Chapter 366: The Passing of Gao Jinhe

Mount Funiu, in the Song family's council hall.

Song Qingming, sitting at the head of the table, looked at a letter from the Gao family in his hand. After pondering with a serious expression for a moment, he slowly folded the letter, stood up, and walked over to Song Qingshi, who was standing to the side.

"Big Brother, please go to the Gold Treasury Pavilion and fetch the second-tier spirit herbs collected from the market over the past few years. I need to make a personal trip to Mount Lianhua."

Seeing that Song Qingming's expression seemed off and that he was talking about going to Mount Lianhua, Song Qingshi, who was still in the dark, asked with a puzzled look, "Qingming! What exactly did the Gao family's letter say, and why do you need to go to Mount Lianhua yourself?"

This letter had been delivered by the Gao family earlier. Because the sender had specified that it must be handed to the Song family patriarch, and it just so happened that Song Qingming had gone to the Qinghe Market and was not on the mountain that day, Song Qingshi had taken the initiative to receive the letter and presented it to Song Qingming upon his return. He himself had not read the contents of the letter.

"Gao Jinhe passed away a few days ago. This letter was sent by the Gao family to inform us. In three days, the Gao family will be holding a funeral at Mount Lianhua. Gao Jinhe was an old acquaintance, so it wouldn't be appropriate to just send anyone. I should make the trip myself!" Song Qingming calmly handed the letter to Song Qingshi, who still looked somewhat shocked.

"What! Gao Jinhe is dead? If I calculate correctly, he should have had at least a few years of lifespan left. How could he have passed away so quickly? Did something happen to the Gao family?"

Song Qingming shook his head slightly and said, "After returning from the Taiyue Lake secret realm a few years ago, Gao Jinhe seemed to have been severely injured. It is not strange that he lost some lifespan. Moreover, the Gao family's next-generation successor, Gao Yubai, is no ordinary person; there shouldn't be any unexpected situations."

"Senior Gao was considered a hero of his generation in our Qinghe County. It is indeed not appropriate to send others. I will go to the Gold Treasury Pavilion and speak with Qingsi, and have her prepare the necessary gifts for the Gao family and send them to you as soon as possible." After saying this, Song Qingshi left the council hall first.

Three days later, in the early morning, Song Qingming arrived at Mount Lianhua, located in the southeast of Qinghe County.

This time, besides himself, his big brother Song Qingshi had specifically asked him to bring along a younger member of the Song family, Song Xinhe, so that the younger generation could follow Song Qingming and broaden their horizons.

Standing on Song Qingming's flying sword, Song Xinhe looked at the scenery of Mount Lianhua from afar, and a look of novelty instantly appeared on his face.

Song Xinhe was also a three-spirit-root cultivator with a loyal character. He was the one with the best spirit root talent among the Song family's "Xin" generation, besides Song Xinyu, who had joined the Carefree Sect. In recent years, his big brother Song Qingshi had been intentionally cultivating him, hoping that Song Xinhe could take over his duties in the future.

The spirit vein of Mount Lianhua was a second-tier mid-grade spirit vein that had been managed by the Gao family for hundreds of years. The spiritual energy on the mountain was dense, and there were five or six hundred acres of spirit fields. Although it was not as good as the Huang family's Mount Taiyuan, it was far beyond what the Song family's Mount Funiu could compare to.

After the two arrived at Mount Lianhua, seeing that the Gao family had already activated their mountain-protecting array, Song Qingming stopped his flying sword and sent a sound transmission spirit talisman into the array.

After waiting for a moment, a woman in yellow, tied with a white sash, flew out from the array and came directly before Song Qingming and his companion.

"Fellow Daoist Song, it has been many years. Yuyao greets you!"

Seeing Gao Yuyao bowing to him, Song Qingming hurriedly returned the salute, saying, "Fellow Daoist Gao, greetings. I did not expect to have the honor of being welcomed personally by you today. We are truly a bit overwhelmed."

Song Qingming had not expected that the person coming to welcome him would be Gao Yuyao, an old friend he hadn't seen in many years, and a look of surprise appeared on his face.

Gao Yuyao had reached Foundation Establishment even earlier than Song Qingming and was an inner sect disciple of the Carefree Sect. Her cultivation resources were naturally incomparable to those of family cultivators like them. Her current cultivation had long since broken through to the late stage of Foundation Establishment, and she was likely not far from the eighth level of Foundation Establishment.

Compared to Song Qingming's lack of surprise at her cultivation, Gao Yuyao was still somewhat astonished to see that Song Qingming, who had come from a small Qi Refining family back then, was now able to cultivate to a level not far from her own.

"I heard that Patriarch Gao passed away a few days ago, so I came specifically to pay my respects. A meager gift, please do not take offense!"

"Patriarch Song, you must be tired from your long journey. Please come up the mountain with me first." After the two exchanged a few pleasantries, Gao Yuyao raised her hand and cast a spell, quickly opening a small gap in the Mount Lianhua mountain-protecting array.

After entering Mount Lianhua with Gao Yuyao, Song Qingming soon arrived at a hall that the Gao family had already prepared.

"Fellow Daoist Song, I didn't expect you to come personally. I thought it would be Fellow Daoist Qingyu who came here today?" Seeing Song Qingming walk in, Huang Sipo, who had arrived before him, hurriedly stepped forward to greet him.

"I have known Patriarch Gao for many years, and we were friends who fought side by side many times. How could I not come to see him off on his final journey today? It is just that I arrived a step later than you, Fellow Daoist Huang, which is a bit shameful!"

In recent years, the several Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Huang family had been very busy. The patriarch, Huang Shengxin, did not have much lifespan left and was basically either in closed-door cultivation or out searching for opportunities. Another elder, Huang Shengyue, was wholeheartedly in closed-door cultivation, trying to break through to the late stage of Foundation Establishment.

Therefore, the person who currently appeared outside on behalf of the Huang family was basically Huang Sipo, whose cultivation was only at the third level of Foundation Establishment. Because the relationship between the Song family and the Huang family had always been close, Song Qingming was also very familiar with this future manager of the Huang family.

"Patriarch Song, what a coincidence. The younger generation member beside you should also be someone you brought to broaden their horizons, right? Why don't we swap seats so the two juniors can get to know each other?"

Hearing Huang Sipo say this, Song Qingming only then noticed that not far from Huang Sipo sat a young woman dressed in the Huang family's attire. Although she looked young, her cultivation had already reached the late stage of Qi Refining. It seemed she was also a standout among the younger generation of the Huang family, brought along by Huang Sipo to see the world.

"That would be excellent. Xinhe, swap seats with Senior Huang, and make sure not to bully others."

"Ah!"

Hearing Song Qingming ask him to swap seats as soon as he walked in, Song Xinhe, who was attending such an occasion for the first time, instantly showed a look of panic on his face. He braced himself, looked at Huang Sipo beside Song Qingming, bowed, and slowly moved over.

Compared to Song Xinhe, who was still somewhat uncomfortable in such an environment, the Huang family's junior appeared very calm. She naturally stood up to greet Song Qingming, the elder, and then took the initiative to invite Song Xinhe to taste the spirit fruits on the table.

Seeing the huge gap between his own junior and the other party, Song Qingming could only shake his head helplessly. It seemed he would have to let the younger generation of the family go out more often in the future.