Chapter 136

"Junior Brother, have you gone mad?!"

Xu Changqing was both shocked and furious, drawing his sword against Chu Yang; he truly could not imagine that his Junior Brother would commit such a deranged act.

"I know you're in a hurry, but don't be in a hurry yet!"

Chu Yang smacked his lips and flicked out a strand of sword Qi, peeling back the facial skin of the grandfather and granddaughter, only to reveal another face underneath.

"Human-skin masks! These two are suspicious!"

Li Xiaoyao exclaimed, then stepped forward to tear off their faces, revealing the faces of two strange men, both around twenty years old.

A crescent moon was branded on their foreheads! Li Xiaoyao shouted, "Brother Xu, they are members of the Moon-Worshipping Sect!"

Xu Changqing stepped forward to investigate, then turned his head in surprise and asked, "Junior Brother, how did you know?"

How did he know? By reading the walkthrough, of course! "Although the granddaughter appeared panicked on the surface, her breathing was very steady, like someone who practices martial arts. The old man was the same; he walked with a sway, but his breathing remained completely undisturbed."

"I could tell at a glance they weren't good people!"

Chu Yang said with a firm tone.

Li Xiaoyao scratched his head and asked, "What if you guessed wrong?"

Chu Yang spread his hands, "If I guessed wrong, then I guessed wrong. What else could I do?"

Xu Changqing's face turned livid.

Li Xiaoyao wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, "Good thing you didn't guess wrong..."

Chu Yang said speechlessly, "More important than whether I guessed right or wrong, the Moon-Worshipping Sect is very close to us now, and they already know our route!"

Li Xiaoyao was startled.

Xu Changqing fell into deep thought, his expression grave.

Chu Yang suggested, "Now that I have achieved success in Qi cultivation and Xiaoyao can also fly on a sword, why don't we change the plan and head directly back to Mount Shu?"

Xu Changqing nodded, "That is the safest method. Once Brother Li is formally accepted as a disciple, we can openly fight the Moon-Worshipping Sect."

Li Xiaoyao was extremely excited; as long as he joined the Mount Shu Sect, it meant he had one foot across the threshold of becoming a great hero.

This was the greatest dream of his life!

"First, clean up the corpses of these two, then we'll wait and see if we can hook a few more fish."

Chu Yang instructed Li Xiaoyao to clean up the scene, and then the three of them began to wait for the next arrivals. With their companions losing contact, the rest of the Moon-Worshipping Sect members would surely not be able to sit still! The sky grew darker.

The mountain forest became pitch black, with only a little moonlight remaining among the mottled tree shadows.

Movement began to come from the bushes.

Several black shadows suddenly darted out, seemingly looking for something.

"The Gu insects are reacting violently, they should be right here. Where did they go?"

"These two guys wouldn't have really been eaten by a snake demon, would they?"

"It's not like they don't have legs; if they couldn't win, couldn't they run?"

"Something is strange..."

No sooner had the words been spoken than three sharp sword lights struck from the darkness. Only the sound of 'puff, puff' was heard, and fresh blood exploded like a fountain.

Chu Yang looked at the corpses strewn across the ground and nodded with satisfaction, "Done! Now the Moon-Worshipping Sect won't get news of us for a long time."

Li Xiaoyao used the moonlight to flourish his sword, looking quite proud.

It was no wonder; this was his first time taking action, and by any measure, it counted as the official start of his path as a great hero.

"Let's go, lest complications arise."

Xu Changqing flew off on his sword first, seemingly not liking to see such scenes.

"Senior Brother still needs more training..."

Chu Yang shook his head, had Li Xiaoyao dig up the previously buried corpses, and then with a Fireball Spell, the several Moon-Worshipping Sect members and the Gu insects on their bodies were burned clean.

After the three returned to the Lin Family Fortress, the overjoyed Li Xiaoyao heard terrible news.

Zhao Ling'er was gone!

An angry Li Xiaoyao immediately found Lin Tiannan to ask about Zhao Ling'er's whereabouts.

