He thought for a moment, then pretended to be afraid of getting into trouble and said, "We'll rest here for the night and leave first thing tomorrow morning. We won't cause you any trouble."
The middle-aged man seemed satisfied with Qing Xuanzi's answer, nodded, and said meaningfully, "Then you can rest here, but I hope you don't wander around. It's not safe in these mountains."
After saying that, he turned and left with the hunters, heading in the direction they were going.
Qing Xuanzi watched their departing figures, a hint of wariness flashing in his eyes.
He knew these people were definitely up to something. He would go check them out at night, and if they were all wicked criminals, he would report them to the government and let them deal with the situation.
He turned to look at Rong Jiaojiao and found the little girl staring curiously at the hunters' backs, muttering, "These people are so strange."
Qing Xuanzi patted her head and smiled, "These people are probably bandits from the mountains. They don't seem like they'll do anything to us, but we still need to be careful."
Upon hearing this, Rong Jiaojiao asked curiously, "Master, what do mountain bandits do? Are they very powerful?"
Qing Xuanzi laughed and said, "Yes, she is indeed quite powerful, but not as powerful as Master and Jiaojiao."
After saying that, he continued cooking, putting the matter behind him.
However, right after they finished eating, while Rong Jiaojiao was cultivating, Qing Xuanzi's divine sense suddenly detected a strange aura.
He frowned slightly and looked up at the distant mountain valley, where someone was quietly approaching.
Qing Xuanzi set up a defensive formation for Rong Jiaojiao and the others, and whispered to Rong Jiaojiao, "Jiaojiao, you, Ziling, and Xiaojin stay in the tent and don't come out. I'm going out to take a look."
Rong Jiaojiao nodded and said obediently, "Okay, Master, be careful."
Qing Xuanzi nodded and instructed Xiao Jin, "Protect them well!"
Little Gold nodded its snake head and promised, "I will protect Little Jiaojiao as if she were my own life."
Qing Xuanzi stepped out of the tent and walked towards the mountain valley. He spread out his divine sense and was surprised to find that he had encountered the same group of hunters from before.
Unexpectedly, they returned, and among them was an even older man.
The old man's aura was very restrained, yet it possessed a strong sense of oppression, clearly indicating that he was a martial arts master.
They came straight towards the tent, making no attempt to conceal their presence or purpose.
Qing Xuanzi wasn't sure what they wanted, so he turned around and went back to his tent to wait for their arrival.
Seeing Qing Xuanzi return, Rong Jiaojiao asked, "Master, aren't you going out?"
As she was about to step out of the formation, Qing Xuanzi quickly stopped her: "Someone is coming this way. Jiao Bao, stay inside the formation and don't come out."
Rong Jiaojiao used her divine sense to look around: "Master, is there no one here?"
Qing Xuanzi raised his chin in the direction of the approaching people: "They came from that direction, but they are a bit far away. Your divine sense cannot detect places that far away."
Rong Jiaojiao said "Oh," and reached out to take out an apple and give it to Ziling: "Here, have this."
Ziling pushed the apple, which was bigger than its head, towards Rong Jiaojiao, squeaked its thanks, and then happily ate it with a "crunch crunch".
Xiao Jin suddenly brought her head close to Rong Jiaojiao's face, opening her mouth, clearly wanting to eat the apple.
Rong Jiaojiao took out an apple and asked, "Do you want some?"
Xiao Jin nodded. Qing Xuanzi turned his head and sensed that the apple in Rong Jiaojiao's hand carried a trace of spiritual energy. So he said, "Xiao Jin sensed that the apple contained spiritual energy, which is why it wanted to eat it. Jiaojiao, give it a few."
Rong Jiaojiao took out two more and gave them to Xiao Jin, then gave one to her master, and kept one for herself to eat.
A dozen minutes later, the group of hunters finally arrived outside the tent.
The old man in the crowd had a dignified yet kind face. When he saw Qing Xuanzi standing outside the tent, looking like he had been waiting for a long time, he narrowed his eyes and his expression became even more gentle.
This person is a typical smiling tiger, Qing Xuanzi's expression became even more serious.
He doesn't usually use his third eye to see people, but this time he secretly made a hand seal to open his third eye, and unexpectedly the old man was shining with golden light.
The others also had some kind of golden light protecting them, and Qing Xuanzi felt a little embarrassed, realizing that he had been overthinking things.
He initially thought these people were bandits, but from his divine eye, he could see that they all had golden light on them, clearly indicating that they had done many good deeds for the country and its people.
The old man, in particular, was radiant with golden light, possessing even more merit than the Taoist monk himself.
The old man had just felt as if his entire being had been seen through, though it was only for a moment, but he clearly felt it.
He felt a chill run down his spine; this person was no ordinary individual, and his vigilance increased accordingly.
He had previously heard from his nephew that he had met someone of similar age but with unfathomable skill, but he thought it was an exaggeration.
Now he knows that this person is even stronger than his nephew estimated, and that even his own father might not be his match.
Qing Xuanzi cupped his hands slightly and said loudly, "Friends, what brings you here at this late hour?"
With a smile on his face, the old man said in a kind tone, "My name is Wu Hui, and I am the clan chief of the small village ahead. My nephew told me that a person with great martial arts skills had come here, so I thought I would come and pay him a visit to see if I could make his acquaintance. I did not expect you to be so extraordinary. I admire you."
He spoke politely, but in reality, he was worried that enemies might have found out about this place and came to check it out.
Qing Xuanzi returned the greeting with a cupped hand and said, "Clan Chief Wu, you flatter me. I am Qing Xuanzi, and I am not a person with any great martial arts skills."
Seeing that Qing Xuanzi did not refer to himself as a junior in front of him, and that he could not fathom the depth of the other party's skill, Wu Hui felt a strong sense of danger.
So he tentatively inquired, "May I ask if you are a member of the Xuanmen sect?"
His eyes held a hopeful look, as if he particularly wished that he were a Taoist master.
Qing Xuanzi paused for a moment, but did not deny it. He nodded and said, "I suppose so. I have been practicing Xuanmen techniques since I was a child, but I have not yet reached a high level, so I dare not presume to call myself a Xuanmen master."
Upon hearing this, Wu Hui's eyes flashed with surprise, but his tone became somewhat embarrassed as he asked, "I wonder if the master is skilled in divination?"
The middle-aged man beside him looked at him, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.
Qing Xuanzi smiled slightly, understanding the situation somewhat, and nodded, saying, "I have some knowledge of divination. May I ask if Chief Wu has any difficulties?"
Wu Hui sighed, his expression heavy: "Alas, more than half a month ago, a young man from our village went into the mountains alone to hunt. He said he would just wander around the area, but he didn't come back for several days, and everyone searched the neighborhood for him."
"Later, we organized the villagers to go into the mountains to search, and they found his body deep in the forest."
"The corpse was very strange. It was shriveled up, as if its life force had been drained, but there wasn't a single wound on its body."
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