The girl in white disappeared behind the cloth and never appeared again. From morning to evening, Ning Que turned to look at the direction of the mountain stream from time to time. His neck and eyes began to ache, but he still couldn't see the girl in white.
He secretly guessed the identity of the girl, but could only be sure that she was a female disciple of the Black Ink Garden in the Great River Kingdom. He couldn't think of anything else, so he had to resentfully pack up and return to Dongsheng Stockaded Village.
During the time when winter began to cover the Wilderness, the situation in the North of Yan Kingdom quietly but clearly changed. The sporadic battles between the Central Plains Coalition Army and the Left King's Palace led to hundreds of cavalry corpses in the Wilderness, and also prevented any trade between the two sides. Both sides' determination and bargaining chips had been seen clearly, so the Chanyu of the Left King's Palace unexpectedly sent a messenger to convey his idea of peace to the Central Plains people.
As Ning Que analyzed, neither the West-Hill Divine Palace nor Chang 'an City regarded the Left King's Palace as their real enemy, and the Left King's Palace was not so weak that they would be defeated in one blow. Although the barbarian cavalry wandering in the winter grass suffered a great loss from the Wilderness people returning to the south, it didn't mean that they were really afraid of the Central Plains people, especially the army of Yan Kingdom on the eastern front. Therefore, after some superficial reprimand and discussion, the Central Plains Coalition Army agreed to the Left King's Chanyu's request for peace.
Since the beginning of the negotiation, of course, there must be someone who was responsible for unifying the thinking and leading the negotiation process. General Xiahou naturally couldn't leave Tuyang City to the Wilderness to negotiate in person, and the Tang Empire would not allow the West-Hill Divine Palace to preside over this matter. After several arguments, the final decision was that everyone should go.
The tentative attack and defense in the Wilderness had nothing to do with Ning Que, and the upcoming negotiation had nothing to do with him. Although the upper level of the Yan army knew that his background was terrible, after all, he didn't have any military identity. In fact, with his current status, there was no harm in representing the Tang Army to negotiate. But the counselors in the General's Mansion in Tuyang City, just like in the past two months, did not dare to let him take the risk in the Wilderness.
The north wind whistled outside the window, and the room was hot. Ning Que was focused on reading by the dim light at the table.
The captain glanced at him and said, "Three days ago, someone from Tuyang City disguised as a caravan and left the city. Their direction should be the Wilderness. Although the peace talks are about to start, the ban on commerce has not been lifted. I don't know why these people are so anxious. I don't think they are spies from the military camp."
As a secret guard of the empire, the captain followed Ning Que's lead after knowing his identity. Logically speaking, a secret guard could only report what he knew and not make any guesses. However, thinking of the strange caravan in Tuyang City, he could not hold back and said tentatively, "I heard that … General Xiahou is a visiting professor of the West-Hill Divine Palace."
"You don't have to sound me out like a woman here. I don't know what His Majesty wants to do. You don't have to know what I'm going to do in the Wilderness of the North of Yan Kingdom under His Majesty's secret order."
Ning Que put down the scroll in his hand, looked at him, shook his head and said, "The whole world knows that General Xiahou is a visiting professor of the West-Hill Divine Palace, but so what? Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, is also a visiting professor of the Divine Hall. My teacher is the Great Divine Priest of the Divine Hall. The people of the Tang Empire also believe in Haotian. Is this a crime? "
Looking at the hesitant subordinate, he smiled and waved his hand. He continued, "If General Xiahou wants to see someone from the West-Hill Divine Palace, why can't he? Why must he secretly meet in the Wilderness of the North of Yan Kingdom during the war? He is not an idiot. Don't think too much. Just continue to help me look after Tuyang City. "
The captain took the order and left.
Ning Que looked at the weak flame of the oil lamp on the table and slowly frowned. As he said before, the Tangs respected Haotian. However, everyone knew that the empire and the Divine Hall were two sides of the same coin. Otherwise, why would the South School of Haotian appear? As a general of the empire, Xiahou was a visiting professor of the West-Hill Divine Palace … Why did His Majesty tolerate him so much? Why did His Majesty suddenly not trust Xiahou after so many years? If Xiahou really colluded with the West-Hill Divine Palace secretly and tried to harm the empire, what could he do? The most important thing was, what could the Divine Hall give him?
With the real arrival of winter, the North of Yan Kingdom ushered in the first snow. Dongsheng Stockaded Village also ushered in an Array Tactical Master. The Array Tactical Master took the document of the Middle Military Camp and said that because of the cold weather, the Middle Military Camp was worried that the defensive tactical arrays in the frontier fortress defense lines would be damaged. Therefore, he was sent to check and repair them.
