Chapter 312 Chaos in Tianshan (I)

Winter comes and summer goes, things change and time passes.

When Liu Xunyi went out of Yumen to the west, late autumn had passed and cold winter had arrived.

The Gobi Desert is thousands of miles long, with biting cold winds and drifting frost and snow. If there is no inn to stay, travelers can only travel day and night without stopping for a moment. Even if they are tired, they can only take a short break at noon when the sun is at its highest. Because at other times it is freezing cold, and if they are distracted, they may fall asleep forever.

This trip to the Western Regions was a secret in the government, so Liu Xunyi only brought three people with him, Tang Cong, Liao Chuan, and Liao Hai. Although they had not been with Liu Xunyi for a long time, they had experienced many twists and turns, and they were able to share the joys and sorrows and be loyal to each other.

After heading west from Yumen Pass and galloping for several days, the group finally entered the territory of Bancheng as promised.

At noon, several people stood on horseback outside the east gate of Bancheng. Liu Xunyi looked up and couldn't help but have a lot of thoughts in his mind.

Last year, he parted ways with Tang Afu and Su He here. Today, when he revisited the place, he found that the city gate was still there, the people were the same as usual, but he was no longer the Liu Xunyi of the past.

He thought that he would never set foot in the Western Regions again in his lifetime, but he did not expect that he would return after only one year. The passage of time, the changes of things and people, this feeling of being in another world, made him even more emotional and sighed.

"Master, Miss Xunzhen said in the letter that she would meet us at Yangchun Inn in Bancheng on the eighth day of the eleventh month." Tang Cong spread out Xunzhen's secret letter and said aloud, "Today is the ninth day of the eleventh month. We are one day later than the agreed time. I believe Miss Xunzhen has been waiting for us at Yangchun Inn."

"After entering the city, put away your swords and knives, keep a low profile, and be patient when encountering troubles. Don't cause trouble." Liu Xunyi warned, "This place is not like the Central Plains. There are all kinds of people, good and bad. If something happens to us here, I'm afraid there won't even be anyone to collect the bodies."

After escaping death last year, Liu Xunyi is still haunted by the chaotic situation in the Western Regions.

"Yes."

"Enter the city!"

Yangchun Inn is located in the west of the city. Liu Xunyi and three others rode on horseback, passing through the streets and alleys, attracting many people's attention along the way.

Curiosity, suspicion, scrutiny, and even provocation. Although they had disguised themselves, the characteristics of the Han people still attracted many foreigners who looked at them with ill intentions.

The people walking on the street had different expressions and attitudes, which made Tang Cong and the Liao brothers feel uncomfortable.

"Master, why are these people always staring at us?" Liao Chuan asked in a low voice, "We don't know them at all, what's there to see?"

"That's right." Tang Cong agreed with a sad face, "Being stared at by women is fine, but now I'm being stared at by a group of big men with body odor. I feel uncomfortable all over."

"This is the custom here, there's no need to make a fuss." Liu Xunyi said with a faint smile, "As long as we don't take the initiative to provoke them, they will just watch and will never do anything excessive. You don't have to pay attention to them, they will find it boring and disperse soon."

"It's my first time in the Western Regions, and I feel like I've been taken advantage of." Tang Cong curled his lips and said, "It's fine if they just watch, but they're actually whispering to each other, mumbling some nonsense. I have a feeling these bastards are holding back their farts!"

"Ha ha……"

Tang Cong's words immediately caused a burst of laughter from the Liao brothers.

"Many ethnic groups gather here, including Han, Mongolian, Turkic, Khitan, Tibetan, etc. They speak different languages, so it's not surprising that they can't understand each other." Liu Xunyi said, "They also can't understand you. If they knew you called them 'bastards', how could they remain indifferent?"

"It's good that you don't understand. I just want to vent my anger." Hearing this, Tang Cong suddenly became energetic and cursed unscrupulously, "Look, what's there to see? If you look again, I'll dig out the eyes of you bastards..."

