Blind Ghostwriter: Starts with the full level of Nine Yang Magic Skill

Chapter 269 The Envoy from Penglai and the Strange Woman (9.4k words)
Longhu Mountain, Shangqing Palace.

Zhang Daoyi dismissed many disciples and met with the two envoys from Penglai Island alone.

Both men were very fat and looked remarkably alike, sitting in the main hall like two small mountains. However, although their faces and figures were extremely similar, they were also very easy to distinguish, because one had a red face and a long beard, while the other had a black face and a large beard.

Zhang Daoyi poured tea for the two men, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "May I ask how you two envoys are addressed?"

The red-faced messenger chuckled and cupped his hands, saying, "I am the elder brother, going east." He pointed to the dark-faced, bearded man and said, "He is the younger brother, also going east. We two brothers only have given names, not surnames!"

“Don’t listen to his nonsense,” the dark-faced messenger said. “I am the elder brother, and he is the younger brother!”

The red-faced envoy immediately retorted, "The Great Island Lord has already said that I was born first."

The dark-faced envoy retorted, "That's what the Second Island Master said. He picked us up by the roadside. How could the First Island Master possibly know when we were born? But the Second Island Master said that when he found us, we each had a piece of cloth. My piece of cloth said 'Older Brother,' and your piece of cloth said 'Younger Brother!'"

"Nonsense," the red-faced envoy said, "The island lord said that when she was sailing, she passed by a fishing village and happened to see our mother having a difficult childbirth. She helped deliver us."

The dark-faced envoy said angrily, "You're talking nonsense. The island lord is all-powerful and omnipotent. If she had delivered our babies, how could our mothers have died?"

"When the oil is used up and the lamp goes out, even a god can't save it!"

"Hey, what do you know..."

Looking at the two Penglai Island envoys arguing endlessly about who was the elder brother, Zhang Daoyi said speechlessly, "Gentlemen, why don't you have a fight? Whoever wins is the elder brother."

Zhang Daoyi was just saying it casually, deliberately making fun of him.

Unexpectedly, the two brothers fell silent immediately upon hearing his words. Then, the dark-faced messenger suddenly raised his head and said, "Master Zhang is indeed a clever man. We've been arguing for so many years, how come we never thought of this move? Whoever wins will be the elder brother, won't they?"

The red-faced envoy was overjoyed and said, "That's right! Come on, let's have a fight! I'm going to beat you to a pulp today!"

The two immediately started exchanging punches.

Zhang Daoyi: "??"

Seeing that the two had actually started fighting, Zhang Daoyi quickly stepped in and grabbed the fists of the two envoys from the left and right respectively.

Then, Zhang Daoyi was suddenly startled, only then remembering that the wound on his chest had not fully healed. He immediately wanted to retreat, but in that instant, the two fists collided.

With a loud "boom",
The entire hall was shaking; countless tiles were shattered, and floor tiles were torn up and scattered like waves.

"puff"

Zhang Daoyi was jolted back several steps, which aggravated his still-unhealed wounds, causing blood to seep from his chest instantly.

As soon as Zhang Daoyi retreated, the two men actually started fighting.

Both of them were unparalleled masters with profound skills. Their fight was incredibly loud, like a house being torn down, and soon the entire hall began to shake violently.

Seeing that things were not going well, Zhang Daoyi ran out immediately.

Just as they ran out of the main hall, a huge roar followed, and the hall collapsed and shattered into pieces.

At this moment, a group of disciples from Longhu Mountain rushed over, and Zhang Daoyi quickly waved his hand, telling everyone to step back.

Meanwhile, the red-faced messenger and the black-faced messenger were still exchanging blows in the ruins.

"Master, why are these two envoys fighting?" Huaisu asked.

Zhang Daoyi: "..."

Can I say it's because I have a sharp tongue?

"A duel between masters is a rare sight. Let's learn from each other's experience!" Zhang Daoyi was on the verge of tears.

"Master, why are you bleeding? Did they beat you up?" Huaisu asked.

