Chapter 431: What A Coincidence!

"This is... a tracking talisman?"

Inside the deep cave, Xuan Yinzi stared at the third Spirit-Slaying Jar that had returned... and the yellow talisman that was attached to it. His hands trembled slightly.

This tracking talisman meant that someone had noticed his Spirit-Slaying Jars. However, this talisman wouldn't be able to track down his location because of the seal, so it was unlikely that person would be able to find him. Regardless, this tracking talisman was still the only message he had received from the outside world in years.

It was a glimmer of hope for his escape!

Xuan Yinzi's eyes, which had lost their divine light long ago, lit up with excitement!

Indeed, the heavens always leave a way out! But how can I get this person to help me?

His mind raced.

This place is near Mount Shu, so the one who found the jars is likely a disciple of Mount Shu, which is a righteous immortal sect. That means I can't reveal my identity.

Moreover, even if that person's willing to help me, they'll need to give me a high-grade Great Pill of Qi and Blood or a precious herb. But it's impossible for ordinary cultivators to easily procure such things.

How can I persuade them to help me?

Xuan Yinzi thought about it for a while, then he gently pricked his finger. Using his blood, he carefully wrote two startling lines of small words on the back of the yellow talisman.

I am an eighth-realm Eminent One trapped under a seal due to unforeseen circumstances. Please place Great Pills of Qi and Blood or precious herbs in the jar. After I am freed, I will share with you the secrets of the Immortal Dao.

After writing that, he attached the talisman with his blood message onto a new Spirit-Slaying Jar and sent it out of the seal.

Xuan Yinzi then drained the yin qi from the third Spirit-Slaying Jar, slightly replenishing his exhausted reserves of qi and blood.

He was in high spirits! As long as someone saw his message on the talisman, he would have a chance to see the light of day again!

The Spirit-Slaying Jar with the talisman moved along with the current. It slowly drifted into the Bombax River, where it entered the line of sight of a beautiful pair of eyes.

"

Huh?

Big Sis, look at this! What do you think it is? It seems like a ghostly thing!" someone said loudly.

Two colorful koi fish, one large and one small, spotted the Spirit-Slaying Jar and quickly swam over. The smaller one had been the first to notice the jar drifting toward them from behind, and it moved closer to take a look first.

These were none other than the koi sisters, Liu Xiaoyu and Xiaoyu'er. The sisters had been staying on Mount Shu for a while, and on this day, they suddenly felt like visiting Bombax River—their old home where they had lived for many years.

That's how they ended up witnessing this strange scene.

Whoosh.

A large black hand suddenly shot out from the Spirit-Slaying Jar, frightening Xiaoyu'er.

"

Aaaaaah!!!

" Xiaoyu'er screamed and swiftly swam several zhang away. "What's that? It scared the fish out of me..."

"Don't be afraid!" Liu Xiaoyu told her sister, dashing toward the Spirit-Slaying jar.

She instantly transformed into her human form and threw a punch, smashing through the water!

Boom!

That powerful blow shattered Spirit-Slaying Jar.

This mighty koi fish was unafraid of ghosts.

As the jar crumbled into dust, a yellow talisman slowly floated to the surface of the river. Liu Xiaoyu picked it up and took a look.

"Big Sis, what's that?" Xiaoyu'er asked curiously as she approached.

"It seems to be a talisman. But on the back, there are some..." Liu Xiaoyu paused, studying the talisman for a moment. Her expression gradually turned serious. "Words."

"That's right. They are words!" Xiaoyu'er confirmed.

As two koi fish who had never attended school, this was the extent of their knowledge.

"Forget it. Let's not look at it anymore. It's dirty and disgusting," Liu Xiaoyu said.

She glanced at it a few more times before casually smacking the talisman, reducing it to dust.

When Chu Liang hurried back to Bombax River, he found not only had he lost his tracking talisman's signal, but several of that day's wine-jar monsters were also missing. He was so stunned that it was as if he'd been struck by lightning.

This is no longer a case of the occasional missing jar. More than half of them are gone!

He ran upstream, determined to find the despicable wine-jar thief. That was when he saw the two sisters swimming downstream, casually eliminating any wine-jar monsters they encountered.

"Stop!" Chu Liang shouted at them.

