village
About a month has passed since this amusing incident, but Lin Yun still keeps it in mind for one reason only—the other protagonist of this story is surnamed Xiao.
Xiao, far away in the capital.
"You mean, the young prince found out about your past and is spreading rumors throughout the Jingyin Sect to embarrass you?"
That should be the case.
Lin Yunwang's uncertainty lay in the fact that this method was terrifyingly crude, unlike anything a prince would do. Xiao Weian had clearly investigated her past, yet he remained oblivious to her vulnerabilities; this action was hardly even a scratch to her.
She cares about many people and things, but also cares about many things.
Xiao Wei'an was probably used to things going smoothly and was accustomed to thinking and making judgments based on his own ideas. In his view, the most embarrassing thing to do to someone was to expose all their embarrassing past experiences, leaving them naked and exposed in front of others.
He cares too much about his reputation.
The person he considered his greatest rival was the one who cared least about his own reputation.
Lin Yun smiled, recalling the day she had beaten this man severely under the cover of night, and how Xiao Weian had fled in a disheveled state while he had to try his best to protect his face.
"Xiao Wei'an's appearance is top-notch, but his heart is inferior." Yang Suyue had been immersed in the capital for a long time and knew the nature of the powerful and wealthy like the back of her hand, let alone this celebrity.
He is the nephew of the current emperor and the son of the King of Qi.
He was granted the title of Prince at a young age and received a fiefdom. Unfortunately, he was a restless person. At the age of thirteen, he suddenly had a whimsical idea and insisted on cultivating immortality. He even specifically requested to go to the Jingyin Sect, saying that he dreamed that he had attained immortality in the Jingyin Sect.
No matter how others tried to persuade him, he wouldn't change his mind.
Although he was of noble status, the Jingyin Sect was one of the three major sects in the cultivation world, and it was not something he could enter at will.
Ultimately, he joined the Jingyin Sect, though it is unknown whether he used some means.
However, the path of cultivation was far from as easy as he had imagined; diligence and talent were both indispensable. Surprisingly, the pampered prince never stopped cultivating despite the hardships; he probably genuinely loved it.
For various reasons, he was able to cultivate in the Jingyin Sect, but for the same reasons, he could only stay in the outer sect. Yongyun had been determined to take him as a personal disciple, or at least let him enter the inner sect, but Mingqi persuaded him against it.
"So it was the young prince who secretly plotted against my sister, but it didn't work as he expected. My sister ambushed him at night and beat him up." Li Xiuran was puzzled as to why the two of them could laugh so heartily in the room about this. It was clearly a frustrating thing, being tricked, but they couldn't retaliate openly.
Yang Suyue smiled without saying a word. Her happiness stemmed from her friend's thoughtfulness, not from how "interesting" the matter was.
Her eyes darkened, and her lips tightened into a straight line. Those familiar with Yang Suyue would know from her appearance that she was plotting something unspeakable.
Li Xiuran naturally understood her and thought to himself: I wonder who's going to be unlucky this time.
He then asked, "What else did you talk about?"
The afterglow shone on Yang Suyue, and she said, "She also introduced me to her new friends, saying that she would introduce us to each other if there was a chance."
The young man didn't ask any more questions, but she automatically added the answer in her mind: I agree.
If one day I manage to break free of these barriers, I will definitely go to where she is to find her.
Talking to Yang Suyue about his new friend was a decision Lin Yun made after many twists and turns.
She knew that friendship could also be possessive. Similarly, she was also afraid that Yang Suyue had made more important friends in the capital, far away from her. If one day in the future, Yang Suyue could tell her stories about her friends and see from her eyes that she was her most important friend.
Two flowers bloom, each representing a different aspect.
The atmosphere on the other side was rather somber.
This was the first time Lin Yunwang and Gu Hanqiu met.
The girl pieced together the image of this senior brother from the other disciples, and figured he was probably a "freak." But there were plenty of "freaks" in the Jingyin Sect, so one more wouldn't make a difference.
Therefore, she did not anticipate how awkward it would be to be with Senior Brother Gu.
Jeju is too far from the Jeongin Sect, so the transmission talisman is ineffective.
For most of the mission, Gu Hanqiu was out of contact. Yichen finally managed to get in touch with him. He knew that his new junior sister was coming here on a mission, which was only one day earlier than Lin Yun's arrival in Jeju.
It's no wonder that Yichen was worried about Lin Yun's mission and even asked someone to look after him. Being cut off from the sect on his first mission was indeed a challenge.
This task is quite strange.
Gu Hanqiu collected a lot of information about the mission and came to this conclusion.
You'd better be careful.
The atmosphere eased, and both of them, acting with utmost seriousness, began their discussion to progress smoothly.
Lin Yun nodded in agreement.
Her mission location this time was in northern Jeju, in a place called Unjungsan.
There is a famous legend here: deep in the Yunzhong Mountain, there is a pool of water called the "Forget-Me-Not Pool". Drinking the water from the pool will make you forget all your troubles. Yunzhong Mountain is also known as the "Land of Forgetfulness".
Considering her mission this time—to investigate a village that suddenly disappeared—the legend is somewhat chilling.
