Minglong

Chapter 420 The storm is rising
Not far away, at the corner of the passageway.

Empress Dowager Guo, dressed in a red gauze dress, hid behind a corner and looked at the man who was throwing himself into her arms with an incomprehensible gaze!
After all, she had been tricked last night and was considering whether to secretly push things along to make the old demon Gao, who had no memory of the past, have any worldly desires.

As it turned out, before she even started planning, she lost everything before she could even grow tall enough to benefit from it.

Is this the way Old Devil conducts himself?

As long as I cut off my own escape route, you won't be able to plot against me...

I have learned a lot...

After observing for a moment, Empress Dowager Guo felt that this situation was really difficult to handle, since she couldn't just jump out and stop Mei Cong Gao from giving it away for free.

After observing for a moment, he noticed that the old demon Mei Cong Gao had run away shyly, so he secretly clicked his tongue and turned to leave.

The people lived relatively close to each other, and Empress Dowager Guo was not the only one who witnessed this scene.

In another courtyard, Ye Yun woke up early, still a bit dizzy from a hangover. She was pondering things like "a mother's status rising with her son's" when she suddenly found herself standing up straight, as if she had discovered something extraordinary!
Then he sneakily jumped onto the roof and looked into the distance.

They found Xie Jinhuan holding Xiao Biao in the garden, coaxing her gently. The two were young and looked very well-matched.

?

Ye Yunchi blinked, unsure why he had come here to join in the fun. Seeing his beloved with another girl, wasn't he just making a fool of himself...?

Perhaps a hint of jealousy in his heart was noticed by a certain deity. As soon as the thought arose in Ye Yunchi's mind, he realized that he was no longer looking. Instead, he returned to his residence, found a long ribbon, and draped it over the roof beam.

"Hey?"

Ye Yunchi looked at his own movements and felt that this was a preliminary move for 'hanging oneself'. His eyes were filled with confusion, and he thought to himself:

What am I doing?

Seeing her beloved being intimate with another woman, she was filled with grief and anger, and wanted to die to show him what was happening.
While the methods of crying, making a scene, and threatening suicide are not wrong, a martial artist at the fifth realm who hangs himself would probably hang himself forever...

If you're going to act, at least act convincingly; at least take a sword and commit suicide...

Huh? No, no, no...

Ye Yunchi realized he had actually picked up the Netherworld Sword, and this time he panicked.

Fortunately, the founder, who believed in "doing what one pleases," wasn't that extreme. He simply used his sword to cut off a section of the overly long ribbon, and then wrapped it around himself and began to dance...

?

Ye Yunchi twirled around on the ribbon, feeling that he might be seriously ill. Just as he was feeling lost, he heard footsteps outside.

stomping on...

"Senior Ye?"

"Eh? Xie Jinhuan?"

Seeing this, Ye Yunchi hurriedly tried to stop her inexplicable actions, but unfortunately her body wouldn't listen to her and continued to do as she pleased.

Outside.

Xie Jinhuan was still pondering why Xiao Biao had kissed her earlier when she heard a flustered sound at the door. She stopped and peeked out to observe.

The result was that the conservative and chaste Confucian female teacher was actually performing a celestial dance while hanging from a ribbon, her heavy breasts were extremely eye-catching, and her legs were adorned with cleverly designed garter stockings with bows...

Oh ho?!
Xie Jinhuan thought he might have eaten too well and was worried about the retribution that would follow.

However, even dying beneath the peony blossoms would be a joyful death, so Xie Jinhuan quickly went inside and helped the swaying baby:
"Senior Ye, what are you doing? Don't do anything rash..."

"I……"

Ye Yunchi hung in mid-air, his face flushed:

"I didn't hang myself, I couldn't control myself, and I don't know what I was doing..."

Xie Jinhuan feigned relief, looking at the patient with concern, before picking up the bone flute from the room:

"I guess he's doing some physical training to recover. Relax, I'll play you a tune... *whimper*"

A melodious accompaniment rose from inside the room.