There were very few cultivators in the world, and Talisman Masters and Array Tactical Masters were even rarer. No matter in the bustling city or the bitter cold frontier fortress, such people were always respected. Especially on the battlefield, if there was an excellent Array Tactical Master, the military defense line would naturally be more stable. Therefore, the arrival of this Array Tactical Master was warmly welcomed by the generals and ordinary soldiers.
The general of Dongsheng Stockaded Village eagerly welcomed this Array Tactical Master into the tent. He was ready to slaughter sheep and cook cattle to entertain him. Unexpectedly, the Array Tactical Master waved his hand to send away the soldiers who served him. Looking around and no one was around, he asked seriously, "Is Mr. Thirteen here?"
…
…
The jet-black waist token seemed to reflect no light. It was dull and dark but not dirty. It was more like a piece of black jade that had been soaked in the Ink Lake of the Great River Kingdom for thousands of miles.
The two waist tokens slowly approached each other. When they were only a little bit apart, they seemed to be attracted by some kind of suction and automatically stuck together. Those seemingly inconspicuous but actually wonderful secret talismans on them were perfectly wedged together.
Ning Que looked at the waist tokens that were put together and curiously said, "It turns out that there is such a use."
"The waist tokens of the Imperial Center Administration are all specially made. Even the West-Hill Divine Palace is difficult to forge. Therefore, as long as you see the waist token, you can confirm the identity of the holder."
The Array Tactical Master from the Middle Military Camp explained a few words to Ning Que. Then he stood up and made a deep bow, saying respectfully, "Qu Xiangge, the Array Tactical Master of the Imperial Center Administration, greets Your Excellency."
Ning Que looked at the Array Tactical Master's gray hair and did not want to accept the bow. He quickly helped him up and said, "I am just a non-staff member of the Imperial Center Administration. I am not a lord."
The Array Tactical Master looked at the jet-black waist token in his hand. His eyes were full of sighs and smiles. He explained, "Your Excellency, your waist token is not something that a non-staff member can hold in his hand. This waist token has extremely high authority. Except for the Master of Nation and the chief officer of the Imperial Center Administration, even the Wayfarer of the South School can't command you."
Ning Que took back the waist token and held it in the air for a long time. However, he did not see anything special about it. He thought that when he entered the palace that day, when His Majesty finally gave him this waist token, he was quite dissatisfied. If this waist token was really as powerful as this person said, he seemed to have wronged His Majesty.
"Even if we don't talk about the official position of the Imperial Center Administration, I am the 34th generation disciple of the South School of Haotian. You are the successor of Master Yan Se. According to seniority, you are my grandmaster. Could it be that you want me to kneel down and kowtow to you?"
Ning Que smiled and waved his hand. He said, "I know that I have a high seniority, but I didn't expect it to be so high. Let's cut to the chase. You must have something important to tell me today."
"The Desolate Man went south and forced the tribes of the Left King's Palace to move south. This matter is not a big deal. So when the Divine Hall issued the edict, the imperial court has been feeling a little strange. Even if they are afraid that the remnants of the Devil's Doctrine may be revived because of the Desolate Man, there is no reason to make such a big scene."
"The Apologetic Cavalry is not a big deal. It can be explained that the Divine Hall wants to show its power to the believers in the world. But in addition to Prince Long Qing, I heard that the Divine Hall has sent more powerful powerhouses. Many spies of the Judicial Department have already sneaked into the Wilderness. What do they want to do?"
The Array Tactical Master looked into Ning Que's eyes and said seriously, "The imperial court asked the Imperial Center Administration to investigate the reason why the Divine Hall made such a big fuss. We have mobilized a lot of people, even our fellow disciples in the Divine Hall …"
Hearing this, Ning Que slightly raised his eyebrows and asked, "The Imperial Center Administration actually has people in the Divine Hall?"
The Array Tactical Master nodded and explained with a smile, "After all, the South School and the Divine Hall are of the same origin. The Divine Hall must have hidden people in the South School. Naturally, the South School can also hide people in the Divine Hall. The people in the South School are naturally our people in the Imperial Center Administration."
"The explanation is clear enough. Please continue."
"We spent a month to find out that this matter should be related to the legendary Seven Tomes of Arcane. But, sir, I'm sorry that we have no evidence. We just got a piece of cloth."
The Array Tactical Master took out a piece of cloth from his sleeve. Judging from the stitches, this piece of cloth should be the hem of a shirt. Then, it was torn by brute force. There were two dark red words on the cloth: "Ming Scroll".
Ning Que looked at the two words on the cloth and frowned. He reached out his hand and gently touched the dark red and black handwriting. He said, "This is a blood letter."
The Array Tactical Master looked at him and said in a low voice, "Our companions in the Divine Hall tried every means to send out this piece of cloth. After that, there was no more news. I guess it must have been discovered."
