Yuan Gang understood what he meant. After encountering trouble along the way, everything went smoothly. The ghost did not show itself again, which was somewhat strange.
From the destruction of the torches, it seemed like it had stopped halfway. At that time, they had made an assessment. Either the other party saw that they had broken through the method and there was no point in continuing to destroy the torches, or they were not familiar with the road ahead and could not find the torches before destroying them. Or it could be a combination of the two.
Now that they asked about the situation in the village, the ghost even dared to attack cultivators. There were no cultivators in the village but they were not attacked. This meant that the ghost had not reached this place yet.
No matter what the situation was, one thing was certain. The ghost had destroyed so many torches along the way. It was not just a short distance, it was obvious that it wanted to kill. The other party had spent so much effort and they had not fought before. They did not know the depth of the other party's strength. Why did it let them go so easily?
The only explanation was that it was not that it let them go easily, but that the ghost was very careful. It did not dare to act rashly without confidence. This also proved what Niu Youdao said, that the ghost's strength was limited.
Soon, two women arrived at the foot of the mountain. Together with them, there was a very simple palanquin, the kind with two poles and a chair.
Just as they helped Shang Shuqing onto the palanquin, Niu Youdao suddenly said, "Monkey, accompany the princess down the mountain first." He then gave Yuan Gang a look.
Yuan Gang knew that he was to find out the situation in the village first.
Shang Shuqing and the others heard him and turned around. Luo An asked, "Master, are you not going down the mountain?"
Niu Youdao said, "I have something to do. General Luo, can I borrow the guard here for a while? "He raised his chin towards the thatched pavilion.
Luo An asked curiously, "Master, what's the matter?"
Shang Shuqing knew Niu Youdao's habit. He liked to leave some leeway. It was useless to ask about things that he was not willing to say. He then said, "Uncle Luo, let's listen to Master's arrangements."
Since she had already spoken, Luo An could only call out to someone, "Shan Hu, did you hear that?"
The young man who had rung the bell nodded and said, "Yes."
A group of people then surrounded and carried Shang Shuqing down the mountain. Yuan Gang packed a few bags and carried them on his back before following them down the mountain.
Niu Youdao smiled as he watched them leave. He realized that people of different backgrounds were indeed different. Even though they came to this remote mountain, they were still treated differently. No matter how poor their family was, they were still a hundred times better than ordinary people. What was there to complain about? This was the foundation!
"Daoye, you want to take care of that sneaky fellow?" Yuan Fang came over and asked in a low voice. He had obviously noticed something was off.
Niu Youdao said in a low voice, "I'm here to train in seclusion, I can't be disturbed. If I don't get rid of this ghost, I won't be able to rest easy!"
"Oh!" Yuan Fang understood and nodded.
Niu Youdao continued in a low voice, "I'm guessing that ghost won't give up so easily. He might be following us all the way, waiting for an opportunity to strike. The sun is shining brightly now. With Yin and Yang separated, he probably won't dare to show himself. When the sky turns dark, he might come out to search. Go back inside and find a place to hide. Once he shows himself, immediately cut off his escape route. I'll stand guard outside and support you. "
Yuan Fang nodded, "Understood." After saying that, he turned around and was about to go back inside. However, he paused and turned around again, saying, "Daoye, he might be hiding at the entrance. If I go in, I might be discovered by him. I have a plan to avoid this worry."
Niu Youdao said, "Tell me about it."
Yuan Fang whispered in his ear for a while. Niu Youdao nodded and returned to the entrance of the cave with Yuan Fang.
Yuan Fang carried the torch that had been unloaded at the entrance of the cave while Niu Youdao lit up a torch and led the way. The two of them purposely talked to each other and made their way back into the cave one after another. They returned to the underground river confidently and placed the torch back where it was placed. Then, they returned together. Halfway up, Yuan Fang's figure flashed, and he hid in a corner. Niu Youdao walked out of the cave, extinguished the torch, and casually threw it to the side. He walked towards the thatched pavilion.
"Venerable One!" The young man named Shan Hu bowed and asked, "Do you have any instructions?" He even glanced at the entrance of the cave, as if wondering why Yuan Fang hadn't come out.
Niu Youdao asked, "Are you the only one keeping watch? Will someone bring you meals? "
Shan Hu replied, "There's nothing much to do here. There's only one person keeping watch during the day and someone will come and take over when it's mealtime. At night, there'll be two companions, and they'll change shifts every four hours. "
Niu Youdao smiled, "Got it. How about this, I'll keep watch for you during the day. You can go back."
"Ah! How can I do that? "Shan Hu waved his hand.
Niu Youdao held his sword in front of him and placed both hands on the hilt. He said sternly, "Shall I discuss this with General Luo?"
"Uh … Alright!" Shan Hu scratched his head as if he was a little afraid of Luo An. He walked out of the pavilion and said, "I'll bring you meals when it's mealtime."
Niu Youdao could feel the simplicity of the people here. He smiled and said, "There's no need. If anyone has any objections, you can ask the princess!" Actually, with his level of cultivation, it was fine if he didn't eat for two or three days. At most, he would be physically weak.
