Chapter 176: Meeting Guihua Again and the Gift of Cizhu Bamboo

Seeing her like this, Long Sheng understood; could it be that this little girl had taken a fancy to Brother Seven, which was why she was so uneasy? Hearing her say this, since Brother Seven was going to the Long Residence, he might as well travel with her; he figured he would surely be able to see Brother Seven again.

Thinking this, Long Sheng spoke up: "That is a coincidence, I am also going to Nanhua. Since we are going the same way, why not travel together? It will be good to have someone to look out for each other on the road, and it will save you, a young girl, from being so worrisome."

Hearing him say this, Maidong understood immediately in her heart that he was likely planning to follow her to find Long Qi, but she did not expose him and readily agreed.

Maidong had originally tried to persuade Long Sheng to rest for two days before leaving, but he insisted on setting off the next day, saying only that a martial practitioner was not so delicate. Seeing him walking with a brisk, flying gait, looking as if there was nothing seriously wrong, Maidong did not say anything more; she was eager to hurry so that she could catch up with Xin Yi sooner.

Truly delightful.

Seeing Long Qi and his group return, the people in the village assumed it was all because of them, and one by one they knelt and kowtowed, calling them "living immortals" with every breath, which made Long Qi feel very embarrassed.

To thank them, the villagers specially prepared a banquet, though it was somewhat meager due to the lack of harvests in the village for a long time. However, everyone did not mind at all; eating the simple food and drinking the mellow rice wine, it was a scene of harmony and joy.

Yet, Long Qi kept the Mountain God's words in his heart, always feeling that he should hurry on his way. Thus, the group quietly left the village before dawn the next day.

Because Luoli was of the Merfolk and could not stay away from water for too long, and because Jiuque Mountain was to the northeast of Fengwu Village, they parted ways with Long Qi not long after leaving the village.

Before leaving, Long Qi gave Luoli a bottle of pills; it was a bottle of Yangling Pill that Lingxiang had stuffed into his bag before Long Qi went down the mountain for his training.

Although this Yangling Pill was a medicinal pill, it was a tonic, and even mortals without cultivation could take it.

Docou had now had the Demon Poison in her body removed, but her body was still very weak, and furthermore, she was pregnant, so she should be resting. It was just that Luoli's Merfolk identity was too conspicuous; if discovered by those with ill intentions, given human greed, they would inevitably be imprisoned. To avoid complications, they had to hurry. Because of this, Docou's body might not be able to bear it.

Not long after the two parties separated, the group headed straight for Nanhua.

Along the way, Xin Yi felt a sense of unease in his heart; the events he experienced while trapped in the Mountain God's Spirit-Bewitching Array were still vivid in his mind.

As for what he had experienced, it was all about Maidong.

In the illusion, Maidong was in danger, and he risked his life to save her, only to fail at the final moment. But once it ended, it would start all over again, repeating in this cycle.

And the one who caused Maidong to fall into danger was...

It was his own mother...

Earlier, when the Mountain God appeared, he had stared at him from time to time, as if he had something to say to him. Could it be that the Mountain God was giving him a hint at that time?

Liu Xia had not expected that Banxia would come along with them. By her own account, she was following the guidance of the Eight Trigrams Plate, but he looked at that Eight Trigrams Plate and it seemed extremely ordinary; he really could not see any mystery in it.

Banxia naturally had her own questions. When the Mountain God was leaving, she had heard some strange words in her ear, and after descending the mountain, she discovered a strange floral pattern on her arm that would not wash off no matter how she scrubbed it.

Ajin was now squatting on Zhao Wuyang's shoulder, and Zhao Wuyang was no longer as excited as when he had first come out. He did not know what he was thinking, and the liveliness of the past was completely gone along the way.

The group set off with their own concerns, and the road ahead was filled with uncertainty. However, being a young girl who rarely went out, she always found everything she saw along the way curious, stopping from time to time to look or ask questions, much like those young ladies who had never seen the world.

Long Sheng did not urge her, assuming Maidong had never left home and had a childlike temperament, and he would occasionally introduce various little trinkets to her.

In his view, this young girl was quite good. If what she said was true and his Brother Seven was still alive, it would be a good match if they took a liking to each other.

Thus, the journey was left to Maidong to travel slowly. But Donggui County was at the northernmost end of Weiping Road, and Nanhua was in the south-central section of Ling'an. At this rate, when would they ever reach Nanhua?

By the time the two of them arrived, Long Qi and his group might have already left.

Even though Long Sheng understood this, he showed no sign of impatience, continuing to accompany Maidong to look at the mountains and water. They traveled like this for two or three days and only reached Qinxi City, which was barely over a hundred miles from Donggui County.

For a martial practitioner, this pace was truly slow; even those wealthy young masters who traveled for pleasure would be much faster than this.