"Be careful that some of them can understand Chinese."

Liu Xunyi's sudden reminder made Tang Cong's face change suddenly. He quickly closed his mouth and looked around in panic, fearing that his rude words would cause unnecessary trouble.

Seeing this, Liu Xunyi and the Liao brothers laughed again, causing Tang Cong to roll his eyes in indignation.

While chatting and laughing, the group arrived at Yangchun Inn.

"follow me!"

From afar, Abaolu was seen waiting outside the door. Without waiting for Liu Xunyi to come forward to greet him, Abaolu said something coldly and turned to walk towards the second floor of the inn.

Faced with Abaolu, who was as gloomy as water and as cold as ice, Liu Xunyi and the others could not help but look at each other in embarrassment.

In a guest room on the second floor of the inn, Liu Xunyi and his friends finally saw Xunzhen, whom they had been thinking about day and night. Today, Xunzhen was still dressed as a man, dressed like a scholar, with a handsome appearance and extraordinary demeanor.

"Master Liu, I haven't seen you for a long time. How are you doing?"

"Thanks to Miss Xunzhen, everything is fine." Liu Xunyi bowed his hands and apologized, "The day after we left Yumen, our horse died suddenly in the Gobi Desert, so we were delayed for a day. I hope you can forgive me."

After the greetings, everyone sat down. At this time, Xunzhen was accompanied by only Abaolu, while Xiao Yang, Su Hu, Xun Budao, and other masters of the three religions in the Western Regions followed Xie Xuan to the Central Plains.

This is why Abaolu is dissatisfied with Liu Xunyi. At present, he is the only one protecting Xunzhen. If he stays in a strange place for a moment longer, it will be more dangerous. Liu Xunyi was late for a whole day, which made Abaolu nervous and worried. If Xunzhen met with an accident on this day, Abaolu would tear Liu Xunyi into pieces and grind his bones to ashes.

Fortunately, everything went as usual and there were no accidents.

"I heard that Master Liu jumped off a cliff in Jueqing Valley to show his determination. His courage is commendable and admirable!" Xunzhen looked Liu Xunyi up and down with her beautiful eyes and asked with interest, "What was the result? I wonder what the relationship is between Master Luo and the master of Jueqing Valley?"

This question alone is enough to demonstrate Xunzhen's extraordinary qualities.

First, she was far away in the Western Regions, but she knew everything about the Central Plains. Second, she did not ask about the grievances between the Xianwang Mansion and Jueqing Valley, but directly pointed the finger at Luo Tianjin and Xiao Zhirou, and even used the word "connection".

It is not difficult to see that Xunzhen already had some speculations about this matter in his mind.

"I am also confused by the twists and turns of the matter." Liu Xunyi shook his head and said, "But the Palace Master has already ordered that he will solve this matter personally, and outsiders do not need to interfere."

Xunzhen saw that Liu Xunyi was deliberately perfunctory, so he stopped asking questions and nodded gently, then recited inexplicably: "We are happy to meet each other, but I go up to the west tower alone without saying a word. The moon is like a hook, and the lonely Wutong tree in the deep courtyard is locked in the autumn. It is the sorrow of separation that cannot be cut off and cannot be sorted out, and it is a different kind of feeling in my heart."

Hearing this, Liu Xunyi couldn't help but be secretly shocked and asked suspiciously: "Miss Xunzhen, what are you doing..."

"Well!" Xunzhen replied with a half-smile, "As the saying goes, 'the one who tied the bell can untie it'. It is indeed inappropriate for outsiders to interfere in the grievances between Lord Luo and Lord Xiao."

Although Xunzhen did not put it explicitly, the deep meaning in her words was self-evident, which made Liu Xunyi smack her lips in amazement.

"Let's not talk about the Central Plains. We are now in the Western Regions, so we should focus on the Jade Dragon Palace." Seeing Liu Xunyi's strange look of wanting to say something but not being able to, Xunzhen suddenly changed the subject and said with a smile, "I wonder what Master Liu's plans are for this trip?"

