Minglong

Chapter 339 A meeting between wind and cloud
Rumbling--

The lightning tore through the sky, and although it was afternoon, the swamp, teeming with poisonous miasma, seemed to be plunged into the polar night.

An unusual natural phenomenon, caused by continuous rain and dew, has completely transformed the swamp into a stagnant lake. While the water appears to be only two feet deep and just above the knees, beneath lies a layer of rotten silt over ten feet deep, teeming with venomous insects, snakes, and rats, along with boundless poisonous miasma. It is virtually impossible to walk here if one is below the highest level.

The few birds and beasts that survive here huddle on the scattered, isolated highlands, trembling like abandoned children forsaken by heaven and earth. Although it is only eight hundred miles away from Yanbo City, the environment is comparable to the end of the prehistoric world.

Xie Jinhuan ran out of the safe zone and came to this dangerous place. Naturally, he had to be careful not to be watched. Therefore, he did not choose to ride the wind or walk on the water. Instead, he ate a "seeing-not-seeing pill", used a tree trunk as a small boat, floated on the surface of the lake and went deeper into the lake, relying on the ghost's perception to search the surrounding world.

With such concealment, as long as they don't actively leak information, they'll be like a piece of driftwood to outsiders, impossible to be discovered beforehand. However, the cost is that the efficiency is a bit low, and it's not easy to search through the Hundred Miasma Swamp completely.

Ye Yunchi stood at the other end of the tree trunk, holding a sword wrapped in black cloth, carefully observing the young swordsman in the straw hat who resembled a stone, and said softly:
"This 'Ignore the Blind' pill is indeed powerful. Just who is Miss Lin? If she developed this pill herself, she truly deserves the title of 'Pill Saint'."

Xie Jinhuan searched high and low without finding any clues, and getting a little bored, she moved a few steps closer:

"She comes from a family of doctors and is still undergoing training, so her reputation is not yet widespread. However, her skill in alchemy is unparalleled. She can find a way to help Senior Ye with any needs."

Ye Yunchi was skeptical, but still asked:

"Can it even bring the dead back to life?"

With the abilities of the Purple Perilla Immortal, if there's a need, he could probably concoct something, but the price would most likely be turning into a giant rice dumpling.

"This joke is inappropriate," Xie Jinhuan simply said.

"That might be a bit difficult. People should look forward. Dwelling on the past will not only make you feel bad, but it will also make it hard to change the current situation."

Faced with this advice, Ye Yunchi shook his head:

"I'm not dwelling on the past, I just want to settle old scores, but it seems like I'll never have the chance in this lifetime."

Xie Jinhuan felt that if they wanted to take revenge on the White-haired Fairy, Senior Sister Milk Melon really didn't have much of a chance. After thinking for a moment, he said:

"Could there be some misunderstanding here? Hmm... Since they are senior figures from the righteous path, they must have some merits. Perhaps Senior Ye has only seen one side of the story..."

Ye Yunchi said seriously, "Don't have too many illusions about the older generation of righteous people. People who appear clean on the surface may be a completely different person behind the scenes. It's just that outsiders rarely know these things."

Xie Jinhuan did not deny this statement, and said earnestly:

"I don't know about the others, but Xie Jinhuan has only been out of the mountains for half a year. He has made countless achievements traveling all over the country and has been almost always slaying demons and monsters. He probably doesn't have time to be morally corrupt. He is dealing with the Blood Rain Tower because the Blood Rain Tower did not follow the laws of the Great Qian Dynasty in the past. Senior Ye is knowledgeable and reasonable. He is prejudiced without knowing the background. In my opinion, it is not appropriate."

Ye Yunchi paused for a moment, then replied:
"I've never met Xie Jinhuan, so I don't know what kind of person he is. But I'm sure his master isn't a good person, so I'm just indignant because of him..."

?

Xie Jinhuan glanced at the red-clad ghost holding an umbrella beside him:

"No one knows Xie Jinhuan's background. What if he didn't have a master?"

