Wen Tunhai had been racking his brain for this for a few days. He chuckled, “The old man must have been hiding on Nine Peaks Mountain thirty years ago, or else he couldn’t have been able to secretly alter the setup when the village was being rebuilt. However, it’s hard to say for now, he might’ve left ages ago!”
Wen Leyang was unwilling to give up. He continued to ask old demon rabbit Bu Le, “The broken gong, big flat cake, and the dog. What exactly are they?” The four elders and First Uncle Wen Tunhai had asked the old demon rabbit this long ago.
For the Wen Bucao, the living god was not poisonous, but a living god, who knew about the broken gong, big flat cake, and the dog, was a dangerous person.
Bu Le did not find it annoying. He answered crisply, “I don’t know! Every cultivator of the right path wants to find someone who can answer that.”
Wen Leyang had just picked up a carrot and wanted to put it into his mouth, but he was bug-eyed after hearing old Bu Le’s reply. Old monk Bu Le chuckled while explaining, “Whether the broken gong, big flat cake, and the dog are three treasures, persons or signs, nobody among the cultivators of the right path knows. However, the World Sect’s people had been searching for them like madmen for all these years, we could not be careless in this matter.”
Wen Leyang snorted, “Do the World Sect people know?”
Old demon rabbit still had that patient smile, “The small fry of the World Sect are the same as us, they know how but they don’t know why. These years we have captured quite a number of them, but we could not get anything out of them. We could not locate the core people of the four families as well. Hehe, it is such a shame.”
When Wen Leyang first heard that ‘broken gong, big flat cake, and the dog’ were in Miao Stockade Village, he had captured the Jingpo demon lady, who was posing as Third Mother. He unintentionally got to know that the four greatest force in the World Sect had joined hands and gave out an order to all cultivators of the wicked faction to find these three things. Now, hearing old demon rabbit mentioning the four forces, he knitted his brows in puzzlement.
However, old demon rabbit Bu Le diverted the subject and threw a tantrum, “If men of two feet are involved, no matter the issue, they must determine truth and false, the affirmative and the negative, the right and the wrong. It is the same for the cultivation world. In the beginning, those who were practicing qi do not have the right to say whose methods were right or wrong. Anyone who becomes a saint proves that his methods are superior. However, the cultivators have to draw a line. The people on this side of the line are their own people, the people on the other side are bastards who deserved to die. Hence, they start to fight.”
These words of his represented his views as a demon. He did not regard himself as Great Mercy Temple’s ‘man behind the scenes’.
Over the course of thousands of years, the cultivation world had gradually divided itself into two major factions, which were the right path and the wicked faction. They fought each other endlessly. The layers of accumulated hatred finally erupted about a thousand years ago. After a series of fierce battles, the right path won in the end. The Five Blessing had also stood out.
Old demon rabbit suddenly laughed villainously halfway through his speech, which startled Wen Leyang. Old demon rabbit lowered his voice with a face that rejoiced at another’s misfortune, “Now that I think about it, the wicked faction lost because they were unlucky.”
Wen Leyang was stunned before he understood the old demon rabbit’s meaning. Then, he also laughed. The current Five Blessings had all been on the right path during those years. Other than One Word Palace who did not seem to have any resources, Great Mercy Temple had old demons who cultivated for a thousand years, Jilong Sect had the treasured weapon of a peerless great demon, Eyang Sect had been managed by the wicked soul with great pains for a thousand years, Kunlun Sect was the backer of Black and White Island. If this lineup were to be placed in the wicked faction, then the results of the great battle would be completely overturned.
