My starting summon is a small skeleton-Chapter 346 - 343 Divine Blade Tower

Old Man Sakuragi had given Lu Wu fourteen sword skills.

Lu Wu mastered all of them in just three days.

He was holding back, or else achieving the Master level wouldn’t have been impossible.

As Lu Wu’s Talent revealed itself, Old Man Sakuragi’s gaze towards him grew increasingly fervent.

He treated him better and better, even bringing all of his unmarried, and even some married, daughters to his home, parading them in front of Lu Wu all the time.

Old Man Sakuragi’s intentions were as clear as day!

Of course, these past few days the old man had been occupied with other matters as well—or rather, the daughters were just a minor detail. His main focus had been on preparing a Divine Artifact for Lu Wu, or to be more precise, on the matter of Summoning Beasts.

Old Man Sakuragi had originally planned to prepare a Silver Quality Divine Artifact for Lu Wu.

But after witnessing Lu Wu’s Talent, he felt that a Silver Quality Divine Artifact was unworthy of Lu Wu.

Lu Wu’s talent deserved better!

Gold!

Only a Golden Quality Divine Artifact was worthy of Lu Wu!

For the past three days, Old Man Sakuragi had been preoccupied with the matter of a Golden Quality Divine Artifact.

However, Divine Artifacts of the Summoned Beast kind were rare in District 11, even though they were unique to it, and Golden Quality Divine Artifacts were extremely scarce.

Even with his own Power of Lord Level, Old Man Sakuragi couldn’t get his hands on such a high-Level Artifact; even if he somehow managed to find one, his family fortune would not be sufficient to acquire it.

Alas, after three days of busyness, he came up with nothing.

In such circumstances, Old Man Sakuragi started to feel tormented.

Should he settle for a Silver Quality Artifact for Lu Wu, or should he pour everything he had into acquiring one that surpassed Silver Quality?

In the end, the gambling nature inherited from the bloodline of District 11 overcame his reason.

He clenched his teeth and stamped his foot, "I’ll gamble!

The future glory of the Sakuragi Family hinges on this!"

...

On the fourth night after Lu Wu moved into the City Lord Mansion,

Lu Wu was still practicing swordsmanship when Old Man Sakuragi, tired and dusty from his trip, returned with a face full of weariness.

Upon his return, he immediately sought out Lu Wu.

Seeing Lu Wu still diligently practicing the sword, with skill that was on the verge of breaking through to Master Level, Old Man Sakuragi seemed as if he had been injected with chicken blood.

His travel-weariness vanished, and his entire demeanor became spirited as he approached and gripped Lu Wu’s hand, "Bright Lord, your Divine Artifact has been arranged!"

"What?"

Lu Wu was stunned, and Old Man Sakuragi continued, "In three days, it will be the opening day of the Divine Blade Tower Secret Realm. I have secured an opportunity for you to enter."

Lu Wu was still a bit dazed.

It was only after Old Man Sakuragi’s explanation that Lu Wu understood that the Divine Blade Tower Secret Realm was one of the best Secret Realms in District 11 regarding Divine Artifacts.

It opened only once a year, admitting only 64 people each time.

Upon entering the Secret Realm, everyone’s Power would be suppressed to Ordinary human standards.

Then, the Secret Realm would conduct a series of trials for the entrants. Failure could mean direct death, while success in passing the trials would grant Divine Artifacts of varying Quality depending on the number of challenges overcome.

Simply put, it was a sort of instance for farming weapons.

Considering that only 64 people could enter this instance each year, and from the weary look of the old man, Lu Wu knew in his heart that Old Man Sakuragi must have gone through great troubles to secure this slot for him.

This gave Lu Wu hope for establishing himself in District 11.

Originally, his decision to leave District 11 was due to unresolved identity issues, and as an external Master Level powerhouse making a clamor as he barged into a small pond, he was bound to stand out.

But now, with Old Man Sakuragi’s help, Lu Wu suddenly found that establishing himself in District 11 seemed possible!

If he could get a Divine Artifact next, he would be able to blend into District 11 using the identity of Zhengdaguangming and harvest its strategic resources to strengthen himself.

In that case, it seemed like he might not need to leave at all, right?

For Lu Wu, this was naturally good news, as leaving District 11 would not necessarily mean a better situation in other districts.

Thus, this seemed like the best option for Lu Wu.

However, Lu Wu couldn’t help but sigh as he looked over at Sakuragi Hanakazuki sitting on a bench with a sword in her arms, watching him practice swordsmanship all day until she fell asleep, exuding a deep aura of Dudu.

"If I, Lu Wu, were to do this, wouldn’t I become a scumbag who plays with a sweet girl’s feelings and lives off her kindness?

How would I, Lu Wu, be any different from Lu Haikong?!"

With that thought, Lu Wu stood up straight, his gaze firm.

The Lu Family didn’t raise scumbags!!!

...

Two days later, outside the Sakuragi City Lord Mansion.

Sakuragi Hanakazuki grasped Lu Wu’s hand, reluctant to let go, and gave him a series of instructions and farewells.

"Bright Lord, I’ve heard those people can be very fierce. Don’t get into conflicts with them; if they fight, just hide and don’t get hurt."

"Also, this is an Amulet I’ve gotten for you, Bright Lord. Wear it, and be sure to come back safely."

