Chapter 43

At the foot of a gentle slope, a group of six riders galloped swiftly.

"Brother Shang, the water and grass here are abundant. We have been traveling all day. Let's take a short rest here and give the horses a break, what do you think?"

The one leading the group pulled the reins and shouted loudly.

He had a broad face and large ears, which should have made him look dignified and imposing, but his long neck ruined that impression.

Beside him was a martial cultivator with a broad forehead and narrow eyes, who immediately slowed down his mount upon seeing the situation.

Although his face showed some anxiety, his fatigue was not feigned. After several days of searching, he had also heard some complaints from the team. Hearing the patrol leader speak, he pondered for a moment and said, "I will follow Brother Ji's instructions!"

Ji Sheng laughed heartily and said loudly, "Everyone dismount and rest for an hour!"

The other four riders cheered and dismounted.

The broad-foreheaded martial cultivator moved his lips but could only smile bitterly and remained silent.

This was a patrol team from the Concealed Valley Peak, under the jurisdiction of the Concealed Valley Academy's Guard Department.

The patrol team consisted of five members, with Captain Ji Sheng at the late stage of the Martial Extreme Realm, and Deputy Captain Jiang Changyu at the early stage of the Martial Extreme Realm. The remaining three riders were all experienced Martial Origin Realm martial cultivators.

However, there was now an additional person in the team, named Shang Quan, a member of the Shang family.

He had joined the patrol team to search for the missing Shang Xia.

Ji Sheng took a water bag from his Red Cloud Beast, tilted his head, and drank half of it, his long neck clearly showing the rapid movement of his throat.

Wiping his chin, which was covered with stubble, Ji Sheng threw the water bag to one of his subordinates and said, "Brother Shang, since we defeated the Wind Swallow Tribe martial cultivators three days ago, has your family received any other news?"

Shang Quan smiled bitterly and said, "Brother Ji, I have been with you all these three days. If there were any news, could I have kept it from you?"

"True, sigh!"

Ji Sheng sighed lightly, half lying on the ground, stretching his legs as much as possible.

"Those Blue Spirit martial cultivators were defeated long ago. If your young master were still alive, he should have crawled back to Concealed Valley Peak by now."

Shang Quan's face changed, and he turned around angrily to glare at the speaker: "What do you mean, Brother Jiang?"

Ji Sheng laughed and casually plucked a blade of grass from the ground, putting it in his mouth.

Jiang Changyu chuckled and said, "Brother Shang, don't be angry. We are just talking about the facts. So many people have died in the Two Realms War Zone. Is it a big deal for someone to die on Concealed Valley Peak? If the missing person were not from your family, do you think our Concealed Valley Dao patrol would have searched for so many days?"

Shang Quan's face turned red with anger: "The Concealed Valley Academy will not abandon any student who might still be alive, and the missing ones are not just Shang Xia, but also over a dozen students from the C House!"

Ji Shang lay on the grass, hands behind his head, looking at the birds circling in the sky, seemingly oblivious to their argument.

Jiang Changyu laughed dismissively and said, "Of course, the academy won't abandon any student who might still be alive. So, what Brother Shang should do now is probably go to the Wind Swallow Tribe to negotiate for the release of the captives, rather than waste time following us like a shadow!"

"You—"

Shang Quan pointed angrily at Jiang Changyu, who had a mocking smile on his face.

He then let out a heavy cold laugh, turned to Ji Sheng, and said, "Brother Ji, what do you think?"

To his surprise, Ji Sheng suddenly sat up from the grass, his face serious, and said, "Not good, we are being watched!"

"Who?"

"Where?"

The two, who had just been arguing, immediately became alert.

Three patrol martial cultivators, who were feeding the Red Cloud Beasts, quickly led the six beasts towards them.

A typical patrol team on the Concealed Valley Dao usually consisted of five members.

The Concealed Valley Academy had a unique combined attack secret technique, which could combine the strength of five people to challenge a higher level.

For example, in Ji Sheng's patrol team, with two Martial Extreme Realm and three Martial Origin Realm members, with the enhancement of the combined attack secret technique, they could match and even defeat a Martial Realm early-stage martial cultivator.

If they could use the Red Cloud Beasts to form an array and charge, their strength would increase even more.

This was just a regular patrol team on the Concealed Valley Dao.

It was said that the Guard Department had an elite patrol team stationed on Concealed Valley Peak.

In this elite patrol team, each five-member elite squad had all members at the Martial Extreme Realm or higher.

Such a squad, when using the combined attack secret technique, had records of killing Martial Realm Blue Spirit martial cultivators and even escaping from a Martial Realm late-stage martial cultivator.

Of course, such elite patrols usually did not appear on the Concealed Valley Dao. Most of the time, they were active in the chaotic area in front of Concealed Valley Peak, on the edge of life and death battles with the Blue Spirit Realm's extraordinary martial cultivators.

At this moment, Ji Sheng suddenly sensed a gaze from a distance, and he stood up and shouted, "Who is there, come out!"

The team members behind Ji Sheng almost reflexively took their positions for the combined attack secret technique.

Shang Quan was now completely excluded from the combined attack formation and would have to face the enemy alone.

At this moment, a person stood up from behind a rock about a hundred feet away, waving at them and running towards them.

