Sword Sect Outer Sect

Chapter 277 Ghost Valley
Lan Zhu, however, did not find anything strange about his words and continued, "By the way, didn't Brother Boqi say that he was also going to the border region?"

Upon hearing this, Song Yan looked at the person on the right middle finger.

What's going on lately? This wretched little place is attracting so many people from the Central Region.

"..."

Birch remained silent, his head slightly bowed in thought, seemingly lost in thought.

Suddenly, silence fell over the Nuo realm.

Lan Zhu pressed further, asking, "Brother Boqi?"

"Uh……"

Birch seemed to snap out of his reverie, and said apologetically, "Sorry, I was just lost in thought."

"what are you guys saying?"

"..."

Birch's voice was rather androgynous, and his physique made it impossible to tell whether he was male or female. However, since Lanzhu called him "brother," he must be a male cultivator.

"I said, aren't you also going to the border region?" Lan Zhu repeated, "Won't you run into each other?"

"Hmm... probably not, I'm not going to the border region."

Birch glanced at Song Yan: "The place I'm going to is Junping."

In fact, from the perspective of the entire Central Region, the Junping Prefecture of the Tang Dynasty and the State of Chu are indeed very close.

Some people from Chu might refer to Junping Prefecture as "the only border between the frontier and the Tang court," but in reality, it was still a long way away from Chu.

Such claims are often just a way to embellish one's own image.

"Oh, that's a real shame..."

At this moment, Cuo Duan continued to introduce Song Yan: "Fellow Daoist Jia, according to historical records, these Nuo gods have long since disappeared."

"So it is fate that we, who come from all corners of the world, can gather here."

"We don't need to bear any responsibility for inheritance. The purpose of us last 'Fangxiangshi' is to exchange what we have and what we don't have."

"Sharing and exchanging the cultivation resources or information that each person needs."

The wrong judgment gave an example: "For instance, my cultivation method is quite special and closely related to the way of chess, so I will also ask everyone to help me search for some valuable ancient manuals."

"In return, you can pay with spirit stones, information, intelligence, or even other things like mission requests."

"These are all free, there are no restrictions, as long as you can reach an agreement yourselves."

Upon hearing this, Song Yan's heart stirred.

If I had to say what I want most, without a doubt it would be the spirit swords left behind by the ancient sword cultivators.

It would be better to have these big shots from the Central Region keep an eye out for things than to search for a needle in a haystack by myself.

however……

There are actually two issues here.

One concern is that Song Yan cannot determine whether making this request will allow them to guess his identity as a sword cultivator.

Although these people seem easy to talk to, you shouldn't expose your safety to danger.

In the border regions, at least in the Chu Kingdom, Song Yan seemed to have never seen any other sword cultivators alive besides himself and the sect leader.

He was completely clueless about the situation in the Central Region.

However, judging from what was just said, the danger of this problem is not too great.

To misjudge this person, regardless of whether he is Wang Ke, with whom you have had any interaction.

He was able to proactively reveal the unique aspects of the cultivation technique he practiced, so even if these people knew that he was a sword cultivator, no one should care.

The second problem is also the most difficult to solve.

What exactly can I offer in exchange for intelligence with them?

Apart from myself, who came from the countryside, everyone here seems to be a young master or lady from the Central Region.

What I have to offer is probably completely insignificant in their eyes...

"..."

Song Yan was pondering in silence when he continued, "Each of the Fangxiang clan here can take the initiative to initiate a meeting in the Nuo realm."

"But because it's rather chaotic, some fellow Daoists might want to participate but miss out. So we set a rule ourselves: the second day of the first lunar month is the official Nuo Realm Gathering."

"All fellow cultivators who possess masks are welcome to make time to participate."

"Of course, if there is any urgent matter that needs to be discussed, a small meeting can be organized, and fellow Daoists who are free will naturally participate."

Song Yan nodded. A meeting once a year was a fairly appropriate frequency.

After all, now that he has entered the Foundation Establishment stage, he no longer needs to go into seclusion. A single cultivation session can easily last for one or two months.

The second day of the Lunar New Year, it seems like only a few months away.

Time seems to stand still while cultivating in the mountains; in reality, he had no idea what season it was.

Sometimes, judging from the plants and weather outside the cave courtyard, one can roughly tell that it is already early winter.

"how?"

He asked, "Fellow Daoist Jia, is there anything we should all be aware of?"

"Um……"

Song Yan pondered for a moment before slowly speaking: "I live in a border region where spiritual resources and materials are scarce. Even if I wanted something, I wouldn't have enough resources or information to exchange for it."

"If there's anything I want, I do like collecting some ancient swords."

"Ha, how come you're making the same mistake?"

