Everyone glanced at Mei Qing, and deep in their hearts, they all vaguely thought that the timing mentioned by the old Master Mei Hua might have something to do with Mei Qing.
Liu Xing naturally thought of this as well, and thus his expression was somewhat complex. He softly said, “Since the Master said so, none of us dared to ask further questions. Later, because of the incident with the five flowers, everyone became somewhat dispirited, and the Master’s condition wasn’t quite right either. Therefore, the eldest and second senior brothers left the sect for distant travels, I stayed behind locally, while the fourth junior brother and Anu followed the Master back into the mountains.”
“At home, at that time, I didn’t know anything about what had happened. Later, I thought of recruiting some help—not many, just a few capable people—who gradually helped me figure out some things about the five flowers incident. A few years later, feeling bored at home, I suddenly received a message from the eldest senior brother saying there was something happening in the mountains and asking me to return. I didn’t know what was going on, so I packed up and set out alone.”
“Normally, cultivators should be able to travel quite quickly. Besides, the mountains where the Master cultivated weren’t far from here; in my opinion, the journey shouldn’t have taken long. Who would have thought things would turn out so coincidentally? Just as I had set off, I encountered some unexpected events, which turned out to be quite troublesome. What I originally thought would be resolved immediately ended up taking a lot of time and effort.”
Mei Qing’s eyebrows furrowed. Liu Xing smiled and said, “This matter definitely has nothing to do with the sect—it was about Mei’er. Because of this, I gained this precious daughter. Thinking back now, I’m afraid Mei’er actually saved my life.”
Only then did Mei Qing and the others feel relieved. Originally, Mei Qing had been worried that Liu Xing’s explanation was vague, suspecting there might be someone else’s hand behind it. But now it turned out to be purely a personal matter regarding Mei’er, so Liu Xing didn’t go into further details.
“After I sent Mei’er back home and arranged for someone to take careful care of her, I hurriedly made my way back to the mountains. Originally, I thought I had only delayed a few days. If there had really been an urgent matter in the mountains, surely there would have been another message by now, so I didn’t particularly rush. Unexpectedly, when I returned to the mountain gate, I found it completely empty—neither the Master, Anu, nor the fourth junior brother could be found.”
“I was greatly alarmed, and then I realized that the one who had summoned me was not the Master, but the eldest senior brother. The eldest and second senior brothers hadn’t returned to the mountains with the Master—why was it the eldest senior brother who sent the message this time?”
Lu Bing nodded and said, “At that time, Shao Yuanjie had already entered the imperial court and gained the Emperor’s favor. However, his whereabouts were always somewhat unpredictable; he often went into secluded cultivation for a period of time, sometimes not appearing for over a month. Therefore, at that time, we didn’t have a clear understanding of his situation.”
Liu Xing sneered, “At the time, we only thought he and the second senior brother had truly gone on a journey. Who knew they had turned around and joined the imperial court? Thinking back now, those two probably had no good intentions back then, and the fourth brother might have had his own hidden agenda as well.”
“At that time, I searched the mountains thoroughly for a long time but found no trace indicating where they had gone. Nothing seemed to have been moved. I tried sending messages to them, but they were like stones dropped into the sea—no reply ever came.”
“On the third day, I thought I shouldn’t wait any longer and prepared to leave the mountains to investigate what had actually happened. Just then, suddenly there was a disturbance at the mountain gate—it turned out someone had returned. I was quite startled, for the one who appeared was actually Anu, who had always been by the Master’s side.”
“When Anu saw me, he seemed startled too. I looked around, and besides Anu, there was no one else. I felt surprised, but as I mentioned earlier, Anu had always been a mysterious figure with extremely high cultivation, so we all had a bit of fear toward him. At that time, I wanted to ask him where the Master and the others were, but I couldn’t bring myself to speak.”
“To my surprise, upon seeing me, Anu suddenly stepped forward and coldly asked, ‘Why are you here?'”
