Pei Hao Hong said, "Although we, the descendants of the Pei family, are dedicated to atoning for our sins, regrettably, no one is willing to believe us."

"In the past, the old friends of the Pei family either treated us with indifference or with sarcasm."

"They knew that the descendants of the Pei family were well-intentioned, knew that the Pei family was desperately trying to make amends for their mistakes, but no one was willing to give us a second glance."

"In their eyes, the Pei family cannot be accommodated, nor should they be forgiven, as long as they cannot shed this black cloak of betraying Confucianism."

Pei Hao Hong said with a miserable smile, "They quoted scriptures and piled up rhetoric one after another. Yet, they were using flowery words to shut the Pei family out."

"Have you never heard what they were saying?"

"If you had heard those words, you might even say, 'How well said!' They sincerely hope that the Pei family can repent and start anew, go further, and stand higher!"

"Who but the Pei family knows that their words are not a straw for a drowning man, but a long spear aimed at their throats."

"Even if they knew that the Pei family was wronged, knew that the Pei family needed someone to lend a helping hand, knew that the Pei family's mistakes had nothing to do with them, they still wanted to kick us when we were down."

"These are the friends of the Pei family, the brothers of the Pei family, ha ha..."

Pei Hao Hong wiped away the tears of laughter and said, "The disciples of the Pei family died one after another in the martial world. Yet, those who are still alive still regard returning to Ban Xian Zhuang as their duty."

"Covered in blood and tears along the way, they desperately tried to get closer to the homeland that no longer belongs to us."

"I am the last disciple of the Pei family, and also the one closest to Ban Xian Zhuang."

"Based on the clues that the disciples of the Pei family exchanged with their lives, I found Pei Yu's final resting place—Shanglin Village."

"I felt that Pei Yu must have left something here. But I couldn't find any clues."

"That's why I lived in seclusion here for half my life!"

Pei Hao Hong stopped here. I roughly understood why Pei Hao Hong used the secret technique "Shu Shi Wu Du" (Familiarity Breeds Blindness) here, making the people of Shanglin Village ignore his existence.

He was not living in seclusion here, but hiding from Ban Xian Zhuang.

Pei Hao Hong continued, "During the turbulent times, I quietly preserved the paifang (ceremonial archway) of Shanglin Village."

"At that time, I took action to protect the paifang, merely out of the instinct of a Confucian disciple. When I moved the paifang away, I felt endless sorrow on it."

"I have never met Shanglin Jushi (Shanglin Hermit), but I regard him as a confidant. That kind of sorrow cannot be experienced by others. Only those who have personally experienced it can feel that kind of pain."

"This is the reason why I am willing to tell you the truth!"

I couldn't help but feel a sense of "unintentional willow, shady place."

If I hadn't let Shang Xingyan go, this Pei Hao Hong might not have wanted to say a word to me.

Pei Hao Hong continued, "It wasn't until the Shanglin residential area began to be renovated that I discovered the Juhun Guan (Soul Gathering Coffin) buried deep underground."

The taller a building is, the deeper its foundation must be. If it weren't for the renovation of the residential area, perhaps the Juhun Guan buried deep underground would never see the light of day again.

Pei Hao Hong said, "It wasn't until then that I knew that my ancestor Pei Yu had actually died in the Juhun Guan."

"How could the person who escaped with the coffin die in the coffin? What was his purpose in taking away the Juhun Guan?"

"I have thought about countless possibilities, good and bad, but I still can't determine the purpose of my ancestor, unless I can re-enter the Zhenmo Bei Lin (Demon Suppression Stele Forest). But, will Ban Xian Zhuang give me such an opportunity?"

"I know that although I haven't reached the point where I don't have much time left, I won't have the opportunity to enter Ban Xian Zhuang and the Zhenmo Bei Lin again in this lifetime."

"My only wish is to find a trustworthy successor before I die, to help my Pei family clear its name and wash away its grievances."

"I use the Juhun Guan to capture ghosts and gods and imprison them here, setting up tests, just to find a successor."

"My successor is related to the grievances of several generations of the Pei family. I cannot trust someone who does not value integrity as their life, or even more than their life."

Pei Hao Hong said with incomparable sadness, but I kept curling my lips on the side: This old man has been possessed by demons. According to his standards, the people who can be selected are either fools or lunatics. Normal people's thinking definitely does not meet his standards.

However, I didn't bother to correct him.

I'll just listen to him finish speaking, send him on his way as soon as possible, and be done with it. Why bother talking nonsense with him?

Wang Butcher caught a loophole in Pei Hao Hong's words at this time: "What you just meant was that you have been to the Zhenmo Bei Lin before? When was that?"

Pei Hao Hong replied, "That was more than twenty years ago!"

"Back then, Ban Xian Zhuang gathered many top warlocks to gather at Ban Xian Zhuang, for the purpose of repairing the stele forest and strengthening Ban Xian Zhuang at the same time."

"The current Ban Xian Zhuang can turn the entire village into an impregnable fortress after closing the mountain gate, all thanks to the formations and mechanisms set up by the warlocks at that time!"

"I entered Ban Xian Zhuang among those warlocks back then."

Pei Hao Hong was reminiscing about the past, but my breathing became rapid, and my heart was pounding in my chest.

Pei Hao Hong mixed in with those warlocks, doesn't that mean he met my dad?