Martial God Development Plan

Ji Zhao responded and was about to go down the mountain, but was stopped by Gu Zhibai. The smile on his face was no longer there, but he looked a little stiff and restrained.

"Ji Zhao, um... this mountain isn't any higher than it was before, isn't it? Don't you think it will take too much time to go down the mountain and walk again?"

Ji Zhao was slightly startled, then understood what the other party meant. He walked to Gu Zhibai and gently held her waist: "No... You reacted so strongly last time, I thought you hated it."

Gu Zhibai laughed: "You suddenly jumped down without saying a word, anyone would definitely react strongly."

"That's true..." Ji Zhao paused and was about to speak, but was interrupted by Gu Zhibai again.

"I know," she said, "I'll hold you tight... and won't let go."

--------

In mid-February, Ji Zhao and Gu Zhibai arrived at a new city. As soon as they arrived at the inn, before they had even finished their meal, a man came to their door.

This man had an ordinary appearance, a pair of narrow eyes, and a faint smile on his face. He sat down opposite Ji Zhao in a very familiar manner and asked, "Are you Young Master Ji Zhao of Luohe Pavilion?"

Ji Zhao subconsciously exchanged a glance with Gu Zhibai, then narrowed his eyes slightly, neither denying nor admitting: "Before you pry into other people's whereabouts, you might as well introduce yourself first."

The man with squinty eyes first inexplicably described the geographical location of this place and the current year, and then reported five words without any connection between the previous and the next. Gu Zhibai on the side was confused, but Ji Zhao was relieved... This was the secret code that Xiaoyaofeng told the disciples in the pavilion. If any disciple unfortunately encountered an attack and lost contact with the main force and didn't know who to trust, he could trust the person who reported the secret code. They were Xiaoyaofeng's people.

Moreover, this code cannot be stolen. Xiaoyao Feng has compiled a complete coding system, which must be deciphered based on the local geographical location and the current time. If some smart-aleck fool thinks he can gain the trust of the disciples of Luohe Pavilion by hearing these five words, he will surely suffer a great loss... It can only be said that Xiaoyao Feng is too cunning.

Afterwards, under the operation of this squinting eye, Ji Zhao and Gu Zhibai were led by some people who knew the way, and took a shortcut out of Fengzhou as quickly as possible. They then changed to a water route. Just a few days later, Ji Zhao, who was still in a daze, returned to Luohe Pavilion!

The journey was extremely tight. As soon as he arrived at the place, someone led a horse over. After running for a while, he got on the boat. After resting on the boat, someone called him to ride a horse and follow. After repeating this several times, Ji Zhao saw Mount Daizong from afar, which he thought would take more than a month to see!

The people who led the way changed one after another. These people did not talk more than thirty sentences with Ji Zhao and Gu Zhibai. They all did their own things silently... This kind of execution and tacit understanding may not be a big deal in modern times, but in ancient times when information flow was inconvenient, it was simply amazing.

[“Master Feng, what did you do in the past…”]

Ji Zhao sighed in his heart that it was a good thing that Xiaoyao Feng was his teammate at the current stage. If he had believed Taoist Dong's words, it would have been too easy for him to find a time and place to kill Ji Zhao quietly.

Thinking of this, Ji Zhao and Gu Zhibai climbed up Mount Daizong... Xiaoyao Feng didn't know how he got the news back so early. Under the sculpture of Wei Huo, many people were already waiting for Ji Zhao.

Volume 5: Escape 1: Chapter 40: Reunion

(Next chapter later)

"Hey, are you okay?" When the two of them walked halfway up the mountain, a breeze suddenly blew by. In the blink of an eye, they saw Xiaoyaofeng wearing a mask appear beside them and said in a cynical tone, "What a disaster, Tian'e boy."

Xiaoyaofeng is a guy who never calls people by their names properly. He always has to give people nicknames. For example, he calls many masters in Luohe Pavilion "Xuan", "Lazy Dog", "The One with a Sour Face", "Pretending to be Young", and "Fool". Only Liu Hanying can escape Xiaoyaofeng's mouth and barely get a non-derogatory name like "he".

