Chapter 97: Huang Rong and Mu Nianci

A wuxia world.

A small town in the Southern Song Dynasty.

Because the school in town had closed, it caused quite a stir for ten miles around, and the county magistrate was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.

It wasn't that there were no other scholars in town who could serve as teachers, but the level of enlightenment provided by the previous Mr. Chu was simply too high.

It was said that even some families of scholarly lineage intended to send their clan's children to the school for basic education.

One must know that children's basic education was very prosperous in both the Northern and Southern Song Dynasties; to be able to carve out a bloody path against such a backdrop, how could he be an incompetent person?

The magistrate was also puzzled; if the commoners hadn't made a scene at the county office, he, having served here for many years, would never have heard of such a virtuous scholar.

After inquiring carefully, he learned that the Mr. Chu everyone spoke of was just a young man of weak-crowned age. The magistrate had seen the primers Mr. Chu used to teach the children, and every single one could be called a classic for the ages; even someone of his age benefited greatly.

Thinking that such articles came from a young man in his twenties, he found it inconceivable and couldn't help but be very curious about the true face of Mr. Chu.

"Magistrate! That Mr. Chu seems to have returned; someone saw his courtyard gate is open!"

The county office secretary rushed in from outside, tripped over the threshold, and tumbled right in front of the magistrate.

"What's the rush!"

The magistrate snorted coldly, flicked his sleeves, and without even looking at the secretary, also rushed out of the room.

"You're not much better yourself..."

The secretary climbed up from the ground, muttered a complaint to himself, and then followed closely behind the magistrate.

The magistrate's surname was Huang, and he was exactly forty years old this year. If placed in modern times, he might still be an older bachelor, but in the Southern Song Dynasty, he was already a grandfather.

A steady man, no matter how rushed, would still care about his reputation, so Magistrate Huang took his sedan chair and slowly swayed toward the small Chu courtyard.

A step ahead of Magistrate Huang were the commoners leading their children; they stood outside the courtyard, eyes filled with longing, looking just like those modern parents scrambling for kindergarten spots.

The mentality of not wanting one's child to lose at the starting line hadn't changed in the slightest even after a thousand years.

Actually, one couldn't blame them for being anxious; Chu Yang had disappeared for several months.

When he went to the Jin Empire, he had flown.

But when he came back, he walked, and he was dragging a whole bunch of dead weight with him.

Not to mention Huang Rong, who had a naturally active and playful personality and insisted on dragging Chu Yang to sightsee everywhere, which delayed them quite a bit.

If it were only Huang Rong, he could just fly back with her; since he had already demonstrated Wood Release, Earth Release wouldn't be much of a stretch.

Chu Yang didn't feel that he needed to live a life of concealment in this world.

But unfortunately, there was a Guo Jing following behind him.

Chu Yang didn't have the heart to drive him away.

Guo Jing was a famously good person who couldn't do things like bringing disaster to others or using people as scapegoats; the last incident was considered a misunderstanding.

Plus, he had been apologizing to Chu Yang every day along the way, which almost became a mantra, and his willingness to work hard and serve like a beast of burden made it very difficult to stay angry at him.

Following behind Guo Jing was the family of Yang Tiexin.

Yang Kang had become incredibly well-behaved, scrambling to do every chore, his diligence second only to Guo Jing.

It wasn't for anything else, just the fear that one day Chu Yang would be unhappy and use him as a sacrifice to the heavens, so he tried his best to look pleasing in front of him.

Whenever he thought about how he had acted arrogantly in front of Chu Yang, relying on tens of thousands of Jin soldiers, Yang Kang wanted to take the sole of his shoe and beat his own face wildly.

Seeing Yang Kang so sensible, Yang Tiexin and his wife were very gratified.

By their side was Mu Nianci, an even more thoughtful daughter.

Originally, after reuniting with Guo Jing, Yang Tiexin intended to betroth Mu Nianci to him, but Guo Jing brushed it off with the excuse that marriage was a major life event that required his mother's consent.

Yang Tiexin took his words seriously and prepared to go to Mongolia to visit his former sister-in-law, Li Ping, with him after Guo Jing and Yang Kang finished their martial arts duel agreement.

On the way, the sensitive Bao Xiruo noticed Guo Jing's feelings for Huang Rong, and during their nightly husband-and-wife talks, she cautiously told Yang Tiexin.

"Brother Tie, Jing'er seems to fancy Miss Huang. I think we should forget about the marriage between him and Nianci. You and I have both tasted the bitterness of lovesickness, so let's not make things difficult for the young ones."

Yang Tiexin finally realized what was going on, his thick black brows furrowed, and he smiled bitterly: "Who would Jing'er like if not her? It just had to be her. It's one thing that Miss Huang has a quirky personality, but her relationship with Mr. Chu seems extraordinary..."

