Chapter 74

The Lord's residence was vast, almost covering half of the southern part of the city. It contained a training ground for the Cui family and their close relatives to practice martial arts.

The training ground was paved with blue stones, facing the sky. On the east side was a stone platform one zhang high, where the elders usually watched martial arts demonstrations and gave comments.

Today, the sun was blazing overhead, with not a cloud in the sky. The ten-zhang-long stone platform was filled with grand armchairs, and many famous martial arts masters and senior experts were already seated, with their disciples or juniors standing behind them.

This was to allow them to witness the grandeur of a master-level duel and to gain a deeper understanding of the essence of martial arts, thus avoiding unnecessary detours.

When Meng Qi arrived with Ning Daogu and others, the sun was already high in the sky, and the duel was only half an hour away. Cui Xu was dressed in a simple robe, with a wooden hairpin in his hair, sitting with his eyes closed, a long sword resting on his knees. He stood out from the surrounding noise, calm and composed.

Two Cui family members were guarding the steps. After receiving the invitation from Meng Qi, they glanced at it and announced loudly, "Master Zhen Ding has arrived!"

Immediately, all eyes on the platform turned to him. Many famous martial arts masters whispered in surprise:

"Is this Zhen Ding?"

"He's so young! How could he possibly defeat the Mu family father and son?"

"I heard that even the arrogant Shen Hou almost lost his life to him?"

"Unimaginable, unimaginable! Truly, heroes emerge from the young?"

"Alas, the younger generation is pushing the older one aside."

Hearing these words, Meng Qi felt secretly pleased, but his expression remained unchanged. He softly recited a Buddhist chant and slowly ascended the steps, finding his seat under the guidance of a maid, appearing calm and detached.

Ning Daogu, Yue Shishi, and the other four heroes of Jiangnan followed behind Meng Qi, their skin taut, their steps unsteady, their hearts pounding with excitement.

So many leaders of major sects, so many senior masters, whom they could never see in their daily lives, were now right before their eyes. How could they not be excited, nervous, and thrilled?

Even without the master-level duel, this experience alone made their journey worthwhile. It was a "qualification" in the martial world, at least a familiar face among the senior masters!

There was the leader of the Dragon Roaming Sect... There was the chief of the eighteen waterways in the south... One by one, these renowned figures appeared in Yue Shishi's line of sight. They tried to suppress their excitement, lowering their eyes and looking straight ahead as they followed Meng Qi.

After looking at Meng Qi for a while, the martial arts masters gradually turned their attention elsewhere, discussing the matter among themselves. People kept arriving, greeted by the maids, and some left to watch for the White-robed Sword God's arrival, making the scene somewhat casual and chaotic. After all, they were all people of high status, and Cui Xu was sitting with his eyes closed, leaving Cui Jinxiu and Fei Zhengqing unable to control the situation.

In this situation, Meng Qi suddenly stood up and smiled at the maid, saying, "This poor monk needs to relieve himself. Could you tell me where to go?"

The maid was quite surprised. She always thought that senior masters would not have such "needs" in such a setting. Ning Daogu, Nie Yao, and others also had similar expressions.

Surprised as she was, the maid still led Meng Qi to the courtyard, pointing to the toilet and asking, "Master, do you remember the way back?"

"Yes, you don't need to wait for me," Meng Qi replied calmly.

The maid hurried back to serve other guests, saying nothing more, and left in a hurry.

Meng Qi took a deep breath, unfolded his body, and dodged the servants in the courtyard, heading towards the direction of the dungeon that You Tongguang had mentioned.

Perhaps because it was broad daylight, everyone's vigilance was low. Meng Qi smoothly passed through the busiest courtyard and arrived at the dungeon in the southwest.

Here, a grove of trees had been planted to separate the dungeon from the inner courtyard, making it quite gloomy.

The outer wall of the dungeon was built of huge stones, and a heavy iron gate separated the inside from the outside. Two burly men with knives guarded the entrance.

Meng Qi picked up a stone, flicked it with his finger, and hit the opposite wall.

The sound made the guards turn their heads to look at the source of the noise.

At that moment, Meng Qi, like a great roc spreading its wings, swiftly pounced on them, striking their heads with his fists.

The sound of the blows echoed, and Meng Qi's not-so-big fists were powerful enough to knock the two men to the ground, unconscious.

After subduing them and dragging them into the woods, Meng Qi walked confidently to the iron gate, grabbed the door ring, and knocked rhythmically, three long and two short, repeating it three times.

After a moment, the iron gate creaked and slowly opened.

As soon as the door opened slightly, the person inside noticed something was wrong. Where were the guards? Who was this white-robed monk with a somewhat detached air?

They reacted quickly, trying to close the iron gate again.

Meng Qi slapped his palms on the iron gate and pushed with all his might.

"Open up!"

Meng Qi growled, his skin turning a dark gold, his arm muscles bulging.

The two people behind the door stumbled backward, unable to stop the gate from opening.

Too violent! Too brutal!

Just a moment ago, they thought he was a detached and enlightened monk, a handsome and graceful monk. Now, he looked like a barbarian!

The two people behind the door, seeing Meng Qi's fierce expression, felt deceived by his appearance.

