Chapter 83 Bamboo Shoots Stir-fried with Pork.
From a distance, Canglan Peak is shrouded in mist, as if veiled in a layer of fog. The mist flows slowly, like a thin veil torn by the mountain wind. Sometimes it drifts over the rugged cliffs, dyeing the dark blue rocks into a hazy ink painting; sometimes it cascades down the mountainside, embracing the bamboo forests, the verdant branches appearing and disappearing in the mist, like fairies in green robes.
The arrival of Meng Chiwan and her companions startled the birds and beasts of Zhenfeng. The sound of their wings fluttering was mixed with their clear chirping, breaking the silence.
The cobblestone path was still covered with a few drops of clear dew, which made the blue color even more vivid.
One step, two steps, and ahead lay several pavilions like white jade and an uncorroded wooden corridor, with the clear sound of bells ringing beneath them. Occasionally, the figures of disciples dressed in moon-white Taoist robes would flash by in the corridor, their steps hurried, as if they were in a hurry to do something.
When the disciples saw Meng Chiwan and the others, they mostly greeted them politely, and then said, "Junior Sister is finally back."
There's a certain nuance to this "can be counted".
Meng Chiwan hurriedly asked, "What happened?"
Wen Liansong carefully put away the bamboo shoots he had picked along the way, looked up, and also looked puzzled.
"It's not a big deal, but the demons have become increasingly arrogant lately. There are more and more demons entrenched in the Immortal Alliance City, as if they're provoking our Immortal Alliance. It's bad enough that they can't help us cultivate in peace, but because of the sudden increase in the number of demons, they're causing more and more trouble for the defenseless civilians, and our Immortal Alliance's missions are piling up, we can't even finish accepting them all... It's unbearable, unbearable..." one of the senior brothers said with a bitter face.
“These days, no one can eat or sleep well. Every day, the moment we open our eyes, we’re busy taking on and doing tasks. We can’t finish them all, we simply can’t finish them all.” Another senior brother also had a bitter face, his features contorted, as if he could squeeze out bitter gourd juice at any moment.
Meng Chiwan asked, "Has the cause been determined?"
"No need to investigate, Mu Qi has already been resurrected." The senior brother looked up at the sky speechlessly, his tone full of resentment.
In fact, what was lingering on the mountaintop wasn't mist at all, but the resentment of the fellow disciples.
"Junior sisters, be prepared to take on missions that will last forever... If only someone could kill Mu Qi or seal him away." The senior brother encouraged her and Wen Liansong with his eyes, then gently shook his head and went down the mountain.
Meng Chiwan and Wen Liansong exchanged a glance, both seeing fear in each other's eyes.
Having just survived a near-death experience, are they going to be treated like cattle and horses?
"By the way, junior sister, why are you pulling bamboo shoots from the peak? These are ornamental plants of our Canglan Peak. You'll be fined two spirit stones for each one you pull." The senior brother suddenly remembered something and turned around to say.
Wen Liansong's eyes widened as he heard him mutter to himself as he descended the mountain, "Sure enough, those sect rules are longer than life itself. Besides old-fashioned disciples like us, who still cares about them..."
What does "old-fashioned disciple" mean, eh?
Meng Chiwan turned slightly and saw Wen Liansong's legs go weak, and the bamboo shoots she was holding rolled to the ground. The bamboo shoots were covered with mud and looked rather pitiful.
Wen Liansong looked as exhausted as if he had completed a billion tasks, his voice barely a whisper: "My... spirit stones... spirit stones I earned with so much hardship..."
Meng Chiwan suppressed a laugh and helped her up, saying, "It's okay, at least we can eat the bamboo shoots and pork we've been craving tonight."
Wen Lian Song: "I didn't buy any meat."
“Stir-fried bamboo shoots will do too,” Meng Chiwan said seriously.
Wen Liansong: "One spirit stone per bite."
Meng Chiwan: "Okay."