Ye Yunchi shook his head: "He entered the Seven Heroes of Martial Arts before he was even twenty years old. His martial arts talent can be described as unparalleled throughout the ages. How could he not have a master to guide him?"

Xie Jinhuan shook his head and smiled:
"That's hard to say. I'm skilled in all the arts, including music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and I'm self-taught. I think Senior Ye should find out more about this matter first. If there's a misunderstanding, you'll have to apologize to them later, which would be very awkward."

Ye Yunchi blinked, but did not refute the suggestion:
"Okay, I'll make a conclusion after I understand the situation better, but he definitely has a master, I can't be wrong."

Seeing that Senior Sister Naigua was so certain, Xie Jinhuan suggested:
"How about we make a bet?"

"What are you gambling?"

"If Senior Ye guesses correctly, I will give you a piece of calligraphy by Xu Sheng; if you guess wrong, I will teach you three unique skills that you must learn."

?

Ye Yunchi was completely unaware that this trap was even bigger than "Don't be angry," and even felt that he had gotten a huge advantage in this bet. After thinking for a moment, he nodded:
"There's such a way to gamble?"

"Senior Ye, do you dare to make the bet?"

"What's there to be afraid of? It's a deal, just don't go back on your word."

"Ha ha……"

Xie Jinhuan could already imagine the awkwardness of the conservative and reserved Senior Sister Naigua as she tried to imitate the giant swing and the sun. She wanted to ramble on a bit more, but then she sensed something and turned to look into the depths of the misty miasma...
-
The central area of ​​Baizhangze.

He Can, with a large banana leaf on his head, squatted in the wind and rain on the swampy high ground. He was surrounded by messy aquatic plants and his feet were in muddy ground that felt like stepping in shit.

Despite the harsh environment, He Can's eyes held a touch of nostalgia for returning to his hometown:

"It's still more comfortable here. I grew up in Ghost Cry Marsh, and the environment there was similar to this. I used to walk on stilts in the mud to catch poisonous insects, and I hardly ever saw any outsiders all year round..."

Zhang Chu, being a sorcerer by origin and not exactly clean himself, at least dealt with living people and fresh corpses. Compared to the necrophiliacs of the Corpse Witch Sect who played with rotting corpses, he felt relatively hygienic. He then plugged his nostrils with cotton balls to block out the nauseating stench and frowned, saying:

"So what are you going to eat?"

"Eat whatever you can catch!"

"what?!"

……

Compared to the composure of the two, the black-robed figure lurking beside them looked much more serious. After all, they had been stuck in this godforsaken place for three days!

Isn't Xie Jinhuan supposed to be public-spirited and a master at catching criminals?

He solved the case within four hours of arriving in the capital, debated with the foreign envoys in the palace at nightfall, and killed the leader of the Underworld Cult as soon as the meeting ended. He was faster than the envoys who delivered the message.

Where has that former drive gone?
Did you become complacent during the New Year holiday?

Born in hardship, die in comfort; even evil spirits and heretics understand this, yet you call yourself a righteous hero...

Despite his utter dismay, the black-robed figure, having listened to the crosstalk for so long, could no longer bear it and turned to say:

Are you sure Xie Jinhuan will come?

He Can scoffed, "You actually believe his terrible ideas? When has Xie Jinhuan ever willingly jumped into a pit? Under normal circumstances, he should be committing all sorts of evil deeds in your stronghold right now..."

Zhang Chu felt his plan was sound and said earnestly:

"The message has already been sent to Blood Rain Tower. Since they didn't refuse, there must be some kind of action. They didn't hire any outsiders. Even if Wei Kun is the one to handle it, if Wei Kun doesn't come, then Xie Jinhuan will be the one to suffer. Even if neither of them comes, they should at least inform the client to cancel the deposit, right? They've taken the job, so what's the point of leaving us hanging here?"

"The local gangs are utterly unethical!"

He Can enthusiastically urged, "Why don't we go find Wei Kun and make him pay us back? Wouldn't that be more profitable than scheming against Xie Laomo?"

