Chapter 47

Bai Zhen had heard from Lu Yaohxiang yesterday that she was going to take Lu Xiaoding out with her. He didn’t have any objections, but just thinking about her carrying that large tripod wherever she went, squeezing through crowds, made him stand by the side of the crowd and wait. Seeing the two of them finally arrive, he nodded as a greeting.

Lu Yaohxiang stood beside him, her face cold, hands behind her back, standing quietly with an air that kept people at a distance. She used an invisible aura to drive away any cultivators who wanted to come and talk to her.

Since she had obtained the Weeping Sword, the news had spread throughout the Yunjian Sect. Many people wanted to see what the sword looked like. Unfortunately, she wasn’t the type to show off, and her personality was very cold, so many who wanted to see the sword left empty-handed. Now, seeing her about to go out, people started to look over from the moment she arrived.

Although Lu Xiaoding was carrying a large tripod filled with things, she seemed very inconspicuous at the moment. No one expected her to go along, thinking she was just there to see someone off. Everyone knew that she and Lu Yaohxiang were inseparable, so her presence here was considered normal.

“Junior Brother Bai, you’re really lucky, unlike me who has to be paired with that guy,” a senior brother from the same peak approached, speaking with envy. He had bad luck this time and was paired with a female cultivator with the worst temper, just thinking about it made him feel pitiful.

Unlike Bai Zhen, who was so lucky to not only see the legendary Weeping Sword but also go with the best-figured female cultivator, Lu Yaohxiang, who was much better than those flat-chested, cold-faced ones.

Bai Zhen smiled slightly and said calmly, “Senior Brother, you’re joking. Who doesn’t know that Senior Sister Lin has already reached the late Foundation Establishment stage, making her one of the strongest in this group. This trip will surely be much safer.”

“Those evil cultivators might have already fled. We’re just going out to relax, and it’s more fun to go with someone you get along with,” the cultivator laughed, almost suggesting a swap.

Bai Zhen just smiled and didn’t say much. These people didn’t know that Lu Yaohxiang wasn’t as wonderful as they thought, and besides, they weren’t just going with one woman, but two.

As they were talking, the sect leader, Lian Jing, came out of the Taiyi Hall. All the cultivators immediately fell silent, looking up at him standing on the steps.

“The Yunjian Sect has been too peaceful for too long, making some ghosts forget about our swords. They dared to come here and slaughter mortals. This time, you’re going out not only to find the murderers but also to strictly investigate the scattered cultivators in various places, thoroughly cleaning up the Yun Dan State to show them the power of the Yunjian Sect,” the sect leader said sternly, his usual gentle demeanor replaced by anger.

Mortals are the foundation of cultivators. Without them at the bottom, the sect’s base would be incomplete. If they couldn’t protect the mortals in their territory, they would move to safer places. Once everyone left, who would pay taxes and operate the sect, or even give birth to new disciples?

“Yes,” the cultivators responded in unison. The sect leader’s words, though rough, were straightforward and clear.

Then, the sect leader waved his hand, and a disciple brought out a pile of jade tokens. “These are our sect’s map tokens, depicting the entire map of the Nine Provinces. This time, our focus is on the Yun Dan State. The bright spots on the map are your investigation areas. Take your tokens and set off. One more thing, if you encounter enemies and can’t escape, crush the token, and the sect will know your location.”

Everyone looked at him speechlessly, his tone making it seem like they might not return. If it was so dangerous, they should at least put a life-saving spell in the token to buy them some time to escape.

“Alright, I hope everyone can return alive. The loss of any one of you would be a tragedy for the Yunjian Sect. You must return alive, even if you’re injured,” Lian Jing encouraged loudly, but no one was moved.

Lu Yaohxiang suddenly spoke, “The sect leader is really bad at speaking, but he’s very honest.”

Bai Zhen glanced at her, then looked away. Then, the sect leader waved his hand, and the map tokens flew to the crowd. Each disciple received one, with the same bright spots on the maps of those in the same group.

Lu Xiaoding watched as they both received tokens, but she didn’t get one, so she bit her finger and muttered, “They didn’t give me a token. What if I get lost and can’t find my way back?”

“Xiaoding, you can use mine,” Lu Yaohxiang casually handed her the token, speaking indifferently.

“Ah, what about you, Senior Sister?” Lu Xiaoding happily took the token, then worriedly asked.

Lu Yaohxiang smiled lightly, “If I die, you can hide in the tripod and crush this token. You’ll have more time to use it in dangerous situations than I will.”

“Senior Sister, you’re joking. You won’t die. I’ll keep the token, so if we get separated, I won’t get lost,” Lu Xiaoding carefully placed the token in her chest, feeling much more at ease. She had never been anywhere except Luxing City, and this was her first long journey, so she was a bit nervous.

