Chapter 679
A Net of Heaven and Earth
On the shore of Tianchi Lake, the people of Wumiao Mountain gathered together, not in a hurry to patrol the mountain. It seemed that as long as Wu Kezhi took action, the thief in the middle of the lake would definitely not be able to escape.
Beside the dilapidated thatched hut, Uncle Changsheng bent down to pick up the things that were still usable on the ground. As he picked them up, he realized that there were very few usable items, and in a moment of despair, he threw everything he was holding onto the ground.
He looked at the birds and beasts drinking water by the Heavenly Lake in the distance, then looked at his demolished thatched hut, and said with a worried expression, "It's the dead of winter, and New Year's Eve is just a few days away. How am I going to get through this? There's only one person in the whole world who dared to demolish my Martial Temple's gate. When Wu Kezhi drags his body back, I'll definitely hang it on the archway of the Grand Master of the World and display it to everyone!"
Luo Yunlin whispered, "There's no need for that. Nobody comes to our mountain gate usually, so nobody will even look at it if it's posted there. It's kind of disgusting..."
Uncle Changsheng thought for a moment and said, "That's true, then forget it."
At this moment, Aunt Qiubai ignored them and stared at the beasts drinking water with their heads down. She instructed the others, "A martial arts sound awakens the intelligence of all things. There must be five beasts here that have been enlightened. Find them and take them as the spirit beasts of the mountain gate."
Uncle Changsheng asked in confusion, "Why would we need to capture these mountain spirit beasts? There's no suitable path for them to cultivate, and they're wild, unruly, and insolent. I've only ever heard of a large blue ox in Ning Dynasty that was tamed by the Huangshan Daoist Court, and it was a gluttonous and unruly creature... Is there some other story?"
Aunt Qiu glanced at him and said, "You've got face."
Uncle Changsheng was speechless for a moment.
The arrogant Qiu Baishen said, "If even a defeated general like Huangshan Daoting's disciple can have something, then my Martial Temple sect must have it too."
As they spoke, Luo Yunlin asked in a low voice, "Was that tiger secretly observing us?"
Uncle Changsheng squinted and saw that the tiger had finished drinking the water and climbed back up the ridge, standing quietly on the highest rock by the Heavenly Lake.
It didn't rush to leave. Instead, it looked down at the birds and beasts, the people of Wumiao Mountain, and the thick fog churning over Tianchi Lake. When it caught Changsheng looking at it, a hint of wariness appeared in its eyes.
Aunt Qiubai's eyes lit up: "That's right, it has become intelligent!"
As soon as she finished speaking, the tiger glanced at her from afar, turned around, leaped down the ridge, and disappeared.
Aunt Qiubai wanted to give chase, but Uncle Changsheng stopped her. He stretched and said, "Let them run away. Why should we compare ourselves with Huangshan Daoting in these ways? If we're going to compare, we should compare our official ranks and killing methods, and our demeanor and appearance. With me here, Huangshan Daoting will never be able to beat my Martial Temple."
Aunt Qiu Bai glanced at him sideways: "Let's talk about it when you've developed your intelligence."
At this moment, the sound of water could be heard from the edge of Tianchi Lake.
Everyone turned to look, and saw Wu Kezhi walk out of the water onto the shore. The wild animals that were drinking water by the Heavenly Pool made way for him and then scattered like birds and beasts.
Uncle Changsheng asked from afar, "Was he killed? Where is the body?"
Wu Kezhi shook his head: "Didn't find it."
Uncle Changsheng raised his voice: "How could we not find such a huge golden light at the bottom of the lake?"
Wu Kezhi explained, "The other party left before I arrived, just a hair's breadth away, but was delayed by the Blade Master's intent, which knocked me back several feet, making me unable to discern the direction, and I could only leave the bottom of the lake."
Suddenly, Aunt Qiubai asked, "Did you see Biaozi at the bottom of the lake?"
Wu Kezhi's eyes flickered: "That's right, he's at the bottom of the lake too."
