The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, becoming a disciple of Yue Buqun.

"Ok."

Yue Buqun said, "You're right, Shan'er is indeed not young anymore. I'll have a chat with Chong'er after we return to Mount Hua."

Previously, Yue Buqun had never given his approval, at most he would only say he would consider it. Now Yue Buqun's tone has finally softened, and there is hope for Linghu Chong and Yue Lingshan's marriage. Ning Zhongze finally smiled, but still said...

"You said it yourself, you can't go back on your word."

Yue Buqun couldn't help but chuckle.

When have I ever gone back on my word to you?

Ning Zhongze gave a soft hum.

She knew, of course, that Yue Buqun would never go back on his word; she was just saying it.

"Let's go, my lady, we haven't finished our business here yet."

Yue Buqun bowed and gestured to Ning Zhongze, a smile on his face.

"Humph~"

Ning Zhongze let out another soft hum, turned around and went back, her face expressionless, except that the skin on her neck was slightly red.

Yue Buqun was serious and proper. Although they were husband and wife, they usually addressed each other as fellow disciples. Only occasionally would Yue Buqun call her "wife." They treated each other with respect, and she was used to it. But when Yue Buqun called her that now, he revealed a side of himself that no one else knew. Although she was a little unaccustomed to it, she was more delighted.

Looking at his wife's back, although he couldn't see her expression, he could see Ning Zhongze's hand waving slightly, and Yue Buqun knew that his wife was in a good mood.

A smile couldn't help but appear on Yue Buqun's face.

He was actually a little surprised by his actions just now; he wouldn't normally do that.

What caused his change?

Yue Buqun noticed that his mindset was different from before.

"That's not necessarily a bad thing."

Yue Buqun smiled, lifted his feet and caught up with Ning Zhongze, the two walking side by side.

……

The main hall atop Blackwood Cliff was already deserted, but now it felt even more eerie.

Several servants were cleaning up the bloodstains on the ground.

"The chief steward's temperament has become increasingly eccentric lately."

One of the servants couldn't help but whisper.

"Shhh."

The others quickly stopped him, looked around, and breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that no one was around. One of them glared at the servant who had spoken.

"You dare to talk about the Grand Steward? You don't want to live anymore?"

The servant who had spoken realized he had said the wrong thing and quickly shut his mouth.

Words can be dangerous; if any of the servants present were to inform on him to Yang Lianting, he would likely face dire consequences.

The servant turned ashen-faced and wanted to slap himself hard across the face.

But he fell silent, while the other servants seemed unable to stop talking, and after a while someone spoke up again.

"Don't you guys feel that the current cult has become somewhat unfamiliar?"

A servant spoke, his voice very soft.

The other servants did not respond. Instead, they looked around the cold hall and only dared to speak after confirming that no one was around.

"Yes, it seems like there are fewer people in the cult now."

These people were merely servants of the Sun Moon Sect, and had never been down to Blackwood Cliff. They were unaware of what was happening outside, but they sensed that there were far fewer people on Blackwood Cliff, especially some of the higher-ups, whom they had not seen since leaving the cliff.

"Is it because the Shaolin and Wudang sects are going to attack our sect? Is that why they went down the mountain?"

One person asked.

Another servant laughed dismissively.

"Although Shaolin and Wudang are also major sects, they are not as good as my Divine Sect. Even if they want to deal with the Divine Sect, so what? The Divine Sect is not afraid of anyone, and I don't think they would dare to do anything to my Divine Sect."

The servant spoke with utter contempt for the major righteous sects such as Shaolin and Wudang.

Not only him, but the other servants also had the same expression.

"If that's not the case, then why are so many people from the sect going down the mountain recently?"

A servant added.

Blackwood Cliff is heavily guarded. To get up to Blackwood Cliff, one must pass through many checkpoints, and even to get down the mountain, one needs a token. However, this servant accidentally discovered that some members of the sect would secretly go down the mountain when the guards were not on duty, even without a token or order. He had doubts in his heart, but dared not speak out for fear of being killed.

The other servants did not respond.

After a while.

"I did hear some news, but I don't know if it's true."

A servant spoke up.

"What news?"

Others couldn't help but ask curiously.

The servant looked around, and although there was no one else around, he hesitated and dared not speak.

