Chapter 43
That's halfway through the story; the rest will be heard on the seventh day of next month.
Zhou Xuanzhi couldn't quite grasp the story. He asked, "How much truth do you think this story has?" There should be records of such a person in Tianyu Mountain, but he had never heard of him before.
"Isn't it nice to hear? Isn't this telling the story of our Tianyu Mountain? It's much better than Fang Xiashen's Jianye Town!" Shi Yunzhou was furious just thinking about Jianye Town. Although he had learned a little about his master's story, the price he paid was too high.
Speaking of this, we have to mention those two crazy fellow disciples. Shi Yunzhou shook his head and continued, "They even cause trouble for Tianyu Mountain. Why don't they go after Qingxu Sect?"
Because… those two were killed by their master, and the person who made Ding Xiuyuan give up everything to become a fallen immortal was also from Tianyu Mountain. Seeing Shi Yunzhou's displeasure, Zhou Xuanzhi swallowed his words.
However, the Qingxu Sect is quite protective of its own. After Ding Xiuyao's incident, they expelled him from the sect immediately, but didn't send any disciples to arrest him. It was only after their master noticed that many mortals had gone missing and followed the clues for a long time that they discovered it was them.
It's such a pity that such an outstanding person has fallen to this state.
"Su Liyue, the head disciple of the Exorcist Division, is known as a legend. She is not particularly talented or gifted, but she has worked hard for three hundred years to reach this position. Even if the two of us work together, we probably wouldn't be a match for her. The other person is named Murong Jing. He is not very old, but his strength can be considered one of the best of his generation."
Zhou Xuanzhi stopped thinking about those unhappy things and started introducing the people from the Exorcism Division.
Su Liyue had naturally met him; he had come to the capital with her. As for the slightly younger Murong Jing, Shi Yunzhou had never heard of him, nor had his family's high priest mentioned him. "How is Murong Jing?"
"The Immortal Alliance Conference will be held tomorrow. If you are interested, you can send someone to try it out." Shi Yunzhou is now the young master of Huanhai, so naturally he will not participate in the competition.
Shi Yunzhou retorted sarcastically, "Do you think I'm that free?"
“Of course, I don’t see that you have anything to do lately,” Zhou Xuanzhi teased.
This is the first time the Exorcism Division has participated in the Immortal Alliance Conference, and Medicine God Valley is also participating. The first match is being held outside the city, and with such a grand event, there should be many interested people.
"I'm very busy, otherwise why would I ask you to listen to my story?"
Seeing Shi Yunzhou's sarcastic attitude, Zhou Xuanzhi really didn't know what to say, but he still said, "Be careful when you go back this time."
Unlike the Immortal Sects, the Illusionary Sea Sect, under the leadership of its young master Shi Yunzhou, naturally prioritizes self-interest. He must ensure that those who support him are not harmed in any way, and he must also fight for their interests. This process is not peaceful; Wei Maitong is not as amiable as he appears.
Shi Yunzhou leaned against the railing, resting his arms on it, and looked at Zhou Xuanzhi, saying, "Don't worry, I know what I want, and I won't let anyone hurt me."
It was only then that Zhou Xuanzhi realized his bodyguard was nowhere to be seen. Previously, Chu Ren had been busy with matters at Tianyu Mountain, so his absence was understandable. But now, representing Huanhai at the Immortal Alliance Conference, why wasn't his bodyguard by his side?
Where is your bodyguard, Chu Ren?
Surprisingly, his senior brother still remembered his bodyguard's name; they had only met a few times. He looked out at the street and said nonchalantly, "Huanhai has other matters to attend to; you handle them for me. This is the capital; it's perfectly safe."
Seeing his nonchalant attitude, Zhou Xuanzhi said nothing more.
Zhou Xuanzhi, upon returning to the Exorcism Bureau, found it quite a coincidence; he had just finished talking about Murong Jing and had just come back to see him. A young man who looked to be about seventeen or eighteen years old, with a refined and handsome appearance.
Zhou Xuanzhi had only heard Xiao Mu mention him before, and seeing him today, he truly is a heroic young man. However, the girl following behind him puzzled Zhou Xuanzhi greatly. The two of them standing together looked quite discordant.
Seeing Zhou Xuanzhi in the distance, Gu Qingci stopped and thanked Murong Jing. She looked at Zhou Xuanzhi and said, "Thank you, Cultivator Mu. I will follow Cultivator Zhou."
Following Gu Qingci's gaze, the young man saw Zhou Xuanzhi, dressed in the Tianyu Mountain school uniform, not far away. Although he had never met him, he had heard of Zhou Xuanzhi's name in recent years.
He greeted Zhou Xuanzhi with a formal greeting, said goodbye to Gu Qingci, and then left.
"Miss Gu." Zhou Xuanzhi walked in, shook his head as he looked at Murong Jing's back, and asked, "Miss Gu, where are you going?"
Gu Qingci lowered her head, a rare moment of shame on her face. "I... I got lost, but luckily I met Cultivator Mu."
"Isn't Junior Sister Lin with you?"
Gu Qingci hurriedly shook his head and said, "I just wanted to come out for a walk, I didn't expect the Exorcism Bureau to be so big."
It looks like they snuck out.
...
Outside the city, in a sparsely populated wasteland.
The Exorcism Bureau had already set up the arena for the martial arts competition and built a viewing pavilion. Some prominent nobles from the capital had also come to watch the ceremony. Among them were some noble ladies from aristocratic families that Gu Qingci was familiar with, but they were behind a screen, through which only their figures could be seen.
