Chapter 67
The two of them reflected a lot after they came out. Shi Yunzhou thought of Sui Fu's words, that he was the young master of Huanhai who had not yet taken control. That wasn't wrong, and it was time to go back. Even if it wasn't something he had promised before, he should go back and take control of Huanhai.
Zhou Xuanzhi, however, was eager to return to Tianyu Mountain and find the person in the portrait. Although he knew that everything was arranged by his master, he still felt uneasy because some details were unclear.
Shi Yunzhou looked at his senior brother, still somewhat unwilling, and asked, "Do you believe Master... Did Master die from a ruptured spiritual palace? Was there anyone else involved?"
He had joined the sect earlier and had more contact with his master. Looking back on the time he spent with his master, it seemed that she was always the one who tricked others, while others could not trick her.
Zhou Xuanzhi's silence made Shi Yunzhou feel even more guilty; he wished he had been the one to die. Just then, Zhou Xuanzhi patted his shoulder, and he heard his senior brother say, "I don't believe it. I will investigate again."
However, we need to be careful this time and make sure no one knows.
As for what unusual things the demons are doing now, and what they want to do next, those are naturally things that others are concerned about.
When the two reached an agreement, they left the capital, one returning to Tianyu Mountain and the other to Huanhai.
Behind Lingqiu Peak in Tianyu Mountain.
When Zhou Xuanzhi took out the painting, Lin Jichen and Xiao Mu couldn't help but sigh at his persistence. He had finally come back, why didn't he take a rest?
"Are we going to question each person on Tianyu Mountain?" Lin Jichen asked.
"Why don't we ask Uncle Shi?" Xiao Mu said. "Uncle Shi has a good temper, he should be able to tell us."
Shi Jueming was indeed good-tempered. As long as people didn't harm his medicinal herb fields and followed medical advice, he would turn a blind eye to other things.
"I don't want the sect leader and Uncle Cheng to know for the time being." At least not now, I can't let them know that I'm still investigating.
"Do you have much contact with Master Shi?" Xiao Mu could tell that Zhou Xuanzhi didn't know much about Shi Jueming.
Looking back, he realized that he hadn't had much contact with his master, "I only had one-on-one contact with him when my master needed to rest." At that time, he was instructed to take care of his master.
Xiao Mu put his arm around Zhou Xuanzhi's shoulder and patted his chest, "I have a very good relationship with Uncle Shi, leave it to me!"
Are you sure you won't let it get out?
"Uncle Shi and I have a pretty good relationship, so don't worry, he basically won't tell anyone about our affairs," Xiao Mu assured him, patting his chest.
Zhou Xuanzhi handed the painting to Xiao Mu, saying, "Then I'll have to trouble you."
"There's no need for such formalities among brothers."
Lin Jichen looked at Xiao Mu's confident demeanor and was momentarily speechless. This Uncle Shi didn't seem to have a very good temper either. Since Uncle Shi took over, the atmosphere at Yangjia Peak had changed drastically. The people who were originally medical cultivators were now spending their days researching poisons, and even starting to test the medicines on themselves. The people who fell down looked terrible. Fortunately, these people were also researching antidotes, otherwise Yangjia Peak would be deserted.
Zhou Xuanzhi trusted Xiao Mu's abilities, but this matter had nothing to do with Xiao Mu. After thinking it over, Zhou Xuanzhi decided to go to Yangjia Peak with Xiao Mu.
I only visited Yangjiafeng two hundred years ago, and I caused a great disaster there. I haven't set foot in this place since.
However, the style of the paintings inside was a little different from that of two hundred years ago.
The senior students, their faces pale and bluish, were rummaging through a pile of medicinal herbs, some lying on the ground foaming at the mouth, having been force-fed an unknown liquid. Others were refining pills in the distance. One senior student, who had been fanning himself, suddenly cried out, "Oh no!" Before he finished speaking, a deafening roar followed, a flash of white light, and the pill furnace exploded...
Xiao Mu managed to digest the bizarre art style quite well.
"Are you sure this is Yangjia Peak?" Zhou Xuanzhi asked.
The strangeness of this peak could indeed cause misunderstandings among others. Xiao Mu explained, "It has always been like this here. You may not know because you were a disciple of Junior Uncle before and later cultivated under the Sect Leader. We are all used to it."
Because of her health condition, Shi Wanqing always had her pulse taken by her senior brother Shi coming to the back mountain. If Shi Wanqing was feeling unwell, he would also take a look at her. When she was cultivating under the tutelage of her senior brother Shi, she also had the care of her senior brothers and sisters, so she generally did not need to go to Yangjia Peak.
