Yun Xian and his group waited outside for a long time, until their legs were numb, but they still didn't see Qi Zhiye come out of the formation.
"Will Fellow Daoist Qi be alright?" Qiao Lingshan asked worriedly, "He doesn't seem to be very knowledgeable about battle formations."
Of course, no one in the group was particularly knowledgeable about formations. Only Feng Ye claimed to have taken formation classes at the Qinfang, but... well, that's all. It would be rude to say more.
Xue Lingxiu said coldly, "Isn't he very good at strength? One force can break ten skills. Just hit him."
Yun Xian thought, Qi Zhiye has the Dongji Staff. If all else fails, she could make a video call to Master Mingguang. Since there's been no activity yet, the situation shouldn't be that dire. She pondered, then turned and said to the bound Lingxu Sect disciples, "I'm going to ask you some questions now. Answer them truthfully."
"What did you steal the body for?"
"We were only responsible for stealing, and after we stole something, we handed it over to the higher-ups. We didn't know anything else."
"Where is the Sect Leader? Who is he? What is his cultivation?"
"We have only heard the Master's voice and are not worthy of seeing his true appearance."
"Then, who is the military advisor? Why is the relationship between the military advisor and the headmaster so bad?"
"I don't know. Don't ask. We really don't know..."
They knew nothing about anything. Yun Xian looked at their eyes, trying to find a clue, but all she could see was clear stupidity. However, she didn't believe that these people really knew nothing.
Xue Lingxiu said, "Let me do it."
"Hmm?" Yun Xian asked, "Are you coming?"
She was still wondering how Xue Lingxiu was going to come, whether she was going to use her gentle words to influence them, but she didn't expect that Xue Lingxiu slowly walked over, squatted, stretched out her hand, and pressed the man's back with a smile.
I don't know what acupoint was pressed, no weapons were used and no blood was seen, but the man instantly screamed as if the sky was falling and the earth was splitting: "Ahhhhhhhhh!!! It hurts, it hurts, it hurts!!!"
"You really don't know?" Xue Lingxiu said amidst the screams of a butchered pig. "We don't mean to embarrass you, but answering the last question shouldn't be difficult, right?"
"Let go, let go!" the Lingxu Sect disciple said with his dying breath, "I'll tell you, I'll tell you..."
Everyone watching felt pain, and they felt deeply that it was best not to offend the medical practitioner. This was truly terrifying.
"Military Advisor only appeared last month. The Sect Leader told us to call him that. It was only after that that we were ordered to steal the corpse," a Lingxu Sect disciple said listlessly. "He usually doesn't talk much when he sees people. He's very silent. We've all been privately wondering if he has some illness..."
"Oh?" Xue Lingxiu asked with interest, "What's wrong? Please tell me in detail."
"Even if the South Realm is as warm as spring, you can't go without clothes," the man complained, seemingly harboring a grudge. "The military advisor wears a piece of cloth all day long while walking his bird. What if the female cultivators in the sect see this and think everyone is like that? Is it necessary? What's he trying to show off? He's despicable. He does it on purpose!"
Qiao Lingshan said in the voice transmission formation: "I heard that he is younger than the military advisor."
Yun Xian said, "It's fine if you don't say it, but once you do, it'll be exposed. But why does the setting of walking a bird wearing only a piece of cloth sound so familiar to me?"
Feng Ye said weakly: "What do you mean by small? What do you mean by bird? Why don't I understand?"
"!?" Qiao Lingshan was frightened: "When did you wake up?!!"
Everyone was muttering behind his ears, saying a bunch of things that were not worthy of being mentioned. Xue Lingxiu's forehead vein jumped and he said, "Can you tell whether the military advisor is a human, a demon, or a monster?"
The man didn't seem particularly clear either, and said confusedly, "Maybe it's a monster. He only eats grass and doesn't look like a human. But species discrimination isn't popular these days; monsters can be military advisors, too."
As soon as he said this, the range was immediately locked.
