Chapter 157: Storms Rise, Clouds Surge

After the He family's scandal broke, before the imperial court's official announcements or rewards for Xie Jinhuan, Li Jing, and others were issued, Jingcheng already underwent a massive purge.

Tens of thousands of Chi Lin Guards went door-to-door arresting people; all who had contacted the He family were detained for interrogation, and the hunt for demonic heretics was instantly ramped to maximum intensity.

This then crushed the scattered rats of Gu Du Pai!

Xiaoyao Cave, Huaniao Street.

Jingcheng was on edge; Xiaoyao Cave had grown far quieter, most shops along the street were shuttered, and even during daylight, no noise could be heard on the streets.

Bu Hanying stood cautiously by the window, peering at the street's movements, speaking in the lowest whisper:

"These Demon Path bastards went too far—now even going out for breakfast, you run into two squads of red-robed plagues. No one dares sell rat poison anymore. How are we supposed to survive, Gu Du Pai?"

Lin Wanyi sat beside the tea table, her face of peerless beauty filled with concern; compared to achieving glory, she preferred her husband's safety, and upon hearing this, she replied casually:

"The Demon Path truly brings ruin—I was careful even coming here today…"

Bu Hanying sat down beside the tea table: "Caution is good. Look at the Thief Saint—he left tens of thousands of silver taels with me and hasn't come to collect them. He must've been scared off by all this. By the way, the herbs you ordered have arrived. Master and disciple, clear accounts—this final payment…"

"Uh…"

Lin Wanyi had not received the final payment from Xie Jinhuan; she had already lent out the silver and had no money to cover it herself, so she replied awkwardly:

"When my sect repays me, I'll settle the account."

"I'm not pressing for the money—accounts must be settled properly, so I'm just asking. Today I called you here to discuss last time's matter."

Bu Hanying lifted his teacup, pausing briefly to gather his thoughts:

"You said you couldn't obtain the 'Luxian Array' or 'Seven Stars Nails'—the Lord naturally doesn't insist. Hmm… if you can acquire methods to counter them, that would suffice. The Lord has old grudges with Nangong's sect head—he wants them as a precaution."

Lin Wanyi had already obtained the Jiazi Lotus and was preparing to refine pills these past two days.

She couldn't default on items borrowed from the imperial treasury, so to secure the Jiazi Lotus, she had to help her man find a solution, and after thinking, she replied:

"The Luxian Array is unsolvable—you can only break it with raw cultivation. As for the Seven Stars Nails, it's a secret art sealing qi channels and soul essence—there must be a counter. If I find it, will the Lord give me one Jiazi Lotus?"

Bu Hanying stroked his beard: "You can start by inquiring. If you get the counter-method for the Seven Stars Nails, you might need to pay extra to trade for a Jiazi Lotus."

"Alright, I'll go inquire…"

……

——

On the other side, Yunling County.

At dawn, aboard a pavilion boat flying the Mount Zihui emblem along the Huaijiang River.

Over two hundred male and female disciples of Mount Zihui, dressed in white robes and carrying ritual swords, stood in neat formation on the deck, their eyes filled with reverence and shame as they gazed upward at the boat's upper deck.

At the top of the pavilion, Nangong Ye wore a black-and-white Daoist robe, his white Bai Yu crown rising atop his head, a sword case strapped to his back as he stood with hands clasped behind him. His naturally sharp phoenix eyes made him appear like a blade—cold, desireless, yet radiating piercing brilliance—as he spoke in an ethereal tone to his disciples:

"For a hundred years, the Great Qian has known peace. Most of you have only read about the Demon Path's cruelty in books, believing such horrors are distant, or even thinking your elders exaggerated."

"Now you've seen the horror at the mine—thousands piled into a mountain of corpses, barely two hundred li from Mount Zihui. And this was just one Super Rank Demon Path cultivator, seeking a single break-through pill."

"During the Wu Sect rebellion, the Corpse Ancestor resurrected once and sacrificed two hundred thousand souls from a single city. Do you know how high that corpse mountain would have been?"

