Chapter 1293: Chapter 33: The News of the Mountain Gate Shakes the Heavenly Mechanism (Part 2)
As he was flying, a gray-white halo suddenly flew out from beneath the banyan tree, and a female cultivator emerged from within. Her face was like a lotus, skin white and smooth, with a voluptuous figure. She was wearing a lotus-colored long dress with a light shawl over her shoulders, holding a bamboo basket covered with red cloth. It seemed she happened to come out just then, and upon suddenly seeing Zhang Yan’s tunneling light, she tensed up, said nothing, and only looked over with a hint of vigilance.
Zhang Yan suddenly remembered that Zhang Boyant seemed to have met the evil sect disciple here, who hid here to avoid the pursuit of the Five Major Sects. Seeing this woman’s appearance was similar to the description, he greeted her saying, "Is the lady ahead Lady Che?"
The woman took a few steps back, frowned, and said, "Who are you? I haven’t seen any visitors for a long time. Where did you hear my name?"
Zhang Yan smiled and said, "I am the Master of the Divine House Immortal City in the West. By chance, I passed through here and heard Daoist Zhang mention Lady Che before, so I know about you."
Hearing his introduction, Lady Che seemed to relax, clutching her chest, and said, "You gave me quite a scare; I thought some old enemy had come to find me. So it’s Sect Leader Zhang. I’ve heard Daoist Zhang mention you. You Han Yuan Sect people are interesting, why leave a perfectly good immortal city and run to these wild hills."
Zhang Yan, seeing her fiery demeanor, smiled and asked, "I wonder where Lady Che is hastily heading to?"
Lady Che seemed in a very good mood and did not hide it, saying, "Recently, I received a letter from my sister, saying that the Zhongtai Sect Leader has opened the mountain gate wide, recruiting cultivators from all directions, even those under the Evil Sect can join. I thought I still have some Daoist cultivation and wanted to give it a try. It’s better than staying in this ghostly place without seeing a single living person."
Zhang Yan made a ceremonial gesture and smiled, "Then I wish fellow Daoist a successful trip."
Lady Che also smiled and said, "I’m hurrying to meet my sister, Daoist Zhang. Let’s part here, and may we meet again if fate allows."
With that said, she made a salute with her sleeves and then transformed into a colorful light, flying away into the sky.
Zhang Yan watched for a few moments, then stood in place deep in thought for a while, before waving his sleeves, summoning a blast of Gang Wind, and quickly disappearing into the distance.
Traveling north from Divine House Mountain for tens of thousands of miles, directly north in the sea, there is an island covering ten thousand acres. This place was originally the site of the Xianluo Sect’s palaces, later occupied by the Demon Python Tribe from East Splendor to make a Cave Mansion.
This island’s scenery is strikingly unusual, surrounded by tidal banks, with fine white sands sloping down gently, embracing a lake within. The lake’s green waves shimmered, with hundreds of giant pythons rolling and frolicking in the water, their colorful scales reflecting light under the bright sun.
If a profound cultivator were to observe from a hundred miles away, they could see a column of demon energy rising skyward, concentrated and pervasive, shrouding the sea area.
On a high ridge on the lake’s edge stood two cultivators. The leading one appeared in his forties, with plump eyes, a jade-like face with a long mustache, wearing a great cloak with black underlay and silver thread, a pair of cloud shoes underfoot, a deity’s crown on his head with dangling beads, and holding a three-foot long Jade Ruyi, exuding an imposing aura.
This person was the Clan Leader of the Python Clan, Luo Jiangyu. After losing in the battle of Three Pools, the Python Clan moved to this Beimo Sea Realm, while Old Demon Luo Mengze went into seclusion for cultivation, leaving the clan leader position to him.
At this moment, he focused his gaze on the lake below. After a long while, he nodded and said, "This time, a total of thirty-two clansmen can achieve transformation, and seven can choose to cultivate Qi Dao Xuan Gong, which is half more than the last time."
The person standing beside him was named Luo Dongchuan, his cousin, with a burly body, a broad face with a thick beard, and energetic eyes, exuding vigor.
Though he had also achieved Nascent Soul, his Daoist cultivation was far inferior to Luo Jiangyu. At this moment, he responded, "Thanks to the Xianluo Sect accumulating greatly, they infused this lake with spiritual medicine, nurturing it for a hundred years, allowing our young ones to temper their bodies day and night, saving decades of cultivation effort."
For demon cultivators to transform, even those with good aptitude usually need hundreds of years of effort, after which they can cultivate Daoist skills and techniques. Previously, when in East Splendor Continent, apart from the direct lineage, the branch clan members of the Python Clan had to endure hardship. It was only after coming here that they occupied the Xianluo Sect Mountain Gate, gaining hundreds of years of accumulation cheaply. This enabled them to create such a grand move, turning the whole lake into a medicinal pool for the entire clan’s disciples to cultivate.
Luo Jiangyu watched a while longer, then suddenly turned and asked, "During my seclusion for more than ten years, was the background of the person who killed the two Yu Family demons ever uncovered?
Luo Dongchuan was taken aback, a bit caught off guard, hesitantly saying, "We only know the person’s surname is Zhang, and he comes from the Outer Continent. Everything else remains unknown."
Luo Jiangyu frowned and asked, "Before I went into seclusion, I tasked you with investigating this matter. Haven’t you found anything all these years?"
Luo Dongchuan replied in a low voice, "Brother, please allow me to explain. This person arrived at Divine House Mountain and did not go out. Even the disciples rarely saw him. Gathering information was doubly difficult for us."
In fact, he was making excuses. The Yu brothers were demon cultivators subdued after arriving at the Beimo Sea Realm, known for their poor judgment and arrogance due to their copper skin and iron bones. If not for their status as Nascent Soul cultivators, they would have been dealt with long ago. Their deaths were to his liking, so he didn’t bother to investigate who killed them. It’s just that Qu Changzhi’s disappearance broke the line, which he found somewhat regrettable.
Luo Jiangyu, seeing his expression, snorted without further questioning, saying, "Now that the Zhongtai Sect is opening its gates, our Python Clan members can openly go to East Victory as well. This matter is particularly important. Focus on this, and you don’t need to bother with Divine House Mountain for now."
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... (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
