Chapter 115: Seven Profound

After Chen Mu left, Xu Hongyu sat by the soft couch in a daze. After a while, she suddenly turned to Xiao He and said, "Xiao He, you’ve been with me for eighteen years, right?"

Xiao He brought clear water to Xu Hongyu, smiling and said, "It’s been a long time, Miss remembers it so clearly."

"In the Yu Family, is there anyone you have taken a liking to?" Xu Hongyu looked at Xiao He, and asked softly.

"No, Miss." Xiao He gently helped Xu Hongyu with her grooming, and said, "In this life, I will only follow you, Miss."

Although she was only a maid in the Yu Family, in this world, once she stepped into Tendon Transformation, her status would be different. If Xu Hongyu agreed, she could also marry into the Yu Family, but she had never had such intentions. Even without Chen Mu, she would always follow Xu Hongyu.

"Hmm…" Xu Hongyu looked at her clear reflection in the water basin and fell into a daze.

Xiao He quietly said, "Miss, if you are… I think you should settle it soon. Sooner or later, he will be a figure of great influence in our Yu Prefecture, and even if the Family Head knows, he would definitely be happy."

"What are you talking about?" Xu Hongyu turned to look at Xiao He, shook her head, and said, "I’m not like that, I’m just thinking…"

Ever since last night, she had been thinking about her father Xu Yichuan, but she had been afraid to think deeply about it. Moreover, when she was thinking, Chen Mu’s figure would always appear. Maybe Chen Mu was very similar to her father, both coming from humble backgrounds, but eventually relying on their talent and effort, they had stepped up and surpassed everyone.

Xiao He smiled mischievously, "You are thinking about it, it means you have already been moved."

"Xiao He!" Xu Hongyu finally could not hold back anymore and reached out to pinch Xiao He’s cheek, "Always talking nonsense, tonight I will punish you to face the wall and not sleep."

"Ouch, ouch… Miss, tomorrow we will go to hunt demons, how can I protect you if I don’t rest well, please forgive me this time, I will never dare to do it again." Xiao He looked at Xu Hongyu pitifully.

Xu Hongyu sighed, and said, "Alright, don’t make a fuss, let’s rest early."

Xiao He watched Xu Hongyu get into bed and sighed lightly, almost imperceptibly. She had been serving Xu Hongyu for many years, and knew Xu Hongyu’s thoughts better than anyone. How could she not know what Xu Hongyu was thinking?

But Master had been missing for seventeen years after all. It might not necessarily be the work of the Heavenly Corpse Sect remnants. Thinking about those things now would only add to the trouble. Therefore, she always made light of it, although she also had some other thoughts, but mostly, she just wanted Xu Hongyu to recover quickly.

…

The next day, Chen Mu woke up early. Xu Hongyu and Xiao He also woke up very early. Xiao He went to prepare breakfast early. Martial Artists like Chen Mu and Xu Hongyu, although they could go without eating or drinking for a few days, doing so would deplete their qi and blood. On the contrary, their daily food intake was much greater than that of ordinary people. If it were just ordinary vegetarian meals, even eating a whole basin would not be enough to satiate their hunger. Even ordinary meats could not keep up with their consumption, so they needed to add some demon meat.

After breakfast, Chen Mu inquired about Liu Ping, but unsurprisingly, there were no results for the time being. Therefore, he, Xu Hongyu, and Xiao He left the city and headed northwest towards Anyu County.

Xiao He, the weakest of the group, was also at the Small Accomplishment of Tendon Transformation realm. Since the road was mostly flat plains, they covered a distance of over 150 li in less than an hour. This was mainly to ensure Xiao He’s stamina was not depleted too much.

When they arrived, there was only a very small village with about a hundred families. Some of the houses on the outskirts of the village were now broken and collapsed. Among the collapsed traces, a terrible claw mark was visible, clearly not made by a human.

"The thing you saw that night, are you sure it was a wolf-like demon?" Xu Hongyu asked the villagers in front of her.

The villagers looked at each other, and then all looked at the person on the far left, a man in his forties, Wang Gensheng, the village chief.

Wang Gensheng seemed to recall something terrible, and his eyes showed a hint of fear, "Yes…yes, I heard the noise, and I secretly took a look, and I saw a, a… a wolf almost as tall as my chest, with one claw it ripped open the house of Widow Zhang at the village entrance, and then it swallowed Widow Zhang in one bite…"

"Then, the monster went to the house of Li the blacksmith, and tore open his house…"

Xu Hongyu interrupted him, "Where were you at that time, why didn’t the wolf demon attack you?"

Wang Gensheng scratched his head, revealing an awkward expression, and said, "I, I was in the latrine…"

"Where?" Xu Hongyu continued to ask.

Wang Gensheng finally pointed silently to one of the collapsed houses, a half-collapsed latrine.

Chen Mu glanced in that direction, it seemed to be the latrine of Widow Zhang. However, Xu Hongyu did not dwell on this question, but walked up to the half-collapsed latrine, looked it up and down, and then continued to ask, "Did the wolf demon see you?"

"It seems…" Wang Gensheng scratched his sparse hair.

