The two parties simultaneously stopped their actions and looked towards the source of the sound.
From the hillside not far away, the pine forest gradually parted on its own, and an elder with long hair walked over together with Cha Zhu. The elder was direct, delivering a powerful slap to the back of the young man's head while angrily scolding, "This is your junior sister Mo's brother! Is this how you guard the sect?"
The young man clearly still felt wronged, muttering to himself, "How was I supposed to know… he's a ghost cultivator…"
"You!" The long-haired elder was clearly quite angered, but this situation was likely not the first time. He took a deep breath, suppressing his inner fire, and then spoke expressionlessly, "Meng Le, for acting arbitrarily and nearly injuring a relative of a sect disciple, you are fined one month of increased sect guarding duty, an additional 100 copies of the sect rules, and twenty days of contemplation at Sword Cliff. Now go to the Disciplinary Hall yourself to receive 50 lashes."
As he said this, he also snatched Meng Le's wine flask, adding, "Furthermore, you are forbidden from drinking while on sect guarding duty."
Meng Le showed no reaction to the first few penalties, but upon hearing the last sentence, he let out a pig-slaughtering scream, "Sect Master! No!"
The Sect Master of Wan Jian Sect expressionlessly ignored Meng Le's rolling and writhing, turned his head, and asked Mo Chuan with a benevolent expression, "This young friend, are you injured? I am Yi Tianxing. My disciple here has a somewhat eccentric personality; I hope you will not hold it against him."
Seeing that the person before him was likely the Sect Master of Wan Jian Sect, Mo Chuan, despite feeling some displeasure, gave face. He shook his head and expressed his desire to see his sister.
"Very good, very good." Yi Tianxing nodded, kicked Meng Le who was still rolling on the ground, and said, "Meng Le, take this young friend to see Mo Fei. I will be there shortly."
Upon hearing this, Meng Le stood up as if he had lost his parents. He glanced at Mo Chuan, lowered his head, and slowly walked forward.
Mo Chuan picked up the bag from the ground, confirmed there were no issues, and followed Meng Le.
Seeing the two figures disappear into the pine forest, Yi Tianxing said speechlessly, "Old beggar, where did you find such a genius ability user? He can actually trade blows with Meng Le."
"Meng Le's Nine Dragon Sword Box is our sect's hope for producing another Rank Nine ability user."
"Hehehehe…" Cha Zhu chuckled somewhat lewdly. He scratched his nose and said to Yi Tianxing, "We had a deal, right? One bottle of Moon Spring wine. A bet is a bet."
Yi Tianxing gave Cha Zhu an exasperated look and said, "Not everyone is a cheat like you… Let's do it after school starts in September."
Saying this, Yi Tianxing took the lead and walked into the pine forest.
…
"Sorry… By the way, you're really strong. There aren't many people in the sect who can fight me to a draw." Meng Le said, carrying the wooden box on his back as he walked ahead.
Seeing that Mo Chuan didn't reply, Meng Le awkwardly changed the subject and asked Mo Chuan, "By the way, I still don't know your name. What's your name? What's your relationship with junior sister Mo Fei?"
"Mo Chuan, Mo Fei is my sister," Mo Chuan replied. "My biological sister."
At this moment, the two had walked out of the pine forest and arrived at a long stone staircase. Mo Chuan could see the jade gate and the tall palace at the end of the stairs with a slight raise of his eyes.
Upon hearing this, Meng Le immediately turned to look at Mo Chuan, a peculiar light flashing in his eyes. He grabbed Mo Chuan's free left hand and shook it vigorously, saying, "So you're my brother-in-law! Let me reintroduce myself, my name is Meng Le, from Xiangshui, Jingzhou, nineteen years old, male, single to this day, SSS+ rank ability Nine Dragon Sword Box."
"Hello…" Mo Chuan, though shaken by Meng Le, quickly reacted and suddenly felt like his prize cabbage was being gobbled by a pig. Disregarding the bulging veins on his forehead, he asked, "May I ask, how long have you known my sister? How far has your relationship progressed?"
"Uh…" Meng Le awkwardly scratched the back of his head and slowly said, "We're still in the unrequited love phase…"
So, it's one-sided admiration?
Mo Chuan immediately felt a black line forming on his forehead. To change the subject, he asked, "Meng Le, your Nine Dragon Sword Box is very powerful. Can you tell me about its effects?"
