Volume 5 Chapter 110
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Volume 5 Chapter 110: Suspicion in My Heart, the Dark Valley (Part 2)
The gathering place for Xu Qingfan’s team is at the foot of "Ronghua Mountain."
In their last mission, this team lost seven members, but this time seven new members joined, all being elders from small sects. Among them, two were saved by Xu Qingfan before the "Beast Madness" spread by "Ying," so they show great respect to him.
Xu Qingfan was surprised because he had clearly told Qinglingzi that he hoped Xu Xiurong would not participate in the team’s activities anymore under the pretense of meditating. However, when the team gathered, Xu Xiurong was still there, leaving Xu Qingfan wondering what Qinglingzi really thought.
Perhaps because of Xu Qingfan’s scolding during the last mission, Lv Ziqing and the others looked somewhat stiff and the atmosphere was a bit awkward when they saw him. On the other hand, Xu Xiurong, who had been scolded the most by Xu Qingfan, greeted him as if nothing had happened.
Xu Qingfan’s expression remained the same as during every mission, calm and unchanging like still water.
Once all the team members had gathered, the new and old members exchanged polite greetings. Meanwhile, everyone’s eyes were secretly watching Little Black on Xu Qingfan’s shoulder, who usually seemed ordinary but suddenly radiated a majestic aura like a bird king, leaving everyone astonished and guessing the reasons. It had only been about eleven or twelve days since their last mission, yet Little Black’s appearance now left everyone imagining how it might look if it suddenly shook and commanded the flock of birds.
The female members of the team looked at Little Gold in Xu Qingfan’s arms with delight, as its small and cute appearance filled their hearts with affection.
Even though they were cultivators, the innate love of women for lovely and beautiful things could not be changed.
Xu Xiurong and another woman watched from afar with anticipation, while Dongfang Qingling, who knew Xu Qingfan well, hurried over and gently took Little Gold from his arms, embracing it and showering it with love. Xu Xiurong and the others, who had been observing from a distance, quickly gathered around Dongfang Qingling.
Xu Qingfan clearly remembered the day Little Gold had killed over a hundred tigers and wolves in one breath. He had been worried it might hurt Dongfang Qingling and the others, but seeing Little Gold comfortably lying in the arms of those women, occasionally nudging at Dongfang Qingling’s chest with its head, its eyes squinting in happiness, he realized he had worried for nothing.
When he learned that the little beast’s name was Little Gold, Jin Qinghan, another "Little Gold," had a strange expression, which made Xu Qingfan smile wryly.
Because of Little Gold, the relations with Lv Ziqing and the others, which had been a bit tense after the last mission, began to soften. Their stiff expressions relaxed, and the atmosphere became friendly. Later, Lv Ziqing even took the initiative to greet Xu Qingfan.
After assembling, Xu Qingfan led his team members to a place three hundred miles away from Ronghua Mountain, where the masters had set up a protective barrier covering the area. There, the Mercy Cloud Temple team was already waiting quietly, and some familiar disciples were there to see them off.
After nodding to Master Bo Guangyan, Xu Qingfan turned to look at Ting’er, Zhang Ningmei, and Bai Yu, who came to see him off. At that moment, he was unaware of the dire troubles that the seemingly safe Ronghua Mountain would face. He simply nodded slightly to the three disciples and, when the barrier opened, flew north quickly with his team and the Mercy Cloud Temple team.
The night before his departure, Xu Qingfan recalled how Bai Yu had angered him and left him exhausted. He remembered Ting’er’s fleeting glare at Bai Yu and had a long talk with Ting’er about how "Bai Yu is your junior brother, not just anyone. You should educate him with patience and treat him like family…" He shared a lot of advice, though he didn’t know if Ting’er actually listened. However, knowing Ting’er valued Xu Qingfan and had an instinctive inability to refuse him, he believed that even if she still disliked Bai Yu, she wouldn’t take action against him.
Meanwhile, Bai Yu remained oblivious to Ting’er’s previous murderous intent toward him. Before Xu Qingfan’s departure, he kept assuring Xu Qingfan, "I will work twice as hard while my master is away," but in his heart, he was planning whether to venture beyond the area of Ronghua Mountain for some fun.
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The destination was a secluded little valley near North Iceland, known to very few. The previous team had stumbled upon this valley by chance, not realizing it hid so many Beast Madness cultivators.
About half a month later, Xu Qingfan and his group of sixty finally arrived at the valley. They were now hovering in the air, quietly gazing at the valley before them.
