Chapter 74: Come Out and Receive the Letter
Chapter 74: Come Out and Receive the Letter
“Use torture, Sect Leader. Let’s see how long she can hold out?”
“If we don’t show her some harshness, it seems she won’t know regret. Let’s torture her directly.”
“Torture… isn’t that a bit too much?”
“Hah, could it be you actually sympathize with this traitor? Or perhaps you’re captivated by her beauty? What a pity—this delicate flower has already been picked by that handsome young man!”
Among the several Elders, only one person raised doubts about using torture, and it was merely a doubt, not a strong objection.
After getting criticized by the others, he immediately fell silent.
Lian Ziqing hesitated for a moment, then shook his head and said, “This matter is not urgent. It’s not too late to wait until we catch that guy. Lock her up for now. Remember, not a single word about this must leak out!”
“Yes, Sect Leader!”
“Understood, Sect Leader.”
“We obey.”
Several Elders acknowledged the order. Then someone shoved Qian Luoying toward the depths of the mountain stream.
Very few people in the Heaven’s Gate Sect now knew that not far from there, there was a dungeon.
Originally used to imprison sect disciples who had committed serious mistakes, it had been abandoned for many years.
Qian Luoying, the young Elder who was already the subject of jealousy, now had the honor, after many years, of becoming this prison’s newest occupant.
Afterwards, Lian Ziqing and the others quietly left the area, leaving two trusted disciples behind to guard the place.
They, meanwhile, had to busy themselves with the next phase of their plan—luring Ling Yi into their trap!
…
After Mo Yunwu and Jiang Yuntong arrived, Ling Yi invited them into his Grotto Abode.
Jiang Yuntong was fine; he had genuinely come to visit his uncle. Although he was somewhat curious about the Grotto Abode, he focused more of his attention on Ling Yi himself.
Mo Yunwu, however, put her mind to touring the Grotto Abode.
Naturally, the results left her greatly disappointed.
“There really is nothing here at all!” After wandering around for a long time and failing to discover any secrets, Mo Yunwu came back pouting and said to Ling Yi, who was drinking with Jiang Yuntong, “Uncle, is it that this place originally had many treasures, but you hid them away?”
Jiang Yuntong frowned and said, “Yunwu, don’t speak nonsense.”
“What’s wrong? It’s probably true! Uncle has been living here for half a month. Any good items, why would he leave them out in the open?” Mo Yunwu said, grinning as she looked at Ling Yi. “Isn’t that right, Uncle?”
Ling Yi slightly furrowed his brow. He had previously thought that Qian Luoying’s approach might backfire, and now it seemed his guess was confirmed.
If even a simple-minded girl like Mo Yunwu could think of this, wouldn’t others think of it too?
Qian Luoying was truly blinded by her involvement. If this caused Lian Ziqing to suspect her, it would really not be worth the loss.
It seemed he really should leave!
Forget about being good neighbors!
After he left, this matter would probably gradually fade away over time.
Because even if they suspected there was something in the Grotto Abode, once he was gone, they would either search for him everywhere or give up entirely.
They wouldn’t endlessly trouble Qian Luoying, one of their own, would they?
Thus, even Ling Yi had overestimated the integrity of those people.
A pot of wine was quickly finished by the two of them.
Jiang Yuntong was very grateful for Ling Yi’s guidance these past days and grew increasingly respectful toward this uncle of his.
Mo Yunwu still had a childlike nature. Although she had matured a bit compared to before, after returning to the sect, she quickly assimilated back into it.
Despite her master Qian Luoying being unpopular within the Heaven’s Gate Sect, the innocent young girl Mo Yunwu was deeply liked by many people.
Ling Yi even noticed that even the steady and reliable Jiang Yuntong secretly had feelings for her.
Unfortunately, Mo Yunwu seemed completely unaware.
Or maybe she knew but pretended not to…
As the uncle, Ling Yi naturally wasn’t in a position to interfere in these young people’s affairs.
After eating and drinking his fill, he planned to return to the capital overnight, so he unceremoniously sent the two away.
Mo Yunwu still grumbled, “Really, feeding us and then driving us out! Even if you hadn’t said anything, we were planning to go back anyway. This place is so boring, no fun at all!”
Jiang Yuntong gave her a somewhat helpless look, then solemnly bowed to Ling Yi in farewell.
After seeing them off, Ling Yi sat quietly at the table again and drew Formation Arrays for a while.
He decided that on this trip back, he would take the opportunity to turn all those jade carvings he had left for Su Qingqing and Ling Yun last time into Magical Artifacts, and then make one for Sister Zhao as well.
Although he couldn’t guarantee they would be foolproof from then on, they could still play a role at critical moments.
The value of Defensive Artifacts wasn’t entirely in the objects themselves. Their very existence could also make potential attackers think twice.
Ling Yi now had the confidence and ability to create these simple defensive Magical Artifacts.
It was just that he lacked better materials; otherwise, he could try making higher-level artifacts.
The night grew deep. Suddenly, rapid knocking sounds came from outside the Grotto Abode…
Not shouting, but knocking.
Ling Yi formed a hand seal. An image suddenly appeared in the air before him—
It was from a simple Formation Array, similar to a surveillance device, which Ling Yi had drawn casually out of boredom earlier that day when Qian Luoying brought people over to help set up his Grotto Abode.
Jiang Yuntong appeared in the image, looking very anxious.
Ling Yi slightly frowned and opened the door to the Grotto Abode.
Jiang Yuntong slipped inside.
Ling Yi noticed the young man was actually wearing night clothes.
“You sneaked over here?”
Ling Yi asked with some surprise.
Jiang Yuntong held up a small paper crane in his hand and said to Ling Yi with great urgency, “Uncle, Master is in trouble!”
