The next morning, Luo He departed for the Jin mansion alone. Although the inspiration for the Bloodline Evolution Catalyst had come to him recently most of the tools, materials, and experimental equipment he required still remained within the Jin estate.
And unlike large military convoys or noble carriages Luo He preferred speed over appearance. So he traveled on foot.
Alone. To ordinary people crossing such distances without mounts sounded absurd. To Luo He it was faster.
His body moved across the roads with frightening efficiency each step controlled with practiced precision. He barely seemed to slow no matter the terrain beneath him. Villages, forests, and hills passed behind him one after another while the cold morning wind swept against his armour.
He truly was terrifyingly fast on his feet.
By the time he arrived at the Jin mansion word of his return had already spread through the estate. But unlike the cautious reception he once received after just marrying into the family
everything had completely changed now.
Servants lowered their heads respectfully the moment they saw him.
Guards straightened instantly. Even the two elders now treated him almost like the pillar supporting the entire Jin family itself. And honestly they were not entirely wrong.
The trade routes Luo He had established were flourishing beyond expectation. Caravans arrived and departed constantly bringing wealth into the Jin estate at a speed the family had never experienced before. Gold flowed endlessly now.
Influence followed closely behind it.
The Jin family's position within Yue had risen dramatically in only a short period of time and everyone inside the mansion understood exactly who was responsible for it. Luo He.
Jin Quan and Jin Su were the first to greet him after he entered the estate.
Jin Quan laughed loudly the moment he saw him. "You disappear for days and every time you return the entire kingdom changes."
Jin Su, meanwhile studied him with calmer eyes. "You look busy," she observed. "I usually am but nothing that important." Luo He answered casually.
The short exchange quickly turned into conversation as they walked deeper into the estate together.
Servants hurried to prepare tea while guards moved aside respectfully to clear the path. Yet Luo He's attention was already elsewhere. Toward the rear section of the mansion. Toward his laboratory. Or rather what used to be his laboratory.
When Luo He first arrived at the Jin estate the place had been little more than a crude wooden shack thrown together near the outer grounds. A temporary structure. Barely suitable for proper experimentation. Now?
Now it had become an entirely different sight. A fully reinforced compound stood where the old shack once existed. Thick stone walls surrounded the structure while carefully designed ventilation systems and storage chambers connected into separate working sections.
Rare materials were guarded carefully behind locked iron doors and several assistants moved carefully inside following strict cleaning instructions Luo He himself had established long ago.
The place no longer resembled a poor man's workshop. It looked like the research hall of a mad genius. And in many ways that was exactly what it had become.
Luo He entered the laboratory only briefly. He selected the materials personally inspected several refined compounds himself and chose the exact equipment he required for the Bloodline Evolution Catalyst experiments.
Every bottle, furnace, needle array, and spirit-inscribed container was checked with careful attention before he finally instructed the servants to prepare them for transport. Unlike ordinary alchemists Luo He trusted almost nobody with delicate work.
Especially not when the thing he was creating could potentially shake entire kingdoms. Once everything was arranged he left the laboratory and headed deeper into the residential section of the estate.
Toward Su Kim's residence. The moment he stepped inside his eyes landed on the child first. His son had grown noticeably bigger since the last time he had seen him. Not by much. But enough. Enough for Luo He to pause without realizing it.
The little boy was sitting beneath the shaded pavilion wrapped in soft cloth. His movements were still slow and uncoordinated yet his bright eyes immediately locked onto Luo He's figure the moment he approached.
And unexpectedly a quiet warmth spread through Luo He's chest. A genuine one.
He crouched slightly and touched the child's head carefully. The boy immediately grabbed his finger. Luo He smiled faintly. Then he looked toward Su Kim. And the smile faded slightly.
Because something was wrong. She hid it well. Very well. But Luo He noticed immediately. The slight exhaustion beneath her eyes. The hesitation in her expression. The subtle stiffness in the way she carried herself.
She greeted him normally and said nothing unusual yet Luo He could clearly feel the difference. And for once he immediately blamed himself. He had left her here alone. An unofficial woman living inside the estate of his legal wife's family.
No matter how stable the situation appeared that position was naturally difficult. How had he overlooked that?
How had he failed to consider what kind of pressure she might face in his absence? For perhaps the first time in days genuine guilt surfaced within him.
Luo He apologized first. Directly.
"I stayed away too long." Su Kim looked slightly surprised by the sudden sincerity in his voice. "It's fine," she answered softly. But Luo He knew it was not fine.
Not completely.
He left her shortly afterward and went searching for Jin Yang instead. Among the Jin family members Jin Yang was the easiest to speak openly with and the least likely to hide uncomfortable truths.
And through him Luo He finally learned what had happened.
To his surprise the problem had not come from the Jin family at all. In fact things had been almost the opposite.
After learning more about Luo He's true abilities and influence nobody within the estate dared challenge Su Kim openly anymore.
She had been treated respectfully as a guest of the household and the child had been accepted warmly as well. Even Jin Su herself had never once caused trouble for her. And Jin Quan that giant of a man had apparently grown absurdly attached to the child.
Jin Yang even described how Jin Quan would personally carry the boy around the estate gardens during the evenings proudly walking him through the park so Su Kim could rest peacefully for a while.
Luo He nearly laughed imagining the muscular Jin Quan carefully carrying a tiny child around like a treasured artifact.
It seemed he had placed his trust in the right people after all. But the true problem had come from outside the estate. The son of the regional duke.
A spoiled young noble with enough status to behave arrogantly almost anywhere within Yue territory.
Su Kim had encountered him while returning from the market days earlier.
At first it had only been words. Then provocation. Then force. She had resisted naturally. But Su Kim was still weakened from childbirth and lacked the strength she once possessed.
Against a properly trained noble cultivator and a really good one at that she had ultimately been overpowered completely. Humiliatingly. Cruelly.
And during the confrontation the duke's son had crossed lines no decent man should cross.
When Luo He heard that part the temperature in the room seemed to drop slightly. Jin Yang visibly hesitated before continuing. "She still refused to tell you," he admitted quietly. "Even afterward."
Because Su Kim understood Luo He too well.
She knew exactly what kind of person he was beneath the calm smiles and casual laughter. And she knew if Luo He learned someone had humiliated her like that someone was going to die. Luo He left Jin Yang's courtyard with a calm face.
Too calm. That was what made it dangerous. He understood exactly how serious this situation was. The son of a regional duke was not some street thug that could simply disappear without consequences. One careless move could drag the entire Jin family into political disaster if the matter escalated openly.
But that only mattered if the problem remained outside Luo He's control.
And Luo He had no intention of allowing that. He soon found Jin Su within the inner residence hall. The moment she saw his expression her eyes sharpened slightly.