As soon as they made contact, Miao Yi's guess was confirmed. The other party was the Cave Master's surname, Zhao, who was in charge of guarding the local Immortal's cave.
Both of them were of the same rank. They were both Cave Masters, so there was no difference in seniority. Both of them exchanged a few pleasantries.
"Brother Zhao, where are you heading with your subordinates?"
"I'm not going anywhere. I'm patrolling the territory."
"For Cave Master Zhao to be so dedicated to his duty, it truly puts me to shame."
"You think I want to?!" Cave Master Zhao shook his head, and roughly explained what had happened.
The reason why he had personally led the team out to patrol was because a group of bandits had recently appeared in this area. They specialized in robbing cultivators who came and went. Last month, they had actually kidnapped the wife of a Manor Lord within the territory of the temple. Not only did they rob her of her belongings, they even killed her and her attendants.
The Manor Head was furious, and the entire Manor turned out in full force. As soon as one side was searched, the other party would immediately run off to another place to commit their crimes. They did things here and there, catching people off guard. In the end, even the Hall Master's side was alerted. The Ten Prefectures worked together, and a large number of people were searching everywhere.
When Miao Yi heard this, he was surprised. "There's actually such a bold person who dares to go against the officials. Where did that group of bandit cultivators come from?"
Cave Master Zhao spread his hands. "It'll be easier if we know where they came from. It's just that we don't know where they came from that we're searching blindly. Let's not talk about this anymore. Recently, I've been tormented so much that I can't cultivate in peace. It's very annoying. May I ask where Cave Master Miao is going? "
"Passing through your territory, heading to the First Earthly Road for business."
"Oh, there's still a long way to go. Since Brother Miao has come all the way to my territory, why don't you rest in my cave abode for a while? Let me play host."
"I appreciate Brother Zhao's good intentions. I have urgent matters to attend to, so I won't disturb Brother Zhao's business. I'll take my leave now. If Brother Zhao has the time in the future, why don't you come to my East Arrival Cave? I will definitely receive you warmly. "
"Hehe! No problem. I'm not afraid of Cave Master Miao laughing at me, but I've never seen what the sea looks like since I'm from the mainland. Two days ago, my handmaiden was still asking me what the sea looked like. Brother, I was just bragging, but I didn't expect to meet Brother Miao, who was stationed at the seaside today. I will definitely go to East Arrival Cave some other day to see the scenery of the vast ocean. "
"It's a deal! I, Miao Yi, have built a sailing ship that can brave the winds and waves and sail far away. When the time comes, Brother Zhao, feel free to bring your maids. I'm sure you won't be disappointed. "
Cave Master Zhao was delighted. With a flip of his hand, he took out a jade archive and wrote down a few things, handing it to Miao Yi. "Brother Miao has come at a bad time. You will inevitably be interrogated later on, so I have a set of travel permits here. Perhaps it will be of use, and it might be able to reduce some trouble for Brother Miao. "
Miao Yi received the jade archive and looked through it. Then, he cupped his fists in thanks. After both sides agreed to meet again, everyone on Miao Yi's side jumped off their dragon steeds and released them into the water, swimming towards the other side of the river.
Once again, he turned around and cupped his fists to bid farewell to Cave Master Zhao. Then, Miao Yi led his men and flew up, invoking his arts to ride the waves across the vast river. He headed straight for the opposite bank.
Landing on the opposite shore, they waited for their dragon steeds to shake off the water droplets from their bodies before they mounted their steeds once more and continued galloping.
Just as Cave Master Zhao had said, they encountered a few more rounds of interrogation along the way. Miao Yi revealed his identity and was mostly fine.
Seeing that Miao Yi was a colleague who had come from afar, many of them were willing to befriend him. Hence, there was no lack of enthusiastic invitations, wanting to show their hospitality as hosts. Miao Yi politely declined.
In this critical period, two more people helped to issue a guaranteed travel pass.
Of course. There were also those who made things difficult for Miao Yi, as they didn't hold him in any regard. However, after Miao Yi flashed out a few guaranteed travel passes, they didn't make things difficult for him.
The School of Blue Jade disciples accompanying him couldn't help but sigh when they saw this.
If they were in his shoes, they wouldn't have made things difficult for him. They would definitely have searched him thoroughly and taken away some of his belongings. Yet, he didn't dare to voice his anger. It was good to have an official's identity.
The wind blew past their ears, and the scenery on both sides quickly receded. Passing through the wasteland, the mountains were right in front of them.
Not long after the twenty-one riders charged into the official road between the mountains, a person riding a dragon steed suddenly appeared from a small path in the lush forest.
Miao Yi and the others turned their heads to look, and saw a man with fair skin.
His figure was on the thin side, with thick eyebrows and large eyes. Beneath his thick, slanted eyebrows was a pair of large, clear, and bright eyes. There was a big black mole on her fair and delicate face, and there were even two hairs growing on the mole. It was already a pity that she had such good skin, but she also had a full beard on her face, giving off a strange feeling.
Unfortunately, the other party didn't know that he looked strange. When he saw them sizing him up, he immediately revealed a set of neat teeth and chuckled. Unfortunately, they were all yellow teeth that looked like they had been stained with smoke.
When he smiled, his pair of big eyes immediately became as moving as crescent moons.
His eyes were obviously very beautiful when he smiled, but Miao Yi and the others felt a chill run down their spines. This person's appearance was simply too 'moving' when he smiled. They didn't dare to compliment him at all.
No one paid any attention to him. Only Tian Qingfeng tilted his head, and the School of Blue Jade disciples immediately kept their guard up against that person. The road faced the heavens, so it wasn't appropriate to chase him away.