“Although the wicked faction lost badly and escaped, they had thousands of years of inheritance. They couldn’t have been annihilated that easily. When they hid in the world, they still had some formidable elites. The rounds of killing were a mess back then, it was impossible to tell how many elites of the wicked faction had died and how many still remained. The people of the wicked faction weren’t stupid, they had discarded the differences between families when they escaped into the world… Of course, they could not consider them as families, even their abodes were destroyed.” Old demon rabbit’s voice had returned to normal, “Although the right path won, they were also badly wounded. Especially those originally big sects had all crumbled within a night. Among the newly risen Five Blessings, hehe, you know about this too…”
The wicked faction was utterly defeated, but the right path was also flustered. Other than the Five Blessings, the disciples of the other sects were like dragons without their heads. Within the Five Blessings, old demon rabbit had directed Great Mercy Temple to join the fray out of fun. They pulled back after they had won, not having the intention to go into the world and hunt. The thoughts of Black and White Island had always been on looking for wicked soul and they did not monitor the World Sect too seriously. Jilong Sect had just founded themselves back then and had no foundation whatsoever after they emerged victorious they were busy putting down roots and amassing their feathers. Eyang Sect and One Word Palace were no fools either, seeing that the others had stopped fighting, they followed suit.
After the wicked faction escaped into the world, they did not have the restrictions of families. The ones with lesser prowess naturally attached themselves to those with higher cultivation bases. Those with high cultivation bases would obey those with greater abilities. Gradually, they formed four forces. They called themselves the Four Heavenly Sects of Wind, Cloud, Lightning, and Thunder.
Those who were amused chuckled, “Wind, cloud, lightning and thunder? If there have been another one, will it be rain?”
Old demon rabbit smiled, “These four forces looked to be laxly organized. There are no hierarchies among them. It seemed that everyone was a small fry, but anyone could call the shots. There were also no clear boundaries among these four forces. A lot of small fries could not tell that they were under which Heavenly Gates’ jurisdiction. When something was up, they would mysteriously receive an order with a seal. If they did not execute it, the consequences vary. Sometimes nothing happens, but sometimes their entire family would die tragically.”
Wen Leyang’s mind was in a mess. He could not understand how the elites of the World Sect manage their subordinates.
Old demon rabbit was also puzzled, “The World Sect had always been like that. Within this millennium, we, the right path of the cultivation world had also tried to clean up the World Sect evildoers a few times, but the results were the same. It’s not hard to capture a few wicked faction cultivators, what’s difficult is getting to their backer. They themselves do not know where their higher-ups are, maybe they don’t even have a higher-up!”
Old demon rabbit paused before concluding with a smile, “This time was the same. The four forces had given out an order at the same time, to look for big flat cake, broken gong and whatnot. The demon people of the World Sect all moved, but the one who knows the truth had not shown himself.”
The matters of the World Sect were only somehow related to the Wen Bucao because of the ‘big flat cake, broken gong, and the dog’, but they could only be remotely related no matter how you see it. Wen Leyang had treated it as listening to a story while learning some basic knowledge about the cultivation world, it was sufficient for him to know the big picture. A living god who knows about ‘big flat cake, broken gong, and the dog’ was hiding on Nine Peaks Mountain. If word of this went out, Wen Bucao would be faced with endless troubles. The elites of the World Sect would all rush here. But now this information was firmly grasped by them and would not leak. For the time being, there should not be an issue.
At this time, the skies have darkened considerably. Countless makeshift tents were erected inside Wen family village. The sweet aroma of lamb stew and the sizzling sounds of fried eggs spread everywhere. Everybody started eating amidst the cheers of the seven Rainbow fat men. They were having a feast today.
Fat monk Shui Jing ran towards the dining table excitedly. Wen Leyang suddenly remembered that he had another apprentice. He quickly asked the monk, “What about Ji Fei? He went to Beijing’s Painting Town. There is still no word of him after half a month?”
Fat monk Shui Jing was not in the least bit worried, “The ox nose is fine. He sent me a message two days ago to say that he is safe. He said that he will be back soon. He had made the journey in vain. There were no crucial persons in Painting Town, only some disciples. Leyang Wen was also nowhere to be found. He had left a message, asking Leyang Wen to contact us when he returns… eh?”