To be able to discover such a big secret in a place like the West-Hill Divine Palace and be able to send out this secret, it could be imagined that the spy of the Imperial Center Administration in the West-Hill had a high status in the Divine Hall.
Ning Que frowned and looked at the two words on the cloth. After a long silence, he said, "Based on these two words … how can you confirm that it is related to the Seven Tomes of Arcane? If it is not, then isn't it a pity that he died? "
The Array Tactical Master said, "After seeing the two words on the cloth, no one in the Imperial Center Administration connected it with the legendary Seven Tomes of Arcane. Until the Master of Nation saw it, he confirmed that the Ming Scroll was one of the Seven Tomes of Arcane."
Ning Que held the cloth in his hand and looked up at his eyes. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Then how can you confirm that the Divine Hall sending powerhouses into the Wilderness is related to this matter?"
"Because this Tomes of Arcane is very likely to be with the Desolate." The Array Tactical Master said.
Ning Que asked puzzledly, "The Devil's Doctrine originated from the Desolate's tribe. Why would the Tomes of Arcane of the Haotian Sect be with the Desolate?"
The Array Tactical Master looked at him with a complicated expression. He was very puzzled that the core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy, the future Master of Nation of Tang, did not know the most famous history in the cultivation world.
"Your Excellency … Countless years ago, the Desolate occupied the northern part of the continent. They were known as the most powerful country. At that time, the Divine Hall of Haotian sent the Great Divine Priest of Light to the Wilderness to preach. They wanted to bring the Desolate into the Divine Light of Haotian."
"However, no one could have thought that the Great Divine Priest of Light, who had exquisite doctrine and high prestige, would enter a different path in the process of preaching to the Desolate. He created a cultivation method that was completely different from the right path."
Ning Que rubbed his head and asked incredulously, "Is this cultivation method the Kung Fu of the Devil's Doctrine?"
"Yes."
The founder of the Devil's Doctrine was actually the Great Divine Priest of Light of the West-Hill Divine Palace? Ning Que did not know about this dusty past until today. He could not help but feel shocked. He thought that they were actually a family after all.
The Array Tactical Master continued, "The Great Divine Priest of Light was excellent in learning and strict in teaching. He was best at enlightening ordinary people. Back then, the Divine Hall had great expectations for him to preach in the Wilderness. They even let him bring a Tomes of Arcane. When he founded the Devil's Doctrine and became the enemy of the Divine Hall, this Tomes of Arcane was naturally left in the Wilderness and never appeared in the Central Plains again. "
"Decades ago, the sects of the Devil's Doctrine hidden in the Central Plains were all wiped out by the right path of the Central Plains. Even the mysterious Front Gate of the Devil's Doctrine was said to have been chopped into ruins by a senior sublime being with a single sword. However, no one has found the Tomes of Arcane."
Breaking into the mountain with a single sword and chopping the Front Gate of the Devil's Doctrine into ruins. Listening to the deeds of the senior sublime being, Ning Que seemed to have seen the scenes of the past. He was excited and his skin was slightly numb. However, he did not know why he faintly felt that the senior sublime being had something to do with him, or at least with the Academy.
"Who is that senior sublime being?"
"I don't know."
"…"
"Since even the Front Gate of the Devil's Doctrine does not have the Tomes of Arcane, then there is only one possibility. It has been taken to the Cold Region of the Far North by the Desolate as early as a thousand years ago. The Cold Region of the Far North is bitterly cold and far away. Moreover, the Desolate are very strong. Even the Grand Cultivators of the Knowing Destiny State dare not set foot there. Therefore, this guess has always been a guess. However, now that the Desolate have moved south from the Cold Region of the Far North, the Divine Hall will certainly find the Tomes of Arcane. "
Hearing this, Ning Que finally understood why the imperial court made such a judgment about the intention of the Divine Hall. He also believed that the West-Hill Divine Palace would not hesitate to start a bloody war in order to get the Tomes of Arcane that had been lost for thousands of years. They would not hesitate to let thousands of people bleed and sacrifice. They would even not hesitate to let Prince Long Qing and even more important people take risks.
From the emperor to the peddlers, everyone in the world knew that the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane were the most sacred Classics of Haotian Taoism. However, almost no one knew what the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane were or what was recorded in them.
There were many legends about the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane. Some said that the Tomes of Arcane recorded the will of Haotian to the human world. Some said that the Tomes of Arcane recorded the prophecies of the world. Some said that the Tomes of Arcane itself was a supreme instrument that condensed the power of Heaven and Earth. There were also rumors that mortals could cultivate by just looking at the Tomes of Arcane, cultivators could break through the realm by just looking at the Tomes of Arcane, ghosts in the Underworld could be purified and reborn by just looking at the Tomes of Arcane, and saints could become immortals by just looking at the Tomes of Arcane.
