Embers of Sword

Chapter 579 This Journey to the North Sea
It rained on Tailing.

Jiang Qihu sat under the canopy of the carriage, where rainwater gathered to form a beaded curtain. He counted the raindrops and silently waited for news from Chen Jingxuan.

Soon after, the sound of horses' hooves could be heard in the distance.

At the edge of the misty rain, someone rode up on horseback, followed by the Black Scale Guards and secret agents of the Imperial City Guard, who saw him off from a distance.

Jiang Qihu frowned.

He noticed that behind the gentleman, Sang Zheng, a member of the Black Scale Guard, and the young people from Beijun were being stopped by secret agents of the Imperial City Guard.

These people clearly looked very bad.

What's going on here?
"Lord Chen, we won't see you off."

Yuan Jimo, the head of the Imperial City Guard, cleared his throat and deliberately raised his voice.

Chen Jingxuan continued walking alone until he reached the front of the carriage.

"gentlemen……"

Jiang Qihu murmured.

"I am no longer the owner of the library, nor the owner of Fangyuanfang."

Chen Jingxuan smiled gently: "Qihu, you don't need to call me 'sir' anymore."

Jiang Qihu stared blankly at this scene.

Although he was dull-witted, he was not stupid. When he saw the Black Scale Guards seeing him off, he already guessed what had happened in the capital.

In Qingzhou, the man told himself that it was all over.

He had assumed that the gentleman was going to apologize.

Unexpectedly, everything ended in this way.

He resigned from the library, abandoned the Fangyuanfang, and gave up the position of Imperial Preceptor.

Is this really what the gentleman did?
Jiang Qihu had studied under Chen Jingxuan for many years, and he understood his teacher's character, moral cultivation, and aspirations better than anyone else.

The Qingyang Incident occurred.

The Jiang family is prepared to stand with Chen Jingxuan through thick and thin.

He was even determined to go through fire and water for his husband!

But now, is it all over just like that?
Jiang Qihu stood there, stunned for a long time, his eyes reddening.

He didn't understand why his husband would make such a choice.

Stare into each other's eyes.

Qihoo...

Chen Jingxuan said gently, "I want to leave the capital and go for a walk outside."

"gentlemen……"

Jiang Qihu opened his mouth, but then hesitated and stopped.

He finally turned his head and looked at the woman sleeping in the carriage.

All the words I wanted to say were swallowed back down.

Jiang Qihu lowered his eyes and asked in a hoarse voice, "Are you going to a very far place, sir?"

"Ah."

Chen Jingxuan responded softly, "I want to... go to Beihai."

They left the capital and headed north.

On the way to Qingzhou, we passed through Lichao City and continued along the great river.

It won't be long before we see Beihai.

There, vast expanses of reeds grow, interspersed with red mudflats, stretching as far as the eye can see.

"..."

Jiang Qihu remained silent for a long time before finally managing to utter two words: "Pretty good."

One day ago.

When Chen Jingxuan bid farewell to himself in front of the imperial city, Jiang Qihu vaguely sensed that the atmosphere was strange.

Only now did he realize that the gentleman's farewell yesterday was for today.

Chen Jingxuan extended his hand.

Jiang Qihu took a moment to realize that he was still tightly gripping the carriage reins. He stepped back and handed the reins over.

Perhaps because the two had said goodbye beforehand, the atmosphere was solemn, but no one said anything more.

Jiang Qihu gave up his position as the carriage driver.

Chen Jingxuan boarded the carriage.

Hundreds of people, including Black Scale Guards, secret agents, and imperial city officials, watched the carriage gradually disappear into the distance.

The torrential rain and mist over the mossy hills obscured the tiny silhouette of the car.

……

……

Chen Jingxuan put on a bamboo hat, changed into a raincoat, and drove his carriage along the mountain road.

After shedding his blue robe.

He seemed like a different person. Because of years of overdrawing his lifespan, his face was still pale from weakness, but his eyes had become much more relaxed and composed.

The mountain road was muddy, so the carriage moved very slowly.

Chen Jingxuan noticed a small mountain not far away, emanating a faint aura, where someone was already waiting.