Bao Xiruo covered her mouth and laughed: "Mr. Chu's immortal demeanor is indeed stunning, and he is kind-hearted, so it's not strange that Miss Huang likes him."

Speaking of this, Bao Xiruo couldn't hold back her laughter, her voice gradually growing louder, laughing until she was out of breath: "A perfectly good pair of immortal lovers, it's just that Mr. Chu doesn't seem to have any thoughts in that direction, and from time to time he even calls Miss Huang 'good brother,' which makes Miss Huang quite angry."

Yang Tiexin also shook his head and laughed, but soon he couldn't laugh anymore.

"It's just a pity for my Nianci, who only dares to stand far away and peek at Mr. Chu, watching him and Miss Huang bicker, having to swallow all the sour, sweet, bitter, and spicy feelings into her stomach."

The smile on Bao Xiruo's face gradually faded; her own eighteen years of longing for Yang Tiexin—the taste of that, like drinking water, was something only she could know.

Now, her daughter Mu Nianci seemed to be following in her footsteps.

"Xiruo, you mean... Nianci is the same as Miss Huang?"

Yang Tiexin looked at his wife in surprise.

"Brother Tie, you are naturally bold and rugged, so it's normal that you didn't notice. Now that you know the situation, don't force the marriage between Jing'er and Nianci; they are destined not to be on the same path."

Bao Xiruo reminded Yang Tiexin earnestly.

Yang Tiexin nodded and fell into deep thought.

Seeming to be planning something, Bao Xiruo looked at him curiously.

"Since Mr. Chu doesn't have any thoughts in that direction regarding Miss Huang, perhaps Nianci could..."

Bao Xiruo's eyelids twitched, and she subconsciously felt it was inappropriate.

She wanted to persuade him further, but she couldn't stop Yang Tiexin, who doted on his daughter and had already made up his mind, so for the rest of the journey, the two were constantly creating opportunities for the two parties.

It was just a pity for Yang Kang, a living person; although he sensed his parents' intentions, he dared to be angry but didn't dare to speak. He still had some thoughts about Mu Nianci in his heart.

However, he thought to himself, if Mu Nianci could become husband and wife with Mr. Chu, wouldn't he, as the nominal older brother, be able to get the moon first by being near the water? Yang Kang had long coveted Chu Yang's "immortal methods," and if the two sides were connected, he would definitely find it hard to refuse if he asked Chu Yang for advice.

Unable to resist the temptation, Yang Kang chose to join his parents' team in matchmaking Mu Nianci and Chu Yang.

The Yang Tiexin family followed Chu Yang into the small town.

The moment they put down their luggage, the outside was already packed solid.

Outside the courtyard, some people whispered "Mr. Chu," while more people, though showing urgency on their faces, waited quietly.

Yang Tiexin and Bao Xiruo looked at each other; only then did they realize he was a local teacher, and quite a famous one at that.

Chu Yang tidied up the dusty room, and after coming out, he saw Huang Rong's slender figure darting around, like a little mouse that had entered a granary.

"What are you looking for?"

Huang Rong replied as a matter of course: "Choosing a room, of course. Many rooms here are dirty and messy; don't you ever tidy up?"

Chu Yang looked at her with a bewildered expression: "I live alone, why would I tidy up so many rooms every day? It's troublesome and useless."

Huang Rong put her hands on her hips, looking heroic and spirited: "It's useful now! I need a place to sleep, and I need a clean kitchen to cook..."

"Stop!" Chu Yang raised an eyebrow, reached out to signal Huang Rong to shut up, and then said: "When did I say you could live here?"

Huang Rong's eyes widened suddenly.

Her white, onion-like fingers pointed at Chu Yang, trembling, unable to speak for a long time.

She looked just like someone who had been abandoned after being toyed with.

Huang Rong angrily retorted with justification: "Why can't I live here?"

Chu Yang explained sincerely: "I have neurasthenia; I can't stand someone as noisy as you, chattering all day long."

"What... neurasthenia?" Huang Rong looked blank, and after realizing what he meant, she said viciously: "Who are you calling a chatterbox all day long! And besides, if I don't live here, where do I live?"

Chu Yang rolled his eyes: "Where you lived when you were a beggar, you live there now. You know this county town better than I do; are you afraid you'll get lost?"

Huang Rong was so angry her teeth itched, and just as she was about to turn and leave, never to see this bad guy again, she thought of Chu Yang crossing the border to Yanjing to save her, and she couldn't quite bring herself to walk away.