Shui Jing was halfway through his sentence when he suddenly reached out a hand to catch a Buddhist prayer bead, which flew from afar and plunged into his palm.
Fat monk Shui Jing held the prayer bead in his hand. He squinted his eyes as if feeling for something. His expressions grew more and more puzzled. He went back to Wen Leyang after a while, “Wen… you know…” He had been struggling as to how he should address Wen Leyang. He could not bring himself to utter the word ‘master’ no matter what.
Xiaoyi and Mumu had waited for a long time for them to finish talking about business. They finally sandwiched Wen Leyang and kept him company. As they were about to start eating with joy when they saw fat monk Shui Jing walking towards them. They lifted their pretty chins together, their voices clear and their smiling faces as beautiful as flowers. They said in unison, “Call him master!”
The two young girls, one was clear as water but the purest of flirts can be found among her clear eyes and white teeth. The other was pretty as fireworks, with a quietness hidden among her eyes and brows. When they smiled in unison, the mutton on their plates seemed to glow…
Wen Leyang laughed, “Ignore them, just call me by my name. What’s up?”
Fat monk Shui Jing nodded, seemingly unsure where to start. He opened his mouth after pondering for a while, “You know that I’m training my Musical Divine Lotus Sect Suit of Armor Ancient Bagua Buddhist Hymn the Supreme Spirit’s Crossing Over Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi supernatural power…”
Wen Leyang was startled. He quickly nodded. He suddenly remembered that the two votarists’ methods had names more incredible than the other. Old monk Ji Fei’s method was something along the lines of Thousand Miles of River, the point is that nobody else could have memorized those names other than those two.
Fat monk Shui Jing continued, “My Musical Divine Lotus Sect Suit…”
Old demon rabbit Bu Le and the Ten Modes Monastery First Seat Hope Aware sat on a separate table with vegetarian dishes. With their cultivation, they did not have to consume food every time. However, the Wen family had prepared a table of vegetarian meal for them at every mealtime out of respect. Old demon rabbit was chewing on a raw lettuce leaf that was bigger than his face. He delphically interrupted Shui Jing with a smile, “You don’t have to spell out the name of your method.”
Shui Jing grunted in reply. He did not utter his method’s name again, “The magic power I’m cultivating might not be as powerful as divine monk Bu Le, but it has another perk.”
Ten Modes Monastery First Seat’s expression was quite helpless. He picked up a lettuce leaf and chewed loudly.
Wen Leyang’s intentions were honest when he smiled and chimed in, “What perk?”
“The Musical Divine Magical Power can trigger a magic to search for gods. As long as I’m willing to search, even if a cultivator with a great cultivation base were to hide his own presence, I would still be able to detect him.”
Old demon rabbit Bu Le exclaimed in slight surprise. He praised genuinely, “This is a handy ability. Do teach me if you have the time. I’ll trade some other magic power with you, I guarantee…”
Unexpectedly, fat monk Shui Jing lifted his head and cut him short, “This is a secret technique of my sect, it’s not for outsiders.”
Old demon rabbit Bu Le was amused. He pointed as Wen Leyang while talking to fat monk Shui Jing, “Your master is sitting tight, waiting for his mutton!”
Wen Leyang quickly returned to the topic, “Then? Have you found something?”
As expected, fat monk Shui Jing nodded forcefully, “Half a month ago, you triggered the Wen family’s Prohibition Spell at the base of the mountain, but we thought we were under attack. I activated my mountain-searching secret technique, trying to find our opponent. There was an echo not long ago…”
A spitting sound could be heard. Big monk Hope Aware spat out a mouthful of lettuce leaves. He glared at Shui Jing, unsure whether to laugh or cry, “You searched the mountain half a month ago and you only got the echo now?” As he was saying this, he looked at old demon rabbit Bu Le and smiled in a low voice, “You’ve almost incurred a loss just now.”
Fat monk Shui Jing also glared as he replied confidently, “This is natural. My Music Divine… magic power can find out gods and ghosts, just that it takes a longer time!”
