That is, if Mao San had completely surpassed Mao Yunsan, would the person behind Wuling let go of the idea, feeling that there was no longer a possibility and hope for competition, and would they abandon this matter to avoid a showdown with Mao Yunsan on a narrow road, ultimately being killed?
In this way, they will only keep growing themselves by bringing Wuling with them!
The level of danger has risen several notches, making it more difficult to find and deal with.
I didn't discuss this matter with He YouTian in detail, as dealing with all things in Sihu Mountain has already been troublesome, and there's no need for him to add to his worries. For now, it seems that we can only try our best to find Mao San Yousan, and take things one step at a time for the rest.
"Slowing down means they have to get a bigger stake. There are indeed things in the ancient Qiang city that they want. Compared with Yunjin Mountain, the region of ancient Qiang is larger and more difficult to protect. Their choice of the ancient Qiang city is quite normal." He YouTian's words made my heart tighten slightly.
"I will leave at once," I replied to He YouTian in a low voice.
As for the matter of Sīyān accompanying you, I did not refuse.
He YouTian wants to protect me, which is one of the reasons. The second reason is to stay away from Han Jin. The third reason is that Silk also needs training to make this true realm more stable and stronger in power.
After that, I approached Wu Jinlan and explained the situation to him simply. Wu Jinlan then contacted the masters of the Ascension to Immortality Hall. Of course, it was not the group that remained in the Jiuding Iron Monastery, but another group from Xian Dong Mountain.
The number of people at the Ascension to Immortality Hall is vast. According to Wu Jinlan, the first batch of people he mentioned had experienced some things and managed to survive, which is already a fortunate opportunity. They need to properly digest it, and their cultivation will definitely improve. This time, a new batch of people will depend on everyone's fate and tenacity.
I have no other opinions and went straight to find Silk. The matter of going down the mountain has already been discussed with He YouTian, who had a conversation with her. She had gathered her black hair into a bun, revealing her fair neck, which exuded an even more ethereal and cold aura.
Wu Jinlan couldn't help but glance at her twice, even though Silk still wore a veil, he quickly averted his gaze.
"Let's go, senior brother." Silk whispered softly, with a faint sense of coldness.
There's no need to mention the process of going down the mountain and traveling.
There was only one person who was dissatisfied, that was Old Gong. He felt that he was doing well on the mountain, day by day sharing stories of famous mountains and rivers with Sister Lu, and exchanging various experiences. Then, a phone call from the ancient Qiang city demanded his departure, which he found quite out of keeping with romance.
Of course, while complaining, Old Gong was already muttering and plotting to get some benefits from the ancient Qiang city.
I don't know the location of the ancient Qiang city, Silk is well aware, and Wu Jinlan is as well.
First, we took the high-speed rail, arrived at an urban area, met with the master of the Ascension to Immortality Hall arranged by Wu Jinlan, and then they found another vehicle. We eventually arrived in a small county town called Qiangmao.
This is not the end, just a stop here. Silk contacted people from the ancient Qiang city.
We waited for about an hour and a half, and finally met up with Liu Ziyi.
He was sitting in a mini-bus that stopped in front of us.
After getting off the bus, Liu Ziyi still looked young, with a straight face and noble bearing. Looking at him, I couldn't help but think of the scenes from that small town, after entering the Red Ghost Village, when I was possessed by the fifth patriarch of ancient Qiang City. Later, the fifth patriarch disappeared in front of the four-pattern mirror.
At that time, they still misunderstood me as a ghost niche.
And since then, a series of encounters occurred, during which Liu Ziyu and the long-bearded Taoist Liu Mu both provided considerable help to me. The elder, second elder, and third elder of ancient Qiang City all indirectly assisted me.
The so-called human relationship is not given to me by ancient Qiang City. This matter, at most, is me repaying them a part of it.
Liu Ziyu first looked directly at Silk, his gaze filled with admiration.
Then, he bowed slightly and greeted Wu Jinlan with a martial arts gesture, showing a faint sense of respect.
When he finally looked directly at me, Liu Ziyi's pupils constricted slightly, adding a touch of caution.
The reason for this caution is extremely simple, it stems from strength!
"It's been a long time since I last saw Lu Xian Shen Dao Zhang, you've aged quite a bit." Liu Ziyu said.
"Can you speak, annoying as hell?" Old Gong suddenly popped up, baring his teeth and expressing his displeasure.
I was taken aback, just smiled and said, "Master Liu Ziyu is speaking the truth, but it's all right. Everything is fate."
Lao Gong tilted his head, seemingly muttering something.
However, because of what I said, Master Liu Ziyu looked at me with a different expression.
He then greeted the other several masters behind Wu Jinlan before leading us onto the bus.
The county of Qiangmao to ancient Qiang City is still quite a distance.
Actually, on the way here, you could see a series of towering and steep mountains. They aren't particularly large in number, but they all stand majestically, with few trees and many cliffs and precipices.
After leaving Qiangmao, as we journeyed towards ancient Qiang City, we encountered even more densely packed mountains. Moreover, we were not taking the usual national highway, but instead a winding mountain road.
Of course, the driver was not Master Liu Ziyu, but a tall man with dark skin. He had a few characteristics of people from Dacheng County, but they were not as obvious.
This place is not in the same direction either.