The others, seeing this, immediately urged him on.

"Just tell me already, why are you keeping me in suspense?"

Urged by the others, the servant finally said, "I heard this from someone else. I don't know if it's true or not. Don't tell anyone after you hear it."

The others quickly made their assurances.

The servant then spoke what he had heard, his voice extremely low.

"I heard there's a cult leader named Ren outside who claims to be the orthodox leader of the cult and is trying to persuade people within the cult to abandon their evil ways and embrace the light."

"what?"

"what?"

The other servants stared wide-eyed in shock upon hearing this.

While the group was talking, Yang Lianting had already passed through the long secret passage and arrived at the garden belonging to Dongfang Bubai.

Yang Lianting, his face grim, moved through the flowers and stopped in front of a small house.

"Is that Brother Lian back? Come in."

The voice of Dongfang Bubai came from inside.

Yang Lianting stopped in front of the house, adjusted his facial expression, and then went into the small house. He found that Dongfang Bubai was not embroidering as usual, but was holding a cat.

Yang Lianting glanced around and was about to speak when he suddenly noticed there were other people in the room. He turned his head and saw the person, and his previously composed expression turned sour again.

Yang Lianting wanted to speak, but when he saw Dongfang Bubai looking over with a smile on his face, he swallowed his words and sat down in a seat. He spoke in a deep voice.

Elder Tong.

Chapter 408: Tong Baixiong

This person was none other than Tong Baixiong.

Tong Baixiong had white hair and beard, and a very robust physique. Sitting there, he resembled a giant bear, exuding an invisible aura of power. His eyes were piercing and bright, and facing him was an immense pressure.

However, this powerful old man seemed a little awkward at the moment.

Faced with Yang Lianting's initiative to greet him, Tong Baixiong didn't know what to say, so he could only nod slightly to let it go.

Yang Lianting didn't care about his attitude and remained silent, but he was surprised that Dongfang Bubai had summoned Tong Baixiong here so quickly.

If Ren Woxing hadn't been released from West Lake Prison, and if the Sun Moon Sect hadn't undergone such a dramatic upheaval, he wouldn't be sitting here with Tong Baixiong.

It should be noted that not long ago, he had planned to frame Tong Baixiong and get rid of him, while Tong Baixiong had previously been so hostile towards him that he wanted nothing more than to grind him to dust.

It's already a good thing that the two didn't fight.

Of course, even with Yang Lianting's kung fu skills, he would be unilaterally and utterly defeated by Tong Baixiong in a real fight.

Yang Lianting didn't speak again, and Tong Baixiong didn't look at him either. He turned to look at Dongfang Bubai, his gaze even more complicated. He hesitated several times before finally speaking.

“Master Dongfang, you have been neglecting the affairs of the sect and have not shown your face all these years. I never expected that you would be living in seclusion in this place.”

Tong Baixiong originally wanted to call Dongfang "Brother," as he had done before, but seeing Dongfang Bubai's current state, he couldn't bring himself to say "brother." He felt awkward and, after much hesitation, addressed Dongfang Bubai as "Master."

Dongfang Bubai smiled slightly and lowered his head to stroke the cat in his arms.

The cat comfortably closed its eyes and glanced at the screen.

Dongfang Bubai's voice also rang out.

"Brother Tong, how is this place?"

Tong Baixiong looked around and nodded.

"It's a beautiful place with birds singing and flowers blooming."

This was his first time here, and the first time he had ever known that Blackwood Cliff was such a secluded paradise.

No matter how good the place was, Tong Baixiong didn't care. He looked at Dongfang Bubai and asked the question that had been on his mind for a long time.

“Brother Dongfang, since you are in good health, why have you never shown your face in the sect all these years? Do you know that many brothers thought… they all thought…”

Tong Baixiong was a little agitated and couldn't help but call out "Brother Dongfang" again.

Dongfang Bubai smiled calmly.

"Brother Tong, now that you've seen what I look like, how are you going to go out and face them?"

Tong Baixiong paused, opened his mouth as if to speak, but didn't know what to say.

Even he was shocked by Dongfang Bubai's appearance when he first saw him, let alone the expressions of the other members of the Sun Moon Sect when they saw Dongfang Bubai.

"But how did you become like this? You weren't like this when I saw you a few years ago."