Zhang Daoyi: "..."

The two messengers were making a great commotion fighting each other in the ruins.

After a long while, the dark-faced envoy suddenly waved his hand and said, "I'm not fighting anymore! I suddenly remembered that we both learned the exact same martial arts. We can't break each other's moves at all. We could fight for a year and still not be able to determine a winner!"

“Oh, right,” the red-faced messenger said, as if he had just woken up from a dream. “That’s right, what you can do, I can do too, and what I can do, you can do as well. Moreover, we are of one mind, so no matter how we fight, we can’t determine a winner. Let’s stop fighting!”

"But what do we do now? We've already smashed up their house!"

"Pretend you don't know!"

"Hmm, good idea."

The two emerged from the ruins.

Hearing their conversation, Zhang Daoyi almost spat out another mouthful of blood. If it weren't for the clear, innocent look in their eyes, he would have suspected they were doing it on purpose.

"Master Zhang!"

The red-faced envoy took out a jade token from his robes and said, "This is the Penglai Token. Please come to the East Sea on the fifteenth of August next year. Are you available?"

Zhang Daoyi did not accept the token, but instead asked, "Whom have you invited this time, esteemed envoys?"

The dark-faced envoy said, "There are many, but are you perhaps wondering if Jiang Ruoxu and Su Qianqiu have received the Penglai Token?"

Zhang Daoyi nodded slightly.

He knew Su Qianqiu would definitely go, but the reason he asked this question was mainly to find out if Jiang Ruoxu was really still alive and if Penglai Island could be found.

The dark-faced envoy grinned and said, "Hey, you really want to know about these two. Zhang San and Li Si didn't lie to me. They said that you were beaten up by Jiang Ruoxu and Su Qianqiu back then. As long as these two go to Penglai Island, you will definitely go. You must want to get revenge for being beaten up back then, right?"

I heard that Jiang Ruoxu hit Su Qianqiu, and then Su Qianqiu took his anger out on you. Feeling powerless, you persuaded Su Qianqiu to team up against Jiang Ruoxu. Even though you two teamed up, you still got beaten up. Su Qianqiu got angrier and angrier, and then beat you up too. Is that true?

Zhang Daoyi: "..."

The red-faced envoy quickly said, "Old Hei, how can you be so tactless? How embarrassing for Zhang Tianshi to ask such a question?"

"Then how should we ask?" the dark-faced envoy asked.

The red-faced messenger leaned close to Zhang Daoyi and asked, "Master Zhang, does it hurt more when Jiang Ruoxu hits someone, or when Su Qianqiu hits someone?"

Zhang Dao flicked his sleeves and said, "Have a safe journey, esteemed envoys!"

The black-faced envoy shoved the red-faced envoy aside and said angrily, "How dare you say you can't speak properly? You've angered Master Zhang!" The black-faced envoy leaned close to Zhang Daoyi and said, "Master Zhang, Jiang Ruoxu and Su Qianqiu have already accepted the Penglai Order."

Zhang Daoyi asked, "Did Jiang Ruoxu accept it too?"

"Accepted," the dark-faced envoy nodded.

Zhang Daoyi took the token and asked, "Where did you find him?"

“Hehe,” the dark-faced envoy shook his head and said, “I can’t say that.” After saying that, the dark-faced envoy took out a scroll and handed it to Zhang Daoyi, saying, “Master Zhang, we have come to see you today not only to deliver the Penglai Token, but also to ask you for a favor.”

"What's the matter?"

Zhang Daoyi opened the scroll, which contained a portrait of a very beautiful girl of eighteen or nineteen years old.

The red-faced envoy said, "This girl is called Xiaobai. She is the personal disciple of the Great Island Master of Penglai Island and also the current Holy Maiden of Penglai Island. She is mischievous and has secretly run away from the island. We don't know where she has gone. So, we would like to ask you to use your connections in Qian Kingdom to help us find her."

