The冥医 looked at the figure across with disbelief. That silhouette was indeed from the Misty Immortal Palace!
"Ning Yu, by the original agreement, your Ning family descendants are forever forbidden from practicing the evil arts within your 'Three Techniques and Six Books.' We've set up formations within them. Should anyone attempt to practice them, I would naturally appear. Now, someone has broken the pact. I am acting according to the agreement. Do you have anything else to say?"
The figure appeared unstable, its light flickering. Clearly, after speaking, that person was growing impatient and eager to act.
"If your true self had appeared, this old man might have feared you somewhat. But you are merely a lingering sword-image, and moreover, you dared to sever the ancestral shrine of my Ning family with a single sword strike! Do you expect me to speak to you politely?!"
As the Ning family's Old Ancestor spoke, he extended a hand.
Instantly, winds surged and clouds roiled. Without any further elaborate movements from the Old Ancestor, it was as if an invisible giant hand enveloped the mass of light.
The next second, the Old Ancestor clenched his fist, and that silhouette vanished.
As it disappeared, the light flickered menacingly, "Ning Yu! You will regret this!"
Once everything settled, the Old Ancestor turned to face the 冥医 and Ning Fengzhi.
"Are you the current 冥医?" the Old Ancestor scrutinized the 冥医 for a few seconds.
"Yes, Great-Grandfather," the 冥医 quickly responded, then presented the 'Three Techniques and Six Books' he held.
"This is originally a secret manual of our Ning family's inheritance. Why are you looking through it?" Ning Yu stared at the 冥医, seeing a familiar figure in this child.
Very similar, so very similar...
"I wish to know about the past of the Ning family."
The 冥医 spoke with neither subservience nor arrogance, fixing his gaze on the Old Ancestor. "Outside, I met someone named Ning Yuan, who claimed to be of the same generation as Great-Grandfather."
"Ning Yuan?"
Upon hearing this name, Ning Yu's hand trembled.
He had remained unfazed when facing the lingering sword-image, but this name elicited such a strong reaction: "Where is he? Where? What did he tell you?"
"Great-Grandfather, you know him? He said he was once a prodigy of our Ning family, a future 冥医, but at that time, the Ning family lost its conflict with the Misty Immortal Palace, and he was forced into slumber." The 冥医 kept observing his Great-Grandfather, and it seemed Ning Yuan had not lied, judging by his Great-Grandfather's reaction.
"...You know?"
After a moment of silence, Ning Yu waved his hand, transporting both the 冥医 and Ning Fengzhi to the secluded dwelling where he typically practiced his cultivation.
This was a room at the very rear of the Ning family's inner courtyard.
In the past, no Ning family member would ever approach this place. Firstly, there was genuinely nothing of interest here. Secondly, all Ning family elders strictly forbade their descendants from coming near.
This was his residence.
"Sit."
The room's furnishings bore the marks of time, yet it was evident they were well-maintained. The interior decor resembled that of the 1970s or 80s, and the armrests of the chairs were polished to a gleaming sheen.
"Great-Grandfather, could our Ning family truly have contended with the Misty Immortal Palace back then?"
As soon as they sat down, the 冥医 directly posed the question.
"Contended?"
Upon hearing his question, Ning Yu let out a derisive laugh. "What in the world do they amount to?!"