Ning Que had heard of these legends. However, at that time, his life was too far away from the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane. He did not care at all and even somewhat did not believe in the existence of the Tomes of Arcane. Today, he finally knew that the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane were real. However, he still did not believe those rumors. He felt that the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane were more likely to be the secret of Haotian Taoism, some kind of earth-shattering unique cultivation method.
At this time, he did not know that his name had appeared in the first volume of the Tomes of Arcane.
…
…
"The Tomes of Arcane are very important and everyone wants them. However, what does this have to do with me?"
After all, he was a disciple of the Second floor of the Academy. Although his state was still too weak, he was more or less tainted with the obsession and pride of his Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters at the back of the mountain. Ning Que was not shocked by the name of the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane for too long. He soon sobered up and looked at the Array Tactical Master and asked.
The Array Tactical Master glanced out of the window and whispered in his ear, "The Nation Master asked me to tell you that it is very difficult to find the Tomes of Arcane in the Wilderness. Ordinary cultivators have no power in front of the Divine Hall. After all, he and Master Yan Se are the Great Divine Priests of the Divine Hall, so it is not convenient for them to do anything. However, you happen to be in the North of Yan Kingdom, so …"
"So this matter falls on my head?" Ning Que stared at him and asked.
"Exactly. Even this corner of the cloth with the bloody words written on it was personally ordered by the Nation Master. He specially sent someone to bring it from Chang 'an for you to see."
Ning Que stared at the snowflakes floating outside the window and was silent for a long time. Suddenly, he asked, "What does the Tomes of Arcane look like?"
The Array Tactical Master replied respectfully, "I don't know."
Ning Que's eyes fell on his face and continued to ask, "How big or small?"
The Array Tactical Master answered honestly, "I don't know."
Ning Que's eyebrows twitched slightly. He forcibly suppressed his emotions and asked again, "Which volume did the Divine Hall lose?"
The Array Tactical Master shook his head and said, "I still don't know."
Then he pointed to the corner of the cloth in Ning Que's hand and said, "It should be the Ming Volume."
Ning Que held the corner of the cloth and looked at it. He frowned and asked, "Ming Volume … which volume is it?"
The Array Tactical Master coughed and looked at him carefully and said, "I told you before, but I don't know."
Ning Que said angrily, "If you don't know anything, how can I find it?"
The Array Tactical Master looked at him innocently and said slowly, "I heard that even the Divine Hall is not qualified to worship the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane. The Tomes of Arcane come from the Unknown Place. How can an ordinary person like me know?"
Ning Que's frown deepened when he heard the words "Unknown Place". He thought of the fact that Chen Pipi had already revealed half of his chubby face and the occasional words he heard in the Academy. He felt that this matter was really troublesome.
"Sir, you are the future Nation Master of the Tang Empire and the core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. You cultivate in the Back Mountain of the Academy every day and know much more than me. You should know better than me what the Tomes of Arcane look like."
Ning Que was stunned. He thought that he had been busy cultivating and shooting arrows in the Back Mountain of the Academy all day, so he had no time to pay attention to the top legends of the cultivation world. He also had no chance to ask his Senior Brothers and Sisters about their stories. Did he have to tell him such things?
After the Array Tactical Master left, Ning Que sat by the window and looked at the wind and snow coming from the Wilderness. He thought for a long time.
It was not until today that he realized that he had underestimated himself after entering the Second floor of the Academy. He did not expect that even the legendary items like the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane had begun to have a connection with him. If he had known, he would have used the crab porridge to lure Chen Pipi to tell him about his past and ask about the secrets of the Unknown Place and the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane.
Suddenly, he remembered that the General's Mansion of Tuyang City had sent people disguised as a caravan to enter the Wilderness. He slowly frowned. Could it be that Xiahou also wanted to get the volume of the Tomes of Arcane that had been lost for thousands of years? If so, it seemed that no matter how difficult it would be, he had to plan well after entering the Wilderness.
…
…
(Last night, I inexplicably caught a cold and rhinitis. Today, I was in a daze and worked very hard to write. Then, in the afternoon, I found out that 72 was sick. His illness is much more troublesome than mine. I became another poor person after the white bird. My heart could not help but feel heavy. I wish everyone good health and happiness for the whole family. I will not rest tomorrow, but I don't know how much I can write. Just try your best. Today's recommendation votes are very fierce. I am very gratified. It is this gratification that forced me not to lie on the bed like a corpse. Please continue to vote for me. Thank you.) (To be continued.) If you like this work, you are welcome to come to qidian.com to vote for me. Your support is my biggest motivation.)
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