As a more recognizable disciple in Luohe Pavilion, Ji Zhao has finally got a special nickname from Xiaoyao Feng... It's just that it's not very nice, and if he mentions this nickname while traveling around the world, he will be laughed at by his enemies.

However, Ji Zhao naturally didn't care about Xiaoyao Feng who had used some tricks to get him out of Fengzhou. He smiled and said, "Long time no see, Master Feng... How are my sister and the others?"

"You seem to care about them... Don't worry, that person went after you, they are fine, the white-haired one came back early to report the news, and the others returned safely with the new disciples." Xiaoyao Feng said casually, "As for long time no see, I don't think so, you came back much earlier than him."

Ji Zhao naturally knew that the "he" Xiaoyao Feng was referring to was Liu Hanying, so he immediately asked, "What did Pavilion Master do?"

If it was Han Gongqiu, she would definitely say "You will understand sooner or later". Her illness has become more serious recently. Whenever someone asks her a question, as long as the question is not about serious matters, she will say this, causing complaints from the entire Luohe Pavilion. Many new students who have just entered the cabinet also learned the name of Ji Zhao, the culprit.

However, Xiaoyao Feng obviously looked down upon the Riddler's blunt behavior and responded calmly, "He went to the west... That fool was chopped off by someone in the west because of the white hair incident. He was seriously injured. He went there to seek justice and hasn't come back yet."

"......The Pavilion Master is alone?"

"What else? Bring a disciple over there to slow him down?"

Ji Zhao was a little worried: "Nothing will happen, right?"

"You don't have to worry about that." Xiaoyao Feng shook his head. "With his martial arts skills, the ones who should be worried are those from the Xingdou Sect. I sincerely hope that they won't be so sensible. It would be best if they could really push this good-tempered person into a corner so that I can watch a good show... Haha."

Xiaoyao Feng sneered, but did not say much. He just looked at Gu Zhibai and said, "You two are destined to be together."

Xiaoyaofeng is a meticulous person with amazing intuition. He also checked Gu Zhibai's background and found out that he is a martial artist with some adventures. All his experiences match up, but years of experience tell him that there are some problems... However, Xiaoyaofeng will not act rashly without evidence. He used to act based on his experience and made big mistakes. Fortunately, Liu Hanying made up for it, and he was impressed by Liu Hanying and joined Luohe Pavilion as the deputy pavilion master.

————If it is said that most of the disciples in the pavilion have an inexplicable trust and admiration for Xiaoyaofeng because of the mysterious title of Thief Saint, then Xiaoyaofeng also has the same feeling towards Liu Hanying.

Gu Zhibai bowed to Xiaoyaofeng and said with a smile: "Junior is here to see the Thief Saint."

"A thief is not a good nickname." Xiaoyao Feng waved his hand. "This useless disciple is really blessed by you... I heard that you came out of the Changchun Mountains? It's not easy."

As Xiaoyao Feng spoke, his meaningful gaze swept over Ji Zhao's clothes. At this time, Ji Zhao had already changed out of the Scarlet Divine Robe, but the spy said that when he saw Ji Zhao, Ji Zhao was wearing the clothes he wore when he left the pavilion.

With Xiaoyaofeng's wisdom and knowledge, he already had some guesses in his mind. Not only him, but also Gu Zhibai. What kind of normal clothes could survive in the wilderness for such a long time without getting dirty? And the strange waterproof property did not even look like cloth.

However, neither of them pointed it out, Xiaoyao Feng casually said:

"Go on up...someone is waiting for you."

After he finished speaking, his figure flashed and disappeared without a trace.

Gu Zhibai secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then chuckled and said, "Could it be that Master Feng taught you how to do Qinggong?"

"Master Feng is indeed the master of Qinggong and Neigong in the pavilion..." Ji Zhao said with a smile, "But he seldom teaches."

As the two chatted, they unknowingly walked up the stairs. The first thing that caught their eyes was the sculpture of Wei Huo, Duke of Wu'an, followed by the fellow disciples standing below waiting for Ji Zhao.

