repeat offender
Two days have quietly passed since I returned from the temple.
Two days ago, Liu Yang's message arrived in the valley almost simultaneously with the two of them.
The letter said that, apart from a few who were traveling, the remaining disciples in the temple, upon hearing that it was Ji Wang who had invited them, did not hesitate at all and all happily agreed. Even the chickens and ducks raised in the temple flapped their wings and were very restless.
And the day they moved in was set for today.
Bu Jiu woke up first, and the moment he opened his eyes, he noticed something was wrong beside him. His gaze fell down, and his brows furrowed.
On the still smooth and warm bedsheets from last night, several clear, plum blossom-shaped paw prints, tinged with damp mud, were clearly visible. The marks extended from the foot of the bed all the way to his pillow.
The corners of the quilt were pulled up and piled up, cleverly forming a soft and comfortable nest-like depression, and next to the depression, there were a few conspicuous, light yellow short downy hairs.
At this moment, Jiu Jiu was comfortably curled up in her homemade nest, curling herself into a fluffy ball, her belly rising and falling gently with her breath, sleeping soundly, completely unaware of the impending crisis.
Bu Jiu sat up and carefully pulled his hair away from Ji Wang's side. He stared at the unsightly paw prints and the few dog hairs fluttering in the wind, and remained silent for a moment.
He was always particular about cleanliness, and his bed was always spotless. For Jiu Jiu to sneak in and "claim his territory" like this, whether he was human or fox at the moment, had clearly crossed his boundary.
He reached out, his fingertips gathering a tiny wisp of demonic power, and gently touched Jiu Jiu's exposed black nose.
Jiu Jiu sneezed uncomfortably in her sleep and groggily opened her eyes. Her vision focused, and what came into view was Bu Jiu's expressionless face.
Animal instincts alerted it instantly; it pulled its ears back, made a pleading "woof" sound in its throat, and instinctively tried to rub its head against Bujiu's hand, seeking forgiveness.
Bu Jiu avoided its rubbing, instead pointing his fingertip at the clear claw marks on its face: "Next time, you're not allowed to come up here again. Understand?"
His tone wasn't harsh, and he didn't show much emotion, but that only made Jiu Jiu more timid.
Its ears drooped completely, its tail was tucked under its belly, and the dog shrank back, not daring to move anymore, only looking at him timidly with its wet eyes.
Ji Wang was also awakened by the noise. He groggily came over and immediately saw the miserable state of the bedsheets, Jiu Jiu cowering in a ball, and Bu Jiu clearly displeased.
"Oh dear..." Ji Wang yawned deeply, naturally pulling Bu Jiu into his arms, and softly coaxed in a sleepy, nasal voice, "Okay, okay, don't be so fierce... See, it knows it was wrong, right? Our Jiu Jiu is the best, it will definitely remember not to go to bed next time, right?"
As he spoke, he gave Jiu Jiu a look that said, "Quickly admit your mistake."
Jiu Jiu grasped at a straw as if it were a lifeline and immediately seized the opportunity. Its eyes first glanced at Ji Wang, then at Bu Jiu, its tail tip twitched slightly, and it let out an even more aggrieved whimper.
Bu Jiu's gaze returned to the series of claw marks. He didn't speak, but the aura around him noticeably softened a bit.
Seeing this, Ji Wang knew there was hope, so he immediately leaned close to Bu Jiu's ear with a grin, coaxing him, "I'll take this quilt cover off in a bit, scrub it clean with soap, and dry it until it's fluffy and fluffy. I guarantee there won't be a single trace left, okay? Darling, I'll make it a nest next to it, then it won't get on the bed, alright?"
Bu Jiu felt a slight tickle on his ear from the gentle tone of his voice, and turned his head away to avoid it, which was a tacit acceptance of this solution. He certainly didn't really want to be angry with Jiu Jiu, it was just a matter of habit, and rules needed to be established.
Seeing that the atmosphere was easing, Jiu Jiu's survival instinct emboldened it.
It stuck out its little pink tongue and licked Ji Wang's hand, which was resting on the side of the bed, in a flattering manner.
Seeing that Ji Wang smiled and didn't object, it tentatively moved its body, brought its nose close to Bu Jiu's finger, licked it, and even used its paw to push the hand away, trying to bury its head under it to touch it, like an awkward apology.
Bu Jiu looked down at the little guy, reached out and symbolically flicked Ah Huang's fluffy forehead with his fingertip.
"This will not be repeated," he reiterated.
Jiu Jiu immediately understood, barked happily as if she had been granted a pardon, and lightly jumped off the bed, excitedly spinning around the bedside twice.
Ji Wang laughed. He looked at Bu Jiu, leaned in naturally, and gently kissed Bu Jiu's lips. Bu Jiu was already used to this; when Ji Wang leaned in, he even raised his head.
Ji Wang then nimbly rolled out of bed, her voice light and cheerful: "Take your time packing, I'll go out and see if they've arrived yet."
His tone was full of expectation as if he were the head of the household, and also revealed his consideration for Bujiu's habits—knowing that he was a clean person and always needed some time to tidy himself up after getting up in the morning, not to mention that his bed had been "visited" by a certain little dog this morning.
Bu Jiu responded and watched him rush out the door like a gust of wind. The door clicked open, and the room returned to silence, with only the birdsong gradually rising outside the window and Jiu Jiu's breathing at her feet remaining.