“The shock in Liu Xing’s eyes seemed to still linger as he continued, his voice somewhat cold, ‘After knowing Anu all these years, he had always kept his face covered with a black cloth and never spoke, so much so that we even thought he might be mute. But that day… that day when he suddenly spoke, he truly frightened me. His voice was extremely dry, as if each word was forced out with difficulty, like something hard scraping against rusted iron. His tone… was even colder, a kind of chill that made my whole body involuntarily tremble.'”
At this point, Liu Xing unconsciously clenched his hands tightly, as if the cold pressure from Anu still haunted him even after all these years.
After a pause, he sighed lightly and shook his head, saying, “As for what I said back then, I myself have forgotten. I think I mentioned that the eldest senior brother had summoned me, but I had been delayed by some worldly affairs. At that time, I only remembered explaining myself and completely forgot to ask about the Master and my senior and junior brothers.”
“Anu listened to me speaking, his eyes fixed on me the whole time. Later, perhaps seeing that I was indeed telling the truth, or maybe because he himself had urgent matters to attend to, he finally just let out a ‘humph’ and disappeared on the spot. A little while later, he suddenly reappeared, gave me a cold look, and said, ‘If what you say is true, then you’d better go back quickly. Pretend that you’ve never come here and that nothing has ever happened.’ Then he turned and left through the mountain gate.”
“When he turned to leave, I noticed only then that his clothes were torn and ragged, and there was a faint, violent fluctuation of true energy around him, as if he had just come from a fierce battle. My heart gave a jolt, and it was only then that I remembered I hadn’t even asked him what had happened. At that time, I stood there, stunned, not knowing how long had passed. Later, I thought that something serious must have happened to our sect, and I should quickly find the Master and the others to find out what was going on.”
“Just as I was about to go out, I suddenly felt another fluctuation within the mountain gate. This time, it was very familiar. Looking up, I saw it was indeed the eldest and second senior brothers. However, both of them looked extremely disheveled, especially the eldest senior brother, who at that time appeared very abnormal, his true energy fluctuating violently within him like a volcano.”
Liu Xing fell into thought and said, “Our sect’s cultivation method has always been tranquil and unassuming. To an outsider, it might even seem as if our cultivation level is mediocre, never like the eldest senior brother’s, whose energy was so outwardly intense. At that time, the eldest senior brother’s cultivation had already reached a very high level, probably on the verge of reaching the threshold of refining Qi. Therefore, that kind of aura was simply like standing next to a volcano crater; ordinary cultivators with lesser skills probably couldn’t even stand near him.”
“But since I had just come out from under Anu’s oppressive pressure, I wasn’t particularly affected by the eldest senior brother’s presence. I just felt that his state was abnormal, not like someone deliberately releasing his aura, but more like he was barely managing to contain it. I asked, ‘Senior Brother, what’s wrong with you? Where is the Master, and where did the fourth junior brother go?'”
“When the eldest and second senior brothers saw me, their expressions were quite strange. The second senior brother looked at the eldest, who waved him off and then turned to me and asked, ‘Shu Xing, why did you come so late? Didn’t I send you a message a few days ago? Just now… did you see anyone?'”
“At that time, I didn’t think much about it and explained the reason for my delay, then said, ‘Earlier at the gate, I saw Anu come back, but he… seemed very strange.'”
“As soon as I mentioned Anu, their faces visibly tensed, and they exchanged anxious glances. When I told them Anu had suddenly vanished, only to reappear shortly and then leave, the second senior brother slapped his thigh and exclaimed, ‘It must be that thing—he must have taken it!'”
“I was somewhat surprised but didn’t know what they were talking about. The eldest senior brother quickly said, ‘Shu Xing, you probably don’t know yet. Anu suddenly betrayed the Master, conspiring with Zhang Tianzhi of the Celestial Master Sect. The Master was ambushed by them and has already passed away!'”
