Bai Xi naturally understood Han Mo’s meaning: “Before, in the Outer Domains, I also completed several missions targeting Hua Country assigned by the Kui Hall. Perhaps because I disrupted their plans, they hold a grudge.”
Han Mo raised an eyebrow: “The Hall Master of Kui Hall is indeed not a good person, but he isn’t someone who dwells on grudges.”
The primary reason was that most of what Kui Hall did were not reputable deeds, and they frequently extended their reach into other countries. Being obstructed, or even retaliated against, was a rather common occurrence.
If he were to seek revenge, provoke, or cause trouble every time his plans were disrupted, he wouldn't have enough hands even if he had three heads and six arms.
Bai Xi frowned and looked at Han Mo: “You know the Hall Master of Kui Hall?”
Even in the Outer Domains, very few people knew who the Hall Master of Kui Hall was. When discussing this person, everyone’s evaluation was the same: a madman who caused trouble everywhere. He was greedy and enjoyed conducting human drug experiments, thus committing many inhumane and insane acts. Apart from his activities within Kui Hall, he rarely showed himself in public, meaning very few people knew his true appearance. However, such a person likely didn't have the nerve to reveal his true face. Otherwise, he might be smeared and beaten to death on the street.
Bai Xi couldn’t understand how Han Mo would know such a person.
Han Mo stated calmly: “It’s not that I know him, but when I was studying with Old Gao before, he mentioned this person.”
Bai Xi frowned: “How did Old Gao know the Hall Master of Kui Hall?”
Han Mo hesitated for a moment and said faintly: “Do you know another name for the Outer Domains?”
Bai Xi nodded: “Qing Domain.”
Han Mo: “Correct. The Outer Domains have always been very chaotic, with killing and looting, almost devoid of any order. But over a hundred years ago, someone changed this chaos. That person was the City Lord of Qing Domain City. After the City Lord of Qing Domain stabilized the entire Outer Domains, everyone supported him to become the King of the Outer Domains. However, he himself had no interest in ruling and merely built Qing Domain City in a remote corner of the Outer Domains.”
Bai Xi was aware of this matter: “I don't quite understand what the City Lord of Qing Domain was thinking. Since he managed the Outer Domains, why didn't he manage them to the end, allowing the Outer Domains to gradually revert to their previous state?”
If he had taken control of the entire Outer Domains at that time, the Outer Domains might now be like a unified nation, with their own rules and laws. Now, the Outer Domains are certainly more peaceful and prosperous than the historical records of over a hundred years ago, which described them as a place of savagery, killing, and looting. But the order remained chaotic, with various powers vying for dominance. Various halls and pavilions emerged, carving out their own territories, much like bandits occupying mountains. This, in turn, led to continuous struggles between factions, making ordinary people victims of these power struggles. Others might not have been able to control the entire Qing Domain, but if the City Lord of Qing Domain had managed it properly after stabilizing it, the Qing Domain should be like Hua Country now. She wouldn’t have to go to Qing Domain to rescue Hua Country citizens trapped there.
Han Mo said lightly: “Perhaps he felt he lacked the energy for it.”
Upon hearing this, Bai Xi raised her eyebrows slightly: “Perhaps.”
Over a hundred years ago, the Outer Domains were in disarray. With a vast territory and a large population, their area was more than a hundred times that of Hua Country, and the factions were extremely complex. It was said that the City Lord of Qing Domain had spent nearly thirty years pacifying the entire Outer Domains. If he was in his early thirties, in his prime, when he decided to pacify it, by the time it was fully pacified, he would have been in his sixties. Lacking the mental energy would be normal. Qing Domain City still exists today, and there is still a City Lord within it, who is likely the grandson or great-grandson of the old City Lord from back then. She had once considered visiting Qing Domain City because it was rumored that the City Lord of Qing Domain was highly skilled in medicine. She had wanted to ask the City Lord of Qing Domain to send a disciple to treat her brother, but she was blocked at the outskirts of Qing Domain City. However, Qing Domain City was incredibly prosperous, resembling a small nation. And in the eyes of all the people of the Outer Domains, this nation was like the Fengshen Hall. Even though various factions were in constant conflict, none dared to target Qing Domain City, which showed the prestige of the old City Lord of Qing Domain.
The matters concerning the City Lord of Qing Domain and Qing Domain City could likely be discussed for three days and three nights without end, but she was more concerned with the present matter: “Weren’t we talking about the Hall Master of Kui Hall just now? Why did we start talking about the City Lord of Qing Domain?”
Han Mo smiled: “Because the current Hall Master of Kui Hall, like Old Gao, once apprenticed under the City Lord of Qing Domain.”
To say apprenticed was actually to say "stole knowledge."
Indeed, he was the City Lord of Qing Domain.
A hundred years before Bai Xi left, he took the Blood Jade Bracelet and built a small house in the place where Bai Xi had once saved him, healed him, and they had stayed together for two days and two nights. He lived a reclusive life, studying the medical books left by the divine physician who taught him how to bring Xi’er back to life, day after day, waiting for her to reappear. Through his medical skills, he incidentally saved many people, who gradually became his subordinates, helping him with various tasks. However, during this period, the Blood Jade Bracelet remained still, filling him with disappointment and even occasional despair.
Later, he coincidentally saved a fortune teller. That person insisted on helping him divine and find someone. The diviner’s卦象 (guàxiàng - divination chart/omen) indicated that Xi’er might be born in the Outer Domains. He went to the Outer Domains and saw the chaotic state of affairs. At the time, he felt it would be very disadvantageous for Xi’er to be born in such a chaotic Outer Domain, so he incidentally set about straightening things out. The diviner accompanied him until the day of his death, and with tears streaming down his face, he said: “Sir, actually, my divination indicated that the person you are seeking has already left this world. I guided you to the Outer Domains to search just to give you some hope, fearing you would do something foolish… In hindsight, I was the foolish one, but I dared not speak the truth. Sir is not an ordinary person; you will surely wait for that person to return.” After saying this, he passed away. He did not blame the diviner; instead, he felt grateful, as it made his centuries of waiting less boring.
Qing Domain City had always been open to outsiders before he found Xi’er. If anyone wished to seek medical advice, they could come after announcing themselves. Both Old Gao, the medical sage of Hua Country, and the current Hall Master of Kui Hall had come, and their visits overlapped. He remembered that Old Gao was seeking a sliver of hope for his wife, who had diabetes and was near death. As for the Hall Master of Kui Hall, if he remembered correctly, he should be the child who always followed him, wanting to learn medicine from him, but was refused. When he treated Old Gao's wife, he used the art of silver needle acupuncture. Therefore, Old Gao learned some of that technique. The current Hall Master of Kui Hall, who had peeked through the door when he was preparing and boiling medicines, learned more about the skills of using herbal remedies. However, it seemed that the Hall Master of Kui Hall’s medical achievements were now greater, but he had not used them for righteous purposes.