Chapter 76: The Broken Monument Guidance and the Secret Competition with the Jealous King
The broken monument guides the secret competition with the jealous king
Although the night's rest in the valley was far from comfortable, the warmth of the roasted rabbit and the brief sense of security did relax everyone's frayed nerves a little. However, tranquility is always short-lived.
As the sky brightened, the Jianmu fragment in Ache's hand once again emitted a soft green light that was clearer than before and had a clear direction, like a silent compass, pointing to the southeast.
"Senior Brother, Brother Li, the fragments seem... more certain." A Che whispered, holding the fragments and feeling the gentle guidance.
Jiang Xuelan opened his eyes, and after regulating his breathing, his expression brightened slightly. However, the fatigue and old injuries deep within his soul wouldn't heal quickly. He looked in the direction indicated by the fragment, a solemn look flashing in his icy blue eyes. The Jianmu fragment was deeply connected to the bloodline and life energy of the descendants of the gods. If it pointed in this way, there must be something of great relevance ahead. Perhaps it was an opportunity, or perhaps even a greater danger.
"Now that we have a direction, let's go!" Li Jiuyou stood up and dusted off his robes, still looking decisive and impatient. But if you looked closely, you could see the subtle pause as his eyes flicked to Jiang Xuelan. The sense of suppressed weakness from the other end of the Heart-Slaying Contract rekindled his inexplicable anger, not at Jiang Xuelan, but at this damnable situation and the unknown they faced.
"King, let me go ahead and explore the way!" Man Gu volunteered.
"Be careful." Li Jiuyou nodded.
Man Gu's figure quickly disappeared into the morning mist. Xingtong stretched lazily, the tentacles under her skirt elegantly curling up a wild fruit, slowly chewing it. "Oh~ New fun again~ I hope this time it's not one of those mushrooms that makes you speak your mind. Although watching the show is fun, it gets boring after a while~"
Xuan Jia lay on A Che's shoulder, grumbling calmly, "Bored? I think you're the most engrossed. But then again, the direction pointed by this Jianmu fragment... the spiritual energy fluctuations seem a bit unusual, a mixture of ancient dead silence and a hint of... faint vitality? Strange."
The group set out again, following the guidance of the Jianmu fragments, heading southeast. The journey proved more difficult than expected, not because of any powerful monsters blocking the way, but rather because the terrain became increasingly rugged, and the remnants of the ancient battlefield became increasingly numerous. Broken remains of magical weapons and weathered remains of huge bones were everywhere. The air was filled with a mixture of sadness and solemnity, which subtly affected the mind.
Jiang Xuelan's pace remained steady, but his brow furrowed slightly, as if he were resisting some kind of mental oppression. Li Jiuyou walked slightly in front of him, seemingly impatiently kicking away the gravel blocking his path, but in fact, intentionally or unintentionally, he was blocking many potential dangerous traps and energy turbulence for him.
Through the connection coming from the other end of the Heart-Slaying Contract, Li Jiuyou could clearly feel the tension and discomfort in Jiang Xuelan's consciousness, which made him even more irritated. The low pressure emanating from his body could almost freeze a mosquito to death.
"Hey, Ice Face, if you can't do it, don't force it. I don't want you to faint while walking, and then I have to waste my energy carrying you!" He spoke in a vicious voice, trying to cover up the awkward concern with ferocity.
Jiang Xuelan didn't even raise his eyelids, and said in a cold voice: "Don't worry about it. Just take care of yourself." But he could feel the other party's restless emotions coming from the other end, which was not malicious. This made him feel a very subtle strangeness in his heart that he had not even investigated deeply.
At this moment, Man Gu, who had gone out to explore the way, hurried back with a strange look on his face: "King, Jiang Xianjun, there's something going on up ahead..."
Everyone immediately became alert.
"What happened? Is there an ambush?" Li Jiuyou gripped the Jinsheng Knife tightly.