At this moment, Xu Hongyu nodded slightly, looked at Chen Mu, and Chen Mu also looked at her and nodded slightly in response.

"White Wolf Demon, rated as a third-tier in the Great Xuan Demon Record, it is a common demon that dislikes filth."

Xu Hongyu was a bit surprised to hear Chen Mu’s words, not expecting Chen Mu to be so knowledgeable about demons even though this was his first time out of the city. So, she nodded and said, "I think so too. Also, it only came to the village that day, but it hasn’t appeared in the last two days. It should be because that day was the night of the full moon when wolf-like demons are all agitated."

"Hmm." Chen Mu said, "Then, we should either actively search for its traces, or wait for another month."

Xu Hongyu shook her head, and said, "Let’s search. A month is too long, and I have ‘Rosemary’ that can agitate demons. As long as we can find its nest by following the traces, it will come out on its own."

"Alright." Chen Mu nodded.

Xu Hongyu had a lot of demon hunting experience. She had basic supplies such as Rosemary ready, while Chen Mu had only read some books about demons, and did not have such supplies. However, after understanding it this time, he would equip himself next time.

Seeing that Xu Hongyu was about to leave, Wang Gensheng couldn’t help but step forward and grab Chen Mu, swallowing his saliva, and said, "This young… no, this master, are you really here to hunt the demon? That wolf demon is very vicious, that young girl just now…"

"Village Chief Wang, please be at ease." Chen Mu said to Wang Gensheng in a calm tone.

In a remote village like this, where people didn’t even recognize the Demon Slaying Division, they were probably worried because Xu Hongyu and Xiao He were both young girls.

So, Chen Mu casually flicked his finger, a gust of wind shot out from his fingertip, instantly piercing through half of the earthen wall not far away, causing a large patch of dust to scatter around.

Wang Gensheng looked at this scene, his eyes widening slightly, he quickly stepped back with a respectful expression on his face.

Chen Mu followed after Xu Hongyu, and soon disappeared outside the village, searching for the wolf demon’s tracks.

…

While Chen Mu and Xu Hongyu were pursuing the wolf demon, in Yuzhou, the Seven Profound Sect was located in the center of Yuzhou, towards the north. It was less than a few hundred miles from the prefecture city.

The sect was located among a magnificent mountain range, without going deep into the mountains. They only occupied the peripheral parts. Outside was a township under their jurisdiction. It was called a township, but it was located near the Seven Profound Sect, and the prosperity was in no way less than that of a county.

The intelligence from Yu City, after several transfers, was safely sent to the Seven Profound Sect.

It was no small matter.

After a series of reports, it arrived at the Deacon Hall of the Seven Profound Sect.

"Heavenly Corpse Sect?" The deacons frowned upon hearing this.

After some discussion, they were unable to make a decision. So, one of the deacons passed the message further up, all the way to a courtyard behind the main hall on the main peak of the Seven Profound Sect. This was where the elders of the Seven Profound Sect resided.

"A troubled time…" A man, looking to be about forty years old, wearing loose blue robes, shook his head after listening to the deacon’s report. He looked towards the distant, misty mountains, and said, "The lands of Han Province, demons are stirring. The lands of Qing Province, war is raging. The lands of Bei Province are in ruins. This Yuzhou will also be in chaos sooner or later."

In the present world, the Great Xuan Imperial Court’s orders no longer left Zhong Province. The provinces under the control of kings and dukes, or divided up by sects, had been developing for decades, but until ten years ago, they had been at peace with each other.

However, when the world has been peaceful for too long, chaos will inevitably follow.

It began with the King of Zhenbei in Bei Province, who launched an attack, and began fighting against the Haoran Sect which occupied three counties in Bei Province. In the short span of ten years, the entirety of Bei Province had been reduced to ruins. As the fires of war spread, the neighboring provinces had also changed. Either sects intervened, or separatist forces were active in secret. This caused all the four provinces neighboring Yuzhou to fall into chaos starting three years ago.

Only Yuzhou, which had been ruled by the Seven Profound Sect for decades, remained relatively stable. Moreover, the Seven Profound Sect had closed its doors and did not participate in matters of other provinces. Thus, Yuzhou was relatively stable until today.

"Elder Qi, what do you think…"

"First, send someone to Zhong Province to report this to the Imperial Court. We must still follow the procedure." Qi Zhiyuan, wearing a blue uniform, spoke slowly.

One of the reasons why Yuzhou had maintained relative stability till now was that the Seven Profound Sect was relatively rule-abiding. Although they ruled an entire province, they did not violate the Imperial Court system, and they continued to follow the rules of the Imperial Court in managing the local areas.

"Yes." The deacon responded with a bow.

However, just as he turned around, intending to handle the matter, a long and drawn-out voice resonated throughout the mountains.

"Zuo Qianqiu, direct lineage of the Heavenly Sword Sect, has come to pay a visit!"

The voice was not very loud, but it was clearly transmitted throughout the mountains. The deep valleys all echoed with it, and it also contained a kind of sharpness that was hard to describe in words, like a sword hanging overhead in mid-air.

For a moment, countless outer and inner disciples in the entire Seven Profound Sect raised their heads, looking in surprise towards the direction of the mountain gate.

