It was almost dusk, and on the deserted stone road at the foot of Xuanling Mountain, a warrior wearing a hooded robe came.
Most of the warrior's face was covered by a high collar, leaving only his eyes as bright as an eagle.
He walked through the depressed market and climbed the stone steps to the Taoist temple...
"How dare I ask my friend, the Taoist temple does not accept strangers." Li Zhaoqing's subordinate, acquired monk Fang Qiang said.
The warrior took a notice and said, "Zhao is here to receive the reward!"
…
"I... Zhao Wu, I have the exact information about Lu Dongguang. I disguise myself and come to collect the reward."
Later the day after tomorrow, Zhao Wu pulled down the collar of his hat, revealing his bronze weather-beaten face.
His disguise skills are rough, so let’s just say it.
"Well, where is Lu Dongguang? Where is the news from fellow Taoist?" Xue Tong asked.
"Lu Dongguang passed through Shuozhou, and Zhao met him in a tavern in Muyuan Town."
"Shuozhou, the desert border in the northwest"
"Um"
"Lu Dongguang absconded. Did he show his true face to others? How did you know that the person was indeed him?" Xue Tong asked.
"Lu Dongguang's pseudonym is Tao Zhen. He is from Taocheng, so he may have a homophonic surname of Tao."
"Lu Dongguang only changed his appearance slightly and went to Zifeng Tavern several times. Zhao knew Lu Dongguang in his early years and is definitely the person he is."
"Lu Dongguang mentioned in his words that he hunts in the Fukong Mountain area and often comes to the tavern to find out if there is any information about the unicorn spirit beast unique to the desert area." Zhao Wu said.
"You know him, Lu Dongguang doesn't know you"
"Dingzhou is adjacent to Shuozhou. I was a handyman of the "Tianhu Gang" of Xiaoxuanmen in Taocheng. Lu Dongguang killed the leader of the Tianhu Gang. There was a lot of noise that day. Zhao was mixed in with the crowd. He was unkempt and young. How could Lu Dongguang recognize Zhao in a pub eighty years later?"
"Well, when was the last time you saw Lu Dongguang?"
"January ago"
"Okay, I hope that as Brother Zhao said, Xue will go to Muyuan to investigate."
"The five hundred thousand spiritual stones need to be verified before they are given. If you want to go to Shuozhou with us, Taoist friends, you should come to the Taoist temple to collect them in a few days," Xue Tong asked.
"It is not appropriate for Zhao to go with him. He only wants to receive the reward and does not want to continue to be involved in this matter." Zhao Wu said.
As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly felt as if his head was being pricked by needles. Xue Tong's cold, dagger-like eyes were staring straight at him, "You didn't conspire with Lu Dongguang to deceive me?"
At the same time, a very faint blue smoke floated out and filled him inside.
Zhao Wu wanted to look away, but his eyes seemed to be frozen. Xue Tong's cold murderous intent penetrated his eyes wantonly, making his body stiff and unable to move.
"It's not too late to admit it now, Xue can let bygones be bygones."
Zhao Wu's sea of consciousness was infiltrated by the smoke and dyed a layer of cyan.
"Tell me, did you lie to me?" Xue Tong shouted.
Zhao Wu was excited and shouted angrily: "No!"
Xue Tong withdrew his eyes and inhaled the green smoke into his palms, "Fellow Taoist indeed did not deceive Xue. I am offended."
Zhao Wu's face turned pale, and he sat slumped in the chair, sweating like rain.
"Receive the spirit stone with the note after one month"
Xue Tong picked up the pen and wrote a paragraph on the letterhead of the Taoist Academy, saying that he had received the news that Tao Zhen of Muyuan Town was Lu Dongguang, and if it turned out to be true, he would pay 500,000 spiritual stones.
"There is an additional 30,000 yuan in the spirit stone bag. I have offended you just now, so I can compensate you."
Xue Tong tried out the Soul Taoism for a while, and even realized the powerful power of spiritual power spells.
…
"Lu Dongguang was on the run, but he went to a tavern to drink and catch a unicorn horse. There must be fraud in this," Xiao Yu'er said.
"Well, Lu Dongguang probably leaked his whereabouts on purpose. He frequently showed up in a tavern eight hundred miles away from Taocheng just in the hope of being recognized."