Lin Tiannan showed no sign of guilt, but instead looked at Li Xiaoyao with a complex expression.

Liu Jinyuan wanted to speak but hesitated.

Lin Yueru was at a loss, looking as if she had been frightened.

Chu Yang observed their reactions and suddenly remembered something he had overlooked.

Zhao Ling'er was pregnant!

She had revealed her true form as a descendant of Nv Wa! Li Xiaoyao was currently questioning Lin Tiannan in a frantic rush.

"How could Ling'er just disappear when she was perfectly fine?!"

"Little brother, calm down. This matter is a bit complicated."

"What's complicated about it? I left her in your care, and now she's gone!"

"Sigh! Little brother, I'll tell you the truth: that Miss Zhao is a monster! She ran away on her own!"

"You're the monster! You old rascal, I'll show you today!"

Having said that, Li Xiaoyao drew his sword, ready to fight Lin Tiannan to the death.

Chu Yang reached out and pressed him down.

Li Xiaoyao struggled fiercely, shouting, "Brother Chu, let me go! They don't know where they took Ling'er and are just fobbing me off here!"

Lin Yueru was furious. She had gone to find Zhao Ling'er earlier and had been badly frightened by the other's half-human, half-snake form, and now she heard Li Xiaoyao spouting nonsense.

"That Zhao Ling'er is a snake demon! Not only did I see it, but some servants and maids saw it too. If you don't believe me, go ask them!"

Li Xiaoyao's eyes were splitting, looking as if he wanted to eat someone, "Say that one more time!"

Lin Yueru glared, her momentum not the least bit weaker, "I'll say it..."

"All of you, shut up!"

Chu Yang's Conqueror's Haki flashed and vanished. He restrained it as much as possible, but the astonishing pressure still frightened everyone present.

Lin Tiannan's face turned gloomy, feeling he had been provoked.

Chu Yang took a deep breath, cupped his hands, and said, "This matter is my fault. I didn't explain it clearly to everyone beforehand. Ling'er is a descendant of Nv Wa, not a monster."

Everyone was bewildered, seemingly having never heard of the term 'descendant of Nv Wa'.

Xu Changqing's expression shifted, and he explained, "I once read some ancient books in the Scripture Pavilion. They said that when the world was first created, Pan Gu's essence, energy, and spirit transformed into three great gods: Fu Xi, Shen Nong, and Nv Wa."

"These three great gods are also known by later generations as the Three Sovereigns!"

"Because there were too few living beings in the world, the Three Sovereigns began to create holy spirits in different forms. Fu Xi used the fruit of the Heavenly Realm's sacred tree as a body, infused it with his own essence, and created the gods, naming himself the Heavenly Emperor."

"Shen Nong used the plants of the earth as a body, infused it with his own energy, and created the beasts."

"Finally, there was Lady Nv Wa, who mixed earth and water, molded a human shape according to her own image, and then infused it with her own blood and spiritual power, creating humans."

"Later, Shen Nong disappeared, and the low-intelligence beast race began to run wild in the human world. Not long after, a ruler with extremely high intelligence named Chi You appeared."

"In order to seize living space, the beast race, led by Chi You, waged war against the human race. The human race could not resist, so they sought help from the god race."

"The war of the three races broke out. The beast race was driven to the Demon Realm by the combined forces of humans and gods. In the years that followed, friction began to arise between the god race and the human race."

"The Heavenly Emperor Fu Xi was dissatisfied with the human race's lack of respect for Heaven, so he sent down disasters and ordered the god race to destroy the earth. Nv Wa led the human race to resist, refined stones to patch the sky, and saved the surviving humans."

"Nv Wa exhausted her strength and sacrificed herself. Fu Xi reflected on this and finally sealed the gates of the Heavenly Realm, completely isolating the human and god realms."

"Although Nv Wa died, she left behind descendants to guard humanity for generations."

"Nonsense! Nv Wa is one of the Three Sovereigns, a great god. How could she be a snake demon?"

Lin Yueru was somewhat flustered and immediately retorted.

