clergé

Chapitre 114

"Hmph!" Gu Xiju sneered, raising an eyebrow. "Doesn't this just point you in the right direction to investigate?"

Wu Peng shuddered and forced himself to say, "The strange thing is that after the carriage left the woods, it didn't leave a trace at all, as if it had vanished into thin air."

Gu Xiju narrowed his eyes.

"However, I didn't come away empty-handed!" Seeing the strange look on his face, Wu Peng quickly added, "It turns out that the mute girl accompanying that young master is the last disciple of the divine physician of Medicine King Valley. If the divine physician passes away, there will probably be no one in the world who can surpass him in medical skills! To be able to win over such a talent, I guess that young master He must be either rich or noble!"

A glint of light flashed in Gu Xiju's eyes, then vanished in an instant.

“Interesting.” He sighed softly. “Really interesting.” The corners of his mouth began to turn up inch by inch.

Pang Wan, your revenge has certainly not disappointed me.

"No need to chase them anymore. Since they're determined to escape, I'll do the opposite and wait for them to come to us." Gu Xiju instructed the person under her knees with a warm and gentle tone, "From now on, you just need to keep an eye on news about that group."

Wu Peng was so shocked he almost trembled: "Does the Alliance Leader really intend to let them escape?" He subconsciously checked with his master again, after all, such an order not to eliminate the root of the problem was extremely rare. "Didn't the Alliance Leader just say that these thieves stole your things?"

Gu Xiju smiled silently: "I want them to understand that even if something is stolen, I have the ability to make one out of thin air."

Touching the wound on his leg, his eyes were filled with tiny glimmers of light.

{Kunlun Sacrifice to Heaven}

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the martial arts world welcomes a grand event that happens only once every four years: the Kunlun Sacrifice to Heaven.

There has always been a tradition in the martial arts world for the leader of the martial arts alliance to lead all the sects in a sacrificial ceremony to heaven. This is partly to pray for divine protection, partly to demonstrate the leader's supreme authority in the martial arts world, and partly to arrange seats for the leaders of each sect.

Four years ago, Gu Xiju succeeded as the leader of the martial arts alliance by receiving the Jade Dragon Token from his predecessor during a sacrificial ceremony. At the time, he was a newcomer in his early twenties, which drew considerable skepticism. Now, four years later, he has successfully dismantled the Moon Worship Cult, and both the Kunlun and Shaolin sects have acknowledged his position. This sacrificial ceremony is undoubtedly going to be a grand spectacle for him.

The auspicious hour had arrived, and a tall stack of firewood had been erected on the circular altar atop Kunlun Mountain, adorned with jade discs, silk scrolls, and other sacrificial offerings. With a command from the master of ceremonies, Chengxi Ju, dressed in a purple robe, slowly stepped forward and personally lit the firewood.

Dark blue fireworks shot straight into the sky.

Then the master of ceremonies ordered people to bring out live sika deer, black oxen, and fine horses. Gu Xiju drew his sword from his waist and stabbed each of these poor animals in the neck. Bright red blood dripped from the wounds into the bronze cauldron that had been prepared beforehand.

Once the bronze cauldron was filled with fresh blood and the livestock were carried off the stage, the servants brought out fine wine and delicacies. A group of elegantly dressed dancers then began to perform. Gu Xiju took the handkerchief handed to him by a servant, wiped his hands clean, and watched the people singing and dancing with a smile.

In the distance, a small dark figure hid in the crowd, watching his every move intently.

How could he remain so calm? She wondered.

After the dance "Cloud Gate" ended, the climax of the ceremony began. The master of ceremonies took out gold and silk and read to the heavens the major events of the past four years in the martial arts world, summarizing the achievements of each sect. Finally, the leader of the martial arts alliance took out the Jade Dragon Token, a symbol of his identity, and engraved his mark on the calendar, thus concluding the ceremony.

"To recognize their achievements, the position of Deputy Alliance Leader has been created. The Yellow River will serve as the boundary, and the affairs in the north will be managed by He Shannai, the leader of Kunlun."

As soon as the master of ceremonies finished speaking, the entire audience erupted in uproar.

In all the years of martial arts history, there has never been a vice leader. Unexpectedly, Gu Xi Ju has set a precedent. Is this a delegation of power or a form of appeasement?

"Strange," the dark figure muttered quietly, but fortunately, the sound was drowned out by the murmurs of the crowd and went unnoticed.

Amidst the astonished gazes of the crowd, Gu Xiju and He Shannai remained seated as steady as Mount Tai, with the latter even displaying an enigmatic smile on her face.

"Please, Alliance Leader, affix your seal!" After saying this, the official in charge of ceremonies respectfully presented the gold and silk with both hands.

Gu Xiju accepted the gold and silk, took out a small token from his sleeve, dabbed it with red clay, and was about to stamp it.

"Wait!" At this critical moment, a voice finally rang out, "Could the Alliance Leader please take out the Jade Dragon Token so that everyone can have a look?" The speaker was Shi Duoduo, the leader of the Beggars' Sect.

"Why is that?" Gu Xiju raised his two sword-like eyebrows high.

Shi Duo hesitated for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "Alliance Leader, please forgive me, but to be honest, many sects have received letters from anonymous individuals in the past few days, saying that the Alliance Leader does not actually possess the Jade Dragon Token, and that he is secretly colluding with the Moon Worship Sect. The real token has already been given to the Moon Worship Sect as a token, and it was even tagged at the end of the letter..." He paused here.

Gu Xiju smiled good-naturedly: "What did you leave behind?" His voice was as gentle as a breeze.

"It bears the mark of the Jade Dragon Token!" Shi De gritted his teeth and told the truth, since Beggar Clan disciples were never afraid of anything.

A murmur of discussion quickly arose from the crowd, and the lurking shadow chuckled softly.

Let's see how you explain this! Let's see how you cover up this lie! She thought smugly.

However, she underestimated Gu Xiju.

He smiled slightly and clapped his hands lightly, saying, "Please have someone bring Mr. Ye Guinong up here."

Ye Guinong was the previous leader of the alliance.

"Senior Ye, please take a look at this jade dragon seal in my hand and see if it is genuine or fake?"

Gu Xiju smiled and opened his palm towards the old man who was over fifty years old.

Ye Guinong squinted at it and answered loudly, "It is indeed the one I passed on to you four years ago, without the slightest falsehood!"

Gu Xiju nodded, then turned around and said, "Please ask the Shaolin abbot and the Kunlun sect leader to come forward and take a look. Is there any difference between this Jade Dragon Token and the one from four years ago?"

He Shannai and Master Zhikong both stood up and looked at it, then shook their heads and said, "There is no difference at all."

Lies!

The dark figure covered her mouth, almost screaming. She clearly saw that the fake jade dragon token in Gu Xiju's hand was white with a bluish tinge, completely different in color from the mutton-fat jade in her sleeve. Such an obvious difference was obvious at a glance, so why were these people lying through their teeth?

Gu Xiju held the Lucky Jade Dragon Token out in his palm and walked around the arena openly, asking all the more than ten respected sect leaders present, and the answer he received was always, "This token is genuine."

He then retrieved his token and stood in the center of the arena with a smile: "Does the leader still have any doubts?" Gu Xiju bowed to Shi Duoduo with a respectful but not arrogant gesture.

Shi Duo looked around and saw that he was isolated and helpless, and had not received any support. Based on the principle of "it's better to avoid trouble," he bowed and said, "I apologize for the offense, but I have no further objections."

Gu Xiju smiled, picked up the token again, dipped it in red clay, and pressed it down onto the gold and silk.