Zhang Daoyi asked in confusion, "You were able to find Jiang Ruoxu, who disappeared for decades, but you can't find your Holy Maiden?"

“This is different,” the dark-faced envoy said. “We use divination to find people, but our Holy Maiden Xiaobai possesses a rare treasure that is not within the Heavenly Secrets. Moreover, she has a method to counter our Penglai Island’s divination techniques, so naturally we cannot find her.”

"Thank you very much!"

The two envoys quickly expressed their gratitude.

Zhang Daoyi then asked, "By the way, are you planning to invite Gu Mo?"

“That’s natural,” the dark-faced envoy said. “He is the best in the world today, so he is naturally within the scope of invitations.”

"Where are Zhang San and Li Si?" Zhang Daoyi asked. "When I left the island back then, didn't they say they would be the ones to invite us again this time?"

“They’re dead,” the red-faced messenger said. “They died a few years ago, both around ninety years old, which was the age when they were supposed to die.”

Zhang Daoyi suddenly realized and said, "Yes, I'm already an old man!"

Just as Zhang Daoyi was feeling sentimental,

The red-faced and black-faced envoys tiptoed away, running incredibly fast, as if they wished they had four legs.

"Hurry up, or he'll make us pay for the house later."

"I don't have the money to pay!"

“You do have it. I saw a hundred taels in the sole of your shoe last night.”

No, you're mistaken!

"I'm the older brother, if I say you have it, then you have it!"

"I'm the older brother..."

……

After leaving Longhu Mountain, it took Gu Mo and his group half a month to reach the border of Yunzhou. Accompanying them were disciples from the Canglan Sword Sect who came to participate in the Luotian Grand Ceremony. The leader was Chen Shu, one of the three grandmasters of the Canglan Sword Sect.

Gu Mo and Chen Shu knew each other, but they weren't very close. They had only discussed Dao together at the Canglan Sword Sect last year when Gu Mo attended Shen Bai's wedding.

They hadn't seen each other at Longhu Mountain until Gu Mo came out of the Sutra Pavilion. Chen Shu finally met Gu Mo and, upon learning that he was returning to Yunzhou, immediately invited him to go with her.

Gu Mo was already close to the Canglan Sword Sect, so he agreed.

As the number one martial arts sect in the world, the Canglan Sword Sect has always been proud of Gu Mo's current achievement of being the number one in the world. Although Gu Mo is not a member of the Canglan Sword Sect, they always feel that they were the first force to discover Gu Mo's high level of martial arts. Moreover, since the great battle between the righteous and the evil in Dongping County, the Canglan Sword Sect has been laying the foundation for Gu Mo's reputation as a great hero of Yunzhou.

Therefore, we traveled together along the way.

Although the Canglan Sword Sect disciples all respected Gu Mo, the number one in the world, very few showed fear or distance. The atmosphere was excellent throughout the journey, a feeling that Gu Mo could no longer experience from disciples of other sects besides the Canglan Sword Sect disciples.

That evening, a group of about thirty people from the Canglan Sword Sect arrived at a large mountain on the border of Yunzhou. As night was approaching, they prepared to speed up and try to reach the village outside the mountain before it got completely dark. However, a heavy rain began to fall.

The group had to change their plans and take shelter from the rain at an abandoned temple they had encountered on their way there.

in fact,

Whether it's raining or snowing, it has no effect on Gu Mo now. In fact, if he's in a hurry, he can still fly on his sword even with Gu Chudong in tow. It won't take more than a few hours to get from Longhu Mountain to Linjiang City.

However, although his cultivation level is getting higher and higher, Gu Mo prefers to walk normally and live a normal life. Perhaps it is human nature that the more you lack something, the more you show it. When you want fame, you can't wait to show off your martial arts skills wherever you go. Now that he has become the number one in the world, he prefers to act like an ordinary person in the martial arts world.

The rain poured down.

The disciples of the Canglan Sword Sect quickly cut down some trees to repair the dilapidated roof of the temple, and then more than twenty people squeezed into the main hall of the temple.