"It's not an ambush..." Man Gu scratched his head, looking confused. "It's... an ancient stone tablet that's broken in half. There are some indecipherable characters and patterns engraved on it. It looks quite old. But... next to the stone tablet, there are traces of someone who has just stayed there. And... the lingering aura is a little familiar, like... someone from the Immortal Sect, but not the murderous aura of the Punishment Hall."
Someone from the Immortal Sect? Are you familiar with them?
Everyone looked at each other.
Jiang Xuelan's eyes flashed: "Go and take a look."
Soon, they spotted the stone tablet Man Gu had mentioned. It was shattered, only half remaining, standing on a barren slope. The runes engraved on it were ancient and obscure, seemingly recording some distant event. Beside the base of the tablet, there were indeed traces of a recently extinguished campfire, as well as a few scattered, slightly worn, water bags of the Immortal Sect design.
Xingtong squatted down, picked up the water bag and sniffed it. Then, with her eerie, multi-pupillary eyes, she carefully observed the residual energy around her. Suddenly, she chuckled, "Oh my! This aura... If I remember correctly, it seems to be that Taoist Ling Xuzi who always likes to hide in the library with a stern face. Why would he run to such a remote place? Is he here to hunt for treasure too?"
Jiang Xuelan’s master?
Jiang Xuelan's brows furrowed even more. Why was Master here? And it seemed like he had just left? Was it a coincidence, or...
When Li Jiuyou heard that it was Ling Xuzi, undisguised disgust and dissatisfaction immediately flashed in his scarlet-gold eyes: "That old conservative? Humph! It must be up to no good! Maybe he was sent by the Immortal Sect to support the Punishment Hall, or he might be thinking of some shady trick to capture you!" He had no good feelings towards all the high-ranking officials of the Immortal Sect, especially this master who had taught Jiang Xuelan to be well-behaved and cold since childhood.
Amidst the turmoil on the other side, Jiang Xuelan clearly sensed Li Jiuyou's intense, almost venomous, hostility toward Ling Xuzi. This hostility was so palpable that it temporarily overshadowed his own doubts about his master's presence. He subconsciously spoke, his voice even colder than usual: "Master has his own reasons for his actions. There's no need for you to speculate."
As soon as these words came out, Li Jiuyou exploded like a lit firecracker. "Is he speculating? Ha! He's your master, of course you're on his side! Who knows if he's two-faced and in cahoots with that old Immortal Venerable? Only you, a fool, are still in the dark, being sold out and still helping others count the money!"
The vine patterns could be heard clearly. The subtle fluctuations on Jiang Xuelan's side due to defending his master and the greater anger on Li Jiuyou's side due to being "refuted" collided violently, making the atmosphere between the two of them tense in an instant!
"Li Jiuyou!" Jiang Xuelan's voice was icy, and icy energy had already condensed at his fingertips.
"What? You want to fight? Come on! I've disliked you for a long time!" Li Jiuyou's Jinsheng sword hummed, and demonic fire rose!
Ah Che shrank back in fear, Man Gu looked anxious, not knowing who to persuade, and Xuan Jia retreated into his shell, muttering, "Here they come again... these two enemies..."
Xingtong, however, was watching with great interest, fanning the flames as if to prevent chaos: "Oh~ jealousy over an old man~ how touching~"
At this tense moment, the Jianmu fragment in Ah Che's hand suddenly flickered, and a green light shone on the half-broken stele. The obscure runes on the stele seemed to be activated, a faint light flowed through them, and finally a few characters lighted up, forming a vague word -
"Wang...Chuan..." Ache recognized the ancient font and muttered it.
Jiang Xuelan's pupils suddenly shrank! This was the name of his hometown, Shencun!
Almost at the same time, he felt that the **bronze key** left by his mother (the one that opened the door to the abyss before) that he had kept close to his sleeve was actually getting slightly hot, and it produced some extremely weak resonance with the broken stele!
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