If the military advisor was a demon, it would be more difficult to deal with. After all, demon cultivators always wear cool clothes, and there are many who walk their birds. But if a demon related to the demon clan is only wearing a piece of cloth, then it is undoubtedly Niu Baiye, the bull demon who followed Jimo Shu during the four-way war.
This bull demon never speaks human language all day long and doesn't seem to be very smart. I don't know why he was suddenly given the title of military advisor today.
Yun Xian exchanged a quick glance with Su Chi.
When Jimo Shu left without saying goodbye, she had thought that Chi You must have had a purpose in making her a saint. Given his temperament, he wouldn't let Jimo Shu go away like that. Jimo Shu looked different that day; leaving was definitely not her intention.
Could it be that Jimo Shu is also in this South City now?
The formation in front of him was fluctuating, and a golden figure flew out and landed steadily on the ground.
Qi Zhiye is out!
But his robes were tattered and torn, and all his jewelry was gone, leaving only the ruby pendant on his earlobe. There was still blood on his lips, and he looked like he had just been in a fight. Xue Lingxiu lifted her fingertips from behind the man and raised her eyes and said, "Did you really let the formation break through?"
"There's a formation on the ground, but not on the beams." Qi Xingye said briefly to the shocked Lingxu disciples, "Don't let someone with a damaged brain become the leader in the future. Don't you think it's shameful?"
Disciple of Lingxu Sect: "..."
Oops!!! Mistake!!!
"You're injured." Yun Xian noticed the injury on the corner of his lip and asked, "Who did you have a conflict with? Someone from Lingxu Sect?"
When Qi Zhiye heard this, he hesitated for a moment, as if considering whether to say it out loud, and finally said: "Jimo Shu."
The situation is like this now. It will be discovered sooner or later. There is no point in hiding it.
Yun Xian was stunned and asked, "Sure enough. She is really here. Is she okay? Is she hurt?"
"That's all you're asking?" Qi Zhiye said with a sullen face, "Why don't you ask if I'm injured? Her punch was so powerful, does it look like I'm injured?"
Yun Xian said awkwardly, "You look injured, don't you? Why do you even ask? Okay, okay, we've known each other for so long, so it's normal to have a little sparring. Don't be angry, it seems petty."
Everyone: “…”
The witch really doesn't follow the usual path. She only hits people in the face. Now that Qi Zhiye's face is temporarily disfigured, I don't know if Xue Lingxiu will help him heal it.
Feng Ye glanced at Xue Lingxiu's expression and thought, Brother Xue must be secretly happy now.
Qi Zhiye told everyone in detail what he had just seen and heard, including the corpse soup, the military advisor, and Mei Yanliu. After finishing speaking, he frowned and said, "The corpse aura is very strong. I don't know how much was put in that pot."
It seems there's a reason for the Lingxu Sect's sudden surge in arrogance over the past two months. Collaborating with the Demon Cult naturally makes them feel backed by someone, but this small-time nemesis is merely a shield. What everyone should be most concerned about is the Demon Cult's true purpose.
"Oh right!" Yun Xian suddenly seemed to remember something and said in surprise, "Then, the body of the Miaoshou Sect's manager..."
Grandma Li was still clamoring inside the sect all day long to attack the Lingxu Sect and kill all the scoundrels. Now, hearing this, could it be that the steward was also thrown into the pot? If the old lady knew about this, wouldn't she have to go into battle herself?
"I don't know." Qi Zhiye said solemnly, "But, probably not. Let's go back and take a look."
He knew that the body's disappearance was Jimo Shu's doing. Just as she had lured everyone to the Southern Realm, this time, she was trying to lure them to the Lingxu Sect. Given Jimo Shu's personality, she wouldn't actually boil the body. This series of actions, no matter how you look at it, clearly showed ill intentions towards everyone. However, for some reason, he hadn't conveyed Jimo Shu's words to Yun Xian.
From the brief exchange just now, it was clear that Jimo Shu's cultivation had risen sharply again. This speed of progress was terrifying, but it also made people feel uneasy. And then there were those words she had said...