"To be honest, I came here specifically to follow Miss Xunzhen's orders." Liu Xunyi straightened up and flattered, "Before I left, the palace master specifically told me that Miss Xunzhen is the boss of Yulong Palace and I am the follower."

"Why? Sect Master Liu has already backed out before even meeting Ren Wuya?" Xunzhen smiled in a cryptic manner, "It seems that the incident on the second day of August had a great impact on Sect Master Liu. As a result, Sect Master Liu, who was once full of confidence, has become timid and hesitant today, and even... is pretending to be nice and pretentious?"

"Before you think about winning, you should think about losing. I learned this from the mansion master and Miss Xunzhen." Liu Xunyi was not angry, but said self-deprecatingly, "The second day of August was an unforgettable lesson for me. I still remember it vividly."

"If that's the case, why doesn't Master Liu go back to where you came from?" Xunzhen's eyes darkened, and he said in a veiled tone, "Since I'm the master and you're the follower, what does it matter whether you're here or not?"

"If Miss Xunzhen insists on doing so, I will of course obey your orders. It would be disrespectful to refuse." Liu Xunyi smiled and said calmly.

"boom!"

Upon hearing this, Abaolu flew into a rage, slammed the table and stood up, angrily shouting: "Liu, you don't know what's good for you."

"When is your turn to speak here?"

Seeing this, Tang Cong and the Liao brothers quickly stood up, glared at Abaolu and retorted.

"What are you doing?" Liu Xunyi's face darkened and he asked in a cold voice, "Do you want to rebel? Sit down!"

"Master Liu, since you don't want to rebel, why do you have to be so pretentious in front of me?" Xunzhen smiled instead of getting angry, slowly picked up the teacup, and said calmly, "If Lord Luo really trusted me, why would he send you to monitor me? Since he sent you here, it is enough to show that Lord Luo trusts you the most. After all, you are from the Xianwang Mansion, and I am not. I am just Lord Luo's friend. And you are his 'confidant'."

Xunzhen's last sentence implied his intention, as if he was "threatening" Liu Xunyi.

Liu Xunyi's face changed color, and she whispered: "Miss Xunzhen, please don't misunderstand. The Palace Master has never doubted you..."

"Master Liu, you don't need to explain." Xunzhen shook his head and smiled, "In fact, it doesn't matter whether Master Luo believes me or not. What's important is that we must work together to complete this task and must not be preempted by the people of Jinjianwu. Among the four major heretical sects in the martial arts world, Yulong Palace is the strongest. If Ren Wuya can help, both Xianwang Palace and Jinjianwu will be like a tiger with wings. On the contrary, without the support of Yulong Palace, one will lose the other and it will be difficult for one tree to support. At this juncture, whoever can get the help of Yulong Palace will have a better chance of winning in next year's martial arts conference. Therefore, Master Luo and Jin Fuyu are determined to get Yulong Palace and are willing to pay any price for it. Master Liu, am I right?"

"That's exactly what you said." Liu Xunyi nodded and said, "That's why I want to serve you as my master. After all, you and the Jade Dragon Palace have a close relationship, but I have a grudge against the Jade Dragon Palace."

"You are not the only one who has had a grudge against the Jade Dragon Palace?" Xunzhen snorted and laughed, "Nowadays, almost everyone who wants to win over Ren Wuya has had a grudge against the Jade Dragon Palace, just more or less, openly or secretly."

"What do you mean?" Liu Xunyi heard a clue from Xunzhen's words and said hesitantly, "Could it be that... besides us and Jinjianwu, there are other forces coming to the Western Regions?"

"Yes." Xunzhen nodded gently, smiling, "And he's an old acquaintance of yours."

"Old acquaintance?" Liu Xunyi was shocked when he heard this and asked hurriedly, "Who?"

"The fastest swordsman in Mobei, Su He."

……

(End of this chapter)