"Are you the Concealed Valley Peak patrol? Uncle Quan? It's me, Shang Xia!"

As the voice came closer, the person was indeed the Shang Xia they were looking for.

"Xia'er, it's Xia'er!"

Seeing Shang Xia unharmed, Shang Quan laughed with relief and quickly moved to greet him.

However, after taking a few steps, Shang Quan suddenly stopped and turned to look at Jiang Changyu, whose expression was somewhat unnatural, and said, "It seems I don't need to waste time anymore, but I don't need to negotiate for the release of captives either. Brother Jiang, you still have to continue searching for the other missing students, and you might even have to go to the Wind Swallow Tribe to negotiate and ransom them!"

These words were like a slap in the face for Jiang Changyu.

Shang Quan laughed and turned to meet Shang Xia.

Behind him, Jiang Changyu, watching the reunion of the uncle and nephew, turned pale and let out a cold laugh.

...

After leaving the sealed valley, Shang Xia realized that they had no idea which direction to go to reach Concealed Valley Peak.

Although he had been told to head towards the highest peak, now with so many people following him, Shang Xia felt more restrained.

Helpless, Shang Xia led the group back to the initial ambush site and then followed the direction the convoy had taken to reach Concealed Valley Peak.

Fortunately, Shang Xia could use the mutated rain swallows to alert them, allowing them to avoid danger multiple times, thus making their journey relatively safe.

Despite this, to avoid danger as much as possible, Shang Xia often walked at the front, maintaining a certain distance from the others.

It was then that Shang Xia encountered Ji Sheng and his team resting on this gentle slope.

Originally, Shang Xia intended to further confirm their identities, but he soon recognized a familiar face among the six, his clan uncle Shang Quan.

This confirmed their identities, and Shang Xia was even more certain that they were also searching for them.

Despite the trials he had faced, Shang Xia had gained some experience, but he was still emotionally stirred, and the slight fluctuation of his newly advanced essence energy was noticed by the alert Ji Sheng.

...

"Good to be back, good to be back!"

Shang Quan patted his nephew's shoulder and laughed loudly.

At this moment, a sarcastic voice cut through the air: "Indeed, it's a good thing, saving us, the noble patrol, from wasting time searching for a deserter and neglecting our duty to patrol the Concealed Valley Dao."

Shang Quan turned around angrily to glare at the speaker.

Shang Xia, somewhat surprised, looked at the speaker and asked, "Who... who is this?"

Shang Quan forced a smile and said, "Come, Xia'er, let me introduce you..."

"Patrol team?"

Shang Xia interrupted his uncle and said, "I'm not interested in their introductions. A group that lets the enemy run rampant in their own backyard, they are just a bunch of show-offs!"

"You—"

Not only the one who spoke, Jiang Changyu, but also the other members of the patrol team glared at Shang Xia.

However, what Shang Xia said was true. The Wind Swallow Tribe had infiltrated the Concealed Valley Dao, ambushed the convoy, and caused multiple casualties at the Concealed Valley Academy, which was a failure of the Concealed Valley Dao patrol.

In fact, since the convoy was ambushed and the news of the heavy casualties among the convoy's students reached Concealed Valley Peak, the patrol had been under unimaginable criticism and pressure.

Even the deputy head of Concealed Valley Peak, Ji Wenlong, had personally arrived at Concealed Valley Peak to take charge.

Ji Sheng, the captain of the patrol team, originally intended to avoid such verbal disputes, but Shang Xia's words implicated the entire patrol team, and he could not ignore it.

"Rubbish!"

Ji Sheng shouted angrily, "What do you know, to criticize the entire patrol?"

Jiang Changyu, with a turn of his eyes, sneered, "What is his status, of course he has the right to look down on us!"

This was deliberately escalating the conflict between the Shang family and the entire patrol.

Shang Quan's face changed, and he immediately rebuked, "Ridiculous! What are you, to stir up conflict between the Shang family and the patrol? Don't forget, when the patrol was short-handed, it was the Shang family that first came to their aid!"

"Brother Shang, don't be upset, it's just that my subordinates are ignorant!"

After saying this, Ji Sheng turned and glared at Jiang Changyu, making him shut up.

Shang Quan also turned to explain to Shang Xia, "There was a reason for the incident. The patrol was short-handed because most of the members were reassigned, which led to the lack of manpower to patrol the Concealed Valley Dao, allowing the Blue Spirit martial cultivators to take advantage."

As for why the patrol was reassigned, Shang Quan did not say, and Shang Xia did not ask.

Finding Shang Xia, Shang Quan's heart was at ease, and he said to Ji Sheng, "Brother Ji, what do you think... what are the plans next?"

Ji Sheng understood that Shang Quan, having found his nephew, had no intention of continuing the patrol, despite his annoyance, he understood his feelings and said, "Since your nephew has been found, Brother Shang, you should take him back to Concealed Valley Peak to avoid worrying Uncle Ke."

Shang Quan's face lit up, and he said, "Thank you, Brother Ji. After I return my nephew to Concealed Valley Peak, I will definitely come to assist you!"

Before Ji Sheng could speak, Jiang Changyu's sarcastic voice came again, "Heh, out of the seventeen missing students from the C House, only one returns unharmed, what