Chapter 28 Blood Array (Part 1)
The deep forest in the western suburbs felt very familiar. Outside, the sky was clear and bright, but inside it was shrouded in darkness. It wasn't because of too much fog like in Ghost Mountain Village last time. Here, it was simply because the vegetation was too lush. Every crevice was filled with plants, vying for the precious sunlight.
The branches grew wildly and unruly, like the claws of a devil, ready to pierce a person's neck and suck blood at any moment.
Bai Qianfan used his sword to cut down one vine after another in front of him. By the end, his arms were sore and he hadn't gone very far. He couldn't help but say angrily, "Do you think she's deliberately playing a trick on us? What can we find here?"
"I don't think so," Chu Jianshan said casually from behind.
"How so?"
"She killed so many people, so a few of us wouldn't be a difference. But since she spared our lives, it means we still have value to her. However, I don't think that just because Cheng Yuan is my... cough cough, Chu Qingyuan's disciple, it's enough for him to have so much confidence in us."
Chu Jianshan spoke too quickly and almost revealed his identity. Fortunately, Cheng Yuan didn't pay much attention to it and instead focused on the second half of Chu Jianshan's sentence.
Why isn't it enough for me alone?
Chu Jianshan explained, "She was willing to kill so many people for justice for her father's death, so naturally she would spare no effort for his belongings. It's true that you are very strong, but you're not the only powerful person in the world. Why were you given this opportunity? Unless..."
Cheng Yuan realized what was happening and replied, "Unless, only I can get my hands on this."
Chu Jianshan nodded, confirming Cheng Yuan's guess. But now he was wondering what was so special about Cheng Yuan's identity. He had taken Cheng Yuan in when he was eight years old, and he knew his background very well. Cheng Yuan was a pitiful child who had been abandoned by his parents. So what connection could he have with Qingyao City?
Chu Jianshan was lost in memories and didn't pay attention to what was in front of him. Instead, Cheng Yuan cleared away or cut down the messy, withered branches in front of him, but his eyes were always fixed on Chu Jianshan's profile.
Bai Qianfan glanced back at the two of them, a meaningful expression forming on his face. Having been a seasoned player in the dating scene for many years, there was no way he couldn't see Cheng Yuan's feelings for Chu Jianshan.
"What a tragedy..." Bai Qianfan murmured with his eyes closed.
He wasn't too conservative to accept a relationship between two men, but Cheng Yuan, that silly boy, didn't know Chu Jianshan's true identity yet. He was afraid that he would fall head over heels in love with him only to find out that Chu Jianshan was his master. The level of horror in that case was unimaginable.
As for Chu Jianshan, he's a blockhead. Unless Cheng Yuan pins him down on the bed and gives him a good beating, he'll never react. The other side is already on the verge of sex, but he still thinks it's a deep bond between master and disciple.
Bai Qianfan closed his eyes tightly, shook his head, and whispered, "What a tragedy..."
Chu Jianshan heard Bai Qianfan muttering to himself and assumed he was troubled by the matter of his belongings, so he comforted him, saying, "Brother Bai, it's not that bad. After all, you haven't reached the end of your road yet."
Bai Qianfan turned his head and gave him a bitter laugh. He was about to be eaten alive, yet he still had time to worry about him. He really didn't know whether to cry or laugh.
"Chu Jianshan," Cheng Yuan called out to him from the side.
Chu Jianshan turned his head and saw Cheng Yuan's hand reaching out to him. He didn't understand what it meant and didn't want to push it away directly, so he could only slightly shrink his neck and wait for Cheng Yuan's next move.
His hand didn't touch Chu Jianshan, but instead reached up to his head and gently swept it twice, causing a few leaves to fall.
Chu Jianshan looked up and smiled at Cheng Yuan to express his gratitude, his eyes curving like crescent moons, showing utmost sincerity.
Cheng Yuan's face remained expressionless, but his eyes never left his smile.
This scene made Bai Qianfan's vision go black. He couldn't bear to watch any longer. He quickened his pace and walked forward angrily, but after only a couple of steps, his legs suddenly gave way, and a feeling of weightlessness washed over him.
"Bai Qianfan!" The master and apprentice finally came to their senses and hurriedly went to look for Bai Qianfan.
Bai Qianfan didn't fall very deep, and there were some dead leaves cushioning her fall, so she was probably alright. Chu Jianshan stood at the cave entrance looking down, and Bai Qianfan was standing below, staring at something.
"What's down there? Why don't you come up?"
Chu Jianshan called his name twice, but Bai Qianfan seemed stunned and did not react at all.
Chu Jianshan became suspicious, so he pulled Cheng Yuan down with him.
"What are you looking at so intently?"
He followed Bai Qianfan's gaze and discovered that there was a hidden world below. Although the entrance looked simple, the space below was the size of several rooms.
In the very center stands an enormous ancient tree supporting the space below, its trunk entwined with countless vines. The vines and the ancient tree complement each other, growing together in a thriving way.
