Chapter 548: Sang Lao Appears

In the Ba Gong.

“Senior.”

“Senior Wuyue.”

“Senior Wuyue, why are you out? We can handle things here. You should go back and rest and recover from your injuries.”

The original Hong Yi base had been taken over by a group of Bai Yi.

Everyone was performing their duties and handling matters in an orderly fashion.

But when a middle-aged man in a light blue robe emerged from the tent, everyone immediately fell silent and stood up straight.

The Bai Yi guards at his side quickly spoke up to advise him.

Gou Wuyue simply waved his hand lightly. “It’s nothing serious. How are your preparations going?”

“All the work has been completed. We’re just waiting for the people inside the Bai Ku space to come out.”

The Bai Yi guard standing nearby reported, “Also, the injured brothers from Qinglong Jun have all been treated, and we’ve notified the families of those who fell in battle. We’re taking care of them.”

“Very well done.”

Gou Wuyue nodded, looking at the tent where nearly half the people were missing, and couldn’t help but murmur softly, “Is there any new information?”

“Yes.”

The Bai Yi guard continued, “Based on the information left by the Hong Yi earlier, the Sheng Nu who entered the Bai Ku small world wasn’t just the Storyteller.”

“Before that, they had actually spotted three figures: the Sheng Nu leader, Cen Qiaofu, and the Storyteller.”

“That means, at the very least, there are three ‘Sheng Nu’ inside the Bai Ku right now.”

Gou Wuyue was startled. “The Sheng Nu leader?”

“Yes.” The Bai Yi nodded quickly.

“He came too?”

“Mm.”

Gou Wuyue lowered his head, seemingly deep in thought. After a long while, he looked up and asked, “What about Xiao Yi?”

“I’m here.”

The void suddenly flickered, and another Bai Yi, Chang Yi, appeared.

“Who is in charge of the Sheng Shen Hall branch in Dong Tian Wang Cheng?” Gou Wuyue asked.

“Jiang Bian Yan,” Chang Yi replied.

“Jiang Bian Yan... I think I have some impression of him...” Gou Wuyue furrowed his brow.

Chang Yi quickly added, “Jiang Bian Yan is at the peak of the Wang Zuo realm and has been attempting to achieve Dao Severing, though we don’t know if he succeeded.”

“He has some connection to the Ling Bu leader Yu Ling Di, like distant relatives. His background is solid; there’s absolutely no issue.”

Gou Wuyue immediately took out a token and handed it over. “Pass on my order: Bring all the Bai Yi and Hong Yi that can be mobilized from Dong Tian Wang Cheng and its surrounding areas.”

“All of them?”

Chang Yi was stunned.

“Yes.”

Gou Wuyue said, “There are three ‘Sheng Nu’ who entered the Bai Ku, and you only shared this important information with me so late.”

Chang Yi panicked and bowed deeply. “We were afraid of disturbing your recovery...”

“I’m not blaming you.”

Gou Wuyue patted his shoulder with a gentle smile and continued, “Now that all three ‘Sheng Nu’ have entered the Bai Ku, including the leader.”

“Do you dare say they don’t have contacts outside?”

“This was already clear from the person who attacked us earlier—they not only have people outside, but their support is also very strong.”

“If I get held up again, the ones who’ll suffer heavy casualties will be you all.”

“And besides...”

Gou Wuyue scanned the surroundings. “The manpower near Bai Ku is severely insufficient right now, and we lack the top-tier combat strength.”

“You can’t hold the line, so we need to call in more people.”

“Yes.” Chang Yi nodded, feeling ashamed.

“Oh, and has Yu Ling Di arrived yet?”

“N-not yet.”

“Tell him not to come for now.”

Gou Wuyue gazed into the distance. “Have him turn back and go to Dao Qiong Cang first to borrow the ‘Mo Kui.’ If he can’t get it, then bring over all six departments’ forces!”

“The six departments’ forces?”

The Bai Yi nearby all looked up in shock.

Gou Wuyue smiled faintly. “This battle is crucial—it’s not as simple as you think. Be prepared to die.”

“Yes!”

Everyone responded in unison.

“And one more thing...”

A look of doubt flashed in Gou Wuyue’s eyes. “Have you identified the person who last appeared from Qinglong Jun?”

Chang Yi’s body trembled. “N-not yet...”

“How much have you investigated?”

“We don’t have much information so far. After all, that person only used one move, ‘Da Fo Zhan,’ and it was to save someone.”

“But based on the sword intent aura from him, as well as his technique habits, cultivation level, and physical features...”

Chang Yi hesitated as he raised his eyes, meeting Gou Wuyue’s indifferent expression.

“The Eighth Jian Xian?” Gou Wuyue asked.

“Mm.” Chang Yi responded weakly.

