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

Jiang Ning nodded and asked, "How will I find your master once I get to the capital?"

Zhu Qi smiled and said, "My master said that when Young Master Jiang arrives in the capital, he can simply seek out your old acquaintance, Minister Chen. Minister Chen will know what to do."

Jiang Ning narrowed his eyes upon hearing this, then nodded.

"I see."

Zhu Qi finally stood up, a smile on his face.

"Young Master Jiang, I have delivered my message and am now taking my leave."

Jiang Ning nodded. "Take care."

Zhu Qi left.

Jiang Ning, however, was still thinking about Zhu Shou.

After a while.

Jiang Ning turned and went back into the house.

The next day.

"I heard that someone came yesterday, claiming to be a servant of an old friend of yours in the capital?"

Yue Buqun brought up this matter.

He is the head of the Huashan Sect, and he only needs to ask about what happens on Huashan.

"Yes."

Jiang Ning nodded and then told him about it.

Yue Buqun frowned slightly, and after listening, he said, "According to what you said, this Zhu Shou is probably not a simple person. You need to be careful."

Yue Buqun's words had another meaning. He was not worried that Jiang Ning would be in danger. If Jiang Ning were in danger, it would be someone else.

Yue Buqun wanted to remind Jiang Ning not to get too close to Zhu Shou.

Although he didn't know Zhu Shou's identity, since the other party could find this place and instruct a vice minister of the Ministry of Revenue, his identity must be very noble, and he was probably a member of the royal family.

But it was precisely this point that he wanted to warn Jiang Ning about.

The martial arts world has always been at odds with the imperial court. People in the martial arts world deeply resent the imperial court, and the imperial court also dislikes these martial arts people who possess strong personal martial arts skills.

Previously, Jiang Ning was fine as the Guanzhong Hero who received the imperial reward, since it was just a title without any official position or salary. However, if the people of the martial arts world knew that Jiang Ning was close to the people of the imperial court, it would not be so simple. Even his Huashan Sect would probably be looked at differently.

Jiang Ning nodded.

"Don't worry, Master."

Yue Buqun didn't say anything more; he knew Jiang Ning knew what he was doing.

Another month has passed.

"Master, I would like to go down the mountain."

Jiang Ning found Yue Buqun.

This time, Yue Buqun did not refuse.

"Alright, I'll let Chong'er go with you."

Chapter 481: Descending the Mountain

Yue Buqun did not stop Jiang Ning from going down the mountain.

When are you planning to leave?

Jiang Ning laughed and said, "There's no time like the present, let's do it today."

Yue Buqun shook his head: "It's too hasty. Let's do it tomorrow. We should have a proper meal before we leave, right? Besides, we need to prepare the horses in advance."

Jiang Ning nodded.

"Yes, Master."

"Ning'er, Chong'er, you will be going down the mountain tomorrow. I won't say much more. Just be careful."

At the dinner table, Yue Buqun said.

"Master, rest assured, your disciple will definitely be safe and sound with Junior Brother Jiang Ning. If we really encounter any danger, your disciple will risk his life to bring Junior Brother Jiang Ning back."

Linghu Chong quickly assured him.

Why risk your life?

Yue Buqun glared at him.

"Whichever one of you is the other, you are both my disciples. You must both return safely."

"Yes, Master!"

Linghu Chong chuckled, feeling a warm feeling in his heart.

This was the first time he had ever heard Yue Buqun show him such concern.

"Ning'er".

Yue Buqun looked at Jiang Ning. “You must be extra careful on your trip to Fujian. Rumors are circulating that you have the Evil-Slaying Sword Manual. Although you are highly skilled in martial arts and can intimidate some people, there are bound to be those who are not afraid of death. Normal methods are fine, but I’m afraid they might use underhanded tricks or poison.”

Jiang Ning's martial arts skills are not yet invincible. Even if they were, if he were to fall into someone's trap or be poisoned, he would be powerless to help from Mount Hua, and both Jiang Ning and Linghu Chong's lives would be in danger.

"Master, rest assured, your disciple will be more careful."

Jiang Ning nodded.

Yue Buqun hummed in agreement before getting down to business: "Actually, it would be good for you to go to Fujian. After returning from Emei, I also wanted to visit the Shaolin Temple in Putian. However, I am preoccupied with trivial matters at Huashan and have to handle many matters, big and small. It would be good for you to go in my place. I will first write a letter to the Shaolin Temple in Putian to express my intention to visit."

Communication between large forces like this needs to be discussed in advance, otherwise it will be seen as disrespectful and impolite, especially for a large force like Shaolin Temple.

