he realized that the direction those two were headed was towards the location of the Bai Family's residence.

Were they committing a crime inside?

No, it wasn't.

Because when those two took off their masks, Chen An saw two familiar faces.

Liang Yao and Mr. Zhong. Sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ n0vᴇl(ꜰ)ire.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Watching this scene, Chen An couldn't help but be stunned.

"Oh boy.

You are a princess, why are you sneaking around in someone else's ancestral tomb in the middle of the night?"

Is your own family's ancestral tomb not big enough for you to frolic around, or do you just like the Feng Shui of other people's ancestral tombs?"

Chen An silently mocked in his heart.

The situation was clear.

Most likely, there was something valuable in the Bai Family's ancestral grounds, and this Princess Changping had found out about it.

That’s why she didn't hesitate to stoop down and experience the life of a grave robber.

Even if we think a bit further.

Perhaps this Princess Changping came to the Bai Family to stay because of what was in the Bai Family's ancestral grounds.

Logically, it seemed to make sense.

Chen An pondered, then quietly returned home.

The next day, he didn't bother to conceal anything and directly visited the princess.

Liang Yao was clearly surprised by Chen An's visit.

However, she did not refuse and received Chen An very politely.

"Mr. Chen suddenly came to find me. I wonder what important matter he has?"

In the spacious courtyard, Liang Yao and Chen An sat facing each other, with Mr. Zhong serving on the side, preparing tea for the two.

Looking at Chen An, Liang Yao seemed a bit curious, wanting to know why he suddenly came to visit.

Previously, Mr. Zhong had already told her the entire process of their previous confrontation.

Chen An could guess the connection between her and Mr. Zhong, a fact she had already realized.

However, Chen An's sudden visit still surprised her.

For this, she had prepared something to receive him.

As long as Chen An acted the wrong way, she would immediately take action.

No wonder she was so nervous.

After all, the person sitting in front of her was a monstrous figure who had advanced to the Qi stage before the age of twenty.

With a person like that, it was not an exaggeration to be careful no matter what.

Otherwise, what if things went wrong?

Compared to Liang Yao's pretense of calmness but secretly nervous, Chen An appeared much calmer.

Meeting Liang Yao's gaze, he smiled softly and said, "Princess, do you still need to disguise yourself?"

"What?" Liang Yao was a little puzzled, but her heart tightened.

Had her actions been discovered by the other party?

But which exact incident had been revealed?

She had done and hidden so many things that she didn't know which one Chen An was referring to.

Fortunately, Chen An did not keep her in suspense.

"Last night at the Bai family's ancestral land," Chen An said, raising the teacup and playing with it in his hand, but choosing not to drink.

You couldn't just drink from someone else's cup, what if it was poisoned?

"So it's about that incident," Liang Yao suddenly realized.

To Chen An's surprise, after he exposed the incident, Liang Yao didn't appear nervous at all. Instead, she seemed much more relaxed.

This situation was a bit off.

Shouldn't the normal reaction be nervous, or even wanting to kill to keep the secret?

Why did she seem more at ease?

"I did indeed visit the Bai family's ancestral land last night."

Even more unexpectedly, Liang Yao directly admitted to her actions, then looked at Chen An in front of her with some surprise and asked, "But Mr. Chen, how did you know?"

This time, Chen An was embarrassed.

"Cough," Chen An coughed lightly, then quickly found an excuse, "I was responsible for guarding the ancestral land last night, and happened to be there to keep watch."

"Oh really?" Liang Yao seemed suspicious.

How could she not remember this?

Before setting off, he had specifically investigated the situation there.

If she had known that Chen An was guarding the place, she wouldn't have stupidly gone there.

But from another perspective, Chen An's position at the Bai family was only as a son-in-law to one of the Bai family's daughters, a status far inferior to that of the legitimate family members. Therefore, it seemed reasonable for him to be arranged to guard the Bai family's ancestral land for a period of time.

After seeing that Liang Yao seemed to have been deceived, Chen An hastily spoke, "Shouldn't the Princess provide an explanation?"

"Even though you are a princess, sneaking into the Bai family's ancestral land in the middle of the night, it doesn't seem appropriate," he continued.

The Bai family was not to be trifled with.

Even though Liang Yao was the daughter of the current Emperor of Great Liang, a princess of Great Liang, it wasn't right to run around in someone else's ancestral tomb.

If word got out, being labeled as behaving improperly would be the least of her worries.

The elders of the Bai family would probably be furious.

"It's for a reason," Liang Yao said after some thought, then smiled and said, "I have a strange hobby since childhood, I like to steal from other people's ancestral tombs. How does that sound?"

This was admitting to having a hobby of grave robbing?

Chen An paused in surprise.

You're a princess, shouldn't you have some dignity? How can you say such things with a straight face?

Do you have no shame left?

Chen An remained silent for a moment, feeling speechless, "Princess, do you think I'm a fool?"

"It seems that Mr. Chen doesn't believe me."

Liang Yao sighed and looked disappointed, "I have already revealed so much, and Mr. Chen still doesn't want to believe me. It really breaks my heart."

I can't believe it, Chen An thought silently, not saying anything.

He had not had much interaction with her before, so he didn't have strong feelings, but now that he was in contact with Princess Liang Yao, he felt that she was an interesting person.

He had come all the way here, and she could still be so calm. Did she have the upper hand, knowing he wouldn't dare to act against her?

Or did she have some other cards up her sleeve?

Chen An pondered.

"Those who seek honesty must first show it."

He spoke softly, his face calm as he looked at Liang Yao, "Since I am here, please show some sincerity, Princess. Otherwise, no matter what you want to do next, it may not be as easy."

Chen An really didn't know what the other party was up to.

But what did it matter?

It was difficult to accomplish something in this world, but doing something bad was easy.

Whether Liang Yao could achieve her goal, Chen An didn't know.

But he was very clear about his ability to disrupt things.

Liang Yao hesitated for a moment, then sighed lightly before saying, "Okay, Mr. Chen, you win."

"What do you want to know, Mr. Chen?" she asked.

"What were you looking for in the Bai family's ancestral land?" Chen An asked, raising his head and staring at her intently, his face appearing very calm.

But under that calm exterior, a sense of danger was lurking, making Mr. Zhong, who was standing nearby, feel uneasy.

Liang Yao, however, remained unfazed, smiling and appearing very calm, "It's a hidden treasure."

"A hidden treasure?" Chen An furrowed his brows.

"Yes," Liang Yao nodded, "And as for what it specifically is, Mr. Chen, you will know soon enough."

"What do you mean?" Chen An asked, frowning.

"On the surface," Liang Yao spoke softly, "The era of change is coming, and many things in this world are changing. Some things that have been sealed and hidden in the past are naturally changing."

"The hidden treasure beneath the Bai family's ancestral land is one such thing."

"It's a hidden treasure sealed since ancient times, and for martial artists, it's of great help."

"An ancient sealed hidden treasure," Chen An subconsciously doubted, "Since it's the Bai family's hidden treasure, Princess, where did you get the information?"

"It's a long story," Liang Yao sighed.

"Then make it short," Chen An rolled his eyes and said.

He could already see where this was going.

After all that Liang Yao had said, she probably wanted to lead up to this.

But unquestionably, he was also a bit curious.

The fact that there was a hidden treasure beneath the Bai family's ancestral land should be a secret known only to members of the Bai family.

So why didn't the Bai family members know, but an outsider like Liang Yao did?

Did this involve some complex history and grudges?

Unconsciously, Chen An's mind had already started to fill in the gaps.

(End of Chapter)