Moreover, the two of them were currently only in the suburbs of Qinxi City. Seeing the sky getting darker, if they were to travel now, the city gates would likely be closed.

It seemed they would have to spend the night in the suburbs.

Even so, Maidong did not mind at all. Upon hearing that they would have to sleep in the wild, she was inexplicably excited, saying how wonderful it was, leaving Long Sheng completely baffled as to why this little girl was so happy.

He naturally did not know that although Maidong had been picked up by Fuyin Zhenren and had suffered before that, she had forgotten her past. Since she could remember, she had always lived in the Lingyun Pavilion on Qiuyun Peak, living in luxury no different from those young ladies of noble families. Even when she went down the mountain, she stayed at the Youran Abode; how could she have ever had such an experience?

Unlike Lingxiang, who had traveled north and south since she was young and often slept in the mountains and forests, and who would always tell her about the brilliant stars upon returning, she had always envied her, wishing she could be like her. But Fuyin Zhenren would never allow her to go down the mountain, saying only that a girl should have the appearance of a girl, and she could not do this or that, restricting her very tightly.

But now it was different. She could finally experience the feeling of having the sky as a blanket and the earth as a bed, opening her eyes to the galaxy and closing them to dreams. How could she not be happy?

However, despite this, one still had to be careful about many things, such as the many wild beasts in the wild; one had to build a fire to ward them off and prevent the night wind from scattering the sparks and causing a disaster.

Fortunately, Long Sheng was experienced in this, so it did not stump him. After a few arrangements, he simply placed a circle of stones around the fire and pressed a piece of stone into the fire, so he did not have to worry about sparks flying, and the fire could burn even more vigorously.

But whether it was because Maidong was overexcited or what, she did not sleep all night, pulling Long Sheng to talk for a long time, mostly about interesting things at the Yuanqing Sect, and all related to Lingxiang.

It seemed this girl had a deep relationship with this Small Elder; otherwise, she wouldn't be talking about her constantly.

To be honest, the other disciples of the same generation in the sect were also very good to Maidong, but firstly, they were all male disciples, and secondly, the sect Elders had very strict requirements for them, so they rarely had free time to accompany her. Unlike Lingxiang, whom those Elders could do nothing about, they could only let her take Maidong to be mischievous and cause trouble. Moreover, both were girls, so they could relatively better share their intimate thoughts.

Long Sheng listened to Maidong while smiling, and he suddenly became interested in this Small Elder; she was truly a fascinating person.

But just at this moment, Maidong suddenly stopped talking, frowning and looking around, as if she were guarding against something.

Long Sheng immediately became alert, listening intently with a frown, and sure enough, he heard some faint sounds.

The sound was like someone stepping on dry leaves, making a "crackle, crackle" sound, and before long, a charming laugh came.

"I was wondering why I couldn't find anyone; so it was because they were saved by someone. A bunch of good-for-nothings, to be unable to defeat even someone with this level of cultivation." As she spoke, a seductive figure walked out from the shadows on the side; it was none other than Guihua.

She had alluring eyes and was dressed revealingly, with no trace of the bruises she had at the Kunwu Sect earlier.

However, Maidong did not know the full story; seeing Guihua covered in Evil Qi, she hurriedly asked who the visitor was.

Guihua gave a seductive smile, flicking a strand of long hair by her ear, and put on an act: "Yo~ what a forgetful noble person. It's only been a few days, and you don't remember me? What a Fucang Elder, you really don't take people seriously."

Maidong felt a chill in her heart upon hearing this; this person actually called out Lingxiang's name, could it be...

"Oh my~ oh my, Master~ has your eye ailment flared up again? What should we do? Every spring you have to suffer this kind of torment, your disciple's heart aches so much~" The tone was winding and tortuous; even Zhaoming Zhenren, who was used to hearing it, could not help but shiver, let alone the Daoist Xuantan and the group of male disciples he brought.

Fuyin Zhenren's face stiffened upon hearing this, and he coughed lightly to cover it up.

"My... my disciple... I am fine. Perhaps some dust got into my eyes, it is nothing serious."

Although he said this, anyone with a discerning eye could see that he was making excuses. There was no wind in the hall, and not even dust could be seen, as the sect disciples swept it clean every day.

Lingxiang could not help but mutter to herself: This Sixth Senior Brother is really something; he doesn't even know how to make up a convincing lie.

Her eyes rolled, and she hurriedly leaned in front of Fuyin Zhenren: "Oh my! So dust really did get in! Let your disciple blow it out for you quickly. You are suffering so much, your disciple's heart aches terribly!"

With this, Lingxiang was just behind Daoist Xuantan, and Fuyin Zhenren was about to dodge when he saw Lingxiang winking at him. He immediately knew she had something to say to him, and just as he was thinking of finding an excuse, he heard Qianyuan Zhenren speak:

"Since Sixth Junior Brother's eye ailment has flared up, Maidong, you should help your master go back. Apply some mugwort leaves to relieve it, so it doesn't get worse later."