The sound of water came from Tianchi again. Wu Hongbiao walked step by step to the shore and asked Aunt Bai with concern, "Are you alright? Why are you only getting ashore now?"
Wu Hongbiao quickly explained, "I had some unexpected encounters at the bottom of the lake, which caused the delay."
Wu Kezhi looked at him thoughtfully: "You've been at the bottom of the lake the whole time?"
Wu Hongbiao hummed in agreement: "It's always been here."
Wu Kezhi turned around and stared straight at him: "Didn't you see the strange phenomenon at the bottom of the lake?"
“I saw it,” Wu Hongbiao explained sincerely. “I saw a golden light shining brightly at the bottom of the lake. I wanted to get closer to take a look, but I was driven away by the sword intent of the master of war.”
Wu Kezhi lowered his head and pondered. These things were similar to his own experiences, and there were no flaws.
Aunt Qiu Bai, standing to the side, asked Wu Kezhi with a puzzled look, "Little Wu, why are you interrogating your own people?"
Wu Kezhi ignored him and looked up again to ask, "Why didn't I see you at the bottom of the lake?"
Wu Hongbiao recalled: "I was driven to the edge of Tianchi by Bingzhu Daoyi, but when I heard the martial arts sounds in the sky, I risked going closer to see what was going on."
Wu Ke stepped forward, standing a step away from Wu Hongbiao, and asked in a deep voice, "And then?"
Wu Hongbiao touched his brow: "Then, somehow, the essence of the sword entered my brow."
Wu Kezhi was somewhat surprised: "You've taken over the Sword Master's intent?" The people from Wumiao Mountain all surrounded him at once, each touching the blood-red vertical pupil between his eyebrows. Luo Yunlin exclaimed in surprise: "It's true! Suddenly this thing appeared."
Aunt Qiubai squeezed forward and touched the bloodstain: "Congratulations! This sword intent has been at the bottom of the lake for many years without recognizing a master. I thought you were wasting your time by soaking at the bottom of the lake every day, but I didn't expect that sincerity can move mountains and you really subdued it."
Uncle Changsheng said sourly from the periphery of the crowd: "It's just the sword intent contained when the Lord of War casually carved the words back then. Over time, it has gained a kind of spirituality. It's nothing special. The Lord of War may not even know that there is such a thing at the bottom of the lake... It's its loss that it doesn't recognize me."
Aunt Qiubai rushed out of the crowd and grabbed Uncle Changsheng's ear: "Back then, Jiang Xi copied the Bingzhu's handwriting at the bottom of the lake and only comprehended three sword techniques before reaching the Seeking Dao Realm. Now that the Bingzhu's sword intent has recognized Biaozi as its master, it's a great joy. Why are you being so sour here?"
Uncle Changsheng leaned to one side: "I'm stating the facts!"
Luo Yunlin suddenly said to Wu Kezhi, "There are so many martial arts sounds today, could it be that Biaozi attracted them? This explanation seems much more reasonable."
Wu Hongbiao was pondering and about to help Chen Ji take the blame when he heard Wu Kezhi deny it, saying, "We only went into the water after the five martial arts sounds, and we encountered the Blade Master's intent at the bottom of the lake, which means that the Blade Master's intent recognizing its master happened afterward. Biaozi, did you see anything else at the bottom of the lake? Think it over before you speak. If you lie, the Martial Temple will not allow you to stay."
Wu Hongbiao was silent for a moment: "No, it's too dark at the bottom of the lake. I didn't see anything except the intent of the sword master."
Aunt Qiu asked, "What do we do now?"
Wu Kezhi sighed, "Even the headmaster has never achieved five martial arts sounds from nurturing a sword. If this person escapes, I'm afraid the headmaster will also be in danger in the future."
Aunt Qiubai said, "Give us your orders, we'll do as you say. Let's put our cultivation aside for now."
