Chapter 55: Hong Jiu Passes Through!

  Donglanshan

  To the east of Huangzhou, a hundred miles outside the ancient capital city of Yucheng of Xia State, there is a continuous mountain range. The mountain is extremely high and seems to be piercing into the clouds, just like a giant dragon lying on the ground, sleeping soundly. On the mountain, there are green pines and cypresses, with towering trees that seem to have the majestic air of leading all the mountains.

  Donglanshan is a famous mountain in Xia Kingdom, where the emperors of Xia have always come to offer sacrifices and pray for national peace and prosperity, good weather and abundant harvests after their accession. The last time was when the current emperor, Xi Yunkuang, ascended the throne 81 years ago.

  This mountain is the root of Xia Guo's national fortune, and there is a Feng Chan Temple on the top of the mountain. The Feng Chan Temple is a forbidden place with an array of laws guarding it. Except for members of the royal family, outsiders are not allowed to enter. Throughout the dynasties, including emperors, unless they abdicate or die of old age, many will choose to come to the Feng Chan Temple to practice after growing old. On the other hand, it is also to guard the sacred trace.

  Feng Chan Temple only exists to protect the sacred relics and inherit the legacy of Xia Guo, just how powerful it is, outsiders can't know, but one thing is certain, there are super masters in Feng Chan Temple who have reached the realm of Le Xian.

  "Descendant of the Sun family pays respects to the Emperor."

  In a room of the Fugan Temple, a young man dressed in golden robes was prostrating himself before an elderly monk.

  A monk sat on a meditation cushion, with a large wooden fish and a Buddhist scripture in front of him, holding a string of prayer beads, his eyelids slightly lowered, his eyebrows and whiskers all white, like an old pine tree sitting still.

  "Get up!"

  His voice was slightly hoarse, with a hint of weariness, the old monk lifted his eyelids, and with a wave of his sleeve, the wooden fish moved to one side.

  "Yes!"

  The young man stood up, respectfully standing, twenty-two or three years old, with a straight figure and a handsome face, with starry eyes and sword-like eyebrows, looking quite dignified. The magnificent golden dragon robe he wore also showed his noble identity.

  "It's another hundred years!"

  The old monk sighed and looked up at the young man in front of him, "Are you here alone?"

  "By the way, Seventh Princess Xinyue has also arrived. She'll be here soon to pay her respects to Your Majesty!" the young man said.

  The old monk nodded slightly, "Which sects have been selected this time?"

  Young master said, "There are Longcheng Music Workshop, Mingyue Pavilion, Tianmu Sect, Zhongwang Palace, and some other small schools. In total, there are about a hundred people. They should all arrive at Huiyin Valley in the next few days. Father wants me to go to Shengji with them for training, but unfortunately, Seventh Princess overheard it and insisted on coming along."

  "Hmm!"

  The old monk nodded, "There are many dangers in the holy relics, you must be careful."

  "Thanks to the Emperor's concern, when I left, Father gave me a map of the sacred marks, so there shouldn't be much danger." The young man said.

  The old monk shook his head and said, "That map was only drawn by my predecessors in Xia Guo from memory, it's not complete. The sacred place is vast, even with the map in hand, one must still be cautious at every step."

  "Yes!" The young man bowed his head.

  The old monk thought for a moment, "Feng Er, I have something that requires you to take care of."

  The young man was taken aback and hastily said, "Your Majesty, please give your orders!"

  "After you enter the Holy Trace, I want you to go find someone!" said the old monk.

  The young man heard this and tentatively asked, "Excuse me, Your Majesty, is it the Ninth Imperial Uncle that you want me to find?"

  The old monk nodded, "A hundred years ago, your Ninth Uncle was also about your age. It happened to be the opening of the Holy Trace, so I let him go in for training. Who would have thought that after he went in, he never came out again? Now it's been over a hundred years, even if he's still alive, his lifespan is probably almost exhausted!"

  "Your Majesty, when I left Long City, the name of Ninth Uncle on the ancestral tablet had not disappeared yet, so he should still be alive. Father has entrusted me with a mission, no matter whether Ninth Uncle is dead or alive, I must find him." The young man said.

  The old monk nodded slightly, his eyes closed, "I hope he's just trapped."

  "Huh? Royal brother, so you're here!"

  At this time, the door of the Zen room opened and an 18 or 19-year-old girl jumped in. Two braids hung down on her chest, a red and white cheongsam dress, a pair of bright eyes like mirrors, two shallow dimples on her face, a smile blooming like flowers, and suddenly the whole room was filled with spring.