Gu Mo and Chen Shu sat in a corner chatting idly, while Gu Chudong chatted enthusiastically with several female disciples of the Canglan Sword Sect on the other side.

Whether they are female knights-errant or female grandmasters, they all enjoy gossiping.

Soon, it got completely dark.

Everyone then began to meditate and rest, and the temple quickly became quiet and dark.

At a certain moment,
A series of hurried footsteps came from outside the temple, and then the door was violently pushed open.

A gruff male voice rang out, cursing, "Hurry inside and get out of the rain. Damn it, this lousy weather, it starts raining whenever it wants."

Then a woman's voice rang out: "Say less, keep your voices down, or you'll attract that woman's attention!"

A voice said, "What woman? She's a ruthless, bloodthirsty demon!"

As they walked toward the main hall, a disciple of the Canglan Sword Sect hurriedly called out, "Gentlemen, let's go to the side rooms. The main hall is already occupied."

The group was clearly startled. The gruff male voice cursed, "Damn it, why didn't you say something sooner? Are you trying to scare us to death? This house is so big, what's wrong with us coming in to take shelter from the rain? How many of you are there? What, did you cramm this house full of people?"

As he spoke, the man took out a tinderbox and blew on it forcefully. The flame instantly tore through the darkness and shone out.

Then, all of them froze.

Because they saw a room full of people, though they couldn't make out the exact number, since the light from the tinderbox was limited and could only illuminate a small area.

However, one thing is certain: there were a lot of people, and they were all carrying swords and had expressionless faces.
The man with the tinderbox had a stiff expression. It was hard to tell whether the sweat or rain was rolling down his forehead. He unconsciously twitched his lips, swallowed, and said, "I...I'm sorry...I've disturbed you all. We...we'll go find shelter from the rain over there!"

At this moment,
Two flames instantly lit up the main hall; two disciples of the Canglan Sword Sect had lit torches.

The light from the two torches instantly illuminated the main hall.

The Canglan Sword Sect disciple standing at the door had a very unpleasant expression, and his gaze toward the group at the door was extremely unfriendly. After all, the man holding the tinderbox had been speaking very rudely, constantly insulting others' mothers.

The group sized up the four people at the door; there were three men and one woman.

Standing in front was a middle-aged man with a rugged appearance, a steel knife at his waist. Beside him was a woman who looked delicate but had a graceful figure. Although she was not young, she still had charm. She carried a heavy bundle on her shoulder.

Behind them were two young men, both burly and imposing, one carrying a machete and the other a short iron stick.

The four of them standing together looked like three bandits kidnapping that woman.

At this moment, the burly middle-aged man swallowed hard. He could also see the unfriendly look in the eyes of the Canglan Sword Sect disciple. He stammered, "Great...Great hero...I'm sorry...I have a foul mouth...Please be magnanimous...I...slap me in the face!"

After saying that, the middle-aged man slapped himself hard across the face, making a very loud noise.

"Alright," the Canglan Sword Sect disciple's anger subsided upon seeing the man's attitude. After reprimanding the middle-aged man's actions, he waved his hand and said, "That's enough. Don't resort to cursing your parents so easily in the future. Everyone has a father and mother!"

"Yes, yes, yes," the middle-aged man said, bowing. "You're right, sir. I'll never be so foul-mouthed again."

The Canglan Sword Sect disciple waved his hand.

Immediately, the middle-aged man led the other three men to leave.

Just then, Chen Shu inside suddenly noticed bloodstains on the middle-aged man's clothes. Then, he noticed fresh bloodstains on the sleeves of the two young men behind him.

Immediately, Chen Shu called out, "Wait a minute."

Those people immediately stopped.

Chen Shu slowly walked to the door and asked, "Who are you people, and where are you going?" The middle-aged man looked troubled.

The woman whispered, "My lord, if this hero asks you a question, just tell him the truth. This hero looks like an upright person, what are you afraid of?"

