Chapter 360: Single Party (I)

At night, the heavy rain continued and the cold wind continued.

The lights in Xunyang Tower were bright, and people from various factions were sitting upstairs and downstairs. Tonight, Kunlun faction hosted the party, and Yin Baimei personally came out to toast and thank all the friends for their generous help.

At this time, Xunyang Tower was full of distinguished guests, friends like clouds, delicacies from land and sea, delicious food and fine wine. Everyone raised their eyebrows and beards, raised their glasses and drank happily, all of them were in high spirits and had a great time.

Outside the building, the clouds are turbulent, the wind is strong and the rain is heavy. Inside the building, people are drinking and chatting, and the cups and plates are in a mess. The same hustle and bustle implies different moods, and the excitement is so lively that one forgets everything else.

"Boom!"

Accompanied by a thunderous roar that shook the earth, a man wearing a straw hat and a raincoat came running in the rain, treading on the water, and strode into Xunyang Tower.

The sudden appearance of the "raincoat guest" instantly broke the noise in the building. Everyone held their breath and looked at the rain-soaked uninvited guest in silence, with suspicious expressions on their faces.

In the blink of an eye, Xunyang Tower was completely silent and as quiet as death.

"I am Liu Xunyi, and I am here to pay a visit to Master Yin of Kunlun Sect on the orders of the Northern Sage King! You all don't have to look at me covetously. I come here alone tonight, without a sword or a knife, but with a sincere heart."

Facing thousands of sharp gazes like knives and swords, Liu Xunyi remained neither humble nor arrogant, and spoke with great force.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he slowly took off his hat, took off his raincoat that had been soaked by the rain, and then dusted off his robe with his hands, as if to dispel the coldness on his robe.

"Looking for clothes!"

“Brother Liu!”

When they saw Liu Xunyi, Deng Changchuan and Ling Qing, who were sitting on the second floor, exclaimed in unison.

At this moment, the two of them sat in the same row as the other guests, and were not tied up or stabbed with swords. However, around them, there were several tables of masters from Kunlun Sect and Jinjianwu. Therefore, they regarded the fine wine and delicacies in front of them as white wax and dry grass, and had no interest in them at all.

In fact, with Deng Changchuan and Ling Qing's martial arts, if they forcefully attacked, even if they could not escape from the heavy siege, they could still make the other party pay a very painful price. The reason why they chose to forbear was because they were concerned about the relationship between the Xianwang Mansion and Kunlun Sect, and they did not want to fight to the death with Yin Baimei and make the Northern Xianwang lose another friend.

If not, they would not endure humiliation and live as prisoners even if they died in Jiangzhou.

"Where is the Northern Sage King?"

Yin Baimei sat high up on the third floor, looking down at Liu Xunyi with a cold gaze, and said in a deep voice: "Are you the only one here tonight?"

At this moment, Jin Fu Yu, who was sitting not far away, had a calm expression and a peaceful mind, as if everything happening before his eyes had nothing to do with him.

"Yes." Liu Xunyi bowed to Yin Baimei and said humbly, "The mansion master is busy with many things and has no time to travel far, so he specially ordered me to come and apologize to Master Yin. What's more, Master Jinwu has named me in black and white, how dare I disobey?"

"No need to waste time talking nonsense." Yin Baimei waved his hand and asked impatiently, "What are you doing here?"

"Not long ago, Sect Master Yin invited Master Fifth Deng, Sect Master Ling, and some disciples of Xianwang Mansion to stay as guests in Jiangzhou." Liu Xunyi replied calmly, "Today, I am following the orders of the Mansion Master to summon them back to the Mansion. Right now, Xianwang Mansion has many mundane affairs and is in need of people. I hope Sect Master Yin will help."

"They are the distinguished guests of Kunlun Sect. I will always treat them with courtesy and will not be negligent in the slightest. As for their stay or departure, it is entirely up to them. No one in Kunlun Sect will hinder them in any way." Yin Baimei said with a half-smile, "If they want to leave, they can leave at any time."

"Master Yin, you..."

"It's just that!" Before Ling Qing could scold him, Yin Baimei suddenly changed the subject and said, "On the first day of March, I gave the Northern Sage King a huge favor. Now, the Northern Sage King still owes me a satisfactory explanation. I wonder if Sect Master Liu can come with him?"

Hearing this, Liu Xunyi's expression changed slightly, and a hint of hesitation emerged between his brows. After thinking it over again and again, he bowed and said, "Master Yin, may I ask for your permission to talk..."

"No need!" Yin Baimei made a prompt decision, showing no mercy to Liu Xunyi, and sneered, "Although 'family disgrace should not be made public', but by now, the fact that Jueqing Valley 'stole the master' is no longer a secret. As the saying goes, a gentleman is open and honest, while a villain is always worried. I am not afraid of being laughed at by the heroes of the world, so I will just speak frankly. In order to protect Jueqing Valley from a catastrophic disaster, the Northern Sage King is willing to let the Kunlun Sect swallow his anger. What is his intention?"

As soon as these words were spoken, there was an uproar in Xunyang Tower.

Looking at Liu Xunyi again, his face had turned extremely ugly. He thought Yin Baimei would take the Kunlun Sect's reputation into consideration and make a big deal out of a small matter. But he never expected that he would disregard his dignity and expose the scandal in public. "This..."

Liu Xunyi was in a state of confusion, and his mind was in a mess. However, due to the current situation, he could not keep silent. After some hesitation, he could only bite the bullet and stammer, "It was just a misunderstanding... The Palace Master was helping Master Yin. Kunlun sent a long-distance attack, and the troops were exhausted, while Jueqing Valley defended its stronghold and waited for the enemy to tire out. As one side gained, the other lost, and Kunlun disciples were bound to suffer..."

