Chapter 13 - Chapter 13: Liu Qingchan (Part 1)

Though the cat demon was killed, Liu Hushan had died due to his reckless carelessness. It is extremely difficult for ordinary people to advance to the Innate Realm unless they have exceptional talent. As an ordinary person from a humble background, Liu Hushan had overcome countless hardships to become an Innate Realm martial artist. Regrettably, a moment of recklessness cost him his life today.There are five low-rank cultivators in Lushan County—besides County Magistrate Zhang Menggong (Second Layer Qi Refining), the other four are Innate Realm cultivators. Among the over one hundred thousand mortals near Lushan County, almost everyone practices cultivation techniques, but only four have successfully advanced to the Innate Realm. This shows how difficult it is for those without spiritual roots to pursue the Dao.Zhang Zhixuan sighed inwardly, then had everyone make a simple stretcher to carry Liu Hushan's already stiff body back to his home. After advancing to the Innate Realm, Liu Hushan had served as Lushan County's City Patrol Officer for fifteen years. Over these fifteen years, thanks to his generous official salary, he had accumulated quite a bit of wealth—not only buying three hundred mu of fertile farmland outside the city but also purchasing a three-courtyard mansion in the county.Liu Hushan had no close brothers; his parents had already passed away, and his wife had died in childbirth. Because he had deeply loved his wife, he never took another wife or concubine. Besides an eight-year-old daughter, there was no one else in charge of his household.When everyone carried Liu Hushan into his home, Liu's servants immediately fell into chaos. Without a master, these servants had already anticipated the decline of the Liu Family—they scrambled to pack their valuables, looted the Liu Family's wealth, and fled in a swarm.Liu Hushan's eight-year-old daughter knelt beside her father's corpse, tightly clutching his hand. Tears welled up in her eyes, but none of the Liu Family's servants paid her any attention.Zhang Zhixuan and Zhang Menggong had no time to rest—they sent the demonic beast materials to the county government office. Zhang Menggong was originally an artifact-refining apprentice, capable of processing Rank 1 demonic beast materials to refine Rank 1 magical artifacts. The cat demon was a Low-Grade Rank 1 demonic beast; its materials were basically useless to Zhang Zhixuan and could not be sold for any Spirit Stones. Thus, Zhang Zhixuan simply gave all these low-rank materials to Zhang Menggong to handle. As for the remaining cat demon flesh—since Zhang Zhixuan did not want it—Zhang Menggong divided it equally among the other Innate Realm cultivators: the County Captain and the Chief Constable. He even kept the best piece for himself—he had no qualms about the fact that this cat demon had just eaten ten people's hearts.After the two finished handling the trivial matters, they went directly to Liu Hushan's home. Zhang Zhixuan glanced at the lonely, poorly little girl and frowned at the servants who had fled with gold and silver. "What is this? This is outrageous! Liu Hushan died in the line of duty—he's a hero of the Zhang Clan. How dare these rebellious servants bully their young mistress?"Though Zhang Menggong was an elder of the Zhang Clan, his authority within the clan was far less than Zhang Zhixuan's. Seeing Zhang Zhixuan's displeasure, his face darkened, and he shouted sternly, "All yamen runners! Arrest these rebellious servants immediately and demote them to mine slaves to work in the mines!""Did Liu Hushan have any other family?" Zhang Zhixuan asked."No close relatives—his closest clan members are more than three generations removed," Zhang Menggong replied."What will happen to Liu Hushan's daughter now?""She can only be adopted by the Liu Clan. Liu Hushan left a lot of property; since these Liu clansmen want to inherit his wealth, they won't let a child starve to death. Besides, the government will also take care of her to some extent," Zhang Menggong sighed."Little girl, how old are you?" Zhang Zhixuan asked, seeing the child's loneliness and pity."Though this child of Patrol Officer Liu is smart, she has been unable to speak since childhood. She's not stupid, but she's a bit withdrawn and 可怜," a warrior who was close to Liu Hushan replied.Zhang Zhixuan reached out and touched the top of the girl's head. The girl's delicate eyes sparkled with intelligence, but she shrank back in fear, then tightly hugged her deceased father—her tears soaking Liu Hushan's clothes."What's this child's name?" Zhang Zhixuan asked."Her nickname is Qingchan," the warrior replied."Patrol Officer Liu looks rough and tough, but he gave his daughter such a beautiful name," another warrior under Liu Hushan said."Patrol Officer Liu isn't completely illiterate—he can recognize a few words. But this name was given by a wandering Taoist monk. Eight years ago, when this child was just born, her mother passed away. A wandering Taoist monk came and stayed at Patrol Officer Liu's home for a few days, then named the child Qingchan," the warrior who was close to Liu Hushan explained.Looking at this poor little girl, Zhang Zhixuan felt a surge of sadness. This little girl's fate was tragic: her mother died when she was just born; she became mute when she was just learning to speak; and now that she had just grown up and understood things, her last remaining family member had left her."Liu Hushan was a good man. Though I only met him once or twice, he was willing to die to save me today. It's a pity he didn't survive—otherwise, he would have been a worthy friend. Even though his act of saving me was unnecessary (I could have dodged the cat demon's spell without his help), he was just an ordinary mortal who didn't fully understand the abilities of immortal cultivators. His daughter is so young, left alone in this world—she deserves some care. This child is almost old enough to start cultivating. If she has spiritual roots, I'll take her back to the mountain to practice. If she doesn't have spiritual roots, in a few years, I'll find her a kind and reliable family, so she can live a safe and happy life," Zhang Zhixuan thought to himself as he looked at the tearful little girl Liu Qingchan.Having been alone in this life, Zhang Zhixuan felt soft-hearted toward helpless children. Thus, he pretended to be relaxed and said, "I'm short of a maid to do laundry and cook. This child looks smart and clever—let her follow me. Little girl, your father has gone to another world. Don't hold onto his hand so tightly—it will make him worry when he leaves. You've grown up now; you need to be sensible."