“At that time, I was shocked and couldn’t believe it. The second senior brother, impatiently, said, ‘You still don’t believe us? If it weren’t for my senior brother and me fighting together to resist them, we probably would have died there too! The fourth brother was also injured and we don’t know where he went. That Anu has always been mysterious and clearly not a good person!'”
“The eldest senior brother also persuaded me, saying, ‘Shu Xing, I know you’ve always been close to the Master. But since the Master has already passed away, from now on, the sect will have to rely on us few. I now have a small position in the imperial court. With the current peace in the world and the flourishing of the dynasty’s energy, using this as a foundation, how can we not expand and prosper our sect? You shouldn’t stay cooped up in the mountains anymore. Come out and give me a hand. Let’s brothers work together to achieve something great!'”
“At that time, the eldest senior brother’s voice was very sincere, and he had always treated me well. If he had said these words on a normal occasion, I might have agreed without hesitation. But at that moment, my heart was in chaos, full of doubts, and how could I have the mind to go out and serve in the court? So without even thinking, I refused. I said I wanted to go see the place where the Master had passed away before I could even smile, and my words were not kind. But the eldest senior brother stopped the second senior brother and let me leave.”
“I hurried in the direction they had told me, heading to a cliff by the Yangtze River called Yumu Platform. When I arrived there, I found that the entire cliff had been completely destroyed, almost turned into a huge pit. The traces of magical attacks around had already been erased by someone unknown, but the chaotic aura in the air was still faintly perceptible. I had seen that cliff before; unless attacked by a very powerful cultivator, there was no way that place could have been reduced to such a state. I looked around for a long time, my heart growing cold, thinking that perhaps what my senior brother had said was true. Under such an attack, even someone as powerful as the Master might not have survived.”
“I searched and searched from day to night, but found nothing. I had lost both my parents at a young age, and it was the Master who raised me, taught me literature and cultivation, and brought me into the Daoist path. Although later his temperament changed greatly, in the beginning, he had been extremely kind to me. Therefore, in my heart, the Master, my senior and junior brothers, and my junior sister were the closest family I had in this world. I never expected that in the blink of an eye, my junior sister would pass away, my brothers would become strange and unrecognizable, and now the Master had also left me!”
Everyone glanced at Mei Qing, their minds subtly hinting that the opportune moment mentioned by the Plum Blossom Master might be related to him.
Liu Xing naturally thought of this as well, hence his expression was somewhat complex. He softly said, “Since the master has spoken thus, we dare not inquire further. Later, due to the incident with the Five Blossoms, everyone was somewhat disheartened, and the master’s condition wasn’t quite right. Therefore, the eldest and second senior brothers left on a journey, I stayed to guard our home, while the fourth junior brother and A’Nu followed the master back to the mountains.”
“At home, I was completely unaware of what had happened. Later, I thought of recruiting some people, not seeking many, but a few capable individuals who gradually clarified the previous matters concerning the Five Blossoms. After a few years, feeling somewhat depressed at home, I suddenly received a message from the eldest senior brother, saying there was an issue in the mountains and I needed to return. Not knowing what it was about, I packed up and set off alone.”
“One would think that as cultivators, we should travel quite swiftly. Moreover, the mountains where the master practiced were not far from here, so it shouldn’t take long. But as fate would have it, just as I had not gone far, I encountered some troublesome matters, which delayed me significantly. What I thought would be a quick trip turned into a lengthy ordeal.”
Mei Qing raised an eyebrow, and Liu Xing smiled, “This matter surely has nothing to do with our sect, but concerns Mei’er. I thus gained such a precious daughter. Now thinking back, perhaps it was Mei who saved my life.”
Mei Qing and the others then relaxed. Originally, Mei Qing was worried that Liu Xing’s explanation was unclear, unsure if there were manipulations by others behind the scenes. Now hearing that it was due to handling Liu Mei’s affairs, purely a private matter, he didn’t elaborate further.
