“What’s the matter?” Shi Mu’s eyes also fell on the black jade board in Hou Sai Lei’s hand as he asked.

　　“I had a suspicion that this jade board wasn’t just an ordinary magic tool which is used merely to record the names of the participants. Therefore, I had been researching these days, and I have discovered that it contains a summoning magic formula. So, it can also be used for sending messages as well.”

　　Shi Mu’s brows twitched into a frown as he heard these words… it seemed as if he had thought of something.

　　“What do you mean to say?” Shi Mu asked.

　　“I have just received a message that has been sent from the Dark Moon Cult’s Main Altar.” A grey light appeared in Hou Sai Lei’s hand as he spoke. He then pointed his fingers at several places on the black jade board in a repetitive manner.

　　Then, a layer of faint white radiance emerged on the surface of the jade board, and condensed into a few lines of small white characters.

　　Shi Mu’s eyes swept over those lines. The content of those lines was very simple. It stated that Hou Sai Lei was to bring the disciples who had won the preliminary round to Quyang City. However, the message implied a sense of urgency.

　　“Senior Mu, what do you think about this?” Hou Sai Lei asked as he put away the jade board.

　　“It seems that something has happened in Quyang City that has sparked off disturbances in the Xixia country,” Shi Mu recalled the black-winged gryphons he had seen during the day. He then said with a sigh.

　　Hou Sai Lei nodded slowly… as if he completely agreed with Shi Mu.

　　“Wait until we reach Quyang City. Then, you try to look for an opportunity to get rid of this envoy’s identity,” Shi Mu said.

　　“Yes,” Hou Sai Lei complied after a momentary hesitation.

　　The fact was that Hou Sai Lei had become very proficient in playing the role of this envoy. Moreover, he had also started to take pleasure in this act since he held a high position. Therefore, a feeling of unwillingness to part with this identity had emerged in his heart after he had heard that he’d have to give up this identity someday.

　　Hou Sai Lei laughed at himself inwardly, and cast this absurd idea off his mind. Then, he bid goodbye to Shi Mu in a courteous manner, and started to walk in the direction of the camp.

　　“Shi Tou, what were you talking about? Where is this place?” Cai turned around and gazed at the receding silhouette of Hou Sai Lei. Then, he crooked his neck and asked.

　　Shi Mu smiled as he took a glimpse of the vast sky that was full of stars at the moment. Then, he turned around while leading his horse, and started to walk toward the camp. Simultaneously, he recounted everything that had happened since Cai had fallen into a drowsy state.

　　“So, it turns out that plenty of things have happened in these days while I’ve been asleep…” Cai spoke loudly while hopping on Shi Mu’s shoulder.

　　“In fact, we will be able to reach the Western Continent in no time if everything goes without a hitch,” Shi Mu said.

　　Shi Mu had been pleasantly surprised to discover that Cai’s eyesight had strengthened by such a big margin.

　　Shi Mu looked toward the western horizon, and his eyes brightened.

　　… …

　　There was a medium-sized country between the southeastern region of the ancient Xixia country and the Lu Shan Kingdom. It was called Wei country.

　　The territory of the Wei Country was long, narrow, and curved. It was adjacent to Eastern Woods and Lin Hai provinces of the ancient Xixia country. There was only one medium-sized sect in this country — The Dense Branch Sect. And, it was considered the National Cult of the Wei Country.

　　This sect had always maintained a certain distance from both the Dark Moon Cult and the Transcending Heaven Immortal Cult. In addition, there were also some other factors that had allowed this sect to live in harmony with these two big sects for many years.

　　However, an increasing number of blue-robed Taoist people could be seen in Wei Country these days. They were generally spotted in some of the towns and cities of Wei Country that were situated on the border.

　　These Taoist people were either martial warriors or magicians. But, the majority of them were martial warriors who would generally carry swords, sticks, spear, and other magic tools on their backs or bodies. In addition, this crowd of people comprised of all ranks of warriors from the Hou Tian warriors to the Xian Tian warriors. Therefore, almost all the inns in the frontier towns and cities of Wei Country were occupied by these people nowadays.

　　Whether it was the imperial family of the Wei Country or the Dense Branch Sect… everyone had chosen to keep their mouths zipped under such unusual circumstances. In fact, they would act as if they were completely unaware about this matter.

　　Furthermore, the Wei Country shared its border with the Eastern Woods province of the ancient Xixia country. And, two majestic and rolling mountain ranges could be seen there that stretched for several miles. Also, there was a junction in the middle of these two mountain ranges. And, a thousand-feet-wide mountain pass could be seen in this junction. A cluster of white camps had been set up at the entrance of this passage.

