The warm morning light shone on the pool of water at the edge of the plain, reflecting a faint luster. Nanke stood on the shore of the pool, her expression indifferent as she gazed forward. She raised her right hand, and fresh water was delivered to her, allowing her to bring the medicine to her lips. After the two maids helped her eat the medicine, they handed her a wet towel and helped her wash her face. After a while, her spirit recovered a little, and she lightly waved her hand in front of her face.
Although there were aquatic plants everywhere, there were not many mosquitoes or flies in the Garden of Zhou. Her actions were not to drive something away, but to create a black curtain. On the black curtain, there was a rough outline of the map of the Garden of Zhou, as well as a few flickering dots of light. These were the life lamps that Black Robe had lit, indicating the position of their enemies.
There were two life lamps in the plain, sometimes to the east, sometimes to the west. In the blink of an eye, they were several dozen li away, as if they were being interfered with by some sort of power, making it impossible to determine their position. They were probably Zhexiu and Qi Jian. They were already deep in the plain, and logically speaking, they had no chance of survival, so Nanke was not worried. Her gaze rested more on the other two life lamps.
Those two life lamps belonged to Xu Yourong and Chen Changsheng, and they were extremely eye-catching on the black curtain. They were located at the edge of the plain, very far from the gardens where the human cultivators had gathered. Moreover, it had already been a very long time since they had moved. This seemed to indicate that the two of them no longer had the strength to escape, and it was probably not long before she completed the mission that Black Robe had given her.
At some point, the zither-playing old man had arrived from the peak of Veil Valley and met up with Nanke and her two maids. Seeing the life lamps on the black curtain, he was not as confident and composed as Nanke, and was rather worried. "Xu Yourong and Chen Changsheng are both heavily injured, so they should not be able to walk back to those gardens, but … there are still some human cultivators hiding in the mountains of the Garden of Zhou, and most of them are at the peak of Ethereal Opening. If Xu Yourong and Chen Changsheng meet up with those human cultivators as they flee, what should we do?"
The plot that Black Robe had personally devised had fully utilized the special conditions and geographical environment of the Garden of Zhou. He had seen through the greed of human cultivators before wealth and cultivation methods, and had a perfect grasp of the human heart. As a result, only a few demon experts had infiltrated the Garden of Zhou, but it was enough to throw the entire Garden of Zhou into chaos. If it were not for Xu Yourong and Chen Changsheng, perhaps the Garden of Zhou would have already become a true hell. The problem was that the human cultivators had already sensed the demon race's plot, and the majority of them had gathered together. If they were to engage in direct combat, no matter how strong the demon experts were, they would not be able to fight against several hundred human cultivators.
Nanke's expression remained indifferent, and she did not explain anything. She only said, "If Xu Yourong and Chen Changsheng were to encounter other human experts in this sort of situation, perhaps they would die even earlier."
… …
… …
The splashes of water between the reeds and the shore gradually calmed, and then a thin layer of ice covered it.
Chen Changsheng's body was drenched, and the water droplets very quickly condensed into frost. His eyebrows and temples were dyed with snow, as if his hair had long since grown grey. He, who had already matured early, now seemed to have gone through a lot of vicissitudes.
Xu Yourong naturally noticed the abnormality of his body. She slightly raised her eyebrows, and once again took his pulse. She discovered that his True Essence was as thin as before, but the injuries to his internal organs had stabilized. It was just that his heartbeat and breathing were much slower than those of a normal person, but she did not know whether it was because of the special cultivation method that he cultivated, or the omen of death.
Because of the poison, her vision was still blurry. She could only vaguely make out this person's face, which was covered in frost and seemed rather mature. She was quiet for a while, then suddenly extended her hand to wipe away the frost on his face. Afterwards, she stared blankly, not understanding why she had done this.
She walked into the forest enveloped in the morning light, and silently stepped on the soft fallen leaves. After walking for several dozen zhang, she once again stopped, and gazed at a distant cliff in front of her.
Within the forest, there was a path that had been trodden by predecessors. Although it was covered by the fallen leaves, one could still faintly see traces of it. It extended forward, and then turned at the edge of the cliff, forming a zigzag.
She gently placed Chen Changsheng on the fallen leaves, took out the Tong Bow, and drew the bowstring to a semicircle. She took aim, but did not speak.
The morning wind accompanied the morning light into the forest. The morning light was concealed by the leaves, and the forest was very quiet. The morning wind, however, was not shredded by the tree branches. It softly blew against the hair by her face. Those strands of hair would occasionally lightly touch the bowstring, but did not make a sound. It was like the softest of fingers lightly pressing down on the bowstring, ready to explode with a powerful sound in the next moment.
Some leaves were blown off the branches by the wind, slowly drifting down in the hazy and dusky world before her eyes, until they landed at her feet.
The bow did not move, and her eyelashes did not blink. Her expression was calm and focused. She only stared at that cliff, at that place devoid of people.
Just as that leaf fell in front of her feet, an elderly voice came from the cliff, "Is it a friend?"
Following this voice, the first thing that appeared outside the cliff was a hand. A gray string was tied to that wrist, and the hand held a wooden tablet. On the wooden tablet, an extremely complicated sect insignia had been drawn with vermillion paint. She did not know what was so strange about the paint, but even from so far away, she could clearly feel the heat and dryness from it.