Nangong Ye's tone was always calm, but her icy, frozen aura and piercing gaze always gave the feeling of a blade pressed against the spine—in Xie Jinhuan's words, "like high heels stepping on your chest while speaking."

The male and female disciples of Mount Zihui revered and yearned for this sect leader—her strength unmatched, her beauty and aura peerless among Daoists, her personality dominant and cold. Many even worshipped her as an untouchable goddess. Even Linghu Qingmo, upon hearing his boyfriend use the Jianghu nickname "Nangong Xianzi," would sternly correct him.

As the dream bride of countless youths, countless cultivators sought to become her Dao partner—but Nangong's Dao heart was ironclad; she never softened toward men obsessed with worldly lust, rarely smiled even at her disciples, and only issued stern reprimands:

"Had it not been for Xie Jinhuan uncovering the trail and dismantling the He family, when the Crown Prince ascends the throne, the Demon Path's in-laws will monopolize the imperial court. Jingcheng hides two or three Demon Path Super Ranks. Even if they don't slaughter civilians, merely holding the Son of Heaven hostage to command the realm would plunge the entire world into irreversible ruin."

"Xie Jinhuan is only nineteen. In my eyes, he's still a child who hasn't left the mountains. Yet his merit surpasses the combined achievements of all of you. Since you've entered the Dao, from now on, model yourselves after Xie Jinhuan—make eliminating demons and defending the Dao your duty."

"Now that the Demon Lord is dead, his remaining remnants are fleeing in all directions. I've summoned you to assist the imperial court in hunting down every last demon and ghost across the Jingzhao region."

"Also, Tiantai Temple will soon enter the capital. Previously, they embarrassed themselves before the Imperial Academy and the court—I can give them a chance to reform. But if they disgrace themselves before the Buddhist sects, don't blame me for showing no mercy. Do you understand?"

"Understood!"

Over two hundred disciples answered in unison.

Nangong Ye scanned the crowd, then slightly raised her hand:

"Go. Keep my return to the sect a secret. Anyone who leaks this will spend three months in solitude on Si Guo Cliff."

All bowed respectfully:

"Disciples obey."

They dispersed swiftly into small teams.

Nangong Ye stood alone on the pavilion, arms clasped behind her, watching them depart. Only after they vanished did she turn her gaze sideways.

Several senior aunts and uncles had just arrived, leaping onto the pavilion. Zhang Guan's expression held a touch of awe:

"Xie Jinhuan truly lives up to his reputation. Compared to him, our young disciples look utterly unworthy. Li Jing says Xie Jinhuan trained under the Hidden Immortal Sect's Fengling Valley, but the elder Hidden Immortals who appeared during the Wu Sect rebellion didn't resemble this youth at all. Master, as his guardian, have you uncovered his true nature?"

Nangong Ye had already discerned Xie Jinhuan's strengths and weaknesses, but as the unworldly head of a sect, she wouldn't reveal such matters to her disciples. She replied calmly:

"His character is evident to all. But due to the Hidden Immortal Sect's rules, I cannot reveal his master's name. You know my nature—if he were a demon, I would not tolerate him, nor would I repeat Sikong Shitang's mistakes."

Nangong Ye's personality was dominant and decisive—a representative of the hawk faction.

Ordinary Jianghu adventurers might admire her reputation, but upon seeing her overwhelming gaze, most would retreat in fear.

Many senior Mount Zihui members knew Xie Jinhuan possessed "demon-maiden"-level charm, but they clearly didn't expect their icy, unyielding sect leader to show favoritism toward him.

Zhang Guan even worried her extreme strictness and intolerance of flaws might scare away this promising youth, and he added:

"Master, you overstate it. Xie Jinhuan has already rendered countless services protecting the nation and its people. If he were a demon, then we old men who do nothing are worse than demons. He's a young warrior—of course he has some sharp edges. Master, when guiding him, please show some understanding…"

"I have my own judgment. Go attend to your duties."

"Yes."

Zhang Guan and the others led their teams away.

Nangong Ye had secretly slipped out to hold this oath-taking assembly without Xie Jinhuan's knowledge. Now, maintaining her ancestral stance, she waited until everyone left, then returned to the pavilion to change clothes and set off toward the county's outskirts…

——

Below Yunling Mountain, on the forest road.

