Rather than making up some random lie, Yan Kai decided to tell the truth. After all, this was nothing shameful.
Seeing a hint of curiosity on Lu Sheng's face, he continued, "We met Young Master Sheng by chance as soon as we arrived here. We wanted to quickly warn Young Master that this person is extremely terrifying and dangerous. Once you meet him, you must not clash with him and be extremely careful."
"Oh?" Lu Sheng glanced at him with a half-smile.
Although these words were meant to warn him of danger, he was the Sect Master of the Number One Sect in the Northern Lands, Crimson Whale Sect's Sect Master, the Saber King of the Northern Lands.
To say such words in front of such a figure was more like a provocation than a warning.
Yan Kai did not care if he understood his meaning or not. He continued, "That man is the Deputy Sect Master of the Eastern faction, Wandering Heart Society. People call him the Eastern Wandering Dragon, Chao Long."
"Chao Long?" Lu Sheng's heart skipped a beat. Wandering Heart Society, Chao Long, Chao Hu. Connecting the three names, he instantly had an idea.
"Interesting," his lips curled. He could see the intentions of Yan Kai and the other two. They probably wanted to use his protection to deal with this Chao Long.
"Since that's the case, why don't the three of you come with me? Our Crimson Whale Sect has some influence in the Northern Lands," he did not expose them, merely playing along.
Yan Kai heaved a sigh of relief, knowing that the first step was a success.
Investigating Chao Long, especially in such a sparsely populated area, meant that the chances of being discovered were too high. If they had followed Wan Hezi and foolishly followed him into the mountains, they would have been caught by Chao Long and their lives would be at his mercy.
Now that they could blend in with Crimson Whale Sect, they would be much safer.
After some idle chatter, the group set off again. From Yan Kai and the other two, Lu Sheng found out that Chao Long was also here for the Unlaughing Master.
That was strange. He had come all the way from the Eastern Lands just for this Unlaughing Master? Could it be that there were some secrets that he didn't know about?
The group advanced slowly, cutting through the trees and bushes to clear a path for the palanquin.
After a while, the gang members who were leading the way suddenly froze, and they quickly stopped.
Right in front of the Crimson Whale Sect group, another group of people appeared in the distance.
This group of people were dressed in light blue warrior robes, with white scarves tied around their right arms. Their eyes shone brightly, full of vigor and vigor. Coincidentally, they were also carrying a sedan chair. But unlike Crimson Whale Sect's black sedan chair, theirs was white.
Xu Chui slowly placed his hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist and looked at his opponent quietly.
In the opposite team, a bare-chested burly man also looked at him expressionlessly.
Both teams were not weaklings. The moment they met, they could sense that the other side was not to be trifled with. Crimson Whale Sect had the advantage in numbers, while the other side had fewer people, but their auras were superior.
Both teams had no intention of causing trouble. Out of fear of each other, they retreated as soon as they bumped into each other, moving in different directions.
"Society Master, they're from Crimson Whale Sect," the burly man beside the white sedan reported in a low voice.
"Don't complicate matters. Find the Non-smiler as soon as possible and then return. We don't have time to stay here. "A deep male voice came from the palanquin.
"Yes," the burly man replied, lowering his head.
Lu Sheng peered through the gap in the curtains and saw the white sedan crossing each other. Although the two sides were quite a distance apart, to an expert of his level, even a few hundred meters was but a few blinks of an eye. He smelled a familiar scent from the sedan.
"Wandering Heart Society …" He had come into contact with the Wandering Heart Society members before. Their concealment skills were incredible, but that was all. Chao Hu, the Deputy Society Master, had also been killed by Hongfang Bai head-on. And by so many of them at that.
"They're also here to investigate the Unlaughing Master," Yan Kai suddenly whispered as he walked beside the sedan.
"Let them be then. If that's the case, we'll meet again," Lu Sheng said calmly.
Very quickly, both teams paused before they came into contact.
The pause was not long. Both sides stared warily at each other. Then, under orders from behind, the two teams crossed each other and disappeared into the forest, minding their own business.
As time passed, the Crimson Whale Sect members circled the forest a few times before finally arriving at a small village that seemed to be in ruins.
"This is the place!!" The sect member leading the way shouted. "Reporting to Elder, we saw Elder Xu and his men enter this place and never come out again."
Xu Chui gazed at the village, especially the small stone house at the village entrance. It gave off an aura that made him uncomfortable.
Turning back, he looked at Lu Sheng in the sedan behind him.
Lu Sheng had already lifted the curtain, but he did not look at him at all. Instead, his gaze swept past the crowd and landed on an empty spot on the right of the team.
Xu Chui followed Lu Sheng's line of sight. Indeed, there were some abandoned torches on the ground.
A sect member walked over and picked up one of the torches. Indeed, it bore the Crimson Whale Sect's insignia.
"This is the place," Xu Chui confirmed and turned to Lu Sheng.
Lu Sheng nodded slightly.
"Search!" Immediately, the Crimson Whale Sect members spread out and rushed into the village, beginning their search from house to house.
Yan Kai and the other two exchanged glances and walked to the entrance of the village. Squatting down, they began to search for clues on the ground and walls.
Lu Sheng alighted from the sedan. Suddenly, he looked up. In the forest to his left, the team that he had been separated from earlier had appeared as well.