Bai Zhen, who had been silent, finally spoke, “What’s the point of giving her the token? Without spiritual energy, she can’t see the map inside. Even if she gets lost, she’ll still be lost.”

“Let her play with it. Isn’t Senior Brother Bai here? You can lead the way, and we’ll follow. What’s the point of my map?” Lu Yaohxiang said indifferently.

This was too indulgent…

Bai Zhen didn’t say anything. It was their business, and it wasn’t his daughter, so he didn’t care how much they spoiled her. Many disciples had already looked at their tokens and left in groups, each on a different path.

So, he took out his token, infused it with a thread of spiritual energy, and the map appeared in his mind. After seeing the content, Bai Zhen’s expression changed slightly. He withdrew his spiritual energy and said to Lu Yaohxiang, “You can give her the token, but you should check it first. Our tokens might have different content.”

“Is that possible?” Lu Yaohxiang was puzzled. People in the same group should investigate the same place. She asked Lu Xiaoding to take out the token and infused it with spiritual energy to check. After a moment, her expression changed, and she looked worried.

Lu Xiaoding, who knew nothing, curiously asked, “What’s wrong, Senior Sister? Are we going somewhere far?”

“No, just the scenery there is too beautiful, making me dazed. I thought we were going to a place with people,” Lu Yaohxiang, now back to normal, patted her head and smiled, then returned the token to Lu Xiaoding.

“You’re really taking her?” Seeing that she didn’t send Lu Xiaoding back but was taking her along, Bai Zhen was puzzled.

Lu Yaohxiang nodded, “Don’t worry, her abilities will exceed your expectations. With her, we’ll be more efficient.”

“Fine, but if anything happens, I won’t take care of her,” Bai Zhen clarified his stance. In dangerous situations, he wouldn’t prioritize saving Lu Xiaoding like she would.

“I know,” Lu Yaohxiang said. She didn’t expect others to treat Xiaoding the way she did. If someone treated her like that, she would be the first to feel uncomfortable.

After deciding, Bai Zhen took out a light leaf boat. He could travel alone by sword, but with more people, it was better to use a flying artifact. Otherwise, flying aimlessly in the sky would look silly.

“This is much better than a spirit paper boat. Senior Brother Bai really has good things,” Lu Xiaoding saw the small boat, which quickly grew to about two zhang long, and was very interested.

“Stop looking, you’ll see enough on the way,” Lu Yaohxiang helped her lift the tripod, patted her, and got on the boat.

The three sat down, and Bai Zhen infused the boat with spiritual energy, making it rise and fly toward the mountain gate. Lu Xiaoding excitedly touched everything, finding the boat much sturdier than the spirit paper boat.

Although she was a spirit artifact, her appreciation for various artifacts and spirit artifacts was based on their sturdiness. Durable and heavy spirit artifacts were considered good by her.

After checking their identity tokens at the mountain gate, the light leaf boat flew north. Occasionally, they met fellow disciples on the same path, but they soon parted ways, leaving only the three of them.

Even the most interesting things become boring after a while. Lu Xiaoding was no longer interested in the light leaf boat and looked back at Lu Yaohxiang and Bai Zhen. Both were meditating with their eyes closed, making the non-cultivator Lu Xiaoding feel even more bored.

So, she took out the fan she had received and said with a smile, “Senior Sister, I decided to draw the pills I’ve refined on the fan. Do you think it looks good?”

Lu Yaohxiang knew that if she brought her out, she couldn’t enter deep meditation and would definitely be woken up by her. She opened her eyes and looked at the fan, asking indifferently, “You’ve refined many pills. Are they all enough to draw?”

“I’m very capable, how could I only have these? I’ve only drawn on the front side, and the back is still empty for other pills. Senior Sister, look quickly, does it look nice?” Lu Xiaoding, seeing that she was paying attention, quickly handed her the fan, excited to get some praise.

Bai Zhen also opened his eyes. Since everyone was meditating, he could meditate too, but if someone was talking, it would be ridiculous to meditate next to them. Bored, he glanced at the fan in Lu Yaohxiang’s hand.

Just one glance made him think that the people of the Tian Dan Peak must be lacking a cute junior sister, giving a high-quality spirit artifact to someone who couldn’t cultivate. They must be crazy.

Then, Lu Yaohxiang opened the fan, revealing a white surface covered with black dots, more numerous than the sesame seeds on a sesame seed cake.

Lu Yaohxiang looked at the fan and asked, “Where’s the drawing?”

“The black dots are the drawings, can you recognize them, Senior Sister? I’ll point them out to you…” Lu Xiaoding rolled up her sleeve, ready to point out the black dots.

Lu Yaohxiang and Bai Zhen both thought to themselves: Drawn like this, even ghosts couldn’t recognize them.