Chapter 1169: Chapter 1168 People from the Seek Dao Sect Have Arrived

"You’re all here to apply for the gatekeeper position?"

Old Master Murong looked at the group with suspicion, muttering to himself. He had mentioned something about hiring a gatekeeper, but he hadn’t posted any recruitment notices, so how did people come to apply?

Had one of his disciples leaked the information?

And wasn’t the number of applicants for the gatekeeper position a bit too high?

"With so many of you..."

"We’re here to compete for the job, whoever you prefer is fine!" Huo Huashen quickly said.

"Then it’s you," Old Master Murong pointed at Huo Huashen and said.

He could see through their cultivation levels at a glance. This one named Huo Huashen was at the third level of Qi Refinement, while the rest were only at the second level. It was clear he had to pick Huo Huashen.

"One Spirit Stone per month, is that alright?"

"Yes, yes."

Leaving Old Master Murong’s room, Huo Huashen calmed down and suddenly realized that Lu Yang didn’t know him at all; to Lu Yang, he was just an ordinary Divine Transformation Stage Cultivator, not a disciple of the Jiuyou Sect.

However, if he didn’t continue the act and aroused Lu Yang’s suspicion, he and his fellow brothers would be doomed.

Huo Huashen no longer worried about the Ghost Killing Alliance leader’s matter; with Lu Yang here, he had surely dealt with the Ghost Kill Alliance Leader already, and if not now, he could handle it later.

Lu Yang was currently in the Void Refinement Stage, his realm fluctuating continuously, likely in a low state at the moment, his voice not yet revealing their cultivation levels.

If he were to discover this, and asked how someone of the Divine Transformation Stage had come to be a gatekeeper, how would he respond?

If his response was poor, it could easily arouse suspicion and lead to the belief that he had ulterior motives.

Huo Huashen’s mind raced, and he quickly concocted an excuse.

When the time came, he would say he admired Young Hero Lu’s reputation and that with Young Hero Lu’s unstable Void Refinement realm, he might run into trouble, so he had come to shield Young Hero Lu from some of that trouble.

If Lu Yang never asked, he would take the initiative to explain before leaving, Huo Huashen decided.

"Boss, why don’t we take up the gatekeeper’s job for you?" The juniors were touched to see Huo Huashen bravely facing Lu Yang.

A boss of the Divine Transformation Stage, how could he be a gatekeeper? It was too shameful to speak of, and how would he stand firm in the Sect afterward?

"It’s not about you replacing me; you all will become gatekeepers," Huo Huashen said.

"Ah? All of us?"

"I’ll be the gatekeeper in the open, and you will be the gatekeepers in the shadows, secretly protecting the martial arts hall."

Huo Huashen stated his plan, so when Young Hero Lu discovered his true cultivation level, he could mention his juniors to him.

...

"Daoist Lu, this new gatekeeper seems quite extraordinary," Xue Shilou said suspiciously, looking at Huo Huashen standing at the entrance.

And the Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators who kept circling the martial arts hall.

"Perhaps they’ve recognized my identity and have come to volunteer as Protectors," Lu Yang said with a smile, "It’s fine, we don’t need to pay attention to them."

"I see," Xue Shilou sighed, understanding the gap in reputation; people were volunteering to be Daoist Lu’s Protectors.

If it were him reaching the Void Refinement Stage, he feared that his enemies would queue up at his door.

...

"So this is Muxue City, finally arrived."

A man leading a horse and wearing a broad hat entered Muxue City, stretched, glad to have reached his destination.

Passersby frequently turned to look at the man.

The man in the broad hat, dressed in bright red robes, was particularly eye-catching against the endless white snow of the Extreme Northern Lands; anyone passing by would turn for another look.

As the man walked into Muxue City and took off his hat,

the passersby who had been strolling lazily stopped in their tracks, looking at the man in disbelief.

"It’s Meng Jingzhou!"

"So many people recognize me?"

Meng Jingzhou couldn’t help being pleased. He hadn’t expected his reputation to have spread far and wide, even to the Extreme Northern Lands.

Not only did they know of his reputation, but they even knew what he looked like.

The Extreme Northern Lands were a good place for him, where the year-round chill could effectively suppress his restless hot blood.

Then, he saw the haphazardly posted missing person notices.

Meng Jingzhou, bounty: one billion Spirit Stones.

"Lu Yang, your granddad!"

He didn’t need to guess who was behind this trick; there was no one else but Lu Yang.

It was surely that bastard Lu Yang’s plan to reveal his identity in Muxue City and protect his own life by masquerading as him.

"Meng Shiyi is here!" someone shouted, and the people of Muxue City became excited.

"Where? Where?"

The windows snapped open, as countless people craned their necks, looking down the street in search of Meng Jingzhou.

Even if they couldn’t capture him, just to see what the young hero looked like would be good enough, and of course, if they could catch him and deliver him to the Seek Dao Sect for the reward, that would be even better.

Seeing this, Meng Jingzhou dared not stay any longer. He grabbed Old Ma and bolted.

His realm’s fluctuation was now at the Golden Core Stage, so evading mortals was not a problem, but now it wasn’t just mortals looking for him; cultivators were also rushing over in groups.

One billion Spirit Stones was a number that would make even those in the Body Integration Realm tempted.

"The one leading the horse is Meng Jingzhou!"

Meng Jingzhou hastily told Old Ma to leave the place quickly.

"The one holding the bamboo hat is Meng Jingzhou!"

Meng Jingzhou swiftly threw away the bamboo hat.

"The one in red clothes is Meng Jingzhou!"

Meng Jingzhou quickly took off his red clothes.

"The male is Meng Jingzhou!"

Meng Jingzhou hastily...

"Hey, wait a minute, which bastard just shouted that!" Meng Jingzhou suddenly realized something was amiss and became furious.

Before long, he found Lu Yang, who was hiding among the crowd and posing as an ordinary citizen.

Before Meng Jingzhou could lose his temper, a large group of cultivators surrounded him. He made a snap decision, skillfully put on a mask to change his face, and dived into the crowd.

"Where’d he go?"

"How did he vanish?"

Meng Jingzhou blended into the crowd and pointed in a random direction: "He seemed to have gone that way!"

Upon hearing this, the crowd surged in that direction, and soon the street was emptied of almost everyone, leaving only Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou.

"Was it you, you bastard, who put up the missing person posters!" Meng Jingzhou asked through gritted teeth, having received a welcome worth one billion Spirit Stones upon just arriving in Muxue City, which was more than anyone could stand.

Lu Yang hooked his arm around Meng Jingzhou’s neck and began to explain with an apologetic smile, "See, I was far away in the Extreme Northern Lands and couldn’t return home, so I could only draw a few portraits of a good brother to remember the sect, you know."

Meng Jingzhou knocked Lu Yang on the shoulder, speaking without good humor, "Get lost."

"By the way, how did you end up here?"

Meng Jingzhou rolled his eyes, "It’s all because of you."

"Me?" Lu Yang was puzzled. What did this have to do with him?

"I was originally in my family’s home in Imperial City, having a comfortable life.

Then you came to the Extreme Northern Lands to cultivate, and Eldest Senior Sister sent a letter to our ancestors saying it wasn’t good for me to stay in the sect all the time, that it wasn’t conducive to the Void Refinement Stage cultivation, and told me to join you in the Extreme Northern Lands to cultivate myself."

"Hey, hey, what do you mean I came to the Extreme Northern Lands to cultivate? You can’t just say whatever you want. I came to the Extreme Northern Lands to experience the mortal world, not to cultivate through combat."