Apprenticeship at Qingcheng Mountain, Senior Brother Yu Canghai

Chapter 264 Who in the world doesn’t recognize you?

On the banks of the Yellow River.

The flags are flying and the atmosphere is solemn.

A huge army of 50,000 people is stationed here.

This huge army, with the word "Li" inscribed on its flag, is none other than the army of the Li Clan, one of the four major clans in the world.

In the front army commander's tent.

Li Shimin sat in the main seat.

Princess Pingyang Li Xiuning, her fiancé Chai Shao, and counselor Liu Wenjing were all in the general's tent, standing in front of the desk where Li Shimin was sitting, looking at a map on the desk and discussing the matter of sending troops.

During the conversation, laughter could be heard from the tent from time to time, and everyone seemed very happy.

Only Li Shimin, the commander-in-chief, looked calm and kept thinking about the map without any smile on his face.

During these days, there have indeed been some very happy things happening.

Not long ago, Li Shimin came with a large number of reinforcements. After calming the army's morale, Li Shimin devised a trick to anger the Sui general Song Laosheng, causing him to open the city gates and send troops to meet the enemy. Song Laosheng was ambushed by Li Shimin and defeated.

After this battle, Li Shimin pacified Huoyi, and the Li clan's rebel army won a great victory and advanced into Hedong.

After entering Hedong, the heroes of Guanzhong heard about the Li family's uprising and rushed to join them.

Li Shimin asked his father Li Yuan to march into the pass, capture the Yongfeng granary, provide relief to the poor, recruit and subdue the local knights and martial arts people, and seek to seize Daxing City.

Li Yuan agreed and ordered Li Shimin to lead the vanguard army across the Yellow River and attack Daxing City.

At this time...it was just before crossing the Yellow River.

"Report to the Grand Commander, I have a very important secret report."

Just then, a personal soldier came in from outside, holding a secret report with a wax seal in his hand.

The reason why the personal soldiers called Li Shimin the Grand Commander was that before Li Shimin brought reinforcements to support, Li Yuan had already appointed Li Shimin as the Duke of Dunhuang County, the Right Grand Commander of the Army, and the commander of the Right Three Armies.

"Bring it here."

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin stood up and said to the personal soldier.

The personal soldier walked up to Li Shimin, handed the letter to him with both hands, then took his leave and left.

Li Shimin immediately opened the letter and started reading it. After reading the contents of the letter, a smile appeared on Li Shimin's face.

"Second brother, what is there that makes you so happy? I never saw you smiling so much even after we captured Huoyi and killed the Sui general Song Laosheng?"

Li Xiuning saw her brother's expression and felt a little curious.

"Everyone, this is good news for us. Not long ago, my master, Taoist Qingyang, was ambushed and killed by the "Queen of Yin" Zhu Yuyan. After a fierce battle at the Yangzhou dock, my master was defeated and fled."

"Later, the Yin Queen chased my master for thousands of miles. After he left the pass and reached Yanmen Pass, my master took advantage of the situation and killed the rebel king Liu Wuzhou who was attacking Yanmen Pass. Later, the Yin Queen chased him again, and my master escaped successfully again. Now, this incident has spread all over the world."

Li Shimin placed the secret letter in his hand on the table and said to everyone in the general's tent.

Liu Wenjing's expression changed and he said, "Shimin, are you serious?"

Even though Li Shimin's master just managed to escape from the hands of the "Queen of Yin" Zhu Yuyan, the leader of the evil Yinkui sect, the fact that he was able to escape shows that his strength is not much inferior to that of a master-level master like "Queen of Yin" Zhu Yuyan.

What's more, this Taoist Qingyang, while escaping, also killed Liu Wuzhou, the most famous rebel king in the world, among thousands of soldiers.

It can be seen that although the opponent's strength is not as good as that of "Queen of Yin" Zhu Yuyan, the gap is very limited.

Li Shimin smiled and said, "This is absolutely true."

Liu Wenjing couldn't help but stand up and clap his hands, saying, "That's great. Now our Li family is lacking a master who can shock the Jianghu and the martial arts world."

Don't underestimate martial arts masters if they don't have the support of others behind them.

Just like Liu Wuzhou, although he had the support of the Turks, he was still killed by Taoist Qingyang at his command.