  "Shut up! The emperor is right here!" The young man immediately made a gesture with his eyes and his expression suddenly turned serious.

  The young girl, as if she had just discovered the old monk sitting next to her, hastily withdrew her smile, shrunk her neck, stuck out her tongue, and knelt down in front of the old monk, "Sun Nu Xiang Yue, pays respects to Grandfather Emperor!"

  ……

  ——

  Echo Valley

  A huge valley on the waist of Donghua Mountain, with towering peaks on both sides. When you shout in the valley, you can hear a prolonged echo that doesn't stop for a long time, and the Echo Valley got its name from this.

  In the valley, there was a spacious flat ground. At this time, many people had already arrived and were occupying different places according to their respective forces. Some familiar band leaders gathered together to discuss, while the disciples at the gate stood or sat quietly waiting. Each of them had a few points of excitement and expectation between their eyebrows.

  A small boat emerged from the clouds and flew straight into the valley, many people saw it and their eyes converged on it, but they didn't know which faction had arrived.

  Coming down from the boat, Liu Yuanchen put away the Imperial Heavenly Boat and walked in the front, leading a group of people into the valley.

  "Haha, I thought it was someone else, but it's actually Liu Shi!"

  As soon as they entered the valley, everyone hadn't had time to look around when a loud, bell-like laughter came from the front. They looked up and saw a middle-aged man with a grey long gown, fat like a Buddha, with a face full of rotten smiles, pressing over.

  "It's Master Hong, it's been many years since we last met, and Master Hong's broad-mindedness has become even more vast!" Liu Yuanchen smiled and clasped his hands together, the two were obviously old acquaintances.

  That man burst out laughing, the fat on his face jiggling wildly, so fat it was a bit nauseating. "After all these years, you old thing still likes to curse people in a roundabout way!"

  Liu Yuanchen stroked his beard and smiled, the man's eyes fell on Zhao Yuanling's body, suddenly his expression hesitated, as if he was a bit embarrassed, and after being stunned for a moment, he said, "Zhao, Zhao Shimei, you, you also came?"

  "Hong Shi!" Zhao Yuanling smiled faintly.

  "How have you been all these years?"

  That fatty's face twitched, and he was no longer as carefree as before. He suddenly became reserved, his voice extremely gentle. Everyone looked at him, and the expressions on their faces all turned somewhat strange. These two people seemed to have something going on!

  Xiao Yun was standing right next to Li Yuanfang, and quietly pulled on the corner of his robe, asking in a low voice, "Master Li, who is this person?"

  "His name is Hong Jiutong, a disciple of the Zhongwang Palace in Fahua Mountain, Yunzhou. He was acquainted with Master Yuan and others when he was young, but this person is a bit crazy in his actions, it's best if you don't provoke him."

  Bell King Palace?

  Xiao Yun was taken aback, that's the Cloud State's big faction, didn't expect Liu Yuanqu and others to know people from Zhong Wang Gong, and looking at this situation, it seems like Hong Jiutong has some history with Zhao Yuanshen.

  Hong Jiutong was extremely enthusiastic, but Zhao Yuanling seemed to be a bit dismissive of him. Including Xiao Yun, almost everyone who saw Hong Jiutong pestering Zhao Yuanling couldn't help but feel a little amused. This guy was so fat, no wonder Zhao Yuanling had a face full of disgust. His massive body was almost as big as two or three of Zhao Yuanling's.

  "I really didn't think we'd meet again!"

  Hong Jiutong smiled at Zhao Yuanling with a silly grin, but Zhao Yuanling deliberately avoided Hong Jiutong and turned to Xiao Yun and others, "You all come with me!"

  As he spoke, Zhao Yuanling avoided Hong Jiutong and walked towards a clearing in the valley.

  Although many people were very curious about the relationship between Zhao Yuanling and Hong Jiutong, no one dared to ask more questions. They all followed behind Zhao Yuanling, searching for a place in the valley to temporarily rest.

  Hong Jiutong looked a bit embarrassed, standing still for a moment, then laughed and walked towards Zhao Yuanling with Liu Yuanchen, arm in arm.

  "Liu Shi, is this the elite of your Tianyin Sect?" Hong Jiutong swept his gaze through the crowd, his sharp eyes making many disciples dare not meet his gaze, and directly lowered their heads.

  "It's far inferior compared to your Zhongwang Palace!" Liu Yuanchen said with a humble shake of his head.

  "Look at them, aren't they all talented?!" Hong Jiutong burst out laughing again and turned to face Liu Yuanchen, "By the way, I brought my daughter this time. Tell me, which of your disciples is the most outstanding? Let's arrange a marriage between our families!"