Chapter 71

In the following days, Ding Qi went to the depths of Qixia Mountain twice, to the edge of the secret realm, hoping to find a reliable way to enter the dense forest again. However, this method was clearly not easy to find.

Returning twice, Ding Qi never found any safe and reliable way to explore.

He could only cultivate the先天功 (Xiantian Gong) in the medicinal garden while thinking of ways to enter the secret realm.

One day, while cultivating the Xiantian Gong in the medicinal garden, Ding Qi received an invitation from Qingyun Mountain.

That night, Ding Qi looked at the invitation with a smile on his face: "Elder Yuan's favor has finally come!"

The invitation was quite exquisite, with a genuine gold foil pattern on the bottom, making the invitation itself a valuable item.

Ding Qi had already read the content of the invitation earlier and knew what it said. Then, he moved his gaze to the signature at the bottom of the invitation, which read 'Yuan Xing,' the real name of the Elder Yuan he had saved.

According to the content of the invitation, Elder Yuan was inviting Ding Qi to Qingyun Sect three days later to thank him for his rescue.

Of course, this matter was not just about Elder Yuan himself; it also represented the Qingyun Sect.

Naturally, Ding Qi had no reason to refuse. Through this, he could pave a way for Ding Shan, achieving his initial purpose of saving Elder Yuan.

On the third day, a carriage entered the medicinal garden on the outskirts of Qixia Town and soon left the town, heading towards Qingyun Mountain.

The carriage looked no different from when it entered Qixia Town. The only difference was that there was one more person inside the carriage.

After a day and a night, the carriage stopped at the foot of Qingyun Mountain. A tired Qingyun Sect disciple got off the carriage and lifted the curtain by the door. A young man with an ordinary appearance got off from the door.

Although the young man looked ordinary, he was very energetic, looking around with great interest at the scenery around Qingyun Mountain and the passing Qingyun Sect disciples.

Seeing this energetic young man, who seemed to be looking around with wide eyes, the Qingyun Sect disciple who was driving the carriage muttered, "Country bumpkin," and then showed his waist badge to a Qingyun Sect disciple guarding the entrance of the mountain path, heading straight to a courtyard on the side of the mountain.

It was no wonder the Qingyun Sect disciple had such a prejudice against the young man.

Initially, this Qingyun Sect disciple was responsible for long-term garrison duty in Liangcheng, living a very comfortable life. However, a few days ago, he received an assignment from the sect to pick up an unknown outer sect member in Qixia Town.

The journey from Qixia Town to Qingyun Sect was long and rugged, a very arduous task. This made the Qingyun Sect disciple, who had been living a comfortable life, very depressed. He also harbored a prejudice against the young man who had brought him this arduous task.

However, what puzzled the Qingyun Sect disciple was that after such a long journey, even he, a martial artist with deep internal skills, was exhausted, but the young man, who seemed to have no martial arts skills, was still full of energy, which he found very strange.

The young man who got off the carriage seemed to have heard the Qingyun Sect disciple's low grumbling and glanced in his direction, but then he paid no more attention and continued to look around the surroundings of Qingyun Mountain.

This young man, who puzzled the Qingyun Sect disciple, was naturally Ding Qi.

He had been invited by Elder Yuan to come from Qixia Town to the headquarters of Qingyun Sect.

While Ding Qi was looking around the surroundings of Qingyun Mountain, soon, someone came out from the courtyard where the Qingyun Sect disciple had entered, and it was Elder Yuan.

...

The day before, after Ding Qi arrived at Qingyun Mountain, Elder Yuan had already arranged accommodation for him. After resting for a night, he was invited by Elder Yuan to tour the beautiful scenery of Qingyun Mountain.

Qingyun Mountain was a famous scenic peak in Jingzhou, with excellent scenery. It was especially beautiful during the viewing season. After Elder Yuan led Ding Qi to see the famous misty sea of Qingyun Mountain, even Ding Qi, who had many extraordinary experiences, was still quite amazed by the magnificent sight of the rolling clouds below.

He couldn't help but marvel at the wonders of nature.

For a moment, Ding Qi felt a bit envious that the Qingyun Sect disciples could enjoy such beautiful scenery.

But then he shook his head. If he hadn't been rejected by Qingyun Sect, how could he have obtained the Xiantian Gong and the brocade, and gained all these incredible powers?

In a way, this was his good fortune.

After coming down from the peak where the sea of clouds could be seen, Elder Yuan led Ding Qi towards the main peak of Qingyun Mountain. Just as Elder Yuan was about to lead Ding Qi up the mountain path, they were unexpectedly stopped by an old man with a withered face who was sweeping the path.

The old man, wearing a faded and old robe, looked at Elder Yuan and then at Ding Qi, and said in a dry voice, "I've never seen this young man before. According to the sect's rules, strangers entering the various peaks of the sect need a pass token."

After being stopped by the withered old man, Elder Yuan had a helpless look on his face. Hearing the old man's words, he smiled bitterly, "Hehe, Uncle Wu is still so rigid. Everything must be done according to the sect's rules. At your age, why do you need to sweep the mountain path every day? With your relationship with Sect Leader Nie, you should have a more leisurely job. Otherwise, you wouldn't have been so seriously injured two years ago."

"The old man has only this one strength. Otherwise, Sect Leader Nie wouldn't have asked me to guard the mountain path. I will be more careful in the future," the old man said in a hoarse voice.

Hearing this, Elder Yuan smiled bitterly again. Then, he took out a token-like object and showed it to the withered old man.

The old man then nodded and let Elder Yuan and Ding Qi proceed up the mountain path.

On the mountain path, Ding Qi glanced back at the withered old man and then curiously asked Elder Yuan, "That Uncle Wu just now is... ."