Among the four major clans in the world, only the Li clan lacks top martial arts masters.

Li Shimin sighed: "No one expected that my master would be so powerful."

Before, he thought that although Taoist Qingyang had a great reputation, he was too young after all. Even if he was gifted and had mastered the martial arts in "The Secret of Immortality", one of the four great books in the world, which no one had mastered for thousands of years, he was just that good.

At most, he can dominate among the younger generation!

However, with the leader of the evil Yinkui sect, the "Queen of Yin" Zhu Yuyan, who personally took action and chased her master for thousands of miles, from Jiangnan to outside the Great Wall, she still failed to kill her master. It can be seen that although her master is young, his martial arts skills are already comparable to those of the older generation of grandmasters.

I did the right thing by taking Taoist Qingyang, who is younger than me, as my teacher.

"Second brother, is this Taoist Qingyang really as powerful as you say?"

At this moment, a girl under 20 years old, wearing a blue-gray dress, with picturesque eyebrows and beautiful appearance, who looked heart-beating at first sight, said to Li Shimin in the general's tent.

Her name is Li Xiuning.

Li Yuan's third daughter and Li Shimin's younger sister.

A woman has a body like a man, and has talents that are just as good as men.

After learning from her second brother Li Shimin and her father's good friend Liu Wenjing that her father might raise an army to quell the chaos, she left Taiyuan alone, disguised as a woman and went around contacting the rebel forces.

The reason why the Li clan was able to launch their rebellion so smoothly and advance into Guanzhong with great momentum was entirely due to the contribution of Li Xiuning.

Li Shimin did not answer his sister's question, but said to Li Xiuning: "Xiuning, let Mr. Wenjing tell you about my master. It happens that Mr. Wenjing has studied my second brother's master in detail some time ago."

Liu Wenjing was a good friend of his father Li Yuan. He was originally the magistrate of Jinyang County and shared the same interests with him. When his father Li Yuan had not yet decided to start a rebellion, it was he and Liu Wenjing who planned together how to persuade his father Li Yuan to start a rebellion, and they even wanted to execute him first and report later.

However, plans cannot keep up with changes. With the arrival of his master, Taoist Qingyang, in Taiyuan, their original plan of persuading his father to agree to start a rebellion and then executing the enemy first and reporting to the emperor later became futile.

Upon hearing this, Liu Wenjing sat down at a table in the commander's tent, picked up a cup of cold tea on the table, and drank it without disdain, saying:
"Speaking of this Taoist Qingyang, if my investigation these days is correct, he is not only extremely skilled in martial arts, but also has a far-reaching plan. In addition to accepting Shimin as his disciple, he has also strengthened his ties with the Li family."

"He also founded the Qingcheng Sect, and recruited Shi Long, the best martial artist in Yangzhou, to serve him. He renamed Shi Long's martial arts arena to the Qingcheng Sect Yangzhou Daochang, and also founded a Taoist sect. Now he has at least taken control of the Shu and Yangzhou areas. This time when he was being hunted by the Yin Queen, he killed Liu Wuzhou outside the pass. I suspect he did it on purpose, not by accident, and he must have a far-reaching purpose."

Li Xiuning's fiancé Chai Shao said: "Mr. Wen Jing's analysis is correct. Second brother's master, Taoist Qingyang, has risen rapidly in just two or three years. Now even the master of the Demon Sect, the leader of the Yinkui Sect, the "Queen Yin" Zhu Yuyan, can't kill him. Maybe he will be the fourth master in the world in the future."

Li Xiuning frowned slightly and said with a worried look, "So, although this person is young, he is also a very powerful person. He accepted Shimin as his disciple. Could it be that he has other purposes?"

Liu Wenjing shook his head and said, "It doesn't matter. No matter what the other party's purpose is, he supports the Li family. This is certain. The Li family also needs to rely on the name of Taoist Qingyang, a master of this level, to intimidate the martial arts world and the Jianghu."

Li Shimin nodded: "Yes, Master also taught me the Secret of Immortality, one of the four great books in the world. He taught me the truth and was very kind to me. As long as he has no ill will towards my Li family, he will always be my Master."

Phew!

Li Xiuning couldn't help but laugh when he heard what his second brother Li Shimin said.

"why are you laughing?"

Li Shimin saw his sister Li Xiuning laughing without warning, and he felt helpless.