"Of course! You're my brother-in-law, so I can certainly tell you!" Meng Le patted the sword box on his back and replied, "The Nine Dragon Sword Box initially contains three flying swords. As my ability rank increases, the number of flying swords will also increase."
"Although I'm only Rank Four now, my strength is already close to Rank Six, with four skills—two passive and two active…"
The two chatted as they walked, gradually approaching the sect.
Suddenly, Mo Chuan felt a warmth on the mark on the back of his neck, knowing that Abe no Seimei likely had something to find him. He said to Meng Le, "Meng Le, wait for me at the mountain gate for a moment. I need to take a call."
Meng Le nodded upon hearing this and went up the mountain first.
Mo Chuan walked into the woods by the mountain path, took Abe no Seimei out of the lantern, and asked, "What is it?"
Abe no Seimei narrowed her eyes, gently wrapped her arms around Mo Chuan's neck, and planted a kiss on his cheek, whispering in his ear, "I missed you, can't I just see you?"
Mo Chuan's old face turned red. He thought that this guy really wasn't made of flesh and blood. He coughed lightly, patted Abe no Seimei's lower back, and said, "Stop messing around. We'll talk about other things when we get back. Is there anything urgent?"
Abe no Seimei smiled slightly, released her hands, leaped onto a large tree, and dangled her two jade-like legs, saying, "Some old guys inside know me. If I go in, they'll find me, so I won't go in. Remember to pick me up here later."
Mo Chuan nodded upon hearing this, gently pinched the little foot playfully dangling before him, and turned towards the mountain gate.
Abe no Seimei sat on the tree watching Mo Chuan's figure disappear. She waved her hand, conjuring a mirror. After a moment, seeing an image appear in the mirror, she said, "Why did you suddenly think of contacting me? Are you that eager for me to settle the score?"
On the other side of the mirror was Su Daji. She sighed softly and said, "As you wish. Anyway, I can only hold on for ten more days at most. I'm not here to talk about that with you…"
Su Daji's sentence was cut short as her eyes landed on the changes in Abe no Seimei's surroundings, especially the faint green mark on Abe no Seimei's lower abdomen, which made Su Daji frown. She asked, "You… you're not in that lantern?"
"That's right!"
"This mark… Shuten Doji, what agreement did you reach with Mo Chuan? Mo Chuan would actually let you out?"
Abe no Seimei flicked her slender fingers and said, "First, I am no longer Shuten Doji. I am now Abe no Seimei, Abe no Seimei atoning for my sins."
"Second, I have no deal with Mo Chuan. This is just proof of our relationship."
Su Daji seemed to understand something instantly. She let out a cold laugh and said, "No matter how I tempted him before, he always kept his distance and played along with me. It was good that he didn't kill me in the end, and he'd do that to you?"
"You wouldn't understand this! This is my old lady… no, this young lady has a strategy, acting fast gets the results!"
"Hmph." Su Daji sneered dismissively. "Have you considered that you have feelings for Mo Chuan, but how does Mo Chuan feel about you? Anyone with eyes can see that this kid isn't quick to react when it comes to relationships."
"Moreover, the path of the living and the dead are different, just as the path of humans and demons are different."
"…" Abe no Seimei was silent for a moment, her hands unconsciously touching her lower abdomen. Finally, she slowly said, "You don't need to worry about it."
"Alright, alright… I won't interfere." Su Daji chuckled. "Since that's the case, it saves trouble. Find an opportunity to tell Mo Chuan that Su Yueqing will go to Longjing to find Mo Chuan after she's absorbed my demonic power. Have him recall their pre-arranged method of contact."
"Also, take back the Ghost King power within me. I don't want to take this thing to meet my ancestors."
—————————————————————————
Data Update (Not included in total word count)
Host: Mo Chuan
Attack Power: 67
Armor: 2281 (31+2250)
Ability Power: 2267 (17+2250)
Magic Resistance: 131 (26+105)
Hellfire Curse: 900 stacks (115 stacks remaining to digest)
Ravenous Flock: 431 stacks
Level: 10 (92%)
Gold: 50
Equipment: Tear of the Goddess (300), Corrupting Potion, Abyssal Mask, Force of Nature.
Abilities: Hellfire Curse (+2), Ravenous Flock (+1), Voodoo Shambler, Death Pact, Mental Pollution (+2), Judgment Pendulum, Desolate, Soul Tether Lamp, Nightfall, Netherworld Hell (+3), Demon Spectre, Innate Charm, Soul Reaver's Grasp