After a few rounds, the two women had gradually learned the knack. In the end, they simply sealed their hearing and even their eyesight to the level of an ordinary person. In this way, the wins and losses began to vary more. Li Yan, with a wry smile, had already drunk nearly two jars. On the other side, Li Yu, Li Shan, and the others, fueled by the wine, their spirits soared even higher. Although a few had already passed out drunk, more people had gathered around, and in the end, they also joined in. Even some women, girls, and children all participated. It was just that they did not all join Li Yu and Li Shan's side, but many had joined Zhao Min and their side.
The two women were also extremely interested, like two sprites in the moonlight. From time to time, they would also start to run back and forth between the wine table and the area where the locust leaves were hidden. Later, they also began to whisper in the ears of some children and girls, analyzing where the other party might have hidden them, and then directing the children to go. When a child returned with a string of locust leaves held high, their eyes would also curve into crescents. When they failed, their beautiful brows would furrow tightly, and they would listen to others' suggestions...
With the moon hanging high in the sky, the night was already deep, but cheers would erupt in the mountain village from time to time.
In the distance, Uncle Chang and a few of the village elders were squinting, occasionally picking up a cup of wine. With a "zizi" sound, they would take a sip, a long-lost smile on their faces...
It was not until dawn that the families dispersed, leaving only a fresh new day to arrive.
In the days that followed, Li Yan lived a long-lost life of an ordinary person. He took off his long robe and put on a coarse cloth short shirt, went down to the fields to harvest, and threshed and winnowed the wheat in the yard.
Zhao Min and Gong Chenying seemed to have forgotten about Li Yan as well. Zhao Min and Auntie Chang took a winnowing basket and went to the head of the village to pick strings of locust flowers. When they returned home, Auntie Chang would teach her step-by-step how to add chopped green onions, flour, salt, and so on, making various kinds of locust flower cakes for lunch, locust flower and pork dumplings for dinner, and locust flower and egg custard for breakfast. Zhao Min was extremely serious in learning each one. Although she made mistakes from time to time, with an expert like Auntie Chang, who had been immersed in home cooking for decades, by her side, and with Xiao Yu helping out from time to time, the food was quite delicious. This made Zhao Min have a faint smile on her face every time she saw the satisfied expressions on the faces of Li Yan's family as they ate.
Gong Chenying, on the other hand, was like a sacred hand of medicine descending upon the world. Under Li Yan's instruction, she deliberately prolonged the treatment of Li Wei's leg ailment, but after seven or eight days, the limp that had troubled Li Wei for nearly ten years was actually healed. This shocked everyone, whether it was Li Wei himself or the villagers. In addition, Gong Chenying subsequently treated and recuperated Uncle Chang and Auntie Chang. Not only did she cure some of their chronic ailments, but with the secret help of medicinal pills, the two, who had already shown signs of old age, actually looked ten-odd years younger, their faces rosy and their skin regaining its luster.
In this way, all the old and young in the village immediately regarded Gong Chenying as a fairy descending to the world. After some hesitation, a few of them also came to seek medical treatment with trepidation. And Gong Chenying, although a woman of few words, did not refuse these villagers and treated them one by one. In the end, more and more villagers came to seek medical treatment.
For a time, Gong Chenying's fame and the name of a divine doctor were known to everyone in the village. Even the figures of Li Yan and Zhao Min were overshadowed. But in this way, the other nearby mountain villages also knew about this matter and also came one after another. At first, Gong Chenying still treated all who came. But gradually, things lost their flavor. She not only did not charge for the consultation, but she also did not take any money for the medicine. This led to an endless stream of people seeking medical treatment, and the number grew larger and larger. Sometimes, people seeking medical treatment would not sleep all night and would travel dozens of li of mountain roads to come and queue. This left Gong Chenying with no time for quiet contemplation.
When Li Guoxin saw this, he immediately flew into a rage. First, he gave some of the women in the village a harsh scolding. Most of this matter was because they had previously spread the news of Gong Chenying's divine medical skills to their own families. Then he chased them all back to their families, telling them to clean up their own mess, otherwise they shouldn't come back to the village.
Li Guoxin had an absolute status in the village. He was supported by a group of old people like Uncle Chang. In addition, whether it was his fairness in handling matters or his bravery in hunting, he was top-notch in the village. Once he got angry, except for a few elders, every family in the village was as quiet as a cicada in winter. Although those women cried and wailed, they really didn't dare to stay in the village any longer. Under the stern scolding of their own men, they had to pack their bags and go back to their families.
