Chapter 321: Chapter 67: Qi Refining Perfection

"Yes, yes, my lord." The farmer bowed repeatedly, backing out of the room and gently closing the door behind him.

Finally, the only ones left in the room were Murphy, Aurora, and the dying old man on the bed.

Murphy gazed at the old man for a moment, then slowly spoke, his voice low and clear, breaking the silence. "Allen, do you remember me?"

His voice seemed to carry a peculiar cadence, piercing through the heavy fog of the old man’s consciousness.

The moment his words fell, the nearly withered body on the bed trembled ever so slightly.

Old Allen’s tightly shut eyelids fluttered. He struggled and slowly pried them open a sliver, revealing cloudy pupils that still held a faint glimmer of consciousness.

At the same time, the outline of Murphy’s figure, standing by the bed, seemed to blur for an instant. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

He still wore the same dark blue clothes, but in his place now stood a young man with dark skin and rough features.

Old Allen’s unfocused gaze struggled to focus. He finally made out the person by the bed, and Aurora, who was affectionately holding his hand.

Old Allen’s chapped lips began to tremble violently. A rattling gasp escaped his throat, and an incredulous light erupted in his eyes.

A torrent of dusty memory fragments converged with a roar in his fading mind: the "accidental" hunt from thirty-four years ago, the tiger, the young man’s "death," and the inexplicable sense of familiarity that occasionally overlapped between Lord Sylvan, who had later reduced their taxes, and the Governor standing before him now...

"You... You are..." Using the last of his strength, his voice as faint as a thread, he clearly uttered the name. "...Murphy..."

His widened eyes were fixed on the "old friend" by the bedside. He seemed to want to say more, his lips moving, but ultimately, he could not form another syllable.

Then, the last light in his eyes rapidly dimmed and went out.

His head tilted slightly to one side. He let out one last, long breath and never took another.

The room fell completely silent.

Aurora took Murphy’s hand. Her touch was a little cool. "Murphy?"

She called softly, her azure eyes filled with a trace of confusion and worry.

She didn’t understand why Murphy would "awaken" the man at the very end of his life, and in such a way.

Murphy’s form returned to normal. He was once again the calm and imposing Governor of Monte Territory. The dark-skinned young Groom seemed to have been nothing more than an illusion, cast for a fleeting moment like sunlight through dust.

He took Aurora’s cool hand in his, his gaze still resting on Old Allen’s now-peaceful face.

"One should bid farewell to an acquaintance with one’s true face," Murphy said, his voice calm. "Hiding my identity is not my way. Besides..."

He paused, a profound light flashing in his eyes. "Since there are beings in this world who can already glimpse a sliver of my true self, like that Balance Keeper, there’s even less reason for me to hide at every turn. Acting as I please might be its own form of strategy."

Aurora listened quietly. She tightened her grip on his hand, her voice returning to its usual gentleness and resolve. "I understand."

Murphy nodded slightly and said no more.

He took one last look at the deceased old man on the bed, then turned and walked toward the door with Aurora.

The heavy wooden door closed softly behind them.

The great-grandson was standing respectfully in the hallway just outside, his hands at his sides. Seeing them emerge, he immediately bowed deeply, his voice choked with emotion. "Thank you, my lord... Thank you, my lady... My great-grandfather... To be able to live in your fortress... to be sent off by you and my lady like this, it is his greatest blessing. Our whole family will remember this... May Oriane protect the Monte Clan..."

He seemed to want to say more words of gratitude but was too emotional to speak coherently.

Murphy raised a hand slightly to stop him, his tone still gentle. "Give him a proper burial. You can get the necessary funds from the steward."

"Yes, thank you for your grace, my lord!" The farmer nearly fell to his knees.

The hallway was brightly lit. Eleanor had not followed the others far and was waiting quietly a short distance from the door.

As Murphy and Aurora emerged, she lifted her calm, dark eyes, keenly sensing a subtle shift in her father’s aura—something different from usual.

"Father," she asked softly, "what is it?"

Murphy stopped and looked into his daughter’s clear, perceptive eyes, then reached out and gently stroked her hair.

"It’s nothing," he said calmly. "I was just seeing off an old acquaintance."

With that, he continued walking forward.

Aurora took Eleanor’s hand and followed.

The moment they stepped out of the tower and into the main corridor of the castle, the midsummer sun fell upon Murphy, completely unobstructed.

In that instant—as he bid farewell to an old acquaintance, revealed his true face, and felt his mind become clear and unhindered—the Mana within him, which had been refined and accumulated for over twenty years and had reached a critical point just last night, finally broke through the last invisible barrier. It surged like rivers flowing into the sea—perfectly whole, unimpeded, and circulating endlessly.

His Qi Refining Realm had reached Perfection.