"I wish for Bright Lord’s fortune in war to prosper, and for Bright Lord to return safely!"

Amidst Sakuragi Hanakazuki’s deep bows, Lu Wu sighed softly, ruffling the young girl’s hair.

"I’ll come back as soon as possible!"

And in his heart, he added, ’if possible.’

"Come on, it’s getting late. We need to hurry over!"

Watching Lu Wu and Sakuragi Hanakazuki part with deep affection, Old Man Sakuragi joyfully pulled Lu Wu onto the back of an ox.

The two of them rode a Leader-Level bull, charging toward the Divine Blade Tower.

Sakuragi City was over a thousand kilometers away from the Divine Blade Tower; without roads, even the Leader-Level bull needed almost a day of tireless running to cover the distance.

During that day’s time, Old Man Sakuragi imparted much experience to Lu Wu.

And this so-called experience was, in fact, less about being a Summoner and more about lessons in living, teaching Lu Wu how to survive in the cracks of great powers.

"I had not plan on teaching Bright Lord these things!

Bright Lord wouldn’t need these matters, as long as Bright Lord has time, Bright Lord’s future won’t need to concern itself with anyone’s opinion.

But in the upcoming Divine Blade Tower, Bright Lord will face many strong opponents.

I’m sorry, in that kind of environment, I might not be able to protect Bright Lord securely, therefore Bright Lord needs to understand these things!"

"Before Bright Lord becomes strong, patience, and maintaining a low profile are the best qualities.

They will let Bright Lord circumvent many unnecessary troubles.

But sometimes, no matter how hard you try to avoid them, unavoidable troubles might still find their way to you, and then, Bright Lord needs to know how to take advantage of the situation…"

…

It must be said, Old Man Sakuragi truly had the intention of raising Lu Wu as his own son.

All along the way, he poured out his heart and soul, sharing everything he could teach to Lu Wu.

He taught Lu Wu how to keep a low profile, how to avoid troubles.

How to deal smoothly with troubles when they occur.

And if troubles can’t be managed, how to cope with them.

In Old Man Sakuragi’s words, these were the petty tricks of the weak, yet Lu Wu was utterly fascinated.

Because no one had ever taught him these things before.

After all, ever since Lu Wu had crossed over, he’d been on a winning streak.

In just short of two years, he had become an important figure in District 1, with a scumbag father behind him.

Although it could be said he grew up under pressure, Lu Wu never truly felt like a minor character, nor did he possess this kind of wisdom.

And after they talked it through, Lu Wu realized it wasn’t the trivial tricks Old Man Sakuragi spoke of but rather a profound wisdom.

Had he possessed this kind of profound wisdom before, Lu Wu felt he wouldn’t have been led by the nose by everyone and forced to the point of faking his own death to escape.

So, Lu Wu listened very seriously and was very grateful to the old man.

After all, no matter the reason, the old man had genuinely been kind to him.

The two shared a bull, covering a thousand miles, and their affection for each other gradually warmed.

From an initial unease to a harmonious coexistence.

And as their feelings for each other warmed, the journey seemed to shrink as well; in 17 hours, Lu Wu and Old Man Sakuragi arrived at the residence of the Divine Blade Tower.

When they arrived, the entrance to the Divine Blade Tower was already crowded with people.

Lu Wu took a look.

Most of these people were either a middle-aged man with a few young people, or a young man with a group of attendants and maids.

And those middle-aged men mostly had the power of Lords.

The attendants were mostly at the strength of Bosses, even reaching up to Leader Level.

It was evident that each of these individuals represented a force; in terms of a combination like Lu Wu and Old Man Sakuragi, he had only seen them so far.

Upon their arrival, Old Man Sakuragi pulled him over to a group of people and bowed to the leader, a middle-aged man.

"Greetings to Lord Liu Chuan!

We appreciate all the trouble you are taking for us this time!"

As Lu Wu followed with a bow, he discreetly checked the other party’s attributes.

…

Name: Liu Chuan Feng

Power: Lord 3 Star

Summoned Beast: Demon Blade Sakura (Golden Quality) (Lord 3 Star Power)

Skills: Liu Chuan’s Basic Swordsmanship (Master), Liu Chuan Advanced Swordsmanship (Master), Liu Chuan’s Killing Sword Skill (Master)

Description: The kind that can slay a group with a single cut.

Summoner Talent: None

…

Pretty weak, but a big deal. Facing Lu Wu and the others, he responded with a heavy nasal sound.

Old Man Sakuragi wasn’t embarrassed; he just stood with Lu Wu among the Liu Chuan family attendants, being extremely discreet.

Nevertheless, they still attracted the attention of others.

Two young men and one young girl around Liu Chuan all cast their glances toward Lu Wu.

They had all heard that this year, the Liu Chuan family had sold a spot to a small family, and they were curious to see what kind of prodigy was willing to pay such a price to buy the spot.

Looking at Lu Wu, both young men thought he seemed pretty ordinary.

It was the girl who stared intensely at the half of Lu Wu’s face beneath the mask, her eyes filled with curiosity.

She seemed keen to know what kind of face lay beneath Lu Wu’s mask.

Hmm, there were quite a few people just like the girl.

This made Lu Wu feel helpless.

He already covered his face, and still, so many people coveted his body?

Ah, his damn, uncontainable charm!