Xue Lingxiu noticed something and said, "The fluctuations of the formation here have disappeared."
It seemed someone inside had sensed something was amiss and had found another entrance. A cunning rabbit has three burrows. The Lingxu Sect had been able to survive for so long with such strength, so naturally, their strengths weren't just in their disgusting nature... Okay, why did this sound a bit strange?
"Take these people back to Miaoshou Sect first." Qi Zhiye endured the stinging pain at the corner of his lips and frowned, saying, "We need to think about this matter carefully."
He never promised to deliver it.
If you want to say something, just say it yourself!
After all the hassle, it was already dawn. They left the Miaoshou Sect and brought back seven Lingxu Sect members. Qiao Lingshan led the ropes, followed by a long line of people. They attracted a lot of attention as they returned.
"The sun is rising from the west. Master Xue is going to take them back and execute them?"
"What are you thinking? They are a family of doctors, not butchers! They must be investigating the theft of the corpse."
"What's the point of investigating these unscrupulous people? If you ask me, they should be thankful that the Miaoshou Sect is nearby. If it were some Sword Sect or Body Strengthening Sect that dared to tamper with them, they would die without knowing how they died!"
"You can't say that..."
It was just a minor injury, nothing to worry about. Qi Xingye didn't ask Xue Lingxiu to help treat it. He sprayed some ointment on himself. His face didn't look very good, but he didn't expect that many monks from various places would come along the way to deliver medicine and pills.
Most of them are female cultivators.
Feng Ye said enviously, "The people in the Southern Realm are so enthusiastic. They will send pills to anyone who is injured."
"...Feng Ye, it's not that I want to discourage you." Qiao Lingshan said, "It depends on the person."
If Feng Ye was walking on the street injured, people would just think that this kid was really disobedient and got beaten again, which would be so funny.
Yun Xian noticed that his senior brother had been unusually silent recently, so he seized this opportunity to ask through voice transmission, "Senior brother, are you in a bad mood today?"
"Nothing." Su Chi said, "I just feel that the time for promotion has come."
Yun Xian: “…”
What are you doing!!
"Yun Xian." Su Chi said, "I also realized that after this promotion, I won't be able to make any further progress, unless..."
What do you mean? Yun Xian frowned and said, "Unless what?"
"...No." Su Chi lowered his eyes, a trace of confusion in his eyes, "I don't know yet."
The Lingxu disciples had mournful faces, still trying to make excuses: "We were forced to do this. The Sect Leader gave us daily tasks, and if we failed to complete them, we would be punished. The tasks were getting heavier every day. Our fellow disciples were running away faster than dogs, and even the wild graves in the back mountain were dug up! If we had no other choice, how could we have dared to attack the clinic?!"
"You're still taking it for granted?" Xue Lingxiu asked, "Don't you have parents or ancestors? How would you feel if your ancestors' graves were dug up?"
"That's too much!" the man shouted angrily. "If you want to dig, I have to dig first. How can you dig without my permission? You can dig, but you have to give me at least half!"
Everyone: “…”
There's no hope. This guy is hopeless! Take him back and give him acupuncture to Grandma Li Zu.
Halfway through the journey, three children hurried out from a small gym on the side of the road. They were about seven or eight years old, and all of them had rosy faces, as if they had just practiced martial arts, and their eyes were very bright.
The little girl on the left had a cloth tied around her right hand, specks of blood seeping through it. The white cloth had already begun to curl around the edges. The three of them stared at the Miaoshou Sect logo on Xue Lingxiu's folding fan, their eyes etched with longing. Then, they whispered to each other, thinking no one else could hear:
"If I can get in, I heard I don't have to buy clothes myself..."
"Not only that, but meals don't cost money."
"That's great. I must go."
Xue Lingxiu shifted her gaze over and, judging by the voices, realized they were the same children who had been in the clinic's front hall yesterday. However, the clinic attendant had just warned her yesterday that her meridians were reversing and that she shouldn't practice martial arts for a few days. Clearly, this little girl hadn't followed the doctor's advice.
