How had she never noticed how scheming her disciple was?

Zhu Lianqing looked at Xie Lingchuan and silently sighed.

She really had fallen at her own disciple's hands.

"My spiritual meridians really are damaged. You can check if you don't believe me."

"As for undoing the Spirit Connection Spell from one side, that was only because I tampered with it when I taught you, not because my cultivation is particularly high."

"As for this corpse, I really am innocent, Young Hero Xie. I only saw it two seconds before you did. I was just about to fish him out and lay him to rest when your sword came up against my neck."

After hearing Zhu Lianqing's explanation, Xie Lingchuan still moved neither his sword nor his umbrella.

Although he did not seem entirely convinced, the atmosphere finally eased a little.

Zhu Lianqing caught the sword between two fingers and moved it away from her neck.

Having her disciple point his sword at his master at the drop of a hat was becoming rather vexing.

"I've explained everything I should. Shouldn't you tell me how you found me?"

Xie Lingchuan finally sheathed his sword first, then pinched something out of his sleeve.

Zhu Lianqing immediately felt a faint, itchy sting at the side of her neck, and understood at once.

No wonder she had not sensed it. This thing was difficult to detect to begin with, especially since she had sealed her spiritual meridians.

Jiang Tingxue and Song Wensheng both looked curiously at the thing between Xie Lingchuan's fingertips and asked, "Eldest Senior Brother, what's that?"

Shen Ji said, "A gu insect. Something from the Heavenly Mountain Sect."

"Senior Brother Xie, so you didn't just cast the Spirit Connection Spell, you used this too. No wonder you weren't worried at all when Senior disappeared that day."

Zhu Lianqing was indeed surprised. "When did you plant that thing in my neck?"

Xie Lingchuan did not answer directly, only asking in return, "Have you forgotten how you got back to the inn that day when you were drunk as a puddle of mud, Senior?"

At these words, the four fellow disciples behind Xie Lingchuan all turned gossip-hungry eyes on Zhu Lianqing, with a hint of something strange in their gazes.

Zhu Lianqing hurriedly waved her hands. "Don't listen to his nonsense. I wasn't drunk as a puddle of mud. I walked back myself."

Denial aside, Zhu Lianqing understood now.

She had thought her disciple had kindly helped her back that night, but it turned out he had already been hatching other sly plans.

He must have planted the gu in her neck then.

How had she never noticed how scheming her disciple was?

Oh well. She could only blame herself for being far too unguarded around her disciple.

Zhu Lianqing stood up and pushed the umbrella over her head back toward Xie Lingchuan as well.

"If you suspect I'm a demon, why are you still holding an umbrella for me? Believe me or not, this corpse really has nothing to do with me."

Zhu Lianqing looked unwilling to say any more.

Shen Ji turned to Xie Lingchuan. "Senior Brother Xie, then should we now..."

Before he finished, a series of calls came from downstream.

Song Wensheng said, "Senior Brother, it sounds like someone's come up the mountain looking for someone."

Jiang Tingxue pointed at the corpse. "Could they be looking for him?"

Shen Ji said, "Very likely. Call them over."

Song Wensheng pushed aside some branches and called out several times to the figures below.

Before long, several yamen runners in official uniforms followed the stream up to them.

The moment they saw that Xie Lingchuan and the others carried swords on their backs, the gloom vanished from their faces, and they ran over.

"To think we'd meet Daoist lords here! What luck!"

"Are you looking for this man?" Xie Lingchuan dispensed with pleasantries and pointed straight at the corpse on the ground.

The men first jumped in fright at the sight of the corpse, then muttered "Amitabha" for a while before nodding.

"Yes, yes, that's him! His name's He Chongsan, and he's a servant at our magistrate's residence. Madam said she wanted mushrooms recently, so he volunteered to pick some. Madam clearly warned him not to go too deep into the woods, but he must have let it go in one ear and out the other, and that's how he ran into a monster."

