That night, those who were supposed to rest had already rested. Niu Youdao observed the defensive arrangement of the troops. Although the five hundred troops were on duty to rest and be on guard, it seemed that anything unusual within a radius of a few miles would not be able to escape their detection. He felt a little relieved.
In one of the tents, Lan Ruoting peeked at Niu Youdao's movements and carefully observed them. He smiled and muttered to himself, "Interesting …"
After a short stroll, Niu Youdao returned to his own tent and took out the letter. With the help of the light from the bonfire outside, he pulled out his sword and carefully cut open the seal. He took out the paper inside and looked at it carefully. It turned out to be a piece of white paper, not even a single ink spot could be seen.
After looking at it repeatedly in the light from the bonfire outside, he put the paper in front of his nose and sniffed it repeatedly. Finally, he stuck out the tip of his tongue and licked the paper randomly, tasting its taste. He was worried that the letter might have used some kind of drug to hide the handwriting, but after licking it, he understood everything. It turned out to be a fake letter.
"The abbot of Nanshan Temple in Guangyi Prefecture … It seems that Old Tu's warning was not without purpose. He really wants to harm me. Does he really think that I am a pushover …" Niu Youdao frowned as he muttered to himself. He was thinking that if he was really targeted by the Shanghai Sect, it would be troublesome. After all, there were many things that he did not know about.
After thinking about it repeatedly, he came up with a plan. He folded the white paper again and put it back into the envelope …
Early the next morning, when the sky was just beginning to brighten, everyone was ready to set off after eating.
The tents were set up and taken care of, the horses were fed and sent over. There was no need for Niu Youdao to care about anything. Everything was well taken care of. It was obvious that they were a group of well-trained fellows.
The group set off again and galloped at full speed. Niu Youdao noticed that it was different from the day before. No one was sandwiching him in the middle of the group to keep an eye on him.
After galloping for some distance, Niu Youdao suddenly spurred his horse to the front, forming a line with Shang Chaozong and the other two.
The three of them looked at him. Niu Youdao casually found a topic, "Prince, with your status, do you only have 500 men with you?"
Shang Chaozong said: "With this prince's rank, without an official position, according to the ancestral rules, this prince is only allowed to have five hundred personal guards."
"Oh! I see. " Niu Youdao nodded his head. Actually, he was just trying to find a topic to talk about. After he finished talking, he stayed in the front row and refused to leave. How uncomfortable would it be to eat dust at the back?
Lan Ruoting suddenly smiled and asked, "Forgive me for my shallow knowledge, but dare I ask Venerable One, where is the Tomb of the Heroes of the Five Tombs?"
"Uh..." Niu Youdao immediately realized that it had something to do with his Peach Blossom Poem. He could not help but look at Shang Shuqing. Unfortunately, the other's face was covered and he could not see his reaction. It was useless to look at him. He then laughed and said, "I made it up."
This explanation really made Lan Ruoting speechless. He then asked Niu Youdao about the situation of the Shangqing Sect. Even though Niu Youdao had stayed in the Shangqing Sect for a few years, he did not know anything at all. He just said that it was' hard to explain '.
Actually, what he said was the truth. But in the eyes of Lan Ruoting and the others, this fellow was not telling the truth!
Half the morning passed. They passed through the mountains, crossed the wasteland and followed the road to the riverside. Looking at the scenery along the way, Niu Youdao's expression gradually revealed a look of contemplation and reminiscence.
It was only when three old trees appeared side by side at the foot of the mountain on the other side of the river that Niu Youdao could confirm that they were not far from the mountain village that they had left five years ago.
The river began to flow into the mountains. When they were about to reach a small path that led into the mountains, Niu Youdao suddenly turned around and said, "Prince, can we stop at the intersection in front?"
While they were talking, they had already arrived. Shang Chaozong raised his hand and the men and horses one by one pulled on the reins and stopped.
Shang Chaozong asked, "Venerable One, what's the matter?"
Niu Youdao raised his whip and pointed to the small path at the side, "To be honest, Prince, there is a mountain village here. It is the place where I was born. I left when I was young and have never returned. I want to go back and see how it is. It won't take up too much time. Can I ask Prince to wait for a while?"
Shang Chaozong looked at Lan Ruoting with the intention of asking for his opinion.
Lan Ruoting looked around and smiled, "If that's the case, Prince, why don't we go together and see what kind of place can produce venerable mages?"
Shang Chaozong understood the meaning behind his words and wanted to take the opportunity to find out more about Niu Youdao. He nodded and said, "Alright!"
Niu Youdao was well aware of it and was too lazy to explain anything. He smiled and replied, "It's just a poor mountain village. I'm just afraid that Prince won't like it."
"Let's go!" Shang Chaozong raised his whip and pointed. Immediately, a few scouts galloped forward to scout the path while the rest of the men followed behind.
As they passed through the dense forest in the mountains, without any orders, the men on the left and right started to notch their bows or grab their weapons. They were on high alert. Niu Youdao turned around and looked at these men. He could feel that these men were not ordinary soldiers. They were very experienced.
"Shh … Shh … Shh … Shh."