"

Huh?

" Xiaoyu'er uttered. She transformed into her human form and emerged from the water. She smiled and called out, "Big Bro Chu Liang!"

Chu Liang smiled awkwardly. "Xiaoyu'er..."

So, the wine-jar thief was these two koi fish?

Chu Liang's anger turned into a sigh.

All he could do was warn them prudently. "There are ghastly creatures haunting Bombax River now, so it's best you don't come here to play at night."

"I'm not afraid," Liu Xiaoyu stated calmly, showing off her muscles.

"These wine-jar monsters aren't very strong, but coming into contact with them... will make you stupid," Chu Liang said seriously.

"

Eh?

" Xiaoyu'er was shocked. "Oh, no. Big Sis, you just killed quite a few of them."

Liu Xiaoyu's gaze wavered in surprise for a moment.

Ultimately, she stubbornly repeated, "

Hmph

, I'm not afraid... I'm plenty smart anyway. Whatever. It's getting cold. Let's just go back to the mountain and sleep."

The sisters swiftly flew back to Silver Sword Peak, disappearing from Chu Liang's sight like a wisp of smoke.

As Chu Liang watched them go, he let out a long sigh of relief.

As expected, the less people have, the more they cherish what they do have.

That was the same for fish too.

...

A few days later, Heaven-Reaching Peak suddenly sent out a message, summoning all disciples at the Golden Core Realm and above to the Hall of Conservation. The disciples who received the message were all a bit puzzled. They didn't really know what was going on.

When Chu Liang arrived, he saw that quite a few people had already gathered in the Hall of Conservation. The front rows were already taken.

Jiang Yuebai was there too. She was dressed in a pure white high-waisted dress with a peach-pink shawl draped over her shoulders. Appearing dignified and elegant, she was the first person everyone looked at when they entered the room.

She was sitting in the second seat of the first row, with her junior sister Mu Yueting on her left and Ling Ao on her right. They had all arrived relatively early.

Ling Ao had been in closed-door cultivation recently, busy with forming his Golden Core. Now, he had finally reached the beginning stage of the Golden Core Realm.

He had faced the most skepticism regarding his position as one of Mount Shu's top four disciples. Many had said that he had only barely earned his place thanks to the True Dragon's blessing and didn't truly have the talent and potential to rival the other three.

In response, Ling Ao could only say with disdain... that they had a point. Nevertheless, that wouldn't stop him from moving forward.

No matter how much doubt there was about his abilities, Ling Ao always appeared in public with a radiant and confident demeanor.

Stepping through the door, Chu Liang glanced around and realized that the first row was already full. So, he had no choice but to head toward the back.

At that moment, Ling Ao suddenly stood up and walked over to Chu Liang. This left Chu Liang feeling a bit confused. Just as he was wondering what this guy was staring at him for, Ling Ao... turned around and walked to the seats at the back.

Ling Ao had deliberately vacated the seat beside Jiang Yuebai's.

The hall was suddenly flooded with a wave of "Ooooh!!!"

It was clear that no one on Mount Shu was unaware of the ambiguous relationship between Chu Liang and Jiang Yuebai.

Chu Liang smiled awkwardly.

This guy... He's really loyal.

Right when he wanted to act a little coy, booming laughter rang from the doorway.

"

Heheheh!

" Lin Bei burst in and saw that the seat next to Jiang Yuebai was free. "

Huh?

There's a free seat in the first row?"

He walked over in large strides, intending to take the seat.

After returning from Python Belly City, Lin Bei experienced a string of events and successfully formed his Golden Core. He was a newly advanced fourth-realm cultivator, so he was qualified to attend this meeting.

Chu Liang hurriedly kicked Lin Bei aside and calmly took the free seat.

After sitting down, he chuckled softly. "What a coincidence. Just so happens that there's an empty seat right here."

Jiang Yuebai smiled and responded quietly without looking at him. "Yes. What a coincidence indeed."

After that, the two of them just sat there in silence. They didn't need to say a word; just being next to each other brought smiles to their faces.

A while later when almost everyone was present, the Conservation Master walked in at a slow pace. This time, he appeared as a feeble elderly man in a white robe.

Standing at the front of the hall, he slowly said to the crowd, "I've gathered all of you here today for a test."