Ji Wang originally planned to go directly to the mountain gate to greet his fellow disciples from Bu Nian Guan, but he stopped abruptly after taking only a few steps.
A very faint buzzing sound, like a suppressed bee's hum, came from the end of the corridor.
Ji Wang's smile vanished instantly.
The Reverse Scale Shuttle, which he had carefully stored away after the battle of Wuwang Plain and placed deep within the quiet room, was now exhibiting unusual activity.
Without a second thought, he immediately changed direction and strode quickly toward the secret room at the end of the corridor.
Ji Wang raised his hand and placed it on the center of the stone door, gathering spiritual power in his palm to activate the protective restrictions on it.
He stepped into the secret chamber, closed the stone door behind him, and shut out the outside noise.
The buzzing of the Reverse Scale Shuttle seemed amplified indoors, and the shuttle was no longer its usual gentle and restrained appearance. At this moment, its entire body was radiating light, as if something inside had been forcibly ignited.
The ancient dragon patterns engraved on it flickered and shone as the shuttle body spun anxiously. With each rise and fall of the light, the heart-pounding fluctuations in the air intensified.
Ji Wang's heart sank.
The Reverse Scale Shuttle was connected to his soul and was also a legacy of the Cloud Recesses Daoist, giving it a natural sensitivity to people related to Cloud Recesses or major crises. Its unusual behavior at this moment was definitely not ordinary... and today was the day that the people of the Unremembered Observatory moved here.
He dared not think any further and rushed to the weapon rack on one side of the secret room.
Several longswords were displayed on the shelf, all of which were top-quality ones that Huaiqing had rescued from the original weapons pavilion, but he didn't even look at them and directly grabbed the one that Bujiu had given him.
Without the slightest hesitation, he turned and strode quickly out of the secret room.
Just as he rushed out of the palace gate, he bumped into Shi Jian. He was carrying a newly felled log, preparing to deliver it to the workshop, when he saw Ji Wang carrying a sword, and he was clearly taken aback.
"Sect Leader?" Shi Jian put down the log, his face wary. "What happened? Do you need help? This sword..."
Ji Wang didn't have time to explain in detail, speaking very quickly: "Shi Jian, tell Bu Jiu that I'll be right back!"
Before he finished speaking, he had already lightly touched the ground with his toes, and his figure swept past Shi Jian's side like an arrow released from a bow, bringing with it a gust of wind.
He didn't even go through the main gate, but instead darted to the nearest low wall, gathered his strength, and leaped over it like a swift, leaving Shi Jian's question, "Where are you going, Sect Leader?" far behind.
Shi Jian stared in disbelief as Ji Wang disappeared into the misty mountain path in a few leaps. He scratched the back of his head, though he didn't understand why. But he had clearly heard Ji Wang say, "Tell Bu Jiu."
So he didn't dare to delay any longer, dropped the log, turned around and ran towards the main house to deliver the message.
Ji Wang pushed his lightness skill to its limit, his figure almost turning into a blurry green shadow, and sped towards the direction of Bu Nian Temple at full speed.
However, halfway there, an overwhelming and undeniable stench of blood pierced through the morning mist, forcefully entering his nostrils and gripping his mind.
"call--"
He forced down the surging anger and panic in his throat, and accelerated again, following the direction where the nauseating smell of blood was strongest. In just a few breaths, he had reached a relatively open, gentle slope halfway up the mountain.
The sight before him caused his pupils to contract sharply, and the blood in his body seemed to rush to his head and then freeze in the next second.
The senior brother who was always taciturn in the temple but would quietly mend his Taoist robe was now facing away from him, his clothes torn and stained with large patches of dark red blood. Even though he was staggering, he still stood there firmly in his way.
Behind him, two fellow disciples, also wounded, were huddled together. One of them had his arm twisted at an unnatural angle, and his face was as pale as paper.
Opposite them were seven or eight figures wearing demon masks, wielding sharp blades and talismans, closing in step by step.
The leader's scimitar was still dripping with thick blood, indicating that he had injured quite a few people.
The senior brother once again held up the iron sword in his hand, which was already dulled and stained with blood, trying to use his swaying body to build the last barrier for his junior brothers and sisters behind him.
His voice was hoarse and trembling: "Retreat—"
"Back off—!" A furious shout filled with boundless rage suddenly resounded through the mountains and forests like a thunderclap, drowning out the sound of weapons whistling through the air.
Ji Wang's figure was as fast as lightning, rushing in from the side and behind. Before the men in black could even react, the long sword in his hand was already drawn, bringing with it an extremely cold light. With the force of wind and thunder, it slashed straight at the leader of the men in black who was holding the blood-dripping curved knife and was about to swing it down again!
"Clang—!" A deafening clang rang out, sparks flying everywhere.
The leader was clearly caught off guard by such a swift and fierce attack. He hurriedly tried to block it, but felt an immense force coming from his scimitar. His entire arm went numb instantly, and he staggered back several steps uncontrollably before finally regaining his balance. His eyes behind his mask were filled with surprise and uncertainty.
Ji Wang landed steadily, then stepped back, his figure as imposing as a mountain, shielding his senior brother and injured fellow disciples. His free left hand swiftly swung behind him, instantly creating a spiritual energy barrier that protected everyone within.
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