At this moment, Bai Qianfan finally spoke, raising his chin towards the ancient tree and saying, "Doesn't that mark look familiar?"
Chu Jianshan walked over and took a closer look, and indeed saw something unusual.
The tree trunk was mostly covered by vines, with only a small area exposed. Chu Jianshan stroked that spot, and the peculiar patterns gradually coalesced into the image in his memory.
"Linyi Gate," Cheng Yuan said for him.
Like the emblem on Zhao Ming's coffin that I saw in the spirit world, and the emblem on the black-clad man from Zuichunlou, it is the ancient clan emblem of Linyimen from five hundred years ago.
Chu Jianshan frowned: "It's Linyi Gate again. What exactly is their purpose?"
Bai Qianfan shook his head: "Linyi Sect has always been mysterious, yet it has become the most powerful sect, and now many sects are dissatisfied with them."
"Dissatisfied? What do you mean?" Chu Jianshan asked.
Bai Qianfan continued, "In recent years, Linyi Sect has been openly and secretly winning over many small sects. Some people are afraid that they want to completely betray the alliance agreement. If Linyi Sect really develops, even the major sects, including Changjin Mountain, may not be able to survive. Therefore, the elders plan to take the initiative and join forces to crush Linyi Sect before it becomes too powerful."
After a moment of silence, Cheng Yuan couldn't help but speak up: "This isn't exactly a good solution."
Chu Jianshan shared the same thought. Regardless of the actual strength of Linyimen, if they were to launch an attack, innocent bystanders would inevitably suffer. Those of them who were capable of protecting themselves would be fine, but what had the ordinary people done wrong?
Moreover, the situation is becoming increasingly complicated. He Kun, the current leader of Linyi Sect, is all show and no substance, just a puppet. There must be someone in actual power behind him. Who knows if this is a trap waiting for them to fall into?
Bai Qianfan crossed his arms over his chest and lowered his eyes, saying, "It seems I need to find some time to go back."
When the topic of returning to Changjin Mountain came up, Chu Jianshan's eyes became unnatural. Although no one would recognize him now, he was surrounded by familiar faces there. To be honest, he hadn't figured out how to face them yet.
Bai Qianfan could see the inner turmoil in Chu Jianshan's heart, so he changed the subject again: "Let's take it one step at a time. Let's solve the immediate problem first."
The three of them circled the ancient tree several times, looking it over, but apart from the clan emblem of Linyi Gate, they found nothing else suspicious.
Bai Qianfan scratched his head: "Could we have made a mistake? This place doesn't look like it's hiding anything."
Chu Jianshan didn't reply, because his eyes were focused on the ground: "It's not on the tree, but it's not necessarily on the ground."
Bai Qianfan was full of doubt: "Do we have to dig it open? We don't have any suitable tools."
Cheng Yuan, who was standing next to him, suddenly looked up and realized the other meaning in Chu Jianshan's words. He knelt down and put his ear to the ground, and sure enough, he heard the sound of flowing water.
He stood up and said, "There's an underground river, and the sound of the flowing water is quite loud, so the place must be big enough."
The larger the space, the greater the possibility of hiding things.
Bai Qianfan was still standing there, stunned and unable to react, but Chu Jianshan frowned suddenly because he heard another sound in the sound of the flowing water.
It sounded like something crawling on the ground, rubbing against the grass, and what was worse, the sound was getting louder and louder.
"Cheng Yuan, you're young..."
Chu Jianshan wanted to warn them to be careful, but he froze on the spot because the two of them had already disappeared from sight.
They were right next to him, less than half a meter away. If someone had forcibly dragged them apart, there would have been no way they could have done so without making a sound. The only possibility that could separate people so silently was a teleportation array.
This is a complex formation that can separate people into different spaces for a short period of time. Even though they are in the same location, they cannot sense each other's presence. It is often used to protect valuables from theft.
Chu Jianshan had a premonition that what he wanted was not far away.
The rustling sounds around him continued and grew louder. Chu Jianshan casually broke off a tree branch, but made it look like he was holding a sword. He stood with his hands behind his back, observing the movements around him.
Suddenly, a vine seemed to come alive and lashed out at him. Chu Jianshan took three steps back to dodge the attack, then grabbed the vine and twisted it to the right, piercing the tip of the branch in his hand into the vine's head. Instantly, the vine struggled to retreat.
Sure enough, these vines are afraid of pain.
This thing has been with this ancient tree for many years, absorbing the essence of heaven and earth, and is now almost a half-demon. It has a symbiotic relationship with this formation; the formation traps people for it, while it "eats people."
Judging from the size of this thing, there might be more than one formation here.
Faced with the attack of the vines, Chu Jianshan dodged whenever possible, because Bai Qianfan, who was proficient in formations, was there. He estimated that this small teleportation formation would not trap him for long. He just needed to conserve his strength and wait for them to come and rescue him.
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