Chapter 191 — The Leak

Ming Li glanced at her, turned away with an utterly indifferent face, and paid her no further heed, striding on. Jin Pingyue followed with a smile; and at the very instant she was about to enter the forest, she suddenly swept her hand—a white light flashed from her palm and flew out, swift as could be, and with a muffled "thunk" drove itself hard into a crevice in a remote corner of the cliff.

The gleam flickered faintly in that crevice: it was the Slaughtering Blade of old.

When one looked again, Jin Pingyue's figure had already vanished.

Bitter wind and wretched rain seemed once more to close in, shrouding this uncanny black forest. Far off, the vast vault of heaven over the Ten Thousand Wild Mountains seemed all gray, and who could say whether some god or demon roared and raged in that dark underworld, watching those seemingly paltry beings in the world of heaven and earth…

The wind and rain grew fiercer!

Even as Ming Li and Jin Pingyue struggled through bitter wind and wretched rain in the Ten Thousand Wild Mountains, tracking the Beast Lord, the southern borderlands beyond the range were likewise in a fervent mood.

More and more disciples of the righteous path were arriving in the southern lands, and with their clamor their coming had quickly thinned the remnants of beast-demons still drifting through the region; never before had this southern soil gathered so many men of the central plains, and most of them, moreover, cultivators.

The native peoples of the southern five tribes had always kept these outsiders at a respectful distance. And among these righteous disciples there seemed, too, to be a strange atmosphere: most, unless of the same sect or school, kept their distance when they met, and there were even occasional reports of clashes between disciples of certain sects.

As to what the trouble was over, however, no one ever seemed to proclaim it aloud.

In a sense, the Fierce Sunset Valley, the oldest cultivation house of the southern lands, naturally became the best place for many righteous disciples unfamiliar with local geography to call upon and seek guidance; and so the Fierce Sunset Valley, forsaking its former tranquility, saw an endless stream of visitors, with people coming and going every day.

It was in such circumstances that on this day three people arrived at the gate of the Fierce Sunset Valley—one man and two women—disciples of the Canglan Sect: Zeng Shuyan of the Fenghui Peak, and Wen Pei and Lu Xueling of the Xiaozhu Peak.

Of course, the Canglan Sect disciples who came to the southern lands numbered far more than these three. In truth, the Canglan Sect now claimed the title of the foremost righteous sect under heaven, and had sent countless disciples of the younger generation; yet several of its finest had been unable to come. Apart from a few who already bore heavy duties in the sect, such as Qi Hao, Xiao Yichen too had been unable to free himself, since of late the Daoist Master Daoyan had attended little to affairs and the many matters of the Jietian Peak fell largely to him to manage. As for Lin Jinghong, this time he had insisted on keeping watch in the Ancestral Master Hall, said to be guarding the spirit of a certain Qingyun elder to whom he owed a debt of deepest kindness, and so he too could not come.

Of those who remained, Zeng Shuyan and Lu Xueling were the leaders. Zeng Shuyan was simple enough—his father Zeng Shuchang gave him a few words of instruction and off he went to the southern lands; but Lu Xueling's coming this time had been rather more roundabout. It was said that Master Shuijing had at first not wished to let her go out, but later, for some reason, changed his mind—only he specially had Lu Xueling's senior sister Wen Pei come along as well. Wen Pei's coming had one advantage, at least: on the road Zeng Shuyan had someone to talk to. Otherwise Zeng Shuyan, a restless fellow by nature, had he had only the frost-cold Lu Xueling for company on the journey, would likely have spent nine of every ten sentences talking to himself, and the tenth being Lu Xueling's impatient order for him to be off.

On the road to the southern lands, Zeng Shuyan had gotten on quite harmoniously with Wen Pei, and as the three took counsel together, Zeng Shuyan proposed that in any case, as fellow disciples of the righteous path, having come to the southern lands, they ought to pay a call at the Fierce Sunset Valley.

But Lu Xueling seemed unwilling. She stated her view mildly: she had been to the southern lands before, after all, and roughly knew the way; there was no need to trouble others, and so forth.

Zeng Shuyan and Wen Pei knew well enough in their hearts that Lu Xueling still bore a knot in hers. That day, in the Yuheng Hall on the Jietian Peak of the Canglan Sect, she had publicly and firmly refused the marriage suit pressed upon her by Yun Yifeng, master of the Fierce Sunset Valley, on behalf of his prized disciple Li Xun, greatly wounding the pride of both Yun Yifeng and the Daoist Master Daoyan; naturally she was unwilling to have dealings with the Fierce Sunset Valley again.

Yet after several discussions between Zeng Shuyan and Wen Pei, it was Wen Pei after all who persuaded Lu Xueling that they must go and make a show of it, or things would look bad before their elders in the future. Lu Xueling hesitated again and again, but at last agreed.

The three came to the mouth of the Fierce Sunset Valley. They already had some reputation, and Lu Xueling especially was a beauty of a nation-toppling, heaven-sent loveliness; ever since the younger generation of the Canglan Sect had risen, her fame and her looks had become known throughout the world. And for the Fierce Sunset Valley, Lu Xueling carried perhaps an added meaning still; so no sooner had the three figures appeared at the valley mouth than they were recognized almost at once by the Fierce Sunset Valley disciples.

After the first shock came what seemed a ripple of commotion, but someone hurried inside to report, and several men at once came forward to greet them. The foremost of them cupped his hands with a smile and said, "Ah, so Senior Sister Lu has graced Fenxia Valley with her presence—what a rare honor. And these two must be senior disciples of the Canglan Sect as well. Please, please, come in."

Zeng Shuyan exchanged a glance with Wen Pei behind him, secretly stuck out his tongue and made a face, thinking that this Lu Xueling's reputation was indeed fearsome—even the ordinary disciples of Fenxia Valley had recognized her at a single glance, while he and Wen Pei were plainly the sort of passersby who trailed along behind and beside a beauty.

The two of them were not offended in the least; Zeng Shuyan, all smiles, joked and chattered merrily with the Fenxia Valley disciples the whole way, and every so often set them roaring with laughter. Walking behind, Wen Pei said softly, with a smile, to Lu Xueling beside her, "Junior Sister, look at that Junior Brother Zeng—they have only just met, and already he is thick as thieves with them. He really is something."

Lu Xueling glanced ahead, where Zeng Shuyan had by now draped an arm over the shoulder of a Fenxia Valley disciple. She smiled faintly and said nothing.

Soon enough, led by the Fenxia Valley disciples, they arrived at the Shanhe Hall of Fenxia Valley. There, at the head of the hall, Yun Yifeng was sitting in the seat of honor with a smile, waiting for them—plainly, in the eyes of the Valley Master of Fenxia Valley, these three outstanding disciples of the Canglan Sect carried a weight altogether different from that of other sects.