At the front were Gu Qu and Ji Bei, neither of them concealing their concern at all. A little behind was Lie Lian, standing with Fu Caige... Fu Caige had a calm expression on her face, and one of her hands was holding onto someone, it was Fu Xieshi. She had been standing there fine before, but for some reason, she backed away when she saw Ji Zhao, the real boss.

After that, Ji Tan and Han Gongqiu were sitting next to each other with a book in their hands. They were chatting. Han Gongqiu saw Ji Zhao and raised his chin slightly. Upon hearing this, Ji Tan glanced over here casually... Ji Zhao didn't know why Han Gongqiu didn't remind her that she held the book upside down.

Finally, it was Nan Xue, who had been staying in the corner with little sense of presence. After seeing Ji Zhao, he retreated quietly. He has never been good at expressing his emotions, so he never stayed in such occasions for long to avoid embarrassing himself and others.

Ji Zhao stepped forward and talked to everyone. They had not seen each other for a long time, and the last time they parted was in such a dangerous situation. When they met again at this time, they naturally had endless things to say, especially Gu Qu, who was a chatterbox and talked without stopping like a machine gun.

Except for Han Gongqiu, most of the people in the field were still young, but they were sensible. Lielian found an opportunity when Gu Qu was unable to catch his breath and changed the subject very naturally: "By the way, this must be Miss Gu Zhibai, right? I heard from Master Feng that Master Ji was in trouble these days, and it was thanks to Miss Gu's support that he was able to escape from that man's hands. I, Lielian, would like to thank you in advance."

"Hehe..." Gu Zhibai stretched out her hand, smoothed the soft black hair behind her head, and chuckled, "I have heard him mention Miss Lielian's name, but this is a bit polite. Not only did I help him, but he also helped me a lot when we were in Changchun Mountains. We can be regarded as supporting each other and getting through this together. There is no need to say thank you or not."

Volume 5: Human Escape Part 1: Chapter 41: Moment of Social Death

Gu Zhibai's words sounded fine, but if one paid a little attention, one would notice that something was wrong.

Who is Lie Lian? She is Ji Zhao's future wife. This marriage was arranged by the great general of the dynasty, Lie Yufei, the mighty marquis and the core of the Northern Expedition. It is almost a done deal. It can be said that Lie Lian is already half a member of the Ji family, so it is reasonable for her to say this... But Gu Zhibai actually told her, "Don't be so formal."

No, what crown...what engagement? Talk to me like that?

If it was Ji Bei and Ji Tan who came and said a few words as the sisters-in-law, it would be almost the same.

However, not everyone can understand the twists and turns in it. For example, the ancient music master Ji Beifu Xie Shi and others don't think it's a big problem.

However, Lielian was very sensitive, so how could she not notice the slight difference? But she had always had a gentle personality and could be described as submissive. She was used to giving in and compromising in her life. She usually did not argue with others and was not good at verbal battles. But when faced with something like this, she was naturally unwilling to give in. She was stunned for a moment, not knowing how to respond.

However......

"What are you talking about?" Ji Tan had a calm expression and closed the book with a snap. He was about to continue speaking with a calm expression, but was interrupted by Gu Zhibai.

"Miss Ji Tan, right?" Gu Zhibai smiled calmly, gently held up a strand of her long hair with her hand, and chuckled, "There is one thing that I am more concerned about...You hold the book upside down."

"Eh...?" Ji Tan had never looked at the book before. He was shocked when he heard it and looked at it subconsciously - it turned out that he had it upside down!

"Miss Ji, you are not trying to say that this is some special skill you are training, are you?" Gu Zhibai said with a hint of amusement, "Why are you pretending to be reading a book when you are not? Are you trying to take the opportunity to cover up what you really want to do? What is this thing..."

Ji Tan was a little at a loss for a moment. Although she always appeared to be calm and composed on weekdays, it was just an act after all. How could a teenage girl who had not received any special training and had not seen much of the world have any special self-control? Now that such an embarrassing thing was pointed out by the other party, how could she remain calm?

"No...no!" Ji Tan was a little embarrassed and angry, "I just...just!"