Just as Chu Yang finished speaking to Huang Rong, he saw Guo Jing and Yang Kang standing by the door, awkwardly holding their luggage; they had just heard the conversation between Chu Yang and Huang Rong.

If even Huang Rong couldn't live here, let alone them, who were neither related by blood nor by marriage.

Yang Kang was a clever one; before Chu Yang could say anything to drive them away, he laughed: "My family being saved by you, sir, is already a great favor; how could I dare to disturb you?"

Guo Jing also felt it wasn't good to disturb Chu Yang, so he nodded and said: "I still have to go out and find my masters..."

The young girl's eyes darted around, trying to think of an excuse to stay, and when she turned her head and saw the sea of people outside, she immediately changed the subject: "Little Chu, are the people outside all here to find you?"

Chu Yang looked up; the area outside the courtyard was packed with people, many gazes falling on him, carrying intense, earnest hope.

He had been gone for months, and some people, fearing their children's education would be delayed, had sent them to other schools.

As a result, after a long time, the children not only showed no progress in their studies but also became less lively in their speech and actions, feeling increasingly dull.

Previously, they only thought Mr. Chu had a knack for teaching, but they never expected the gap between him and other teachers to be so large.

The longer the Chu family school remained closed, the more anxious these parents became.

In addition to the children who were already studying with Chu Yang, many came because of his reputation.

With so many people, the spots for basic education became precious; after all, the courtyard was only so big, and Chu Yang was the only teacher.

The competition was quite fierce, and everyone wanted to get familiar with Chu Yang.

But these people didn't know that after returning from the Soul Palace, Chu Yang had abandoned the idea of reopening the school in the short term.

He had returned this time to tidy up and then go on a long journey, collecting some martial arts techniques along the way to help his other selves in other worlds.

In any case, this matter was the priority; everyone shared the same fate.

"Everyone, Chu still has some miscellaneous matters to finish, so the school cannot be reopened for the time being. Sorry to trouble you all for coming for nothing, my apologies."

Chu Yang bowed to the surrounding commoners.

The light in the parents' eyes dimmed rapidly, replaced by a light in the eyes of some of the children.

They only knew that Mr. Chu's vacation seemed to have been extended again...

Hearing Chu Yang's firm reply, the people outside the courtyard began to disperse one after another.

Some parents, however, did not leave.

"Mr. Chu, when the school reopens, can my second child still come here to study?" A woman in linen clothes held her child nervously, staring at Chu Yang with almost pleading eyes.

More and more people were scrambling for school spots, including those with power and wealth; her family was just ordinary poor commoners, and they had come to Chu Yang for basic education only because the tuition was cheap.

"Of course he can come." Chu Yang frowned and sneered: "And remember to urge him to finish his homework. Usually, he's the loudest one shouting when school is out. I will check his homework; if he dares to slack off, hmph hmph..."

The woman was full of joy, pushed the child in front of Chu Yang, and said excitedly: "Did you hear that? Why aren't you thanking Mr. Chu? Go back and do your homework immediately, or I'll beat you!"

As she spoke, the second child received a slap on the back of the head, instantly becoming aggrieved, and seeing Chu Yang's gloating smile, his mouth puckered, and he began to wail with a "wah."

His mother's strength wasn't great, and he didn't feel pain; he cried entirely because the homework Chu Yang assigned was both difficult and plentiful, and he couldn't finish it, so he could only cry with tears and snot.

Seeing him cry so miserably, the resentment Chu Yang had accumulated during his student days instantly dissipated, and he felt refreshed.

It was precisely because he had been caught in the rain that he wanted to tear everyone else's umbrellas to shreds and call a sprinkler truck to make them run in the downpour.

After the commoners dispersed, Chu Yang returned home, and Yang Kang and Guo Jing had already moved the luggage they had brought in back out.

Yang Tiexin and his wife walked up to Chu Yang and said apologetically: "Mr. Chu, it was our recklessness; we hope you will not blame us."

Chu Yang shook his head and smiled: "What I said to Huang Rong earlier was just a joke; don't take it to heart. Actually, it's because I have to go on a long journey, so it's inconvenient to keep people in my home."

Yang Tiexin and Bao Xiruo suddenly realized, and Mu Nianci, who had been helping to pack the luggage, looked up abruptly upon hearing that Chu Yang was going on a long journey, wanting to speak but stopping herself.

Huang Rong spoke a step before her, clapping her hands and laughing: "Hehe, it's better outside, right? What's the point of a small town, staying cooped up here every day. Those good places I told you about last time, the two of us can go play there this time!"

Chu Yang glanced at her: "I didn't say I was taking you."

Huang Rong froze; this time she couldn't get angry, but her eyes filled with mist involuntarily, and a sense of grievance welled up: "Daddy doesn't want me, and even you don't care about me. Little Chu, I'm never talking to you again!"

