A faint crack can be seen in the center of the jade pendant.
Li Xi stared at the jade pendant, a strange feeling welling up inside her, a feeling of déjà vu.
Lately, for some reason, she has been feeling that she has forgotten some important things, but no matter what she does, she can't remember them.
The box wasn't big; it only contained this one jade pendant.
Unfortunately, it has cracks, so it's probably not worth much money now.
It was getting late, and after hunting two pheasants in the mountains, she returned to the old man's house.
He prepared a room for Li Xi to stay in.
The room was simply and neatly furnished, and through the half-open window, one could smell the unique fresh scent of the mountains and forests.
"Uncle, I'm back." Li Xi's voice was light and cheerful.
Upon entering the kitchen, I found the old man busily preparing dinner.
She immediately got to work, efficiently processing the pheasant she had just caught.
She skillfully killed the chicken, quickly removed its feathers by immersing it in hot water, and then chopped the chicken meat into evenly sized pieces, placing them one by one into the prepared earthenware pot.
Then, she took out some medicinal herbs from her bag and carefully put them into the pot.
The herbs and chicken mingled in the pot, releasing a subtle aroma.
Li Xi started a fire to simmer the soup, gradually reducing the heat as she carefully adjusted the temperature to allow the broth to cook slowly and fully release the essence of the ingredients.
The old man watched quietly as she placed several items, and asked curiously, "What are you putting in?"
"Uncle, these are some herbs I gathered from the mountain," Li Xi explained with a smile as she stirred the chicken in the pot.
"These herbs have nourishing and health-promoting effects. When stewed with chicken, they can make the soup more delicious and also enhance the nutritional value of the chicken."
This is what Lan'er taught her.
She was always worried that her daughter wouldn't eat well when she was out, so she made her practice cooking and pharmacology diligently.
She can usually cook some good food for herself when she's out, so she doesn't have to eat dry food every day.
A hint of surprise flashed in the old man's eyes, then he nodded approvingly: "I didn't expect you to know so much about cooking at such a young age. This combination of herbs and chicken is indeed a clever innovation."
Li Xi smiled and continued cooking. As time went by, the broth in the pot gradually thickened, and the aroma of chicken intertwined with the fragrance of herbs, filling the entire hut.
"Uncle, please sit down for a while. I'll go prepare some side dishes." Li Xi said, getting up and walking to the vegetable basket beside her. She took out some fresh vegetables and began to wash and chop them.
The old man watched her busy figure and felt a pang of emotion.
After having dinner, Li Xi quickly cleaned up the dishes and then practiced her sword in the courtyard.
The sword light flowed like water in her hand, and every movement was full of power.
The old man sat in a corner of the yard, watching her quietly, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.
"Your swordsmanship is truly exquisite, breathtaking!" the old man suddenly spoke, breaking the surrounding silence.
Upon hearing this, Li Xi stopped wielding her sword, turned to look at the old man, and smiled slightly: "Thank you for the compliment, old man. It's nothing but fancy moves."
He snorted coldly, "You're being too modest." Then he went back inside.
The old man was really eccentric, so she turned around and went back to her room.
The next morning, just as dawn broke, Li Xi got up, tidied herself up quickly, and went out.
She was going to see if she could find any more useful clues in the vicinity.
Those members of the Red Lotus Sect must have been lying in wait nearby for a long time before finally finding the opportunity to...
Since they were able to gather so many experts in such a short time, they must have made some arrangements in the surrounding area.
Li Xi walked through a sparse bamboo grove. Dewdrops clung to the bamboo leaves, trembling slightly with her steps, like jewels shimmering with a soft light.
She carefully observed her surroundings, searching for any possible traces.
Ten years have passed, and everything here has returned to nature.
Suddenly, I noticed a wooden house not far away. Although the walls were dilapidated, they still revealed that someone had lived there in the past.
There was still uneaten food on the dining table inside, but it had long since become moldy and unusable.
Despite being covered in dust and cobwebs, the interior of the house gave off a strange feeling, as if the owner had only left temporarily and would return at any moment.
However, upon closer inspection, no traces of a fight or argument were found.
Everything seemed so peaceful, with only time flowing silently by.
What exactly happened to this family? Why did they suddenly leave?
What's even stranger is that this place is only one kilometer away from the village.
However, the other villagers had already packed up everything they could carry and taken it with them.
This one family, however, seemed completely oblivious to everything happening around them, continuing with their original way of life as if the outside world's turmoil had nothing to do with them.
Could it be that some unexpected situation occurred, causing them to leave hastily without having time to react? All these mysteries left Li Xi deep in thought…
She looked inside and outside the house, and finally found a wooden sign in a corner of the yard.
The wooden plaque looked old and worn, with some strange patterns carved on it. However, due to long-term erosion by wind and rain, these patterns had become blurred and illegible.
She examined the wooden plaque closely, trying to make out the pattern on it, but to no avail.
She decided to ask the old man later to see if he knew the origin and purpose of the wooden plaque.
After carefully putting the wooden sign into her pocket, she began searching the surrounding area again.
I walked along the path until I reached the Xuanming Gate before stopping.
It seems that the village and the Xuanming Sect must have had some contact on a regular basis.
The villagers couldn't possibly be unaware of what happened back then, but did the villagers really leave?
Or was he already murdered? That old man...
Thinking of this, a chill ran through Li Xi, and she dared not think any further.
But her intuition told her that there must be a hidden secret.
She turned around, preparing to return to the old man's residence to inquire further.
Just then, a gentle breeze blew by, carrying a faint scent of liniment. She frowned slightly; this scent… it felt so familiar.
Just as she was stunned, a figure swung a sword and slashed straight at her.
The sword energy was sharp and swift, carrying endless killing intent and hatred.
Her eyes widened as she tried to dodge the attack, but it was too late.
The sword energy slashed fiercely across her shoulder, tearing her clothes and leaving a deep wound.
Blood gushed from the wound, staining her clothes red.
She winced in pain, her body jerking violently.
Looking at the person who had just arrived, he was momentarily taken aback: "It's you!"
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