The middle-aged man hesitated for a moment before saying, "To be honest, sir, I am from Chenjia Village at the foot of Dongyang Mountain. My name is Chen Liao. I learned some martial arts in my younger days, traveled the martial world for a few days, earned some wealth, and then married a wife and returned to the village."

Chen Shu asked, "Since you are from this place, what brings you here, all travel-worn?"

"Escaped," Chen Liao swallowed hard and said, "Great hero, a female demon came to our village. I don't know what happened, but she killed everyone she saw. The village was almost wiped out. Because my two sons and I are martial artists, we managed to pack some gold and silver and escape. When we came out, more than half of the villagers had already been killed!"

Chen Shu's expression changed slightly, and she asked, "What does that female demon look like?"

Chen Liao said, "He looks about seventeen or eighteen years old, with disheveled hair. He's quite handsome, but all he does is kill people, muttering, 'They all have to die, they all have to die.' He's ruthless!" As he spoke, Chen Liao tugged at his clothes and said, "Great hero, I'm not lying to you. Look, when we escaped, we were covered in blood!"

"Which direction is the village in?" Chen Shu asked.

Chen Liao quickly said, "There's only one road. Just keep going east, and you'll see it when you get down the mountain!"

Chen Shu's pupils contracted slightly, then she turned and went into the house, saying to Gu Mo, "Hero Gu, you and Heroine Gu should rest here. I will take the disciples to take a look. If there really is a demon killing people, the disciples of the Canglan Sword Sect cannot sit idly by!"

Gu Mo stood up and said, "I'll go with you!"

"I can't ask for it."

Immediately, Chen Shu waved and said, "Everyone, follow me!"

……

Walking at night in the rain is very difficult.

However, Gu Chudong directly took out the Gouchen Demon Blade and activated the demon fire for illumination. The group did not spend too much time before arriving at the small mountain village at the foot of the mountain.

From afar, thick smoke could be seen billowing throughout the village, and in some places, flames were still burning despite the heavy rain.

Everyone smelled a strong stench of blood, so strong that even the torrential rain couldn't mask it.

Immediately, many Canglan Sword Sect disciples drew their swords and ran towards the village. Sure enough, the village was in a terrible state, with corpses everywhere, and very few intact. Most of them had severed hands and legs, and blood was flowing in the rain.

"what!"

A scream came from one part of the village.

Immediately, everyone rushed over.

At that moment, in a small courtyard engulfed in flames, a disheveled woman was tearing open the chest of a middle-aged man kneeling on the ground.

In the firelight, you could see the woman, dressed in simple gray clothes, with her hair disheveled, standing barefoot in the blood.

Not far from the woman, an old woman was huddled in the rain, shivering, holding a five- or six-year-old boy.

The woman ripped open the man's chest, then turned to look at the old woman and the little boy. She then threw the body on the ground and walked towards the two of them.

"Stop, you thief!"

Just then, amidst the swirling rain, Chen Shu touched the edge of the green tile with his toes, his soaked clothes fluttering in the wind. He let out a roar, the sound shattering the rain curtain.

His longsword was suddenly drawn from its sheath, and as the silver light pierced the rain, he flicked his wrist, and the blade flew like a meteor toward the center of the courtyard.

Raindrops condensed into a beaded curtain in mid-air, only to be shattered one by one by the swift sword blade—the sword's momentum was so fast that it was reduced to a mere silver line, carrying a sharp whistling sound as it reached the gray-clad woman in an instant.

The woman stood in the rain with her eyes lowered, not even the hem of her clothes getting wet. Only when she heard the sharp wind blowing did she slowly raise her eyes. Her eyes were as calm as an ancient pool, and as her gaze shifted, a pale blue aura appeared around her like glass.

"Clang!"

The clang of metal clashing against metal echoed through the rain. The moment the sword tip struck the air barrier, a string of sparks flew out, like fireflies suddenly bursting into flame. The longsword seemed to have struck a massive boulder, bounced back by an invisible force, its hilt tracing a silver arc in the air.

