Yang Ge scratched his head, "Why would the Five Poisons Cult make a move against Wudang Mountains? It’s not like there’s much to gain from that place, right?"
Li Qing let out another sigh, "I would like to know that too..."
Yang Ge slowly stood up and squinted his eyes, "You’ve been at the inn for quite some time... have you found what your heart is set on?"
Li Qing pondered for a moment, answering uncertainly, "I’ve found a bit, but not much."
Yang Ge nodded, "Can you draw your sword now?"
The traces of slight sorrow lingering between Li Qing’s brows gradually dissipated, and he took down the treasured sword from his waist and held it in his hands, saluting reverently with the sword, "I was thinking of asking for your guidance, Brother Yang."
Yang Ge smiled and nodded lightly, uttering a single "Sure."
As soon as the words fell, without seeing any prelude from him, the daylight in the inn abruptly dimmed.
The originally not-so-spacious front hall seemed to suddenly expand countless times. The many salted fish at the inn craned their necks to look around but still felt that where Yang Ge and Li Qing stood was as far as if separated by mountains and rivers, elusive and indistinct!
Amongst the dim light and darkness, the salted fish only saw a blood-red cloud surge out from behind Yang Ge, with a ferocious black dragon’s head emerging from within, opening its bloody maw wide and roaring as it lunged to devour Li Qing...
Li Qing trembled slightly, the veins on the hand resting on the hilt of his sword bulging, yet there was still a trace of hesitation.
Seeing this, Yang Ge fiercely knitted his brows, and the dragon’s fierce might flared up; evil Qi snapping like the standards of a thousand armies, endless wronged souls drowned within, and the terrifying pressure mounted even higher, nearly overwhelming Li Qing’s breath!
In the next second, amidst the dim and dark, suddenly burst forth a verdant and dripping green lotus. Li Qing abruptly raised his head and, with a flash, drew his sword, a stroke as brisk as thunder, clearing away the blood-red cloud in an instant.
The illusion dissipated, and the salted fishes in the front hall saw Yang Ge behind the counter with two fingers pinched in front of him, catching the slender edge of the sword that was like a clear autumn pool.
Outside the counter, Li Qing, clinging to his sword, gasped for breath, drenched in sweat as if he’d been starched.
"Clang."
Yang Ge flicked the sword edge with his finger, sending the long sword flying with a surge of immense force, and then it precisely fell back into its sheath.
He stuffed his hands in his pockets and leaned back on the counter, his eyelids drooping, returning to that half-dead salted fish state from before...
As if that bloodthirsty black dragon that reached for the clouds was nothing but an illusion of the salted fishes.
He yawned and said listlessly, "With that sword of yours, you’re unbeatable below the Grandmaster, and equal one-on-one with those above."
Li Qing laughed until he was breathless, "Brother Yang, this sword of mine certainly can’t be exchanged for you!"
Yang Ge uttered a contemptuous "Tsk", "I’m not a Grandmaster, am I!"
Li Qing: ???
The salted fish: ???
Li Qing, "Brother Yang..."
Yang Ge waved his hand impatiently as if shooing away flies, "Alright, stop dawdling and get going, or you’ll miss the second bus."
Li Qing didn’t understand what he was saying, but it didn’t affect his full-hearted gratitude. He immediately saluted deeply with his sword, "For the teachings you’ve imparted, Brother Yang, I will forever engrave them in my heart and never forget them. If there’s a future, I will repay you, even if it means being shattered to pieces!"
"Who needs you to be shattered to pieces!"
Yang Ge retorted irritably, "You just keep living well, and that’s the biggest repayment to me... There are too many cunning baldies in the martial world; it needs more honest folks like you to be interesting."
Li Qing was stunned for a moment, then half-smiling and half-crying, saluted again, "I will bear in mind Brother Yang’s teachings and try... to live a bit longer."
Yang Ge waved him away once more, "Go on, come back for tea when you have time."
Li Qing nodded, smiling and responded, "Definitely." Then, carrying his sword, he stepped into the clear autumn sunlight outside the inn.
Outside the inn’s main door, Zhang Erniu was waiting for a long time with his little donkey.
Li Qing mounted the little donkey and casually made his way along the street.
Yang Ge watched his retreating figure for a moment, then turned his gaze away and muttered softly, "The one who should stay doesn’t stay; the one who should leave doesn’t leave..."
No sooner had these words left his mouth than the salted fish in the front hall returned to their senses, and discontentedly began to clamor, "What do you mean by that, Second Master?"
"Are you looking down on us again?"
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"Do you believe that one day we too will soar to the heavens and have our names etched on the list of heroes?"