Wu Jinlan and the other masters were examining the fengshui, and without the familiar faces of the previous few, I felt a bit unfamiliar. They treated me with more respect, which was natural as they were not like the previous few.
The night was quiet, and the winding mountain road gave an even more perilous feeling.
Finally, the car did not stay on the edge of the steep mountain, but entered a tunnel.
This is not a man-made tunnel, but a natural cave. The ground is flat, and the ceiling is uneven with even hanging stone cones. In places where it's wide, it's six or seven meters high, and in narrow places, it feels like the car will hit the rocks.
“Ancient Qiang City is really good at choosing locations. This place is really difficult to attack but easy to defend,” Old Gong kept muttering: "Luckily, old Han didn't come, or else I would have thrown up all over the car."
Liu Ziyu didn't pay attention to Old Gong's nagging. He also didn't seem as taciturn as before. He occasionally chatted with Silk, asking if she felt car sick and explaining that ancient Qiang City has been located here since ancient times.
This led Old Gong to roll his eyes repeatedly.
Silk was rather indifferent and barely answered a word.
Finally, we emerged from the tunnel.
Everything in front of me suddenly becomes clear!
When we entered the cave, we were at the waist of a mountain. When we emerged, we saw several large mountains surrounding us. We were at the foot of the mountain, not that we had gone down the slope. The tunnel led to something significant.
Ancient Qiang City does not look like a temple, but rather a small town.
The houses looked very primitive and sturdy, most of them were built with stacked rocks from the mountain.
It was late at night, and the moon in the sky was exceptionally clear and radiant.
It feels like the moon here is rounder and more transparent than in other places?
"Little Li Zi, you've been observing you and Silk getting close throughout the journey. You haven't mentioned anything about the ancient Qiang City, but I don't know that you're seeking help. I thought you were looking for a date." Old Gong rolled his eyes again.
This caused Master Liu Ziyu's face to tense slightly, and he coughed dryly, saying, "Master Silk misunderstood. However, some detailed matters must wait until a few key individuals arrive. I merely admire that Master Silk is so young and has already reached the realm of a True One."
"Oh." Old Gong hummed and said, "So, don't you admire my old man? He's just one step away from achieving it. When you two first met, he wasn't even a match for you."
Master Liu Ziyu didn't respond.
We entered Ancient Qiang City and, under his guidance, entered a large courtyard where some people were already waiting. Most of them were tall and muscular, their skin darkened by the constant ultraviolet radiation from the mountains.
Among them was one person slightly thinner, around forty years old, whose build was like a bamboo pole, as if it would sway and collapse with the wind. He was dressed in traditional Tang-style clothing, and his mood seemed somewhat melancholic.
Master Liu Ziyu introduced our identities to the thin bamboo pole man, who was named Qiu Jí. He was a disciple of the ancient Qiang master, and the people standing next to him were the head and vice head of the ancient Qiang tribe.
This made me ponder, as Ancient Qiang City was a gathering place for ethnic minorities, the Liu family was a Daoist temple here? Not what I thought, a fengshui temple?
The events they encountered were the ones faced by ordinary people in this gathering place, by the fengshui masters here, not by Liu family's Daoist temple itself.
However, this matter was difficult for the Daoist priests in the temple to solve, so they sought help from four-pattern mountain.
"Since everyone has traveled far and rested well, I will first have a good rest. Tomorrow, I will communicate with everyone to discuss the matters that need help?" Qiu Jí bowed respectfully and seemed very polite.
"Tomorrow, Old Gong is not around, and you'll have to talk to Little Wu instead. If there's any work to be done, you'll have to wait for Old Gong to come out," Old Gong huffed on my shoulder before saying, "What's so hard about a little journey? Just get the matter clear, then everyone can sleep well during the day. At night, when it's dark and the wind is high, that's when the real work gets done. Don't you understand that?"
Qiu Jí was startled for a moment, and he hesitated slightly before saying, "That could work."
Then, he started talking freely.
"Actually, around a month ago, the Ancient Qiang City was peaceful."
During a Qiang people's funeral on the mountain, something strange happened. Several hanging coffins were stolen and the corpses were nowhere to be found.
This was a major event for Ancient Qiang City. The lineage of the master immediately sent people to investigate, but there was no result, and the bodies continued to be stolen. Even the coffins of the Pure Yang Temple's Daoists were stolen.
This led to the anger of the temple and the Qiang people, as well as widespread fear and panic.
After that, the master set up a trap at the special tombs to kill the intruder. He judged that the intruder was a highly skilled master and even had several Taoist priests from Pure Yang Temple accompany him.
Unexpectedly, the master died a tragic death, and the Taoists also died miserably. Their bodies were hung on the cliff, a particularly grim sight.
The person who stole the bodies was still committing evil deeds, leaving people at a loss.
Qiu Jí paused and then looked at me, "I heard that Lu Xian Shen Dao Long's family is involved in stealing bodies. They have also stolen bodies from almost all temples except Ancient Qiang City. This was an almost impossible thing to accomplish, but the Lu family managed to do it. I thought of asking Pure Yang Temple to find out the method used by the robber and if there was any way Lu Dao Long could identify him. Pure Yang Temple also invited several masters from Shengxian Temple, including those from the four-pattern mountain, to discuss strategies."