"I've been here before." My teacher, Yunzhou, came here to pick the spiritual plants and medicinal herbs, but he was later punished by being sent down the mountain for training, which caused quite a stir.
Xiao Mu clearly remembered that this had happened before. "Didn't you sneak in? And the place you and Shi Yunzhou went to wouldn't allow ordinary disciples to enter," he said quietly, pointing to the group of people with bluish-purple faces. "They need to apply to get in!"
...
No wonder he was punished so severely.
Upon entering the gates of Yangjia Peak, disciples came to greet them. Along the way, they truly witnessed what it meant to be a practitioner of both medicine and poison—one hand wielding antidotes, the other poison; they were truly unique medical cultivators. These people disguised themselves so well; it was impossible to tell the difference.
The painting was unfolded and placed in front of Shi Jueming. He glanced at it twice, then looked up at Zhou Xuanzhi and Xiao Mu, and said, "How can you be sure that I can tell you who is in this painting?"
Zhou Xuanzhi knew that this was because they didn't want to tell him. He was about to stand up and speak when Xiao Mu stopped him and said, "Because you have a kind heart."
"Old man?"
Xiao Mu stepped forward and said with a smile, "My master said that Uncle Shi doesn't look like he's only in his twenties, but he's almost two thousand years old. You should respect him. I think what my master said makes a lot of sense. Not long ago, I saw some novelties in the capital and bought them, thinking of giving them to you as a gift."
He presented a box with both hands.
Shi Jueming clearly didn't care about these words. He stepped forward, opened the box, saw what was inside, smiled, and closed it again. Holding the box in his hands, he said, "This person is indeed from our mountain. Go and train at Guanxiang Peak!"
Zhou Xuanzhi didn't see what was inside the box, but Shi Jueming's words indicated that the person he was looking for was on Guanxiang Peak.
"If you're happy, then let's go to Guanxiang Peak for some 'training'."
When he came out, Zhou Xuanzhi couldn't hold back any longer. A gift that could satisfy this Master Shi must have been quite expensive. He had saved up quite a bit over the years, and he couldn't let others spend so much money on this gift.
What's inside that box?
"What Shi Yunzhou gave me before was a young sapling of a sand crabapple."
The fruit of the sand crabapple has waterproof properties; it is said that eating it will prevent people from drowning. I've read about it in a book before, but I've never actually seen it.
"Where did he get such a precious thing?" Zhou Xuanzhi asked curiously.
"It seems there's a sand pear tree in the Illusionary Sea." I recall Shi Yunzhou mentioning it before.
"That's quite a generous gesture." Although the young master of Huanhai has not yet taken power, he is not short of wealth.
"As expected of the master of the Illusionary Sea." Xiao Mu also sighed. When Shi Yunzhou gave him the Sandalwood, he naively thought it was for him, but it turned out that the man said it had a wonderful use. He never expected it to be for his Uncle-Master Shi. "When are you going to Guanxiang Peak?"
"You want to come with me?" Ultimately, this is my own business, and it's not good to always trouble others.
“Of course, I just want to know more things to help me expand my business.” Xiao Mu said, moving closer to Zhou Xuanzhi. “I’m not charging you any money. I’ve already provided you with information for free before, so I can’t…”
“Alright, let’s go together.” Zhou Xuanzhi interrupted Xiao Mu. “Thank you, Junior Brother.” He naturally understood that Xiao Mu wanted to help him. There weren’t many people in Tianyu Mountain who could help him, and it was indeed difficult for him to do it alone.
"We need to make some preparations. When do we set off?"
"The day after tomorrow." I also need to send a message to Shi Yunzhou and prepare the things I'll need for the trip up the mountain.
Guanxiang Peak is the training ground for disciples of Tianyu Mountain. A barrier has been set up on the mountain, and it is full of various demonic beasts. These demonic beasts were captured by the elders from the neighboring Yak Mountain.
Guanxiang Peak and Yak Mountain were originally one mountain. Later, the founder of Tianyu drove all the demonic beasts to one side, splitting the mountain in two. The part without demonic beasts became Guanxiang Peak. In order to allow the disciples to gain experience, weaker demonic beasts were captured from Yak Mountain, which was quite a lot of work.
When Zhou Xuanzhi and Xiao Mu arrived at the entrance of Guanxiang Peak, they saw Lin Jichen standing there talking to Mingmo.
