I'm here in the martial arts world just to find love.

"Young Master Jiang just said that the Taoist priest who escaped knew her background?"

Su E didn't care about any of that. To her, money was just an external thing and didn't matter. As for Jiang Chao being cheated... that was probably not the case.

Jiang Chao: "You all heard it just now. I didn't mention the words 'Holy Maiden' at all. These words were said by the other party themselves. In other words, that Taoist should recognize the one next to us."

He turned around and looked at the woman in red three steps away.

The woman in red was struck by the lake and fell into the water. She was not seriously injured, but her red dress became a little dirty from the water and dust, and was not as bright and eye-catching as before.

Her expression remained unchanged, her delicate face expressionless.

A pair of eyes that should have been full of life still looked empty and lifeless.

Despite the stares of the group, the woman kept her eyes fixed on Jiang Chao, not blinking an eye. One wonders if her eyelids had gotten tired after all this time...

If she were truly a saintess of some sect, it would seem plausible.

"Should we go find that Taoist priest now and ask him the truth?"

Su E pondered for a moment, then asked.

Although there are many martial arts practitioners here, it shouldn't be difficult to find a young Taoist priest with distinctive physical features.

Both the enormous wine gourd and the broad, black peach wood sword left a deep impression. However, it was already late, and if the other party deliberately hid from them, it would be difficult to find them.

Jiang Chao shook his head. "No need. If we're destined to meet again, we will. Even if we don't look for him, he will surely find us again."

  

The strange Taoist priest did not give his name, but Jiang Chao had a premonition that they would meet again soon.

"It's getting late, let's go up the mountain and find my sister."

Jiang Chao looked up at the sky and said with great interest, "Let's go to the Zixu Temple and see how the Taoist masters who live in seclusion in the deep mountains cultivate themselves and attain enlightenment."

Finally, the heroine Chu couldn't contain her curiosity and asked:

"I've never heard you mention before that you have an older sister, who is also a saintess of the Moon Goddess Palace. Tsk tsk, as expected of a disciple from a major sect, your background and connections are truly extraordinary."

The girl didn't say these words out of jealousy; she was simply expressing her inner feelings unconsciously.

Although she also came from a martial arts family, she had stumbled and struggled along the way. Not to mention enjoying any benefits from her family's reputation, she couldn't even mention the Chu family's name.

Jiang Chao winked at the girl, then waved his hand with a rather heroic air.

"Miss Chu, please don't be so polite. From now on, my connections will be your connections. After all, we are old friends who have gone through thick and thin together. There's no need for formalities between friends."

Chu's heart skipped a beat, and she felt inexplicably moved, but she still stubbornly insisted:

"Who, who's being polite with you? And who's your friend...?"

However, this last sentence sounded somewhat lacking in confidence.

Although they haven't known each other for very long, they've been through a lot together. In the parlance of the martial arts world, they can be considered friends who have been through thick and thin together.

Of course, all the hardship was borne by Chu Ning. Jiang Qilin was incredibly capable, as if nothing could stump him, and he had never suffered any hardship at all.

Thinking of this, Chu, feeling that she had dragged the team down, couldn't help but feel indignant again.

.........

Their purpose in coming to Yunmeng Mountain to participate in the martial arts tournament was different.

But since we've come together and gotten to know each other's backgrounds, we can naturally be considered friends.

Furthermore, based on Jiang Chao's display of martial prowess on several occasions, the crowd spontaneously sided with him, and when they heard that he was going to see his relatives, they naturally had no objections.

This place is open and spacious, and people from the martial arts world gather here. If you are willing to explore, you can still find a lot of information here, such as which martial arts forces are on good terms with each other and which are hostile to each other.

But none of them were interested in any of that. Since there were better places to stay for the night, they naturally wouldn't stand there like idiots.

So, just as the sky turned dark blue, he led his horse quickly toward Yunmeng Mountain, whose peak was no longer visible in the distance.

There are many roads leading from the foot of Yunmeng Mountain to the mountainside and even the summit. They are all stone-paved paths that wind and twist upwards without end.