“After sending Mei’er home and arranging for her careful care, I hurried back to the mountains. I thought I had delayed a few days. If there was truly an urgent matter in the mountains, surely a message would have come by now. Therefore, I wasn’t particularly anxious. Unexpectedly, upon returning to the mountain sect, I found it completely deserted. The master, A’Nu, and the fourth junior brother were all gone.”
“Greatly alarmed, I then realized that the summons was not from the master, but from the eldest senior brother. The eldest and second senior brothers had not returned to the mountains with the master, why was it the eldest senior brother who sent the summons this time?”
Lu Bing nodded and said, “At that time, Shao Yuanjie had already entered the court and was quite favored by the emperor. However, his whereabouts were always uncertain, often retreating for cultivation, sometimes not appearing for over a month. Therefore, his situation was never very clear.”
Liu Xing sneered, “At that time, we thought he and the second senior brother were truly out traveling, who would have thought they would turn to the court? Now thinking back, these two had no good intentions from the start, and even the fourth junior brother might have had his own schemes.”
“At that time, I searched the mountains thoroughly for a long time, but found no trace of their whereabouts. It seemed as if nothing had been disturbed. I tried to send them messages, but they were like stones dropped into the sea, with no return.”
“On the third day, I thought I shouldn’t wait any longer. I prepared to leave the mountains and send people to find out what had happened. Just then, a fluctuation came from the mountain gate. Someone had returned. To my surprise, it was A’Nu, who was always by the master’s side.”
“Seeing me, A’Nu also seemed startled. I looked around, and besides A’Nu, there was no one else. I was surprised, but as I mentioned before, A’Nu was extremely mysterious and highly skilled, so we were all somewhat afraid of him. At that moment, I wanted to ask where the master and others were, but I couldn’t bring myself to speak.”
“Contrary to my expectations, A’Nu stepped forward and coldly asked, ‘Why have you come?'”
The shock in Liu Xing’s eyes seemed to still linger, his voice also turning cold, “Knowing A’Nu all these years, he always covered his face with black cloth and remained silent. We even thought A’Nu might be mute. But that day… that day when he suddenly spoke, it truly frightened me. His voice was very dry, as if each word was forced out, sounding like something hard grinding on rusty iron. His tone… was exceptionally cold, the kind of cold that made my whole body tremble.”
At this point, Liu Xing’s hands unconsciously clenched tightly, as if the cold pressure from A’Nu still made his heart palpitate even years later.
After a moment, Liu Xing sighed lightly and shook his head, “What I said at that time, I myself have forgotten. It seemed like I said the eldest senior brother had summoned me, and I was delayed by some mundane affairs. At that time, I only remembered to explain myself, completely forgetting to inquire about the master and my fellow disciples.”
“A’Nu listened to me, his eyes tightly fixed on me. Later, probably seeing that I was indeed telling the truth, or perhaps he was in a hurry with his own matters, he just snorted and disappeared on the spot. After a while, he suddenly reappeared, gave me a cold look, and said, ‘If it’s as you say, then you’d better return quickly. From now on, act as if you’ve never been here, and nothing has happened.’ After saying that, he turned and left the mountain gate.”
“Only when he turned to leave did I notice his clothes were tattered, and there was a faintly violent fluctuation of true essence, as if he had just been in a great battle. I was startled, then remembered I hadn’t asked him what had happened. I stood there dumbfounded, not knowing for how long, then thought, something major must have happened in the sect, and I should quickly find the master and others to inquire.”
“I was about to leave when I felt another fluctuation at the mountain gate, this time very familiar. Looking up, it was the eldest and second senior brothers. But both of them were in a sorry state, especially the eldest senior brother, who seemed very abnormal at that time, his internal true essence fluctuating violently like a volcano.”
