Minglong

Chapter 240 New and Old Grudges (Revised)
Gyeongju, Wuling Mountain.

A sudden blizzard turned the mountains white, and many pilgrims walked along the mountain path toward the main peak, the Golden Summit.

Dressed in a black and yellow Taoist robe, Lü Yan sat cross-legged on the back cliff of the main peak. The sword and knife wounds on his body still ached faintly, but compared to the heartache, these physical injuries were nothing.

After his defeat at Fire Phoenix Valley, Lü Yan abandoned his useless junior disciple and rushed back to Northern Zhou. His experience in Southern Xinjiang was too humiliating; even the worshippers were whispering amongst themselves, saying something like:
"I heard the Five Spirits Mountain Sect Leader got beaten up outside..."

"His face was bruised and swollen, and he was bedridden..."

……

As a cultivator specializing in the Five Elements Fire Technique, Lü Yan had a rather explosive temper. Hearing these words, he was truly enraged. However, it was the truth, and as the second-in-command of the Northern Zhou Daoist sect, he couldn't very well say something like, "..."
"If I can't deal with Xie Jinhuan of the Southern Dynasty, can't I at least deal with you bunch of my own people?"

If he did that, he would be completely disgraced. Right now, he could only stay at home, brooding and secretly thinking about how to get revenge.

Going to the Southern Dynasty to settle accounts with Xie Jinhuan is definitely not an option. If we run into Lu Wuzhen, not only will we not be able to get the debt back, but we'll also have to send out the Imperial Edict.

But if he doesn't go, he'll carry this grudge to his grave; if he keeps holding it in like this, he might even lose ten years of his life...

But perhaps heaven has eyes.

Just as Lü Yan was secretly angry, a young Taoist boy suddenly ran over, holding a letter in his hand, and handed it to Lü Yan:

"Grandmaster, an urgent message has arrived from the sect leader."

Although Lü Yan had been severely beaten outside for protecting the sect leader's disciples, the sect leader's divination was correct. He couldn't blame himself for his momentary carelessness. Deep down, he still respected the sect leader. He took the envelope, examined it, and then his gaze sharpened:
According to reports, Xie Jinhuan has traveled north beyond the Great Wall to Yanjing, possibly in the Lizhou area...

The letter didn't say what to do, but with such a humiliating disgrace looming, what could they possibly do now that they'd found this cunning brat's location?
Lu Yan immediately put away the paper, no longer caring about his injuries, turned around to retrieve his magical artifact, and flew towards Lizhou...
-
"drive--!"

Hoof-tapping hoof-tapping...

Two fast horses galloped across the snowfield and arrived in Baihua County in the afternoon.

Bu Yuehua walked ahead, contrary to her usual behavior, without saying a word along the way, her mind constantly replaying scenes from her childhood.

That was when she was seven years old, the young lady of Queyue Manor. She spent her days dealing with scorpions and snakes. Because she had her parents' protection, she had no pressure. She was innocent, lively, and curious about everything in the world.

But one afternoon, my senior brother Bu Hanying suddenly rushed over, his face filled with sorrow and anger, saying that something had gone wrong.

Bu Yuehua followed the disciples to the gate of the manor, where she saw several senior uncles holding a broken magic artifact.

The magical artifact originally belonged to her father, but it had been reduced to fragments. She inquired about the reason and learned that her father had gone to the interior of the pass to discuss business with someone. The process was quite normal, but upon his return, he was targeted by someone and an encounter battle occurred in the mountains of southern Xinjiang.

When nearby cultivators rushed to investigate, only a few traces of a battle remained on the ground. According to the examination by the elders of the Witch Alliance, Bu Qingya was killed by the Soul-Binding Lock, and his body was taken away, but it was unclear who the murderer was.

Bu Yuehua couldn't believe that her powerful father, who had once been the second-in-command of the Witch Alliance, was dead. But it was true. From that day on, she became the young master of Queyue Manor. Sikong Tianyuan, the head of the Three Corpse Cave, and others even came to visit her.

She was heartbroken at the time, but then she rallied and devoted herself to practicing martial arts. She discovered that the only way for a witch to kill someone was to use poison, so she also practiced martial arts, trying to grow up quickly and seek revenge for her father's death.

