Chapter 237: Chapter 237 Tonight I’ll Treat You to Snake Soup_1
Hearing this, Chu Hao’s heart thumped wildly.
The Nine Gates Chu Family of Huaxia?
Chu Hao stared at Su Qingqi. "How do you know my birth date and time?"
The study of divination requires a person’s birth date and time to determine their origins. However, Chu Hao didn’t even know his own because he was found and raised by an old woman. Naturally, any recorded birth date and time wouldn’t be accurate.
Su Qingqi smiled. "It’s not based on your birth date and time. According to our investigation, you were born in Jiulong Town, and the Chu Family had dealings there in the past."
Chu Hao’s eyes turned icy. "Regardless of whether I’m a member of the Nine Gates of Huaxia or not, what do you want with me?"
At this, Su Qingqi became somewhat excited. "We want to test your blood to see if it carries King Chu’s bloodline. If it does, we’d like to ask for your help."
Chu Hao raised an eyebrow, a cold laugh escaping him. "My blood? Do you take me for a lab rat? And you think I’d actually go with you?"
Su Qingqi frowned. "Mr. Chu, after all these years, don’t you want to know your true identity?"
Chu Hao waved his hand dismissively. "And so what if I find out?" he said indifferently. "Since they abandoned me, why should I debase myself by seeking out my origins? Besides, I’m living better than anyone else right now."
Su Qingqi opened her mouth, then said helplessly, "Mr. Chu, let me be frank. Our Su Family is excavating the relics of King Chu, and we need the blood of the direct lineage to open them."
Chu Hao asked, a peculiar look on his face, "Are you saying the Chu Family are descendants of King Chu?"
Su Qingqi nodded. "Chu Xiongyi, the founding patriarch of Chu in the Western Zhou era, is indeed an ancestor of the Chu Family."
Chu Xiongyi was the founding lord of the Chu Kingdom. During the Western Zhou Dynasty, King Cheng of Zhou enfeoffed him the land of the Southern Barbarians, where he established the Chu Kingdom. His father, Chu Xiongzhao, was even a military advisor to King Wen of Zhou.
During his reign, Chu Xiongyi focused on developing production and expanding territory. He famously rode in a simple firewood cart and wore tattered clothes while pioneering the Jing Mountains. Despite such hardships, he diligently crossed mountains and rivers to present tribute to the Zhou Son of Heaven. Thanks to the dedicated efforts of successive rulers, from Chu Xiongyi to Xiong Qu, the Chu Kingdom’s territory steadily expanded. Its national power also burgeoned, transforming it from a minor state merely fifty li in radius into a vast and powerful nation.
Bear in mind, the ancestors of the famous general Xiang Yu were all renowned generals during the Chu Kingdom era. When Xiang Yu was proclaimed the Overlord of Western Chu, he even named his domain ’Western Chu,’ demonstrating his deep loyalty to the legacy of the Chu Kingdom.
Chu Hao glanced at the woman. "Are you kidding me?"
Su Qingqi was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
Chu Hao looked at her askance, his disdain palpable. How can he look at someone like that? It’s infuriating! He’s practically begging for a beating! Su Qingqi fumed internally.
Chu Hao said, "If I’m a descendant of King Chu from the Western Zhou lineage, then helping an outsider open my ancestor’s relics would be like digging up my own family’s graves, wouldn’t it? Do you take me for an idiot?"
Su Qingqi was speechless. I actually have no response to that.
Chu Hao continued, "Besides, if you want to open King Chu’s relics, why not go directly to the Nine Gates Chu Family of Huaxia? Their blood would be purer, surely? Why come looking for me? I suspect... you can’t handle the Chu Family yourselves, can you?"
Su Qingqi felt helpless. This kid is indeed clever. It’s my own fault for letting that slip. I thought he’d be easy to fool because he’s young. Now this is awkward.
Chu Hao gave a cold laugh. "If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going."
A joke. You think you can fool me? Brother Hao is the progenitor of all con artists on the bridge.