However, Meng Chiwan ultimately didn't get to eat the stir-fried bamboo shoots, as she was soon sent off to complete her task.
Returning to the Liu family again was a difficult feeling to describe; it was probably like a medical practitioner facing the family of a terminally ill patient who didn't have much time left.
It was difficult to talk about watching her target, Liu Yuan, die right in front of her, but in the end, she still truthfully confessed how Liu Yuan died.
"You mean... Yuan'er died in the Yun family?" The head of the Liu family looked incredulous, his mustache trembling.
Meng Chiwan nodded and said, "We have brought his body back. Please accept our condolences."
The changes in the Yun family must have spread throughout the cultivation world. Meng Chiwan listened to the story, and the version that had been circulating was that Qingyi Immortal Lord had been used as an experimental subject by the Yun family head since he was young. He had been keeping a low profile until now, and finally he perished together with him.
This version also explains why the Yun family patriarch always protected Qingyi Immortal Lord like the apple of his eye; it turns out he was afraid that Qingyi would escape his control.
However... not a single word about Lingjiang Palace and the Life-Sustaining Pill or Blood Spirit Pill was leaked out, as if it had been completely covered by an impenetrable net.
The cultivation world was united to the extreme at this moment. If they wanted to conceal something, it would be extremely easy for them.
But as the saying goes, only the dead can best keep secrets. And the fact that Meng Chiwan and Wen Liansong are still alive is probably inseparable from the Wei family.
With the Yun family's downfall, protecting them wouldn't be an easy task for the Wei family, but it wouldn't be an impossible feat either. Moreover, this matter involves Wei Jiyu, so the Wei family naturally couldn't stand idly by.
It seems that Meng Chiwan has been given another second chance at life.
Who says she has bad luck? She always manages to escape death, so how can that not be considered lucky?
She lowered her head and gently kicked a small pebble, thinking to herself that she should bet more spirit stones on herself during the upcoming Immortal Sect Competition, and maybe she would make a fortune.
"If I had known..." Hearing the news of his loved one's death with his own ears, even a seasoned veteran like the head of the Liu family couldn't accept it for a moment. He sighed deeply, wanted to speak but hesitated for some reason and ultimately said nothing.
With that, the Liu family's mission came to an end.
There is one person I have never seen again.
"Patriarch, is that Lady Mu still here?" Meng Chiwan raised her head slightly and called out to the Liu family patriarch.
"You mean her?" The head of the Liu family stroked his beard lightly and said casually, "She died of illness."
Meng Chiwan frowned: "Died of illness?"
Hearing this news for the first time was still quite shocking.
The head of the Liu family didn't seem to mind: "It would be good if I could go down and keep Yuan'er company."
After that, he refused to say anything more.
Seeing his state, Meng Chiwan had no choice but to leave the Liu family.
However, Wen Liansong noticed that Meng Chiwan was preoccupied the whole way. She grabbed Meng Chiwan and asked, "Chiwan, what are you thinking about? Have you noticed something?"
Meng Chiwan gently shook her head and said, "It's just a guess. I always feel that Fellow Daoist Mu shouldn't have died so easily, or rather, if he really died, it probably wasn't from illness."
Upon hearing this, Wen Liansong lowered his head and pondered for a moment, a dark cloud inevitably settling over his brow: "What you're saying is indeed a bit strange. After that, he refused to say anything, and when we said we wanted to see the body, he only told us that it had already been buried."
"It's possible he's telling the truth, but his attitude is a bit strange." Meng Chiwan's furrowed brows remained, and her words still carried a hint of inquiry.
"Should we check?" Wen Liansong asked, tilting his head slightly, his tone carrying a perfectly measured hint of probing and thoughtfulness.
"It must be difficult to investigate. The Liu family is no small family. If they really want to hide something, it's as easy as turning their hand, just like how the cultivation world kept the Yun family a secret," Meng Chiwan said cautiously.
