Lost and Found: Return of My Mysterious Fiancee by KIKI

Chapter 974: The Tale Passed Down Tina sipped her tea and gestured for her master to continue speaking. Whether it was true or not, she could judge for herself.

"Alina must have mentioned it to you-that thing has shistory. If we trace back about two hundred years, there was a family of military lineage. Later, because they wielded too much power, someone found an excuse to annihilate them. If any descendants survived, they would only be from distant branches." "But there's a historical anecdote about this family that might be the clue you're looking for." "Anecdote?" Tina raised her head and glanced at her master indifferently. "Are you sure you didn't just make this up?" Master Tam's expression nearly fell apart as he slammed his teacup onto the table in protest. "You impudent girl! Your master is a man of reputation and status. Why would I bother making up a story just to save you a bit of money?" "Don't forget, I gave you a wedding gift. I even brought out sof my rare treasures-things your brothers couldn't even dream of getting." Tina lowered her head and drank her tea, clearly uninterested. The old man loved to ramble, and now he was dragging in events from two hundred years ago. How was she supposed to believe him? And besides, she wasn't blind. The wedding money he gave her was pooled from his brothers, and the so-called "rare treasure" was just a few calligraphy scrolls he wrote himself. Other than the cost of framing them, she couldn't figure out where his generosity had gone.

She retorted bluntly, "If it's so precious, should I return it to you?" "You wouldn't dare!" "Who takes back gifts? Hurry up and knock on wood to ward off the bad luck! You just don't appreciate anything. If you put those scrolls outside, people would fight over them!" Master Tam clutched his chest in frustration and glared at Tina. "You ungrateful girl! Where was I? You've completely thrownoff track." Tina said nothing.

Ignoring her, Master Tam pondered for a moment before continuing.

"Before their downfall, this family becthe subject of a strange tale. Their only daughter was betrothed, but on the eve of her wedding, she suddenly fell ill. Her appearance drastically changed, and no medicine could cure her. She could only survive by drinking human blood, and people saw her as a monster." "No matter how many doctors they brought in, nothing worked. Then, one night, a Taoist priest cto their door." "The priest had a solution: using the heart's blood of an unmarried girl as a catalyst, combined with a rare elixir, could restore youth and grant immortality." "Heart's blood?" Tina frowned slightly.

"Exactly. It may sound absurd now, but back in those feudal times, many people believed in such things." At this point, Master Tam stroked his beard thoughtfully. "There are several versions of this anecdote. Ssay this was just a ruse by the family to avoid royal suspicion and reject the marriage proposal. Others claim the heart's blood was just a cover-up, and the family had truly discovered the secret to immortality but tried to hide it to avoid being hunted down. Either way, they couldn't escape their fate." Tina narrowed her eyes. A girl, heart's blood, immortality... Who exactly was Claudia? "What happened in the end?" she asked.

Master Tam raised an eyebrow and held out his teacup. "Pourstea first. Can't you see your master is parched?" Tina pursed her lips and poured the tea. After years together, she could at least grant him that small courtesy. Satisfied, Master Tam took a sip of the tea his disciple poured before continuing.

"They say the young lady regained her senses after the ritual and begged the priest to take her as a disciple. After that, she disappeared from public view." "And that's it?" Tina asked.

Master Tam nodded earnestly, staring into the dregs of his tea. "That's it. I told you-it's just an anecdote. What were you expecting, a serialized ?" Tina was speechless.

She knew her master was unreliable but hadn't realized just how unreliable he could be. These so-called "secrets" weren't even worth the effort. She could find a dozen similar stories on any street vendor's stall.

Still, she sorted through her thoughts and realized she might have missed something important. "So, what was the family's name?" Master Tam let out a small "oh" and slapped his forehead. "I almost forgot. The Chase family." "A nlike that? Aren't there Chases everywhere?" Tina felt like steam was about to rise from her head. If she didn't hold back, she might drag him outside and give him a beating. She couldn't risk doing it under her grandfather's watchful eye. Master Tam sighed, as though dealing with someone hopelessly ignorant. "It wasn't so common a few centuries ago." Tina said nothing and got up to leave.

Seeing this, Master Tam called out, "So you're leaving already? We've barely had any tto catch up. Can't we talk a little more?" Tina paused mid-step and suddenly turned back. "Master, do you know if there's a hidden family line with an ability for instant teleportation? And is it true that this ability can be used once someone reaches the fifth stage of training?"

Hearing this, Master Tam froze, his teacup halted mid-air. "That's Langdon impossible. You've seen the and Brooks families' abilities in the hidden clans. Even with generations of rigorous training, their powers aren't so easily mastered." Tina frowned but stayed silent.

Master Tam's expression grew serious. He knew his disciple well-she wouldn't bring up baseless claims, let alone pursue something without foundation. This must be real.

Setting down his cup, he spoke gravely. "If such a thing exists, it's likely someone has practiced forbidden techniques. There om are branches of hidden families that have dabbled in this, but such methods cat great cost-either to the practitioner or their descendants. It's rare to hear of anyone using them anymore." "At the cost of oneself or one's descendants?" Tina thought of the Swanson family. Orion Woodwind valued the Swanson family too much to use them as a bargaining chip.

Master Tam nodded. "Exactly. Forbidden techniques carry severe backlash. If the harm doesn't fall on the practitioner, it will affect their direct relatives, sometimes spanning generations. If they rely solely on their own power, they must have immense strength to sustain it." Tina listened quietly.

She still needed to investigate the secrets surrounding Orion Woodwind. She suspected Claudia's abilities might also be linked to forbidden techniques.

Before leaving, Tina turned to her master with a calm expression. "Master, I remember you have a lot of treasures stored away. Have you kept them in the splace?" Master Tam jumped back in alarm, taking a step away. "What are you planning now?"

Tina's smile was serene, but it sent a chill down his spine. "Nothing much. I just think sof your brothers are about to get married. As their master, you can't keep showing up empty- handed for a free meal." Master Tam was speechless.