Lin Yun didn't believe in any supernatural or superstitious beliefs. His only concern was that the mission was currently incomplete and he didn't know when it would be completed.
"If the mission doesn't go well, just go back." Gu Hanqiu still had a mission to complete and couldn't go with her, so he offered a few words of advice: "Sometimes, trust your intuition. If something feels wrong, just run."
His extensive experience in missions and formidable strength reassured the Jingyin Sect that he could be stationed in Jeju for an extended period.
"Oh, right," Lin Yun handed him a gourd of wine, "this is something Senior Sister Bai asked me to bring to you. She also asked me to pass on a message..."
"I thought you must be craving my brewed wine, so I asked my junior sister to bring you some. If you get drunk and cause trouble, it's not my fault." Lin Yun recalled Senior Sister Bai's words of advice.
Of course, I also brought wine.
The amount of wine was small, filling only half of the water bag.
While weighing the contents, Lin Yunwang advised, "Senior Sister, you can pack more. I don't have much to carry, and there are plenty of places to put this wine."
She pieced together the story of Gu Hanqiu, this mysterious senior brother, from gossip, but it was hard to distinguish between truth and falsehood. Some said he was a womanizer who was forced to seek refuge in Jizhou because he was being hunted down by cultivators from the Three Sects and One School; others said his beloved died in Jizhou, and he was determined to stay there for five years.
Lin Yun told these fabricated stories to Senior Sister Bai.
She was drinking at the time, and upon hearing this, she spat out the wine in her mouth. After calming down, she said, "Ordinary true stories are indeed hard to pass down."
Bai Xiyan briefly recounted Gu Hanqiu's story.
"He had no father or mother and was abandoned at the foot of Jingyin Sect Mountain. The disciples of the sect took pity on him and adopted him."
The people of the Jingyin Sect have no shortage of stories, and tragedy is the most common ingredient in them.
Misfortune often befalls everyone indiscriminately, regardless of their social standing, wealth, or intelligence. When it comes to "misfortune," there is no difference.
Far away in Jeju, at the Jingyin Sect, some drown their sorrows in alcohol, some practice swordsmanship late at night, some toss and turn in bed, some are tearful, and some look back on the past.
Emotions are often shared. Even if people are not in the same place or at the same time, they may still have similar feelings.
For example?
A long wait.
However, that was a story from a very long time ago. So long ago that very few people remember it.
Earlier, Lin Yun hurriedly bid farewell to Yang Suyue and left central Jeju Island for her mission location.
First, reach a hill and observe the mission location.
She looked down.
It was a village, an ordinary village no different from any other. But nestled in these perpetually white mountains, it stood out as somewhat unusual. One couldn't help but wonder, what could have happened to keep these villagers here?
However, this question does not exist.
The reality is that the village Lin Yunwang saw was already a ghost town.
The mission of this trip was to investigate this suddenly deserted village.
This task could be simple in some ways, and difficult in others. Perhaps it was just a sudden whim of the entire village to leave this perpetually snow-covered land. Lin Yunwang almost laughed at his own conjecture.
The task that the Jingyin Sect was willing to take on was certainly not simple.
The ridiculous speculation was nothing more than a way to ease the tension of a first mission. Perhaps that's true; after all, reality can be bizarre and comical at times.
Lin Yun secretly encouraged himself, determined not to let himself or his master lose face on this mission.
After checking the bundle, she jumped down from the small hill and landed steadily.
What comes into view is a wooden sign eroded by wind and snow.
"Luming Village".
Although she had already filled the entire village with spiritual energy, she still drew her sword, just in case, to deal with any emergencies. Remembering her senior brother Gu and her master's instructions, she rallied her spirits and vowed not to let her guard down.
In fact, their core principle is that everything should be based on their own safety.
"Shh shh shh".
The sword tip sliced through the snow, leaving a long, thin mark.
With each step Lin Yun took, the sword mark extended further.
The situation here is the same as the intelligence gathered.
Luming Village has 56 houses and originally housed 112 people, but the entire village is now uninhabited.
A month ago, residents of Qingfeng Town at the foot of Yunzhong Mountain went up the mountain to collect medicinal herbs and found that Luming Village was suddenly empty. They had not heard any news about relocation, and there was even cooked food in the pot that had now rotted and smelled bad.
Lin Yun patiently pushed open the doors of each house and went inside to examine them carefully. The village had been deserted for more than half a month, and a lot of dust had accumulated. When she swept one spot, her gaze paused—someone had been here before her, and not long after.
Perhaps it's Senior Brother Gu?
Upon further reflection, she overturned her previous judgment.
Given Senior Brother Gu's meticulousness regarding missions, if he had been here before, he would definitely have told me about it.
Lin Yun thought to himself: In other words, there are other people who have come here, of unknown origin, and very likely with the same purpose as me.
We need to be even more careful from now on.
While checking the conditions inside the houses, she also needed to keep an eye on the surrounding activity, which undoubtedly consumed a great deal of spiritual energy and physical strength. However, she had a solid foundation, and with the support of the abundant spiritual energy in her sea of consciousness, she did not feel tired even after checking all the houses.
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