Zhu Lianqing thought for a moment, then nodded. "The baleful yin energy in Pingjiang City does nourish the spirits and monsters here. They can never be killed off completely, only kept behind seals. It seems he crossed the seal without noticing."

The yamen runners agreed. "Everyone in the city gets reminded every day to watch out for the seal boundaries, but there are always a few who aren't afraid to die. Every few days, someone loses their life in the mountains, and we have to come looking for them."

At this, one of them began airing his grievances. "Exactly! With the rain today, the mountains are horribly eerie. I was scared to death!"

"Don't our lives count too? Having to come looking for these reckless fellows. Still, fortunately we met you Daoist lords today."

The men bowed to Xie Lingchuan and the others. "Thank you for your trouble today, Daoist lords. It's raining terribly hard now. Why not come to our magistrate's residence to shelter from the rain and rest your feet?"

Xie Lingchuan and Shen Ji exchanged a look, understanding each other without words.

Although the baleful yin energy meant the spirits and monsters here could never be killed off completely, clearing them out every so often would at least mean fewer people lost their lives.

They had found the fugitive anyway. Staying here for a day or two to clear out the spirits and monsters in the mountains would be a good thing too.

So Shen Ji stepped forward to discuss it. "Would it be inconvenient for so many of us to visit your magistrate's residence without warning?"

The men hurriedly shook their heads, all talking at once. "Not at all, Daoist lord! You have no idea how much our magistrate reveres cultivators. If you went, he couldn't welcome you warmly enough!"

Reassured by this, Shen Ji said, "In that case, we'll impose on your hospitality."

The yamen runners carried He Chongsan's remains back, and Xie Lingchuan, Shen Ji, and the others followed them down the mountain and into the city.

Along the way, Xie Lingchuan sensed that Xie Lingchuan was keeping a very close eye on her.

Sometimes she merely looked around, only to find Xie Lingchuan watching her when she drew her gaze back. All she could do was smile at him.

They made their way through the rain to the county yamen.

The moment the county magistrate heard cultivators had arrived, he practically wanted to summon his entire household to greet them, from his hundred-year-old mother down to the newborn kittens.

Having just been turned away by the people of Wuxia Village and nearly fallen victim to a sneak attack, the three juniors found themselves unused to this difference in treatment, as vast as that between clouds and mud.

Yan Qing in particular, who considered himself the useless rice bucket of his sect, was now surrounded by people bowing and making obeisance, calling him "Daoist lord" with every breath. So frightened was he that he clutched his eldest senior brother's sleeve.

Shen Ji, always unmoved by favor or disgrace, remained gentle as he told the county magistrate, "There's no need for such ceremony, sir."

Seeing that Shen Ji was the easiest to talk to, the county magistrate walked beside him. "Daoist lord, my humble name is Liu Xingshan, and I am the magistrate of Yunxi County. It is truly my honor that you would grace this place with your presence."

Liu Xingshan welcomed the group into the residence's main hall, and Madam Liu immediately summoned servants to bring hot tea.

"It's raining hard today. I've already instructed the servants to prepare guest rooms and hot water. Please go wash and freshen up first, Daoist lords. We'll have wine and dishes prepared afterward to welcome you and wash away the dust of your journey."

This enthusiasm really was rather excessive. Shen Ji had intended to step forward and urge them not to be so extravagant, but before he could speak, a group of people noticed the water dripping from his sleeves and came at him with cloths, wiping and dabbing. There was simply no room for discussion, so he gave up.

Judging by the furnishings in the residence, this family's reverence for cultivators had indeed reached the point of fanaticism.

Although they could dry their clothes in a second with spiritual power, faced with such enthusiasm, they could hardly spurn the family's kindness, so they all stood dripping wet in the hall.

"Please don't keep standing there, Daoist lords. The guest rooms and hot water are ready. Hurry along and freshen up. I'll go check on the dishes in the kitchen."

Shen Ji nodded with a smile. "Then thank you for your trouble, madam."