Old demon rabbit Bu Le and Wen Leyang looked at each other. Their expressions turned grim at the same time, “You discovered that there’s a cultivator on the mountain?” At the same time, old demon rabbit waved his hand. A golden Buddha light flashed as he cast the soundproof Magic Circle. The others knew that they had to discuss some secrets and did not bother about them. They continued to eat and drink happily.
Cultivation world is an upgraded Jianghu. Cultivators are upgraded Jianghu elites. People with low cultivation bases would be unable to hide under the telegnosis abilities of elites, but elites could hide their presence from an average cultivator’s telegnosis ability.
However, there are some special methods or magic weapons that could change this. For example, during that time on Mount Emei, little stutterer had used a Buddhist treasured weapon to hide Wen Leyang, Ji Fei Shui Jing and two badly wounded demon rabbits under the telegnosis abilities of the World Sect’s elites and One Word Palace’s Third Elder Wei, until the little stutterer’s cellphone rang…
Fat monk Shui Jing’s method had such a special ability. No matter how powerful the opponent’s cultivation base is, or what treasured weapon the opponent uses to hide his presence, the opponent will be discovered after he activated his magic power. The only thing was it would take some time for it to work, and he could not tell anything about the opponent’s cultivation base.
Old demon rabbit and Wen Leyang summoned the elders of the Wen family, First Uncle Wen Tunhai and other important persons. All of them huddled together.
When Shan Duan obtained the information that there was ‘an important personage among the Wen Bucao’ from Jilong Sect, he had returned to Wen family village, activated his Buddhist magical power and did a thorough search of Nine Peaks Mountain, but did not find anything. Old demon rabbit half-squinted his eyes as he said carefully, “Either the opponent’s prowess far surpasses Shan Duan, or he has some treasured weapon that conceals his presence.”
Fat monk Shui Jing smiled calmly and with satisfaction, “In the face of my magic power, they’re all useless! This cultivator is hiding in the Red Leaves Forest! However…” Shui Jing blushed slightly and smiled lamely, “My method is still not complete. I cannot detect who that person is, I only know his rough location.”
“Ah!” Wen Leyang and First Uncle Wen Tunhai let out a low, surprised cry at the same time, jumping off their chairs together.
The four Wen Elders’ expressions turned extremely grim.
Not only did the Place of Birth, Life, Sickness and Death held the bodies of the previous elders, it also held Wen family’s Art of Poison cultivation method that had been passed down for two thousand years. It was the foundation of the Wen Bucao’s establishment and the reliance on their advancement.
The Prohibition Spell in the Red Leaves Forest was also unusually powerful. A cultivator with a high cultivation base might be able to break the Prohibition Spell, but it was impossible to stop the Prohibition Spell from activating and sneak in secretly.
The moment when the Prohibition Spell in the Red Leaves Forest is activated, Fourth Elder Wen would have noticed.
Grand Elder Wen’s face darkened. He frowned and pondered for a while before looking at Fourth Elder Wen, “Could it be that someone from the Place had unintentionally learned about cultivation?”
Fourth Elder Wen’s expression, which usually looked like it was chilled, had completely turned into ice. One look at it will make one’s eyeballs feel too cold to bear. He spoke slowly after a while, “If that were the case, he couldn’t have tricked divine monk Shan Duan!”
The words of Fourth Elder Wen rang true. Not only was this person a cultivator, he could also conceal his own life vitality, making little demon rabbit unable to detect him. If it was not for fat monk Shui Jing’s method, he would have kept everyone out of the loop.
Fat monk Shui Jing could not help but interrupt, “This cultivator must be that living god which knows how to calculate and do tellings!”
Nobody entertained him, only Grand Elder Wen nodded. He continued to ask Fourth Elder Wen, “This living god, could he be one of our own from the Place?”