Unfortunately, day after day, year after year, as she rapidly improved her strength in her quest for revenge, her enemy seemed to have vanished into thin air. No matter how hard she investigated, she could not find a single clue, and the Soul-Binding Lock disappeared without a trace.

She searched everywhere and even asked the noble person who taught her martial arts, but the goddess knew nothing about it. She only told her that her current hard work was to prepare for revenge in the future, and that the higher her cultivation level, the greater her chances of winning.

She heeded the advice, but was terrified that her life would pass by like this, and she wouldn't even know who killed her parents. When she was eighteen or nineteen, she even made a very childish vow—whoever could help her find the enemy, she would repay them with her body and serve them like a slave for the rest of her life...

But Heaven clearly didn't heed her vow, and her search continued in vain until today.

Bu Yuehua came only to accompany Xie Jinhuan in searching for medicinal herbs to help him repay the favor bestowed by Ling Guang. She truly did not expect to make this unexpected discovery along the way...

Could it be that Xie Jinhuan is truly a lucky star? Ever since meeting him, he's been blessed with all sorts of good fortune, with opportunities, connections, and leads coming his way—he can't possibly take it all…

No wonder this slutty Taoist nun fell to such a low level; anyone would be unable to leave her side...

Realizing her thoughts had wandered, Bu Yuehua quickly pulled herself back from the reverie and glanced at Xie Jinhuan, who was keeping pace with her.

Xie Jinhuan held up coal briquettes in front of him to block the wind as punishment for being frozen silly last night, but unfortunately this little bird seemed to be a snowfield species, showing no fear of the cold, and even spread its wings and played Titanic with him.

Upon noticing that Fairy Bu was looking over, Xie Jinhuan put away the coal briquette and they entered Baihua County together...
-
Baihua County is located on the border, and the county seat is not large.

The sudden emergence of more than a dozen murders was enough to put the entire county on edge, and even in broad daylight, there were hardly any pedestrians on the streets.

In the front courtyard of the county government office, more than ten constables surrounded a cart, examining the three corpses that had just been delivered.

The leaders were three constables dressed in blue robes embroidered with cloud and thunder patterns. They wore standard goose-feather knives and gold and silver waist badges, making them significantly different from the county constables, and their demeanor was also completely different.

The three men came from the capital and were from the Criminal Investigation Division of the Ministry of Justice. In the jargon of the martial arts world, they were like big shots from the Six Doors. The one with the gold badge on his waist was named Shen Cang, one of the capable officials under the Empress Dowager. He had the special power of imperial authority to execute first and report later. He usually did not come to this small county to handle cases. This time, he was sent to investigate the serial murder case because the young emperor's birthday banquet was approaching and it was necessary to maintain the stability of the court and the country.

Shen Cang was in his early forties. Besides his partner, he also had a newcomer by his side, who was a female constable, a rarity in both the North and South.

The female constable was also dressed in a green robe, but without a name tag. She had a youthful face and large breasts, looking no more than eighteen or nineteen years old. She wore a rather wild braid and carried a horse-slaying saber on her shoulder. Her appearance was more like that of a wild girl new to the martial world, and her words and actions did indeed have a touch of youthful impetuosity. With one hand on her hip, she spoke angrily:

"If I hadn't come, these bandits could have killed people, but even after I arrived, they still dared to kill. If I don't cleave these scoundrels into four pieces, how can I face the Empress Dowager to report back to her..."

Because of her sweet and lively voice, and her appearance that resembled that of a young girl, the constables in the surrounding county town all looked at her strangely.

However, Detective Shen Cang did not dislike the girl's words at all; on the contrary, he appreciated them greatly and even had high expectations for them.

After all, this girl's name was Jiang Xian, and she came from Jiang Family Fortress in the East Sea. Her great-grandfather, Jiang Hehai, followed the righteous cultivators south to fight against the witchcraft rebellion. Although his achievements were not as great as those of the older generation like the Three Immortals of the Northern Territory, he was still one of the countless righteous people who rushed to the aid of the common people during that great calamity, and his name is still recorded on the merit stele in the Martial Temple. Jiang Xian could be described as a tiger father and a fierce daughter. Although she was young and had no reputation before in the East Sea, her fame began to rise after she arrived in the capital.