Her clothes were shabby, she had no jewelry, and she only used a short string to tie her hair. Her shoes had been patched so many times that she still had a smile on her face. The stitches on her shoes were not fine, and could even be described as messy. If it wasn't because the adults in her family were not good at it, then it was because they were willing and unable to do it.
Judging from what several people said, it should be the latter.
He subconsciously touched the jade pendant at his waist, hesitated for a moment, but still did not take it off.
The entrance examination for Miaoshoumen will be held in a month. With this child's diligence, he will definitely perform well.
Although she was poor, her eyes were bright and determined. Now seeing her off in public like this was like giving alms, which might hurt her self-esteem.
Think of another way.
After returning to Miaoshou Sect with such a large group of people, before they even entered, the servant named "Lin Shi" came over like the wind and said, "Master Xue, good news, good news, the headmaster is back!"
"Big sister is back?" Xue Lingxiu's expression flashed with joy, but then she suppressed it and said calmly, "When did you come back?"
"Mr. Xue, you're asking even though you already know the answer." Lin Shi said cheerfully, "When Fellow Daoist Yun and his companions arrived yesterday, you sent a letter to inform the Grand Master that evening. The Grand Master cares so much about you, how could he not come back to entertain them?"
Xue Lingxiu: “…”
Why do you always say these unnecessary things!!
"A letter?" Yun Xian asked, "Brother Xue, what did you write?"
"What else?" Qi Zhiye said disapprovingly, "Are you a child? Do you have to tell your parents when several people come to your house? We won't touch anything."
"No, no." Lin Shi was afraid of misunderstanding and said immediately: "Master Xue is happy, not worried. Everyone in the sect knows that he..."
"Having said the good news, what's the bad news?" Xue Lingxiu interrupted, saying bluntly, "Enough of the small talk. There are several extremely dangerous Lingxu Sect members here waiting for us to escort. We can't delay."
The extremely dangerous, bruised and battered Lingxu sect member: "..."
What's going on, dangerous on demand?
"Bad news." Lin Shi's attention was immediately diverted. He said, "Grandma is angry again. She's arguing with the Grand Master in the main hall now!"
…
Before entering the hall, he heard the familiar roar.
"Li Da! I raised you with all my heart, and now you're trying to fool an old man like me with your sister, aren't you?!" Grandma Li said, "I've told you so many times, you can't teach your child this way! Children are naturally undisciplined. You're confining her like this, forcing her to study day and night! How can you expect her to grow up healthily?"
The voice of the headmaster Li also sounded from afar, but it sounded much more steady, knowing how to first praise and then criticize. "Grandma, what you said is certainly reasonable. However, with the exams approaching, Li Yuan herself is also worried about her studies, so she has reduced her time away from home. Li Yuan, tell Grandma, are you willing to go?"
A lifeless, childish voice came from inside: "I volunteer."
Yun Xian: “…”
It really doesn't sound voluntary at all.
Everyone in the martial arts world knows that Sect Leader Li has a steady temperament and acts extremely calmly. One reason for this is that she suffers from a congenital heart disease. Since she was a child, she has been unable to have too many emotional fluctuations. Extreme joy, extreme sorrow, anger, and extreme happiness can easily stimulate the heart meridian and cause vomiting of blood.
If Grandma Li could be persuaded so easily, she wouldn't be herself. The two of them immediately began a heated debate, ranging from child psychology to the implementation of basic education. Yun Xian suddenly thought he hadn't arrived at the Miaoshou Sect, but at some Babytree.
Li Yuan was caught in a desperate situation, being attacked from both sides.
Speaking of which, when they first met Xue Lingxiu during the Four-Way War, everyone felt that his temperament was different from other men on the market. It was also because of this that Liu Shicheng cursed him as a sissy all day long. Now it seems that the majority of the Miaoshou Sect are female cultivators, from the headmaster to the younger apprentices, all girls. Xue Lingxiu grew up in such an environment, like a little green among the crowd, with almost no chance of learning bad habits.
