Chapter 154

Fake death?

Jiang Sishui suddenly understood; no wonder Kong Xingyi, after piercing the heart demon's heart with a sword, also beheaded the heart demon's heart spirit; this was clearly because he feared the demon possessed some bizarre secret technique to preserve his life and would try the same trick again.

Suddenly, Ah Zhu called out, "Brother Jiang!"

Jiang Sishui turned toward the sound and saw Ah Zhu peel a human-skin mask from the heart demon's face.

It turned out Ah Zhu was proficient in the Disguise Art, had long sensed something was amiss, and, out of curiosity, went forward to investigate, accidentally discovering the truth.

Jiang Sishui and Kong Xingyi stepped forward to look; the severed head had now changed to a face that was relatively much younger.

"Fake?" Kong Xingyi frowned.

Jiang Sishui said calmly, "The heart demon from back then should be dead; this person is most likely his successor."

Kong Xingyi nodded; this explanation was the most reasonable.

Since the heart demon was dead, there was no need to stay, lest they become annoying to others.

Just as Kong Xingyi was about to speak to take his leave, Jiang Sishui suddenly looked to the left: "You've been hiding for a long time; come out!"

Kong Xingyi was stunned by these words, then immediately became alert.

The women of the Huangshan Sect also drew their swords from their sheaths, standing ready for battle.

"Hahaha!"

First, a burst of clear laughter came from behind a large stone; then, a gray figure appeared out of thin air before the stone.

The gray figure, like teleporting, flashed twice in succession and stopped before the crowd.

After clearly seeing the face of the gray-robed old man, the women of the Huangshan Sect were all stunned.

"Old Man Song?" Kong Xingyi stared with wide eyes at the gray-robed old man, her face full of shock.

Old Man Song was the only man in the Huangshan Sect, yet he was not a member of their own school; he was merely a sweeper.

Because he had old ties with the Huangshan Sect's previous-generation sect master, his seniority was extremely high, so the Huangshan Sect did not expel him from the mountain, and even once intended to honor him as an honored guest.

Old Man Song, however, claimed he was not used to being treated like an ancestor and insisted on finding some work to do.

Thus, through cold winters and hot summers, he swept that ground for a full thirty years!

Yet in this half-century of time, no one had ever heard that he was hiding his true abilities.

But observing the bizarre movement technique of his flashing teleportation just now, he was clearly an extremely powerful grand master.

The established image was overturned; including Kong Xingyi, the disciples of the Huangshan Sect all thought they were seeing things.

The gray-robed old man chuckled: "Kong girl, why do you seem not to recognize me?"

Kong Xingyi let out a light sigh, slowly calmed her mood, and held her sword in a bowing gesture: "Xingyi greets Old Man Song!"

"Disciples greet Old Man Song!" the women chorused in unison.

The ritual was complete, and in their expressions, there was a bit more respect than usual.

But respect also implied distance.

The gray-robed old man shook his head.

This was not what he wished to see.

Turning to look at Jiang Sishui, he said helplessly, "Boy, this is all trouble you caused."

If he had not been exposed by Jiang Sishui, he would never have appeared to meet them.

Of course, he could have simply run away without meeting the women.

However, considering the current situation of the Huangshan Sect, he estimated that he would be exposed soon anyway; so, after weighing the options, he simply went with the flow and stepped forward openly.

Jiang Sishui looked at the gray-robed old man and suddenly said, "Old sir, you are Daoist Qing Songzi of the Qingcheng Sect, are you not?"

Qingcheng Sect? Qing Songzi?

The women of the Huangshan Sect were stunned; they all turned to look at the gray-robed old man, and the same thought arose in their minds at once—

The high master of Qingcheng hiding on Mount Huangshan, whom Yu Canghai mentioned, could it be...

The gray-robed old man's smile vanished, and his brows knitted together: "How do you know?"

"Just now, when I killed Yu Canghai, Old sir seemed to have felt hostility toward me."

"Just a fleeting thought, and you sensed it?"

"Even for an instant, it still happened."

"So that is the reason you discovered me?"

"Yes."

"Based solely on this, it is not surprising that you could guess I was once a person of the Qingcheng Sect, yet you cannot call out my name."