Shui Jing’s question was a needless one. If there was a cultivator who could secretly hide on Nine Peaks Mountain and evade divine monk Shan Duan’s telegnosis ability, then it was most probably Wei Mo’s uncle. However, if the Prohibition Spell of Red Leaves Forest was not triggered, it can only be a person who bears the surname Wen.
Fourth Elder Wen suddenly flew into a fit of range and replied pointedly, “If you’re asking me, who am I supposed to ask?” When he finished, he stood up and yelled at Bushuo and Buzuo who were biting on mutton nearby, “Follow me back to the Place!”
Bushuo and Buzuo ignored him, they continued to eat meat and drink wine with smiles on their faces… Fourth Elder Wen was still inside the soundproof Magic Circle.
Grand Elder Wen was angered by Fourth Elder Wen to the point of taking deep breaths. However, he smiled after muttering to himself briefly, “At least we’ll know that he’s hiding in the Place! It’s better than knowing nothing at all! Other than the Death Trademark, there aren’t even a hundred men in the Place. If worst comes to worst we’ll just have master Shui Jing cast his magic powers and check them one by one.”
Shui Jing immediately nodded, “I can check on a person every fifteen days…”
Fourth Elder Wen’s temper went away as quickly as it came. He opened his mouth again, “I want to move every person out of the Place. Nobody can go back until we find the man.”
Wen Leyang saw that Fourth Elder Wen’s expression was not too good and he joked as a junior would, “That’s easy, just have them come and build houses then…”
He had not finished when the faces of the four elders and First Uncle Wen Tunhai had the expressions of sudden realization. Fourth Elder Wen almost said through gritted teeth, “Wei Mo’s uncle was really a person from the Place!”
Wen Tunhai explained to Wen Leyang in a low voice, “Thirty years ago, there was an earthquake on Nine Peaks Mountain. The Place of Birth, Life, Sickness and Death was also affected. There were quite a number of poisonous bugs that ran about after being shocked. Fourth Elder Wen led the Death Trademark and Sickness Trademark to exterminate the escaped poisonous bugs. To prevent the innocent from being harmed, he dispatched the men of the Birth Trademark and Life Trademark to the village. They said they were here to help build houses, but actually they were…” Wen Tunhai had gotten off the topic unknowingly.
Wen Leyang understood now. The living god was hiding among the Birth and Life Trademarks. Thirty years ago he had foreseen that Wei Mo will come to Wen family village. Hence, he had seized the opportunity when Wen family village was being rebuilt after the earthquake and secretly altered the setup of the village, making Wei Mo unable to foretell anything.
Fourth Elder Wen cut short Wen Tunhai’s nonsense, “There are a total of fifty-seven men in the Birth and Life Trademarks. Those above the age of thirty…” He only paused for a few second before saying confidently, “There are only fourteen of them left!”
Everyone’s expressions relaxed. In the beginning, they almost had to search among the few hundreds of Wen family disciples, then it was narrowed down to the Place of Birth, Life, Sickness and Death, then finally to the fourteen men. Even if half a year was required to check one person, they did not have to worry, let alone half a month.
Fourth Elder Wen looked at Grand Elder Wen, “We can’t just single these fourteen men out, we’d only beat the grass and frighten away the snake. We have to think of a reason to dispatch all the men from the Place, then we’ll pin those fourteen men down. If we strike, we cannot be inside the Place.” Although his tone was icy cold, he could not conceal the… playfulness in his eyes.
Wen Leyang suddenly felt his scalp go numb. If he did not see it with his own eyes, he would not believe it even if it were to cost him his life, the cunning playful gleam appeared in Fourth Elder Wen’s eyes.
The four elders were born of the same parents and had been living together for many years, they had long known each other’s thoughts. The other three elders saw Fourth Elder Wen’s gaze and all laughed drily. The three big monks Bu Le, Hope Aware and Shui Jing shuddered at the same time.
The always silent Third Elder Wen slowly opened his mouth, “That man had been able to hide under our nose in the Red Leaves Forest for thirty plus years. It’ll not be easy to go against such a schemer.”