“Xiao Yi, how many years have you followed me?” Gou Wuyue sighed.

Chang Yi’s legs went weak.

“Thirteen?”

“Senior!”

“Senior Wuyue, I know it might not be him, but based on those features...”

Gou Wuyue interrupted, “Features? If the Eighth Jian Xian hadn’t fallen and was making a comeback, do you think he’d reveal so many obvious traits for the Sheng Shen Hall to see?”

“Uh...” Chang Yi was at a loss for words.

“He’s not Ba Zun An.” Gou Wuyue said firmly.

“Buzz!”

A sword hum suddenly rang out inside the tent.

As the sword hum started, the window curtains fluttered wildly, and sword energy spread in all directions.

Everyone was alarmed, knowing it was the famous sword “Nu Lan Zhi Sheng” reacting to the conversation outside.

After all, its previous wielder was the Eighth Jian Xian!

“But...” Chang Yi still hesitated.

“No buts.”

Gou Wuyue beckoned with his hand, and the famous sword “Nu Lan Zhi Sheng” flew over to him.

He gently stroked the sword with one hand, his eyes filled with reminiscence.

After a long while, he chuckled self-deprecatingly.

“Xiao Yi, do you think your judgment is right, or my intuition is wrong?”

“This...” Chang Yi carefully lifted his gaze.

Gou Wuyue said helplessly, “You’ve never fought Ba Zun An, so you have no idea how arrogant he is.”

“If it had really been him that day, let alone you all, even I don’t know if I could have made it here.”

He pointed to the ground in the Ba Gong, his voice soft but his tone extremely serious.

“Ba Zun An fights without retreat!”

With a boom, Chang Yi’s mind went blank.

Only then did he fully realize that they had been making inferences based on so-called “facts.”

But the person standing before them was someone who had actually clashed with the Eighth Jian Xian in the Ten Zun Seats competition!

Such a figure, even without fighting that ragged man that day, could probably identify him with just a glance.

What use were their so-called realistic deductions?

“Understood. We’ll go back and overturn our investigation.”

“No need to start over.”

“Sword intent, Da Fo Zhan, Ba Zhi, neck scar...”

Gou Wuyue murmured to himself.

In this world, how many could impersonate the Eighth Jian Xian so convincingly?

He raised his voice and waved his hand. “Send people to Can Yue Xian Cheng and Zang Jian Zhong to check. Whichever one’s leader is absent, raid it directly!”

“Buzz—”

“Nu Lan Zhi Sheng” trembled.

The sword hum echoed, stirring up dust everywhere.

Everyone felt a chill in their hearts, sensing the piercingly cold killing intent in the air, and involuntarily bowed their heads.

“Yes!”

In the Bai Ku.

Not far from Li Jian Grassland.

“My disciple, do you think I look like him?”

A hoarse, parched voice, as if it hadn’t drunk water in millennia, emerged softly.

“Not at all.”

Mu Zixi frowned at the withered old man before her. “He wouldn’t say ‘I’; you need to say ‘this old one’!”

“Oh oh.”

“He wouldn’t say ‘oh oh’ either, Xu Xiaoshou. Can’t you be more flamboyant? Understand what I mean by a fiery temper?”

Mu Zixi said angrily, “Was he ever as mild as you?”

Xu Xiaoshou pressed down his straw hat and couldn’t help retorting, “Oh, now you think I’m mild? Did you not compare me to that old guy before? Do you still dare to curse me?”

“Damn!”

Xu Xiaoshou sprinkled some dried grass on his clothes and deepened his voice. “How about now?”

“Lift your head.” Mu Zixi said irritably.

Xu Xiaoshou tilted his head up.

“The dark circles under your eyes—make them darker. This isn’t right. At a glance, it looks like you’ve only been up for a year and a half, not the effect of over a decade!”

Xu Xiaoshou: “...”

“So you can tell the difference between a year and a half and over a decade of dark circles?”

He focused his intent, and the gray-black around his eyes intensified.

“Yes, yes, that’s the feel. Don’t smile!”

Mu Zixi jumped up and flipped the old man’s straw hat.

“Oh, right, the hair.”

She seemed to remember something. “His hair wasn’t this thick. Make it sparser. After all, someone who stays up all night must have serious hair loss!”

Xu Xiaoshou: “...”

Wait, do spirit refiners even lose hair?

He continued fine-tuning the details.

Honestly, without Mu Zixi, he felt his current appearance was already strikingly similar to Old Sang.

But this girl had pointed out eighty-eight flaws.

Turns out, a thousand people see a thousand faces—and in his little junior sister’s mind, Old Sang’s image was even more wretched!

“Is it good now?” he asked.

“You fool, would your master say things like that?”

Mu Zixi annoyingly grabbed her twin tails, critiquing him. “Xu Xiaoshou, you have to remember, you’re impersonating your master. The appearance is fine now.”

