Chapter 68
When Shi Yunzhou received Zhou Xuan's letter, his situation in the Illusionary Sea was not good. Sui Fu's words were indeed true; he was merely a young master in name only.
The former Lord of Huanhai, who was also his father, Chu Yi, fell in love with a mortal woman and had a child. However, before he could bring his wife and child back to Huanhai, something happened, and the two disappeared without a trace. Huanhai could not be without a leader, so the people elected a successor, Wei Maitong, while searching for the former Lord's child in the mortal world.
By the time the child was found, Wei Maitong had already secured his position and was unlikely to relinquish it easily. However, the Illusionary Sea still had many supporters of the former Lord, such as High Priest Xiang Yi, whom Shi Yunzhou naturally wanted to place in the Lord's position after his return.
Wei Maitong had long since secured his position, but many people still supported Shi Yunzhou. Helpless, he said that Shi Yunzhou was too young to govern, and that he was only temporarily assuming the position of the venerable one, and would return the position to Shi Yunzhou when he turned five hundred.
Both sides compromised, and Shi Yunzhou became the young master of Huanhai.
There were three important people who supported Shi Yunzhou: the High Priest Xiang Yi, the Great Protector Cang He, and the Enforcer Zhang Yuan.
Upon his return, Shi Yunzhou was informed that Elder Zhang Yuan, the law enforcement elder, had been executed for secretly colluding with the demon race.
When Chu Ren arrived at Shi Yunzhou's room, the young master, who was sitting there, had a letter beside him and seemed to be lost in thought.
"Young Master, I hope you've thought things through since you've returned." In truth, he harbored many grievances against his master. Shi Yunzhou had lived in Tianyu Mountain since childhood, and his heart belonged there. He had little affection for Huanhai, and even disdained his original name.
"Chu Ren, if you were me, what would you do right now?"
Shi Yunzhou has never really cared about the affairs of Huanhai, relying on those three elders. Now that Zhang Yuan has been killed, it's all because of him.
"Young Master, you may not be very familiar with your situation. You are alive only because you are a disciple of Tianyu Mountain and the High Priest strongly vouched for you. If I were you, I would gradually take power into my own hands." At the very least, I would consolidate the hearts of the people in Huanhai and change your name back to your original name—Chu Yu.
Looking at Chu Ren's rather cold face, Shi Yunzhou said, "Could I find someone to assassinate Wei Maitong?"
"It's unlikely. No one would take on this job, and besides, the Venerable Master's cultivation level is very high. Ordinary people can't get close to him."
He tapped the letter on the table with his fingers, shook his head, and said, "This is a dead end."
The letter from Tianyu Mountain made Chu Ren swallow hard: "Young Master, given your current condition, you really can't leave any longer."
Zhang Yuan's death was all because he supported the young master and repeatedly fought for his interests, which made Wei Maitong see him as a thorn in his side long ago. What will those who support you think if you leave now? What will Zhang Yuan's subordinates think? They will only feel that their superior's death was not worthwhile.
"I won't leave, at least not now." Although I'm not interested in that position, I can't let these people down.
"Has the young master figured it out?"
“I’ve figured it out. Now that someone’s handling things outside, I’ll take care of my own. How are Zhang Yuan’s family?” Shi Yunzhou asked.
"They have all been taken care of by the High Priest."
Shi Yunzhou nodded and said, "In my name, take some useful things and go see them."
"Is there anything you want to say to them?" Chu Ren asked.
“Zhang Yuan died for me, and I, Shi Yunzhou, will avenge him. Let them live well and not make unnecessary sacrifices,” Shi Yunzhou said.
"yes."
Seeing Chu Ren's retreating figure, Shi Yunzhou also reflected on what he had done over the years. He realized he hadn't really done anything for those who supported him.
Since you want to develop your own power, shouldn't you make a move against Wei Maitong's power?
Tianyu Mountain Guanxiang Peak.