　　This place was the only connecting point through which outsiders could enter the Eastern Woods province of the ancient Xixia Country. Therefore, this place used to be guarded by the imperial family of the Wei Country as well as the Dense Branch Sect. It was said that there had never been any conflict between the Wei Country and the ancient Xixia Country. And, this place was a natural stronghold that was hard to attack. Therefore, very few people were stationed here nowadays. In fact, most of the camps were vacant.

　　It was high noon. The scorching sun was high up in the sky, and was baking the earth below. Therefore, the ground had become steaming hot under the blazing sun.

　　A beautiful maiden was walking toward the mountain camps from afar at a slow pace. She was clad in a faint green dress, and had a slender and graceful figure. However, her face was covered with a veil, and there was a package on her back. This package had been wrapped up in a piece of cloth.

　　The camp was very peaceful at this time. But then, a person’s silhouette suddenly flashed in this camp. This person was a bald monk who seemed to be 30 or 40 years old. It seemed that he was born with robust forehead. He also had a small ring-shaped scar on the top of his head. His entire body was wrapped in an apricot-yellow-colored dress. A string of black beads hung around his neck. The biggest bead among them was almost the size of a clenched fist, while the smaller ones were only as big as an adult’s thumb. A pale-golden pattern could be seen on the surface of these beads.

　　He moved a few steps forward while stroking his smooth and slippery forehead. Then, he advanced toward the green-dressed maiden who was still several hundred feet away from the camp.

　　“Please stop!”

　　It seemed that the green-dressed girl hadn’t heard his words since she continued to walk toward him. Moreover, her pace had increased considerably.

　　“Oh, I’m talking to you little girl. I told you to stop!” the obese monk extended his big and plump hand, and shouted again when he saw that she hadn’t stopped.

　　“Elder Monk, are you talking to me?” The green-dressed girl turned to look at the fat monk with her elegant eyes. Then, she asked back. However, her feet continued to move without the slightest hesitation.

　　“This is a barren and wild mountainous region. Do you see any people around you?” the obese monk said in a somewhat dispirited manner.

　　“Oh, here… I’ve stopped. Elder Monk, may I venture to ask you for some advice?” the green-dressed girl asked as her feet stopped.

　　She was barely fifty-feet away from the fat monk at this time.

　　“… Where do you want to go to?” the fat monk looked at the young girl in front of him, and asked while scratching his head.

　　“I have to go to the Xixia Country,” the green-dressed maiden replied.

　　“Go back,” the obese monk stated.

　　“What?”

　　“I said… Go back!”

　　“Why? Wei Country doesn’t prohibit the entry into Xixia country.”

　　“That is true. However, Xixia Country is going through a tumultuous situation these days. Zombies, skeletons, and gangs of robbers have gone berserk. They’ve caused havoc in every corner of that country. So, what does this sweet little girl wish to do there?”

　　“I think it would be fun to go there.”

　　“… …”

　　“I would request the Master to let me go if there is nothing important to talk about since I’m in a hurry to get there,” the green-dressed girl said as if she wanted to bypass the fat monk.

　　“Hey, I’m telling you the truth. You should drop your plan of going to the Xixia Country. You must have passed through Mo Town on your way to here. Didn’t you notice any difference or strangeness in that town?” the fat monk sighed as he said.

　　The green-dressed girl stopped as she heard these words. Then, her beautiful eyes turned to look at that fat monk.

　　“That country will sooner or later experience an uproarious situation. This poor monk would always feel guilty if something went wrong with this little girl,” the obese monk said while clasping his hands as if he was praying to God in a devoted manner.

　　“I would like to thanks Master for his concern. But, this girl has to go to the Xixia country since she has something important to do there,” The green-dressed girl clasped her hands, and greeted the obese monk. Then, she took a step and bypassed the fat monk. She then proceeded toward the passage between the mountains.

　　However, she had barely taken a few steps when a yellow silhouette flashed in front of her. The obese monk had appeared before her by seemingly teleporting himself. Once again, he stood in front of her to block her way.

　　“Master, what does this mean?” the girl’s elegant eyebrows creased.

　　“Little girl, you’ll have to pass through this poor monk’s mountain pass first if you’re so desperate to go to the Xixia Country. You’ll be allowed to pass through here if you can hit this monk, or touch this monk’s cloth,” the monk stated.

　　“Alright!”

　　The green-dressed girl’s voice had barely faded when the invincible aura of a Xian Tian warrior broke out of her body. Then, her body leaned forward as she swept her hand with lightning speed toward the monk to grasp him.

　　“Oh dear, this little girl is already attempting to hit me. I had barely finished my words. This girl didn’t give this poor monk a little preparation time!” The monk seemed to have received a jolt. However, his plump body slightly bent and slipped away from the quickly approaching hand of the girl.

