Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

There are places in Xiling to care for the wounded. In addition, there are many disciples of Xiaoxiang Qin Academy active in Xiling now. Chu Mingkong sent the female disciples who were implicated because of running errands to a safe place and confirmed that their condition had stabilized before he felt at ease.

At the same time, he was also preparing to go to the Abyss to give those ancient people of the Yin Time a big surprise.

After arranging the various talismans empowered by extreme Yang energy, as well as the various spiritual treasures used for suppression, Chu Mingkong asked Zuo Qiuchi beside him:

"Master, what does that jade slip mean? It must be meant for you, right?"

Zuo Qiuchi sat cross-legged without any ladylike elegance, resting her chin on one hand, occasionally sipping the jade gourd wine, and watching Chu Mingkong pack his things with a bored expression.

She did not hide anything about the jade slip:

"It's for me. I've been thinking that I should hear something soon, but I didn't expect it to be sent to the old house in Beijing."

That can hardly be considered an old house; it's a newer residence than Qingxin Mansion. At most, it's just neglected and dilapidated...

"So what's the news?"

"Do you remember when I mentioned that I wanted you to come with me to the north?"

Although it was just a few words, Zuo Qiuchi probably thought about what would happen next, and was so exhausted that he slumped backward and lay on the ground like a salted fish.

Chu Mingkong stopped what he was doing, thought for a moment, and vaguely remembered that there was such a thing:

"I think I did mention it, but you always said there was no rush or anything, so I never thought it was that important."

Zuo Qiuchi nodded, agreeing with the traitor's statement. However, from Chu Mingkong's perspective, he couldn't see her nod, as two tall and solid fruits blocked his view.

"Actually, I don't think it's that important. It's just that I have to give an explanation to take back. After all these years, the binding force is almost non-existent. Anyway, it's basically just a marriage contract."

A couple of question marks popped into Chu Mingkong's mind. The idea of ​​an engagement was indeed a bit of a dream for him, or perhaps it was coming a little too late.

The word "engagement" immediately conjured up images of arrogant fiancées breaking off engagements, reneging on marriages, and sons-in-law living with their husbands in the family—if only it had come earlier, preferably back in the capital, especially when Rong'er had just caused such a stir and ruined his reputation throughout the city...

—Outside the Chu King's mansion, amidst the clamor, jokes and laughter circulated about the Crown Prince of Xiling. It was at this moment that a letter of annulment from the Northern Sword Dynasty made his life even more miserable... and then began the face-slapping and counterattack with a series of slaps! slaps! slaps!

If this engagement had come earlier, there might have been some fun. But it's a bit late now. I already have two daughters, and in a while, the one Aunt Gu is carrying will be old enough to run errands.

Zuo Qiuchi was amused by his rant and took out some snacks, peanuts, and wine.

"Hey, tell me about that time when Rong'er made you all miserable, and then she sent you a letter announcing the engagement. I love hearing about that!"

"...Next time for sure." Chu Mingkong snatched the wine from Zuo Qiuchi, took a sip to moisten his throat, and then ate a few mouthfuls of herbal medicine. "Getting back to the serious topic, what exactly is the situation with that engagement?"

"That's quite a long time ago. The Sword Emperor Dynasty can be considered a branch of the Heavenly Pole Empire, and it was even a branch of the royal family itself. The Xiling Chu Clan is, in essence, a close confidant of the Sword Emperor Dynasty."

The repeated emphasis on "closeness" made Chu Mingkong realize that his ancestors were indeed very close.

He nodded without saying anything to interrupt, but pouted his lips as if he wanted a kiss. In response, Zuo Qiuchi kicked him, her fair and smooth feet, fresh from a bath, pressing against his face.

"Later, the Sword Emperor Dynasty branch wanted to leave, but the Chu family branch stayed for some reason. However, this disagreement should not have been due to internal conflicts, and the relationship was still there. Therefore, they decided to arrange a marriage between the two families every few generations to prevent the relationship from becoming distant over time."

"I'm the one destined for this generation? So I had no idea about this at all, it was all decided by our ancestors?"

“Yes, when you were recuperating in the capital, if you hadn’t insisted on finding out who triggered the Abyss Disaster to bomb you, I would have taken you away from the Heavenly Empire and settled in the Sword Dynasty in the north.”

To you, it seems a bit like living as a sojourner in a foreign land, but in reality, shouldn't this be considered a return to one's roots?

Chu Mingkong finished packing his things, kissed his master's jade feet, then suddenly put them down and lay down next to her. The two of them stuck together like salty fish.

He pondered the amount of information in this matter, and suddenly understood many things that were not so important.

