In a courtyard of the Nishiyama House, the young girls of Qingrong Peak were talking about the Cultivation tournament.
They were talking excitedly, the shells of melon seeds flying everywhere, and the tea in the teapot had been changed many times.
Nan Wang walked in with a cold expression on his face.
The rules of Qingrong Peak weren't strict, but the disciples didn't dare disobey their peak master's order. They put down the teacups and melon seeds in their hands and bowed to him in unison.
Sitting in a chair, Nan Wang said angrily while looking at these beautiful girls, "Look at you! No wonder you performed so badly at the Sword Trial and couldn't even get a place in the Cultivation tournament. What are you doing in Zhaoge City with me? Are you here to have fun?"
The young girls thought that they weren't qualified to participate in the Cultivation tournament, and Aoyama didn't participate in the zither, chess, calligraphy and painting contests, so they came to Zhaoge City to have fun.
They didn't feel worried until they found out why Nan Wang was in such a bad mood.
The Cultivation tournament of the Plum Meeting was dangerous to begin with, and young Cultivation practitioners would die every time; but it was too early for someone to die this year.
Moreover, Senior Master Jing Jiu was at the rear, so he should be the safest. Why did the disciple of Kunlun who was with him die? The most troublesome part was that the disciple of Kunlun died right after he killed a monster of the Snowy Kingdom. It was easy for people to associate it with him, especially those conspiracy theorists.
"I heard that He Wei is very angry, and wants us to give him an explanation."
Nan Wang slapped the table and said icily, "Damn it!"
The young girls stood with their heads lowered, pretending that they hadn't heard what he said.
He Wei was the name of the sect master of Kunlun.
Normally, Nan Wang should show him some respect. However, they were used to their peak master's unrestrained behavior. When the peak master was angry on Qingrong Peak, he would even scold the Senior Master, let alone the sect masters of other sects.
Back when Lian Sanyue visited Aoyama, Nan Wang's temperament had been restrained a lot; but she didn't want to suppress her emotions any longer since she was surrounded by her own disciples. "Death means defeat, and survival means victory. This is the Cultivation tournament. What explanation does he want?" she said with a sneer.
A favored female disciple advised, "In this situation, it's inevitable that Youngest Uncle will be talked about. When the news of the Cold-Signal Bird comes back, everything will be fine."
The Cold-Signal Bird was the special bird of the Kunlun Sect, and it wasn't afraid of the cold and dark energy. It usually recuperated in the Pond of Nine Hidden Cold, and would only come out during the Plum Meeting every few years. It was responsible for monitoring the situation in the snowland and ascertaining the positions of those young Cultivation practitioners. It would also participate in the most dangerous situations.
In fact, Nan Wang was fully aware of this fact. The Cold-Signal Bird was the ancestor of the Kunlun Immortal Sect, so He Wei couldn't say that it was lying. Even if it didn't witness what had happened, there were still witnesses at the scene. The problem was … even she felt it was a bit strange. She wasn't sure if Jing Jiu had anything to do with the death of that disciple of Kunlun.
Considering how Zhao Layue killed people without batting an eyelid on the journey in the past few years and the death of Shi Fengchen a few days ago, it was hard to tell what Jing Jiu would do next.
The peak that she was familiar with had become a stranger to her now.
… …
… …
It was nightfall in Zhaoge City.
The peach blossoms at the Net-Perception Temple had all fallen, but the peach blossom lanterns on both sides of the passage leading to the deepest part of the temple were still lit.
An old monk walked toward the end of the stone passage. He seemed to be walking slowly, but it took him only a few seconds to reach the door of the meditation room.
He adjusted his breathing and pushed open the door. Seeing the scene in front of him, he let out a gratified smile.
Zen Master had finally sat cross-legged that day.
Though he only sat on one knee, and the main reason was that he could look at the pile of wooden sticks sideways.
"It's not the Listening Ear, but the Iron Thread Worm."
The old monk knew that the matter was a bit urgent, so he did not delay and directly stated his conclusion.
The old monk's Buddhist name was Shihai. He had served the Sword King in the small city in the north for decades. When it came to understanding the monsters of the Snowy Kingdom, no one in the entire Guocheng Temple was better than him.
It was also for this reason that Zen Master needed his advice.
The Iron Thread Worm was a kind of strange insect in the depths of the Snowy Kingdom. It looked similar to the Listening Ear and also lived in the bodies of various snow beasts. But its carapace was extremely hard, and even the swords of the Aoyama Sect could not cut it open. As for its terrifying lethality, it was a world apart from the Listening Ear.
If that Kunlun disciple had encountered the Iron Thread Worm, he would not have been able to survive if he was completely defenseless.
Zen Master lifted his head and asked confusedly, "Isn't this kind of insect always around that person?"
The old monk Shihai knew whom Zen Master referred to, so he said with a serious expression, "And the Iron Thread Worm hasn't appeared for many years. Even though a few of them crawled into the deep underground when the monster invasion retreated, it is the beginning of summer now, and they should be sleeping. Why did they suddenly wake up?"
Zen Master widened his eyes and said innocently, "I don't know the answer."
The old monk Shihai let out a bitter laugh, saying, "Is there going to be another monster invasion this year?"
Hearing the word "monster invasion", Zen Master's expression became a bit more serious, saying, "I've already asked Young Master Duhai to go and have a look."
Monk Duhai was the Principal Justice of the Guocheng Temple. Nobody knew that this highly achieved monk of the Zen sect had gone to the north quietly.
The old monk Shihai asked worriedly, "Should we end the Cultivation tournament in advance?"
This year's Plum Meeting was hosted by Zen Master himself.
He was the only one qualified to end the Cultivation tournament with one statement.
Looking at the wooden sticks on the bed, Zen Master reached out his hand and grabbed one randomly, then pulled it out.
The old monk Shihai suddenly felt nervous.
Hundreds of wooden sticks fell to the ground without making too much noise.
Looking at the messy wooden sticks, Zen Master didn't speak for a long time, as if he couldn't make up his mind.
The Guocheng Temple was good at the Two-Mind Connection.
Zen Master's Cultivation state in this aspect was even more unfathomable.
It was rare for him to be so hesitant.
"Write a letter to those who need to know and ask them to be prepared."
After a moment of silence, Zen Master continued, "We'll wait for Cao Yuan's letter."
…
…
The Cold-Signal Bird had a very sharp eyesight.
The four black dots on the snowland seemed to be right in front of its eyes.
It could see clearly the dust on their clothes, the remaining snow on their boots, the tiredness on their faces, and the bewilderment in their eyes.
What it didn't understand was why the young man walking in the front looked so clean.
There was no dust, no remaining snow, no tiredness, and no emotional fluctuation.
This was something Yin Qingmo and the other two couldn't figure out.
Of course, there were more things they couldn't figure out.
After the death of Dai Ying, Jing Jiu, who had been sitting on the mountain for more than ten days, seemed to have suddenly figured something out and started marching toward the snowland.
Though the tragic death of their companions didn't destroy the willpower of these three young Cultivation practitioners, they still felt bewildered, so they started to listen to Jing Jiu's ideas.
Jing Jiu didn't lead them in hunting the monsters of the Snowy Kingdom. They had encountered them a few times on the way, but he didn't even take a glance at them.
It seemed that he was simply traveling in a hurry.
Where was he going?
If he was in a hurry to go somewhere, why did he walk as usual instead of speeding up or riding the sword?
…
…
It was getting dark. The Cold-Signal Bird had already left.
Jing Jiu halted his steps.
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