Lin Shi stepped forward to report. Li Jianye coughed lightly and said, "Everyone, please come in."
Yun Xian stepped forward and saw the current Grand Master of the Miaoshou Sect for the first time. As he had been described, his face was pale and gray, his lips pale, and he looked sickly, but his expression was not weak at all. He was calm and composed, with a faint light in his eyes.
The person sitting restlessly at the side must be Li Yuan, the disciple of the leader.
Yun Xian's gaze shifted to Li Yuan's small round face and he was slightly startled.
Li Yuan's pupils are grayish-white and lifeless. She is a blind girl.
Xue Lingxiu said: "Big sister."
"Yes." Li Jianye said, "Please take a seat first. I hope you don't mind if the hospitality is not good enough."
As Yun Xian sat there, she thought to herself, if this was considered poor hospitality, then there wouldn't be a sect in the world that was as attentive. If everyone were to visit Jiange someday, she could only think of making an extra roast goose...
What was placed on the long table at the other end? Yun Xian took a quick look and saw densely packed jade bottles and square boxes. The fresh scent of herbs filled the entire square table, and each container, some rough and some delicate, was engraved with the emblem of the Miaoshou Sect.
The golden and silver grass stretches in the wind, emitting a mysterious luster.
Strangely enough, the Miaoshou Sect prioritized healing, not medicine. Medicine was a tool to aid the practitioner's practice, and was rarely sold separately. Even when it was available, it was usually just some common medicine for wounds, sprains, colds, and fevers. But considering the aura on the table, the container definitely contained something other than ordinary medicine.
Someone is watching her.
Yun Xian looked in the direction where the gaze was coming from like lightning, and saw Master Li looking at her with a slight smile.
It seems that Li Jianye's return to the sect is not just for courtesy or entertainment. She only rushed back because of something important.
"A Xiu is back?" Grandma Li paused her fighting and asked anxiously, "Did you go to Lingxu Sect? Did you capture anyone? Did you find Ah Cheng's body? My poor Ah Cheng, he's already in that state, and he's still being humiliated after death. This damn Lingxu Sect will be destroyed by me sooner or later!!"
Xue Lingxiu was about to say "no", when the servant came over again and reported: "Master, the steward's body has been found!"
"Oh?" asked the great master Li, "Where did you find it?"
The young servant looked troubled and confused. "He suddenly disappeared, and then suddenly reappeared... The cold warehouse was heavily guarded, and none of the disciples present noticed anything."
"Okay." Sect Leader Li paused and said, "I understand. Grandmother, are you satisfied this time?"
"Satisfied?!" Grandma Li said, "To act this way is truly disrespectful. I will make those people from Lingxu Sect pay a heavy price!"
"To be able to do this, I'm afraid it's not the work of Lingxu Sect." Sect Master Li said: "Besides, we have no evidence..."
Grandma Li was furious. "What do you mean by no evidence?! Isn't it obvious at first glance?! My own eyes are the evidence!!! What do I have to say to make you know I'm right?"
Everyone: “…”
"Forget it! There's no point in trying to reason with you! You're all just trying to keep your nose to the grindstone. I don't even know you!" Grandma Li finally let go of the topic, then turned the topic around and returned to the starting point: "You, the master, don't know how to teach a disciple! Xiaoyuan is so young, and she's been studying all day, her brain must be damaged. If she loses the entrance exam to those kids down the mountain, where will the reputation of the Miaoshou Sect be? No, stop teaching, and let me teach you."
Li Yuan didn't say anything, his eyes rolling around.
Yun Xian could see that the little girl actually wanted to go out and play, but was too embarrassed to say it, and was secretly happy. It wasn't that she was happy about the quarrel between her grandmother and her master, but it was that in the middle of a busy class, when the teacher happened to be pulled out for a quarrel, this quarter of an hour of freedom, though short, felt like stolen money. How could she not be happy?