"I'm sorry, second brother. I can't help but laugh when I think about you calling a young Taoist priest who is several years younger than you "master."

Li Xiuning explained with a smile.

Li Shimin shook his head and said, "Xiuning, don't judge a hero by his age. There may be geniuses in this world. Although my master is young and looks very immature, he is several years younger than me, but when I am with him, I can't feel the immaturity that should be associated with his age."

"He is like an older person. His age is just an appearance. In essence, he is more like a middle-aged man in his thirties or forties. He has a calm temperament and is humble. There is a mist around him that makes him hard to understand."

Li Xiuning stopped laughing for a moment after hearing this. She said thoughtfully:

"My second brother has never commented on anyone else like this. When I have the chance, I must meet this second brother's master."

Liu Wenjing also said, "There are so many extraordinary people in the world. Perhaps Shimin's master is one of them who usually hides in the mountains. His age and appearance are just appearances. Otherwise, there would be countless people who have practiced for thousands of years, but no one has mastered the secret. The "Eternal Life Secret", one of the four great books in the world, would not have been mastered by this Taoist Qingyang and practiced it."

When Li Xiuning heard Liu Wenjing mention the Secret of Immortality, he looked at his second brother Li Shimin and said, "Second brother, is this Secret of Immortality really as the legend says, with the power to make one immortal, break through the void, and ascend to become an immortal?"

Li Shimin shook his head: "I don't know about that. I am not talented enough. I have only learned part of the "Eternal Life Secret" that my master passed on to me, and I have not yet started practicing. But the "Eternal Life Secret" is very profound and exquisite."

These days, he was busy leading troops to fight, which left him with little time for cultivation. As a result, he had not yet mastered the sixth and seventh human body diagrams of the "Eternal Life Secret".

Li Xiuning asked curiously, "Second brother, so the Taoist Qingyang only taught you part of the "Eternal Life Secret", and you haven't mastered this part yet?"

Li Shimin guessed his sister Li Xiuning's thoughts and defended Chu Yuan: "Xiuning, don't misunderstand, it's not that Master is hiding something, it's just that this "Eternal Life Secret" is too difficult to practice. It took me three months just to memorize and understand the part of "Eternal Life Secret" that Master taught me, let alone practice it."

Li Xiuning asked curiously, "What about your master, second brother?"

Li Shimin said: "The Secret of Immortality has seven human body diagrams, each of which is profound and can be compared to a book of exquisite and top-level magical skills. As far as I know, only Master has mastered the complete version of the Secret of Immortality."

Liu Wenjing said: "It is said that the Secret of Immortality was left behind by the immortal Guangchengzi, the teacher of Emperor Huang. It is a treasure related to immortality and ascension to immortality. It is normal that it is difficult to find. It is normal for someone like Shimin. Taoist Qingyang can only be said to be a genius, a hermit."

Li Shimin agreed with Liu Wenjing's words and said, "Mr. Wenjing is right."

Chai Shao said at this time: "Since Second Brother's master is so powerful, and now he was chased by the "Empress of Yin" Zhu Yuyan for thousands of miles and survived, and killed Liu Wuzhou, the news has spread all over the world. Will it be helpful for us to capture Daxing City and the Eastern Capital Luoyang?"

Li Shimin and Liu Wenjing smiled at each other.

Liu Wenjing said: "Of course."

Li Shimin said: "As long as the order is passed down, the relationship between Master and me will be made public. In this way, as long as the martial arts world and the people in the rivers and lakes are not stupid, they will know that my master, Taoist Qingyang, is standing behind our Li family."

Liu Wenjing said: "That's right. In this way, no one in the world will dare to look down on the Li family anymore."

……

Deep in the mountains of Lingnan.

Songjiashan City is located at the confluence of the Yushui River, surrounded by water on three sides and with majestic mountains towering. The stone city is built from the mountainside and follows the mountain terrain, winding along the mountain.

The main building complex is located on a large flat land opened up from the mountains. The terrain is steep and it gives off a sense of one man guarding the pass.

The mountain city dominates the nearby mountains and plains, facing Yulin County in the distance, symbolizing the dominant power over the safety of the entire Lingnan region.

At the highest point at the end of Songjiashan City, there is a thatched cottage with a wooden plaque hanging on the door, on which are engraved the three words "Modaotang".