Lin Jichen saw them and waved, "I've been waiting for you for a long time."
As they approached, Zhou Xuanzhi asked, "Junior Sister Lin, are you going in too?"
This time, it was Mingmo who replaced Lin Jichen to return: "You just came back and went to Guanxiang Peak without resting. Although Junior Brother Xiao is with you, I'm still worried, so I asked Junior Sister Lin to come as well. The three of you can look after each other."
"Senior Sister Ming is just worried about me," Xiao Mu joked.
Faced with his rather mischievous junior brother, Mingmo said with a hint of helplessness, "The three of you know each other well, so you can look out for each other."
"Don't worry, senior sister, I will definitely protect these two people," he said, patting his chest.
The three of them chatted and laughed as they entered Guanxiang Peak.
Upon entering Guanxiang Peak, the demonic aura within caused the three to frown. They all drew their swords and prepared for battle.
At this point, Xiao Mu couldn't hold back any longer and asked, "To be honest, did you come here of your own volition?"
Lin Jichen pursed his lips. "No."
"Punished?"
Lin Jichen nodded somewhat awkwardly, "Yes, about Yunzhou City."
Thinking back to when I was just with Senior Sister Ming, that makes sense; she must have punished me. That's why so few people are willing to travel with Senior Sister Ming—it's all a lesson learned the hard way.
A distant roar could be faintly heard, and the three of them began to draw a formation with their free hands.
The formation had just been completed when a horned monster suddenly appeared before them. Lin Jichen was the first to rush out, and in the blink of an eye, his sword had already struck the monster more than a dozen times. The blows crackled and sparks flew, but the monster was completely unharmed.
Lin Jichen didn't linger in the fight and immediately retreated behind the demonic beast. Although the beast had no visible wounds, the sword strikes still hurt. Enraged, the beast became even more impulsive, turning back to attack Lin Jichen and spitting out a ball of lightning from its mouth.
Lin Jichen dodged the lightning bolts with agility, each one blasting a large crater in the ground and reducing rows of trees to ash. His tail was also extremely powerful; with a single flick, it shattered a boulder two people tall.
Zhou Xuanzhi and Xiao Mu seized the moment when the demon beast swung its tail, quickly arriving above it. They formed hand seals, and arrays descended from the sky, further enraging the demon beast. Now, it could no longer care about Lin Jichen, turning back to look at the two above, and spat out a ball of lightning.
The two dodged and began their real attack. It turned out that the small formations they had previously created could be combined into a large formation capable of killing the demon beast. The two stood at the location of the formation and used hand seals to trap the demon beast in place, rendering it unable to move.
Lin Jichen began to move. Taking advantage of the fact that the monster was unable to move or use its magic, he stabbed it in the chest with his sword, killing the monster instantly.
This is a low-level demonic beast; it wouldn't be difficult for the three of them to kill it together.
"That's right, Senior Sister Ming really had foresight in bringing the three of us together," Xiao Mu exclaimed. If one person had come in alone, killing this monster wouldn't have been difficult, but it would have been quite strenuous. Its hide was thick and its vital spot was in the chest area. Even if Senior Sister Ming came in person, it would have been very difficult.
Zhou Xuanzhi cut open the monster's abdomen, took out its inner core, and gave it to Xiao Mu. "You came in to help me, so you can divide these among yourselves!"
Looking at the inner core, Xiao Mu did not take it. He looked at Lin Jichen and said, "Junior Sister Lin, this is your reward."
Actually, I was punished and didn't intend to help you. I've been outside for so long, and to be honest, I'm quite tired. If I hadn't been punished and brought here, I'd still be resting in my room. Lin Jichen looked at the inner core in Zhou Xuanzhi's hand, shook his head, and said, "Senior Sister Ming already gave it to me; I don't need it."
"You were punished and sent here." Why would Senior Sister Ming give her anything?
"You should keep it for yourself. You've been running around for Junior Uncle's sake, you'll probably need it someday," Lin Jichen said. "Senior Sister Ming gave us a lot before." Seeing Zhou Xuanzhi's serious expression, he felt that he would be betraying his conscience if he really accepted it.
Seeing this, Zhou Xuanzhi accepted the demon beast's inner core. "Alright, I'll keep it for now. Come find me when you need it."
Master Shi sent him here to investigate. What was he supposed to find out? He thought about it for a long time but couldn't figure it out.
Could it be that the sect leader already knows I will continue the investigation and deliberately had Senior Uncle Shi guide me? So what exactly does Senior Uncle Shi mean now?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