After crying and shouting a few times, Huang Rong lifted her leg to leave, and Chu Yang had to pull her back with a headache, explaining: "I really have things to do, and the plan is uncertain; maybe I'll have to run around the world. Why would a minor like you follow me..."

Huang Rong didn't speak, just shook off Chu Yang's hand forcefully; it was clear she was truly hurt this time.

"Go, go, go, you can follow wherever you want. I'm really impressed by you; you like running around so much, be careful of being kidnapped by human traffickers!"

Chu Yang compromised helplessly; he would just treat it as taking a chef on a trip; anyway, this girl cooked quite well.

One second she was crying like rain on a pear blossom, and the next she was beaming with joy. With a wipe of her sleeve, Huang Rong's little face was clean, without a trace of tears.

Such a brilliant face-changing stunt left Chu Yang dumbfounded, and he couldn't help but applaud.

Guo Jing and Yang Kang were also stunned.

"Tell me, where are we going? Although there's no plan, there should at least be a first stop, right?" Huang Rong leaned toward Chu Yang excitedly.

The "Dragon Elephant Prajna Art" was a unique skill of the Mongolian Tantric sect; the first stop was naturally...

"Mongolia!"

Chu Yang sighed.

Huang Rong's eyes, like autumn water, suddenly lit up, and she clapped her hands, jumping and skipping: "Mongolia is good! I haven't been to Mongolia yet! I heard there are vast grasslands there."

Hearing that Chu Yang was going to Mongolia, Guo Jing also became excited and interrupted: "Miss Huang, there are also many sheep flocks on the grassland, with fierce horses and flying eagles; we can herd sheep and horses together!"

Huang Rong, who had just been in high spirits, suddenly turned gloomy; she had been in the middle of talking, and being interrupted made it impossible for her to be happy.

"None of your business! Who wants to herd sheep and horses with you?!"

Huang Rong really wanted to poison Guo Jing until he was mute; she was annoyed just hearing his voice now.

Guo Jing closed his mouth aggrievedly, not knowing what he had said wrong, and looked at Chu Yang pitifully.

Chu Yang laughed: "Guo Jing, aren't you still looking for your masters? Why do you have the leisure to go to Mongolia with us? Don't you want your masters anymore?"

Guo Jing opened his mouth wide, speechless.

Then his whole person withered, like a deflated ball.

Yes.

He hadn't found his masters yet; how could he go back to Mongolia with Miss Huang.

Yang Tiexin and Bao Xiruo frowned.

They had originally wanted to be neighbors with Chu Yang, thinking that if they spent time together day and night, Chu Yang might be moved by Mu Nianci.

But they didn't expect him to be going on a long journey.

Yang Tiexin felt that if they just let Chu Yang and Huang Rong go out like this, by the time they came back, they might already have children!

Mu Nianci also seemed to feel the crisis, gathered her courage to seek help from her parents at night, and the whole family, along with Yang Kang, brainstormed for Mu Nianci.

Meanwhile, Chu Yang was preparing his plan.

To perfect the sword techniques of the Source Breathing, he needed to refer to more advanced sword arts.

Improving his close-combat ability required even more exquisite martial arts.

Among the many martial arts, there were even quite a few that could improve one's aptitude, having various magical effects and tapping into human potential.

These were all things Chu Yang needed.

But!

There was something even more important!

Although the combat power of the wuxia world couldn't compare to worlds like Bleach or Naruto, there was something deeper than combat power here.

The Dao! It could also be called the Law.

To become a higher-level existence, simply stacking power was clearly not enough.

The reason the Bleach world was stronger than other worlds was that the Zanpakuto was, in a sense, the embodiment of a Law.

There was still a distance between it and the true Law.

Other worlds were even further behind.

Only in the wuxia world, or rather, worlds with Eastern culture, could Chu Yang touch upon this concept.

For example, Zhang Sanfeng's "Taiji Classic."

Or... the "Taixuan Classic" in "Ode to Gallantry."

Both of these martial arts were existences extremely close to the Dao in the wuxia world! Enlightenment was very important to Chu Yang; this was a seed that could grow into a towering tree in the future, determining Chu Yang's height.

But whether it was "Taiji" or the "Taixuan Classic," Chu Yang couldn't easily get his hands on them.

Zhang Sanfeng wasn't made of mud, and Chu Yang couldn't just manipulate him as he pleased.

The techniques were in other people's heads, and even if you could beat the famous Master Zhang, if the cow wouldn't eat the grass, you couldn't force someone's head down to make them.

The Gallant Island was even more mysterious, on par with the Bermuda Triangle.

