Mister Taozhu nodded. After Qinghe was gone, he looked at Xiao Fu and said, “These are my subordinates. Once you’ve assigned them to their respective rooms, please prepare a meal for all of them.”

However, Xiao Fu said, “It has already been done, honored guest. Please, follow me.”

As Xiao Fu claimed, the rooms had already been assigned—it was just a matter of telling them where they were staying and leading them to their respective rooms—and the food and wine had already been prepared a while ago.

“Did you find anything, young master?” Mister Taozhu asked Ye Qing after sending everyone away.

“We will know by tonight.”

Ye Qing sat down on a chair and drank a sip of tea, ordering, “Tell your men to scout out West Kunlun for a bit. I will make a decision after tonight.”

“At once, young master,” Mister Taozhu responded and turned to leave.

After Mister Taozhu was gone, Ye Qing sat crosslegged on his bed, closed his eyes, and meditated.

……

Night at West Kunlun was quite something. The moon hung high in the sky like a jade disc that cast down countless rays of clear, focused radiance. They shone in from every direction and gathered around West Queen Mountain, illuminating the whole place so bright that it felt like daytime and painting thousands and thousands of kilometers of land in silver.

For those who came to West Kunlun for the first time, it was a rare and magnificent spectacle. On the other hand, the people of West Kunlun had long gotten used to it.

That was why the large majority of West Kunlun disciples besides those responsible for patrolling and guarding the mountains had already returned to their dwellings to catch some rest.

Qinghe was no exception.

The Spring Lord was responsible for the miscellaneous affairs of West Kunlun. Therefore, she was the main planner and organizer of the Celestial Peach Gathering and the guest hospitality.

As Spring Lord’s disciple, Qinghe’s burden was quite heavy as a matter of course. He was needed for all sorts of matters. It was why even he, a Half-Step Trueman, felt wrung dry after a whole day of hard work, and why he went to his bed after returning to his room and eating a few mouthfuls of food. He was out like a light almost as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Qinghe’s sleep wasn’t peaceful, however. At times, he would frown, murmur, even shake his head as if he was in the middle of a conversation.

About one teatime later, Qinghe abruptly opened his eyes and sat up. It took him a few deep breaths before he finally managed to calm himself.

“Strange. Why was I dreaming?” Qinghe muttered with a frown on his face. At his level, dreams should have been a thing of the distant past. On top of that, everything he dreamed about was a secret about West Kunlun; some of which he himself had forgotten for whatever reason. And yet, they had surfaced in his dream as clear as day, almost as if someone was going through his mind and reading his memories. It was quite unusual to say the least.

“Is it because I was too tired for the past two days? Strange, so strange…”

Qinghe could not figure out why he was dreaming despite thinking for a long time. In the end, he shook his head and lay on his bed once more.

This time, he slept peacefully. He no longer had a discombobulated dream.

At the same time, far away at Qianyuan Garden, Ye Qing abruptly opened his eyes and caused his room to pitch black and seemingly without borders. A strange energy that was profound beyond words was also floating in the air. ṝΆ𐌽𝔬ꞖƐꞩ

A few breaths later, the darkness in the room finally subsided and slipped into Ye Qing’s body, and the bright, silver moonlight shone through the window and into the room once more. It was as if everything that happened just now was a dream.

It was at this moment Mister Taozhu stepped out of the darkness. “How did it go, young master?”

“I found some useful information,” Ye Qing replied while massaging his forehead a little. During the day, he had secretly planted a demonic lotus in Qinghe’s headspace while the young man was busy conversing with Mister Taozhu. Although Qinghe was a young genius, he was far inferior to Ye Qing as a matter of course. Therefore, it took Ye Qing no effort to perform the deed.