Xu Changqing said with a respectful demeanor, "The great god Nv Wa is indeed in a half-human, half-snake form. This is not only recorded in ancient books, but there are also statues of Nv Wa on Mount Shu, which the disciples worship day and night, so we are very familiar with it."

"As for why Miss Zhao was first in human form and then turned into a half-human, half-snake, I do not know."

Chu Yang continued, "Descendants of Nv Wa are half-human, half-god. Usually, their bloodline is not apparent. Because she is pregnant, the bloodline hidden in her body was activated, which is why this atavistic phenomenon occurred."

Chu Yang and Xu Changqing were Mount Shu disciples, so their words were very credible.

Even if everyone had not heard of the so-called descendants of Nv Wa before, they now had to admit the fact that Zhao Ling'er was a descendant of Nv Wa.

"Then... that means we were mistaken."

Lin Yueru's small face turned pale. It was she who had insisted that Zhao Ling'er was a monster, and if anything happened, she would have to bear the primary responsibility.

"It is Lin who is ignorant. I have indeed never heard of the descendants of Nv Wa before. My daughter also encountered this situation for the first time. I hope Brother Li can forgive us."

Lin Tiannan cupped his hands to apologize to Li Xiaoyao, but Li Xiaoyao was currently out of his mind and couldn't hear what Lin Tiannan was saying at all. His mind was filled with Chu Yang's words: "Zhao Ling'er is pregnant."

Two people missing was much more serious than one person missing. Li Xiaoyao fell into great fear, his whole body shaking violently as if he had the ague.

Seeing this, Lin Yueru also retreated with a face full of fear, quietly hiding behind Liu Jinyuan.

Liu Jinyuan, also worried about Zhao Ling'er's safety, couldn't care about being close to his cousin and hurriedly said, "Uncle, now is not the time to talk about this. Quickly mobilize the Lin Family Fortress's manpower to find Miss Zhao!"

Lin Tiannan nodded.

Xu Changqing immediately rejected Liu Jinyuan's proposal, shaking his head, "No! Ordinary people cannot accept Zhao Ling'er's current appearance. Even if explained clearly, they might not be able to accept it. It is better for us to go find her ourselves."

"Senior Brother is right." Chu Yang slapped Li Xiaoyao on the back of the head and said irritably, "What are you shaking for? Can her two legs run faster than our flying swords? With this time, we could have already found her!"

Li Xiaoyao suddenly realized and then dashed out the door.

"The situation is urgent. Senior Lin, please forgive the juniors for being rude, we must part ways here."

Xu Changqing and Chu Yang cupped their fists to Lin Tiannan and followed Li Xiaoyao away.

Lin Tiannan looked at their departing backs and remained silent. Having traveled the world for decades, he had never caused such a big misunderstanding as today.

"In a while, I will go to Mount Shu myself to seek verification from the Sword Saint. If it is true, I will take you to apologize properly to Miss Zhao."

Lin Tiannan looked at the self-reproaching Lin Yueru, feeling uneasy in his heart.

Lin Yueru said stubbornly, "This is my fault. I will bear the consequences myself!"

Lin Tiannan was furious, "How will you bear it? If something happens to that Miss Zhao, it will be two lives lost. Will you pay with your life?"

"If I have to pay with my life, then I will!" Lin Yueru shouted and rushed out, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

"Cousin, wait for me!" Liu Jinyuan was frantic, not forgetting to salute Lin Tiannan, "Uncle, don't worry, I will take good care of my cousin!"

Lin Tiannan was shaking with anger and simply closed his eyes, choosing to ignore what he couldn't see.

After the two left the Lin Family Fortress, they joined forces to embark on the journey to find Zhao Ling'er.

On the other side, Chu Yang and the other two were also searching for Zhao Ling'er's tracks on their swords.

To improve efficiency, the three acted separately. Chu Yang circled the nearby mountains several times, but his Observation Haki had no feedback.

"Strange, why can't Observation Haki sense Zhao Ling'er? Could it be blocked by spiritual power?"

"That possibility cannot be ruled out..."

Things suddenly became troublesome.