Wen Leyang was surprised for a moment. His thoughts were attracted to Third Elder Wens words. He frowned and muttered as he interrupted, “Third Grandpa is right. The slightest mistake will make Wei Mo’s uncle suspicious. If he were to escape or retaliate within the Red Leaves Forest, it cannot do…”
What was even more surprising was that Second Elder Wen also nodded. A smile which was rarer than an iron tree blossoming was contained in his eyes, “So this excuse cannot be too abrupt. It must be logical to the ears but serious enough to warrant everyone leaving the Place.”
Wen Leyang’s eyes suddenly lit up, then he quickly lowered his head. He stole a glance at Grand Elder Wen. The plan he thought about was to have Grand Elder Wen play dead. The great elder of Wen Bucao passed away. The people of the Place of Birth, Life, Sickness and Death were all called to pay their final respects, this excuse should work.
Among the four elders, only Grand Elder Wen’s expression was stern. He pondered for a moment before nodding, “Mmm. Let’s do this!” Then, he pointed at Wen Leyang’s nose, “You!”
Wen Leyang was startled. He smiled lamely, “I’m afraid that my importance… isn’t enough?” He pondered that he would not mind playing dead, but it might not be sufficient to call out everyone from the Place of Birth, Life, Sickness and Death.
Grand Elder Wen glared, “What insufficient importance? You, get married!”
First Uncle Wen Tunhai laughed, “The first Inner Disciple of Wen family in thirty years is getting married. The men in the Place would have to come to the reception in the village no matter what!”
Something boomed inside Wen Leyang’s mind. He was dumbstruck. He blinked at the four grandpas, then looked at First Uncle. Finally, he looked at old demon rabbit Bu Le. Everyone was smiling at him mischievously.
Grand Elder Wen did not wait for Wen Leyang to talk nonsense and continued, “Tomorrow, Tunhai will prepare the gifts, then you will follow me to propose on Crow Ridge the day after. If they consent to it then that’s that. If they don’t, will barge our way in! Although Xiaoyi is one of our own, we cannot make her suffer no matter what. Old Fourth, from today onwards until the wedding day, you’ll be Xiaoyi’s grandfather, not Wen Leyang’s Fourth Grandpa. The two girls will have no difference in status, they’ll join the family at the same time!” He paused briefly as if worried that Xiaoyi may feel wronged and he pointed at Wen Tunhai, “Let your wife look after Xiaoyi, make sure she has everything she needs!”
Wen Leyang was utterly dumbfounded. He stood there looking silly and stunned. After half a day, he stammered as he asked, “Isn’t this… too rushed?”
Grand Elder Wen chuckled, “We’re not some secular family. You three dolls like each other, you should have tied the knot ages ago. Within twenty days, I want you guys to have your wedding night!”
Xiaoyi and Mumu were outside the soundproof Magic Circle and could not hear what they were saying. Seeing that the people inside were excited, Xiaoyi affectionately hugged Mumu’s arm, “What do you think they’re talking about?”
Mumu’s gaze had not left Wen Leyang from the start. She answered with a giggle, “Judging by Wen Leyang’s big red face, they must be fooling around again!”
The soundproof Magic Circle only prevents sound from going out, not going in. The people inside the circle were all elites with sharp eyes and ears. When they heard the conversation between the two young girls, they erupted in laughter. Wen Leyang also laughed twice. Then, he thought that it would be inappropriate for him to laugh and he quickly repressed his laugh. However, after a brief moment, he could not hold it in any longer. He lifted his head and laughed heartily with the elders, wild with joy.
The people inside the Circle were laughing, the people outside the Circle were eating and drinking to their hearts’ content. At this moment, a heavily suppressed sad but stirring voice suddenly erupted on the Nine Peaks Mountain like muffled thunder, “If that’s the case, then why have you acted like that last time? There was no need!”
Wen Leyang was startled. His heart was filled with puzzlement. He knew this voice!