Since it was Jiang Chao and his group's first time here, they naturally didn't know the way.

Moreover, there are many Taoist temples and Buddhist monasteries on this mountain, so finding Qingxu Temple in the dark is not easy.

Fortunately, even after dark, the Taoist temples and Buddhist monasteries on the mountain were not completely dark; there were still lights. Jiang Chao and his companions led their horses, found a less steep set of steps, and followed the faint lights that shone through the dense forest on the mountainside.

The horses' hooves clattered on the bluestone steps, and after walking for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a temple came into view.

This is a Buddhist temple, not large in scale, but it looks solemn and dignified. The earthen yellow temple walls are mottled and covered with moss, showing the traces of time everywhere. Two red lanterns hang above the door, swaying gently in the wind.

Upon reaching a point not far from the tightly closed temple gate, Jiang Chao gestured for everyone to wait for him, then strode forward and knocked on the door.

Almost at the same time as the knocking, the temple door creaked open a crack.

A round-faced novice monk, who seemed to be waiting somewhere for someone to knock on the door so he could open it at any time, poked his round head out.

"Who is it?"

The voice was childish, tinged with curiosity.

Upon seeing Jiang Chao smiling and looking down at him from the doorway, and the chubby little monk tilting his head back, his eyes lit up, and he exclaimed with delight:

"Have you come to offer incense to my family's Buddha?"

"..."

Jiang Chao's smile froze instantly.

Who would come to a temple to burn incense so late at night?

Also, what do you mean by "your family's Buddha"?

While feeling slightly puzzled, Jiang Chao simply thought it was just childish talk and didn't dwell on it, quickly putting on a friendly smile again:

"Young monk, you've misunderstood. We don't worship Buddha or offer incense; we've come to ask for directions. Do you know which direction to go to Zixu Temple?"

Upon hearing this, the joyful smile on the young novice's face vanished instantly, replaced by an expression of extreme sadness and disappointment.

"A benefactor has come to my sacred Buddhist sanctuary, yet instead of paying homage to the Buddha, he has come to ask me for directions, and what's more, he's asking about the dwelling place of those hooligans. This is truly... too, too heartbreaking..."

As he spoke, he clasped his hands together and began to sob.

Jiang Chao couldn't help but chuckle. This little monk was really quite amusing. If it weren't for the fact that it was already getting late, he wouldn't mind going in to offer incense.

Strangely enough, these kinds of temples usually have a plaque hanging at the main entrance with the temple's name on it.

However, Jiang Chao looked up for a long time but couldn't find the plaque with the temple's name inscribed on it.

"Young monk, don't be sad. What's the name of your temple?"

Jiang Chao tried to distract the young monk.

"Since you don't believe in Buddhism, why ask?"

The young novice monk, with his hands clasped together, stopped crying instantly and replied in a slightly stiff tone.

Jiang Chao sighed, took out two silver coins from his sleeve, and handed them to the young novice.

"I didn't ask for nothing. Consider this money as offerings to your family's Buddha, young monk, how about it?"

"Go west from here, pass through a bamboo forest, and you will see two stone oxen. Then follow the mountain path behind the stone oxen, climb up a mountain path, and you will see the home of the herd of old Taoist priests with bull noses."

The young novice monk was very happy to receive the incense money, and at this point, he didn't forget to remind everyone:

"By the way, I heard from the abbot that Zixu Temple has been haunted lately. You must be careful not to offend them."

"Thank you, young master."

With another faint creaking sound, the door of this unknown temple closed once again.

Jiang Chao turned around and smiled at the group of people not far away, "Let's go, let's follow this little monk's directions and go look for it."

However, after Jiang Chao finished speaking, he realized that the three of them were looking at him with extremely strange eyes.

"Um?"

The boy, puzzled, asked, "What's wrong?"

After hesitating for a long time, Su E finally asked in a slightly hoarse voice:

"Young Master Jiang, who were you speaking to just now?"