“But the demeanor is what matters most!”

“Your demeanor right now doesn’t resemble him at all. If you run into someone who knows him, you’ll get caught on the spot.”

“Heh.” Xu Xiaoshou sneered. “That’s because I haven’t started acting in front of you yet.”

“Smack!”

Mu Zixi jumped up and smacked him on the head. “It’s not ‘heh,’ it’s ‘heh heh’—that sleazy kind of laugh, the one that makes people shudder... like a leering grin?”

“Fine then!”

Xu Xiaoshou was shocked and pointed at his junior sister. “A leering grin? You’re done for—I’m going to tell that old guy!”

“Uh...”

Mu Zixi was stunned and angrily retorted, “Xu Xiaoshou, I’m teaching you right now. Do you still want me to teach you?”

“Heh heh, I’ll let you off. Remember, no next time!”

Xu Xiaoshou leaned down, pulling the straw hat over his head, and pinched his junior sister’s chin with a meaningful leer in his eyes.

Mu Zixi’s face turned red. “Yes, that’s the vibe. Do it again.”

“Heh heh, I’ll let you off...”

Xu Xiaoshou had just released her chin and pinched it again. “Remember, no next time.”

“Yes!”

“Perfect!”

“Don’t let go of your hand. Do it one more time.” Mu Zixi’s ears were turning red.

“Heh heh, I’ll let you off...”

Xu Xiaoshou was speaking when he suddenly felt something was off. He smacked his junior sister on the head. “You little brat, what’s going on in that head of yours!”

“Ouch.”

Mu Zixi winced and shrank back, the flush fading as her face paled from the pain.

“Xu Xiaoshou, where did you learn your Yi Rong Shu? I never see you use any materials to disguise yourself,” she grumbled after a while.

“If you could still tell, then my ‘Yi Rong Shu’ would be a waste of time,” Xu Xiaoshou sneered.

“This old one... Oh, this old one’s ‘Yi Rong Shu’ wouldn’t be a waste of time, would it?”

“Hmph.”

“Xu Xiaoshou, where are we going now?”

Mu Zixi said as she affectionately linked arms with the old man beside her.

“Hey, hey, what are you doing?”

“I’m your master now, so don’t call me by my name, or we’ll get exposed!”

Xu Xiaoshou quickly pulled his arm away. “Besides, are we master and disciple that close?”

“Of course!”

Mu Zixi said matter-of-factly, “Xu Xiaoshou, you’ve rarely seen how I interact with our master, so you don’t know how close we are.”

“He often carries me around for walks—you can try it too.”

She said and tried to jump on his back.

“I’d rather die than carry you for a walk!”

Xu Xiaoshou kicked out immediately.

“Ouch.”

“Thump!”

Mu Zixi crashed into a wooden post, rubbing her backside as she got up in pain.

“Warning you—don’t mess around!”

“You too!”

Xu Xiaoshou took off his straw hat. “Don’t drop the ball at a critical moment, got it? If you shrink back from threats again, you won’t leave the Yuan Fu for the rest of your life. Understand?”

“Tut tut.”

The straw hat twitched twice in fright before flying back onto Xu Xiaoshou’s head.

“Let’s go.”

“Where to, where to?” Mu Zixi scampered over again and linked arms with him.

Xu Xiaoshou struggled a bit but eventually gave up and let her.

“We’re going to find ‘You Si Jian.’”

Originally, his target wasn’t “You Si Jian,” but that strange spatial rift.

However, as soon as he left the Yuan Fu, the call from the rift at the end of the Bai Ku map in his mind had stopped.

Xu Xiaoshou sensed something was wrong.

He didn’t dare act recklessly.

What if the Hong Yi had already found that place?

If so, going there now would be suicide.

So, he changed his target.

You Si Jian!

Old Sang’s letter had been clear enough.

Whether he got “You Si Jian” or not didn’t matter—as long as it didn’t fall into the Sheng Shen Hall’s hands.

“Close your eyes.”

“Hmm?” Mu Zixi looked up, not understanding what Xu Xiaoshou meant.

“Close your eyes.”

“Oh.” She obeyed and closed her eyes.

Xu Xiaoshou swiftly stashed the straw hat and the little girl into his Yuan Fu, then took a step forward.

“Open your eyes.”

“Oh.”

Mu Zixi opened her eyes, and her pupils shrank instantly.

The space around them had completely changed.

From a wasteland of dead trees, it had turned into a vast grassland.

And in the distance, through the underbrush, a group of hurried Hong Yi were struggling to maintain their formation.

Within the formation, monstrous killing demonic energy raged for miles.

At the center of the sky, a black murderous sword floated.

Mu Zixi stared in a daze.

“Is this... You Si Jian?”