Chu Yang originally thought that Observation Haki could easily find Zhao Ling'er's tracks, but now the other party was in the 'Nv Wa state' of being half-human, half-snake, and was constantly emitting spiritual power.

Just as electromagnetic waves interfere with signals, Observation Haki would also be interfered with by this powerful force.

After searching for a long time without success, Chu Yang contacted Xu Changqing through a secret method and learned that the other party had also not found Zhao Ling'er.

Late at night, the three met on a barren mountain.

Li Xiaoyao sat on the ground, dejected. The boy who usually talked the most could not say a single word at this moment.

Chu Yang patted him on the shoulder and comforted him, "Although we didn't find Ling'er, I just cast a divination for her. The hexagram shows that she will turn danger into safety and encounter good fortune in the midst of bad. Besides, she is a descendant of Nv Wa and has deep blessings, so you don't need to worry too much."

Li Xiaoyao grabbed Chu Yang's hand excitedly, "Brother Chu, is that really so?! Ling'er will be fine, right!"

Chu Yang said firmly, "Of course, when have I ever lied to you!"

Xu Changqing looked at Chu Yang blankly. He had never heard that his Junior Brother could divine, but upon reflection, Chu Yang spent every day in the Scripture Pavilion, so it was normal for him to know some miscellaneous things.

He just didn't know if it was accurate.

After all, divination is linked to personal cultivation.

Having received Chu Yang's guarantee, Li Xiaoyao finally felt a little relieved. Exhausted in body and mind, he slowly lay down on the grass.

"I promised Granny and Aunt that I would take good care of Ling'er, but in the blink of an eye, such a big thing happened."

"On this journey, I haven't taken care of Ling'er at all. Instead, she has accommodated me everywhere and even let me follow you to eliminate demons..."

Li Xiaoyao looked at the stars in the sky, lost in thought.

Chu Yang and Xu Changqing looked at each other, feeling a bit emotional. People really have to go through some things to grow up.

Xu Changqing comforted him, "You are still young. Being young means various things will happen and you will make various mistakes. You must pay the price for this, and only then can you learn to grow."

Li Xiaoyao smiled bitterly, "This price is too high; I can't afford it at all."

And on the other side.

Zhao Ling'er, who had turned into a half-human, half-snake, was first misunderstood and driven away by villagers, and then met a kind old Mountain God who explained her life story to her.

Learning that she was a descendant of Nv Wa, Zhao Ling'er was finally able to face her strangeness and urgently wanted to see Li Xiaoyao.

On the way back to Suzhou City, Anu, who sensed Zhao Ling'er's location through the 'One Line Connection', suddenly appeared.

Recognizing her childhood playmate made Zhao Ling'er very happy.

The two talked for a long time until late at night, when Zhao Ling'er mentioned that she wanted to find Li Xiaoyao.

Anu wanted to take Zhao Ling'er directly back to the Nanzhao Kingdom.

Zhao Ling'er pleaded bitterly.

The two then had a small dispute.

It just so happened that at this moment.

Lin Yueru and Liu Jinyuan, who were out looking for Zhao Ling'er, discovered the two.

Lin Yueru already felt guilty towards Zhao Ling'er, and seeing this, she thought Anu was bullying Zhao Ling'er, so without a word, she drew her sword and rushed up.

Liu Jinyuan hurriedly shouted, "Cousin, calm down! Calm down!"

If Lin Yueru could calm down so easily, she wouldn't be herself. Compared to using her brain, she preferred using the precious sword in her hand.

Anu also had a temper. Although she was usually smiling, she was equally reckless when angry.

Seeing this inexplicable woman come up and stab people with a sword, Anu immediately cast a spell, with faint fluorescence between her hands.

After Lin Yueru forced Anu back with a sword, she wanted to explain to Zhao Ling'er, but found that she couldn't move.

"What evil magic did you, demoness, cast on me?!"

Lin Yueru was shocked and angry.

"You're the demoness! Anu is the Holy Aunt's disciple and the future priestess of the Nanzhao Kingdom!"

