The next morning, Xia Yize changed into a light gray hooded robe with a black fur trim around the brim, and carried a long sword on his back, looking like an ordinary young swordsman.
After he finished packing, Shao Gong carried his small medicine box on his back and took nothing else. Long Xun walked towards the city gate empty-handed.
"There seem to be quite a few more guards and people from Mount Taihua in the city," Shao Gong said softly.
Xia Yize's hands, hanging by his sides, clenched slightly, then slowly relaxed. His expression remained blank, his demeanor as aloof and distant as ever.
Long Xunlong's hand, hidden beneath his black robe, moved slightly, and an invisible wave spread out, enveloping the three of them. Xia Yize glanced at him as if sensing something.
The three of them swaggered out of the city gate, and the guards there seemed not to have seen them at all.
"Young Master Xia, are you planning to return to your sect first, or...?" Shao Gong asked.
Xia Yize pondered for a moment and said, "I will make a decision after I contact my master."
This is not surprising; the increased number of Taihua Mountain disciples in Chang'an is clearly due to his situation. Xia Yize is currently unaware of the details, and rashly returning to his sect would only put him in a passive position.
Shao Gong understood, glanced at the silent Long Xun, and then asked, "Where is Young Master Xia's master now?"
"My master's whereabouts are elusive; I've only heard that he's recently been searching for fellow Daoists. I wish to visit various masters to inquire about my master's whereabouts."
"Perfect timing. My godfather and I might like to inquire about the Jumu. The Jumu is an ancient artifact, and experts from various sects might know more about it." Shao Gong said with a smile, "Godfather, shall we go with Young Master Xia?"
Xia Yize did not object to this.
Long Xun's black hood trembled slightly, as if he were nodding.
The three of them finalized their itinerary and then set off.
Xia Yize's master was Elder Juewei, also known as Qinghe Zhenren, from Mount Taihua, a renowned figure in the cultivation world. When the three visited various masters, they were always treated with utmost courtesy. Unfortunately, his master was indeed quite elusive; no one knew where he had gone.
Shao Gong and Long Xun were indeed constantly inquiring about the Jumu tree.
Although the people of Longyou City did not tell Long Xun about this matter, the two of them had naturally heard rumors during their years of travel in the mortal world that meteors would suddenly fall from the sky and grow into trees that emitted purple mist, causing the people in the places where they landed to gradually go mad.
The characteristic of growing into a large tree upon landing is very similar to that of the branches of the Jumu tree. In addition, Shen Ye once said that Li Ying had asked him to throw the Jumu tree branches, which were tainted by demonic energy, into the lower realm. It is easy to deduce that those Soul-Severing Grasses are actually Jumu tree branches.
Judging by the time, the divine blood power within the Jumu tree is about to be exhausted. Just like a tree withers, it is gradually decaying, and it is not surprising that its broken branches fall to the mortal world.
Long Xun hadn't expected that Li Ying had already infiltrated the core of the Ju Mu with her demonic energy so early on. When Long Xun was dealing with Li Ying, due to the limitations of his spiritual power clone, he couldn't accurately perceive the state of the Ju Mu, which was protected by Shennong's divine blood. Even if he did perceive it, he couldn't penetrate the Ju Mu with the power of the divine blood to completely purify the demonic energy.
Even the weakest god in a small world is still a god. Long Xun's spiritual clone was merely formed from mortal spiritual energy. Although it was pure enough, it wasn't even immortal spiritual energy, and it was two levels below the power contained in divine blood. Even if he stood before the Jumu tree, he would be powerless to do anything about it.
Besides, Long Xun and Shao Gong had also heard that shortly after the appearance of the Soul-Severing Grass, some mysterious people would appear. Judging from the description, they should be people from Longyou City.
Clearly, they knew about the abnormality of the Jumu tree earlier than Long Xun, and are now doing their best to remedy the situation.
Long Xun was aloof by nature, and since he knew they were already in action, he didn't contact them again. However, while traveling with Shao Gong, he also tried his best to search for the scattered branches of the Jumu tree in the lower realm.
So it's not wrong for Shao Gong to say that he and Long Xun were looking for Ju Mu.
There are also some minor things, such as Xie Yi studying mechanical puppets while searching for the Jumu wood, and using them in his daily life. Long Xun and Shao Gong can see Xie Yi's mechanical puppets almost everywhere they go, as well as the respect and admiration of some elderly people who have received his kindness.
Shao Gong initially studied medicine to cheer Long Xun up, but now he has come to love medicine and enjoys the gratitude people feel after healing them, which keeps him in a good mood for a long time.
When Xia Yize visited fellow practitioners, if he was in the city, Shao Gong would set up his small stall to continue his free medical practice; if he was outside the city, he would gather herbs in the wild.
Long Xun... he remained silent. He hardly spoke a word during the journey. Whenever Shao Gong tried to bring up a topic, Long Xun would end the conversation with a single sentence, which was simply speechless.
As things progressed, Xia Yize and Shao Gong became good friends. When they talked, Xia Yize's expression was gentle and he had a smile in his eyes. However, when he faced Long Xun, he still had a serious expression, showing great respect but not much intimacy.
Shao Gong was truly powerless to do anything about it. He understood that his adoptive father saw how respectful Xia Yize was to him and that he had no other intentions, so he dared not lose his composure, resulting in the two of them maintaining this polite and distant relationship.
Unless Young Master Xia can develop feelings for his godfather, otherwise... there would have to be some external stimulus for the relationship between the two to change.
Having figured this out, Shao Gong decided to calm down, first cultivate a good relationship with Young Master Xia, and wait for a suitable opportunity to achieve his goal in one fell swoop.
He has never lacked patience.
More than half a month later, the three of them arrived in Jiangling and found an inn to settle down. Xia Yize went to Xuanmiao Temple to visit Master Lingxu and returned in the evening. He said that he was entrusted by Master Lingxu to go to the ancient road in Jiangling to deal with a monster fish woman who had been causing trouble recently.
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