Qianyuan Zhenren's words really hit the mark for Lingxiang. She turned and bowed to him, then pulled Fuyin Zhenren's sleeve, but after a moment, as if feeling it was inappropriate, she bent down to support his arm, secretly pinching him as well.

Fuyin Zhenren endured the pain and stood up, apologizing to Daoist Xuantan: "My old ailment has truly flared up, I cannot accompany you, Brother Daoist, I hope you will forgive me."

And just as Daoist Xuantan stood up to return the salute and say it was no matter, Lingxiang pulled Fuyin Zhenren toward the outside of the hall, as if she could not wait, only nodding imperceptibly to Maidong as she passed by.

Maidong merely glanced at her while setting down her Tea Cup, as if it were just an inadvertent look.

After Fuyin Zhenren was dragged out of the Deliberation Hall by Lingxiang, seeing that no one was around, he hurriedly asked her what nonsense she was up to again, only to see a grave expression on Lingxiang's face.

"Sixth Senior Brother, I need you to take me to the Kunwu Sect in Haoyang City."

Fuyin Zhenren was filled with doubt and hurriedly asked why, but Lingxiang only said that a life was at stake, urging him to hurry and fly on his sword, and that she would explain in detail on the way.

……

"My name is Hongying, and I am a disciple of the Kunwu Sect. I have come here specifically to visit Fucang Elder, only hoping that she might bestow a Pill upon me so that I may return to save my master." The woman began to speak as soon as she sat down.

"Save your master? Who is your master?" "Oh my~ oh my, oh my~ Master~ has your eye ailment flared up again? How can this be? Every spring you have to suffer like this, and this disciple's heart truly aches for you~" The tone was winding and convoluted; even Zhaoming Zhenren, who was used to listening to it from the side, could not help but shudder, to say nothing of the Xuan Tan Daoist and the group of male disciples he had brought with him.

Fuyin Zhenren's face stiffened upon hearing this, and he coughed lightly to cover it up.

"My... my disciple... this master is fine. Perhaps some dust blew into my eye; it is of no consequence."

Although he said this, any discerning person could see that he was making excuses. There was no wind in this hall, and not even a speck of dust could be seen; the sect disciples swept it spotlessly clean every day.

Lingxiang could not help but mutter to herself: This Sixth Senior Brother is truly something; he doesn't even know how to tell a convincing lie.

Her eyes darted, and she hurriedly leaned in toward Fuyin Zhenren: "Oh my! So some flying dust really did get in! Quickly, let this disciple blow it out for you. Seeing you suffer like this makes this disciple's heart ache terribly!"

In this way, Lingxiang happened to have her back to the Xuan Tan Daoist, and Fuyin Zhenren, seeing her act this way, was just about to dodge when he saw Lingxiang winking at him. He immediately knew she had something to say to him. Just as he was thinking of finding an excuse, he heard Qianyuan Zhenren speak:

"Since Sixth Junior Brother's eye ailment has flared up, Maidong, you should support your master and go back together. Apply some mugwort leaves to relieve it, so it doesn't get worse later."

Qianyuan Zhenren's words truly hit the mark for Lingxiang. She turned and bowed to him, then tugged at Fuyin Zhenren's sleeve. But after a moment, as if feeling it was inappropriate, she bent down to support his arm, secretly pinching him as she did so.

Fuyin Zhenren endured the pain as he stood up and apologized to the Xuan Tan Daoist: "My old ailment has truly flared up, and I cannot accompany you, Brother Daoist. I hope you will be magnanimous."

And just as the Xuan Tan Daoist stood up to return the courtesy and say it was no matter, Lingxiang pulled Fuyin Zhenren toward the outside of the hall, as if she could not wait a moment longer, only nodding imperceptibly at Maidong as she passed by.

Maidong merely glanced at her while setting down her Tea Cup, as if it were just an inadvertent look.

After Fuyin Zhenren was dragged out of the Deliberation Hall by Lingxiang, seeing that no one was around, he hurriedly asked her what nonsense she was up to again, only to see a grave expression on Lingxiang's face.

"Sixth Senior Brother, I need you to take me to the Kunwu Sect in Haoyang City."

Fuyin Zhenren was filled with doubt and hurriedly asked why, but Lingxiang only said that a life was at stake, urging him to hurry and fly on his sword, and that she would explain in detail on the way.

……

"My name is Hongying, and I am a disciple of the Kunwu Sect. I have come here specifically to visit Fucang Elder, only hoping that she might bestow a Pill upon me so that I may return to save my master." The woman began to speak as soon as she sat down.

"Save your master? Who is your master?"