Chen Shu's figure moved like a swallow darting through the rain. In the instant the longsword flew backward, he leaped up and grabbed the trembling hilt with both hands in mid-air. He twisted his waist, used the roof ornaments for leverage, and transformed into a streak of lightning, slashing down from the sky with the force of wind and thunder.

As the sword blade tore through the rain, it condensed into several sharp sword energies around it, causing the green tiles to flake off and shatter into dust on the ground.

As the thunderous sword was about to strike, the woman in gray didn't even blink. She raised her hand slightly, her fingers reaching out as if plucking a flower, and in the nick of time, she grasped the sharp blade.

Chen Shu felt a sudden weight on his wrist. The seemingly delicate hand contained immense power. Before he could draw his sword to defend, the woman in gray suddenly exerted force in her arm and swung it forward like a broom!
"Bam—"

Chen Shu felt an immense force surge towards her, and she was sent flying backward like a kite with a broken string. The long sword in her hand was jolted out of her grasp and embedded in the ground not far away, still trembling.

He crashed heavily into the west courtyard wall, which collapsed with a thud. Loess and broken bricks poured down like a waterfall, burying him in the waist-high ruins, leaving only a sky full of rainwater and mud dust.

The rain was still falling, and the woman in gray remained standing quietly in the courtyard, with only a strand of wet hair hanging down her temple, leaving a trail of water on her pale cheek. She continued walking towards the grandfather and grandson.

Chen Shu quickly crawled out of the rubble and shouted, "Stop her!"

Immediately,

A group of Canglan Sword Sect disciples rushed in and quickly formed a sword formation to surround the gray-clad woman.

The woman in gray stopped and turned slightly, seemingly looking for an opening.

Chen Shu quickly picked up the long sword stuck in the ground and prepared to form a battle formation to attack the gray-clad woman once again.

"Wait a minute."

Just then, Gu Mo walked in and said, "Elder Chen, there may be a misunderstanding. On my way here, I noticed that there are two kinds of people in this village. One kind is the villagers, and the other kind looks like people who have been traveling around the world for many years. They have horses and weapons, and there are two kinds of deaths. The villagers all died from swords and weapons, while the people from the world were torn to pieces."

Chen Shu was taken aback and said, "Master Gu, are you saying there's a misunderstanding?"

Gu Mo looked at the woman surrounded in the middle and said, "I'm afraid the people who killed the villagers were those martial arts practitioners. This young lady is avenging those villagers."

Chen Shu's pupils contracted slightly, and she said, "That makes sense. Thinking about it carefully, this woman didn't seem to have any intention of hurting me!"

"All have to die!"

The gray-clad woman, surrounded by the sword formation, suddenly raised her neck, letting out a low growl like a trapped beast. Her previously loose, wet hair suddenly stood on end.

She stomped through the puddles, like a madwoman unleashed from her chains, and charged at the Canglan Sword Sect disciples with the ferocity to tear through the rain.

The sword formation set up by the Canglan disciples rippled instantly, and several sword energies were shattered inch by inch by the ferocity emanating from her body. The violent aura mixed with blood and wildness made even the battle-hardened disciples subconsciously take a half step back.

Just then, Gu Mo's figure suddenly vanished. The next moment, he stood silently in front of the gray-clad woman, his moon-white robe remaining completely still amidst the violent energy.

His image was reflected in the woman's scarlet pupils. She made a hoarse sound in her throat and her claws swooped down on his face like a hawk pouncing on its prey. Her knuckles, bluish-black, protruded, and her fingernails, driven by her ferocity, transformed into half-inch-long sharp blades, producing a sound that was even more piercing than a sword's edge.

Gu Mo remained standing with his eyes lowered and his expression indifferent, letting the gray-clad woman's sharp claws tear toward his throat. However, the claws suddenly froze a foot away from him, embedded in Gu Mo's protective true energy.

The veins on the woman's arms bulged, and she let out a roar of resentment. Her ten fingertips twitched in vain, unable to move forward even a fraction of an inch.