It is said that a few years ago, Song Que, the head of the Song family, had handed over all matters of the Song clan to his younger brother Song Zhi and his son Song Shidao, while he himself lived in seclusion in this knife-grinding hall, rarely going out on weekdays, honing his sword skills.

People in the Song family could often hear the sound of sharpening knives in the knife sharpening room.

On this day, Song family think tank, Song Zhi, known as "Earth Sword" in the martial arts world, walked to the door of the Grinding Hall with a secret report.

Song Zhi knocked on the half-closed wooden door and said, "Brother, our spies in Jiangnan and outside the Great Wall have urgent news." "Come in!"

At first, there was no sound in the knife sharpening room except the clanging sound of knives being sharpened. After Song Zhi waited at the door for about half a quarter of an hour, a somewhat cold voice came from the knife sharpening room.

After hearing this, Song Zhi walked into the knife sharpening hall with the urgent newspaper in both hands. Song Zhi looked straight at the old man who was sharpening a knife with his head down.

Song Zhi didn't look around at all. The knife-grinding hall was not big, and he was familiar with all the furnishings inside, but he seldom came here.

Because he had been somewhat afraid of this elder brother since he was a child, he felt that his elder brother always looked at everyone with a very cold gaze, as if he was looking at an object!
It's not just outsiders, it also applies to their brothers and relatives!
If there was no important matter that needed to be reported to Song Que and decided by Song Que, he would never come to the "Modaotang".

When Song Zhi walked to the center of the room, an ordinary-looking old man with a cold face and wearing washed-white cloth was standing three feet in front of him, holding a long knife in his hand and sitting on a bench. On the bench was a round whetstone one foot long and seven inches wide, on which he was sharpening the knife.

The sound of his body rising and falling, accompanied by the sound of sharpening a knife, echoed in the room, very melodious.

There was also a wooden basin on the ground next to it, filled with somewhat turbid water.

The old man bent down from time to time and put the blade in his hand into the wooden basin to dip it in water.

This plain-looking old man is the world-famous martial artist known as the best swordsman in the world, the leader of the Lingnan Song clan, known as "Heavenly Sword" Song Que.

"Speak!"

After Song Zhi came in, Song Que said without even raising his head.

Keep sharpening your knife!

Although Song Zhi didn't know that his brother had been sharpening knives in this "knife sharpening hall" for many years, and that the whetstone and the long sword in his hand had been worn out countless times, yet he still insisted on doing so, he would not ask because he had already gotten used to it.

"This urgent report is about the Taoist Qingyang who appeared out of nowhere in the past two years. In addition to the fact that he has mastered and practiced the "Eternal Life Secret", one of the four great books in the world, and founded the Qingcheng Sect, he single-handedly swept through all the martial arts masters in Shu, forced Anlong, the leader of the Demon Sect Tianlian Sect, out of Shu, and made Shilong, the number one martial artist in Yangzhou, join him. He also changed the original Shilong Taoist temple into the Yangzhou branch of the Qingcheng Sect and established a Taoist army. Recently, he has done several major things."

Fortunately, Song Zhi knew his elder brother's habits and had already read the urgent news in his hand.

Seeing that his elder brother didn't react at all, Song Zhi knew that his elder brother didn't say stop just wanted him to continue.

"Just half a month ago, the leader of the Yinkui Sect, the "Queen of Yin", Zhu Yuyan, and her disciple Wanwan ambushed and killed Taoist Qingyang outside Yangzhou City. Taoist Qingyang was defeated and fled. Later, "Queen of Yin" Zhu Yuyan chased him for thousands of miles, from Jiangnan to outside the Great Wall, but still failed to kill Taoist Qingyang. Taoist Qingyang even killed the rebel king Liu Wuzhou, who was leading his troops to attack Yanmen Pass and accepting the title of "Khan" awarded by the Turks, at Yanmen Pass."

Song Zhi keenly noticed that when he said this, his elder brother Song Que paused in sharpening the knife, and then continued sharpening the knife.

"Go on, what happened next?"

Song Que asked.

"Later, in full view of everyone, the 'Queen of Yin' Zhu Yuyan caught up again, and Taoist Qingyang continued to flee, and the two disappeared from everyone's sight."