"It's just that I can't tell you how." Gu Zhibai chuckled, and naturally put her slender arm on Ji Zhao's shoulder. She leaned over slightly, but not too close, just keeping within a polite range. "Ji Zhao, do you know why your second sister did this?"

Ji Zhao actually knew the answer in his heart. How could he not understand it at this point? He understood it just by looking at Fu Xieshi. Fu Caige signaled Fu Xieshi with his eyes to say a few nice words, but the little girl just stood there without saying a word, as if it was shameful to come up and say hello... For people of this age, no, for the vast majority of people in this land, showing emotions such as love and care seems to be a very shameful thing.

Therefore, Ji Zhao pretended not to know and asked in confusion, "What?"

"It's you." Gu Zhibai smiled and spoke in a light voice, "She actually cares about your situation in her heart, but she doesn't want others to find out. She's just like the little girl over there who was pulled by the arm. So she sat over there holding a book, pretending to be 'I'm busy, I was pulled here, and I just came to see you'... But what's the actual situation? I think that the book that was held upside down is enough to explain everything. Your second sister is a person who is cold on the outside but warm on the inside~~"

Hearing this, everyone turned their eyes to Ji Tan, who was already embarrassed when Gu Zhibai was halfway through his words. Ji Tan's face was as gloomy as water, without any expression on his face. He said in a cold and flat tone: "Just because I held the book upside down, you made up such a thing in your head. You are really amazing."

Gu Zhibai chuckled, her eyebrows curved slightly, revealing the attitude of teasing the enemy after winning the game: "It's really ugly to linger on and not want to admit your true feelings."

“Gu…!”

Ji Tan, who was completely seen through by Gu Zhibai, was wandering back and forth on the edge of the red temperature. She thought she would appear at the critical moment to kill Gu Zhibai, but she didn't expect that she would lose focus and be caught by the opponent and lose the whole game...!

"Alright." At the critical moment, Han Gongqiu on the side finally spoke up. She clapped her hands with a smile and said, "There's nothing to discuss about this matter. You two have been traveling for such a long time. You look so exhausted. I think you must be hungry... How about this? You two should take a shower and change your clothes first, and then come to the cafeteria. We'll hold a banquet for you to welcome you back and celebrate your escape from death."

Ji Zhao responded, and Gu Zhibai was then taken away by Han Gongqiu, ostensibly to his room to borrow some clothes to change into. As for the actual reason, probably only Han Gongqiu himself knew.

Because Ji Tan looked extremely bad, Ji Zhao didn't dare to stay here and offend her, so he went back to his room immediately. When he was about to get a change of clothes, his eyes suddenly caught sight of the wooden box that Zhu Hongyue had left for him.

【“…”】

Hongyue Sanren once said that Ji Zhao had to open it for a reason other than curiosity. Ji Zhao didn’t know if it counted now.

Ji Zhao couldn't think of any other person related to the white-haired man he met in the tomb, except Zhu Hongyue, who would inexplicably "leave something" for him. If that was Zhu Hongyue's arrangement, Ji Zhao felt that now was the time to open it.

[“…I feel like it’s not the right time yet.”]

But when Ji Zhao touched the box, he inexplicably felt that even if he opened the box now, he would not get any answers and would only be confused.

There was no reason for this feeling. If it was Ji Zhao who had just arrived in this world, he would have opened it without hesitation. However, after experiencing several events, he did begin to believe in some mysterious things. He immediately put down the box, turned around and went to the bathhouse with his clothes.

It was not the peak time for bathing, and there was only one person in the bathhouse... Without a doubt, it was Yunxiao, the laziest dog in Luohe Pavilion and the king of slacking off.

Perhaps it was because he heard the sound of Ji Zhao entering the bathhouse that Yun Xiao raised his eyes slightly: "...You are back. It's really a disaster, Ji Zhao."

Volume 5: Escape 1: Chapter 42: Nothing I want is out of my reach

"I always feel like every time I come back to the pavilion and go to the bathhouse to wash myself, I'll see you, Master Yun, slacking off here."

Ji Zhao entered the bath and said something casually.

