The Pastoral Life of a Cultivation Master

Chapter 2938 The conspiracy reappears
When Ouyang Nan faced Qian Ying, she thought to herself that she should not let this old man suppress her and the others. Although her intention was good, she did not know that this old man had long harbored the desire to suppress her and even wanted to kill Chen Mo.

Therefore, while talking to Ouyang Nan, his gaze also swept over Chen Mo, secretly keeping an eye on him.

Chen Mo was very sensitive to such gazes. He was talking to Ouyang Ruoxi when he suddenly felt someone watching him. When he turned his head, he found that Qian Ying had already shifted her gaze elsewhere.

This old man is staring at me. Damn old guy, does he really want me to take care of him? Chen Mo thought to himself, wondering if he had acted too safe, which was why this old man was always hostile towards him.

However, these guys still need to be at the forefront, so I really need to play the fool for now, which is a bit of a headache. I'm also silently keeping Qian Ying, this old rascal, in mind. If he gets too annoying, I'll just secretly send him to his doom. Anyway, there's another old rascal in the team who's a master of innate talent, and he's under my control, so he's relatively easy to get along with, isn't he?

Qian Ying felt a chill run down her spine, but she didn't know why. She quickly looked around but found no enemy activity, so she could only blame herself for being overly sensitive.

"Captain Ouyang's consideration is quite comprehensive, which is excellent. Since you've already made this decision, let's proceed as you wish," Qian Ying nodded and said. After all, sometimes, even if you want someone to die, you still have to maintain appearances.

"I formed this small expedition team for everyone's safety. Since entering this valley, too many martial artists from various families have perished; we cannot afford any more losses. Therefore, we must scout ahead and identify all dangers to ensure everyone's safety. Your expedition is extremely important, and you bear a heavy responsibility, so please take it very seriously," Qian Ying said earnestly to Ouyang Nan.

Chen Mo was utterly speechless. If he didn't know that Old Deng was utterly wicked, he would have genuinely believed that Old Deng was kind-hearted, responsible, and caring towards everyone. But all of this was just Old Deng's facade; in private, he was a completely different person.

"Okay, I understand!" Ouyang Nan felt contempt in her heart, but she maintained a good facade.

"Oh, Elder Qian, there's something else I need to tell you," Ouyang Nan said.

"Go on," Qian Ying said calmly and unhurriedly.

“Before you arrived, I not only collected our team’s personal supplies, but also gathered some ropes to build a rope bridge across the canyon,” Ouyang Nan said.

"Yes, use what you need to use. I've made a note of it," Qian Ying said.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Qian Ying used the excuse of collecting supplies to end this superficial exchange.

Ouyang Nan naturally saw no need to continue the conversation, so she simply stepped aside, allowing Qian Ying to lead the team toward the temporary camp.

Qian Zhenghao stepped forward and said to Ouyang Nan, "Captain, I'm going to help my elders first. I'll come back and report to you after I'm done."

Ouyang Nan nodded in agreement, and Qian Zhenghao immediately followed the group.

Actually, Ouyang Nan was also very uncomfortable. It would be better if Qian Zhenghao didn't exist, but now that he had been arranged to come, there was no way to get rid of him, so she could only deal with it for the time being.

The group that Qian Ying brought naturally included members of the Ouyang family, and it was led by Ouyang Min.

However, to Ouyang Nan, Ouyang Min was now like a familiar stranger. When he walked past, he simply nodded without even opening his mouth, and led the other martial artists of his family past Ouyang Nan.

Ouyang Ruoxi and Ouyang Nana frowned deeply, but kept their mouths shut. They knew that ever since Ouyang Nan handed over his family leadership duties to Ouyang Min, these martial artists from the Grand Elder's faction had become ungrateful, completely ignoring Ouyang Nan.

However, putting themselves in their shoes, if they were martial artists from Elder Ouyang's faction, they might be exactly the same, or even worse. In any case, they'd all be the same.

Ha ha.

This is also why Ouyang Ruoxi and Ouyang Nana did not speak, but only looked at the many Ouyang family martial artists.

"Aunt, what are we doing now?" Ouyang Ruoxi asked Ouyang Nan.

Ouyang Nan kept her eyes fixed on Qian Ying and the others without turning around, and said directly, "Let's rest here. We don't need to do anything now, we'll be busy tonight. So let's get some rest and keep a close eye on the canyon tonight."

Ouyang Ruoxi and Ouyang Nana nodded and looked for a small rock by the roadside, wanting to sit down and meditate to recover their energy.

“I think you’d better go to the canyon and keep an eye on the ropes we set up, otherwise I’m worried that old Deng might have some ulterior motives,” Chen Mo said to Ouyang Nan.