"Oh, right, news just came from Guanzhong. The Li Clan, which had previously declared to "respect the Sui Dynasty" and enthroned Yang You, the King of Dai, as the emperor, announced that Taoist Qingyang had accepted Li Shimin, the second son of the Li Clan, as his disciple, and Taoist Qingyang was Li Shimin's master."

Song Zhi added.

After Song Zhi finished speaking.

Stupid!
The sound of Song Que sharpening his knife suddenly stopped.

Song Que did not speak, and the "Sharpening Hall" fell into silence for a moment.

Song Zhi did not disturb or urge his brother. He knew that this was his brother's usual thinking habit.

"Shu, Jiangnan, the Li clan, outside the Great Wall... This Taoist Qingyang seems to be acting without leaving any trace, but in fact he is constantly making moves and laying out his plans for the world. It seems that in addition to the "loser" Ning Daoqi, there is another master in the Taoist school. And this master is different from the "loser" Ning Daoqi. Judging from his style of making moves everywhere, he doesn't seem like a person who does nothing."

After a long time, Song Que's voice sounded in the "Sharpening Hall".

It didn't seem like he was talking to his younger brother Song Zhi, but rather to himself.

"Brother, you are very smart. According to the information obtained by our spies, after the Taoist Qingyang left Yanmen Pass, Yuchi Jingde, a deputy general under Liu Wuzhou, joined forces with Chen Xiaoyi, the governor of Yanmen County, who was a Sui official who previously guarded Yanmen Pass. They took over the forces and army left behind by Liu Wuzhou. It is said that someone saw Chu Yuan and Yuchi Jingde, a deputy general under Liu Wuzhou, and had a detailed conversation with Chen Xiaoyi, the governor of Yanmen Pass. Maybe these two have already defected to the Taoist Qingyang."

Song Zhi explained.

"Kill Liu Wuzhou. It seems that this Taoist Qingyang may be a fellow Taoist of our Song family, but he also accepted Li Yuan's son Li Shimin as his disciple..."

Song Que stood up.

He picked up the sharpened knife and walked to the corner of the room. Among the pile of whetstones and broken knives that he had worn out, he found the largest piece of stone, which was about five feet high and had an irregular round shape.

Unlike the other whetstones in the corner, which were all covered with marks from grinding, this largest stone did not have any marks of grinding.

There are only a few names engraved on it, very clearly and with great force.

Song Que walked to the stone, holding the long sword in his right hand, and wrote with ease, just like a great scholar breaking ink.

Amidst flying stone chips and splashing sparks.

A person's name appeared on this stone:
Chu Yuan!

It is the name of Taoist Qingyang.

"Brother, did you carve the name of Taoist Qingyang on this grindstone?"

Song Zhi finally couldn't help it and asked Song Que.

Everyone in the Song family knows that Song Que has set up a whetstone in the "Sharpening Hall". All the famous white-path knights or evil-doers in the martial arts world, as long as their names are written on the whetstone, will eventually become Song Que's victims.

"The Demon Sect's 'Empress of Yin' Zhu Yuyan chased him for thousands of miles but he survived. He also mastered the 'Eternal Life Secret', one of the four great books in the world. Although I don't know his martial arts level, his strength is already that of a master. His name is qualified to appear on this grindstone."

Song Que said calmly.

"Brother, what you mean is that Zhu Yuyan can't kill Taoist Qingyang?"

Song Zhi couldn't help but say.

Although the outcome of "Queen of Yin" Zhu Yuyan's pursuit of Qingyang Taoist Chu Yuan is unknown, there is still a small group of people in the martial arts world who believe that Qingyang Taoist Chu Yuan may not be able to escape from "Queen of Yin" Zhu Yuyan.

Compared to Taoist Qingyang, who has only risen to prominence in the past two or three years, "Queen Yin" is a master in the Demon Sect who has been famous in the martial arts world for decades.

After Song Que finished all this, he returned to the bench where he had sharpened his knife, sat on it and said, "If Zhu Yuyan could kill Taoist Qingyang, she would have done it long ago. Taoist Qingyang has touched the interests of the Demon Sect. It is too late for Zhu Yuyan to wipe him out now. Taoist Qingyang has grown up and is now a master-level expert. Although his strength is not as good as Zhu Yuyan's, it is not much different."

