Eternal Swordmaster
Chapter 222 - 215 Trouble Part 1

Chapter 222: Chapter 215 Trouble Part 1

Before long, light began to emerge at the exit ahead.

With a "puff" sound, Lin Xin felt as though spat out violently by some creature, his entire body suddenly squeezed out. He quickly raised his qinggong, somersaulting in midair before steadily landing on the ground.

"How was it?" Pudu Sheng hurried over from his original position. "As soon as I felt there was movement here, I immediately came over."

"How long was I gone?" Lin Xin was stunned.

"About fifteen days or so," Pudu Sheng responded.

"Fifteen days?" Lin Xin himself felt that only half a day had passed, yet it turned out to be fifteen days once he emerged.

"Are you sure?" He asked again for confirmation.

"Sure, to be exact, it’s fifteen days and three hours," Pudu Sheng provided the precise time record.

"Is that so." Lin Xin showed no surprise and, after straightening his clothes, walked over to Pudu Sheng’s side.

"So, how is it?" The latter scrutinized him up and down, trying to detect any changes after his entry and exit. "I’ve heard that the Lion’s Plain is quite strange. Many who have gone there before return and refuse to speak a word of it."

"Nothing much," Lin Xin shook his head. "Let’s not speak of this anymore. Inside, besides a pile of ruins and the undead, there were no other objects."

"The undead?" Pudu Sheng furrowed his brow upon hearing this, but knowing from Lin Xin’s expression that it was not appropriate to ask further, he closed his mouth and did not pursue it.

The two turned their heads back to see that the Duan Kong Flower had withered into a patch of black, wilted wasteland.

"It truly is a pity, the last Duan Kong Flower has completely vanished. Henceforth, our Two-Faced Kingdom will no more possess such wonders."

"Such treasures should, ultimately, not exist in this world," Lin Xin said indifferently.

"Indeed. If there were too many, anyone could freely enter and exit other places, bringing great chaos to the world," Pudu Sheng nodded in agreement.

**************************

Ye Longshan

Deep within a cave shrouded in mist.

Patches of red light flickered and filled the space—embedded in the ground of the cave was a huge, white and gold square Medicine Pool, brimming with viscous green medicinal liquid. Within the liquid, worm-like green creatures moved about, their heads unseen, only the tips of their spines occasionally breaking the surface.

Whoosh!

A man suddenly stood up from the water.

With well-defined muscles and a slowly spinning white and gold round hole in his chest emitting white light, it was none other than Hua Yunu, who had escaped from the Black Wind Giant Tree.

His brow was furrowed with a fierce look, and one of his eyes was a hollow bloody hole.

"If I do not avenge this, what face will I have to inherit my family’s legacy?" His voice was as shrill and harsh as a night owl’s.

But when recalling the terrifying combat power that the mysterious person had unleashed.

"That day, it seemed that there were burn marks on his face, evidently he wore a mask. Since he was wearing a mask, he certainly didn’t want me to see his face. If he’s so reluctant for me to see his true identity, there’s a high likelihood that it’s someone I know," he speculated carefully.

"And among those I know, who would also go out of their way to help Dugu Lin, and even assist the Bug Master and that Dongyue?" He quickly began eliminating suspects in his mind.

"I’ll start the investigation with that assumption. If there’s no issue, then I’ll consider other possibilities. At worst, I still have Uncle Shi Fang’s methods!" he thought to himself.

He stood within the Medicine Pool, while green, worm-like creatures swam slowly behind him, circling continuously.

After a moment’s thought, he raised his hand and gathered Spiritual Light in the void, swiftly writing a white character.

The character hovered in the air for a moment before rapidly unfolding into a web-like network of white threads, which flashed in the air and then disappeared.

"Qian 11, state your requirement?" a muffled female voice came from the void.

Hua Yunu hesitated, then said,

"I need to hire three Daoist Masters for a joint mission. The preliminary deposit will be three Dragon Jade Pills and six pieces of Yuchen Gold, each the size of a palm."

"Identity of the requester verified. Eligibility confirmed. Your task will be posted within half an hour. Please provide the specific content of the task at Huixing Hall in due time. However, this is only sufficient for a deposit. If you wish to truly post the task, you must pay enough remuneration daily, and the service also requires a fixed fee," the female voice stated calmly.

"I understand, thank you," Hua Yunu nodded.

"You’re welcome."

The voice fell silent, and a subtle ripple faded away into nothingness.

Hua Yunu’s eyes flickered with pain as he touched the Storage Bag on his waist.

"Don’t let me find out who you are, or else..."

But he knew that rallying so many resources for this matter would definitely not escape the watchful eyes of the family elders. If he couldn’t handle it properly, his future prospects could indeed be affected.

He needed not only to deal with the situation himself, but also to handle it impressively, to present a perfect report to his family.

"Fortunately, my Dragon King foundation was not breached. If my Flower Light Escape Technique were any slower, the consequences could have been truly dangerous," he thought back to the situation and felt a chill.

"Dealing with this through the Flying Sect’s hiring platform is the best course of action. I absolutely must not alarm the family elders. It’s lucky that my cultivation level has reached this stage, otherwise, I might not have the chance to access this level of employ. And there’s also my other Magic Sword..."

As he mulled over the pros and cons, he seemed to become engrossed in his thoughts for a time.

*********************

In one of the core central cities of the Sword Sect, Nong Ying City.

