“Sure!” The master and his two disciples nodded in unison.
They originally didn’t want to believe it, but Jiu Hui gave them dragonbone fish to eat!
The jade slip bounced twice in Jiu Hui’s palm, then fell completely still.
She glanced at the jade slip and looked at Elder Mo for help, “Elder, what should I do with this?”
“We, the disciples of Wangshu Pavilion, kindly picked up a jade slip that had fallen for no reason, and even helped deliver the jade slip to the person it belonged to. This is considered a good deed.” Elder Mo tapped the jade slip, and a light screen emerged from the jade slip, displaying a string of words.
[To the Jiutian Sect]
The words gradually dissipated, replaced by a recording.
The jade tokens of the major sects intertwined and tangled together. The light emitted by the jade tokens intertwined for a long time, and finally a few small characters emerged that were about to dissipate.
[To the North, the Evil Dog Rises]
But whether it was because the jade token’s energy was insufficient or because of some other change, the characters disappeared without a trace before they could fully form. Even the intertwined sect jade tokens fell to the ground with a clatter, becoming dull and lifeless.
The light screen disappeared. Jiu Hui tapped it several times, but it didn’t respond.
“Master, what is this recording?” Luo Yan vaguely felt that these words had an ominous omen.
“The prophecy of Zhenxing Tower.” Elder Mo took the jade slip from Jiu Hui’s palm. “These are matters that the elders should worry about. You children don’t need to bother yourselves with them.”
“To the North? We came all the way from Wenxian City, which seems to be in the north.” Chang He shook his head. “Fortunately, once we pass Qiyue City, we’ll be in the southern territory, so we won’t have to deal with any evil dogs.”
“The north is so vast. Even if there were a prophecy, where would we find this evil dog of unknown appearance?” Elder Mo reached out and knocked Chang He on the head. “If the evil dog is just the beginning of all the misfortune, then even if we are lucky enough to find it, what can we do? I told you to cultivate your mind as you cultivate your immortality. Look at how useless you are!” Elder Mo pinched his fingers and brushed away the aura on the jade slip. He tossed it into the air, and the jade slip transformed into a stream of light once more, disappearing into the clouds.
“We won’t do this good deed this time.” Elder Mo said with a smile, “Don’t worry about anything else, let’s head back to the sect early.”
After he finished speaking, he took out a handful of spirit stones from his sleeve, caressed them with heartache, and then stuffed all the spirit stones into the gourd’s mouth: “Chang He, send a message to the sect master, saying that we will arrive in two hours.”
“Yes, Master.”carpreads.pages.dev
Jiu Hui couldn’t help but look at the Zhenshan Cauldron in the distance again. The sky had already darkened, and the light of the Zhenshan Cauldron was even more dazzling.
“What are you thinking about?” Zhi You asked.
“I wonder if anyone has tried to seize the Cauldron over the years.” Jiu Hui looked at Zhi You. “I wonder what the Cauldron looks like?”
“That’s not something to think about.” Luo Yan sat cross-legged on the other side of Jiu Hui. “Each cauldron has nearly a thousand protective barriers. The cauldrons are surrounded by the most powerful formations and guarded by cauldron keepers. What’s more, these ten cauldrons protect the entire world. They not only protect humans, but also demons and yaos. If anyone dares to touch these cauldrons, I’m afraid even the most evil demon in the Demon Realm would jump out to uphold justice and slap him a few times.”
“Do you know which cauldron is the closest to our Wangshu Pavilion? It’s the Zhenhe Cauldron!” Luo Yan said proudly, “It’s only three hundred li from our sect to the Zhenhe Cauldron, and of the Zhenhe Cauldron’s thousand protective formations, ten were laid down by our ancestors.”
“What about the remaining nine hundred and ninety?”
Luo Yan coughed dryly. “The Elders of the Wenxing School next door and the Elders of the Wanhuo Sect next door to that are quite accomplished in the field of protective formations…”
“Settle in, we’ll be back to the sect for dinner tonight.” Elder Mo interrupted their conversation. “Jiu Hui, Zhi You, I’ll let you experience the true speed of the gourd.”
Time was of the essence, and he had to bring the two golden treasures back to his sect!
“Feixia, take flight and lead the way. Go!”
The gourd, which was originally like being pulled by an old donkey, suddenly took off like lightning. Jiu Hui looked down and saw all the scenery receding rapidly, too fast to even make out the details.
As the moon began to rise, even though it was missing a sliver, its glow was still captivating.
As the gourd slowed down and passed through the clouds, Jiu Hui couldn’t help but let out a cry of surprise.
Strange mountains and green waters, flowers and trees growing in profusion, what a wonderful picture of mountains surrounding water, and water surrounding mountains. Between the strange mountains, there was a huge clear lake, in the lake there was a large and four small flower islands in a ring shape, and Wangshu Pavilion was built on the five islands.
The flying eaves and jade pillars were half-hidden and half-revealed among the layers of flowers and trees, but only in the middle of the largest island was there a martial arts field surrounded by flowers and trees. By the moonlight, Jiu Hui saw that there seemed to be some people standing on the martial arts field.
“We’ve arrived at Wangshu Pavilion.”
The gourd slowly descended, and Elder Mo jumped off the gourd: “Jiu Hui, Zhi You, the sect master and several elders are waiting for you.”