Li Guoxin then organized the young and strong men of the village to set up a checkpoint directly at the entrance of the mountain, refusing all outsiders to enter. In this way, although the people who came were extremely dissatisfied, they did not dare to force their way in. One reason was that Li Guoxin was one of the best fighters in the surrounding area. The second reason was that this divine doctor was said to be the wife of the Li family in their village, and she was also said to be a high official in the court. The authenticity of these words was sworn to by those women who had returned to their families. How could they dare to use force? If they were not careful and angered them, it would be a small matter for them to bring soldiers and kill them directly.
In this way, the matter finally slowly subsided. Li Yan knew about this matter and could only shake his head with a wry smile. It seemed that he had miscalculated. Being a good person was not so easy.
In the days that followed, life finally returned to peace. Gong Chenying, like Zhao Min, was kept by Auntie Chang and Xiao Yu's side at all times, and they didn't give the village women any chance to get close. They took the two women to pickle demonic beast meat, pick wild garlic, make pancakes, and make all kinds of snacks. For a time, the two women also enjoyed themselves. Gradually, they even began to compete with each other to see whose food was more delicious, having long forgotten about the cultivator's practice of abstaining from grain.
During this period, Li Yan secretly observed the people in the village with his Divine Sense and spiritual energy, especially Little Wu's constitution. But in the end, he was extremely disappointed. No one in the village had a spiritual root, which directly extinguished some of his initial thoughts. What gratified Li Yan slightly was that his eldest sister and fourth sister, Li Xiaozhu, also rushed back after receiving the news. When the siblings met, it was another scene of sighs. When the two sisters saw Gong Chenying and Zhao Min again, they almost rubbed their eyes blind. In the end, they unceremoniously pulled Li Yan aside and asked him all sorts of questions, almost making Li Yan slip up on the two women's identities. It was not easy to satisfy the two sisters' curiosity. Li Yan quickly fled in disarray.
Li Yan's eldest sister and fourth sister also enthusiastically joined their mother's team. They even showed off their skills in embroidery and weaving, which made Gong Chenying and Zhao Min watch with envy. Not long after, with Xiao Yu, the five women became even more mixed together. Even the two sisters, who had originally intended to come back for a few days, kept delaying their departure and were unwilling to go back immediately. And Gong Chenying and Zhao Min also gave back many beauty-enhancing medicinal pills, which the eldest sister, second sister, and Xiao Yu regarded as treasures. Li Yan's second sister, however, had married too far away, and it was difficult to notify her, which made Li Yan a little regretful.
Li Yan found an opportunity and gave the ten thousand taels of gold to his father. Uncle Chang was so scared that he almost bit off his own tongue. Under Li Yan's suggestion, he felt that it was better for them to move to the city to live. After all, Little Wu could get a good education there. They couldn't just farm and hunt for a living for generations. But Uncle Chang couldn't bear to leave the place where his ancestors had lived. He directly pulled Li Wei aside and talked for a whole night. The next day, with red eyes, Li Wei went to Green Mountain Pass alone. As for the specific result, Li Yan didn't want to ask. He had already done what he could. With his mind at ease, he took out the "Wood Flow Sect" puppet entry-level technique that Bai Rou had given him and began to study it carefully. The small mountain village returned to its former life.
...
Hundreds of thousands of li away from the Great Green Mountains, in a place with fragrant birds and flowers, like a fairyland on earth, there were pavilions and towers, small bridges and flowing water, and many women with enchanting or beautiful and delicate appearances walking among them, or flying slowly through the ethereal clouds and mist like fairies in a celestial palace with their robes fluttering.
This place was a place that many young and talented cultivators yearned for. It was called the "Red Chan Sect." All its disciples were women. Although it was only a second-rate sect, and its influence only extended for about a thousand li, it was very famous in this area. One reason was that due to the special cultivation method in the "Red Chan Sect," all women who cultivated the Red Chan Sect's internal cultivation method would polarize in two directions. They would slowly become either beautiful and enchanting, able to captivate people's souls with a single move; or they would be fresh and beautiful, as pure as a fairy from a celestial palace. All this made many young male cultivators yearn for it, always thinking of having such a dual cultivation Dao Companion.
But not many people dared to act rashly and go to the "Red Chan Sect" after being overcome by lust. Because the sect master of this sect, "Fairy Hongzhu," was a great cultivator at the mid-stage of the Golden Core. Her cultivation was as aggressive as her temper, and her combat strength was also extremely formidable.