"Why don't you just send someone to the Taoist Temple and cause so much trouble?" Xiao Yu'er curled her lips and said.
"Perhaps there is no one to send, or perhaps you are worried that if you pretend to be exposed, your life will be in danger." Xue Tong said with a smile.
"Actually, the players behind Lu Dongguang probably guessed that we could detect that Lu's whereabouts were intentionally leaked," Fan Ruhua said.
"Well, I have no choice but to play like this. I won't shout on the street that I am Lu Dongguang."
"The people behind Lu Dongguang want to lead us to the desert area."
"They wanted to deal with me, and they were afraid, so they tried to lure me to Shuozhou." Xue Tong said.
"Could it be that he wants to set up a trap similar to the Four Elders of Yanshan?"
"There are always traps, and I don't know how to deal with them."
"Then I won't go"
"go!"
…
Xue Tong took Xiao Yuer and Fan Ruhua with him.
The two of them had offended the Xuanmen sect in Dongdan, not to mention the dark forces behind Lu Dongguang. Xue Tong would have to take them with him when he traveled far in the future.
The remaining warriors in Xuanling Mountain will not be attacked.
Shuozhou was eight thousand miles away, so the three of them took a leisurely five-day trip on the ferry.
In the early morning, the boat descended to the outskirts of Muyuan.
"It's best to wait for Lu Dongguang to go to the tavern and catch him alive." Xiao Yu'er said.
"It's extremely risky for him to show up. We've kept the news for two months, so he won't come again." Fan Ruhua waved her hand.
"Go directly to the tavern and ask. Even if Lu Dongguang accidentally leaked it and can't hide it from now on, that's all we can do."
"The three of us can't hide our identities for a long time. We wait in the tavern every day." Xue Tong said.
Muyuan Town is located on the edge of the desert area with a population of 4,000. It is an unknown border town in Zhiyue.
Passing through the Gobi desert northwest of the town, you can reach Gantai Yanzhou.
Xue Tong and the others walked into Zifeng Tavern.
The arrival of the three people raised eyebrows. It was rare for Mu Yuan to have multiple innate companions.
Everyone in the tavern stood up.
"It's okay. I just want to ask if someone named Tao Zhen came to the tavern a few days ago," Xue Tong asked.
"Yes, but Tao Tao has not been here for a while. The last time he came was more than a month ago." The shopkeeper thought for a while and replied.
"Do you know where he is?"
"I don't know, Tao Tao has left a message. If you want to know about the sale of the unicorn horse, you can contact Li Laosan in West Twelve Lane."
"Oh" Xue Tong's eyes lit up. Lu Dongguang actually left a contact person and hid in a dark place. It was really what an expert did.
"Xue Tong unfolded the portrait of Lu Dongguang and asked: "Tao Zhen, is this person?"
Everyone pointed and pointed, the meanings were somewhat similar, but slightly different.
"Whoever takes me to find Li Laosan will spend a thousand dollars for your hard work."
…
"At the end of the alley is Li Laosan's yard," the warrior who led the way pointed and said.
"Okay, fellow Taoist, please come back."
Xue Tongwei approached in a hurry.
From now on, you may encounter traps at any time.
Xue Tong popped out a series of stone beads, hitting the Sophora japonica tree in the corner of the courtyard, but the trap was not activated.
He jumped onto the branch and easily controlled Li Laosan who came out of the house to check.
Li Laosan is just a wretched early acquired martial artist.
After Xue Tong interrogated him, Li Laosan took a map of Fukong Mountain and said, "Taoist Master Tao ordered that if anyone knows the information about the One-horned Horse, he should be brought to Fukong Mountain to meet him."
"You took someone there"
"No way, the legend of the One-horned Horse has been around for thousands of years, and it is illusory. There has never been any news of the real horse appearing."
"Tao Zhen paid 30,000 spirit stones and asked Li to assist him for two years."
Xue Tong received the map and hesitated whether to kill Li Laosan.
A flash of fingertips!
Li Laosan's eyebrows were spattered with blood, and Fan Ruhua pierced it with a finger.
"What do you want these wretched people to do? Just be like flowers and become evil people."