All the human cultivators that entered the Garden of Zhou had a gray string, and the sect insignia on the wooden tablet indicated their identity. It was just a simple action, but it represented many meanings, and could do as much as possible to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings. From this detail, it could be seen that the owner of that elderly voice was extremely cautious.
Xu Yourong could only vaguely see a blurry image, and could not clearly see the details. However, from the calm expression on her face, it was impossible to see this. From that person's voice, she could hear an intense wariness and vigilance. She thought about the routine and bloody battles after the opening of the Garden of Zhou, and then thought about how she was covered in blood. It was indeed easy to misunderstand. She said, "Not an enemy."
This was the first time they had met, so they naturally could not be considered friends, but they were also not opponents. This was the explanation she gave.
After a while, a person walked out from the other side of the cliff. That person had a head full of white hair, and an elderly face. He was at least over a hundred years old. His expression and pace were very calm and steady, but he did not conceal his vigilance. Although he had walked out, his right hand that hung by his waist held a magical artifact, as if he could strike at any time. He maintained what he saw as a safe distance from Xu Yourong.
This distance was very particular. It allowed him to feel safe, and it also allowed her to feel at ease. If it was not a senior that had experienced many years of wind, frost, snow, and rain, it would be impossible for him to have such an exquisite sense of propriety.
Xu Yourong sensed that the other party did not conceal his Qi, and confirmed that this old man was an expert at the peak of Ethereal Opening. Her heart tightened slightly, but the expression on her face relaxed.
She loosened the bowstring, gripped the longbow, and said, "May I ask for Senior's esteemed name?"
The rules of the Garden of Zhou had always been bloody and violent. Moreover, the human cultivators that were not in the three gardens and were still hiding in the wilderness were often experts. They had ideas about the treasures and legacies of the Garden of Zhou. Meeting with such people would probably result in a fierce battle. It must be known that it was extremely likely that the other party did not know that the demons had already infiltrated the Garden of Zhou.
As a result, she calmly and straightforwardly continued, "The demons have already infiltrated the Garden of Zhou, and we have been injured by a sneak attack from the demons."
This was still an explanation, but there was a hidden meaning in the explanation. The demons that were able to infiltrate the Garden of Zhou were certainly powerful, but if they needed a sneak attack to injure her, then she must also be very powerful.
It was unknown whether the old man had obtained the conclusion she wanted him to obtain from her seemingly careless explanation. This was because it was very obvious that the old man was just as she had guessed. From the moment he entered the Garden of Zhou, he had always been hiding in the wilderness, deliberately avoiding contact with other cultivators. As a result, he still did not know that the demons had entered the Garden of Zhou. After hearing her words, he was very shocked.
"How did the demons enter the Garden of Zhou?"
The old man was very shocked, but he did not show any fear. He looked at the gray string on his wrist and sneered, "No wonder so many strange things happened."
It was very obvious that he had already completed his treasure hunt in the Garden of Zhou and found what he needed. As a result, he had tried to ignite the gray string and leave, but he had failed.
Xu Yourong did not explain, because the demons' plot was too complicated, and there was no need.
The old man looked at Chen Changsheng on the fallen leaves behind her. Seeing his body covered in frost, he felt slightly astonished and asked, "This person is your companion?"
Xu Yourong shook her head and said, "I don't recognize him. I only saw him being attacked by demon experts and just happened to save him."
"Even at that kind of time, you still didn't forget to save someone. You're not bad, little girl."
The old man looked at her with an expression of praise, and then said, "But, where are you going?"
Xu Yourong said, "The human cultivators are currently gathered in three gardens. I was originally prepared to bring this fellow cultivator over, but because I was injured, I couldn't go very fast. It would take at least half a day, and I was worried that the demons would catch up. I didn't want to meet Senior, so I'd like to trouble Senior to notify other fellow cultivators to come and receive us."
The old man showed an expression of disapproval and said, "We can travel together. I'll send you over, how can I let you stay here and risk your lives?"
Xu Yourong said, "The demon experts that have infiltrated the Garden of Zhou are very strong. If Senior wants to take care of the two of us, I'm afraid …"
Her words had an endless meaning, but they were good intentions.
The old man smiled and said, "If we were outside the Garden of Zhou, we might have to be a little more careful. But in the Garden of Zhou, I actually want to meet those demon experts that you speak of."
His smile was very free and easy, his expression calm and at ease, and his eyes warm and bright. When he said those words, he seemed extremely confident.
An expert at the peak of Ethereal Opening should be an invincible existence in the Garden of Zhou. The old man's confidence naturally had its reasons.
For some reason, Xu Yourong did not tell him that the demon experts that had infiltrated the Garden of Zhou were even more terrifying than normal peak Ethereal Opening experts, not to mention that there was a terrifying existence like Nanke.
She revealed an expression of curiosity and respect and asked, "May I ask who Senior is?"
The old man said, "My surname is Bai, and my name is Hai. I've cultivated in the Setting Sun Sect for over two hundred years. I very rarely leave the sect to travel, so I presume that you don't know me."
Xu Yourong was slightly startled, as if she was somewhat at a loss about this name.
In reality, she felt rather cold.
… …
… …
(The next chapter was around ten o 'clock.)
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