Sect Leader Li was silent: "......"
It's really horrible.
Talking to her was pointless. Talking back was forbidden. If anyone spoke a little harshly, Grandma Li would resort to the three tricks: "I raised you with all my might," "Even if your grandma was right here, you wouldn't dare raise your voice like that," and "If you dislike me, an old, useless person, just tell me." Her tactics were flawless, flawless, and impeccable. Yun Xian couldn't even find a way out. Unless he agreed to her demands, there was no way anyone could make her stop.
But how could the head of the Li clan be an ordinary person?
Suddenly, Li Jianye's brows tightened, his face instantly turned pale as paper, his lips turned blue and black, he covered his chest and suddenly took a breath.
Grandma Li paused, then immediately panicked, "Li Da, what's wrong?! What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell again?! Don't scare Grandma, I can't stand being scared at my age!!"
"Nothing..." Li Jianye showed a sad but strong expression, closed his eyes and said weakly: "I just suddenly...felt a little uncomfortable..."
Everyone was eating melon seeds in the sound transmission array for a long time when suddenly the situation changed and they were all startled for a moment. Just as Yun Xian was about to go over, his wrist was pressed by Xue Lingxiu's folding fan.
Xue Lingxiu's lips moved slightly.
"Nothing."
"How could this happen?! Didn't they say that it wouldn't recur for at least three months?!" Grandma Li rushed over immediately and was about to reach out to feel Master Li's pulse. Master Li seemed to be in great pain, and his arms fell down weakly, unfortunately avoiding her fingers.
"Grandma, this can't go on." Xue Lingxiu walked over and said solemnly, "They're boiling the medicine in the pharmacy. Can you go over and rush them? I'll take care of it here. Please."
"Okay, okay! I'll be right there!" Grandma Li jumped off the chair in one swift step, her long white hair instantly disappearing in the wind: "Li Da, wait for me!!"
“…”
“…”
“…”
"Alright." Sect Leader Li sat up straight again, his expression unchanged as he said, "Now we can get down to business."
Everyone was shocked: "..."
What a smooth acting skill, it is the result of countless trials and tribulations!!
But her disciple Li Yuan was right beside her. Wouldn't it be a bit damaging to her image if she saw her master like this?
"Master, martial arts training is indeed useful," Li Yuan said enviously. "Last time, I pretended to be sick and wanted to skip class, but the Second Sect Leader grabbed my wrist right away. Wow, there was no way I could dodge! It was so fast, I couldn't even see it clearly!"
Li Jianye smiled and said, "Disciple, wait until you become the head of the sect before you consider feigning illness within the Miaoshou Sect."
If we were to talk business, this innocent little disciple shouldn't be staying here. It was just that Li Yuan hadn't seen her master in ages, and she felt reluctant to leave. She began to ramble on about family matters, and everyone listened in silence, no one asking her to leave.
Yun Xian listened to Li Jianye's steady voice, but his mind couldn't help but drift elsewhere.
The three leaders all had different speaking styles. So, where on earth did Brother Xue learn this veiled, sarcasm from? He couldn't have learned it on his own!
On the other side, Li Yuan was complaining, "Master, I was just polishing my needles when a fellow disciple suddenly came over and said I was ugly and horrible. It's really strange. I don't even know what I look like, why did he suddenly scold me? What does my appearance have to do with him? I'm not his son."
"Oh? There's that?" Li Jianye smiled as if in spring, soothing her. "Don't worry about it. Perhaps it's the recent early spring warmth that's made him irritable and suffering from the fire poison syndrome. Come, Master will teach you how to cure it. Take one qian of Tranquil Heart Grass, half a qian of Sage, two petals of Six Fragrance Flowers, and a handful of Silver Sickle. Boil until boiling. Next time you see him, pour it over his head while it's still hot. Do you understand?"
Li Yuan: “Yeah!”
Yun Xian: “…”
It’s you!!!
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