However, this was West Kunlun. He did not know what kind of secret art or mental restriction West Kunlun might have planted in their disciples’ minds. That was why he did not risk converting Qinghe into his Heavenly Demon Dependent. Instead, he waited until the disciple was asleep before using both his Paranirmita Boundless Heavenly Demon Dependent Magia and the “Dream Butterfly True Scripture” to enter his dreams and search his memories. That was why Qinghe experienced a strange dream just now.

“Did you find anything about the Kunlun Ruins?” Mister Taozhu asked.

“No.” Ye Qing shook his head. “Qinghe does not possess any memory regarding the Kunlun Ruins whatsoever. That said, my search wasn’t fruitless. I was able to find out the specific identities of the people who hunted down Cheng Qishang and his men.”

𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

“Who are they?” Mister Taozhu asked curiously.

Ye Qing answered, “To be specific, they’re not West Kunlun disciples. They’re Tomb Keepers.”

“Tomb Keepers?” Mister Taozhu looked puzzled. “What’s a Tomb Keeper?”

“There exists a tomb on the Forgotten Peak of West Kunlun called the Kunlun Tomb. It is where the remains of the sect masters and elders of West Kunlun resided.”

Ye Qing explained, “The Kunlun Tomb is the most mysterious and important place in West Kunlun. Only the sect master, elders, the Lords, and other prestigious persons of West Kunlun are allowed to enter. Everyone else is forbidden from even getting close to the Forgotten Peak, much less entering.”

“The people guarding the Forgotten Peak and the Kunlun Tomb are known as the Tomb Keepers of West Kunlun. They all hail from the same lineage, and they do not interact with the outside world or participate in the businesses of West Kunlun at all. They are as mysterious as they are powerful.”

“No wonder the people who attacked Cheng Qinshang’s subordinates did not wear the same outfits as the disciples of West Kunlun. It’s because they belong to a different group in West Kunlun.”

Mister Taozhu exclaimed in realization before continuing, “If what you said is true—that the Tomb Keepers of West Kunlun never participate in the businesses of West Kunlun—and yet they are breaking that rule after finding out that someone is looking for the Kunlun Ruins, that must mean that they know about the Kunlun Ruins.”

“I think so too.” Ye Qing nodded. “Time is limited. I plan to pay a visit to the Kunlun Tomb immediately.”

“I’ll come with you,” Mister Taozhu offered.

“It’s fine. I alone am enough.” Ye Qing shook his head. “I want you to stay here and provide support.”

“Very well. Take care, young master.” Mister Taozhu nodded.

“Mm.” Ye Qing nodded and dashed out of the garden. He disappeared in the night in just the blink of an eye.

……

The Forgotten Peak was located to the east of West Queen Mountain. It was a low, barren peak with dangerous terrain. Appearance wise, forget the likes of Celestial Peak, Heavenly Pond Peak, Kunlun Summit and other main peaks, it was inferior even compared to some of the peaks were the disciples and servants were staying.

In fact, many Wst Kunlun disciples had never heard of the Forgotten Peak before, much less know about the Kunlun tomb.

As a result, the Forgotten Peak was extraordinarily cold and quiet compared to the bustling main peaks of West Kunlun. Even the moonlight seemed to avoid the Forgotten Peak as the whole place was covered in darkness and desolation.

It was a fitting appearance for a tomb at least.

“Is this the Forgotten Peak?”

Ye Qing stood at the foot of the Forgotten Peak and looked up at the mountain, a chill growing in his heart despite himself.

In Ye Qing’s senses, the entire mountain was surrounded by a mysterious and immense power. Not only was his vision a lot poorer than usual, the range of his spiritual energy was limited to just a couple meters as well.

Ye Qing frowned. The Kunlun Tomb was a forbidden zone in West Kunlun and heavily guarded as a matter of course. If even his spirit was limited, then his infiltration would be even riskier than it already was.

Ye Qing weighed the pros and cons for a bit. In the end, he still chose to enter the Forgotten Peak. Yi Pin’s life was in danger, and he could not afford to waste anymore time than he already had.