Lan Zhu laughed heartily, completely disregarding Song Yan's purpose in searching for the ancient sword, and instead displaying a hint of mockery.

"One likes to collect ancient musical scores, and the other likes to collect ancient swords. They both love old things so much..."

"Uh……"

To most people, this request didn't seem like something to think about.

This "Class A" might just be a Gujian enthusiast who, knowing he couldn't offer them something of equal value, casually mentioned his own preferences.

Cuo Duan simply nodded: "Alright, this gathering was just a spur-of-the-moment decision after I came out of seclusion, so I apologize for the inconvenience."

"If there is nothing else, then I will not waste your precious cultivation time."

"Everyone, let's meet again on the second day of the Lunar New Year."

“Okay.” Birch nodded, his figure flickered, and he disappeared from his fingertips.

"Goodbye, brothers." Lan Zhu also disappeared.

Song Yan did not rush to leave, but instead looked in the direction of the broken line.

He wanted to see if the other person would stay and talk to him, and also to test whether he was really Wang Ke.

However, to Song Yan's surprise, the broken shadow swayed on his fingertip for a moment and then disappeared.

The other person didn't seem to want to talk to me alone.

"Zhongzhou..."

Song Yan muttered to himself.

All these theories are wrongly concluded to apply to the Central Plains...

Within the Central Region lies the Tang Court, and within the Tang Court lies the Central Plains.

Wang Ke once said that his sect was in Yunmeng Mountain. If Yunmeng Mountain is in Zhongzhou, then this person is almost certainly the one in question.

He pondered for a while, and was about to disconnect his divine sense when he discovered that Zu Ming, who was closest to him, had not left.

At that moment, he turned his gaze to look at himself.

"Fellow Daoist Jia, please wait a moment."

"Ok?"

Song Yan asked, "Is there something you need?"

Zu Ming's voice sounded very young, about the same as Song Yan's.

"Fellow Daoist, please don't misunderstand. I just have some questions for you."

There's something inexplicable about the way he speaks.

Song Yan felt that this person was humble and polite, yet there was a hint of unyielding brilliance about him.

"In return, I will keep an eye on the matter of the ancient sword for you."

Song Yan raised an eyebrow, somewhat puzzled, but still nodded: "Ask away."

Just asking a few questions can solve your biggest headache. With such a good thing, what more could you ask for?

"Fellow Daoist Jia, you've met with Cuoduan before, haven't you?"

"?"

Song Yan frowned slightly, thinking to himself that this person was quite perceptive.

Although faces are hidden at this moment, hesitation and silence cannot be concealed.

He pondered for a moment, first nodding, then shaking his head: "That's possible, but I can't be sure."

"After all, this is the first time I've seen him within the Nuo Realm."

"However, how did you figure that out?" Song Yan's frankness surprised Zu Ming. He said, "Nothing, I just misjudged that he was acting a bit strangely."

Zu Ming pondered for a moment, seemingly wanting to ask a few more questions.

But after hesitating for a moment, he ultimately didn't ask.

"Alright, thank you for your time."

Zu Ming nodded slightly to express his gratitude: "If there is any information about the ancient sword, I will let you know."

"However, the Central Region and the Border Region are far apart, so Fellow Daoist Jia should act according to his ability."

"Thank you."

Song Yan nodded, and the two disappeared together into the Nuo Realm.

Inside the cave of Earth No. 21.

Song Yan slowly removed the mask from his face, his fingertips lightly tapping on his knees, as if he were thinking about something.

"Nuo Realm, Fangxiang Clan..."

For me personally, joining an organization that allows us to exchange intelligence and trade what we need is certainly a good thing.

However, there is a big problem here.

I am in the border region, while these people are in the central region.

Even if that fellow Daoist Zuming really did search for information about the ancient sword for himself and got results.

Do I really have to travel thousands of miles to the Central Region?

Maybe in the future, but not now.

From this perspective, the benefits of Nuo Realm to me are much smaller.

Of course, this also has its advantages. These people in the Central Region will certainly have a much higher level of vision and knowledge than I do.

Simply by exchanging information or listening to their casual conversations, one can learn many things that one did not know before.

Especially this fellow Daoist "Zu Ming".

For some reason, this fellow practitioner seems to have a great interest in himself and "misjudgment".

In any case, the matter of Nuo realm was completely a blind spot for him.

"Let's take one step at a time."

……

In the Central Region, there is the Ghost Valley of Yunmeng Mountain.

The quiet room was simple and unadorned, containing only a futon, a low table, a few clusters of spiritual plants, some ancient books laid out, and scattered jade slips.

Deep within the Yunmeng Mountains, the air is filled with spiritual energy.

A unique coolness permeated the air, a blend of spiritual energy and the essence of plants.

As the mask was removed, his divine sense abruptly departed.