Rain dripped from her hair, condensing into precarious droplets on her stagnant fingertips, creating an eerie contrast with the calm, undisturbed look in Gu Mo's eyes.

Gu Mo slowly raised his hand and gently touched the woman's brow with one finger.

The moment the fingertip touched her skin, the woman's surging aura receded like a tide, her bulging veins instantly subsided, and her scarlet pupils quickly returned to their original clarity.

She remained frozen in place, maintaining her pouncing posture, until finally her eyelashes fluttered, and she limply lowered her arms like a puppet with broken strings, even the raindrops splashing on her cheeks seemed to soften.

"Huh? How could this happen?"

Gu Mo frowned slightly. He sensed that the woman in front of him had a strong spiritual power, but it was far from reaching the Ascension Realm. Yet, it was a state where she could leave her body and her primordial spirit could leave her body at any moment.

"Master Gu, how is it?" Chen Shu walked over and asked.

“Something’s not right,” Gu Mo said. “This girl’s condition is off; she doesn’t seem to be fully conscious.”

Chen Shu subconsciously said, "Puppet?"

“No.” Gu Mo immediately shook his head and said, “It’s not a puppet. Puppets are controlled by mind, which is different from this girl’s condition. To put it simply, this girl’s condition is… mentally challenged!”

Chen Shu: "..."

"elder brother!"

Just then, Gu Chudong shouted, "We've really misunderstood!"

Immediately,

Gu Mo and Chen Shu looked at Gu Chudong and saw that Gu Chudong was coaxing the child with a piece of candy.

Gu Mo and Chen Shu walked over.

The child was so frightened that he quickly curled up in the old woman's arms, and the old woman held the little boy, looking very terrified.

“Brother,” Gu Chudong said, “the old man just said that bandits came to massacre the village and killed everyone.” She pointed to the gray-clad woman standing still and said, “She, the old man, and this little brother were just coming back from the mountain when the bandits were about to kill them. Then the girl suddenly went berserk and started slaughtering the bandits. The people we encountered on the mountain were probably not villagers, but bandits!”

Chen Shu's face darkened, and she quickly said, "Quickly, everyone go and search to see if there are any survivors!"

……

The disciples of the Canglan Sword Sect began searching the village.

Gu Mo and his group then led the grandmother and grandson, along with the woman in gray, to a small courtyard that had not been damaged.

The woman in gray was put to sleep by Gu Mo's finger, while the grandmother and grandson took a while to calm down. The old woman slowly said, "She came to our village two years ago. She was dirty and looked like a three or four-year-old child. She could only speak a few words and couldn't speak properly."

When asked where she was from, she said Dongya Village in Yunzhou. When asked her name, she said it was Xiaobai. She wouldn't answer any other questions or say anything else. Everyone in the village knew she was mentally challenged.

However, this girl was beautiful, and some idle men in the village wanted to take advantage of her. My son took pity on her and publicly adopted her as his goddaughter. He was the village chief and had a good reputation in the village. After he adopted Xiaobai as his goddaughter, no one dared to bully her anymore. For two whole years, she only knew how to say those two sentences.

Around noon today, I took my grandson and Xiaobai up the mountain to dig for wild vegetables. When we came back, we ran into bandits robbing the village. My son... was hanged at the village entrance. When Xiaobai saw this, she said her third sentence: "They all have to die!" and then she went crazy!

"Xiaobai didn't kill the villagers; she only killed the bandits. When we came back, there were no survivors in the village. Xiaobai only killed the bandits. My grandson and I have been following Xiaobai the whole time."

Gu Chudong quickly cupped his hands and asked, "Old man, is there anyone named Chen Liao in your village?"

The old woman asked in confusion, "My...son's name is Chen Liao, heroine, how do you know my son's name?"

Immediately,

Gu Chudong and the others had already guessed what was going on.

Then, Gu Chudong gave a general description of the people they had seen on the mountain.