First, he took the letter of recommendation to the county government office and sent in more than a dozen bandits in three days. This surprised Guo Deng, the chief official in charge of criminal justice. When he saw the resume, he found that the person was a righteous cultivator with a good background and also greatly admired the Empress Dowager. So he reported it to the Fengyi Division.

Jiang Xian's resume didn't end there. She made a killing almost every day in the capital, arresting people so fast that the yamen (government office) couldn't keep up. As a result, she was quickly promoted from the county yamen to the Criminal Arrest Division, and was also selected by the Phoenix Palace Division. As long as she finished this case, she could become a lady-in-waiting under the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager controlled the entire empire, and this position was equivalent to the emperor's confidant. Her status and power were self-evident.

However, Jiang Xian also had his flaws. As a newcomer to the martial arts world, he was too eager to make a name for himself and become the right-hand man of his idol, Empress Dowager Guo. He was either investigating cases or on his way to investigate cases every day, which almost caused the old men like Shen Cang to get themselves killed. Moreover, he dared to charge into the dens of bandits whose background he knew nothing about, and he was so fierce that he could kill them all by himself, which terrified the old men leading the group. Even his nickname was given to him by the magistrate Guo, who was in charge of the case, as "Little Jiang Biao".

At this moment, Shen Cang briefly examined the body and felt that the clues were quite obvious, but he did not say it directly. Instead, he asked:

"Jiang Xian, have you noticed anything?"

Jiang Xian, carrying her horse-slaying saber, was already impatient to run out. Hearing the sound, she puffed out her chest and responded:

"The three men had their souls extracted by a chain-like magical artifact. Their bodies were found in the snowfield, and footprints pointed towards Jianchuan. If the bandits haven't escaped, they might be hiding in the Jianchuan area. Perhaps Lord Shen should first stay at the post station, while I go to Jianchuan to check. Within three hours, I will surely..."

"Eh!"

Shen Cang knew Jiang Xian's abilities, but he also knew how fierce this girl was. She would be green with envy at any opportunity to make a name for herself and serve her country, and she would wish to open a separate page in the family tree on the spot.

In the capital, they only encountered ordinary bandits and thieves, but the borderlands were a different story. The most powerful and dangerous bandits from both the Northern and Southern Dynasties might appear there. Shen Cang was hesitant to let this girl go searching the mountains alone, and replied:

"Jianchuan is located within Lishan Mountain, surrounded by hundreds of miles of mountains and wilderness. How can you search alone? Let's eat first, and then we'll lead a team to take a look. This group of bandits left obvious footprints, so they shouldn't be any formidable figures..."

"It's not even dark yet, and the demons could harm us at any moment. Eating will take too long, so I'll go buy some meat buns..."

"Don't run around!"

Old Wang, the deputy, quickly blocked the path of the girl with the braided hair. After all, the girl said she was going to buy steamed buns, and she would definitely disappear later. Then she would either come back with the thieves or not come back at all.

Jiang Xian, carrying his six-foot-long broadsword, could only laugh awkwardly when he realized his plan had been exposed. He then began urging the two leaders to hurry up and set off...

Meanwhile, on the rooftops in the distance of the county government compound.

Xie Jinhuan silently crouched behind the roof ridge, cautiously peering out. Because it was too far away to see clearly, and he couldn't very well use his Southern Dynasty identity to question the case, he looked towards the ghost.

Ye Hongshang knelt down beside him, his gaze fixed on the lively and cheerful female constable in green robes in the courtyard, a hint of doubt in his eyes. Only upon hearing the sound did he shift his gaze to the corpse:
"This female constable is quite skilled. The corpse's soul was indeed extracted by a chain-like magical artifact. As for whether it was a soul-binding lock, I'm not sure. The Corpse Ancestor only used this thing in the early stages. By the time True Person Qixia met him, he had switched to the Demon Blade to ward off evil."

Seeing this, Xie Jinhuan leaned close to Bu Yuehua's ear and whispered...
"It was indeed an injury caused by a chain-like magical artifact, but it's still uncertain whether it's the Soul-Binding Lock. Should we go to Jianchuan to check?"