Wang Ke did not get up immediately, but remained silent.

He rubbed the Nuo mask in his hand with his fingertips and murmured to himself.

"Worker A..."

A minor incident occurred during my participation in the Chess Tournament in the State of Chu.

At that time, Song Yan fought with Yuan Zhen and once revealed a kind of pupil technique in front of him.

The eyes are very similar to those of the person in the first picture...

"Song Yan, could it be him?"

Wang Ke already knew the answer in his heart.

It's true that there are many coincidences in this world.

Moreover, what the other party wants is actually worth considering.

Without some extraordinary encounter, a cultivator in the early stages of Foundation Establishment in a border region would not have such "high-end" vision and aspirations.

Spiritual items needed for cultivation should be more useful than old things like ancient swords.

He didn't intend to harm Song Yan; he was simply curious about the person himself.

The matter of predestined affinity is truly wondrous.

There will surely be a day when we meet again in the future.

I sat quietly on the futon for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, letting my chaotic thoughts settle down.

He stood up, but his Qiankun bag was gone, and the Nuo mask had vanished.

Upon leaving the cave, a rich spiritual energy and ethereal vitality immediately enveloped us.

My eyes suddenly opened up.

As dawn breaks, the rolling mountains disappear into the endless sea of ​​clouds.

The peaks are uniquely beautiful, and the rocks are craggy and varied in shape.

A mountain breeze blows gently, carrying the moisture from distant waterfalls and the sound of water cascading against the rocks.

Sunlight filters through the drifting clouds, sweeping across the mountains and dense forests.

The abundance and purity of the spiritual energy here far surpasses that of the border state of Chu.

"call--"

Wang Ke took a deep breath and sighed silently in his heart, "The life of a cultivator in the borderlands is truly bitter..."

The pavilions and towers of the Guigu Sect are hidden deep among these magnificent peaks and valleys, built along the mountainside, perfectly integrated with nature, leaving no trace.

Wang Ke walked along the stone steps carved into the mountainside, with exotic flowers and plants growing freely on both sides of the path.

After walking for about fifteen minutes, we came to a slightly gentle slope.

This is a rather secluded place within the sect, known even to few cultivators in Ghost Valley.

This is the place where Master Wang Ke, the True Man Qingyan, practiced his cultivation.

Zuihuaping.

There is an area covered by ancient trees with lush foliage on the edge of the courtyard. The shade is cool and the ground is covered with green grass. Several huge natural blue stones serve as seats.

A cultivator dressed in a gray-blue Taoist robe sat cross-legged on a blue stone, leaning slightly forward to look at the chessboard in front of him.

This man appeared to be a young man, but his hair and beard were showing signs of graying.

His aura was peaceful and gentle, subtly blending with the surrounding mountains, rivers, plants, trees, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

"You've arrived?" Master Qingyan didn't look up; his voice was gentle and mellow.

Wang Ke approached and bowed deeply: "Disciple greets Master."

Master Qingyan casually pointed to a blue stone opposite him and said, "Sit down."

"You must have gained quite a bit from this trip to the borderlands, right?"

“Master, that was a year ago.”

"Oh... I'm getting senile."

Master Qingyan chuckled self-deprecatingly, not taking it to heart: "His Majesty ordered your cultivation to be sealed. I thought you weren't going."

"That's impossible."

Master Qingyan nodded slightly and picked up a white piece from the chess box: "Sit still, calm your mind, and play a game with your master."

"it is good."

“Master, this time when I went to the border region, I passed through the State of Chu.”

"Oh?"

Master Qingyan raised an eyebrow, and the movement of the chess piece in his hand slowed down slightly.

His eyes flickered, revealing a hint of reminiscence.

"The State of Chu, that's a wonderful place."

"What is the situation like now? Have you ever heard of the Purple Origin Sect? That was my former sect."

Wang Ke took a black piece from the chess box and placed it on the chessboard: "No."

Wang Ke knew that his master was from the State of Chu.

That is why, when Senior Brother Meng traveled the world, he would visit the border region of Chu, which is why he left behind a teleportation array.

It actually benefited me.

"Perhaps it was destroyed long ago." Master Qingyan simply nodded: "About a thousand years ago, the Ziyuan Sect was destroyed once due to a demonic calamity."

He shook his head again: "I can only say that it lacks a bit of luck."

Wang Ke didn't know much about his master's former sect, but he had heard about it from his senior brother Meng. It seemed to be a very stupid sect.

For some inexplicable reason, they fell out with their master.

After his master achieved the Golden Core stage, he left the Ziyuan Sect and the Chu Kingdom.

"Master, you are very knowledgeable. Have you ever seen a golden pupil technique with lotus patterns in the eyes?"

(End of this chapter)