However, the entire journey was peaceful. This person followed them the entire way. When they slowed down, he would slow down as well. When they sped up, he would also follow closely behind.
The others couldn't help but suspect his intentions. As they galloped, Tian Qingfeng immediately approached and asked, "Friend, why are you following us?"
That person's eyes immediately curved into crescents as he chuckled and apologized. He cupped his fists and said in a loud and clear voice, "Friend, please don't blame me. I have no other choice. I heard that a group of bandit cultivators has been causing trouble in this area recently. I'm afraid it's not safe for me to travel alone, so I'm asking for a companion. If anything happens, we can look after each other. I have no ill intentions, so please forgive me! "
In order to show that he had no ill intentions, the silhouette of a nine-petaled white lotus flower automatically lit up between his brows, letting the other side know what was going on.
Seeing this, the other side felt a little more at ease. They had four Blue Lotus cultivators on their side, and so many people. They weren't afraid that he would cause trouble on his own, so they didn't bother with him anymore.
However, as soon as they started talking, Brother Black Mole couldn't stop talking. He constantly took the initiative to strike up a conversation with them, "Friend, where did you guys come from and where are you going?"
Unfortunately, no one paid any attention to him, but he was unwilling to be left out. His gaze was fixed on Miao Yi, who was being guarded by the others. His eyes darted around twice, and he asked, "Friend, you must be their leader, right?"
Miao Yi turned around to look at him, then ignored him.
"Tsk tsk. Friend, you have a dignified appearance and an extraordinary bearing. You're valiant and elegant. One look and I can tell that you're no ordinary person. This dragon steed of yours is truly beautiful. It's truly a divine steed."
Miao Yi was speechless. 'Are they praising me, or are they praising my steed? Is there a need to mix them up like this?'
"Brother Luo Shuangfei. May I know your name, friend?"
Still, no one paid any attention to him. However, his mouth didn't stop chattering along the way. Even though no one was talking to him, he could still talk to Miao Yi without stopping. He didn't seem tired at all.
After running for two days straight, the group once again found a stream and a valley to rest.
The dragon steeds ate, and the stream drank water. Everyone else also scooped up water to wash. Only Charcoal trotted along the stream, catching fresh fish and prawns to eat.
That strange person called Luo Shuangfei was ostracized by everyone. He could only sit alone upstream of the stream, occasionally picking up a pebble from the ground and throwing it into the water. He seemed to be quite bored.
For some reason, whenever a pebble passed through his hand and was thrown into the water, it would immediately turn black in the stream. Very quickly, it would be diluted by the stream.
Some of the School of Blue Jade disciples were on guard against him, but because of their angle of view, they didn't notice anything amiss.
Everyone washed up, fetched water, and cooked food as usual. After eating and drinking, they took turns to stand guard and sit cross-legged in meditation.
That Luo Shuangfei was still alone not too far away, sitting cross-legged all by himself. However, from time to time, he would open his closed eyes to sneak a peek at them, a crafty glint flashing across his eyes.
After nightfall, a few bonfires were lit, and everyone sat around them in groups.
The sky was filled with stars. In the dead of night, Luo Shuangfei, who was not too far away, took out a string of bells. He held them in his hand, fiddling with them as he played with them. The clear and melodious ringing of the bells faintly echoed throughout the valley, adding a sense of relaxation to the tranquil valley under the moonlit night.
Everyone opened their eyes one after another and turned to look at him. However, they knew that this guy was a chatterbox. Once they started talking, they would definitely not stop. Being in a foreign land, they couldn't figure out the other party's background, so it was best not to cause trouble.
Everyone ignored him and continued to meditate. However, for some reason, they felt their minds in a mess, unable to calm down. It was as if every time the bells rang, they would feel waves of dizziness assaulting them.
At this moment, the faint rumbling of dragon steeds approaching could be heard from the forest in the distance.
Everyone was startled and quickly stood up. That Luo Shuangfei also stood up, but he held his forehead and said, "My head is dizzy. My head is so dizzy. I can't take it anymore, I can't take it anymore. I can't stand anymore …"
As he said this, he actually collapsed to the ground.
As soon as the bells in his hand stopped ringing, Miao Yi and the others, who hadn't even realized what was happening, suddenly felt a strong wave of dizziness assaulting them, causing their bodies to sway.
Forcefully invoking his arts to defend himself, Tian Qingfeng shouted, "Not good! We've been poisoned! "
By the time he reacted, it was already too late. It didn't matter even if he had the highest cultivation among them.
Miao Yi and the others who had invoked their arts to defend themselves collapsed one after another. In the end, Tian Qingfeng also collapsed to the ground with a look of grief and helplessness.
Even the dragon steeds swayed and fell to the ground one after another. Only Charcoal, who had been dozing off on the ground, opened his eyes and stood up. He shook his head and wagged his tail as he looked at his surroundings, not knowing what had happened. He walked over to Miao Yi's side and touched him with his beak, occasionally letting out a snort.
Lying on the ground, Miao Yi struggled to keep his eyes open. He used the last of his will to resist the endless drowsiness. He didn't think he would actually fall here.
The art source within his body suddenly flickered with a speck of starlight. In an instant, it expanded like a single spark setting a prairie ablaze, instantly lighting up the entire art source. The art source rotated rapidly, sweeping through his limbs and bones like a tornado, quickly burning away the unknown substance in his body into nothingness.
As the unknown substance that had hidden itself in his body was gradually burned away, the dizziness in Miao Yi's head gradually disappeared. His eyes also gradually regained their clarity. However, he saw Luo Shuangfei, who had fallen to the ground first, stretching his back and actually getting up again.
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