No wonder there are non-royal kings in Xiling who hold military power and are independent. It turns out that the Xiling King's branch is actually a henchman of the royal family, just a branch of the royal family that left the Tianji Empire.

The current Sword Dynasty is located in a remote area, several times farther than the distance from the Crescent Moon Kingdom to the East Sea. It has broken away from the branch of the Heavenly Pole Empire and has completely become a sect, although its name still carries the flavor of a secular dynasty.

Just thinking about the development of the Sword Dynasty and the evolution of the Heavenly Empire, it seems that the two royal families must have broken up back then, but they didn't tear each other apart and fight. Instead, the stronger side of the Sword Dynasty took the initiative to back down and left with its people, or perhaps they simply didn't care about the Heavenly Empire.

The relationships involved are somewhat complicated, but it seems that they have become less important over time. Before the emperor died, the Tianji Empire was trying various ways to use the Jianxuan Sect as a backer.

So, a long time ago, our family also had a group of powerful individuals, but they just left.

His master had always been an envoy sent south by the Sword Dynasty to lead him back north to fulfill his ancestral promise, but no one could shake her laid-back, carefree, and Buddhist-like nature.

On the way south, she fought and trained all the way, eventually reaching the Sword Immortal realm. When she returned, she stayed with him in the capital to recuperate and live a secluded life. When she heard that he wanted to find out the murderer, she never mentioned the Sword Dynasty, but stayed by his side as a way out.

Chu Mingkong only learned about this today, partly because the situation had reversed and he no longer needed a way out, and partly because Zuo Qiuchi was very indifferent and didn't bother to talk about it unless it was urgent.

“But now I don’t need such a marriage contract. Having this messenger who brought the marriage contract is enough. What should I do?” Chu Mingkong hugged his master’s waist, which was indeed quite slender. He then hugged his master’s “pectoral muscles”.

Zuo Qiuchi let him pinch her, probably feeling melancholy herself. In this relationship, she was essentially giving her own opinion of her fiancé beforehand...

"I can't say for sure, but since the initial idea was to establish a connection, once the connection is established, the marriage agreement shouldn't be important, right?" Zuo Qiuchi said without much confidence, then quickly decided not to dwell on this troublesome topic: "What exactly is the situation with your injury? Don't think you can pretend to be a sheep just because you're eating grass. Tell me the truth!"

Chapter 142 Stop Licking

Chu Mingkong no longer hid his injuries; given how he was now constantly having to eat a few bites of grass, there was no way he could hide it.

Therefore, his attitude toward this matter was not to deliberately hide it; he would eat grass openly and honestly, and if he was discovered and questioned, he would simply confess.

Once the matter was explained, Zuo Qiuchi couldn't say anything. She wasn't a doctor, nor could she provide him with any elixirs for the soul.

"Then you should come with me to the Sword Emperor Dynasty. I didn't realize it before, but after meeting the Eye of Heaven Witch, I realized that the sword cultivators in my hometown have always been trying to deal with the weakness of the soul, and the Mind Sword is almost a must-learn skill."

I used to think it was unnecessary, just teaching useless things, but it turns out it was all foresight; maybe those old fogies have a lot of these elixirs hidden inside them.”

Chu Mingkong had that feeling when he first saw the Heart Sword, but the Sword Emperor Dynasty was too far away, and who knew how long it would take to get there? What about Xiling? Should they take them there for a group tour?

"So, Master, do you know anything further inside information?"

"Huh? What's the inside story?" Zuo Qiuchi was unsure which aspect he was asking about.

"Why did the first generation of the Sword Dynasty run away? There must be internal conflicts within the royal family. The Xiling branch has a history of betrayal since the time of our great-grandfather. It's as if they coveted Xiling's small territory and stayed to be local tyrants. I didn't know that the Sword Dynasty and Xiling had such a good relationship in private."

Whether the inside story is true or not is irrelevant; the key is whether there are any unofficial histories or rumors.

Zuo Qiuchi looked at him speechlessly. If there were really so many rumors circulating, how could she not know?

"How would I know these things? A cultivator's generation can live for at least several hundred years. With some effort and some longevity-enhancing elixirs, they might be able to live for nearly a thousand years. That was so long ago."

Besides, if rumors were circulating throughout the streets that your ancestors had some secret plans to remain behind, outwardly betraying the Sword Emperor Dynasty, would Xiling still be able to live so peacefully?

Chu Mingkong was quite disappointed that he couldn't get any gossip or even any dubious rumors.

He didn't care about the truth of the matter; how could the specifics possibly affect his promiscuous relationship with his master? What he wanted was some kind of twisted story to amuse himself.