"This capital city is really something else, isn't it? Even a martial arts competition attracts noble families to watch." Xiao Mu appeared beside Lin Jichen without anyone noticing.
Lin Jichen felt very awkward about this person's background and words. She retorted, "How dare you come here?"
An Zhi and Lin Jichen were in the gathering place of the disciples of Nanyu Peak, which was full of women, and Gu Qingci was between the two of them.
However, Xiao Mu ignored An Zhi's teasing and greeted Gu Qingci, who was sitting in the middle, saying, "Hello, County Princess, I am Xiao Mu."
Seeing Xiao Mu's shamelessness, the other female disciples teased him, "So, Junior Brother Xiao, which female disciple have you taken a fancy to?"
During this time, Gu Qingci had been living with the people of Nanyu Peak of Tianyu Mountain, and she was already used to their way of joking. She smiled and nodded, "Cultivator Xiao."
As the youngest disciple of Nanyu Peak, Anzhi had always lived under the protection of her senior sisters. She had always looked down on this shameless male disciple, but she never expected that he would actually come looking for her on his own. This made her even more disgusted.
Xiao Mu, unfazed by An Zhi's unfriendly gaze, walked over and pushed past her. Looking at Gu Qingci beside him, he said with a broad smile, "Princess, I've never been to the capital before. May I ask you a few questions about it?"
Anzhi was about to curse Xiao Mu when she heard him ask such a question. Why couldn't he ask the disciples of the Exorcism Division such a question? She was about to step forward to stop him when her senior sister stopped her. Then she saw her senior sister signal to her with her eyes not to move.
"Please speak, Cultivator Xiao." Usually, this is a casual greeting. But when it comes to a disciple of a cultivation sect, it's a genuine inquiry.
He cleared his throat and asked, "Who are those people on the second floor across the street?" What's with this group of noble ladies, all wrapped up tightly, showing up for a competition?
"The daughters of noble families, they're probably choosing husbands for them! After the imperial examinations are announced in the capital, people will try to find a virtuous and talented husband for their daughters. There are also several talented young men in the Exorcism Bureau who have married daughters of noble families," Gu Qingci explained.
Xiao Mu nodded, then hesitated and said, "I think... you should have someone tell them that they can't consider the Qingxu Sect, and that they are not allowed to marry."
Gu Qingci frowned slightly. "No need, they should have already inquired beforehand."
Xiao Mu shook his head and asked, "Do those young ladies know?"
“A disciple of the Qingxu Sect had a similar experience before. I forget his name, but he rescued a young lady at the foot of the mountain, and she fell in love with him at first sight, determined to marry him. Despite the disciple's repeated explanations that he didn't like her and that the sect rules were strict, the young lady remained relentless, threatening to die for him. Later, the young lady's father personally went up the mountain to propose marriage, and the matter escalated.” Lin Jichen said, looking at the screen on the second floor opposite, “In the end, that disciple was expelled from the sect, all his cultivation was destroyed, and no one knows where he went afterward.”
"Where is that lady?"
"It seems she's dead? Who knows? No one recorded what happened after that." What a pity, such a promising cultivator exhausted his power. A beautiful noblewoman, just like that, vanished.
...
Gu Qingci didn't know what to say. She looked at the people opposite her, some of whom she knew well, and asked, "Besides the Qingxu Sect, what other sects prohibit marriage?"
“People from the Medicine God Valley can marry members of the Immortal Sect, but ordinary people cannot,” Anzhi said. “Because our lifespans are different. I have lived for over two hundred years. If I were to marry, I could stay with my partner for a maximum of eighty years. If I were to be so devoted, my path to immortality would end there.”
Lin Jichen added, "A thousand years ago, there weren't so many restrictions, and many bad things happened during that time. For example, someone once tried to resurrect his deceased wife by harming hundreds of mortals and even sacrificing everyone in the city. He kept saying, 'What do I care about the people of the world!' Fortunately, his master arrived in time and killed him."
"Later, some people researched this forbidden method for the sake of their mortal partners, and some even made deals with the demon race. Therefore, some sects forbade marriage between mortals and immortals," An Zhi said.
Hearing everyone say this, Gu Qingci's face turned pale. She looked at her close girlfriends across from her and asked incredulously, "Is there really such a thing?"
Just as An Zhi was about to answer, Xiao Mu blocked his view of Gu Qingci. He saw Xiao Mu pull out a book from somewhere and say very seriously, "Of course it's true. This book records in detail how many people have fallen because of love since the founding of the Immortal Sect and their final fates."
Xiao Mu shoved the book into Gu Qingci's hands and continued, "This book is for you." Then he turned to look at the arena, as if he had suddenly remembered something. He turned back to Gu Qingci and said, "I misspoke just now. It shouldn't be 'final ending,' it should be 'final fate,' 'final fate!'"
"Using 'end' to describe it?" Isn't that a bit too tragic? Gu Qingci could understand that cultivators should sever all emotions and love, "But, what if they really fall in love?"
At this point, Xiao Mu sighed, looked into the distance, and said in a slightly somber tone, "This is a topic worth discussing. Love has always troubled all cultivators. How can one have great love for all living beings if one is without love? If one's actions are influenced by love, one will be biased. How can one be worthy of all living beings? Even the gods in heaven have this problem."
Not only An Zhi, but even Lin Jichen looked at Xiao Mu in disbelief. These words coming from his mouth... were very wrong.
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