You want to find it without even a map? You're just dreaming.

Therefore, Chu Yang planned to put his plan into practice and first collect some practical martial arts.

The "Nine Yin Manual" was the general outline of all martial arts in the world; besides advanced moves, it also recorded the principles of martial arts, and one could find corresponding concepts for any martial art, making it completely an encyclopedia of martial arts.

It was quite friendly to a martial arts novice like Chu Yang.

The other two martial arts that were friendly to novices were the "Nine Yang Divine Art" and the "Great Shift of Heaven and Earth."

After mastering the "Nine Yang Divine Art," internal energy would be generated automatically, endless and inexhaustible, and even ordinary punches and kicks could exert great attack power. Its defense was unrivaled, with an automatic body-protecting function that rebounded external attacks, creating a Vajra-like indestructible body. The practitioner's light-body techniques would surpass all exquisite masters in the world, and it was also a healing classic, immune to all poisons, specifically breaking all cold and yin-toxic internal energy.

The "Nine Yang Divine Art" had a very high compatibility with Chu Yang, almost comprehensively strengthening the abilities he already possessed, as if it were tailor-made.

The "Great Shift of Heaven and Earth" was also a martial art that gathered the essence of the martial arts Dao; similar to the "Nine Yin Manual," besides being able to borrow force to strike and guide the enemy's power, it could also stimulate potential.

With both martial arts combined, even a waste like Zhang Wuji could become one of the top five masters in the wuxia world after learning them, so their value was self-evident.

Anyway, compared to the "Taixuan Classic" on Gallant Island, these two books were much easier to find.

There were many similar martial arts, such as the Shaolin Temple's "Yijin Jing" and "Xisui Jing," as well as the "Shenzhao Jing" with its life-saving effects, and the various unique skills of the Xiaoyao Sect.

But the highest priority was another martial art.

"Dragon Elephant Prajna Art"! The effect of the "Dragon Elephant Prajna Art" was simple and violent; each level practiced granted the strength of one dragon and one elephant, totaling thirteen levels.

Imagine how terrifying the power of the 【Black Flash】 would be if Chu Yang possessed the strength of thirteen dragons and elephants? At that time, destroying the heavens, the earth, and the air wouldn't just be talk.

Even Gojo Satoru's Limitless Cursed Technique wouldn't be able to save him.

Sukuna would be even less of a concern.

Basically, except for powerhouses at the level of Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni, others wouldn't even need to be thought about; it would definitely be a one-hit kill, with no other result.

A 【Black Flash】 of that intensity could even threaten Old Man Yama.

Unfortunately, the intensity of the "Dragon Elephant Prajna Art" was overpowered, and the difficulty of practicing it was even more so.

To describe it in the original words, it takes an ordinary person one year to practice the first level, two years for the second, four years for the third, and so on.

To practice to the top level, the time required is 2 to the 13th power, which is 8192 years.

Over eight thousand years!

That's enough time to ascend to immortality, for God's sake!

This is a time that is absolutely unreachable for a normal person.

But Chu Yang is not a normal person.

With talent sharing, Chu Yang can accelerate the progress of practice; the Golden Wheel Dharma King greatly reduced the time of practice by relying on talent, and there is no reason for Chu Yang to be worse than him.

Secondly, the "Dragon Elephant Prajna Art" is highly likely to be practiced using the Shadow Clone Jutsu as a cheat.

Because it is an external martial art, it does not require internal energy when practicing, which just happens to bypass the drawback that Shadow Clones can only run on chakra.

All martial arts that do not involve internal energy should be possible.

Of course, this requires Chu Yang to verify it himself.

The next day.

Sunlight spilled into Chu Yang's bedroom through the window sill.

Thump! The door was violently pushed open.

Chu Yang, who was in a dream, woke up with a start.

As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Huang Rong rushing toward him aggressively.

Wearing only a single garment, he was shocked and said: "What do you want to do? We are brothers!"

Huang Rong rolled her eyes, pulled his hand impatiently, wanting to drag him off the bed, and said urgently: "Uncle Yang and the others are gone!"

Gone? Chu Yang was a bit dazed: "Didn't they sleep here last night? Did they go out so early?"

"They didn't go out!" Huang Rong stomped her feet in anxiety: "They left without a word, and even left Sister Mu here. She's standing in the courtyard alone, not knowing what to do."

Everyone left?

Only Mu Nianci remained? What kind of play was this? Chu Yang was also confused for a moment.

He had to change his clothes under Huang Rong's urging and walk into the courtyard.

In the courtyard.

Mu Nianci was fiddling with her hair cautiously, her cheeks flushed, her head lowered, not daring to look at Chu Yang and Huang Rong.