Shadowplay City was also the Hua Family’s largest core development point, directly facing the Prince’s Mansion from afar, forming a horns-like pattern

guarding the sect’s Mountain Gate.

At this moment, within the Defense Minister’s mansion in Shadowplay City, inside a private study,

three elderly men in black and red robes settled down slowly, as servants and maids presented them with fine teas

and pastries.

One of the old men got seated and waited for the tea to arrive, then lifted the lid leisurely with a calm and composed demeanor, and took a sip.

"I heard Little Six just got back from the expedition team?"

"Wasn’t Little Six in seclusion, striving for the Daoist Master realm? Why did he join the expedition mission again?" another old manservant casually said.

"You’re really becoming senile, with the sect’s compulsory conscription, even we have just returned; they were allowed to stay and hold their positions, benefiting from our pulling some strings. But if something were to happen in our territory, a deployment would still be needed to resolve it," another elderly man said with a chuckle.

"So why mention Little Six?" The manservant was puzzled. "A mere expedition in the territory, for him, is as easy as blowing off dust. If he can’t handle such a small matter, he might as well stop calling himself Hua Yunu."

"Heh, that’s just what I wanted to mention. Little Six came back from a trip, the team remained intact, but he alone, a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, was severely injured. If it wasn’t for my Flower Light Escape Technique that I gave him, this time it might have been..." The first old man started to laugh, his body fat trembling with his mirth, like a big chunk of white pork sitting in the chair, very conspicuous.

"It’s good for young people to suffer a few minor setbacks to prevent big trouble and mishaps in the future," the manservant said dismissively. "Little Six has never let us down; the younger generation has their own path to follow, best not interfere too much."

"That is true."

"However, it’s been three days since the last warning was sent back, why is there still no word from the expedition team?" an elderly man spoke softly.

"Perhaps something has delayed them?"

"Perhaps, after all, gathering so many elite masters to deal with the Queen, even if trapped, the situation shouldn’t be too bad."

"That is true."

Unexpectedly, just as these words were spoken, the three men heard a sharp sound. From afar, three streaks of blue light shot into the parlor like lightning, turning into three faintly glowing blue talisman papers.

"What... what is this...?"

*******************************

Spirit Heart Manor

Lin Xin sat quietly by the lake, watching the little fish swim back and forth; from within the manor, the faint sound of someone playing the zither could be heard, the music drifting over, barely audible.

"Slaughter..." He watched a black fish surface, slowly rippling the water with tiny concentric waves.

"If slaughtering the creatures on the surface could provide an unlimited boost to oneself, then why hasn’t anyone who entered the netherworld discovered this? Why, even in madness, did they not use this method to rapidly strengthen themselves, instead heading toward self-destruction?"

He still felt some confusion. Merely based on a few words from the Asura, he couldn’t possibly carelessly act on impulse.

At the moment, he also had concerns about Hua Yunu. If that person wasn’t dead and guessed his identity, he would surely seek revenge. With his status and power, should he invite a few friends over...

"Perhaps I can go through the Radiance Society." Several ideas flitted through his mind, ultimately banking on the Radiance Society as his safest option.

"As long as I offer a generous reward, I should be able to find the Foundation Establishment materials I need from the Radiance Society, hire a few experts to handle the situation, solve the problem. It’s just a matter of money, after all."

He carefully sorted out his network of relationships, preparing for the worst-case scenario. If the Dongyue issue were to come to light, the ensuing problems would be no minor trouble.

"Villa Master."

As he was pondering how to handle the situation, a Hidden Guard in charge of intelligence appeared at a distance behind him.

"What is it?"

The Hidden Guard knelt on one knee.

"Young Master Zhen has just taken the Fortune Governing Disk from the treasure repository and gone to Rui Mountain Forest."

"What’s he doing there? Fortune Governing Disk?" Lin Xin frowned slightly, the manor’s resources were so abundant that even he wasn’t clear on the function of many items.

Ever since the incident with Zhen’er and Hua Yaozhu ended on a somber note, he seemed to have changed completely. Initially expected to settle down after getting two women and having children, he relapsed shortly after.

The Fortune Governing Disk was used to gauge fortune, not particularly useful besides having the ability to regulate room temperature and airflow.

Rui Mountain Forest was filled with semi-invisible mysterious creatures, right next to Yin Mountain Lake, where that stranger had once lived.

"Send someone to investigate," Lin Xin instructed.

"Understood."

"Also, there’s the grand opening ceremony of the new district which requires a representative. The Deputy Villa Master has already led a team there."

"Mm, I’m aware of that. Anything else?"

"Lastly, there’s a rumor among the Loose Cultivators that the expedition team might have encountered trouble..." The Hidden Guard hesitated slightly.

"Trouble?" Lin Xin frowned. "With Qing’er’s ability, even if she can’t win, she should at least be able to escape. It shouldn’t be a big problem."

He comforted himself, despite having seen the Bug Master’s capabilities, that was only one single Bug Master that had fallen into his trap; he didn’t have a comprehensive understanding of the Queen.

Just as he finished speaking, a blue streak of light suddenly shot from the distance, descending from the sky with a whizz and landed before Lin Xin.

It was a talisman paper glowing with blue light, inscribed with dense blood-red runes.

The blood-colored runes were half glowing with blue light, while the other half were shrouded in a black mist. The blue light was battling the black mist for territory on the talisman paper, with the black mist slowly and steadily eroding the blue light’s area. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to qidian.com to vote for recommendation tickets, monthly tickets, and your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please read at m.qidian.com.)