Autumn comes early in the north, and the evening wind already carries a chill.
Xiangshui Village is a small town located more than 100 miles from the border.
During the busy farming season, dinner is served later than usual.
If there aren't enough able-bodied men at home, they have to go chop firewood after coming down from the fields.
If you don't stockpile enough firewood in the fall, the days after winter will be tough.
Smoke curls from the chimney, wife and children on a warm bed, a couple of ounces of strong liquor—life is good and fulfilling.
In the northwest of the village, in a somewhat dilapidated courtyard, a bachelor sits alone by the stove.
One person being full means the whole family isn't hungry, but it inevitably feels lonely.
Tonight he steamed meat and vegetables and two large bowls of rice, and put them on the stove to smell.
He seemed tired, sitting at the small square table, arms crossed, dozing off.
The kitchen door opened silently, and the bachelor woke up immediately, raising his head.
"Yan Wujiu, I've been looking for you everywhere."
The one who entered was Jiang Wuyai, the current head of the Tianyan Sect, and his tone was quite unfriendly.
After a long and arduous journey, we finally found traces of this junior brother.
When we first started looking for the person, we encountered considerable difficulties and were unable to deduce their identity and location.
Left with no other choice, Jiang Wuyai resorted to a clumsy method.
He possessed the birth dates and times of those who had left the sect, and with a little calculation, he could eliminate those he could identify one by one.
After removing those who died, only three people remained in the end.
There's a general principle in deduction: the more information you have, the easier it is to arrive at an accurate conclusion.
With a name, date of birth, and biography, making further deductions becomes much easier.
Just as Jiang Wuyai was about to search them one by one, Yan Wujiu's location suddenly became incredibly "transparent".
The thick fog that had enveloped it disappeared, as if it had extended an invitation.
That's why we met now.
Yan Wujiu, disguised as an ordinary farmer from the northern border, stood up, bowed, and paid his respects.
"Sect Leader, how have you been?"
Jiang Wuyai was sizing up his former junior brother.
They are all of the "Wu" generation. Below him, besides his junior sister, the person his master values most is the one in front of him.
The fact that he reached the Divine Martial Realm on his own without any formal instruction from a master is a testament to his skill.
Moreover, his third-grade cultivation level was so formidable that even a second-grade cultivator like myself, who controlled the territory, could not deduce his abilities.
Thinking about it... it's really annoying.
Jiang Wuyai did not return the gift. Having left the sect without permission, he was no longer regarded as a junior brother.
"Yang Wu Hui didn't come with you."
These two used to be inseparable, but according to his calculations, Yang Wu Hui is now thousands of miles away.
"My junior brother wasn't absolutely certain about this matter, so I had him retreat far away."
"Ha, you're quite frank."
Although he was a practitioner of magic, Jiang Wuyai actually hated speaking in a cryptic and ambiguous manner.
In my memory, Yan Wujiu was the epitome of someone who didn't speak properly. When did he become so straightforward in his speech?
"Senior Brother Sect Leader, I've specially reserved dinner for you, along with a pot of fine wine. Why don't we eat and chat?"
Jiang Wuyai waved his hand, "Why bother with that? Just come on."
That's how direct he is. As for why he wanted to assassinate the imperial heir or who was behind it, those questions are irrelevant to him.
In exchange for Junior Sister Xinglan's help in locating the Heavenly Plate once, he wouldn't be so eager as to pry into the details or become completely devoted to investigating the case for her.
“I know what my senior brother has been seeking all his life: to exchange a message for the lives of me and my junior brother Wu Hui.”
Yan Wujiu's expression remained unchanged, as if he had expected this all along.
He was naturally skilled at deduction and planning, so once Lingtai sensed that someone was calculating his location, he immediately concealed his whereabouts.
However, the opponent's methods were like a bone-deep infection, giving him a suffocating feeling that was all-pervasive, so he deduced that the opponent was Jiang Wuyai, who was at the second-grade level.
The difference in their cultivation levels is undeniable; no matter how skilled he is at concealing himself, it's only a matter of time before he's discovered.
Therefore, Yan Wujiu made some arrangements, deliberately exposing himself to their deductions, thus luring people here.
Jiang Wuyai narrowed his eyes. "Is this true?"
"We were fellow disciples, after all. I could have recited the 'Supreme Mysterious Treasure Limitless Salvation Sutra' for you."
But if you try to deceive me, you will be reduced to ashes.
Yan Wujiu sighed inwardly.
The *Duren Jing* is the core scripture of the Tianyan Sect for liberating the souls of the dead; Jiang Wuyai was indeed determined to take his life.
Given his personality, he shouldn't be meddling in these "other people's business," so he must have made some kind of deal with someone.
"Sect Leader, please rest assured, Wujiu wouldn't dare."
"Okay, go ahead."
As for eating and drinking, Jiang Wuyai never mentioned it and had no intention of cooperating.
The sorcerer possesses a wide range of skills; although he is a realm below, he is still at least a Divine Martial Realm cultivator.
He's not some greenhorn fresh out of school; what delicacies could possibly warrant the risk?
"Senior brother, first I need to confirm one thing."
Three months ago, did Junior Sister Xinglan leave Fengjing?
Jiang Wuyai didn't mind giving out information that was already in the past; one had to have the ability to get something for nothing.
“When I entered the capital, she dared not make a move.”
Yan Wujiu nodded. "Although the possibility is very small... Junior Sister Xinglan shouldn't have advanced to the First Grade Realm, right?"
"Ha, how could that be?"
If Chu Xinglan were to reach the level he had been desperately seeking, and with the backing of the Fengjing Imperial City, he would have no chance of escaping unscathed.
When their master suddenly passed away, it was the junior sister who served him in the end.
Jiang Wuyai had always felt that something was amiss and never stopped investigating.
Given Junior Sister's temperament, if she's strong enough, she'll probably keep him in Fengjing.
Yan Wujiu sighed deeply, then looked up with a determined gaze at the person opposite him.
"Sect Leader, has the Heavenly Disc... entered the mortal realm?"
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