"Yes, but that is not important; anyway, I just know."

The gray-robed old man, Qing Songzi, looked deeply at Jiang Sishui once more, but asked no further questions.

His gaze swept over the women of the Huangshan Sect; he sighed and said, "Correct, I am Qing Songzi, a former disciple of the Qingcheng Sect."

"Decades ago, because I disagreed with my senior brother and sect master, Tiandaozi, I left the Qingcheng Sect, roamed freely, until I settled on Mount Huangshan."

"This time, when Yu Canghai and the other six came, it was because that old fellow Tiandaozi died, and the remaining elders of the Qingcheng Sect could not hold the situation, so they came specifically to invite me back to serve as sect master."

"I avoided meeting them, but I did not expect they would be killed by you."

Qing Songzi spoke while looking at Jiang Sishui.

But in fact, those words of his were an explanation for the disciples of the Huangshan Sect to hear.

Otherwise, there would be no need to waste this breath.

Indeed, upon hearing this, the women of the Huangshan Sect, while suddenly understanding, also felt their hearts ease.

Avoiding them was already a stance.

Jiang Sishui added, "When I encountered the heart demon, he was hiding and secretly healing his injuries; I suppose Old sir made a move."

Qing Songzi said frankly, "This boy's 'Soul-Stealing Great Method' has some merit; I made one slip, and he escaped."

"I originally thought that after being severely injured, he would flee down the mountain, but who would have expected this young fellow to do the exact opposite and insist on heading toward the summit."

"Young people these days, their cunning schemes grow one more numerous than the next; not a single one of them is honest."

After sighing with emotion, Daoist Qing Song raised his wine gourd and took a fierce gulp.

....... 0

Afterwards, Daoist Qing Song waved his hand and said, "You need not worry about the affairs of the Heavenly Desire Palace. If Geshu Tian comes, I shall simply see what this great demon is capable of."

Upon hearing this, the women of the Huangshan Sect were all overjoyed.

The Heart Demon could easily kill Qiu Qiu Duandao, yet Daoist Qing Song could chase the Heart Demon like a dog, not to mention his mysterious and bizarre movement technique...

This was undoubtedly a great backer!

For a moment, smiles spread across everyone's faces.

Seeing Daoist Qing Song's gesture, Kong Xingyi immediately understood.

Looking at Daoist Qing Song, then at Jiang Sishui, she hesitated for a moment but ultimately dared not speak more, and turned to leave with her junior sisters.

Only three people remained in the arena; Jiang Sishui said, "Senior, you surely do not intend to seek revenge for those few, do you?"

"Revenge?"

Daoist Qing Song shook his head: "I have seen the nature of those few with my own eyes over these past few days. Having them killed is merely a matter of time."

"Moreover, even if I wanted to, I could not do it."

"Not only could I not do it, but afterwards I would be targeted by you young fellow; how could I possibly have any peaceful days afterward?"

Jiang Sishui was somewhat surprised; he had not expected this old man to see through things so clearly.

Indeed, old age makes one wise.

At this moment, Daoist Qing Song asked again, "Since you could discover me, can you also discover the other two people?"

"The other two people?" Jiang Sishui's gaze sharpened.

Seeing his reaction, Daoist Qing Song immediately knew the answer in his heart.

Without saying another word, he reached out from a distance toward an empty spot!

171 Flower Fairy: Fairy Immortal, you human trafficker, just you wait!

With Daoist Qing Song's grasp, the heavenly and earthly forces around were mobilized, all rushing toward an empty spot thirty zhang away, as if trying to squeeze something out.

In the next instant, colorful beams of light suddenly appeared in the uninhabited void, countering that force.

But at the same time, the array of strange arts there was also destroyed, and two graceful figures were immediately forced out.

Jiang Sishui was able to clearly see the two women's appearances; his heart stirred: "Fairy Immortal Green Mother and the Flower Fairy; it turns out it was them."

"Fairy Immortal Green Mother actually hid herself here; could it be that she sent me the 'Beak of the Duke' because she wanted me to help her break through the trial to retrieve the 'Heavenly Sword', so she could emerge afterward and pick the fruit?"

The more Jiang Sishui thought about it, the more he felt this was exactly the case.