Wen Liansong agreed wholeheartedly, but still asked, "Then should we just let it be?"
“Of course not. The person standing in front of you now is at least a Nascent Soul stage cultivator.” Meng Chiwan smiled, her smile seemingly dispelling all the worries. “Let’s sneak into the Liu family at night.”
I was originally thinking of taking on another sect mission, but it seems I'll have to put that on hold for now.
...
The team that was supposed to infiltrate the Liu family at night was originally planned to consist of only Meng Chiwan and Wen Liansong. However, Wen Liansong was still worried about Meng Chiwan, so she called Jiang Yi over as well.
Since Jiang Yi had already been summoned, Wei Jiyu decided to come as well.
Speaking of Wei Jiyu, he was supposed to go to the Liu family to report back during the day, but he was called away at the last minute, and no one knows what he went there for.
We're finally back now.
Since everyone was there, the two Lin brothers also came.
So in the end, the small team was promoted to a battalion, a six-person battalion.
Meng Chiwan looked at the group of people hiding in the trees ahead and sighed softly.
The Liu family is very lively.
Despite her sighs, she was still happy that someone cared about her, and she felt that she had become more agile.
Light as a swallow?
Sorry, it's not that bulky.
Having officially received news of Liu Yuan's death, the Liu family was inevitably still immersed in a somber mood, and the servants dared not even breathe loudly, for fear of displeasing their masters.
It was too quiet. To sneak in silently would normally be quite difficult. However, for a Nascent Soul cultivator, it was nothing.
However, if the Liu family has a Mahayana stage cultivator in charge right now, then no matter how careful they are, it will be useless.
The good news right now is that the Liu family doesn't seem to have any Mahayana stage cultivators in charge.
The bad news is: the main house has a protective barrier.
The power of a barrier lies in the fact that the barrier's owner will immediately know if someone enters it. Breaking the barrier will only expose them even faster.
Meng Chiwan stopped in front of the barrier, formed a hand seal, and released a burst of spiritual power in an attempt to dissolve the barrier. However, the barrier could not be said to be completely unharmed; it was simply completely immobile.
Needless to say, the remaining people also tried to break the barrier, but all of them failed.
Actually, this barrier isn't impossible to break; it's just that they can't force it open, as that would defeat the purpose and alert the enemy.
"Chi Wan, what do we do now?"
The group tried several more times, but it still wouldn't budge. Wen Liansong then spoke up and asked her in a low voice, which sounded even softer than a mosquito's buzz.
Meng Chiwan's gaze lingered on the barrier, which was filled with spiritual energy, like smoke and mist.
Meng Chiwan's throat bobbed slightly as she said, "Then what's there to say? Once we take over the Liu family, we can see whatever we want."
Upon hearing this, Wen Liansong was stunned: "Huh? Attack the Liu family? Us? Aren't there only six of us?"
Seeing Wen Liansong's confused look, Meng Chiwan couldn't help but chuckle and said, "Just kidding."
Wen Liansong: "...Then what should we do?"
Meng Chiwan: "Actually, the problem now is not what to do, but I just realized that this barrier is a bit different."
"What's different?"
Meng Chiwan said, word by word, "It can sense the flow of any wisp of spiritual or demonic energy within the barrier."
Lin Ruyuan: "So what?"
"It means he has already discovered us." Meng Chiwan's voice was low, as if it came from a dry well, carrying a chilling aura.
In the next instant, a barrier rose around her, blocking the heavy blow!
That blow felt incredibly heavy! Meng Chiwan unconsciously took two steps back, her body already pressed against the barrier behind her.
The group simultaneously deployed their defenses and looked in the same direction.
Author's note: I really want to eat stir-fried bamboo shoots with pork, the spicy and fragrant kind... [laughs]
Unfortunately, my cooking skills are so bad that I'm very likely to get food poisoning from eating this...
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