"Since there are such concerns, why didn't Lord Luo stand up earlier and uphold justice for the Kunlun Sect?" Gong Qing, the left emissary of the Qingcheng Sect, challenged, "On the second day of August last year, the martial arts sects signed an alliance in Hexi. The Qinhuai River is temporarily the boundary, and the north and south are governed. When something happens, they must first inform each other, and the person in charge will call everyone together to discuss it. May I ask Lord Liu, as the person in charge of the northern martial arts, why did the Northern Sage King know that there was a rift between the Kunlun Sect and the Jueqing Valley, but still turned a blind eye and did nothing?"

Liu Xunyi said perfunctorily: "This is a private matter of Kunlun Sect. Sect Leader Yin did not take the initiative to ask for help. How can Lord Luo intervene rashly?"

"Oh?" Emei disciple Hui Qiu pretended to be enlightened and said sarcastically, "Lord Luo can't interfere with Kunlun Sect, but can interfere with Jueqing Valley. Isn't this contradictory?"

"That's right!" Someone echoed, "Kunlun Sect is one of the six major sects, and we are fellow martial artists. Jueqing Valley is a heretical sect that has committed many evil deeds, and any righteous man in the martial arts world can kill it. What is the intention of the Northern Sage King to abandon his fellow sect and get close to this heresy? Isn't he afraid that the heroes of the world will be disappointed by doing this?"

"Back then, the Northern Sage King hated the four major heretical religions to the core. He repeatedly warned his fellow martial artists that they should not coexist with them. What happened today? Could it be that Lord Luo's impassioned speeches in the past were just a show?"

"As everyone knows, the Jueqing Valley and the Xianwang Mansion have been fighting constantly over the years. The hatred accumulated by your two families far exceeds that of other sects. Now, why did the Northern Xianwang suddenly change his attitude? He actually repaid his enemy with kindness?"

……

For a moment, noise broke out in Xunyang Tower. The voices of doubt were like sharp swords and knives, piercing Liu Xunyi's heart, making him dizzy and overwhelmed.

"Everyone, listen to me!"

Suddenly, Leng Kongyang's voice drowned out the noise of the crowd, and the noisy scene gradually quieted down.

Facing the helpless and confused Liu Xunyi, Leng Kongyang's eyes were full of teasing, with a trace of contemptuous smile on his lips, and he teased: "Now that things have come to this, you don't have to cover up for the Northern Sage King. Others don't know, but I have seen the charm of the Lord of the Heartless Valley with my own eyes. She is a charming and beautiful woman. Why don't you make it clear? What is the secret history between the Northern Sage King and Xiao Zhirou?"

"Oh!"

Before he finished speaking, Ling Qing immediately slammed the table and stood up, shouting angrily: "Leng Kongyang, stop slandering people with evil words and spreading rumors. Be careful not to damage your virtue!"

"What Elder Leng said is absolutely ridiculous!" Liu Xunyi said coldly, "Last year, when you met the Lord of Jueqing Valley, I was also there. The Lord of Jueqing Valley always wore a veil, and outsiders could not see her true face at all. How can Elder Leng be so charming? How can she be so beautiful that she can topple a country?"

"Hehe, young people are young people after all." Leng Kongyang sneered indifferently, "Men have a natural intuition about women. Is she beautiful or ugly? How is her charm? There is no need to look into each other's eyes face to face. If she is a natural beauty, just one action or a word of anger is enough to reveal everything. Well! Seeing that you are still young, I am afraid you have not tasted the taste of a woman yet..."

"Ha ha……"

Leng Kongyang's joke immediately caused everyone to burst into laughter, which made Liu Xunyi feel ashamed and angry, and she felt embarrassed.

Deng Changchuan could no longer endure it and angrily shouted, "Leng Kongyang, you are an elder of a sect after all. How can you say such shameless and vulgar words? You are even more shameless than a street scoundrel!"

After that, Deng Changchuan cast his sharp eyes towards Yin Baimei again, and angrily said: "Master Yin, is this the high and mighty conduct that the Kunlun Sect boasts about, winning over the people with virtue?"

"This……"

Being questioned by Deng Changchuan, Yin Baimei suddenly felt ashamed. He used a gloomy look to intimidate the unscrupulous and outspoken Leng Kongyang.

Seeing this, Yin Hefeng hurriedly changed the subject and stood up and said, "What Junior Brother said is indeed inappropriate. I am willing to apologize to the Northern Sage King on his behalf. But one thing is one thing. Lord Luo stood up for Jueqing Valley for no reason and made our Kunlun Sect endure humiliation and let bygones be bygones for the matter of 'stealing teachers'. Shouldn't this matter give us a reasonable explanation? It is true that we respect the Northern Sage King, but we cannot confuse gratitude and resentment, right and wrong, and just believe whatever the Northern Sage King says. After all, we are just friends of Lord Luo, not his servants. Our sect gives face to the Northern Sage King, so shouldn't the Northern Sage King also give us a little respect?"

"He Feng is absolutely right." Yin Baimei's expression changed, and he said seriously, "Liu Xunyi, your explanation just now is clearly specious and full of loopholes. How can I be convinced?"

“This…” Under the aggressive questioning, Liu Xunyi couldn’t help but look embarrassed. After hesitating for a long time, he nodded reluctantly and said, “In fact, the Northern Sage King hindered the fight between Kunlun Sect and Jueqing Valley, and he also had… a selfish motive.”

……

(End of this chapter)