　　But then, another fist swept towards the obese monk after the first attack. Moreover, it had come from a tricky angle this time.

　　The obese monk’s stature was extremely nimble. He inclined to the side and evaded the strike once again.

　　“Master, be careful!” The girl’s eyebrows tightly creased, and she reprimanded him in a gentle manner. After that, the aura around her body started to surge in a fierce manner. Then, her fists got curled-up in a blue radiance. And, her clothes started to flutter, and exude bursts of intense water-attribute waves.

　　The speed of her fists had doubled now. Her fists suddenly turned a bit fuzzy and changed into a dozen or more blue fist-shadows. They then dashed toward the fat monk. The group fist-shadows looked like a fish trap.

　　The monk saw this situation and a panic-stricken expression surfaced on his face. His body flashed to evade the attack, but there was a sense of frenzy in his movement. However, he still succeeded in dodging all the attacks launched by the girl. In fact, she couldn’t even touch his clothes’ sleeve.

　　The young girl then stretched out her hand, and pulled the veil off her face. And, the face of an exceptionally beautiful girl was unveiled as a result.

　　This girl was Zhong Xiu!

　　Her entire body was enveloped in a layer of magnificent blue light at this moment. She opened her mouth, and puffed out a wisp of a silent wave.

　　Then, the blue radiance on her whole body turned into a dense blue light-rain. It then started to spread around Zhong Xiu, and turned into blue watery-light. A nearly transparent pale-blue water wave emerged in the watery light, and rolled out toward the monk at an astonishing speed.

　　“The Art of Thousand Jade Sound-Waves!”

　　The obese monk issued a loud shout. Simultaneously, his body quickly shot backwards as if he had flown back. However, he couldn’t escape the attack since his speed wasn’t enough. Moreover, his eyes became fuzzy as soon as the pale-blue water wave touched him.

　　Zhong Xiu appeared beside him like a shadow the next moment, and swept her fist toward his chest.

　　Her fist was on the verge of touching the monk’s chest when a trace of hesitation flashed through her eyes. She forthwith shed off 90% of her strength.

　　The fat monk’s eyes recovered from the blurred vision when the momentum of Zhong Xiu’s punch stopped for an instant. Then, his silhouette immediately turned fuzzy, and he shifted a few dozen feet away from her the next moment. Consequently, Zhong Xiu’s punch ended up empty-handed.

　　“A narrow escape, a narrow escape… this poor monk was scared to death!” The monk stood steady, and patted his chest with his plump palm. But, a trace of shocked expression could still be seen across his face.

　　The blue water which had bloated the whole sky returned and submerged in Zhong Xiu’s head like a massive whale. However, Zhong Xiu’s complexion still looked pale even though it had submerged into her head.

　　Zhong Xiu looked surprised and was about to say something when the obese monk’s voice again resounded, “Wonderful! Wonderful! You possess third-ranked Phoenix sound bloodline. Therefore, you are proficient in using The Art of Thousand Jade Sound-Waves. Indeed, it’s a wonderful match! I hadn’t expected that this young girl would be blessed with such a good fortune. On top of that, you are also very kind-hearted. Anyway, this poor monk won’t stop you from going to the Xixia country anymore.”

　　The obese monk shook his head, and clicked his tongue in amazement.

　　“Master’s cultivation is very profound. I wonder how I should address him,” Zhong Xiu asked.

　　“Ha Ha, this poor monk is called Miao Kong. You don’t need to call me Master,” the fat monk laughed

　　“Oh, by the way… I would like to give this thing to you as a gift for this so-called long distance encounter….” The fat monk flipped his hand, and a thumb-sized black bead appeared in his hand. He then threw it to Zhong Xiu.

　　“How can I accept the Master’s gift?” Zhong Xiu was surprised. But, she received the black bead in a subconscious manner. She felt that the bead was smooth and warm like a jade when she touched it. It seemed that the bead contained some kind of strange energy that could sweep away all kinds of complexities from a person’s heart. In fact, it had calmed Zhong Xiu’s spirit in an instant.

　　“You can accept it since I have presented it to you. Anyway, I have to sleep now. Girl, you’re free to do whatever you want to,” the last word had barely faded when the silhouette of the obese monk disappeared without a trace.

　　“Zhong Xiu will always remain grateful to Master Miao Kong!”

　　Zhong Xiu looked around blankly with some hesitation. Then, she replied respectfully in a crisp and sonorous voice.

　　She then received the black bead in her clothes. After that, she looked toward the passageway between the mountains, and the gleam of an unprecedented firmness emerged on her pretty face.