"Ahem, Miss Mu, where did Uncle Yang and the others go?"

Chu Yang gave a dry laugh and walked slowly to Mu Nianci to ask.

"Father said, let me go to Mongolia first to pay respects to Aunt Guo, and they will come in a while..." Mu Nianci buried her head in her chest, her voice as small as a mosquito's, and it took Chu Yang a great effort to hear these three words clearly.

He looked back at Huang Rong, and the two looked at each other.

"Uncle Yang let you go to Mongolia alone?" Huang Rong looked at Mu Nianci suspiciously, her expression unkind: "At such a long distance, isn't he afraid that something will happen to you as a girl? There are several countries between the Southern Song and Mongolia! This isn't walking the jianghu as usual."

Chu Yang suddenly remembered the strange geographical map of this world; if he didn't take Huang Rong, he really wouldn't know where was where; he only had a map to the Jin Empire.

Huang Rong's questioning made Mu Nianci unable to lift her head even more, the back of her ears red as blood, and she couldn't help but complain about the bad idea Yang Kang had come up with.

"It's okay, I can do it..."

Mu Nianci couldn't bring herself to do it after all; she didn't have the face to follow the script Yang Kang had designed and ask Chu Yang to take her to Mongolia, so she could only grit her teeth and say she could go alone.

But when she said this, it made Huang Rong feel a bit guilty; the little girl was still kind-hearted at the bottom of her heart, and she and Mu Nianci had gotten along quite well on this journey.

Huang Rong, who grew up on Peach Blossom Island, didn't have many friends, and after running away from home, she had no relatives or friends, so Mu Nianci was one of the few peers she had deep interactions with! "I really don't know what they are doing. Forget it, forget it, we can't really let you go to Mongolia alone, right?"

Huang Rong turned her head angrily and said to Chu Yang: "Little Chu, let's take her along, and when we get there, we'll dump her and play our own game!"

Chu Yang also had a headache; if he only took Huang Rong, it would just be accompanying her to play for a few more days, and he could use flight to travel at night, but taking a third person was different.

He couldn't fly.

Chu Yang's Super Light-Weight Rock Technique was just at the entry level, barely enough for him to fly; if he hung Huang Rong on the left and Mu Nianci on the right, he would probably crash.

Seeming to feel Chu Yang's hesitation, Mu Nianci suddenly clenched her fingers into fists. She looked up, looking at Chu Yang with a sincere expression, and although her face became hotter and hotter, she never looked away.

"Sigh~~~"

"Let's go, let's go, anyway, one sheep is herding, and two sheep are driving."

Chu Yang was helpless and let the two pack their luggage at home while he went to the market to buy a carriage.

Huang Rong, the clever one, saw Chu Yang leave and began to probe Mu Nianci: "Sister Mu, Uncle Yang is so anxious to let you see Guo Jing's mother, is he planning to betroth you to him, wanting the daughter-in-law to see the mother-in-law first?"

Mu Nianci waved her hands in panic and hurriedly denied: "There is no such thing! Brother Guo has someone in his heart, and there is no romantic relationship between us at all. It's just that my parents haven't seen Aunt Guo for eighteen years and miss her very much in their hearts, and the matter of the duel is already a foregone conclusion, so they had no choice but to take this bad strategy."

"It is indeed a bad strategy, the worst of the worst." Huang Rong muttered and snorted a few times, then asked curiously: "You just said that fool has someone he likes? Who does he like? That guy is silly, whoever he likes is unlucky."

Mu Nianci smiled awkwardly; she didn't dare to say that the unlucky person Guo Jing liked was Huang Rong.

The two finished packing their luggage, and Chu Yang just happened to return from the market, bringing food. It was just noon, and their stomachs were growling with hunger.

"It's wontons!"

Huang Rong sat down happily; she had wanted to eat wontons just now, but she said: "Actually, we could have bought them and made them ourselves; I'm also very good at wrapping wontons."

Chu Yang pushed the wontons in front of Huang Rong and said helplessly: "I know you are good at cooking, but there is no time today. Pack up and leave quickly; don't dawdle until night."

Mu Nianci smiled: "I still remember the first time I met Brother Chu was at a wonton stall."

Chu Yang nodded: "I also remember that your attitude when you first met me was not friendly."

Mu Nianci: "..."

Huang Rong laughed out loud upon hearing this: "Little Chu, you are quite vengeful."

Chu Yang sighed: "No way, I was born narrow-minded."

"I even remember when we first met, you stole my money bag and left me hungry for several days."

Huang Rong: "..."

Mu Nianci lowered her head and laughed softly.

After lunch, Chu Yang led out Guo Jing's little red horse. Since Guo Jing didn't take it away, he could only make the best use of it and take this horse back to his hometown.

