Sect Leader Is Under Great Pressure CH 097 The Way Of Purple Clouds, City Of Ten Thousand Years
Ziyun Dao City was still under lockdown.
The Sword Pavilion was already empty, and all the sword marks on the walls containing sword intent had been erased. Dozens of Ziyun Dao disciples inspected the place for a long time but found nothing.
The underground had been dug three feet deep, yet no one was found.
Black Snake Yin Wushe quietly glanced out the window and then continued to ponder in the inn’s room.
How did things get to this point?
He swore he had only gotten furious when he found out that the dried mice in his pocket had been eaten by a snake. He rushed out intending to kill that nine-headed serpent, but as soon as he entered the city, the cold wind cooled his head, and he realized that he wasn’t a match for the other right now. He planned to retreat and swallow this loss, knowing there would be opportunities in the future.
However, with just that, Kun-Lai and Ziyun Dao went to war!
Once the wards were activated, no one could leave except the cultivators of Ziyun Dao!
Considering his identity, both as a Kun-Lai snake, even a Great Xuan snake, being caught by Ziyun Dao would likely result in being skinned and cooked.
After weighing his options, Black Snake decisively sought out the nine-headed serpent that had contact with the Kun-Lai spy.
This nine-headed serpent, as the son of the Dragon-Snake Great Sage, was also a well-known second-generation rich brat in the Yuntian Domain. He favored the bustling city of Ziyun Dao, so he had a nominal affiliation with Ziyun Dao, and the Ziyun Dao disciples rarely searched his place.
Hai Chaoxu warmly welcomed this beauty rat snake, even though he didn’t bring any dried mice this time. But just having him was enough... Without another word, Hai Chaoxu took him in.
From Hai Chaoxu, Black Snake also learned the cause of this war.
“You’re talking about Yan Hui, right? I heard that someone sent him a letter, handwritten by his grandson Yan Ling. He was certain it was genuine,” Hai Chaoxu lazily said, while brushing tails with Black Snake. “Apparently, this Yan Ling was his most beloved grandson, extremely talented, who suddenly disappeared in the Central Continent a few years ago. They couldn’t find him anywhere. Their family, because of internal strife within Ziyun Dao, was forced to retreat to an Outland territory, effectively exiled. Yan Hui was already furious when he received the letter, which said that his grandson Yan Ling had been captured by An Xian, that demoness, who tortured him daily and begged for his rescue.”
“So, he just went straight to confront her?”
“Yeah, An Xian firmly denied capturing his grandson, and the two of them started fighting,” Hai Chaoxu extended another snakehead, which was promptly grabbed by Black Snake Yin Wushe and slapped away, leaving it sticking out its tongue.
“And you just watched them fight?” Black Snake asked, somewhat puzzled. This nine-headed serpent had been freeloading in Ziyun Dao City for a long time. Didn’t he have any intention to help?
“Aren't spirit demons like this?” The nine-headed serpent didn’t mind. “Monkeys fight to be the king, and should a snake help one of the monkeys? There’s nothing in it for us.”
Black Snake thought about it and found it very reasonable. It seemed his thinking hadn't fully adapted to his new identity yet.
But just as he was thinking this, someone came to invite the nine-headed serpent to Ziyun Dao for a discussion, saying they had something to discuss.
It seemed there was something beneficial involved, so Hai Chaoxu brushed Black Snake with his tail, extended nine tongues to lick his neck, and said, “Little temptress~ wait for me to come back.”
Then, he left like the wind.
Black Snake was left with a fishy smell on his face, feeling a bit queasy. He cursed, calling him an idiot, and then thought that once this matter was over, it would be best not to come out again.
***
On the flying peak, Ji Yunlai removed his outer robe and tried on the new robe under Feng Qingxiu’s nearly burning gaze, finding them very fitting.
What should he do? Ji Yunlai found himself liking Xiao Qing’s flustered or angry expression more and more.
This side of Xiao Qing was so lively. Usually, he appeared so serious and calm, lacking any youthful energy.
Back when he wasn’t his apprentice, Xiao Qing was very lively and cute, capable of arguing sharply, even making Ji Yunlai speechless.
“Tell me, if I wear this out, will it scare the junior disciples?” Ji Yunlai leisurely added fuel to the fire, tossing another bucket of oil.
Feng Qingxiu felt like the string in his head suddenly snapped!
His expression instantly turned fierce, and he slammed his master against the boulder, quickly pulling the robe off him.
The movements were so familiar that Ji Yunlai was momentarily dazed, forgetting to resist.
When Feng Qingxiu finally calmed down and realized what he had done, he looked blankly at the robe in his hands, then at his master leaning against the boulder, half-smiling at him. Ji Yunlai was only dressed in white inner robes, revealing a perfect neck and a section of a delicate collarbone, without a hint of embarrassment. He looked more like a big cat watching its prey, with playful eyes.
Feng Qingxiu calmly lowered his head, used formless sword energy to swiftly remove the incriminating trim, and then wove two patterns with fine threads to cover up the traces. After that, he shook the robe and draped it back over his master.
Even Ji Yunlai had to admire his calmness and courage now.
Xiao Qing, do you know what you’re doing?
Then Feng Qingxiu said mildly, “The wind is strong on the mountain, Master should rest early!”