The man in black robes felt as if two flies were buzzing around his ears, and shook his head, saying:

"The scheme has already been set up. There are people in the city watching the immortal artifacts. We have nothing to do if we go back. Let's wait here a bit longer."

He Can didn't care; every extra day was a bonus. He then asked out of curiosity:

"By the way, how should we address you, senior? If we die here, at least we can die knowing the truth."

?

The man in the black robe took a deep breath:

"There are confidentiality regulations within the organization, and specific identities cannot be disclosed."

"I'm not trying to gather intelligence, I'm just curious how you dared to come and ambush Old Demon Xie all by yourself. Can you tell me what your cultivation level is?"

"My cultivation level isn't high, but it's enough to deal with Xie Jinhuan, and I'm not alone..."

At this point, the figure in black robes suddenly stopped and raised his hand.

The two fell silent at the same time, turning their gaze to the depths of the swamp where poisonous miasma churned, only to see the mist swirling, as if something alive was moving towards them...
-
Wow…

The flying debris, accompanied by torrential rain, raged across the swamp, while the lingering miasma churned in the air, resembling a gray-white torrent capable of swallowing everything.

Lu Yan rode the wind three zhang off the ground, using his aura to isolate himself from the rain. However, his once heroic expression had turned into a furrowed brow as he held a compass, copper coins, and other props, calculating and deliberating.

The monk Kuya was an ascetic in Buddhism. He was only using the wind to keep up with Lü Yan. He had no cover whatsoever, letting the rain and miasma wash over his entire body. At this moment, his compassionate face turned into one of doubt: "Benefactor Lü, are you sure you can do this?"

Lu Yan was in a precarious position, but there was really nothing he could do. After all, he was a fortune teller who could read auras, not someone like Xie Jinhuan who was "divinely aided." The area to be searched covered thousands of miles of mountains and rivers, and it would take two or three days to investigate every inch of it.

They had already searched from the center of Dragon Bone Beach to the vicinity of the Dragon Emperor's Cave, but still found nothing. Lu Yan was quite embarrassed and asked:
"Is Master Kuya certain that Sha Tu is hiding in this area?"

As a member of the Buddhist order, the monk Kuya did not mock Lü Yan, but simply said:
"Based on the habits of the Sha Tu, they are most likely to be hiding in this area. If Master Lü is right, then this humble monk has misjudged."

Lu Yan wasn't sure if he had misjudged the situation. Given his volatile temper, he couldn't find a reason to set the mountain on fire, but this was a nature reserve of Yanbo City. If he burned down a thousand miles of land, the compensation bill from Yanbo City would probably bankrupt Wuling Mountain. Therefore, he could only continue his search in silence.

As fate would have it, after searching for a long time, Lü Yan did indeed notice something unusual and stopped in mid-air to scan his surroundings.

Rumble…

Thunder rumbled incessantly in the sky, and mist and fog billowed from the earth.

The monk Kuya, turning his prayer beads in his left hand, also surveyed the overwhelming fog and torrential rain that blotted out the sky.

Something doesn't feel right here.

Lu Yan remained silent, instead carefully examining his surroundings. The fog obscured his vision, and only the sounds of wind and rain could be heard. There was no sign of any snakes or insects moving about; the silence was eerie, giving off an ominous feeling...

Lu Yan sensed danger and became alert, retreating with the monk Kuya.

At that very moment, a strange movement occurred in the swamp. About a hundred feet ahead, it seemed as if someone had stood up.

Movement then appeared on the side; two elusive auras moved to the left and right, forming a three-way encirclement, making it difficult to discern their identities and cultivation levels.

Lu Yan frowned and carefully sensed the newcomer, but found that he couldn't figure out their background.

This situation can only mean that the people surrounding him are all at his level, or even above him.

At least three late-stage fourth-realm mountain elders huddled together in the wilderness—this doesn't seem like a chance encounter...

Thinking of this, Lü Yan's heart sank, and he spoke loudly:
"Who are you fellow Daoists?"

(End of this chapter)