There's a distance from here to the canyon, and the existing suspension bridge's rock base is slightly lower than the road surface. From where we're standing, we can't see the rock base; we can only see half of the rope hanging above the canyon and the rock base on the other side. Qian Ying, that old bastard, although very strong, is wicked and malicious. It's possible he might secretly use some means to destroy the rope or harm them while collecting supplies.

Furthermore, Qian Wantong was also in the group, and the two of them together were bound to cause trouble. That's why Chen Mo reminded Ouyang Nan.

Ouyang Nan turned her gaze to the rope in the distance, and realized what was going on. She said, "That's right, you've thought it through. We should be careful. We shouldn't be malicious, but we can't be without caution. Okay, you, Ruoxi, and Nana, stay here. I'll go keep an eye on things."

"Okay!" Chen Mo nodded.

Ouyang Nan quickly walked towards the rock base without looking for Qian Ying and the others.

At this point, Qian Ying had already instructed everyone to disperse and, according to their respective families, collect the scattered supplies belonging to their families.

After Qian Zhenghao returned and reported the situation, Qian Ying and the others felt relieved. They had been worried that if they couldn't collect their supplies, what would they do? Would the expedition have to end there? But they were also unwilling to give up and felt quite melancholy.

Fortunately, although the supplies are scattered on the ground, they can still be used after being collected, and the losses are not significant. Based on the consumption of each person, they can last for a few days. If they are more economical and each person reduces their consumption, they can even last for seven to ten days.

After all, martial artists have to endure hunger and thirst for longer periods than ordinary people.

While everyone was collecting supplies, Qian Wantong came over.

“Elder, I’ve taken a look at the supplies here at the camp. Apart from the damaged items, not much is missing. Overall, the quantity of supplies is roughly the same as what we had earlier, except for a few ropes that are missing,” Qian Wantong said.

"Okay, that's good." Qian Ying said.

Before arriving, they were worried that Ouyang Nan might conceal the fact that he had collected the supplies. Although Qian Zhenghao reported the relevant matters and did not see Ouyang Nan collect any extra supplies, there was a gap in the time it took for him to report back.

In this situation, with no logistical support, we can only rely on the supplies we have to weather the storm. Hiding even a few extra supplies might just be a lifesaver.

Qian Ying couldn't help but worry about it, which is why she asked Qian Wantong to take stock of the scattered supplies when collecting them, so that she could find out whether Ouyang Nan had secretly hoarded any supplies.

“Elder, it seems that Ouyang Nan is very clever. Not only does he not lack resources, but he also does things in a very organized way, putting everything out in the open,” Qian Wantong said.

Qian Ying looked at the supplies and nodded in agreement.

After a while, Qian Wantong said again, "Elder, look over there. Ouyang Nan and the others have already set up the ropes to cross the canyon. Should we make things difficult for them?"

Qian Ying looked up at the rope spanning the canyon and lowered her voice: "Oh? How do you plan to make things difficult for them? You should know that Qian Zhenghao is also going to be with them."

“I know, but didn’t Ouyang Nan just say that for safety reasons they won’t cross the canyon to explore that area today, but instead want to use the night to observe the strange beasts in the canyon?” Qian Wantong said.

"So what?"

"I'm thinking, should we have someone cross the canyon using a rope, and then secretly sabotage it? It shouldn't be visible on the surface, and it won't break when slightly pulled, but it will snap when someone uses it for leverage. That way, when Ouyang Nan and the others cross the canyon the next day, they'll fall into the canyon. We won't even need to lift a finger; those who fall will be torn to pieces by the monsters in the canyon," Qian Wantong said.

"What about Qian Zhenghao? You know, he's working for Ouyang Nan."

“Qian Zhenghao told me that he had been at the back of the group throughout today’s journey. Therefore, when crossing the canyon, he would also be at the back of the group. If the rope breaks before him, there shouldn’t be any problems,” Qian Wantong said.

After thinking for a moment, Qian Ying said, "This is a bit difficult. After all, they will definitely check the ropes when they cross the canyon, so if we want to do something with the ropes, we need to control the tension well, which is not easy."

Nobody is stupid, and given the current situation, if Ouyang Nan were to take action, he would definitely check these ropes. If it were Qian Ying, he would do the same. After all, one should always be wary of others, and he has that much sense.

"This..." Although Qian Wantong had thought of this method, he hesitated about the strength required. After all, with his tenth level of acquired strength, he could secretly sabotage the rope, but the rope had to withstand Ouyang Nan's inspection and break when someone was crossing the canyon for leverage. He really couldn't control the strength required.

(End of this chapter)