At this moment, in the main hall of the main peak of the back mountain of the Red Chan Sect, two people were standing inside. One was in a long red dress, her figure so hot that it was maddening. The already very loose long dress looked extremely tight on her full figure. The curves of her body were like being in the midst of towering peaks. Her three thousand black hairs were coiled into a cloud-like bun on top of her head. Her face was powdered and could topple cities. A trace of killing intent was in her phoenix eyes.
Beside her stood a middle-aged beautiful woman in a green gauze robe. This middle-aged beautiful woman was about thirty years old. Her face was free of any worldly air, like a lotus emerging from the water. But what was eye-catching was that with her fresh appearance, the green gauze long dress on her body was semi-transparent, and her snow-white skin, which could be broken by a puff of wind, was faintly visible. The full hips and crotch presented a heart-pounding arc. The large patches of white and tender skin amidst the faintly visible fiery desire created a blood-pumping contrast that drove people crazy. And her cultivation was also eye-catching, at the early stage of the Golden Core. At this moment, she was talking to the woman in the red dress with a face as calm as a virgin.
"Sect Master, did you summon your subordinate here for the news that came last night? This subordinate has already obtained some intelligence on this matter a while ago. I hear that there are other pieces looking for that thing everywhere. The specific result seems to be not optimistic."
Hearing this, the woman in the red dress's face did not show much fluctuation. "This matter seems to be extremely tricky. Otherwise, why would they think of us now? Didn't the message that came last night also want us to get involved in this matter? They also indicated that there should be three of that thing, but so far, not a single one has been found."
"Sect Master, how can we find that thing? Since there is a command this time, how should we search?" the middle-aged beautiful woman considered for a moment and then asked.
"This matter is easy to solve. A magical treasure will be sent over in these few days. I hear that as long as that thing appears within a radius of ten thousand li, this magical treasure will have a reaction. But this magical treasure is too precious. I hear that they also spent tens of thousands of years and used a large amount of manpower and financial resources to refine only three of them. From this, it can also be seen that at least two sects should be searching with all their strength now, but it is not known which sects they are," the hot-tempered woman in the red dress said faintly.
"We have always been in single-line contact and have no idea of the existence of any other sects. Even we have been hidden for hundreds of years, usually only doing some trivial things like gathering information. To be suddenly activated this time, it seems that the upper sect has already attached great importance to this matter," the beautiful woman said, unconsciously shifting her body slightly as she spoke. This movement was no big deal, but with the faint rolling of white, it made one's breath suffocate.
"Mm, the upper sect should have a big move this time. By the way, you have to manage those girls below well. Let them gather information according to their ability. Don't be like Cheng Huanqiao and Sun Meiqian last year, who didn't know their own depth and actually wanted to seduce a Malevolent Spirit Sect cultivator. In the end, they were seen through and lost their lives, and almost exposed the hidden line that had been painstakingly planted in the Malevolent Spirit Sect. If I hadn't deliberately made a big scene in the market afterward, it would definitely have aroused the suspicion of the Malevolent Spirit Sect." The woman in the red dress seemed to have suddenly remembered something. Her phoenix eyes narrowed, and a trace of anger appeared on her beautiful, stunning face. But this anger added a bit of heroic spirit.
Hearing this, the beautiful woman quickly bowed. "It was your subordinate's lax management. At that time, your subordinate was in seclusion to form a Golden Core. Cheng Huanqiao and Sun Meiqian thought that their seduction skills were accomplished, and after a few successful attempts, they became complacent and lost their lives in the end. I have already punished several elders for this matter, and the people below already know. It will definitely not happen again."
"That's good. You have to know what kind of sect the Malevolent Spirit Sect is. In the past year, it has seemed calm on the surface, but many sects have quietly disappeared. I guess that these disappeared sects were either hidden pieces like us, and it is very likely that they have made a move recently but were discovered by the Malevolent Spirit Sect or the other three great sects, and were uprooted overnight." As the woman in the red dress said this, she actually switched to voice transmission, her expression even more solemn.
The beautiful woman's originally calm expression changed several times after hearing these words. She had just formed her Golden Core last year, and most of her time had been spent in seclusion to consolidate her cultivation. And only the sect master before her knew about such confidential matters. She did not know about this matter. She couldn't help but mutter, "The entire sect... disappeared?"