Meng Qi leaped into the dungeon, sealed their acupoints before they could call for help, searched for the key, knocked them out, and threw them aside.

"Really damaging my image," Meng Qi dusted off his white monk's robe, gripped his precept knife, and quickened his pace, running down the stairs.

Meng Qi had a clear goal: the lowest level of the dungeon. Anyone he encountered was either knocked out with the back of his knife or sealed with acupoints, none of them being a match for him.

Perhaps they never expected anyone to break into the dungeon. The scattered guards and experts could not form an effective defense, and with Meng Qi's strange body techniques, he quickly broke through without causing any disturbance. Even the areas outside his path did not know what was happening.

After descending three levels, Meng Qi saw the narrow iron door described by You Tongguang and found the key on the guard, inserting it and opening the door.

When he touched the iron door, Meng Qi felt a chill, as if it led to an ice cellar rather than a dungeon.

Of course, this had no effect on Meng Qi, who had endured the cold of the frozen turtle. He pushed the door open gently.

Behind the iron door, ice and frost had formed, and a cold mist rose from the bottom, rolling up the narrow corridor.

Meng Qi's face remained calm as he rushed into the corridor, heading for the bottom.

The corridor was about ten zhang long, and in a few breaths, Meng Qi saw the scene at the bottom.

It was indeed an ice cellar, with blocks of ice placed inside, shimmering with a beautiful and dreamy glow under the torches on both sides of the corridor. Among the ice blocks was a green jade coffin, emitting a faint light.

Meng Qi frowned slightly, slowing his steps, as he saw a person standing at the exit of the narrow corridor. He had white hair, a ruddy complexion, and a kind smile, clearly You Tongguang!

Behind him lay a young man, eyes closed, face pale, with a faint white mist rising from his head.

"You've come," You Tongguang greeted with a smile.

Between him and Meng Qi was a transparent, barely noticeable ice wall, separating the inside from the outside.

Meng Qi was neither surprised nor angry, replying calmly, "I've come."

"From your expression, it seems you already know something," You Tongguang said, hands behind his back, still smiling.

Meng Qi stroked his precept knife and said slowly, "I know what I need to know."

"Knowing there might be a trap, why did you come?" You Tongguang extended his hands.

Meng Qi smiled for the first time, "I had no choice."

"Do you regret it now?" You Tongguang did not ask why Meng Qi had no choice.

Meng Qi sighed, "Some tests are about your courage and judgment."

"You have courage, but your judgment seems off," You Tongguang sneered.

Meng Qi shook his head, "I've been thinking, why were the other Phase Gods so sure that Shen Hou was an impostor, and why did they believe I had the ability to threaten the White-robed Sword God?"

"Have you figured it out?" You Tongguang's smile faded.

"Of course, Mr. Rat," Meng Qi stared into You Tongguang's eyes.

You Tongguang took a deep breath, "I've never understood why my fifth brother was so sure you could threaten Luo Qing, but since he said so, we had to believe him. Can you tell me why?"

"I told you I had a life-saving item, and Lord Cui, or Mr. Dragon, knew the difficulty and retreated, didn't he?" Meng Qi saw that he didn't know about the Plum Rain Needles, so he wouldn't foolishly tell him.

It was precisely because of the Phase Gods using him against Luo Qing that Meng Qi first connected the Twelve Phase Gods with Master Cui Xu. Among his two abilities that could threaten a master, the "Sever Purity" sword technique had not been used, and the Plum Rain Needles had only been shown once, seen only by the black shadow, whom Meng Qi, after analysis, believed to be Cui Xu with a high degree of certainty.

Thinking this way, the matter became simple and clear. From the beginning, they knew Shen Hou was an impostor because no one would foolishly attack their own. The second day's test was purely for show, first to make him not suspect that most of the testers were Phase Gods, and second to gauge his martial arts skills.

However, Cui Xu's judgment was a bit off. He had initially excluded sensory interference with the "Sever Purity" sword intent without using the Plum Rain Needles, so Luo Qing's combat strength was basically intact, only losing the initiative and being caught off guard. At that moment, they had to act because once Luo Qing's sword slowed, he could block and escape, leaving them no chance to catch him off guard.

Without waiting for You Tongguang's response, Meng Qi continued, "I didn't expect Mr. Dragon to be Lord Cui. No wonder he's a master."

"Alas, since Xiao Min's death, my fifth brother has changed. He talks about the boundary between humans and gods, about bringing the dead back to life, and then formed this 'Twelve Phase Gods' organization, gathering martial arts secrets," You Tongguang sighed. "What can we, his brothers, say? We support him no matter what, and we can also gain many benefits."

At this moment, Meng Qi saw the cold mist behind You Tongguang condense into several lines of text:

"Failed to infiltrate the Twelve Phase Gods."

"Discovered the secrets of the Twelve Phase Gods."

"Side mission completed, rewarded with 150 good deeds."

"Side mission two triggered, kill Mr. Rat, rewarded with 60 good deeds, kill Mr. Dragon, rewarded with 120 good deeds."

Meng Qi's smile became more sincere, "You set up such a big trap, it can't just be to deal with a small monk like me, right?"

You Tongguang nodded and looked behind Meng Qi, "Mr. Xian Yin, come out."