Bu Yuehua had never seen a Soul-Binding Lock before, but chain-type evil artifacts were generally used by the Corpse Witch Sect, and those of high quality were extremely rare. Since there were clues that seemed to be related to her father's killer, she naturally had to investigate. So she and Xie Jinhuan quietly descended from the roof...
-
Lishan Sword Lodge.

Nestled among the mountains, the 300-year-old manor boasts a thousand houses, yet only six hundred disciples remain, revealing a sense of decline from its very core.

Snowy days, bitterly cold years.

In front of the sword-forging furnace at the back of the manor, Li Huaichuan, the current sect leader, was shirtless as he pounded a crimson sword blade. Sparks suddenly burst forth and quickly dissipated into the wind and snow. That fleeting flame was like a reflection of Li Huaichuan's life.

As the overlord of Lizhou, Lishan Sword Pavilion rose to prominence at the founding of the Northern Zhou Dynasty and reached its peak a hundred years ago. The sect leader led three hundred elites and, together with Huang Lin Zhenren, the Goddess of War, and other heroes from the mountain peak, went south to suppress the cataclysmic disaster.

But after the battle, only a dozen or so of those who went out returned; the rest of their fellow disciples all died for their cause, and even the patriarch perished in the blood-soaked battlefield.

Li Huaichuan inherited the position of sect leader at the age of seven. Relying on his father's merits and the care of the imperial court and even the righteous path, his cultivation path can be described as smooth sailing. Before the age of sixty, he was considered a relatively dazzling martial arts prodigy in Northern Zhou.

But talent is talent, and no matter how favorable the environment is to him, it cannot change the fact that he is mediocre.

Whether it was a sect competition or a treasure hunt in the mountains, he never won a single one. He watched helplessly as his peers, who had once competed with him, became top-tier masters who held sway over their respective regions, while he could only remain in the mortal world of martial arts. In major alliance gatherings, he could only sit with second-rate sect leaders, too embarrassed to sit at the table for top-tier masters.

The sect leader's inability to achieve great things led to the decline of the Lishan Sword Pavilion, resulting in fewer and fewer promising disciples coming to learn from him, thus creating a vicious cycle.

To prevent the sect from falling into utter ruin, Li Huaichuan took out his ancestral sword "Wenchuan" and presented it to Emperor Jing as a tribute. In return, he obtained many treasures, including tiger bone vines, as well as sect privileges, which temporarily extended his life.

But after reaching the highest level, he didn't see the light at the end of the tunnel; instead, he entered a bloody cult.

Those who can reach the Super Grade level through their own abilities are all 'legends' to ordinary martial arts practitioners. Even Yan Lang of the Black Yan Gang, who couldn't last ten moves under Lü Yan's hand, was once a pirate king who roamed the East China Sea. Jiang Qizi of Linglu Valley, who died as soon as he met someone, once led a group of several hundred evil cultivators in his youth and caused a great disturbance in Luojing.

When Li Huaichuan was young, he also wanted to make a name for himself at Lishan Sword Pavilion, but when he went south to challenge Wei Wuyi, he ended up humiliating himself. He then tried to challenge Mu Yunling, but he still ended up humiliating himself. Helpless, he returned to the north to trample on local martial artists. He searched for a long time before finally defeating an old man, Deng, and barely made a name for himself.

But having reached this point, his martial arts journey has come to an end. Without the blessings of the Five Divine Blessings, relying solely on the bridge between heaven and earth built by the Tiger Bone Vine, it would be impossible for him, with his talent, to step into the Fifth Realm.

Li Huaichuan searched from his forties to his eighties without success. Now that he was so old, Li Huaichuan felt like a spark bursting forth in front of him, struggling to pound against it, trying to shine brightly once more.

But nature is merciless; in the blink of an eye, it was swallowed up by the wind and snow, turning into dust that drifted away with the wind.

Ding, ding...

Fortunately, it seems that God isn't so heartless.

Just as Li Huaichuan was secretly reminiscing about the past, a carrier pigeon flapped its wings and landed on the wooden frame next to the blast furnace.

Li Huaichuan frowned slightly, took the bamboo tube from the carrier pigeon's leg, unfolded the paper and glanced at it briefly, then his brow furrowed again, and he looked at the swirling snow outside the manor...

(End of this chapter)