Bai Mo looked at the Map of Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains skeptically for a good while.
[Then you aren’t damaged, are you?]
If it were damaged, the Emperor would make him pay for it when they got back, and he certainly could not afford that.
[I am just a bit hungry and cannot fly anymore.]
The Map of Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains looked particularly pitiful with its cat-like eyes.
Bai Mo’s fur immediately stood on end. [Holy crap, and you still claim you didn’t come to snatch my food? I don’t believe a word you say.]
[Hmph, if I run out of energy and fall into a deep sleep, I won’t be able to help you anymore,] the Map of Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains said arrogantly.
Bai Mo thought about it. He currently had no spiritual power, and the taekwondo he had learned in his previous life was completely useless in this world. He really had to rely on this broken map. Unwillingly, he handed one of the fish to the Map of Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains.
[You had better remember what you said today. Also, give me a few of your smallest, lowest-yield bombs.]
The Map of Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains happily took the fish and dropped five soybean-sized bombs into Bai Mo’s palm.
Zaizai watched in confusion. There were clearly two fish just now, so how did one disappear in the blink of an eye?
“Awoo!”
“Don’t cry, don’t cry. I will share half of this one with you. Now that we have the proper gear, we can go back to the pond to get more after we finish eating this,” Bai Mo said. He placed the explosives into the small cloth pouch hanging from his waist and generously shared half of the fish in his hand with Zaizai.
After eating, Bai Mo took Zaizai back to the edge of the lotus pond. He looked around. Excellent, no one was there. He swiftly took out one of the bombs and threw it into the pond.
Boom! A loud explosion rang out.
Water splashed everywhere.
Looking at the fish floating on the water surface with their white bellies upturned, Bai Mo was so thrilled he almost jumped for joy. This was more than enough. He bent down to take off his shoes, but catching sight of Zaizai and then looking at his own clean clothes, he stood right back up.
“Zaizai, go down and retrieve those fish.”
Seeing that Zaizai did not budge, he tried to entice it, “I will give you half of them to eat later.”
Hearing this, Zaizai happily leaped into the pond to fetch them.
Some disciples heard the commotion and ran over. When they saw Bai Mo standing by the pond and the Valley Master’s dog swimming around with a fish in its mouth, they made their own assumptions. They had met Chu Yan before, so they figured the noise just now must have been caused by Master Chu practicing his martial arts. Master Chu had only just recovered from his illness, yet his internal power seemed to have progressed significantly.
Seeing that nothing else was amiss aside from some dead fish in the pond, they greeted Bai Mo and left.
Mo Bei heard the noise and rushed over in a hurry. While others did not know who this guy really was, he was someone who knew the truth.
“Instead of staying quietly in your room, what are you doing running out here?” But when he saw the massive, pale sheet of fish floating in the pond, he gasped. “What did you do? Do you have any idea? Those are the fish Brother Yan gave to Master! Master treasures them so much!”
He was so angry he wanted to hit someone. If this guy were still paralyzed, he would definitely have gone up and thrown a few punches.
Bai Mo smiled and spread his hands. “Just practicing my martial arts and loosening up my muscles. I didn’t expect these fish to be so fragile. Since they have all passed away, and I wouldn’t want your master to feel sad seeing their corpses, I reluctantly had Zaizai clear the pond. It would be a waste to throw these fish away. How about we roast and eat them?”
Mo Bei swallowed his saliva. “Are you really sure you didn’t do it on purpose?”
Bai Mo nodded. “Yes. I have just recovered from my illness, so I didn’t know this body possessed such great agility. Hehe, I will be more careful next time.”
“You still want a next time?”
Bai Mo quickly waved his hands. “No, no, absolutely not. Just this once.”
This time, he could eat his fill. Having this meal would keep him satisfied and off fish for half a month. As for the future, if he just ran a bit faster and didn’t get caught, who would ever know it was him?
Mo Bei thought about it. The fish had been gifted by Brother Yan, and since this person possessed Brother Yan’s face, Master probably would not punish him.
“Then let’s hurry up and roast them, so Master won’t feel sad when he returns and sees this.” He certainly would not admit that he also wanted to eat them.
Having secured another accomplice, Bai Mo had Mo Bei fetch a wooden bucket. The two of them cheerfully carried the half-filled bucket of fish toward the kitchen.
Mo Luo’an was still unaware that more than half of the fish he had meticulously cared for had been eaten. At this moment, he was in an inn at the foot of Jiyun Peak. For some reason today, his eyelid had been twitching constantly. He hoped nothing major had happened back in the valley.
Knock, knock.
A knock on the door pulled him out of his daze.