In the middle of the team, a white sedan was slowly lowered to the ground.
"It's no use. The Unlaughing Master never appears in the day. We can only meet him at night," a deep voice rang out from within the white sedan.
"Only at night? May I know who you are, Your Excellency? "Lu Sheng raised his brows and asked.
"We bear no ill will," the voice in the sedan continued. "We've found the place. We'll come again at night."
The white sedan rose slowly and left into the distance.
Not sure if it was an illusion, but Wan Hezi suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. Looking up, he saw the burly man beside the white sedan staring at him from afar. His gaze was as sharp and cold as the tip of a knife.
Following that gaze was a deep, immense pressure. It was as if a large hand was viciously clutching at his heart.
Wan Hezi's entire body trembled and he began to sweat profusely. His face was pale and his breathing ragged. His eyes were lifeless as he subconsciously clutched at his throat and began to exert force.
"Clang."
Suddenly, there was a soft sound.
Expressionless, Xu Chui stood in front of him and looked at the burly man. The hilt of the saber in his hand was slowly pulled out by a sliver.
Only then did Wan Hezi gasp for air like a drowning man who had just been rescued. Only then did Yan Kai and Duan Rongrong notice his abnormality.
"Senior Apprentice Brother!"
"Wan Hezi, are you alright!?"
"Hmph."
A cold snort drifted from afar. Wan Hezi knew that this was a warning. If he dared to follow them again, he would kill him.
Right now, he was extremely grateful for his junior apprentice brother's decision. If not for the fact that he had joined Crimson Whale Sect's team, he might have been scared to death by the other party's killing intent.
That feeling was inescapable and unavoidable. His body wouldn't listen to him and he couldn't even run away.
"What a strong killing intent," Ning San approached with a solemn expression.
Having received eighty years' worth of inner Qi from Lu Sheng, his current strength was sufficient to go toe-to-toe with a Spirit Focus cultivator. Although he was only at the Intent Proficiency realm, the strength he could exert was already stronger than Xu Chui's.
After all, Xu Chui was only at the pinnacle of Strength Proficiency.
Of course, this was only their normal strength. If they were to fight at full strength, their true trump card would be their half-demon state. That was a trump card they would only reveal as a last resort.
Lu Sheng glanced at Wan Hezi. This man was actually Yan Kai's senior apprentice brother. Compared to his junior apprentice brother, wasn't he a little too weak?
The white palanquin moved further and further away. Soon, it disappeared into the depths of the forest.
Retracting his gaze, Lu Sheng gestured to Xu Chui and Ning San. The two of them followed him into the village and searched for traces of the commotion with the other Crimson Whale Sect disciples.
Lu Sheng strolled into the village and entered a stone hut whose door had been broken down. Thick cobwebs filled the interior of the hut, moist moss and translucent insect sloughs were everywhere. The broken window was littered with fallen leaves. Some of the leaves had already rotted away, as if they had been soaked by the rain.
Lu Sheng walked casually to the bed in the hut and pressed it lightly.
"Poof."
One of the corners of the bed actually collapsed.
"The wood has rotted away. There's no sign of anyone here." Ning San followed behind and said in a low voice, "Your subordinate has done some research in this area. Usually, the wood used to make the foot of a bed is Fengxian wood. This type of wood is highly resistant to moisture and rot. For it to have rotted to this extent, it must have been at least ten years. "
"Are you sure?" Lu Sheng touched the headboard of the bed. The wood was indeed very hard.
"Your subordinate has consulted many carpenters. The answers I received are more or less the same," Ning San said in a low voice.
"Let's go," Lu Sheng said impassively. He was starting to believe what the white palanquin man had said.
After a round of searching, the Crimson Whale Sect disciples found nothing. All the stone huts were dilapidated, as if no one had entered or exited them.
As for the traces left behind by Elder Xu and the rest, they were nowhere to be found.
Standing at the entrance of the village, Lu Sheng narrowed his eyes as he surveyed the entire mountain village.
"Sect Master, there are words here!" Suddenly, a sect disciple shouted.
Lu Sheng hurried over. Under the guidance of a sect disciple, he found a stone tablet with only half of its body exposed in the mud at the entrance of the village.
The group quickly dug out the stone tablet. A few lines of words were clearly written on it.
"Happiness Village. Everyone can find their own fast … "The words at the end were rubbed away by something and could not be read clearly.
Lu Sheng squatted down and reached out to touch the words on it.
"Ancient Song script," he said in a low voice.
"Sect Master, what's written on it?" Xu Chui asked in a low voice.
Ning San also looked at Lu Sheng curiously. He knew that this Sect Master was a true prodigy of the academy in his past life. Moreover, judging from his earlier actions, he should be able to recognize these words.
"This is … the Ancient Song script used during the golden age of the Great Song a thousand years ago." Lu Sheng stood up and said impassively, "But this Ancient Song script is written in the traditional script … it's only used during sacrificial ceremonies. Under normal circumstances, it shouldn't be used …" He looked puzzled.
This Happiness Village seemed to be more than just an Anomaly, the Unlaughing Master.
"Could it be that this village isn't meant for humans to live in at all?" Ning San muttered.
Hearing this, a possibility flashed across Lu Sheng's mind.
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