Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 367

Han Li chuckled lightly.

“Well, isn’t it possible that I was born looking like this? Or is that so unbelievable?”

The scholar suppressed his anger and retorted coldly, “There may be many people in the world who resemble our esteemed ancestor, but you are the only one who would dare to appear in our family shrine with the face of our ancestor.”

“You have a way with words! You’re fit to work for the court. The fact that the Han family has prospered today is thanks to the efforts of descendants like you!” Han Li praised him with a more relaxed expression, but the scholar’s face darkened further.

“Are you really planning to impersonate our family’s ancestor and mock the Han family?”

“Impersonate? There’s no reason for me to impersonate myself. First, tell me, I left the family when I was young, and no one in the family would know what I look like. How did you recognize me? Did the Seven Mysteries Sect [a martial arts sect] have a portrait of me? And you, you seem to have the surname ‘Lyu,’ what is your relationship with the deceased Lyu Bi-woo?”

As he spoke, he carefully examined the giant, and his eyes seemed somewhat similar to Lyu Bi-woo’s. The giant was startled by the name Lyu Bi-woo and burst into anger. “How do you know our ancestor’s name!”

Han Li just smiled and didn’t give a clear answer, but when the scholar heard him mention ‘Seven Mysteries Sect’ and ‘Lyu Bi-woo,’ he began to wonder. “Our esteemed ancestor disappeared after leaving this place in his youth. If you are indeed my esteemed ancestor, you would be over 200 years old, but you certainly don’t look like it.” He himself had only recently learned about the story of the Han and Lyu families through a letter. But it was strange that the other party knew so much about the family’s secrets.

‘Did he see the letter?’ Without realizing it, the scholar’s gaze turned to the hidden gap behind the ancestral tablets. The records of the ancestors were kept there. Han Li also noticed the scholar’s strange behavior and scanned the gap behind the tablets with his consciousness.

He raised his hand without hesitation and pointed to the spot. At the same time, something happened that made the giant and the scholar’s eyes widen. A blue light permeated the table, and old, yellowed letters floated into the air and flew towards Han Li. Han Li calmly examined them.

The scholar was a man who wouldn’t budge at most things, but this time he was so surprised that he gasped and had to look at the giant. The giant was also looking at him, but his face was filled with surprise and joy. As the scholar didn’t know what to do, the giant clasped his fist and bowed deeply to Han Li.

“It may be rude, but there is something I must ask. Are you perhaps a cultivator from legends? If so, we, ordinary mortals, would not dare to doubt your identity. However, given the circumstances, do you have any tokens to prove your identity?” The scholar was stunned as he listened to the giant’s words, and when he heard the word ‘cultivator,’ he was shocked and looked at Han Li.

“Oh, I didn’t expect you to know about cultivators! Looking at the letters, you really are a descendant of Lyu Bi-woo. I never thought that the descendants of the Lyu family would be connected with the Han family for generations. As for the token you speak of… I didn’t bring anything when I left in a hurry to cultivate. I didn’t even say goodbye to Brother Lyu, just left him a few bottles of pills.”

The giant immediately reacted to Han Li’s casual words. “Pills! Does that mean the medicine bottles that have been enshrined in our shrine are the ones you left behind, Senior!”

“Back then, Brother Lyu didn’t hesitate to take the extreme poison called ‘Chusu Pill’ for the sake of martial arts. Even if there were pills I left behind, he wouldn’t have been able to enjoy a long life.” Han Li sighed, and his face darkened. Then, the giant carefully asked, “I don’t know much about the family’s secrets. My father is still alive, so may I inform him of this matter and have it confirmed?” Although he said this, the giant already believed Han Li’s identity. Although he didn’t know the details, he remembered that the ancestor who had laid the foundation of the family had died young for no reason.

“That’s enough! I’ve only returned this time to settle my last ties with the mortal world, so don’t make a big deal out of it. Still, it’s a relief to know that the descendants of the Han family and my old friend are living well.” The giant hurriedly gestured to the middle-aged scholar. In any case, having a cultivator as an ancestor, a being that ordinary people didn’t even know existed, was a major event related to the rise and fall of the family.

The scholar couldn’t possibly not know what the giant knew. He was silent for a moment before opening his mouth politely. “If you are indeed my esteemed ancestor, there is another way to confirm it. There are items left behind by our ancestors in this shrine. If you can recognize them, I will naturally believe your words.”

“Relics of the ancestors, let’s take a look. I left home at such a young age, I don’t know how many I’ll recognize.”

“Please rest assured. These items are all meant to remind us of the times when our family was not well-off, so you should be able to recognize them.” The scholar asked for Han Li’s understanding and went downstairs. A small noise was heard from the first floor, and then the scholar returned to Han Li with a box wrapped in red cloth. He removed the red cloth and opened the box, which was full of crude and old-looking items.

“Can you recognize them?”

“Surprisingly, I recognize most of them. It seems like two or three were purchased after I left.” Han Li smiled, as if he was also surprised. “This slingshot and bow belong to my second brother, Han Joo, and this wooden hairpin was my mother’s favorite accessory. This pipe…”

The scholar’s doubts completely disappeared as he listened to Han Li’s mumbling while picking up each old item. Only he, who had inherited the position of family head, knew such trivial details among the Han family members. So, when Han Li finished speaking, the scholar immediately pulled the giant’s arm and bowed deeply together.