Ye Yunchi danced to the rhythm, which did feel very artistic, but as she danced, she became increasingly bold. Not only did she deliberately sway in front of Xie Jinhuan, almost kissing him on the face, but she also deliberately did a high kick and a split, which was very provocative. If Madam Han saw this, she would probably poke her forehead.

"Sigh~ When will I recover? This ancestral master you invited seems... eh?"

Ye Yunchi wanted to complain a bit more, but it seemed that the patriarch was not very magnanimous. He immediately swung forward and performed a deadly scissor kick, locking Ah Huan in place!
"Woo?"

Caught off guard, Xie Jinhuan was struck head-on by a deadly scissor kick and nearly suffocated by the hot steamed bun, leaving him completely stunned.

Ye Yunchi's eyes widened in shock, and he hurriedly tried to stop his indecent behavior, but it was obviously pointless. He could only grit his teeth and say:

"Xie Jinhuan, get out of the way!"

"Woooo..."

"Don't kiss me..."

"Woo..."

……
-
In contrast to Xie Jinhuan's joyful life, Lü Yan's life was much more monotonous. The turmoil in the hunting grounds was too great, and for the next few days, the capital was in chaos, while news of the conflict quickly spread throughout the country.

As the leader of the Northern Zhou, Lü Yan has a responsibility to maintain stability on the grasslands, and he has been assisting Huo Yi in purging the royal court in the past few days.

Chao Chitai and Gudu Yue had cultivated their influence in the royal court for many years, naturally developing countless subordinates. Lü Yan followed the clues and investigated, arresting over a hundred people, including the hall masters and incense masters, not to mention countless scattered disciples. He also discovered many 'burial sites'.

It was April, at a large ranch on the outskirts of the capital.

The pasture was owned by the Chishan tribe, covering hundreds of miles, and housed countless cattle, sheep and horses. Taxes collected from various tribes were also stored there first.

There are slaughterhouses and fur workshops near the ranch. The area around the slaughterhouse has been dug up, exposing tens of thousands of white bones, all of which have traces of blood essence extracted by blood sacrifice.

The scene wasn't exactly sinister; there were even herders watching curiously, since the bones were all sheep bones.

Centralized landfilling, rather than littering, is hygienic.

Dressed in a Taoist robe, Lü Yan stood before the largest 'corpse pit' he had ever seen, stroking his beard in bewilderment, and asked:

“Master Uncle, no matter how many people are killed in the Red Terrace, it is still less than the number of sheep that the people of Northern Zhou eat in a year. If all the sorcerers were like this, then they could not be called sorcerers.”

Master Huang Lin, with his ethereal and otherworldly air, stood beside him and replied:

"Shang Lianbi's involvement in demonic practices is not wrong, but the 'blood tax' of the entire Dragon Bone Beach is only enough to support Shang Lianbi alone. The tax revenue of the entire royal court is only enough to support Chao Chitai alone. If everyone in the demonic path does this, then all the cattle and sheep on the entire grassland will be slaughtered, and it will eventually evolve into cannibalism."

Lu Yan thought about it for a moment and agreed, then asked:
"According to Xie Jinhuan, this half-human, half-demon technique is related to the Corpse Ancestor. What was the Corpse Ancestor's purpose in creating this heaven-defying technique back then?"

Huang Lin Zhenren was actually older than the Corpse Ancestor. He had already become the sect leader when the Corpse Ancestor was still a rising star of the righteous path. After a moment's thought, he replied:
"The Corpse Ancestor didn't use any half-demons to create this kind of magic back then. He probably did it when he was young to help treat the deformed fetuses of the Western Rong."

"what?"

Lu Yan's eyes showed surprise.

Master Huang Lin sighed and looked up to the south:
"No one is born inherently wicked. When the Corpse Ancestor was young, he was a promising talent with unparalleled abilities and was also humble and polite."

"But unfortunately, Sikong Shitang was not capable enough. He underestimated the Corpse Ancestor's talent and overestimated his own strength. From a young age, he taught the Corpse Ancestor according to the Gu Poison Sect's style, such as—'Those who achieve great things do not concern themselves with trifles,' and 'As long as the righteous path can be maintained, even if they are scorned by the world, it is a sin in this generation but a merit for future generations'..."