The carriage Chu Yang bought from the market had an adult horse tied to the front, and with the little red horse, one big and one small was enough.

Walking to the carriage, Chu Yang suddenly issued a soul-searching question: "Who among you has a driver's license?"

Huang Rong: "???"

Mu Nianci: "???"

Chu Yang spread his hands: "I don't know how to drive."

Mu Nianci reacted immediately and volunteered: "Brother Chu, I have learned how to drive a carriage; let me do it."

Chu Yang nodded, not feeling embarrassed at all.

Although he could learn, driving a carriage wasn't a difficult task, but he preferred to lie in the carriage and sleep.

Huang Rong entered the carriage first.

The next second.

"Ah?!"

An unbelievable scream came from inside! Mu Nianci followed in nervously.

No surprise.

It was the same scream.

"Ah?!"

The two were completely shocked by the scene in front of them; the space inside the carriage was frighteningly large, almost as big as the small courtyard.

"My God..."

Huang Rong's eyes were dull.

Even though her ability to accept things was strong, and she had seen the "immortal magic" Chu Yang displayed in Yanjing, the mental impact of facing such a miracle was still huge.

Mu Nianci was even worse, looking a bit possessed.

Chu Yang pulled open the curtain, poked half his body out, looked at their expressions, and laughed unkindly: "Don't be so surprised; such things will happen often in the future. You two, wipe the drool from your mouths first!"

"Little Chu, are you really an immortal?"

Since returning from Yanjing, Huang Rong hadn't wanted to bring up this topic; if Chu Yang admitted it, the distance between them would be as far as light-years.

During the time she ran away from home, Huang Rong had heard many stories about love between immortals and mortals from storytellers, and the endings were basically miserable.

Although the stories were always about mortals falling in love with fairies, it was about the same the other way around, right?

Thinking of this, Huang Rong couldn't help but pinch her clothes nervously, her little face gradually turning pale.

Mu Nianci had similar thoughts, silently lowering her head, her eyes dim.

Chu Yang didn't notice their strangeness, lying on the soft cushion in the corner in a standard Ge You slouch, and yawned: "Thank you for thinking so highly of me. I wish I really were an immortal; it's just some small magic, not as powerful as you imagine..."

Huang Rong became active again, her eyes sparkling.

Mu Nianci let out a long sigh of relief.

Huang Rong asked curiously: "Little Chu, where did you learn magic?"

Chu Yang knew what Huang Rong was thinking and smiled: "Don't think about it, you can't learn it. This thing depends on constitution; in this world, besides me, maybe no one else can learn it."

"Why is that!" Huang Rong stomped her feet in anger, pulling Chu Yang's sleeve and acting like a spoiled child.

It wasn't that Chu Yang was hiding anything, but it was limited by the world's rules.

The reason Chu Yang wasn't restricted was because of the Soul Palace.

After letting Huang Rong make a fuss for a while, Chu Yang reminded Mu Nianci to hit the road. Huang Rong saw that Chu Yang didn't buy this, so she knew it was really impossible and sulked by herself.

The map of this world was quite strange; the Southern Song, Northern Song, Jin, and Liao countries bordered each other, while Mongolia and the Ming Empire confronted each other from further away.

In between were countries like Dali, Western Xia, and Tubo.

This trip to the Mongolian Tantric sect to get the "Dragon Elephant Prajna Art" required crossing several countries in one go.

Since it was a long route, Chu Yang naturally hoped to get the maximum benefit; if he only got the "Dragon Elephant Prajna Art," it would be a bit of a waste of time.

Therefore, Chu Yang's first stop was set at Mount Zhongnan, at the border of the Southern and Northern Song Dynasties.

If he remembered correctly, before Wang Chongyang died, he carved part of the "Nine Yin Manual" in the Tomb of the Living Dead.

As for the upper and lower volumes of the "Nine Yin Manual" carried by Mei Chaofeng and Zhou Botong, because it required a detour, Chu Yang chose to ignore them.

The Great Song was separated into two dynasties: Southern Song and Northern Song.

The territory of the Southern Song was half the size of the Northern Song, confronting the Jin Empire.

The Northern Song had vast territory, and the Liao Empire, which confronted it, was also a behemoth.

The four forces were in a strange balance, with constant friction in recent years.

The Southern and Northern Song were still okay; after all, they were brothers of the same root, and no matter how fiercely they argued, it was limited to verbal attacks between scholars or arena battles between martial arts masters.

There had never been extreme conflicts at the border that escalated to state-level confrontation, and when the situation was urgent, the two countries would even cooperate to fight against the enemy.

