Chapter 17 Yunniang's Disappearance
Mu Yao's palms burned with pain. Thinking that she had made considerable progress in her training, she figured Qin Wuyan wouldn't say anything if she rested today. She immediately ran back to Peach Blossom Palace to find Yunniang to apply medicine. But she searched every room in the palace and couldn't find Yunniang anywhere.
Mu Yao looked up at the sky; it was nearly noon. Normally, while she practiced her skills at the Falling Star Palace, Yun Niang would often go to the backyard of Heavenly Fox Mountain to help the sect disciples cook, but she would always return to Peach Blossom Palace at noon and in the evening to bring her food.
Perhaps he's been too busy and hasn't had time to come back yet?
Mu Yao thought for a moment, then found some ointment and applied it herself. She sat in the room waiting for her mother to bring her food, but she waited and waited until after 1 p.m., and Yunniang still did not return.
She had been practicing diligently and absorbing a lot of spiritual energy during this period. Although she had not completely abstained from food, she no longer needed to eat as often as before. Therefore, although she had not eaten anything, she was not hungry. However, she felt uneasy and was very worried about her mother.
After waiting for a long time without seeing anyone, Mu Yao decided to go out and look for them. The sky, which had been bright and sunny just moments before, suddenly became covered with dark clouds, so heavy and oppressive that it was hard to breathe, as if a storm was about to break.
Taowu Mountain and Tianhu Mountain are the closest to each other. Thinking that she might run into Yunniang on the way back, Mu Yao did not use magic to fly and ran all the way to find Tianhu Mountain.
Today was the sect trial, and there were far fewer disciples on Tianhu Mountain responsible for guarding and patrolling. However, when Mu Yao arrived at the main hall, she was still stopped: "Which sect are you from? Why don't you have a waist token?"
Waist token? Mu Yao was stunned. So all the disciples of the Tianli Divine Sect wore waist tokens? But Qin Wuyan had never given her one. Moreover, she had been staying in Taowu Mountain to cultivate these days, and when she went to other places, it was always Qin Wuyan or Xiaobai who brought her, and she had never encountered any obstacles.
She was anxious and said, "Brother, I am a new disciple who recently joined the sect leader's sect and haven't received my waist token yet. I'm here to find my mother. She works as a kitchen helper in the kitchen behind the mountain. Could you let me see her for a moment? I'll leave right after."
"The sect leader's disciple?" The gatekeeper frowned upon seeing her unfamiliar face, then looked at the other gatekeeper opposite him and asked, "Hey, have you heard that the sect leader has taken on a new disciple?"
The man said thoughtfully, "It seems...it seems he has taken on an apprentice..."
Mu Yao looked at him expectantly, hoping he would recognize her and let her in. But he scrutinized her for a long time and then said, "But I've never seen you before either. Who knows if you're an imposter?" He held a knife in one hand and, together with the person on the other side, blocked the door completely.
Seeing that they wouldn't let her in, Mu Yao had no choice but to say, "If I don't want to go in, could you please ask in the backyard if my mother is inside? I just need to know that she's here."
The gatekeeper said, "We don't even know you, how would we know your mother? Little girl, hurry up and leave, this is not a place for you to play."
"But……"
"Who is it that disturbed my good sleep?"
Just as Mu Yao was about to force her way in, a man in black walked out of the door. The two gatekeepers bowed and said, "Reporting to Master Ye, it's a little girl. She said she's going to the back mountain of the Heavenly Fox Palace to find her mother."
This person was none other than Wild Dog Daoist, a former disciple of the Blood Refining Hall. If the Heavenly Dawn Divine Sect had already unified the Demonic Sect, he would naturally have joined the sect. Qin Wuyan also renamed the former Blood Refining Hall to the Fierce Mountain Hall and made Wild Dog the hall master.