"..."

Lu Yan blinked, thinking that Sikong Shitang's teaching was rather conservative.

After all, the cult originated from the ancient tribal period and has always followed the "survival of the fittest" approach. It has always been "better to die than to die for oneself." As long as their own tribe can survive in dire straits, what does the survival of the righteous path have to do with them?

"And then the Corpse Ancestor listened? Even if he did listen, the Corpse Ancestor shouldn't have..."

“Sikong Shitang said more than just that.”

Huang Lin Zhenren indicated this world:

"There are too many wolves and not enough meat in this world. All the religions and schools of thought are trapped in this situation. Apart from killing each other and deceiving each other, there is no other way to grow."

"However, the decline of the cultivation path has reduced its control over the secular world, which indirectly led to the rise of the dynasty. It did not harm the people. Even if the spiritual energy of heaven and earth eventually dries up, it will be a long time. The old man on the mountaintop has always maintained the status quo."

"Sikong Shitang told the Corpse Ancestor all this before the Corpse Ancestor's mind was fully formed, and said, 'If even with your talent you can't revitalize this stagnant pool, then it will be difficult for anyone to change the status quo in the future.'"

"Sikong Shitang probably just wanted to motivate his disciple and set a long-term goal, but the Corpse Ancestor really listened and began to think about how to change the dead end. He even conducted experiments on living people that resembled 'reincarnation,' which were discovered by the righteous path."

"Sikong Shitang only realized something was wrong at this point, but instead of cleaning up the sect, he secretly locked up the Corpse Ancestor and tried to persuade him to let go of his obsession."

"But the Corpse Ancestor had already 'enlightened himself,' so how could his resolve waver? Knowing that the righteous path would surely stop him, he lay dormant for several years before emerging one day, triggering the chaos of the Witchcraft Cult..."

Upon hearing this, Lü Yan stroked his beard and said:
"So, the fault lies with Sikong Shitang, not the Corpse Ancestor?"

Master Huang Lin shook his head and said earnestly:

"The Corpse Ancestor, based on his own doctrine, disregarded the safety of the world and slaughtered people by any means necessary, which is unforgivable. However, the problem lies in the method, not the original intention."

"As for Sikong Shitang, he first misled the younger generation, and then tried to uphold the righteous path. Is he betting on both sides to prevent his lineage from dying out, or is he really being foolish? It's hard to say."

Lu Yan clearly couldn't figure out what Sikong Shitang was thinking back then, but from the perspective of the sect leader's responsibilities, if Sikong Shitang rebelled with the Corpse Ancestor and failed, the Gu Poison Sect would surely perish; but if they went against each other, no matter which side won, they would be the victors.

Just like the current Crescent Moon Manor, no matter how much Sikong Tianyuan acts recklessly, the Crescent Moon Manor is still the leader of the righteous path, and the sect's lineage will never be broken.

As the leader of a sect, one would certainly not do such a foolish thing, but being in charge of the rise and fall of a sect is a reasonable risk hedging strategy.

While the two chatted on and on, the men sent by the royal court were also counting the bones in the mortuary.

Such an investigation would normally last for several days, until it was ascertained how many forbidden things the Chao Chitai had secretly done, and then the crimes would be announced to the world.

But as Lü Yan was pondering, he suddenly noticed that the northern sky was getting dark.

Looking up, one could see rolling thunderclouds on the northern horizon, and a north wind was blowing across the plains.

Huhu~
Upon seeing this, Master Huang Lin frowned slightly, calculated with his fingers, and then carefully sensed the movements of heaven and earth:
"There seems to be some activity at Beiming Lake. Go and inform Xie Jinhuan and the others."

Lu Yan also sensed that the big one was coming and responded:
"Judging from his past behavior, he has probably already arrived at his destination. Uncle Master, you should hurry up and leave, or you might not even be able to smell the aroma."

"?"

Master Huang Lin had little contact with Xie Jinhuan, but he knew well how efficient the Old Demon Qixia was; he vanished in a flash...

……

(End of this chapter)