He turned and left.
Although he tried to remain composed, his steps seemed unsteady.
Then he entered the room and quickly placed hundreds of sealing talismans on it, making it so that even Ji Yunlai couldn't enter for without taking a moment...
Because those talismans were his own masterpieces given to Xiao Qing, does this count as being trapped by his own work?
And Xiao Qing, do you even realize how wasteful this is?
Standing outside the door, Ji Yunlai resisted the urge to knock, feeling that today's mountain wind was particularly bleak.
He could only put on the robe that Xiao Qing had given him. Luckily, he was just a simple spiritual projection; it didn't matter whether he wore it or not.
Otherwise, Xiao Qing's earlier offense could have easily triggered a counterattack from his protective spiritual aura.
Moreover, did he just imagine it, or did the shadow behind his apprentice seem to be floating and almost flying?
Is there something wrong with his shadow?
He felt a bit worried, but Ji Yunlai always trusted Xiao Qing, so he quickly set his mind at ease and turned his gaze to the Great wrads of Ziyun Dao City.
Although the wards, operated by Ziyun Dao for ten thousand years, were vast and intricate enough to resist even Human Immortals for a while, to his eyes, it held no secrets.
Layer by layer, each ward seal, each connection, and each function was quickly analyzed, broken down into countless planar and three-dimensional diagrams. He even came up with new ideas on how to dismantle, redo, or improve it during his observation and analysis.
His spiritual sense gradually penetrated the wards, silently invading it.
No difficulty at all.
Soon, following the special energy fluctuations of the Kun-Lai cultivation method, he found those disciples trapped in the city.
The time had been too short, so they hadn’t been captured yet.
Led by a sword cultivator, they hid in a large, ruined temple in the city, dressed in ragged clothes, their faces sallow and green, blending in with many laborers as they slept in their clothes, devoid of the sharpness typical of cultivators.
The leading sword cultivator had an ordinary face and looked very young. He even adjusted the sleeping posture of a disciple beside him, whispering, "It's cold for laborers, so they sleep huddled up. Don’t sleep spread-eagle like that. The common folk here don’t have many beds big enough to stretch out on."
"Exactly, you look just like a rich young master," another fellow sword cultivator whispered with a laugh.
"Nonsense! Before I was selected, my family was the poorest in the village. But at least we had a bed big enough to stretch out on," the spread-eagle sword cultivator whispered back, curling up as instructed but still somewhat defiant.
"That’s different," whispered an older cultivator nearby, who looked to be in his thirties. "Do you think all the outer sect disciples who were filtered out are incompetents? After so many Selections, many of those who didn’t make it returned to their villages and towns. They could read and fight, and with them helping out in the villages, life got better. Look at this city—if it were back home, these people would have been hired to do work, whether it was fixing roads or building dikes. By the end of the day, there would always be enough for a family to eat. But here? If they can buy even one steamed bun after a day's work, they’re lucky."
"And they are actually eating cornbread. Back home, even the cornbread has some wheat flour in it. But here, even the steamed buns are made of buckwheat, with no white flour..."
"It gets cold here early, unlike back home where we harvest wheat twice a year."
"Exactly. I heard that in Hai City down south, they harvest rice three times a year. The Rabbit Peak has even created some good hybrids of spiritual rice and ordinary rice for them to grow." Someone nearby chimed in, referring to Shennong Peak as Rabbit Peak.
"So that’s why the population hasn’t grown much in tens of thousands of years. I heard there’s a country nearby, and their farming tools are quite good. I passed by earlier and bought a lot."
"Wasting pocket space! Just buy a few samples and make them yourself when you get back... Oh, forget it. You’ll end up throwing them away when your bag gets too full anyway!"
"Impossible. The mountain is still empty when we get back. Our mountain doesn’t weave cloth or sell medicine, so if you think there won't be any space left, keep dreaming!"
"That makes so much sense..."
"Please, stop making so much sense... If I hadn't chosen the sword path when ascending the mountain, I wouldn't be poor like this now. Why didn't I listen to the elders back then?"
"Exactly, exactly. You can’t even randomly kill beasts in the mountains. If you do, you have to compensate. It’s too miserable!"
"And those blood-sucking bats—applying the medicine costs so much. After dozens of trips back and forth, all the money we earned end up gone."
"Exactly..."
Touched on a sore spot, the group of sword cultivators felt heartbroken.
"Can you all be quiet!" the leading cultivator whispered, annoyed. Don’t they have any awareness of being fugitives?
So everyone fell silent.
In Sword Peak, strength was respected. Qiao Long was their leader not only because of his terrifying sword skills but also because he had survived a hundred years under Peak Master An without leaving. Even Deputy Peak Master You had to admire him. Moreover, Deputy Peak Master You was quite happy to delegate the ordinary affairs of Sword Peak to Qiao Long or You Jia so that he could go live a lovey-dovey life at Poison Peak. However, neither Qiao Long nor You Jia was willing to let Deputy Peak Master You's dream come true.
The moment Qiao Long noticed something was wrong, he gathered them and hid. Such a large city couldn't be sealed forever. As long as they could hide for a day or two, everything would be fine.
So they all listened to the boss.
As Qiao Long pondered where to go if they had to move, his communication jade suddenly lit up.
Seeing the message, his eyes brightened.