Suddenly, the sound of birds chirping could be heard from the mountains. Niu Youdao felt as though he was electrocuted. He looked towards the direction of the chirping and widened his eyes.
"Prince, this bird's chirping doesn't sound right."
One of the guards suddenly reminded. Shang Chaozong and the rest immediately reined in their horses and were on high alert.
Some of the men protected Shang Chaozong and the rest while some started to sandwiched Niu Youdao in the middle. Their bows were already aimed at him. Like a tiger watching its prey, they seemed to be treating Niu Youdao as someone who was trying to lure them into a trap. If anything went wrong, they would attack at any time.
"Shh … Shh … Shh …"
From afar, the sound of birds chirping could be heard.
Niu Youdao immediately became excited. He looked around and pursed his lips, "Shh … Shh … Shh". He mimicked the sound of birds chirping three times.
The surroundings fell into silence. After a while, the sound of "Shh … Shh" was heard again.
Niu Youdao's eyes lit up. He ignored the threats around him and shouted angrily, "Move aside!"
Lan Ruoting was silent for a while. He waved his hand and signaled for his men to move aside.
Niu Youdao immediately galloped out. After galloping for a short distance, he stopped again. "Shh … …" He pursed his lips again and let out a long chirping sound.
He then reined in his horse and circled around, constantly observing the surroundings.
Not long after, a figure appeared in the forest. A tall and sturdy young man rushed to the waist of the mountain and stopped under a big tree. He stared at Niu Youdao with his eyes wide open. He didn't seem to care about the bows aimed at him.
Niu Youdao was also looking at the other party in bewilderment. The two of them looked at each other endlessly. Shang Chaozong and the rest who were behind felt strange.
The tall and sturdy young man was obviously very excited. His lips trembled for a long time. Finally, he said with a trembling voice, "Dao … Daoye, is that you?"
This long awaited word 'Daoye' really made Niu Youdao's blood boil!
Niu Youdao clenched his fist and lowered his elbow. He suddenly pointed at him and said excitedly, "Monkey!"
The word 'monkey' made the tall and sturdy young man lose control of his emotions. He ignored the thorns and rushed down and jumped onto the mountain path.
Niu Youdao jumped off the horse. The two of them opened up their arms and hugged each other tightly. They patted each other's back hard. They were more affectionate than a pair of lovers in love.
Lan Ruoting and the others almost had goosebumps when they saw this. However, they finally understood. From the moment they met this Niu Youdao, they could tell that he was a calm and collected person. He was rather carefree. Now that he had lost his composure, it was clear that he had met an old friend who was not an ordinary friend.
However, the guards around them did not dare to let down their guard. They were highly alert of their surroundings. It would be strange if they did not understand that the bird call was a signal. Furthermore, there was one thing that they were very sure of. Niu Youdao was also very familiar with this bird call signal.
It was hard for outsiders to understand the loneliness of the two of them hugging each other. It was a kind of loneliness in the depths of their hearts. Outsiders would also not be able to understand the friendship between the two of them.
After their emotions stabilized, the two of them pushed each other away and looked at each other. Their eyes were filled with too many emotions.
When Niu Youdao saw Monkey's majestic build and the fact that his head was actually half a head taller than him, he suddenly laughed out loud when he recalled how Monkey used to be nicknamed 'Monkey' because of his skinny body.
Monkey's previous state of losing control had disappeared. He seemed to have returned to his previous expressionless and cold self. Very cool!
Some things that came from the soul could not be changed.
"Daoye, what are you laughing at?" Monkey asked.
Niu Youdao shook his head and said with a chuckle, "Don't you think there's something wrong with your current figure?"
Monkey was stunned for a moment. He seemed to understand something. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly, indicating that he also found it funny.
With a helpless smile, Niu Youdao asked curiously, "Why are you here? I think I saw you escape into the tunnel. "
Monkey said calmly, "I might still have a chance to survive if I didn't enter the tunnel."
Niu Youdao was stunned. "What do you mean?"
Monkey said, "The entire tunnel collapsed. I had nowhere to hide."
"…" Niu Youdao was speechless. He had thought that the other party had escaped quickly. He did not expect his ending to be even worse. He sighed and gestured towards the end of the mountain path. "You also came from that Small Temple Village?"
Monkey nodded and asked, "You are Niu Youdao?"
Niu Youdao was amused. "How did you know?"
Monkey said, "After I woke up and found myself shot by an arrow, I found out that the village had been looted by bandits not long ago. When I was recuperating, I heard that there was a person called Niu Youdao in the village who became a little strange. He asked the villagers all sorts of questions like an idiot, saying that he did not remember anything like me and that the villagers did not know when he left the village. I immediately realized that it should be you, Daoye. However, my body was severely injured at the time and it was not suitable for me to look for you. I did not know where to look for you either. "
Shang Chaozong and the others were looking in this direction. They were a little far away and could not hear what the two were talking about.
Niu Youdao nodded silently and patted him on the shoulder. "I always thought that you had escaped, but I didn't expect you to come as well. Otherwise, I wouldn't have left Little Temple Village alone."
Monkey only said one word, "Understood!"
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