"What's wrong with you? The first sentence after returning to the cabinet is to slander the teacher who should be respected with all his heart?" Yunxiao leaned against the steps, tilted his head back and closed his eyes. His voice was weak and even his words had no killing power at all.

"That's the truth, isn't it?" Ji Zhao entered the hottest bathtub and made a "shaha" sound. After two or three seconds, he felt that he could bear it, and then he slowly spoke, "Master Yun, you have stayed in the bathhouse the longest in the whole pavilion. Some disciples in the pavilion said that it was because you knew that your body and mind were dirty, so you had to cleanse yourself in the bathhouse."

Yunxiao opened his eyes slightly: "Is there such a saying?"

"Have."

"Which disciple said that? I'm going to make things difficult for him."

"That's what I was thinking."

"..."

Yunxiao might have been a little guilty, so he didn't dwell on this topic and said, "I heard from Xiaoyaofeng that you and that Gu Zhibai walked out of the Changchun Mountains together?"

"Yes."

"You two are really destined to be together." Yun Xiao shrugged. "And if you think about it, she has saved your life twice in a row. If the genders were swapped, you would have to marry her to repay her kindness... So, have you figured out how to repay her?"

There was nothing to hide, Ji Zhao answered honestly: "I promised her that I would agree to her two requests that did not violate my principles in dealing with people."

"...What a flexible way of putting it."

Ji Zhao did not comment.

After chatting with Yunxiao in the bathhouse for a while about the recent news in Luohe Pavilion, Ji Zhao changed into new clothes and left the bathhouse. It was not known whether it was a coincidence or not, but Gu Zhibai had just finished bathing... Her figure was comparable to Han Gongqiu's, and her clothes fit her well. Because she had just finished bathing, her whole body exuded a faint heat, which was faintly mixed with a fragrance.

Ji Zhao's eyes fell on the other person's hair and he smiled, "Finally you don't have to wipe your hair on me anymore."

In the second half of the Changchun Mountains, Gu Zhibai and Ji Zhao became familiar with each other. He also found that the red robe would not get wet and would not get dirty, so he simply wiped his hair on Ji Zhao's clothes after washing it. That look seemed quite funny and embarrassing at the time, but thinking about it now, it is still a funny thing.

Gu Zhibai liked her hair very much. She gently smoothed two strands of hair behind her ears and slewed them in front of her body. She smiled and said, "If you don't dry your hair after washing it, dirt will get into it, especially when we were in that environment... You, you're not saying now that you actually dislike it, are you?"

“Very disgusted.”

"Heh...I don't believe it."

The two chatted and walked side by side to the cafeteria. During this time, Ji Zhao said, "You are quite mean."

Gu Zhibai asked: "What's the matter?"

"About my second sister," Ji Zhao said, "I don't know what she wanted to say, but you didn't even give her a chance to speak. You looked quite pitiful."

Gu Zhibai smiled and said, "Are you heartbroken?"

"I can't really say." Ji Zhao said, "Maybe a little, but I feel pretty good about it, otherwise I wouldn't cooperate with you... She always pretends to be mysterious, and this time she got her retribution."

Gu Zhibai immediately used the Star Shifting Technique: "You are quite mean."

Ji Zhao chuckled: "I thought you knew it a long time ago."

Gu Zhibai thought of Ji Zhao suddenly taking her to jump off the cliff, and her smile grew even wider: "Do you know why I want to embarrass your second sister?"

Ji Zhao tilted his head curiously: "Why?"

Gu Zhibai said: "Because she is not frank."

"...?"

The reason was a bit puzzling, but Ji Zhao and Gu Zhibai had lived and eaten together for such a long time that they had developed a lot of tacit understanding, so there was no rush to interrupt them.

Gu Zhibai continued, "Don't you think it's strange to suppress your emotions and not let the people closest to you know... If you really think she doesn't care about you because of this, and then, not long after, you die of bad luck, then both parties will never be able to resolve this misunderstanding... Just imagining it, it's a pity, isn't it?"

She paused, smiled and said, "People should be honest with their feelings. That way, no matter whether the result is good or bad, they can face it with no regrets. If they hide their feelings just to save face, hehe..."