But before anyone could react, following that first sharp voice, a soft and alluring voice quietly spread through the valleys: "Why are you so impatient, Senior Brother Zuo? You didn’t even wait for me…hehe."

This voice was soft and enchanting. Just by hearing it, people’s minds began to waver. Some of the outer sect disciples of the Seven Profound Sect were lost in a daze, and felt a strange desire to see who the source of the voice was.

But immediately after that, a detached voice, like a bucket of cold water, immediately extinguished all the desire.

"Si Kouzhi of the Blood Shadow Tower, has come to pay a visit."

"Hey, you Joyous Union demon woman, if you want to pay a visit, then pay a visit. Why play tricks at other people’s mountain gate? If you anger them, and the whole sect comes out, you can deal with them alone, and see how many holes you have, and how many nails you can withstand. Oh, by the way, Jiang Yifei of the Xuanji Pavilion, has come to pay a visit. Let me make a statement beforehand, I am not with this demon woman, I just want to have a match with your direct lineage disciples."

The last voice was quite noisy, rambling non-stop, but the long words were all clear in the valley, and echoed clearly in the entire Seven Profound Sect.

On the main peak, the deacon’s figure suddenly stopped in place, a bit of astonishment on his face, as he turned to look at Qi Zhiyuan behind him.

Paying a visit…

How many years had it been since that last happened?

Moreover, the Heavenly Sword, Blood Shadow, Xuanji, and Joyous Union, these were all righteous and demonic forces. How could they all come together?

Qi Zhiyuan sighed lightly and said, "It has finally come."

If the world were at peace, the Seven Profound Sect could indeed be safe, ruling an entire province. However, now that all provinces were in chaos, only Yuzhou remained stable. Yuzhou had long become a thorn in the side of many powers from other provinces. They wanted to pull the Seven Profound Sect into the chaos, and there were many who had been acting in the shadows. What needed to come would come sooner or later.

When the direct lineage disciples came to pay a visit, if this were a few decades ago, when the world was still relatively stable, most likely they would have just sparred and asked questions. However, now that one direct lineage disciple from each of the four sects had arrived at the same time, it was not a simple matter of discussing martial arts.

The four families had only one goal.

That was to enter Yuzhou.

As early as two years ago, the Blood Shadow and Joyous Union had wanted to step into Yuzhou, but were turned away by the Seven Profound Sect. But this time, with the arrival of all four, things would probably not be so easy to resolve.

Qi Zhiyuan slowly stepped down the mountain. Every step he took seemed to disappear instantly, and his figure would reappear dozens of yards away. In a short time, he arrived at the outside of the Seven Profound Sect’s mountain gate.

The Seven Profound Sect’s mountain gate was located at the foot of the mountain peak. On the side, on a rock wall, the three golden characters ‘Seven Profound Sect’ were engraved, giving a sense of awe and power at first glance. With the towering mountains in the background, they created a feeling of solemnity and majesty.

However, at this moment, in front of the Seven Profound Sect’s mountain gate, several figures were standing in different directions. Some wore white robes and carried swords, their eyes indifferent. Some wore light veils, with graceful figures and charming smiles.

There was also one wearing a black cloak, with a mask, making it impossible to see their face. There was one carrying a strange bamboo basket. Each person had different auras, which were faintly visible.

Qi Zhiyuan’s figure quietly appeared inside the mountain gate. After taking another step, he came to the outside of the mountain gate.

He glanced over the four young figures in front of him, and then turned his gaze towards the rear, before retracting it and saying, "I am Qi Zhiyuan, the Seven Profound Sect’s Sect Leader is in seclusion, so I will temporarily take charge of the sect’s affairs. Since you have all come to pay a visit, please come up the mountain."

"Junior has met Elder Qi." The young man carrying the bamboo basket first gave a respectful bow, then smiled and said, "Senior, I am here to pay a visit under orders from my sect, and to spar with the Seven Profound Sect’s direct lineage. If I win a few rounds, the Seven Profound Sect will have to allow the Xuanji Pavilion to enter Yuzhou, I wonder what senior thinks?"

"If I win, the Heavenly Sword Sect will enter Yuzhou." The white-robed man carrying a long sword said indifferently.

The man wearing the cloak spoke in a low voice, "The Blood Shadow Tower will enter Yuzhou."

Finally, the woman wearing a veil and with a lithe figure, who seemed like a young girl, giggled, "The Joyous Union Sect also wants to enter."

Qi Zhiyuan said calmly, "If that’s the case, then please come on in, but even if you win against our sect’s direct lineage disciples, Yuzhou will not be completely occupied by you. How about we use… the jurisdiction of Yu Prefecture, as a promise? If you lose, you are not allowed to enter Yuzhou again for two years."

"Yu Prefecture, it’s a bit remote, but it should be fine?" Jiang Yifei stroked his chin and looked behind him.

Behind him was a wide open space, with nothing there.

However, at that moment, "Okay."

"Alright."

"Acceptable."

Several plain voices came from behind them, but when they looked around, no one could be seen.

This is a transition chapter, so it took a bit of time to write, this chapter has a longer word count.