After watching the slightly puzzled Shan Hu go down the mountain, Niu Youdao took a good look at the surrounding scenery and the terrain. Finally, he sat cross-legged in the thatched pavilion and closed his eyes to meditate. After walking in the secret passage for a whole day, he was indeed a little tired …
"Uncle Meng!"
At the foot of the mountain, a group of people came to greet him. The leader was a white-haired man sitting on a wooden wheelchair. His face was thin and elegant, his eyes gentle and powerful. He was neatly groomed from head to toe. One could tell that he was a very disciplined and meticulous person.
After alighting from the sedan, Shang Shuqing ignored the pain in his feet and ran to him. He squatted beside him. His eyes were red. It was obvious that he had a special relationship with this person.
This person was called Meng Shan Ming. He was originally the number one general under King Ning Shang Jianbo. He was a scholarly general who was well-versed in both the pen and the sword. Later on, he was seriously injured in the battle where ten thousand Ying Yang Wu Lie Graud attacked the enemy's army of a hundred thousand. Both of his legs were severely damaged and he could no longer stand up. This was also the reason why he was in a wheelchair. King Ning's original intention was to let him live the rest of his life in peace. However, he was worried about the relationship between King Ning and the imperial court. Therefore, he voluntarily gave up his high position and wealth and brought his family to live in seclusion here. Unfortunately, as he had expected, to a certain extent, living in seclusion here helped him escape the purge of the imperial court.
Now, this secret place was under his charge.
"Your Highness, you've grown up. It's good that you're fine. It's good that you're fine!" Meng Shan Ming touched her head and sighed with tears in his eyes. "I received the message from the Little Prince and knew that Your Highness was coming. He estimated that it would take at least two or three days for you to arrive. I didn't expect that you would arrive so soon and that I couldn't welcome you in time!"
"Uncle Meng, you're being too polite." Shang Shuqing shook her head. She didn't think that they would arrive so quickly. Fortunately, Niu Youdao carried her on his back and sped up the entire way. What should have been a few days of rugged travel took only two days.
It was just that the matter of being piggybacked by Niu Youdao was something that even she found hard to talk about.
"You must be tired after such a long journey. Don't squat here. Let's talk about it at home." Meng Shan Ming waved his hand when he saw that she was uncomfortable and knew that her feet were uncomfortable.
They turned around and came to a temple-like courtyard. It could be said that it was the best building in the village.
The main hall was spacious and the smell of incense was strong. The platform behind the incense burner was full of memorial tablets with names written on them. They were all memorial tablets of deceased generals. The memorial tablets of King Ning, Shang Jianbo, and his two sons were in the middle.
Shang Shuqing went forward to burn incense and worship. Then she sat on a chair next to Meng Shan Ming in the hall. She told Meng Shan Ming about what they had experienced after King Ning passed away. She didn't hide anything from Meng Shan Ming. The others were asked to leave by Meng Shan Ming. Some things should not be known by too many people.
In fact, Meng Shan Ming knew the general situation. After all, he had been in contact with Lan Ruoting through secret letters. However, there were some things in the secret letters that could not be discussed in detail. They were also vague. He was afraid that something bad would happen to the golden-winged bird if it fell into someone else's hands. Naturally, he had to ask about it.
After the two chatted for a while, Luo An walked in quickly and wanted to whisper in Meng Shan Ming's ear.
Meng Shan Ming raised his hand and grabbed the beard on Luo An's cheek. He looked elegant, but his grip was heavy. Luo An let out a cry.
Slap! Meng Shan Ming let go of his hand and knocked Luo An's cheek with the back of his palm. "The princess is not an outsider. Why are you so sneaky? Is there anything you can't say in front of the princess? "
Luo An rubbed his cheek awkwardly. "I didn't pay attention. I forgot." He looked like a rough man with a beard, but he was very obedient in front of Meng Shan Ming.
Shang Shuqing pursed his lips and smiled. "It seems that Uncle Meng still has his martial arts skills."
"I'm disabled. I can't do it anymore." Meng Shan Ming smiled and waved his hand. He turned to Luo An and asked, "What's the matter? Tell me."
Luo An said, "The person who came with the princess is wandering around the village. I don't know if I should stop him in some places."
Shang Shuqing immediately knew that he was talking about Yuan Gang.
Meng Shan Ming said indifferently, "The Prince asked someone to come here, so he must be a reliable person. There's no need to stop him. Go and inform him. Don't make a mistake."
Shang Shuqing also added, "There's indeed nothing to hide from him. Since he's here, some things can't be hidden anymore."
Luo An immediately walked away.
Meng Shan Ming's attention was also on this matter. "I was too excited to see the princess. I almost forgot. I heard that Mr. Dongguo's last disciple is here. Why didn't he show up?"
Shang Shuqing looked a little serious. "I think he ran into some trouble in the secret passage …" She told him about the accident in the secret passage.
Meng Shan Ming's expression also became serious. "There's a ghost living in it. If we don't get rid of it, it will be troublesome."
Shang Shuqing said, "If I'm not wrong, he didn't go down the mountain because he went to deal with it."
Meng Shan Ming asked, "Are you sure? Should we send someone to cooperate with him?"
Shang Shuqing said, "Since he took action, he must be confident."
Meng Shan Ming said doubtfully, "We didn't fight in the secret passage, so we don't know his strength. Why are you so sure?"
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