Anu stomped her feet in anger, preparing to cast a spell to teach this woman who spoke without thinking a lesson! Zhao Ling'er was startled by this sudden scene! It was now late at night, and it was pitch black, so she couldn't see clearly. Zhao Ling'er only recognized the other party after hearing Lin Yueru's voice.

"Anu, stop! She's not a bad person!"

"What do you mean she's not a bad person? Didn't you see her hacking at us with a sword?"

Hearing the two communicate, Lin Yueru was also stunned, "You two know each other?"

Anu put her hands on her hips and said angrily, "Of course!"

Liu Jinyuan hurriedly stepped forward, apologized to Anu and Zhao Ling'er, and then said to Lin Yueru, "Cousin, I told you to calm down, why didn't you listen!"

Lin Yueru said aggrievedly, "How was I supposed to know they knew each other? I thought she was bullying Ling'er."

Seeing that the two's attitude towards her was completely different from before, Zhao Ling'er asked timidly, "Brother Jinyuan, Sister Yueru, aren't you afraid of Ling'er?"

Lin Yueru's face turned red, and she didn't know what to say, so she could only whisper, "I'm sorry..."

"Miss Ling'er, it was my cousin's impulsiveness before. She didn't know you were a descendant of Nv Wa and mistakenly thought you were a monster, causing you to suffer. Jinyuan is here to apologize to you on behalf of my cousin. Please forgive us."

Saying this, Liu Jinyuan bowed deeply to Zhao Ling'er.

Hearing the word 'monster', Anu immediately became unhappy and said angrily, "This is our Nanzhao Kingdom's princess! Who are you calling a monster!"

Liu Jinyuan hurriedly apologized, "Yes, yes, it's all our fault for being blind. Please be magnanimous, Miss."

"Anu, forget it, they are not bad people," Zhao Ling'er held back Anu, who was preparing to continue throwing a tantrum, and then asked curiously, "How did you know I was a descendant of Nv Wa?"

Seeing that Zhao Ling'er didn't take it to heart, Liu Jinyuan smiled and repeated what Chu Yang had said.

"So that's how it is." Zhao Ling'er sighed, "If Daoist Chu had been there at the time, I might not have been so panicked..."

Anu asked curiously, "That Daoist Chu is quite capable, knowing about the Nv Wa clan. These things were told to me by the Holy Aunt. Where did he know them from?"

Thinking of the seemingly omnipotent Daoist Chu, Zhao Ling'er felt an inexplicable sense of security, "Daoist Chu is well-versed in ancient and modern times, so it's not surprising that he knows these things."

Anu didn't understand, but from Zhao Ling'er's attitude, she felt that the other party should be as smart as Uncle Moon-Worshipper.

Liu Jinyuan seemed to think of something and exclaimed, "Young Hero Li and Daoist Chu left Suzhou City this morning to find you. Miss Ling'er, didn't you meet them?"

Zhao Ling'er shook her head and talked about meeting the Mountain God and Anu.

Liu Jinyuan said with regret, "With the Mountain God's protection, perhaps you missed each other."

Just as the three were chatting happily, a voice suddenly interrupted.

"I don't mind you chatting, but can you let me move? I've been standing here for a long time." Lin Yueru said in a resentful tone.

Zhao Ling'er screamed and hurriedly asked Anu to lift the spell.

Anu glared fiercely at Lin Yueru and reluctantly lifted the spell.

Knowing that Li Xiaoyao was not in Suzhou City, Zhao Ling'er had no intention of entering the city and prepared to leave with Anu.

Lin Yueru and Liu Jinyuan followed closely behind.

Anu looked at Lin Yueru vigilantly, "What do you want?"

Lin Yueru snorted, "I want to send Ling'er safely to Li Xiaoyao, otherwise I won't go back!"

Zhao Ling'er said softly, "Sister Yueru, there's no need for that."

Lin Yueru lowered her head and didn't speak, but she had no intention of leaving either.

Liu Jinyuan sighed, "Miss Ling'er, just let us follow. My cousin feels very guilty about this and even had a big argument with my uncle. If she isn't allowed to do something, she won't be at ease."