Wild Dog spotted Mu Yao immediately and exclaimed, "Oh my, Miss Mu Yao, what brings you here?" He glanced at the two disciples guarding the gate and said angrily, "Get out of the way! This is the sect leader's chief disciple, Miss Mu Yao. Even the Grand Protector has to give way to her. How dare you stop her?"
The two gatekeepers trembled with fear and quickly sheathed their weapons, stepping aside and bowing, saying, "We were blind and did not recognize your greatness. Please forgive us, Miss Mu."
"You recognize me?" Mu Yao looked at the stray dog, feeling that the person looked familiar, but couldn't remember who he was.
As Wild Dog led her inside, he respectfully said, "I am Wild Dog, the head of the Lieshan Hall. A few days ago, the sect leader asked several of us subordinates to pay our respects to Miss Mu Yao."
Although Mu Yao is only nine years old, the wild dog noticed that she looked seven or eight parts similar to the former young master Bi Yao as soon as he saw her. Therefore, he was particularly impressed by her. In addition, Qin Wuyan had warned them that Mu Yao could come and go freely except for going down the mountain at will.
Mu Yao was only thinking about her mother and was not paying attention to what the wild dog was saying. She hurried forward and asked, "How do I get to the kitchen in the backyard of Tianhu Mountain?"
The stray dog hurriedly said, "Your subordinate will take you there!"
The two hurried to the kitchen. Today was the sect trial, and after the trial would be the initiation ceremony. Many dishes needed to be prepared, so the kitchen was very busy.
Amidst the bustling crowd, Mu Yao couldn't spot her mother, so she grabbed a worker who was washing vegetables and asked, "Do you know Yunniang? Where is she?"
The young man shook his head: "I don't know him."
Wild Dog said, "Miss Mu Yao, don't worry, I'll call the head chef for you directly." He immediately ordered someone to call the head chef in charge of the kitchen. When the man arrived and heard that he was looking for Yun Niang, he shook his head and said, "Yun Niang said at noon today that she was going to send food back to her daughter, and I haven't seen her since." He then questioned everyone in the kitchen, and they all said they hadn't seen Yun Niang again.
Everyone speculated that Yunniang might have already returned to Taowu Mountain, but Mu Yao hadn't encountered her on the way. She couldn't wait any longer and rushed back to Taowu Mountain despite the rain outside.
The wild dogs, fearing for her safety, followed her all the way, but the Peach Blossom Palace remained empty.
Mu Yao's heart sank. Her mother was already familiar with the road from Tianhu Mountain to Taowu Mountain, so it was unlikely that she would get lost. Thinking of her father's innocent and tragic death not long ago, she was extremely worried. She was still just a child, and the thought of her mother possibly getting into trouble made her burst into tears.
Seeing her crying uncontrollably, the wild dog was frantic, not knowing what to do. Most of the sect's disciples had been transferred to Wolf Fighting Ridge for today's trials, and even if they wanted to find someone, they were short-handed. After a while, he had a sudden inspiration and said, "Miss Mu Yao, why don't I take you to the sect leader? He'll definitely have a solution."
Mu Yao then remembered that she could still ask Qin Wuyan for help. She quickly wiped away her tears and let the wild dog lead the way.
The disciples of the Tianli Divine Sect were scheduled to undergo trials at Langdou Ridge, a mountain range located between Qixia Mountain and Guniu Mountain. Therefore, Qin Wuyan and his left and right protectors were in the Chuiyi Pavilion on the highest peak of Qixia Mountain, using the Zhaoji Mirror to observe the performance of the many disciples in the mountain range.
This afternoon, a sudden downpour struck. Seeing many people in the mirror thrown into disarray by the heavy rain, Qin Wuyan frowned, clearly very dissatisfied.
As the rain gradually subsided and the sound of rain lessened, a familiar voice faintly reached Qin Wuyan's ears. He looked up and saw two figures, one large and one small, flying in the rain, getting closer and closer to him.
