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"Elder Yunye, I entrust my junior brother Little Taiping to your care."
Zhao Linglong seemed to recognize the Immortal Crane and immediately waved to it.
"Mm."
Upon seeing Zhao Linglong, a trace of the aloofness in Elder Yunye's eyes faded, but even so, he merely nodded slightly.
"Come aboard, we must descend the mountain before nightfall."
Elder Yunye then glanced at Xu Taiping.
Xu Taiping nodded and, while walking forward, turned his head to bow with a smile to Qingxiao and Zhao Linglong:
"Senior Brothers, and Senior Sister Linglong, see you in a month."
"Safe travels."
Qingxiao returned the gesture to Xu Taiping.
"Remember to come back and tell me if you find any fun adventures."
Zhao Linglong waved her hand with a beaming smile.
"Junior brother, take care."
Wu Liang also bowed to Xu Taiping.
After bidding farewell to each, Xu Taiping hesitated no longer, leaped gracefully, and lightly seated himself on Elder Yunye's back.
With another cry of the crane, Elder Yunye, carrying Xu Taiping, soared from the Cloud Ascension Platform.
In the blink of an eye, man and crane vanished from the sight of Zhao Linglong and the others.
"Even though we often don't see each other for a month on the mountain, seeing Little Taiping leave like this still leaves a sense of emptiness."
Zhao Linglong sighed with her arms crossed.
After this Seven Peaks selection, she truly came to see Xu Taiping as a younger brother.
"Taiping's trip down the mountain this time will take at most a month, or perhaps less than half a month if he's quick. But you, in a few months, it will be the Seven Peaks competition. How well have you and your third senior sister mastered the Purple-Green Twin Swords?"
Qingxiao inquired of Zhao Linglong.
"This…"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Linglong started to stammer, and her gaze fell on the eighth junior brother beside her. She quickly changed the subject:
"Eighth junior brother, what's the deal with your sect? How come you never mentioned it before?"
Hearing this, Qingxiao also became interested and turned to look at the eighth, Wu Liang.
"Ah? It's just a small faction, nothing famous."
Wu Liang's eyes darted around evasively.
He seemed reluctant to talk about the sect he had established at the foot of the mountain.
"Eighth, is your faction that shady?"
Qingxiao frowned at this point.
He was mainly concerned that Wu Liang's faction might affect Xu Taiping.
"No, no, no, senior brother, you've really misunderstood!"
Seeing Qingxiao's angry face, the eighth immediately waved his hands and then scratched his head, looking embarrassed, "My faction isn't involved in any shady business; I was just afraid you'd laugh at me."
"Still keeping us in suspense."
Zhao Linglong said with some displeasure, hands on her hips.
"I dare not, I dare not. My faction, its name is… the Beggar Sect."
Wu Liang said somewhat sheepishly.
"The Beggar Sect?"
Zhao Linglong didn't quite catch on.
"It's a faction where all the members are beggars."
Qingxiao explained for Wu Liang.
It seemed he had heard of the Beggar Sect before.
"Second senior brother is right. My members are a group of street beggars. But rest assured, senior brother and sister, our Beggar Sect doesn't engage in dishonorable deeds."
Wu Liang gave a sheepish smile.
"Could it be that you, junior brother, were once a beggar yourself?"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Linglong curiously looked at Wu Liang.
She was simply curious and didn't look down on beggars.
"Alas, I was originally a scholar. When I went to the capital for the imperial examination, I accidentally lost my money. If not for a few beggars who helped me, I would have starved to death on the road. Later, by a stroke of fate, I learned some martial arts and saw those beggar brothers often being bullied. In a fit of anger, I established the Beggar Sect. Later, I was hunted by the authorities and accidentally fled into Yunlu Mountain, and I never went back. I don't even know if my brothers are still there."
Wu Liang sighed.
His trial mission was not in the Black Vulture Nation but in the Great Shu Nation, thousands of miles away. Every time he descended the mountain, his tasks were far from the Black Vulture Nation, so he never had the chance to go back and check.
"Whether your brothers are still there or not, I'm not sure, but I have heard of the Beggar Sect in the Black Vulture Nation a few years ago when I was down the mountain. Although their situation isn't great, they still exist."
Qingxiao patted Wu Liang's shoulder.
"Thank you for letting me know, senior brother."
Wu Liang's heart lifted at the news.
"Who would have thought, eighth junior brother, you have such a kind heart. Don't worry, your words will surely be conveyed by Little Taiping."
Zhao Linglong also comforted Wu Liang.
"I believe in Little Taiping."
Wu Liang nodded, his gaze drifting in the direction Xu Taiping had left.
***
This evening, as dusk fell.
"Xu Taiping, this place is called Lion Slope, one of Qingxuan Sect's induction sites in the secular world. Two hundred li south of Crossroads Slope, in the valley below Qingluo Valley, there is a Mandala Villa. The Princess of White Tree Nation and her guards are waiting for you there. They won't leave until you arrive."
"After completing your trials, you must return to Lion Slope within three months, and I will send someone to fetch you back to the mountain."
On a small hill, the Immortal Crane Elder Yunye was instructing Xu Taiping on the matters of descending the mountain.
"Disciple has noted it."
Xu Taiping nodded.
"Take this half jade bracelet and these two maps of White Tree Nation and Black Vulture Nation, and keep them safe."
With a flap of his wings, Elder Yunye tossed a cloth bag, sealed with a white feather, in front of Xu Taiping.
"Elder Yunye, what is the purpose of this feather?"
After confirming the contents of the bag, Xu Taiping picked up the white feather.
He could sense that this feather contained a very powerful spiritual force, far from ordinary.
"This Spirit Feather is for your protection. Should you encounter any danger or fail to complete your mission on time, simply burn this feather to ashes, and I will personally come to retrieve you."
"However, once you use this feather, it also signifies the failure of your trial."
Elder Yunye answered with an indifferent tone.
"Thank you, Elder, for this treasure."
Xu Taiping expressed his gratitude once more.
Elder Yunye nodded slightly, then tapped his claws "bang bang" on the rocks a few times.
Soon, the sound of a horse's neigh echoed through the woods.
A jet-black steed galloped out from the forest.
"This is a Spirit Horse raised by Qingxuan Sect in the mountains; it will be your mount while you are down the mountain. According to the Nine Prefectures' Immortal Laws, unless absolutely necessary, cultivators from the major sects should not display their powers in the mortal realm, so as not to disturb the common people and cause unnecessary trouble."
Elder Yunye looked at the black steed and then turned his gaze back to Xu Taiping.
"Disciple will surely heed Elder's teachings."
Xu Taiping bowed.
Cultivators, especially those with Immortal Status from the mountains, must abide by the Nine Prefectures' Immortal Laws when in the mortal realm, as Elder Yunye had just mentioned, not to fly with the wind in the secular world, and even when riding Spirit Birds, not to do so in bustling markets or crowded places.
However, as long as one isn't caught red-handed, the Immortal Law Office usually doesn't say much.
"Go now, the Sixth Princess should already be at Mandala Villa."
While speaking, Elder Yunye flapped his wings and soared into the sky, disappearing above Lion Slope in the blink of an eye, leaving only an ethereal voice echoing in the mountains—
"That princess is not without her troubles; do not be careless. If the situation is untenable, withdraw in time."