Su Qingqi said helplessly, "Actually, the Chu Family has been all but wiped out. You’re the only one from their direct lineage we’ve managed to find."
Chu Hao’s heart leaped. He turned his head sharply. This statement was too significant. The Chu Family... wiped out?
Chu Hao pressed, "What did you say? How was the Chu Family wiped out?"
Su Qingqi touched her chin. "It happened eighteen years ago. The Chu Family disappeared overnight. They were once the foremost family of the Nine Gates, but their members scattered and vanished without a trace. It’s a mystery to everyone."
Chu Hao’s heart pounded, his mind racing to process the information.
If I really am from the Chu Family, and the Chu Family was destroyed... then isn’t it possible my parents sent me away before they disappeared or died? If that’s true, there must be more to my origins than I thought. In that case... I have to investigate this, even if it costs me my life.
Chu Hao’s eyes became firm and resolute as he stared at Su Qingqi. "How do you determine if I am a descendant of King Chu?"
Su Qingqi quickly responded, "The Blood Disk. There’s a Blood Disk left by King Chu’s ancestors. As long as it’s fresh blood from King Chu’s lineage, we can use technology to prove whether you truly are a descendant of King Chu."
"Fine, I’ll go with you. But if you’re lying to me..." Chu Hao’s eyes glinted with a cold light.
This was the first time he cared so deeply about his own origins. The thought that there might have been a reason his parents abandoned him was something Chu Hao couldn’t ignore; he felt compelled to find out.
Su Qingqi smiled, took out her phone, and made a call for a car to pick them up.
In truth, even if Chu Hao had refused, she would have found a way to get some of his blood; she had already stationed people in ambush nearby.
The phone rang, and Su Qingqi answered.
An urgent voice came from the phone, "Miss, a Snake Demon is heading your way!"
Su Qingqi exclaimed in surprise, "It actually caught up?!"
"Chasing me for so long and still not giving up?" scoffed Chu Hao, whose hearing was excellent enough to catch the warning. "Do you really think this Taoist Master is a pushover?"
Su Qingqi said frantically, "Don’t do anything reckless! I’ll have my people handle it! That’s a Green Snake Demon with two hundred years of cultivation! You can’t get hurt!"
She needed to ensure Chu Hao’s safety to take him to the relics left by King Chu.
Chu Hao said coldly, "Give me a minute."
Chu Hao walked out onto the main road, staring down the path behind them. He soon spotted a massive Green Snake slithering rapidly in his direction.
Perhaps excited at being the first to reach Chu Hao, it lifted its head, hissed at the sky, and then twisted its body, shooting forward as fast as a hurricane.
Su Qingqi urgently spoke into the phone, "Quick, find a way to stop it!"
"Understood!" came the reply from the other end.
Just then, two or three figures darted out, blocking the middle of the road. They spread out a large net entirely covered in Talisman Papers—Demon Breaking Talismans.
Demons were different from ghosts; Monster Qi was much stronger than Ghost Qi. This was especially true for fully formed demons. Out of tens of millions of snakes, perhaps only one could cultivate into a true demon. Over vast spans of time, they refined their Monster Qi to incredible levels; the stronger the Monster Qi, the more powerful the demon.
Against this Green Snake Demon, a single Demon Breaking Talisman would be useless. That was why the entire net was constructed from countless Talisman Papers.
The giant snake hissed furiously, charging forward undaunted. The net-like talisman formation immediately enveloped it. But with a powerful flick of its tail, two of Su Family’s people were sent flying. The Snake Demon’s strength was terrifying, and its Monster Qi even more so.
Seeing the Snake Demon lunging towards Chu Hao, Su Qingqi screamed, "Chu Hao, run!"
Chu Hao sneered as the Night Demon Spear materialized in his hand. "A mere Snake Demon dares challenge this Taoist Master? You really think I can’t deal with you?" His voice was cold. "Miss Su, you’ll be having snake soup tonight."