Jiu Hui stepped off the gourd and onto the ground, only to find that the ground was covered in a layer of pink and white petals. The air was filled with the sweet scent of flowers, and she looked up at the huge jade plaque floating above her head. The jade plaque emitted a faint, bright light, and the words “Wangshu Pavilion” were engraved on it.
While she was in a daze, Elder Mo and his two disciples had already greeted the sect members. Jiu Hui bowed to them as a junior.
The woman in the lead wore a purple wide-sleeved dress. Her features were bright and impressive, and she looked no more than thirty years old. She smiled gently at Jiu Hui and Zhi You. “You’ve had a hard journey. We’re all family, so let’s not stand on ceremony. Let’s go to the inner hall and have a meal first.”
Gentle and considerate, even the water in the lake was three points inferior to her.
Luo Yan’s expression was dazed and complicated as she whispered to Chang He, “When we first joined the sect, the sect uncle was also this gentle.”
“Now the new surpasses the old…”
The Sect Master smiled and glanced at the two of them. “Luo Yan and Chang He must be hungry too. We’ll have dinner later and then you can chat with your junior brother and junior sister.”
“Alright, Sect Uncle.” Luo Yan and Chang He both shut their mouths.
The Sect Master led Jiu Hui and Zhi You up the steps, her voice soft as she introduced the scenery of Wangshu Pavilion, as pleasant to the ear as the sound of a gurgling spring.
After entering the inner hall and waiting for Jiu Hui and Zhi You to be seated, the Sect Master began to introduce herself and the sect’s elders: “My name is Yu Jing. Thanks to the strong support of the four elders present, I am barely able to serve as the Sect Master of Wangshu Pavilion.”
“Of the four Elders, Elder Mo has already met you. The remaining three are Elder Chang, Elder Lin, and Elder Xi. The others are their disciples.” After the Sect Master introduced the four Elders, she asked, “Our Wangshu Pavilion has always been peaceful and doesn’t recruit many disciples. Which of them would you two like to take as your master?”
“I will follow the Sect Master’s arrangements.” Zhi You spoke before Jiu Hui for a rare time. “My aptitude is mediocre, so I dare not be picky.”
“If cultivation only depended on aptitude, how could it be called cultivation?” Sect Master Yu Jing chuckled. “Since Elder Mo brought you back, it means you have a connection with our Wangshu Pavilion.”
They had never accepted such wealthy disciples before, so how could they not consider it fate?
“I would like to take the two of them as disciples,” Elder Chang sighed. “However, their appearances are too outstanding. I’m afraid that if I take them in, my reputation for many years of being a pure cultivator will not be preserved.”
Elder Chang had snow-white hair, but his face was extremely beautiful, and even his clothes were more exquisite than those of the other Elders.
Jiu Hui looked at Elder Chang in confusion. She and Zhi You were good-looking, so how could they ruin Elder Chang’s reputation?
Seeing that they didn’t understand, Elder Chang had no choice but to explain, “You’re young, so you may not know. Have you ever heard the rumors about the aloof master and his beautiful apprentice?
Jiu Hui shook her head in confusion, and Zhi You’s face was even more bewildered.
“In recent centuries, there have been several cases of ill-fated relationships between masters and disciples, so much so that people in the immortal cultivation world speculate whenever a good-looking master takes on a beautiful disciple.” Elder Chang took out a spirit mirror from his pocket, first looked at his own face, then waved his sleeve to make the mirror fly around Jiu Hui and Zhi You: “Tell me, with the looks of the three of us, how can we escape the rumors of others?”
Zhi You：“……”
Jiu Hui’s eyes widened, and her eyes shone with a dazzling brilliance. What kind of master-disciple’s ill-rated relationship? How exactly did it become ill-fated? Tell her more, she loved to hear it!
Elder Lin, who looked like an old man, took the initiative to speak, “Senior Sister Yu Jing, since Elder Chang and the two disciples have no fate, why don’t you let me…”
“No, you have no connection to them!” Sect Master Yu Jing and Elder Xi interrupted him in unison.
Because she had spoken too quickly, Sect Master Yu Jing’s originally gentle voice had become somewhat unrestrained. She cleared her throat. “Both Elder Xi and you have disciples. Why don’t I take them as my disciples this time?”
Ignoring the four Elders’ burning gazes, Yu Jing continued, “All these years, I’ve been busy with the sect’s miscellaneous affairs and haven’t had the chance to take on disciples and teach them. Fortunately, my fellow disciples have all achieved success in their studies and can help us elders handle some matters, so I can finally take some time off and enjoy the pleasure of teaching disciples.”
Elder Xi was also a woman. She had a pretty face and wore a flamboyant red flying fairy dress. “Headmaster Senior Sister, I only have one disciple under my name, I can help you teach…”
“In recent years, only we, as fellow disciples, have supported each other.” Sect Master Yu Jing took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the corners of her eyes. “The first time I saw Jiu Hui and Zhi You, I felt a connection with them. I think you, my junior sister and brothers, can understand me, right?”
Elder Xi: “…”
“Jiu Hui, Zhi You.” Sect Master Yu Jing looked at Jiu Hui and Zhi You with a smile and tears in her eyes. “Would you two like to worship me as your master?”
Author’s Note:
Yu Jing, the sect master—a delicate, gentle, and extraordinary woman who relied on her abilities to mooch off the major sects!