Song Zhi never expected that his elder brother Song Que would have such a high opinion of this Taoist Qingyang!
Song Zhi asked Song Que: "Brother, please give me some advice. How should our Song family deal with this Taoist Qingyang in the future?"

Song Que leaned over and scooped up some clean water, then wiped it on the blade of the long sword in his hand. His tone gradually became colder: "I don't care how you get along with him. This man accepted Li Yuan's second son Li Shimin as his apprentice. He is standing behind the Li family. The Li family is of Hu descent. My Song family is forbidden to marry outsiders. It is pure Han blood. If he doesn't appear in front of me, it's fine. If he dares to appear in front of me, I will chop him with a knife."

As Song Que said this, an icy chill and murderous intent rose in the knife sharpening hall.

At this moment, the long swords in the corner that were worn out by Song Que all made soft ringing sounds, as if responding to Song Que.

Song Zhi felt the rapidly dropping temperature in the knife-grinding hall, and for a moment he couldn't help feeling a little frightened.

……

In Yangzhou City.

It has now become the original "Shilong Martial Arts Field" of the Qingcheng Sect's Yangzhou Taoist Temple.

"Master, Elder Xuancheng!"

"Good news, there is good news!"

That day, Shuanglong Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling came back happily from outside wearing Taoist robes, shouting as they ran.

Xuancheng and Shilong were discussing matters in the "Wendao Hall".

The so-called "Wen Dao Tang" is actually the "Shilong Wuchang". After it was renamed the Qingcheng Sect's Yangzhou Taoist Temple, Taoist Xuancheng gave this name to some of the original buildings.

"Wen Dao Tang" is one of them, and it is also the place where the top leaders of the Qingcheng Sect's Yangzhou Taoist Temple hold meetings or receive guests on weekdays.

Nowadays, in the Qingcheng Sect's Yangzhou Taoist Temple, disciples all wear Taoist robes and practice Taoist techniques, so many buildings have been given Taoist-flavored names by Taoist Xuancheng.

"What good news?"

Shi Long's puzzled voice came from Wen Dao Hall.

"Master, the headmaster is fine."

"Not only is the headmaster fine, he has also done something great. What he has done has spread all over the world."

Xu Ziling and Kou Zhong said as they entered the house.

"Is this true?"

Xuan Cheng and Shi Long, who were in Wen Dao Hall, heard what Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling said when they just walked in from the door. They both looked delighted and stood up and spoke.

Ever since they learned half a month ago that their leader was being hunted by the leader of the evil Yinkui Sect, the "Queen of Yin" Zhu Yuyan, they have been extremely worried. They are mobilizing all the connections of the Qingcheng Sect's Yangzhou Taoist Temple to find out all the news about the leader, Taoist Qingyang.

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling ran in from outside, both panting.

"Mr. Zhong, you are more eloquent than me, you go ahead and say it."

Xu Ziling said to Kou Zhongdao who was beside him.

"The news I just received is that the sect leader was chased by the old witch Zhu Yuyan, the "Queen of Yin" from the Yinkui sect of the demon sect. She traveled thousands of miles and fled all the way from Yangzhou City to the outside of the Great Wall. Some people saw that the sect leader was not only unharmed, but also killed the rebel king Liu Wuzhou who was attacking Yanmen Pass in the midst of thousands of troops. Later, the old witch caught up with them, and the sect leader and the old witch were chasing each other, and they lost their whereabouts again."

Kou Zhong told the news he had just learned.

"Yes, Master, Elders, think about it, if that old witch could kill the Sect Leader, she would have killed him long ago. Why did she chase the Sect Leader for thousands of miles and the Sect Leader was still unharmed? The Sect Leader's martial arts may not be as good as that old witch's, but the old witch can't kill the Sect Leader easily."

Xu Ziling said.

"Then we can rest assured."

Stone Dragon Road.

"Yes."

Elder Xuancheng breathed a sigh of relief.

These days, they are extremely anxious.

If the leader really died at the hands of the "Queen of Yin" Zhu Yuyan, then the future of both the Qingcheng Sect and the Qingcheng Sect's Yangzhou Dojo would be worrying.

"It seems that you still trust me?"

At this moment, a familiar voice outside the door sounded in everyone's ears, making everyone stunned!
Everyone's eyes involuntarily looked towards the door.

(End of this chapter)