"Are we playing mahjong or not? The stake is five wen!"
Yang Ge’s spirits lifted, and he rolled up his sleeves, stepping out from behind the counter with a stride full of powerful momentum, and boomed, "Come on, today I will definitely make a comeback and crush you all so thoroughly that not a single piece of your armor will be left!"
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fгeewebnovёl.co𝙢.
"Not a single piece left? Two pieces of silver are enough to keep you on your toes for a month!"
"A poor player always has strong cravings; just make sure you don’t smash the mahjong tiles if you lose later!"
"Today I must let you experience firsthand what it means to face the perils of this world..."
...
In Guangxi, deep within the Hundred Thousand Mountains, lay the main altar of the White Lotus Sect.
Sitting high in the main hall, Tang, with a row of White Lotus Sect key members dressed in various intricate garments, stood below, greeting with a bow and hand folded.
"Reporting to the Sect Hierarch, four days ago, the Five Poisons Cult dispatched a large number of experts, besieging the Jiangling Sub-altar. Ding Yi, the Hall Master of the Jiangling Sub-altar, led his followers to retreat and hold out in Wuling!"
"Reporting to the Sect Hierarch, three days ago, the Five Poisons Cult’s Scorpion Hall Master Lei Hong issued a challenge, declaring that if our followers do not withdraw from the Jingxiang Region within fifteen days, his Five Poisons Cult will lay a full-scale assault on our Sect’s main altar!"
"Reporting to the Sect Hierarch, we received a pigeon message from Jiujiang, stating that a large number of Five Poisons Cult members have begun a tug-of-war with the Jiujiang branch of the Ming Sect, with casualties already exceeding hundreds!"
"Reporting to the Sect Hierarch, a letter from the Hubei branch states, ’The master of the Poisonous Snake Hall, known as the Heartless Elder, has led a group of top fighters to the foot of the Wudang Mountains, blocking many hillside paths, likely to draw out Taoist Master Feiyun from the south.’
"Reporting to the Sect Hierarch, the Ming Sect has sent their Qingmu Hall Master, Yang Tiansheng, to the southern frontier seeking an audience with the Sect Hierarch..."
At the dais, Tang leaned back in a high-backed chair, tapping the armrest lightly with one hand as her heroic eyebrows knitted tighter and tighter.
Only when no more bad news came from below did she slowly exhale a breath of turbid air and muttered to herself, "What exactly is that old immortal up to, stirring so much trouble? The land... hasn’t descended into chaos yet!"
She couldn’t understand. Considering the old immortal’s skill in the game of strategy, it wouldn’t stand to reason for his plans to be so rough and overt, so aggressively imposing.
The current actions of the Five Poisons Cult clearly aimed to force all sides to join hands in suppressing them. Even with the Five Poisons Cult having laid dormant for a hundred years and regained some of their strength, they would certainly not withstand the onslaught of the world’s heroes united against them!
Not to mention, lurking in the land of Heluo was a Mountain Lord...
’Could it be that the old immortal has decided to personally enter the fray this time?’
The thought suddenly popped into her head, but she quickly snuffed it out… The time was not yet ripe!
After a long silence, she finally spoke up, "Where has Yang Tiansheng of the Ming Sect reached?"
Someone immediately responded from below, "Replying to the Sect Hierarch, the information about the Ming Sect envoy’s journey south came from the Changsha Sub-altar. Calculating the distance, Yang Tiansheng should have already reached Hengzhou!"
’Changsha?’
Tang’s brows furrowed imperceptibly, then she spoke indifferently, "The Holy Mother."
Liu Dongjun, who stood beside her, stepped forward and greeted, "Liu Dongjun is present."
Tang took a deep breath, "You have history with Yang Tiansheng, so you will personally lead the elite of Phoenix Hall to welcome Yang Tiansheng."
Without hesitation, Liu Dongjun replied, "I shall follow the decree of the Holy Mother."
Tang looked at her and added emphatically, "Remember, at all costs, ensure Yang Tiansheng’s absolute safety; he must not encounter any mishaps within our Sect’s territory!"
"Ah?"
Liu Dongjun looked up, baffled, at Tang.
Tang looked back at her with a headache, pressing her forehead, "Did you not hear just now? The people from the Five Poisons Cult have already attacked Jiangling!"
Liu Dongjun startled, her expression changing as she exclaimed, "No... surely not?"
"I also believe it should not be so," Tang replied calmly. "But better safe than sorry, you should know better than anyone how wild and intractable Lu Ting can be."
Liu Dongjun shivered, immediately responding without any hesitation, "Liu Dongjun understands. I will ensure Yang Tiansheng is returned to the main altar unharmed!"
```