He tightened the reins and stopped the carriage.

A white rainbow swept down from the mountaintop. The newcomer was wearing a Taoist robe. Although he had a youthful face, his aura was not to be underestimated.

This child, who looked to be only fourteen or fifteen years old and wore a Taoist robe, exuded the aura of a Yin God Realm cultivator... This was certainly not a "reincarnated immortal." If one were to use the Qi Observation Technique to examine his bone age, it would be discovered that this child had been cultivating for almost sixty years.

It is said that there are some maverick cultivators in the secret realm of Tianyuan Mountain.

He lived in seclusion for many years, detached from worldly affairs.

These cultivators are referred to as "secluded cultivators" by the Taoist school.

Clearly, this young Taoist was a reclusive cultivator living deep within Tianyuan Mountain.

"Mr. Chen, I am here to await your arrival on the orders of my master."

The moment the boy in the Taoist robe spoke, it was clear he was no young, for his voice was remarkably mature. He flicked his sleeve, shook his whisk, and tossed out a golden pill: "Master said that taking this pill can break the [Heart Cage]..."

Chen Jingxuan took the pill but didn't say anything.

obviously.

The hermit had not yet finished speaking.

As expected, the Taoist-robed child suddenly changed the subject and quietly reminded him, "Although you have solved the [Heart Cage], Mr. Chen would be better off being sensible."

What does it mean to be sensible?

Chen Jingxuan was speechless.

"Leave the capital."

The cultivator remained expressionless: "Mr. Chen previously said he was going to the North Sea... The Daoist sect hopes that Mr. Chen can keep his promise."

"..."

Chen Jingxuan silently gazed at the child in the Taoist robe.

After a brief silence.

Chen Jingxuan suddenly smiled and asked, "Were these later words also instructed by Chongkan?"

The boy in the Taoist robe paused for a moment.

He spent many years in seclusion on Tianyuan Mountain before returning to the mortal world in recent years.

Because of his special status, he did not need to obey the orders of the Seven Abodes, but only the commands of the Great Master Chongkan. Even the head of the Seven Abodes was no more noble than him.

Thanks to his status as a disciple of Chongkan, coupled with his Yin God cultivation, he has been respected and obeyed wherever he goes in recent years.

In a sense.

He was Chongkan's "hand".

His words were the will of Chongkan.

Why ask these questions?

The cultivator frowned and said coldly, "Mr. Chen, you only need to remember..."

The words have not yet fallen.

Boom.

The boy in the Taoist robe was suddenly thrown over by a tremendous force, his entire body flying into the air and crashing heavily onto a small hill not far away, creating a hole in the mud and rocks.

"Actually, your answer is no longer important."

Chen Jingxuan pulled down his straw hat to conceal his face.

"Since he was relaying a message from Chongkan, then he deserved the slap."

The Yin Spirit Realm cultivator collapsed onto the muddy rocks, his once pristine white Daoist robe now filthy. His face was filled with disbelief; he never imagined that Chen Jingxuan would dare to lay a hand on him, let alone that this sickly fellow surnamed Chen could deliver such a powerful slap.

He was pale and his lips were trembling.

He should have been angry.

But then they saw the golden divine image appearing above the carriage not far away.

He swallowed all his anger.

He had never seen such a majestic and magnificent golden Dharma image. Thousands of golden threads pieced together a majestic and awe-inspiring deity in a blue robe. The deity held a golden scroll in his hands, and wherever the Dao domain was covered, the heaven and earth were enveloped and filled with the golden threads of the scroll.

This is a Dharma form of the Yang God Realm!

His Dao realm, techniques, and supernatural powers were all suppressed.

He had no doubt that if Chen Jingxuan used a little more force, he could slap him to death.

“Go back and tell Chongkan.”

Chen Jingxuan said expressionlessly, "Even a clay Buddha has some temper. I've given him what he wanted. Now... I can go wherever I want."

……

……

(PS: 1. Please don't scold me, I wasn't slacking off! The reason for the late update is that I deleted a chapter. 2. There will be more updates today. I'm just not very accurate about the update time. I said I would update more, and I meant it, so you can rest assured~)

(End of this chapter)