The three of them had been on Guanxiang Peak for four days without sleep or rest. They hadn't had a real break in the past few days; they were either killing monsters or on their way to kill monsters. Just now, the three of them had worked together to defeat another monster, and they were so exhausted that they sat down on the spot, too tired even to drink water.
"This won't do. If this continues, we'll all be exhausted." Xiao Mu and Zhou Xuanzhi stood back to back, waving their hands.
“Let’s take turns resting. Let me know if anything happens.” Zhou Xuanzhi said to Lin Jichen, who was resting against a tree, “You two go to sleep first, and I’ll take over when you wake up.”
It all stemmed from Shi Jueming's claim that Guan Xiangfeng had a clue about the painting Zhou Xuanzhi possessed.
"Okay, you can take over when I wake up." Lin Jichen readily agreed and immediately closed his eyes.
Xiao Mu wasn't sleepy at all. He discussed with Zhou Xuanzhi, "We've been here for four days, and we've searched half of Guanxiang Peak. Uncle Shi really wasn't lying to us, was he?"
"Isn't Uncle Shi a person like that?"
Recalling what Shi Shibo had done, Xiao Mu shook his head and said, "It shouldn't be. Although he can be really bad-tempered sometimes, he has never lied to us juniors."
Upon receiving this answer, Zhou Xuanzhi felt relieved. "Go to sleep first. I'll wake you up if anything happens."
"good."
A short while later, Xiao Mu's snoring could be heard.
Lately, few disciples have come to Guanxiang Peak for training, and the surrounding sounds are mostly birdsong and even insect chirping. This environment makes Zhou Xuanzhi feel very at ease, as if he has returned to his childhood, to the comfort of having his elders by his side.
After some time, Zhou Xuanzhi heard rustling sounds outside. Upon hearing these sounds, he immediately gripped the sword beside him and observed his surroundings.
This monster was very good at hiding itself; he hadn't sensed its location. For a moment, he even doubted it, wondering if it was a monster at all. It was probably just the wind.
But when he saw Lin Jichen leaning against the tree and summoning her zither, he knew that his perception had not been wrong this time. Lin Jichen's swordsmanship was good, but she was ultimately a musician; she would only use her zither when she couldn't win with swordsmanship.
Lin Jichen slowly approached the two, nervously observing the surroundings. He didn't sense any demonic beast, but he did sense a murderous aura nearby. This demonic beast was definitely not simple; he couldn't possibly defeat it alone, he would need the help of these two beside him.
Zhou Xuanzhi stood up and nudged Xiao Mu, who was still sleeping on the ground, with his foot.
"Stop kicking, I can sense it." When Zhou Xuanzhi kicked him twice, Xiao Mu was afraid of disturbing the beast, so he didn't say anything. But Zhou Xuanzhi seemed determined to keep going until he responded, so Xiao Mu had no choice but to lower his voice and say something.
Xiao Mu swallowed nervously and quietly gripped the sword in his hand.
The surroundings were utterly silent; there was no chirping of birds or insects, not even the rustling of leaves in the wind. This was not a good sign; they were likely trapped in some kind of formation, completely unaware that they had fallen into a trap.
Could the three of them possibly defeat such a powerful opponent? Thinking this, sweat streamed down Zhou Xuanzhi and Xiao Mu's backs. Logically speaking, Guanxiang Peak shouldn't have a demonic beast of this level. Could it not be a demonic beast? If it's not a demonic beast, then there's even less likely to be anything else.
Lin Jichen looked down and saw the strings of the zither vibrating slightly. It wasn't him, but the demonic beast. Looking at the reactions of the two people beside him, he knew they didn't understand the current situation either.
The oppressive feeling was almost suffocating. "Does Guanxiang Peak have monsters of this level?" Lin Jichen couldn't help but ask the two people behind her in a low voice.
"With our grandmaster uncles guarding this place, there shouldn't be any demonic beasts of this level." They've only cultivated for two hundred years; it would take at least five hundred years to contend with a demonic beast of this level. Xiao Mu said, "Are our grandmaster uncles asleep?"