Wu Kezhi closed his eyes and pondered for a moment: "They can't escape Changbai Mountain for the time being. Luo Yunlin, go to Erdaobaihe Town at the foot of the mountain to find Hu's brother Ma, return the Wenwang Drum to them, and tell them to 'go out' to find people. Remember, I want Hu San Taiye to come personally to determine the location and find the people. Bring all his disciples and grand-disciples into the mountains, otherwise I will demolish all the halls of their five families, and there will be no place for them to hide in Dongjing Road."
“Okay,” Luo Yunlin accepted the order and turned to run down the mountain.
Wu Kezhi opened his eyes: "This person broke into the gates of my Martial Temple. He must have known the consequences. If the Martial Temple fails to capture them, the Jing Dynasty will mobilize the entire nation to capture them... They may escape to Goryeo."
Wu Hongbiao's heart tightened, and he pretended to be very helpful, saying, "I'm going to Korea."
Wu Kezhi shook his head: "You just finished commanding the main sword and are staying to guard the mountain gate."
Wu Hongbiao had no choice but to agree.
Wu Kezhi looked at Uncle Changsheng and Aunt Qiubai: "You two go down the mountain and go to Goryeo to find Prince Suyang. Tell him that if he finds this person, my Martial Temple will tacitly allow him to raise an army, and Xu Wuxin Sword Dao will go down the mountain to help him."
"Well, this is a small matter, one person can go alone..." Before Uncle Changsheng could finish speaking, Aunt Qiubai grabbed his ear and dragged him down the mountain.
Wu Kezhi watched the two depart, then instructed a hermit from Wumiao Mountain: "Go to the capital and find Lu Jin. Tell him to mobilize 5,000 Imperial Guards to enter Changbai Mountain and block all major transportation routes by carrier pigeon. Only entry is allowed in Changbai Mountain, no exit. Tell him that if Lu Jin's heart is with the Ning Dynasty, his grand ambitions are just a pipe dream."
After the man left to carry out his orders, Wu Kezhi once again instructed a man from the Wu Temple: "Go and find Yuan Heng Li Zhen, and have him bring the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry and the Mo Dao Battalion. If he dares to delay, the Wu Temple will not tolerate him in the future."
Wu Hongbiao listened from the side; in just a few words, Wu Kezhi had already laid a trap for Changbai Mountain.
He pondered for a moment and asked, "Uncle Wu, are you also stationed at the mountain gate? Where are the rest of the people?"
Wu Kezhi said calmly, "The rest of you, come with me to Jingcheng Port. It's the closest place to the sea from Changbai Mountain."
……
……
The sky gradually brightened.
Lu carried Chen Ji on his back as he walked through the rime ice of Changbai Mountain. The wind he stirred up caused the rime ice and snow to fall in a flurry.
She would occasionally turn her head to check Chen Ji's life force, only feeling relieved when she confirmed that he was still breathing. However, she didn't know why Chen Ji was so cold and hadn't woken up yet.
As she descended the mountain, Madam Lu suddenly saw someone hiding half of their body behind a pine tree. Upon closer inspection, she recognized the old man with the dark cloud in his arms.
Old Ears, with one hand around the dark cloud and the other waving, said, "This way, the path down the mountain is this way!"
Lu's expression darkened, and he increased his speed.
She approached Old Ears, her heart brimming with anger. No longer caring about her suspicions about his identity, she raised her foot and kicked him. The kick landed squarely on Old Ears' chest, causing him to cry out and tumble backward twice before regaining his balance.
Madam Lu was taken aback; she hadn't expected Old Ears to have missed that kick. Strange…
She scrutinized the old man's ears carefully and asked in a deep voice, "Why did you trick Chen Ji into breaking into the Martial Temple? What are your intentions? Who exactly are you?"
Old Ears scrambled to his feet in the snow, brushed the snow off his clothes, and chuckled awkwardly, "Old Ears is Old Ears, who do you think Old Ears is? You've really misunderstood this old man. It was Chen Ji who wanted to steal the sword, so I brought him along... Let's hurry, let's get out to sea first. That brat Wu Kezhi must be angry already; if we don't leave now, we really won't be able to leave." (End of Chapter)