“Your grandson, Han Chun-so, has been unfilial and committed a great discourtesy to our esteemed ancestor.” Han Li was filled with emotion as he looked at the two middle-aged men who had become extremely polite. “The world is truly unpredictable. After wandering around in other places after leaving my hometown, the Han family is now called a powerful clan. You two, get up! There’s no need to pay such great respects to an ancestor who hasn’t cared about family matters for so long.”

The middle-aged scholar got up, but still answered very respectfully. “No, it is our great sin that we did not know you were alive and did not come to see you.”

“That’s enough. I’m going to leave this way anyway. The less involved a person pursuing the Dao [the path of cultivation] is with worldly ties, the better.” The scholar was surprised and asked back when Han Li shook his arm. “Are you leaving just like this? I will serve you, so please at least see the faces of the other Han family members.”

“I already looked around on my way here. Unfortunately, none of the numerous descendants of the Han family have the aptitude for spiritual roots [the potential for cultivation]. It seems our fate ends here. Otherwise, I could have taken one or two as disciples!”

“Our descendants are not fortunate enough to meet your expectations, esteemed ancestor.” The scholar smiled bitterly, a hint of disappointment flashing across his face. “It’s originally difficult to find one person with the aptitude for cultivation among ten thousand. It’s not strange that there isn’t a single child with spiritual roots among the hundreds of descendants of the Han family. Moreover, the current cultivation world is in utter chaos, so it’s best for the Han and Lyu families not to get involved with it. In times like these, there have been many cases of families being wiped out after being caught up in it.”

The scholar bowed his head sincerely at Han Li’s unexpected words. “I will follow your instructions, esteemed ancestor.” Han Li turned his gaze to the bearded giant and asked, “How many generations are you descended from Lyu Bi-woo, and what is your name?”

“I am Lyu Poong, the 11th generation descendant of our ancestor. It is an honor to meet you, esteemed ancestor Han!”

“Brother Lyu and I were like brothers when we were young, so it’s not entirely inappropriate for you to call me esteemed ancestor. Judging by how you stood up for Chun-so earlier, you must have worked hard for the Han family in many ways. As an ancestor of the Han family, I cannot help but commend the efforts of the Lyu family! These pills are of great help to those who practice martial arts, so keep them and use them to train the disciples of your family.” Han Li brushed his sleeve with one hand, and a white light flashed, revealing various small medicine bottles. The giant grinned from ear to ear, clearly showing his joy as he received the medicine bottles.

Martial artists of the Jianghu [the martial world] progressed faster than cultivators, but they still spent decades building up their internal energy. With these pills, the Lyu family would be able to produce many more experts in the future. The middle-aged scholar also looked at Han Li with expectant eyes. Soon after, Han Li waved his hand towards the spirit beast pouch on his waist.

Buzz buzz buzz buzz. At the same time, over a thousand three-colored gold-devouring beetles flew up madly, filling the shrine. The strange light from the shells of the flying insects was reminiscent of the many stars in the night sky. The scholar and the giant stared wide-eyed, engraving the strange sight into their memories. Han Li’s finger silently pointed at the swarm of flying insects.

The thousand or so gold-devouring beetles instantly coalesced into a three-colored treasure sword and fell into his hand. Whoosh! Unable to believe what they were seeing, the scholar and the giant didn’t dare to open their mouths. Han Li’s expression was extremely serious as he held the three-colored sword in one hand and stroked its blade with the other.

After a long while, he let out a long breath, exhaling a blue aura that touched the treasure sword, turning it into an old scabbard with a blue hue, covering the blade. “This sword is something I made by condensing a miraculous insect. It will move on its own and annihilate enemies. I will leave this in the shrine, so if the Han family faces a crisis of annihilation, you can take your family members and hide inside the shrine to overcome the danger. But remember, I am not directly controlling the sword, so once the sword is drawn, everyone and livestock within a ten-mile radius of the shrine, except for the people inside the shrine, will be slaughtered. Mortals can’t do anything about it, but as long as you wear this jade pendant with my aura, you can draw and activate the sword. So, pass the jade pendant down to the family head for management.”

“We will keep that in mind!” Having witnessed such an incredible sight, there was no room to doubt the power of the sword. Han Li smiled calmly at the scholar’s delighted face and immediately handed him the treasure sword and the jade pendant.

“Also, the scabbard that seals the sword will run out of energy after being used three times. Each time you use this Gold-Devouring Spirit Sword, the scabbard will become thinner, and the moment the number of uses reaches three, the scabbard will disappear, and the sword will turn back into insects and vanish. I believe that by preventing three major crises for the family, I have fulfilled my duty as your esteemed ancestor. Nothing can be eternal, so it’s not bad to enjoy a few hundred years of good times before declining.”

Han Chun-so’s attitude became even more cautious as he received the sword and jade pendant at Han Li’s request. Perhaps pleased with his careful and composed demeanor, Han Li took out two more amber-colored medicine bottles and gave one each to the scholar and the giant. He smiled at their surprised faces and said, “The ones I gave you earlier were for the Han and Lyu families. These are for you two, who are descendants of the family and have a deep connection with me for meeting me directly. The pills in these two bottles will improve the physical strength and lifespan of ordinary mortals. If you take them, you will easily live a long and healthy life until you are 100 years old.”

“Thank you!”

“Thank you so much! Esteemed ancestor Han!” The scholar and the giant, each holding a medicine bottle, were overjoyed and bowed repeatedly.

# 369