Wu Long waited for Old Yen to collect the information as well as what evidence they had, and they both traveled to the Su-In restaurant, which was a front for one of the broker organizations of Night Market services and the place where the people from the pharmacy, as well as the attack on the inn, were hired through.

Both the group that was operating the inn, as well as the pharmacy old man went into hiding until they were contacted by Old Yen.

As they approached the establishment, they could smell the pungent smell of blood.

“A step too late, huh…”

Old Yen said with some regret, but Wu Long shook his head as his gaze was still on the entrance of the restaurant.

Three figures emerged from the inside, all wrapped in light cloaks and wearing bamboo hats that covered their faces.

“It has been a while, Butler Bang”

Wu Long smiled and the middle figure whose cloak was not covered in blood spatter unlike the two around him slightly shook. A wrinkled hand reached from under the cloak and slowly took off the bamboo hat, revealing a wryly smiling old man with gray-white hair.

“It seems this hat is not doing its job in front of you, younglin’… haa~ why did you return?”

The old man called by Wu Long Butler Bang ruefully shook his head, lamenting the choice of the young man before him to stand here again.

“That is a strange question, why wouldn’t I?”

Wu Long’s smile broadened at Butler Bang and the latter first slightly widened his eyes and then smiled again, shaking his head.

“Hah, you are still as courageous and impulsive as always. It truly is a shame…”

“The fact that you are doing this kind of job shows that someone high up is involved, there are not many in the family that have the power to move you”

As Wu Long said this, this time the two who were standing as still as statues on the side of Butler Bang showed slight movement, but the old man raised his hand.

“No need for haste, the district inspector will arrive when it is convenient for us, so we have plenty of time. I am too old to not cherish a meeting after a long time, especially since the separation after that is inevitable…”

Butler Bang said with a calm tone, a tinge of sadness in his eyes. Old Yen, to his astonishment, noticed a kindness in the old man’s gaze when he looked at Wu Long as if he was looking at his beloved grandchild.

“You are right, we have time, but I did not come to reminisce about the past good times”

Wu Long said with a smile.

“Hoh? You got impatient… you were always so eager to hear what I had to say”

“Well, people change… but more than that, I am not in as sentimental mood as you. Rather, quite joyful since I am returning home”

Wu Long smiled at the man who was the figure of respect for the younger him. He never had such a person in the Wu Family of his past life, but here he grew up with this old man as a towering tree that covered him from rain and wind.

“Haa~ can you just not return… go wherever it is that you were able to live a better life and never look back? And we could pretend that this meeting never happened…”

“Team Leader-…!?!?”

As Butler Bang said his words the two on his sides looked at him through their bamboo hats, and just from their astonished voices it was apparent that they were deeply shaken by the old man’s proposition.

A stern look appeared in Butler Bang’s eyes and he looked to the man on his right, whose body shook with another emotion from before altogether.

‘…!? This old fellow is dangerous’ .

Old Yen started to understand that this old man had much more in his sleeves than just being a butler. From the addressing of the men beside him, he was one of the enforcers for the Wu Family and a high-level one at that. But what made Old Yen more apprehensive was that despite being only in the Revolving Qi Realm, Butler Bang gave him, someone one Major Realm above, an intense feeling of dread at the moment when his eyes turned to his subordinate.

“A very kind proposition indeed, you are willing to take on such a massive responsibility of letting me go”

Wu Long’s smile did not change. While the clueless and naive version of him did not know of Butler Bang’s shadowy status, from analyzing his memories, the current Wu Long knew that he was not a simple butler very easily.

“Wu Long, let this old man spend his last days without regret, just go and never look back”

When he said the name “Wu Long”, there was a grandfatherly love and warmth in it, as the old man’s expression turned back to an amicable one.

“Unfortunately I have to decline since I have a lot of catching up to do with the place I once called home”

Wu Long smiled and Butler Bang sighed.

“You are still as stubborn… really, all the karma of my long life must be punishing me with you…”

“Well, if you lead Mengqi to me, I might consider leaving this nest of snakes untouched, for the old times’ sake”

Wu Long said with a pondering expression. A tinge of pain appeared in Butler Bang’s eyes as he looked back at Wu Long.

“You truly… insufferably… completely… stubborn. I told you it was not going to end well back then… why did you not hear me…? Both of you…”

He said as his voice was a little hoarse, showing both aging and emotion.

“It was you who poisoned me, wasn’t it?”

Wu Long suddenly said and Butler Bang’s eyes widened, and then a wry smile appeared on his face.

“Clever boy, you are right. I did, so that you can live”

“You think I would have been happy living without Mengqi?”

“At least you would have been alive”

“So you decided to take away my manhood? An interesting choice of protection”

“You would not have listened had I tried to reason with you… you were too young, too impulsive… ”

Butler Bang said as his eyes became filled with affection and remorse. He noticed the change in Wu Long instantly when he saw him, as he knew Wu Long before like the back of his own hand. He was mystified by the transformation but he also saw something fundamentally unchanged in him. While the current Wu Long before him was more mature and gave off a dangerous feeling as an opponent, there was something in him, a core part that never changed.

“So you were there when the ambush happened as well… and you were the one who gave a separate mission to that Soul Cultivator…”

Wu Long continued his deduction and the old man just nodded, as there was little meaning in hiding anything.

“Who knew that I did not even have to interfere… that woman appeared out of nowhere. Heh, though the poor sod who was told to seal your memories dying there was out of my plan, I would have still cleaned him up to tie the ends so he at least did not feel the betrayal before departure, in a way he was lucky I guess”

Butler Bang said with a tinge of laughter in his voice. Old Yen listened to their conversation with astonishment as he finally started to understand the miraculous way Wu Long managed to survive long enough after the prince became interested in Wu Mengqi.

“I am curious, why did you go against the wishes of your masters, to whom you were loyal long before I ever showed up, multiple times just to save me?”

Wu Long asked with genuine interest. He could see Butler Bang’s character very clearly now unlike in the past. He was someone loyal to the point of fault, but he still went against his orders at several crucial junctures. Not to mention two cases Wu Long knew of, he was sure there were many more attempts at removing him as an obstacle that the younger him never even noticed.

“I don’t know… maybe as I got older I grew soft”

Butler Bang shrugged his shoulders. The two people around him were visibly nervous since hearing such a conversation was not a good thing for them. They would be either erased by their terrifying Team Leader, or would be later forced to tell on him, and then ordered to go against him, which was a death sentence either way. The old man paid them no mind as he was focused on Wu Long, but only a fool would try to do something thinking that he was now guardless.

Old Yen was also tense as he looked at the two, and he also sensed a few other people in the vicinity.

Only the old man and Wu Long stood relaxed as if having a normal conversation in a good comfortable setting. A young man with a mature and wise gaze, and an old man, like a towering tree, gently covering the young man from the furious heaven above with its leaves.