The understanding Zhao Ling'er understood Lin Yueru's difficulty and smiled, "In that case, I'll trouble the two of you."

Lin Yueru's face lit up with joy.

Anu asked in a low voice, "Princess, we aren't going to Suzhou City, where are we going next?"

Zhao Ling'er was also worried. Now she was looking for Li Xiaoyao, and Li Xiaoyao was also looking for her.

Liu Jinyuan, who was a top scholar, had a more flexible mind and immediately had an idea, "Let's follow the route you set before. Maybe we'll meet Daoist Chu and the others halfway."

Lin Yueru was quick-eyed and took a map out of her bundle and laid it in front of everyone.

Zhao Ling'er looked for a while and placed her hand on a small village.

Baihe Village!...

The next day.

Chu Yang and the others, who had searched all night and couldn't find Zhao Ling'er, never dreamed that Zhao Ling'er had actually walked towards Suzhou City.

And they were searching in the completely opposite direction, which was why they came back empty-handed.

Although they didn't find Zhao Ling'er, the three encountered unexpected people.

In the wilderness, a group of pedestrians with uniform steps suddenly appeared. The leader was broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, with a full beard, and looked like an old man of about sixty.

The old man walked with the vigor of a dragon and a tiger. Before he even approached Chu Yang, he felt an aura of battlefield slaughter.

Chu Yang muttered, "With such a strong murderous aura, he must be some general who has retired from the battlefield, right?"

The two sides brushed past each other.

The young people surrounding the old man silently touched the weapons at their waists, seemingly guarding against Chu Yang and the others.

Seeing this group of people so vigilant, Chu Yang became interested in their identities.

At this moment, the old man suddenly stopped and whispered to the young man closest to him, "Tang Yu, go ask for directions."

The young man bowed and cupped his hands, "Okay, Godfather!"

The two's low-voiced exchange did not escape Chu Yang's ears, and his expression shifted.

Tang Yu?

Godfather?

Chu Yang roughly knew the identity of this group of people.

The leading old man should be the founding elder of the Nanzhao Kingdom—Shi Gonghu, who was the adoptive father of the Moon-Worshipping Sect Leader, Shi Jieren.

It was he who single-handedly cultivated this great demon who almost destroyed the world.

From a certain perspective, it could also be said that he cultivated the first scientist in the Xianxia world...

Besides Shi Gonghu, there was also a group of General Nanman's subordinates who followed him to the Central Plains.

The young man was his other adopted son, Tang Yu. Having had the lesson of Shi Jieren, Shi Gonghu's teaching of Tang Yu was very harsh.

Tang Yu's pedantry even far exceeded that of Liu Jinyuan, who was a scholar.

Seeing Tang Yu walking towards him, Chu Yang had new ideas in his heart.

Now that Zhao Ling'er's whereabouts were unknown, one more person meant one more bit of strength. Thinking of this, Chu Yang took the initiative to speak, wanting to seek their help.

"Are you all going to Immortal Spirit Island to look for someone?"

Tang Yu's footsteps stopped abruptly, and a look of shock appeared on his face.

Shi Gonghu, who was walking at the very front of the team, also heard the voice and turned around to stare at Chu Yang.

As a result, the entire team turned around in unison, and an aura of slaughter arose spontaneously.

Xu Changqing sensed something was wrong, and thinking of the Moon-Worshipping Sect members they had encountered before, he mistakenly thought this group of people was also from the Moon-Worshipping Sect.

A cold light flashed, and his long sword was unsheathed!

Xu Changqing said coldly, "You people are really like ghosts that won't go away!"

Shi Gonghu's subordinates all drew their weapons, which were all standard curved swords, very similar to the weapons of the Moon-Worshipping Sect members.

Now even Li Xiaoyao couldn't help but draw his sword to confront them.

The atmosphere suddenly became heavy.

Chu Yang looked at Xu Changqing with a face full of question marks: "Do you have a grudge?"

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(End of chapter)