The demonic beasts here were all captured by our grandmaster uncles and grandmasters, and are used by disciples like them with less than three hundred years of cultivation for training. Higher-level disciples can go directly to Yak Mountain, where the demonic beasts are particularly ferocious. "Could they have been breeding and multiplying here?"
Hearing Lin Jichen's words, the two were at a loss for words. Even among demonic beasts, there was competition. For a beast to dare give birth here, it must be incredibly powerful. So powerful that even after the mother beast had given birth, the demons dared not approach her.
However, they also couldn't understand why there would be a monster of such a level.
"Even reproduction wouldn't be this strong!" The pressure was growing stronger, and Xiao Mu was starting to feel the strain. But as soon as he finished speaking, a suffocating killing intent came rushing towards him.
The three men held their weapons in front of them to defend themselves. In the blink of an eye, Lin Jichen felt a jolt in his internal organs, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. Xiao Mu and Zhou Xuanzhi were in even worse shape; their spiritual energy had stagnated.
The oppressive force that originally required three people to withstand now fell on Lin Jichen alone. Instantly, the strings of the zither floating in front of him trembled wildly, and blood even flowed from his nose. If this continued, everyone might die. Lin Jichen glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw the two people observing the surrounding people. With all his might, he said, "Stop looking... Think of something."
What method should we consider?
Zhou Xuanzhi felt a pang of regret. He could accept losing his own life, but he couldn't let these two be implicated. In this wave of guilt, a thought suddenly struck him: they could indeed escape.
He cut his hand with his sword and used his own blood to draw a formation.
Xiao Mu found the formation unfamiliar; he had never seen it before, nor had he seen anything similar. Before he could even ask, he saw a door appear in mid-air.
Ignoring the questioning looks on the other two people's faces, Zhou Xuanzhi stepped forward, opened the door, and said, "Go in quickly!" Xiao Mu went in first, followed by Lin Jichen.
The two arrived at a dense forest. Although the demonic aura here was strong, it was no longer suffocating.
"Where is this place?" Xiao Mu looked at the unfamiliar surroundings and waved his sword.
Seeing that the strings of the zither had broken, Lin Jichen had no choice but to replace it with a sword.
"Where's Zhou Xuanzhi?" She then realized that one person was missing.
Finding someone in this dense forest is really not easy. The two looked around, and Lin Jichen tried to sense Zhou Xuanzhi.
Suddenly, she heard a thud, and then she sensed Zhou Xuanzhi. She rushed towards Zhou Xuanzhi with Xiao Mu. Deep inside, Zhou Xuanzhi, covered in blood, struggled to his feet and, seeing the two approaching, asked, "I'm alright, how are you?"
"Thank goodness, are you sure you're alright?" Xiao Mu asked, somewhat worried, seeing the person covered in blood.
"It's alright. I'm just glad you're all safe."
Xiao Mu looked at their only remaining fighting force and asked, "What happened to your zither?"
Lin Jichen summoned his zither, saying, "The strings are broken. I'll fix them when we get back." He then replaced the zither with a sword.
"Where is this place?" Xiao Mu asked while bandaging Zhou Xuanzhi's wounds.
"Guancheng".
Speaking of this, Xiao Mu truly admired Zhou Xuanzhi from the bottom of his heart. His entire upper body was covered in sores that there wasn't a single unscathed spot. If he were injured like that, he would just want to lie down somewhere and not move or speak.
Wait, what he just said was...
"Is this Guancheng?"
"Hmm." Zhou Xuanzhi really didn't want to talk right now; his internal injuries were quite severe.
His spiritual energy was stagnant, and he couldn't sense how many monsters were here. However, Lin Jichen alone probably wouldn't be able to get them out of here safely.
“I will teach the method to Junior Sister Lin, and then we will return to Tianyu Mountain.” Zhou Xuanzhi struggled to sit up straight in Xiao Mu’s arms.
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