He suddenly sat up, packed his things, and prepared to leave:

"We still need to deal with the Yin Shi people first. They're letting these bastards cause trouble on my turf, making my name seem like some kind of taboo."

"What are you planning to do? Are you really going to the Abyss? Are you sure your injuries are alright?" Zuo Qiuchi asked seriously.

It was evident from that shaman that the shaman tribe consisted not only of humans, but also of many other races, and even some minority groups that were inherently malicious.

When dealing with these guys, you might encounter all sorts of tricks that you need to be wary of, and the most basic preparation is to be in good condition.

It's obvious that Chu Mingkong can't even do this basic thing!

Before he could answer, Zuo Qiuchi continued to deny it with reason:

"Besides, you should know that it's difficult to divine in the Abyss. That Heavenly Eye Witch said back then that he couldn't divine for you, so it's useless for you to call your name in the Abyss. Don't worry about these things for now, focus on healing your injuries first."

It was a rare sight for Chu Mingkong to see her master so cautious; in the past, they, master and disciple, would always act rashly when in doubt.

Now she can actually analyze the feasibility for him in a very logical way, it seems that she is just too lazy to use her brain in normal times.

"I've thought about this problem. All that preparation was for this. Besides, one advantage of the Abyss is that we don't have to worry about any tricks the enemy might use!"

......

The critical point at the depths of the abyss.

A master and apprentice were setting up an array, manipulating various formations, using extremely yang talismans to suppress everything, barely managing to carve out a "pure land" in the abyss, a small territory untouched by the erosion of extremely yin power.

"As expected of the Abyss, these few Extreme Yang Talismans can normally support a battle that lasts for several days and nights. But just opening up a territory the size of a latrine here has consumed so much energy that it can only last for less than half an hour."

Zuo Qiuchi still accompanied Chu Mingkong, regardless of whether his plan would work or not, at least to ensure that someone would protect him during his escape.

Further into the depths of the abyss, a place even Zuo Qiuchi couldn't stay long, those Yin Shi people certainly wouldn't fare much better.

In the Abyss, all beings are truly equal, and all laws are annihilated.

"What a pity. If the Extreme Yang Talisman wasn't deep inside, not even having enough time to support the formation, I would have chosen to stay inside."

"By the way, Mingkong, how were you feeling in the Abyss? Your soul was touched by the extreme yang, will you feel uncomfortable here?" Zuo Qiuchi looked at him with concern.

Seeing him jumping around in the Abyss without needing any defenses only made him more worried.

The fact that Chu Mingkong thrives in the Abyss shows that the closer he gets to the power of extreme Yin, the more irreversible the situation will become if something happens in the future.

"It's alright, I'm actually quite comfortable in the Abyss. The feverish sensation in my soul has been somewhat suppressed here, like... an ice pack?"

"Have you heard the story of moths flying into a flame? Before they crash into the fire and burn themselves to death, the moths feel excited and carefree as they get closer to the flames."

He used to be the one telling stories, so why is it that this time it's Zuo Qiuchi's turn to play the role of quoting classics and telling stories?

"Don't worry, there's no butt to tempt me in the depths of the abyss. Why would I go that deep for no reason?"

This sounds like nonsense, but if the target is Chu Mingkong... Zuo Qiuchi looked at his rebellious disciple and nodded in understanding:

"That makes sense."

Now that everything is arranged, there is no influence of extreme Yin energy in this small "territory," so divination should be unaffected.

Zuo Qiuchi even made a special written contact with Yun Nongyu, who was far away in Kunlun.

[Zuo Qiuchi: Nongyu, can you divine my fate?]

Looking at the text, Yun Nongyu strongly suspected that Zuo Qiuchi was just making excuses to strike up a conversation, and that he would say something like, "Nongyu, I just sensed that you miss me, come to Xiling!" after she finished her divination.

But she did as she was told.

[Yun Nongyu: I've done a divination. Your luck has been good lately. Also, are you planning to cultivate the Extreme Yang Technique?]

Zuo Qiuchi glanced at the response and said to Chu Mingkong, "It can indeed be divined. So calling your name like this should also be able to be detected by those Yin Shi people."

Chu Mingkong was eager to try. He called his name a few times, then suddenly remembered that he was an exception, possessing extreme Yin power, which could not be sensed by Yin people even in this small Yang domain.

Then this opportunity can only be given to Master.

"Master, come and call out, and remember to say something shocking, preferably related to the cultivation of extreme Yin power, to provoke those ghostly things into sending over impatiently!"

Zuo Qiuchi wondered if it would really work. What if those Yin-time people couldn't be teleported over?