After hearing this, the old woman burst into tears, saying that the man impersonating Chen Liao was the bandit leader, and that she had witnessed him ordering the killing of Xiao Bai. She also remembered the woman, the only woman in the bandit gang. She couldn't recall the other two, but those with her were definitely bandits.

Chen Shu slammed her hand on the table in anger and said, "I was careless. Those people were clearly not dressed like ordinary people. I heard that guy say he was a martial artist, so I didn't think much of it. Now that I think about it, those people had a strong bandit-like air about them. Moreover, that woman was carrying such a large bag of gold and silver valuables, which shouldn't be something that people from a village like this would have. How could I be so careless!"

Gu Chudong quickly said, "Elder Chen, don't blame yourself. There were so many of us at the time, and none of us noticed!"

"No!" Chen Shu said angrily, "I can't let those thieves get away with it. I'm going up the mountain right now to find them. This matter won't end here. When I return to the Canglan Sword Sect, I will definitely gather my fellow disciples from both Hunan and Hubei to kill those escaped bandits!"

After all,

Chen Shu grabbed her sword and hurriedly headed up the mountain.

Gu Mo stopped Chen Shu and said, "Elder Chen, since those people are bandits, they must be able to recognize the insignia of your Canglan Sword Sect. If you go up the mountain now, they can't possibly still be waiting for you. They must have already run away."

Chen Shu's face darkened. "I'll go find it!" she said.

Gu Mo said slowly, "Let me do it."

After saying that, Gu Mo waved his hand slightly, and the Taixu Flying Sword instantly transformed into a stream of light and flew out, disappearing into the night in the blink of an eye.

at this time,

On Dongyang Mountain, the people who had met Gu Mo and his companions at the temple earlier were indeed no longer in the dilapidated temple, just as Gu Mo had guessed. Instead, they had run into the depths of the dense forest and had not taken the main road.

The group braved the heavy rain and ran in the dark through the mountains.

As she ran, the woman plopped down on the ground, threw the bundle of gold and silver valuables from her shoulder, and said, "My dear, I can't run anymore, let's rest for a while!"

The middle-aged man quickly picked up his bundle and slung it over his shoulder, saying, "If you want to rest, then go ahead and rest. We're not waiting for you. Didn't you recognize those people in the temple? They were from the Canglan Sword Sect. Once they get to the village, they'll definitely realize we're lying and see through our identities. They'll definitely come after us. You can just wait here to die!"

After saying that, the middle-aged man ran away without stopping, and the other two burly young men followed him without saying a word.

The woman had no choice but to get up and run after him.

At this moment,

She suddenly saw a faint white light fly by, and before she could react, the faint white light appeared behind her.

The woman moved slightly, then stood still.

At this moment, the middle-aged man, who had already run two zhang away, thought for a moment, then turned back, took the woman's hand, and said, "Come on, if you want to rest, wait until you get out of the mountain. If the Canglan Sword Sect or that female demon comes after us, we'll really be dead!"

As he spoke, the middle-aged man tugged at the woman's arm.
In that instant, with a "thud," the woman's head fell to the ground, landing at the middle-aged man's feet.

Immediately afterwards, blood spurted from the woman's neck, and the headless corpse remained standing.

"what!"

The middle-aged man let out a panicked shout, which startled the other two burly young men, who rushed over immediately.

All three of them looked terrified.

And at this moment,
In the rainy night, a faint white light descended from the sky, hovering in the void, emitting a buzzing sound, and revealing its true form—a sword, none other than the Tai Xu Sword.

This scene was clearly beyond the comprehension of the three bandits.

"Split up and run!"

However, the bandit leader reacted quickly, shouted, turned and ran, and the other two youths immediately followed his orders and scattered to escape.

But in that very instant,

The Taixu Sword emitted a "humming" sound, and three sword energies shot out in three directions in an instant, piercing through the bodies of the three bandits and shredding their internal organs.

immediately,

The Taixu Sword flew into the night sky and disappeared.

(End of this chapter)