The Jin and Liao were not so friendly; if it weren't for the Southern and Northern Song dynasties eyeing them from the side, forcing them to put down their weapons, these two generational enemies would have already beaten each other's brains out. Cooperation was absolutely impossible; at most, they wouldn't kick each other when they were down.

Otherwise, in terms of actual combat power, the Jin-Liao alliance was stronger than the Southern and Northern Song dynasties.

Among the four countries, the friction between the Northern Song and the Liao was very intense, with small fights every three days and big fights every five days.

The Northern Song was often at a disadvantage, with heavy losses in troops.

Fortunately, the Northern Song had many martial arts masters, especially Qiao Feng, the leader of the Northern Beggar Sect, who led the heroes to block the enemy outside the battlefield.

The military high command was either missing or committed suicide, which made the Liao very wary and afraid to invade on a large scale.

Chu Yang had previously heard rumors about Qiao Feng fighting Hong Qigong from a storyteller in a tavern, which ended up being left unsettled because the Liao troops invaded the border to guard the city.

Staying in a small town far from the war, he didn't know the hardships of the world, but after leaving the town, especially as they went toward the border, Chu Yang saw many unspeakable tragedies.

Although it didn't reach the level of corpses littering the fields and people eating their children, he had seen many headless corpses floating down the river, a shocking scene.

Huang Rong was frightened, not sleeping well for several days and nights, and kept muttering in her nightmares.

Mu Nianci showed amazing maternal brilliance at this time.

Not only did she not care about Huang Rong's rudeness to her before, but she also comforted Huang Rong to sleep every day, and the friendship between the two developed rapidly.

Having seen the scene of corpses soaking in the river, everyone was afraid to take water in the wild, unless it was spring water in the mountains.

Chu Yang got a large water vat, used the Undetectable Extension Charm to expand the space, and then used magic to fill it with clean water.

But in this way, the internal space, which was already full of supplies, became even more crowded.

After realizing that the space was not enough, Chu Yang felt it was necessary to improve the configuration inside the carriage.

More importantly, sleeping was very inconvenient; Chu Yang was used to sleeping completely naked, and with girls nearby, he could only sleep in his clothes.

A month and a half later, the carriage arrived at the town at the foot of Mount Zhongnan.

The three rested at an inn in the town, and Chu Yang began to tinker with the carriage in the backyard.

After further expanding the space inside, he used Wood Release to partition out several rooms and got some furniture; now the carriage had completely become an "RV."

After resting for one night, the three bought supplies in the town, hit the road again, and entered Mount Zhongnan at noon.

No matter how strong the sunlight was, it would only leave mottled shadows when shining into the layered mountains, adding a strange atmosphere to the mysterious mountains.

Under normal circumstances, a carriage couldn't walk on mountain roads, but Chu Yang could use magic and cast a Levitation Charm on the carriage.

Among the mountains, two horses pulled a floating carriage as if walking on flat ground, and coupled with Mu Nianci's beautiful red-clad look, it was easy to associate it with those popular ghost stories.

Before they figured out the location of the Tomb of the Living Dead, Chu Yang and the others had already scared six or seven young Taoist priests from the Quanzhen Sect who were picking herbs in the mountains into fainting.

"How about we find a place to stop the carriage and change to walking?" Mu Nianci, worried about scaring people again, suggested cautiously, fearing it would cause Chu Yang's displeasure.

Chu Yang nodded; anyway, they would have to get off the carriage when they finally found the place; the carriage couldn't enter the Tomb of the Living Dead.

The three got off the carriage and walked for a while, suddenly feeling the atmosphere around them becoming eerie and terrifying.

Sunlight could hardly shine into the deep mountains, and everything around was misty.

"Little Chu, is this so-called Tomb of the Living Dead you're looking for dangerous? If any monsters or ghosts jump out, you have to protect me!"

Huang Rong pulled Chu Yang's clothes nervously, looking left and right, as if a terrifying existence would rush out of the forest in the next moment.

Heroine Mu, who had been walking the jianghu for many years, couldn't help but follow Chu Yang with a panicked expression, her front foot no more than a finger's distance from Chu Yang's back foot.

If a traffic police officer were here, he would probably remind her to pay attention to a safe distance.

"Can you guys not be so nervous? You're making me nervous too!"

Chu Yang reached out and pressed on their foreheads, pushing them away unkindly: "Your reaction is no different from setting a FLAG in a horror movie. Usually, this is the best time for ghosts and monsters to appear and scare the audience."

As soon as he finished speaking.

A white shadow flew across the air! Then a white silk ribbon brushed across Huang Rong's face!

Huang Rong froze.

Her cherry mouth twitched.

"Ghost!! Ahhhhh!!!"

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 98 =====