Xie Jinhuan sat in a carriage, slowly moving, reading a book with focused attention.

The book had been delivered by Li Lao at dawn, along with the Heaven's Gang Club; he'd also said something like: "The Qingming Sword Manor and I are old acquaintances… a promising youth…" and such.

Perhaps eager to return to Danyang and boast to Old Mu and all the students and teachers, Li Lao chatted for a few moments, then left with Zhang Guan.

Mu Mu Yun Hong had been severely angered yesterday and suffered some injuries, so he packed his things and returned to Jingcheng together; before departure, Mu Mu Yun Hong said he still needed to greet some acquaintances, so Xie Jinhuan set off ahead at a leisurely pace.

At this moment, Xie Jinhuan flipped through the book, frowning deeply, thinking Li Lao must be mad.

He took away Xie Jinhuan's copy of "Yangchun Yan," and gave him "The Secret History of the Master Wuxin Monk"—could these possibly be of the same caliber?

But remembering Li Lao had fought yesterday and his books were ruined, he forgave the old man; now, as he skimmed through it, he found the monk's wild history was indeed wild.

The book said that before becoming a monk, the Master Wuxin Monk made a living selling hooks in the Western Regions, until the Jade Nian Bodhisattva happened upon him, sensed great spiritual potential, and took him as a disciple…

After the founding of the Great Gan, the heads of all sects assisted the Founding Emperor in Luojing, and their disciples studied there too; among the four most outstanding, they were granted the names Wu Zhen, Wu Xin, Wu Yi, and Wu Yuan—effectively the officially designated heirs of the Great Gan's four schools: Immortal, Buddha, Martial, and Witch.

The four had been classmates with an extremely close bond; according to the wild history, Wei Wu Yi borrowed ten taels of silver from the Master Wuxin Monk to visit brothels and never repaid it; the Master Wuxin Monk would casually release the small snakes and scorpions belonging to Master Sikong; Master Sikong Tianyuan slipped spring medicine into Lu Wu Zhen's tea during his examination; Lu Wu Zhen mocked Wei Wu Yi as a crude warrior…

But the fundamental conflict between Dao and Buddhism was innate; after the Jade Nian Bodhisattva passed away, Buddhism lacked any major figure to carry the burden, and soon lost all room to survive.

After mastering his Buddhist arts, the Master Wuxin Monk launched what the martial world called the "Golden Sutra Exchange," beginning large-scale counterattacks against Daoist territories; though the Jingzhao Prefecture appeared calm, outside, Daoist and Buddhist sects frequently disrupted each other's gatherings.

And according to Li Jing, the Master Wuxin Monk was coming to Luojing—two old classmates who had fought for a lifetime would meet again; no one knew what chaos they'd stir up.

As he wandered in such thoughts, a rushing sound came from behind:

Hu~

Xie Jinhuan closed the book and turned to see a black-clad female martial hero striding swiftly from the woods, her sword strapped to her back; she asked:

"Why did it take so long?"

Nangong Ye's situation was like a cold ice queen who had just scolded her mid- and upper-level managers, then rushed downstairs to meet the yellow-haired son-in-law who had been waiting:

"I just caught up with an old friend. Sorry for the wait. Let's go."

Saying this, she leapt onto the carriage and bent to slip inside.

Xie Jinhuan watched the black Great Grain Bigu pass by his side, finding it amusing:

"You're a martial heroine, yet you have no horse, ride in a carriage—what if you ever need to cross mountains and valleys out in the wild?"

Nangong Ye had been flying for the past two years and never rode horses; she replied:

"I need to meditate to suppress the Yang poison, so I got this carriage. You'll have to drive."

Xie Jinhuan said nothing more and drove the carriage swiftly toward Jingcheng; along the way, they encountered officials traveling in the opposite direction.

Because Bing Tuozi never spoke, once inside the carriage he vanished as if disappeared; Xie Jinhuan grew bored and, while traveling, plucked a leaf from a tree and began to deliberately unsettle the girl's Dao heart again:

"Duuu-muuu~…"

(End of Chapter)