Chapter 579 - 576: A Conspiracy Descends
Although the elite and VIP sections were temporarily closed, the restaurant’s business was unaffected and continued to be packed to capacity.
The first session ended, and the customers promptly filed out of the restaurant as a new batch swarmed in.
One of them, a figure in a black robe, wore a conical hat that could block the probes of another’s Divine Sense.
After entering the restaurant, he stood by the entrance. He didn’t wander off or look for a seat, but instead took a silver hairpin from within his robes.
The moment the hairpin was revealed, on the second floor of the restaurant, Gu Peng, who had been standing guard over Gu Lele, shot his eyes open.
Overcome with emotion, his breathing quickening, he rose without hesitation and descended to the first floor to stand face-to-face with the black-robed figure.
The instant he saw the hairpin, Gu Peng’s eyes stung and turned red.
’How many years has it been? I’ve been searching all alone for so long. Even when everyone told me to give up, I still held on.’
He knew the chances were slim, but he still clung to a faint hope.
’What if?’
’What if my parents are still alive?’
’No one ever saw their bodies!’
Gu Peng remembered the hairpin before him with perfect clarity. It was the one his mother had worn in her hair bun the last time he saw his parents.
Perhaps because so much time had passed, the aura on the hairpin was very faint, almost nonexistent.
But Gu Peng could never be mistaken. ’That’s my mother’s scent!’
"You..."
Gu Peng had just started to speak when he was cut off by a voice transmission from the black-robed figure.
"If you want to know more, follow me."
Without waiting for Gu Peng’s reaction, the black-robed figure turned, left the restaurant, and flew off into the distance.
Gu Peng refused to let this opportunity slip away and followed without a second thought.
He knew this was highly suspicious, likely a trap aimed at him and Mo Qi, but there was no time to overthink it.
’This might be my only chance.’
He had to find out his parents’ whereabouts, whether they were alive or dead.
’If they’re alive, where are they?’
’If they’re dead, who was the killer?’
The entire exchange was so brief that neither Xiao Zhang nor Mo Qi noticed what had happened.
"Who in the world are you? Where did you get that hairpin?" Gu Peng demanded as he gave chase.
The black-robed figure remained silent, flying at high speed. Before long, he had led Gu Peng to a deserted area.
They were far from Mo Qi’s restaurant now; even a major battle here wouldn’t attract any attention.
The black-robed figure stopped and removed his conical hat, revealing his face.
"It’s you, Gu Weitian!" Gu Peng recognized him—it was Gu Weitian, Patriarch of the Gu Family.
"That’s right, it’s me!" Gu Weitian raised his hand and with a casual wave, his Immortal Essence surged, sealing the surrounding space. He sneered at Gu Peng.
"You want revenge for Gu Zetao?" Gu Peng wasn’t a fool; he quickly put the pieces together.
Gu Weitian gritted his teeth. "So it’s true. You killed Zetao."
"Hmph! He stole Lele’s Talent Bloodline. He deserved to die!" Gu Peng was unflinching.
He had prepared himself for danger the moment he gave chase.
"Good, good, good! ’Deserved to die,’ you say!" Gu Weitian laughed in fury. "How could a low-born brat possibly compare to Zetao? It was her honor to have her bloodline used by him! Betraying the family was one thing, but to dare kill Zetao... Unforgivable!"
Gu Peng laughed too, but it was a cold sneer. "Like father, like son. Gu Zetao said something very similar. Unfortunately for him, he’s already dead! And it was an exceptionally gruesome death!"
"Shut up!" Gu Weitian roared, sending Gu Peng flying with a single slap.
The immense force sent half of Gu Peng’s teeth flying. His cheek split open, and blood streamed down his face.
If Gu Peng weren’t still of some use, that one slap would have killed him.
Gu Peng coughed up mouthfuls of blood, a wretched sight, but a smile remained on his face.
"Pah!"
He spat out the broken teeth in his mouth, then laughed. "You probably don’t know yet, do you? Lele has already taken back her bloodline. It was extracted from Gu Zetao’s body while he was still alive."
"You should have seen it. Gu Zetao, the prodigy you were so proud of, groveling before us like a dog and begging for his life. And in the end? His soul was obliterated in despair! Hahaha!"
Gu Weitian fought back the urge to kill Gu Peng on the spot.
"Are you trying to provoke me into killing you? Heh. It’s not that simple. I’ll make you wish you were dead!"
With that, Gu Weitian made a grasping motion with his hand, and the Power of Heaven and Earth descended upon Gu Peng.
"Back off!" Gu Peng roared. His Grotto Heaven descended as he unleashed his Dragon Elephant Bloodline at full power.
A phantom image of a Dragon Elephant, so vast it seemed to touch the sky, appeared. It trumpeted a heaven-shaking roar, imbuing Gu Peng with immense explosive power and stamina.
Though he knew he was no match for his opponent, Gu Peng refused to go down without a fight.
’If I’m going to die, I’ll die fighting!’
The gap in their power was too vast. In a single clash, the Dragon Elephant phantom shattered like glass.
Every bone in his body was crushed to powder, and even his Grotto Heaven was ripped in two.
SPURT!
Gu Peng coughed up another mouthful of blood, collapsing to the ground, unable to move a muscle.
His injuries now were far more severe than when his Dantian had been destroyed.
Gu Weitian flicked a finger, sending an Immortal Pill into Gu Peng’s mouth to keep him from dying from his grievous injuries.
"This is just the beginning!"
Gu Peng forced his eyes open and sent out a thought with his Divine Sense. "The hairpin... that hairpin..."
"You mean this?"
Gu Weitian held up the hairpin, his fingers tightening around it.
SNAP!
The hairpin broke into two pieces and fell onto Gu Peng’s face.
"Don’t even think about it. Your parents died long ago. In fact, let me tell you something else: I’m the one who killed them. As for why I have the hairpin... let’s just say your mother was quite a beauty. The memory is... unforgettable."
"You animal!" A wave of fury surged through Gu Peng, and he coughed up another spray of blood before passing out.
Seeing this, Gu Weitian gazed into the distance toward the restaurant. ’Mo Qi, you whelp,’ he thought. ’This is just the appetizer. Are you ready to face your own death?’
...
On this day, turmoil erupted almost simultaneously among sixteen families of the North District Envoy Hall.
The young scions who had purchased private custom services at the "Uncle Niu’s Kitchen God" restaurant had all dropped dead.
This matter alarmed the upper echelons of these families and ignited their fury.
’To think someone dared to murder their most promising young members!’
The patriarchs of the various families ordered a full investigation. The results revealed that all the deceased had died from a relapse of an old illness.
This raised a few questions.
First, hadn’t the deceased’s illnesses already been cured by Mo Qi’s Medicinal Cuisine?
Second, even without treatment, given their prior conditions, a relapse—even a severe one—should not have been fatal. The families had spent fortunes seeking Mo Qi’s private services for these individuals precisely because they were all prodigies with extraordinary talent.
Third, the great families were confident in their defenses. It was impossible for an assassin to have infiltrated their grounds and killed someone without being discovered. The problem had to have originated with the deceased themselves.
As such, all signs pointed directly to Mo Qi.
It wasn’t difficult to deduce that this was all Mo Qi’s doing. He had used the private custom service as a pretext to add something to the food, causing their deaths.