Liu Xing pondered, “Our sect’s techniques have always been calm and serene, to the uninformed, it might seem like average cultivation, never as outwardly explosive as the eldest senior brother was then. At that time, the eldest senior brother’s cultivation was already very high, probably at the threshold of refining qi. Therefore, his aura was like a volcanic crater, so intense that those with lesser cultivation might not even be able to stand near him.”
“But having just come out from under A’Nu’s pressure, I wasn’t too concerned about the eldest senior brother, just felt his state wasn’t right, not like he was intentionally releasing his aura, but more like he couldn’t suppress it. I asked, ‘Eldest senior brother, what’s wrong with you? Where’s the master, and where’s the fourth junior brother?'”
“The eldest and second senior brothers looked at me with strange expressions. The second senior brother glanced at the eldest senior brother, who waved him off, turned to me and asked, ‘Shu Xing, why did you only come now? Didn’t I send you a message several days ago? Just now… did you see anyone?'”
“At that time, I didn’t think much, just explained the reason for my delay, and added, ‘Just now at the gate, I saw A’Nu return, but he… was very strange.'”
“As soon as I mentioned A’Nu, their faces showed obvious tension, and they scrutinized my behavior closely. When they heard that A’Nu had suddenly disappeared and reappeared after a moment before leaving, the second senior brother slapped his thigh and said, ‘It must be that thing, he took it away!'”
“I was somewhat surprised, not knowing what they were talking about. The eldest senior brother hurriedly said, ‘Shu Xing, you don’t know yet, A’Nu suddenly betrayed the master, conspired with the Heavenly Master Zhang from the Heavenly Master Sect to ambush us, the master was jointly attacked by them and has already passed away!'”
“At that time, I was greatly shocked and couldn’t believe it. The second senior brother impatiently said, ‘Don’t you believe us? If it weren’t for the eldest senior brother and I joining forces to resist the enemy, we might have already perished there! The fourth junior brother was also injured, and his whereabouts are unknown. That A’Nu has always been mysterious, clearly not a good person!'”
“The eldest senior brother also advised me, ‘Shu Xing, I know you’ve always been close to the master. But since the master has passed away, the future of our sect now depends on us. I now have a small position in the court. The world is at peace, the nation’s aura is flourishing, with this as our aid, why worry about our sect not prospering? Don’t stay cooped up in the mountains, come out and lend me a hand, let’s brothers make something of ourselves, how about it?'”
“At that time, the eldest senior brother’s voice was very sincere, and he had always been good to me. If it were any other time, I might have agreed. But at that moment, my mind was a mess, full of doubts, how could I think of leaving the mountains for the court? So without thinking, I refused. I said I needed to see the place where the master passed away to be sure, my words were not kind, but the eldest senior brother stopped him and let me leave. I hurried in the direction they indicated, to a cliff by the Yangtze River called Yumu Terrace. When I arrived, I found the place had been completely cut down, almost turned into a large pit. The traces of magical attacks around had been erased by someone, but the chaotic true essence in the air could still be faintly felt. That cliff I had seen before, unless attacked by an extremely powerful cultivator, it couldn’t have been turned into that state. I looked for a long time, my heart turning cold, thinking what the senior brothers said might be true. Under such an attack, even someone as powerful as the master might not withstand it.”
“I searched and searched, from day until night, but found nothing. Since childhood, I lost my parents, the master taught me literature and cultivation, and brought me into the Taoist sect. Although he later changed greatly, at the beginning, he was very good to me. Therefore, in my heart, the master, my fellow disciples, and my junior sister were my closest family in the world. Who would have thought in the blink of an eye, my junior sister passed away, my fellow disciples became strange one by one, and now the master has left me!”
“That day, the sky was as overcast as today. At night, it started to rain. In the distance, the spring river swelled, its sound distant and desolate. I just stood there by the pit, not knowing what to do, where to go, as if I was the only person left alone in the world. I stood in the rain, my heart cold and empty.”
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