Ling Yi was stunned. “Don’t panic. Speak slowly. What happened?”
Jiang Yuntong took a deep breath. “Before Sister and I came here today, the Sect Leader sent an Envoy to summon Master, saying there was something to discuss. Just now, after we returned, we found Master still hadn’t come back. As soon as I entered my room, I saw this little paper crane. Only Master has these.”
“Master once said that seeing it means something might be wrong. Follow it quietly, don’t make a fuss, and you’ll find Master. When we were little, Master often used it to play hide-and-seek with us, but after we grew up, we hadn’t played with it for many years.”
“I just now, without telling my sister, activated it with Spiritual Energy. Instead of leading me toward the peak where the Sect Leader resides, it took me toward the mountain stream on the other side. While I was confused, I saw firelight over there by the stream. It turned out two of the Sect Leader’s disciples were barbecuing there!”
“Master mentioned that place once before, saying there’s a dungeon there that’s been abandoned for many years!”
“The direction the paper crane pointed was exactly toward that dungeon!”
Because he was a bit agitated, Jiang Yuntong’s words were somewhat jumbled, but Ling Yi understood.
He looked at Jiang Yuntong. “Who else knows about this?”
Jiang Yuntong shook his head. “Only me. After Yunwu got back, she complained about being tired, said she wanted to take a bath and then go to sleep.”
Ling Yi nodded. “Then you go back and rest too.”
Jiang Yuntong immediately became anxious. “But…”
Ling Yi patted his shoulder. “Leave it to me. You know this place well. Go back quietly. Don’t let anyone see you, or your master might really be in danger.”
Only then did Jiang Yuntong hesitantly nod and agree.
After seeing Jiang Yuntong off, Ling Yi closed his eyes and thought for a while, then said to the Enchantress, “I have to save her.”
“As you wish,” the Enchantress said.
“You have to help me,” Ling Yi said.
“How do you want me to help? Level this sect outright?”
The Enchantress chuckled. “We could tap into the remaining energy in the earth veins, fully activate the grand Formation Array I left here back in the day, and instantly turn this place upside down! Kill anyone who stands in our way! Then we could take the chance to raid their Treasure Vault, and just leave without a second thought!”
“What would we use to carry the stuff from their Treasure Vault?” Ling Yi asked.
“…”
After a moment of silence, the Enchantress said unhappily, “It’s all your fault!”
“So stop joking around. First, think of a way to rescue her. If she’s been imprisoned, it means they’ve completely turned against her. If this continues, I’m afraid she’ll be in danger,” Ling Yi said.
“Have you considered that this might be a trap? They might be waiting for you to walk right into it?”
The Enchantress said calmly, “It’s not surprising that Jiang Yuntong found the paper crane. That Silly Sister of yours, though foolish, isn’t completely hopeless. Sensing danger, she naturally chose to save herself. But someone of Jiang Yuntong’s low cultivation level, traveling all the way from where he was to your place—wouldn’t he be followed?”
“Then what should we do?” Ling Yi asked.
“Of course, we charge straight through and break in!” the Enchantress lectured. “Have you forgotten? Here in the Heaven’s Gate Sect, we are invincible!”
Damn.
“Then why did you waste time saying all that?” Ling Yi said angrily.
“You’re yelling at me?” the Enchantress flared up. “Was that all wasted words? I was training your analytical skills! When encountering a situation, stay calm, learn to analyze. Don’t charge ahead like an impulsive fool before you even understand what’s going on! Young man, be low-key, humble, more low-key, more humble! Understand?”
Ling Yi: “…”
He could see now that the Enchantress had apparently stored up some ill temper at some point and was seizing the chance to vent.
What should one do when faced with such an unreasonable Enchantress?
What could one do? Forgive her, of course.
“Are you sure it’s fine if we just charge straight through like that?” Ling Yi asked.
“What problem could there be? It’s just that, this way, your Silly Sister will probably have to defect from the sect from now on. But even if you don’t do this, I reckon she can’t stay anyway, right? So why not just make a big scene and raid their Treasure Vault!”
“Sis, we don’t have Storage Space!” Ling Yi said, rolling his eyes.
“In the Heaven’s Gate Sect’s Treasure Vault… maybe… there might be materials suitable for making a Storage Artifact? At worst, I’ll make you one on the spot!” The Enchantress also sounded a bit uncertain. Materials for Storage Artifacts were indeed very rare.
She couldn’t guarantee it either.
Ling Yi really wanted to ask: Have you been eyeing their sect’s Treasure Vault for a long time?
Although most of the Spiritual Energy from that Spirit Stone Vein had been absorbed by the Soul Spirit Tree, a lot still ended up in the hands of the Heaven’s Gate Sect. Otherwise, this sect couldn’t have stood here for a thousand years.
Someone as petty as the Enchantress—who would even seize chances to mock and sarcastically balance things out against people whose talents were slightly better than hers or who learned things a bit faster—how could she easily forgive the Heaven’s Gate Sect for digging up her Spirit Stone Vein?
Her earlier calm demeanor was simply because her abilities weren’t sufficient, not out of any soft-heartedness.
Thinking of this, Ling Yi almost pitied those people in the Heaven’s Gate Sect.
Did you really think the awesome one was me?
It’s fine if you don’t take me seriously, but the one you’ve provoked is an Enchantress who holds your lifeline in her hands. Really… you deserve it!
“What are you still waiting for? Let’s go, let’s go!” the Enchantress urged. “Saving her is urgent!”
Ling Yi: “…”
Right at that moment, a loud boom suddenly came from outside the Grotto Abode. Then, a cold voice rolled in from outside—
Come out and receive the letter!