During these two weeks, the two teams had become quite familiar with each other, but at this moment, no one spoke. They quietly watched the valley, their eyes filled with surprise and uncertainty.
The situation felt a bit strange.
The area was near North Iceland, where everything looked pale white. The ground was covered with a thin layer of frost. The chilly wind howled in the air, blowing steadily toward the south.
However, the valley before them was a bright red color, a splash of crimson in the white landscape. Though it was not very large, it stood out impressively. The cold characteristics of the north were not present here at all.
Furthermore, it should have been that the closer they got to the north, the stronger and colder the winds would become. Yet, near the valley, the air felt still and hot, with a faint smell of blood lingering, unlike the north.
Most importantly, according to the information, there should be at least a thousand Beast Madness cultivators in this valley, but as they flew closer, everyone found it surprisingly quiet, with not a single sound.
A "Beast Madness cultivator" should only have the nature of beasts, and a gathering place like this should not be so silent.
In the valley, there was an almost imperceptible aura of danger, making everyone feel alert.
"Venerable Diyang, what do you think?"
The scene in front of them was strange, and Master Bo Guangyan couldn’t figure it out, so he quietly asked Xu Qingfan.
Before the Righteous Alliance assigned missions to the two teams, they did not state who would take the lead between Xu Qingfan and Bo Guangyan; in fact, both had equal standing, so they decided on any actions together.
"The situation is even stranger than I imagined," Xu Qingfan replied softly. "Although the scenery in this valley is odd, it is so quiet that I can’t sense any life or the Spirit Qi waves of the ‘Beast Madness cultivator.’ This makes it hard to decide."
"Wasn’t it agreed that no matter how strange the valley looks, we would just send in the ‘Mourning Powder’ and leave after setting up the barrier? Why is it suddenly more difficult?" Jin Qinghan, who was behind them, asked in confusion.
Master Bo Guangyan had always thought that the strongest in Xu Qingfan’s team was Xu Qingfan himself, but when the two teams joined, he was surprised to find that Jin Qinghan was stronger than Xu Qingfan in terms of level, even though he was less known in the Righteous Alliance. Curious about Jin Qinghan’s cultivation method, which seemed to have a hint of Buddhist influence, he began to chat with him. Jin Qinghan’s ability, "Eight Evil Consciousness King," was a combination of Taoist gold-type cultivation and Buddhist powers. However, since he mainly practiced Taoism, he didn’t understand some Buddhist theories, which made him feel something was off every time he used "Eight Evil Consciousness King." Despite usually being indifferent toward others, he pleasantly accepted Master Bo Guangyan’s friendliness and asked many Buddhist questions, to which Master Bo Guangyan replied one by one. With Xu Qingfan joining in, the three became quite familiar, and Jin Qinghan knew the decisions made by Xu Qingfan and Bo Guangyan before taking action, which is why he asked so.
Hearing Jin Qinghan’s question, Xu Qingfan explained, "The decision Master Bo Guangyan and I made was based on the assumption that the ‘Beast Madness cultivator’ were still gathered in this valley as the information said. But look at the valley now; it’s so quiet, and there’s not the slightest hint of life or Spirit Qi waves. Does it look like anyone is here?"
Master Bo Guangyan also frowned and nodded, saying, "Our mission this time is to eliminate the ‘Beast Madness cultivator’ in this valley. If we ignore whether those ‘Beast Madness cultivator’ are still here and follow the original plan, we would let down the expectations of our seniors."
While the three were talking, Xu Qingfan didn’t notice that Little Gold, playing in Xu Xiurong’s arms, seemed to have discovered something. He lay quietly in her embrace, his golden eyes watching the blood-red valley in front of them.
After a moment, the little creature seemed to notice something and struggled to escape Xu Xiurong’s embrace to find Xu Qingfan. However, Xu Xiurong saw that Xu Qingfan was discussing important matters with Bo Guangyan and others, so she held the little creature tight and wouldn’t let it go.
"Let’s send someone in to explore first."
In the end, Xu Qingfan decided.
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At the same time, in the blood-colored valley, two people in purple robes stood in a hidden place, blocking the view of Xu Qingfan and the others, while they were able to see Xu Qingfan and the others in the sky.
"They’re coming," one of the purple-robed people said with a faint smile, his tone proud and restrained. "It really is that Xu Qingfan."
The other purple-robed person did not respond, just quietly watching Xu Qingfan and Jin Qinghan in the sky, their eyes flickering, lost in thought.
