A morning bell echoed throughout the imperial capital. After attending the morning court, officials and nobles, along with their retinue, left the imperial city along the white marble imperial avenue, heading towards the Taiji Palace.
Master of Great Kingdom Miao Tian Nan did not put the incident just happened into heart, gave a light glance to Pei Jiang Nan and walked away without looking back.
Pei Jiangnan was downcast, suppressing his impatience, he walked behind Chen Mo for a long time. Finally, he couldn't hold it in any longer and hurried forward, anxiously asking, "Brother Chen, the serious matter you mentioned is about what?"
Chen Mo slowed down his pace, looking around left and right, and found that there were only the three of them left. Only then did he smile faintly and ask, "Brother Pei, what do you think is different about Lord Long today?"
At this remark, Pei Jiangnan also slowed down his pace, stroking his chin and lowering his head in deep thought. After a while, he shook his head and said, "It's much the same as usual. Although he favored Meng Tiannan today, he has always been biased in the past..."
Chen Mo looked up at the fleeting clouds in the sky, melancholicly said: "Three hundred years have passed, and the world has changed. Some things are indeed so habitual for you that they are taken for granted. But my memories still linger back in the past. As they say, those involved are confused while those who watch from the side are clear. I see what you can't see."
"Although three hundred years have passed, when I see my face, even a person who knows me only by a glance can recognize me, let alone the Lord Long who had once given me advice."
"But today, he seemed as if he didn't recognize me at all... This could be just that he forgot, but when I deliberately asked him when he wanted to find the path of double cultivation, I saw confusion in his eyes..."
Pei Jiangnan raised an eyebrow, his expression slightly changing, "Brother Chen, do you mean..."
"This is not the real Lord Long... more accurately, the current Lord Long is not the Lord Long he used to be. He has been controlled by others."
"Control? What does this mean?"
Pei Jiangnan's pupils shrunk, and he stared at Chen Mo with a serious expression.
Sun Qian had been listening attentively from the side, and when he heard this, he looked at Chen Mo with curiosity, waiting for his next words.
Chen Mo did not keep the two guessing, he spoke frankly, "Among the art of witchcrafts, there is a type of magic that can cause a person to lose their senses and be controlled by others. If my guess is correct, Lord Long has been affected by such magic..."
"But, Lord Long is a rank three, how could he be susceptible to such magic?"
Pei Jiangnan didn't understand.
"Ha, throughout his life, Lord Long had stopped short at the fourth realm in the martial arts. So when he was said to be a third realm, it naturally referred to the way of witchcrafts. Who led him into this path?"
"Miao Tiannan."
"That's correct. Miao Tiannan can be regarded as Lord Long's master, so he has a lot of room for maneuvering..."
Chen Mo gently raised his right arm, and two blood-red worms slowly crawled out. "Just now, to verify if he was poisoned by the spell, I deliberately let these two little creatures test him. They have a stronger ability to discern their kind than I do, and the result was as I had guessed; there are indeed poison worms..."
"However, this alone cannot prove that Lord Long is being controlled by the worms. As he has learned the art of witchcrafts and has worms on his body, it is not strange that he has them."
Sun Qian had been listening for a while and suddenly realized something, interrupting.
"That's right. To determine whether Lord Long is being controlled by the worms, a more professional person would need to investigate, but she is not here... However, based on the current situation, there's a ninety percent chance that my guess is correct, Pei brother. The plan to topple Miao Tiannan will not succeed..."
The three of them talked as they walked. Before they realized it, they were already out of the imperial city. Just then, Chen Mo happened to glance over and saw a familiar face.
A middle-aged man, dressed in a black brocade robe, slim and pale, with hollowed-out eyes that seemed as if they had been drained by alcohol.
Although he looked much older, the contours and appearance were still familiar to Chen Mo, who stepped forward quickly and walked behind the middle-aged man, shouting loudly: "Longhua."
Just as he finished speaking, the middle-aged man turned around and blankly stared at Chen Mo for a moment, "Do we know each other?"
"Ah, of course we do."
Chen Mo smiled faintly and patted on the shoulder of Longhua, "Come with me for a trip."
"Go with you? I don't even know you."
Longhua raised an eyebrow slightly, his expression rather unnatural.
"Do you not remember? How did you get arrested back then? Your father and son tried their best to eliminate me at that time."
"I don't understand, what are you saying?"
Longhua said something with a faint tone, and his voice as well as his eyes suggested that he was not lying.
Chen Mo's expression froze, and the worms on his arm crawled out. Under his gaze, Da Bao crawled onto Longhua's shoulder.
Longhua's expression changed slightly, his body writhed in an attempt to break free from Chen Mo's control. However, Chen Mo only tightened his grip, almost breaking his shoulder. At that moment, he panicked.
As Da Bao approached, a worm crawled out of Longhua's mouth, as if fearing Da Bao, and scurried away in a panic.
Tap.
A crisp sound fell, and on the other shoulder of Longhua was a wrinkled hand.
Miao Tiannan
As Miao Tiannan's hand landed, the worm that had escaped from Longhua's mouth seemed to gain confidence and immediately crawled back in. Da Bao, however, was panic-stricken and quickly retreated into Chen Mo's hand.
"Little friend Chen, what are you going to do to my disciple?"
Miao Tiannan faintly smiled, but a strong aura suddenly burst out, pressuring Chen Mo to breathe somewhat uneasily.
Chen Mo saw the situation turning to the worse, immediately released his grip, but Miao Tiannan didn't relent. Just then, Pei Jiangnan rushed over and looked surprised for a moment, then said sternly: "What are you trying to do, Great Master?"
Seeing that it was Pei Jiangnan, the Great Master's fierce aura subsided slightly. "It was Little Chen who attempted to harm my disciple, which is why I acted. Minister Pei, it seems your people need some serious discipline."
"This is none of your concern, Great Master."
Pei Jiangnan scoffed coldly, giving Chen Mo a look, and then took him away.
Miao Tiannan watched the three as they walked away, his expression becoming increasingly somber. Just then, Xiao Tianyi slowly approached.
"What did he say to you just now?"
Xiao Tianyi walked directly in front of Longhua, asking with a serious expression.
"He... he asked if I recognized him..."
Longhua mutely answered, recounting every detail of their interactions to Xiao Tianyi.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Tianyi's expression grew even more serious. He turned to look at Miao Tiannan, "The Chen Sanzang is becoming increasingly odd. He can even remember Longhua's name... It seems likely that he knows of Longhua's identity."
"Not only that, but that old fellow Long Ling also seems to recognize him... I think he's a burden left behind; perhaps it's best if I take care of him myself..."
"Even the Miao Feiyu from Tianfei failed... it's not that easy to kill him. Moreover, if Longhua's identity is exposed, this may not be in our favor. It seems we need to accelerate our plan."