“Come in.”
A masked man dressed in black entered. He walked up to Mo Luo’an and removed his mask, revealing a handsome and clean-shaven face.
“Mo Xiao, did you find anything?”
“Your subordinate is incompetent. I did not find the Peacock Feather or the Bloodthread Silver. However, I discovered that the Holy Sovereign of the Yanyue Sect seems to be injured and is currently in secluded cultivation.”
The Yanyue Sect was heavily guarded. He had lingered outside for several days before finding an opportunity to sneak in, but the interior was guarded even more rigorously, with patrols everywhere. He had managed with great difficulty to approach the main hall, but before he could infiltrate the devil’s living quarters, he was discovered by Qin Hao, the Left Protector of the sect. Qin Hao’s martial arts skills were slightly superior to his own, and he had barely escaped with his life.
Seeing that Mo Xiao was injured, Mo Luo’an stood up and stepped forward to examine him. They were only superficial wounds. Seeing that the injuries were not severe, Mo Luo’an took out a medicine vial from his robe and handed it to Mo Xiao.
“We will stay put and not make any moves for the next few days. Go down and rest first.”
“Yes, your subordinate takes his leave.”
Mo Luo’an sat back down and pondered. The Yanyue Sect was a sect that hovered between orthodox and unorthodox. Ever since the battle thirty years ago between the former sect leader of the Yanyue Sect and the sect master of the Linglan Sect, where the defeated Yanyue Sect agreed to two hundred years of peaceful coexistence, they had strictly adhered to this promise.
To think that only thirty years had passed. Could this newly appointed sect leader want to break the agreement? Was targeting Peacock Villa their opening move? He had examined Uncle Chu’s body; his internal organs had been shattered to pieces. From what he knew, the only people capable of such immense internal power, aside from the Yanyue Sect leader who specialized in internal cultivation, were the sect master of the Linglan Sect and its grand elders.
However, one could not rule out other rogue cultivators. The Linglan Sect was an orthodox sect on the path of cultivation, so they likely would not commit such a cruel act. Furthermore, items belonging to the Yanyue Sect were found at the scene, and this devil happened to be injured at this exact time, which made it even more suspicious.
While the people of the Yanyue Sect acted entirely as they pleased, they had not committed any atrocities over the last thirty years. This region was fertile, and many commoners had settled here, making Xiaoyao Town exceptionally bustling. Over the past few days in town, Mo Luo’an had also heard many commoners express gratitude toward the Yanyue Sect, mentioning that members of the sect would come down the mountain to help them.
Medicine King Valley remained completely neutral, positioning itself outside the conflicts of good and evil as healers. As for whether the Yanyue Sect had truly mended its ways or was merely winning over the public’s hearts, he did not speculate further.
Mo Luo’an recalled how he and Chu Yan first met. It was because Madam Chu was in poor health, and Villa Master Chu frequently brought her to the valley to seek medicine. Mo Luo’an remembered the first time he met Chu Yan; at that time, he was seven years old, and Chu Yan was five. It was a winter day with heavy, swirling snow.
Because the young Mo Luo’an had failed to memorize the names of the medicinal herbs, he was punished by his master, the old Valley Master, to sort through the herbs. Since it was snowing, both of his hands had turned purple from the cold. Just as he was on the verge of tears, a lovely, smiling face appeared in front of him.
The young boy was dressed in green robes, wearing a fox fur cloak.
“Brother, it is snowing. Why don’t you go inside?”
“I still have these medicinal herbs to sort through.”
“Brother, your hands are completely purple from the cold. You will fall sick,” the young Chu Yan said, reaching up to untie his fox fur cloak. “Brother, this is for you. It is very warm. Put it on, and you will feel hot.”
“If you give it to me, what about you?”
“A-Yan is wearing thick clothes and is not afraid of the cold. Brother, put it on quickly,” the young Chu Yan said as he placed the cloak into the young Mo Luo’an’s hands. “Brother, your hands are so cold. Let me help you put it on.”
Standing on his tiptoes, the young Chu Yan strained to drape his favorite cloak over the young Mo Luo’an. He then took the young Mo Luo’an’s hands, brought them to his mouth, and gently blew his warm breath over them.
“Brother, does it feel warmer now?”
Looking down at this little brother who was half a head shorter than him and feeling his kindness, the young Mo Luo’an was deeply touched.
“Yes, thank you. My name is Mo Luo’an. What is your name?”
“My name is Chu Yan. Brother can call me A-Yan. Brother, do you need to separate these? A-Yan will help you.”
The young Mo Luo’an nodded and smiled. “Okay.”