"Senior brother is ruthless towards enemies, but is too soft-hearted towards people who are neither enemies nor friends. The path to immortality is dangerous. If you act like this, you may end up causing great harm!" Fan Ruhua said solemnly.
Before Xue Tong could say anything, his expression suddenly changed. The five dragon shields in his sleeves dropped straight down. He kicked heavily with both feet, grabbed the arms of Xiao Yu'er and Fan Ruhua with his left and right hands, and flew into the sky.
He heard the slightest sound of a machine turning deep underground.
"boom!"
The entire courtyard was instantly blown away, and the huge fireball formed by the explosion reached a height of more than twenty feet!
Half of Muyuan Town was razed to the ground!
Three figures in the fire exploded into the air more than a hundred feet high.
Xiao Yuer fell like a stone.
Xue Tong summoned the eagle and swooped down to catch the unconscious Xiao Yu'er.
Fan Ruhua barely landed smoothly, unable to move.
Li Laosan's yard turned into a big pit.
If the soles of the feet were protected by illegal weapons and could withstand most of the explosive force, the consequences would be disastrous.
The outer clothes of the three of them were completely torn, and a large piece of the inner protective shirt was exposed. Xue Tong's ears were filled with a sharp buzzing sound, and he could not even hear his own shouts clearly.
He picked up Fan Ruhua and picked up the magic weapon. The three of them and one eagle quickly disappeared over the black smoke billowing over Muyuan Town.
…
Xiao Yuer cried loudly after waking up.
This time of shock was unprecedented, and there was only a thin line between life and death.
Xiao Yu'er's eardrum was damaged and her internal organs were bleeding. She was dripped with medicated oil and took healing elixirs. After being instilled with Xue Tong's magic power, she finally brought her injuries under control.
Complete recovery takes two months.
"It's so tragic. Thousands of people were buried. Lu Dongguang and others did everything possible to commit such a shocking evil act."
"There is a traitor hidden in the tavern!" Xue Tong said.
"Well, I knew I was going to find Li Laosan, but I didn't have the guts to follow. I made an appointment to estimate the time, sneaked into a nearby yard, and detonated the trap." Fan Ruhua said.
"Now that I think about it, it's like a waiter, but the engineering behind it and the powerful explosive bombs, then there are other experts." Xue Tong said.
"This place is secretive. You two can stay here. There is no need to go to Fukong Mountain together."
If we encounter a surprise attack like today again, we may not be so lucky. "Xue Tong said again.
Fan Ruhua and Xiao Yuer were reluctant at first, but Xue Tong said that it was reasonable and that going with them would only tie their hands and feet, so they finally had to agree.
…
Muyuan Town.
The fire is soaring into the sky, it's like hell on earth!
Zhang Ping, a waiter at Zifeng Tavern, crawled out of the hole in Xiwu Alley. Not a single brick or tile was left on the ground. The original house was owned by Lu Dongguang.
Lu Dongguang told him a month ago that once a high-level Xiantian warrior came to the tavern and asked about Tao Zhen and went to find Li Laosan, he would secretly come back and count the two quarters of an hour since he left the tavern, get into the hole and put the The yellow talisman paper is affixed with the mechanism.
Zhang Ping's monthly salary was thirty, and Lu Dongguang gave him fifty thousand spiritual stones.
Zhang Ping ran to the outside of the town, crying and shouting along the way. He heard a discussion about a big bird flying by carrying a person on its back. Could it be the evildoer?
Zhang Ping didn't know that the agency would cause such a disaster, so Lu Dongguang lied to him, saying that it was a device for transmitting information.
Zhang Ping left Mu Yuan and never planned to come back.
…
Two months later, in the desert eight hundred miles northwest, Xue Tong was alone, silently looking at the mountains in the distance.
Mountains of sand and gravel with no grass growing on them.
When the weather is fine, the white clouds on the mountainside give people the feeling that the mountain is among floating clouds. This is why Fukong Mountain got its name, which has been passed down to this day.
Floating Mountain is hundreds of miles away, and there are countless earth, rocks, and sand dunes. The scorching sun is like a steamer. However, if you dig deep into the ground, it is so cool and pleasant, without the damp and cold feeling of ordinary underground palaces.
There is a legend in the desert area that an expert appears in Floating Mountain, a dragon-like existence.