Moreover, the Huashan Sect and Putian Shaolin Temple used to be on good terms, but after the split between Yue and Cai, their relationship soured and they haven't had any contact for many years. If they suddenly want to visit, they're afraid they'll be politely refused if they don't write a letter in advance.

Yue Buqun's actions were also intended to mislead his opponents.

After all, the Huashan Sect had not had any dealings with the Putian Shaolin Temple for decades. If they suddenly went to visit now, it would inevitably be noticed by the other party as something was amiss.

Yue Buqun had already thought of a reason for the visit: he would say that the Huashan Sect and the Southern Shaolin Temple had a long-standing friendship, but Huashan had declined and lost contact. Now, Yue Buqun was sending someone to visit, firstly to re-establish contact between the two sides, and secondly to discuss martial arts.

"Yes, Master."

Jiang Ning nodded.

"Going to Fujian?"

Linghu Chong seemed to be deep in thought upon hearing this, and looked up at Yue Buqun.

“Master, I remember that Junior Brother Lin’s hometown is in Fujian. Should we invite Junior Brother Lin to come with us this time when we go down the mountain?”

Yue Buqun shook his head.

"No need, just you and Ning'er are fine together."

Linghu Chong nodded and said nothing more.

Yue Buqun looked at Jiang Ning.

"Take care on your journey."

Although Putian Shaolin Temple is not the same as Songshan Shaolin Temple and is not well-known in the martial arts world, it cannot be ignored.

Southern Fist and Northern Leg, Northern Shaolin is now the leader of the righteous path, but Southern Shaolin is by no means unknown. It's just that Southern Shaolin is very low-key and rarely appears in the world, but that doesn't mean it's weak. The fact that it produced such powerful figures as Zen Master Hongye and Lin Yuantu back then already shows the strength of Southern Shaolin.

In fact, Yue Buqun planned to go by himself, but he was indeed very busy. He had recently distributed the Zixia Divine Skill, and now many disciples had reached the required level of internal strength to practice it. He had to stay on Mount Hua to keep an eye on them and prevent them from going astray due to improper practice.

After all, he was the only one in the Huashan Sect who had mastered the Zixia Divine Skill, and there was no one else who could teach him.

"Master, rest assured, your disciple will be more careful."

Jiang Ning understood Yue Buqun's meaning and nodded.

Yue Buqun glanced at Linghu Chong and then gave Jiang Ning some instructions.

“Your eldest brother loves to drink. Now that he’s gone down the mountain without my supervision, he’ll probably get drunk all the time. You need to keep an eye on him, control his alcohol intake, and not let him drink to the point of unconsciousness.”

Yue Buqun had given up hope of getting Linghu Chong to quit drinking, so he tried to control him relentlessly. Now that he was down the mountain, he couldn't control him anymore, so he let Jiang Ning take over.

Linghu Chong, who was eating heartily at that moment, assured him.

"Master, rest assured, I will absolutely not touch a drop of alcohol after I leave the mountain!"

Yue Buqun ignored him and spoke to Jiang Ning.

"If he dares to get completely drunk, don't hold back, teach him a lesson for your master."

Upon hearing this, Linghu Chong felt that the food no longer tasted good.

Have the master and disciple come to distrust each other to this extent?

Is there absolutely no trust left?

Ning Zhongze and Yue Lingshan, who were eating nearby, remained silent the entire time.

The meal was eaten very slowly. After finishing, Yue Buqun talked to Jiang Ning about some things, mostly telling him not to be reckless after going down the mountain, and to be careful, careful, and very careful. These were all old refrains.

After Jiang Ning returned from the Suoyoubuwei Pavilion, he read for a while, then turned off the lights and went to sleep.

The next day, Jiang Ning got up very early and packed all his things.

Upon opening the door, Jiang Ning saw Maodou still fast asleep and went over to shake it awake.

"I'm going out, I won't take you with me, you stay home and take care of the house."

Maodou looked like he hadn't woken up yet. After hearing Jiang Ning's voice, he grunted a couple of times, but it was unclear whether he heard it or not.

Jiang Ning let it continue sleeping, walked out of the courtyard, closed the door, and headed towards Yue Buqun's residence.

Before descending the mountain, one must first bid farewell to one's master.

When Jiang Ning arrived at Yue Buqun's residence, he found that Yue Buqun had already gotten up and was standing in the open space outside the Suoyoubuwei Pavilion, with Linghu Chong and Yue Lingshan standing beside him, and someone kneeling in front of him.

“Master, I heard that Senior Brother Jiang Ning and Senior Brother are going to visit the Putian Shaolin Temple in Fujian.”

Lin Pingzhi said, "Could you please allow me to accompany my fellow disciples? My hometown is in Fujian, and I wish to return to Fuzhou to offer incense to my parents and pay respects to my ancestors."