"Yao'er!" Upon recognizing the person, Qin Wuyan abruptly stood up and strode out. The little girl was soaking wet when she reached him, and he couldn't help but frown and ask, "What are you doing here?"
There was a hint of reproach in her voice, but even more so, there was heartache.
"Master!" Mu Yao hugged him tightly, tears mingling with the rain. "Master, please save my mother! My mother is missing! I don't know if she's been kidnapped by bad people. I've been looking for her for so long, but I can't find her." The more she spoke, the more worried and frightened she became, and she burst into tears. Her mother was her only remaining family, and she couldn't bear the pain of losing a loved one again.
Yunniang is missing? Qin Wuyan was shocked and quickly pulled her into the pavilion, bending down to ask with concern, "What happened? How could your mother be missing?"
The stray dog beside him quickly recounted Mu Yao's search for someone at Tianhu Mountain and Taowu Mountain. In short, the conclusion was that the person had suddenly disappeared.
Qin Wuyan frowned deeply, and Xie Qingqiu and Tang Yuan beside him were also quite surprised. Since the founding of the Tianli Divine Sect, Qin Wuyan had been very strict with his disciples, and there were certain places they could not easily go. Yunniang was just an ordinary woman who had no grudges against anyone. Unless someone took her away, how could she have suddenly disappeared?
Qin Wuyan pondered for a moment, feeling that this matter was not simple. He immediately ordered Xie Qingqiu and Tang Yuan, "You two, immediately declare that today's trial is suspended, and everyone, immediately search the mountain for people."
Xie Qingqiu was taken aback. They were actually going to stop the trial just to find an ordinary woman? She couldn't help but advise, "Sect Master, the trial is almost over. If we stop now, the disciples will be dissatisfied."
Tang Yuan also said, "Sect Master, I can lead some people to search the mountain first. It won't be too late to send these disciples to search for people after the trial is over."
Qin Wuyan glanced at the two of them, his brows furrowed with coldness. His voice wasn't loud, but his tone sent chills down one's spine: "Don't you two understand what I'm saying?"
Xie Qingqiu and Tang Yuan's expressions changed drastically, and they immediately bowed and knelt on one knee: "Your subordinates dare not!"
Mu Yao was also frightened by his stern tone, and her crying stopped abruptly. Qin Wuyan was always gentle and kind in front of her; she had never seen him so cold and unsympathetic before.
Qin Wuyan didn't want to waste any more time arguing with his subordinates, so he simply cast a spell himself in front of the mirror. The scene during the disciples' trial was originally an illusion created by the magic array, so after the barrier and array dissipated, the disciples were all stunned, not knowing what had happened. They only heard a clear and majestic voice from above, as authoritative as a divine decree:
"Disciples, listen to my command! Today's trial is over. Everyone, withdraw from Wolf Fighting Ridge and await further instructions from your respective hall masters."
Tang Yuan and Xie Qingqiu exchanged a glance and sighed inwardly. No one could stop Qin Wuyan's decision, so they had no choice but to lead their men down and assign them the task of searching the mountains for the missing person.
"Yao'er," Qin Wuyan said, having given his order, he saw the little girl staring blankly at him, her beautiful eyes red from crying. His heart ached. He bent down and carried her to a chair, gently wiping away her tears. His voice was incredibly gentle: "Don't cry. I will definitely find your mother."
When he was with her, he reverted to his gentle and kind demeanor.
Although her body was cold, Mu Yao felt a surge of warmth in her heart. He was so kind to her, willing to put aside his sect affairs to help her.
Unable to tell whether she was moved or happy, Mu Yao couldn't help but reach out and hug him again. In his embrace, she felt as if she had nothing to fear and nothing to lose. She pressed her head against his chest and whispered, "Master, you are so good."
This was the second time he had heard her say that.
He smiled faintly, reached out and gently stroked her head, as if he wanted to say something, but then stopped, finally letting out a soft sigh.
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