Qinglong Island is a typical overseas fairy mountain, quiet and secluded. People come and go there, some wearing tall hats and wide belts, some wearing flowing Taoist robes. There are clusters of flowers all year round. When viewed from the sea, there is a thin layer of mist lingering on the island, like a paradise floating on the water.

The master of Qinglong Island is one of the four saints. He has been in seclusion for many years and rarely shows up. He doesn't seem to be in charge of anything, but he came out to meet Yan Zhengming, and his attitude was very pleasant, as if he was facing his own junior. Perhaps knowing that he was upset, the master didn't talk to him for long. After arranging for them to stay, the master generously said that all the resources on Qinglong Island could be borrowed by him until he found the missing Mu Chun Zhenren and his two junior brothers and sisters whose lives and deaths were unknown.

Of course, the monks could not gossip about this as blatantly as the country folk; instead, they did so in a gentle and polite manner, but with a hidden agenda.

Come to think of it, this is indeed true. The master of Qinglong Island is someone who countless people try to curry favor with but cannot. He is too lazy to even show up at the Immortal Market held once every ten years. How could these little bastards of unknown origin deserve his favor?

What's more, these little bastards have low cultivation levels, and they only know how to show off and flaunt their wealth. They even refuse to restrain themselves when they arrive at Qinglong Island, which is really despicable.

Yan Zhengming was unaware of these undercurrents, and he really had no time to care. The island owner learned the birth dates of Cheng Qian and Shuikeng and sent countless monks to search for them, but there was no news for three whole days.

Yan Zhengming didn't know how he got through these three days.

It was not until the early morning of the fourth day that Xiaoyue pushed open the door quietly, holding a set of hair-combing tools that would make the emperor's daughter smack her lips in amazement. She was ready to light the incense and wake her young master up. But when she looked inside, she found that the young master was no longer in the room.

Xiao Yue'er was startled, thinking she had gotten up late and prepared herself to be scolded. She walked in hesitantly, only to find that the Taoist boy had already made the bed, and the owner of the house was nowhere to be found.

Xiao Yue asked hurriedly: "Where is the young master?"

The Taoist boy replied, "I heard that there was news about the headmaster and his men. They got up late last night and left overnight."

Xiao Yue was stunned. Apart from the fact that Yan Zhengming, the prodigal son, was spoiled by the Yan family, the family tradition was actually quite upright and they did not mistreat servants. She was a servant of the Yan family and a little girl, and was almost raised as a half-young lady. On weekdays, she was only responsible for combing the young master's hair on Fuyao Mountain and didn't care about anything else. Even when the two demons fought on the sea, she stayed in the cabin steadily without being splashed with seawater. The wind and waves outside never hit her head. This was the first time she felt the panic of the people around her.

Xiao Yue'er held the sandalwood box in her arms and asked in confusion, "Then... you didn't say when you would be back?"

The Taoist boy looked back at the naive little girl and softened his voice involuntarily, saying, "I haven't said anything yet. I don't know what the situation is yet."

After that, the Taoist boy lowered his voice and added: "I'm telling you, don't tell anyone else. Last night, I heard our young master talking to the second uncle. From what they said, if something happens, we might not be able to return to Fuyao Mountain for a while. If that's the case, you have to remember that everyone on this island is a real person. No matter if they are good or bad, they can call the clouds and rain. It's like crushing an ant to kill us. You girls must not run around and don't offend them casually. Do you hear me?"

The island owner seemed to have a deep connection with the Fuyao Sect. In fact, he had already thought that the missing Master Mu Chun and his companions might appear near Wangyou Valley, so he had sent people to wait there. However, for some reason, these monks did not dare to enter the valley to search.

After waiting for three full days, Cheng Qian and the pit finally appeared.

Cheng Qian's appearance at that time was extremely miserable. Even the monks who were waiting for him did not expect that Master Mu Chun was not there. He, an older child, walked out by himself, leading a younger child.

Wild beasts and monsters can be seen everywhere in the valley. The fact that they were able to escape alive might be due to the help of someone’s spirit in heaven.

However, the young man, who they imagined would be frightened, was not as easy to deal with as expected.

In the evening, Cheng Qian took a bowl of vegetable porridge from a nearby villager from a female monk, thanked her, tasted a mouthful first, then took the water pit aside, scooped a spoonful and put it to her mouth. The water pit had suffered a lot with him for a few days and had become a little hungry ghost. It immediately opened its mouth wide to eat.

But Cheng Qian suddenly retracted his hand, leaving her with nothing to bite.

Shuikeng looked at him pitifully with tears in his eyes.

Cheng Qian whispered, "Do you remember what I said? If you remember, I'll give it to you."

Shuikeng nodded quickly, and at the same time, she shamelessly clasped her two chubby little hands together, nodded and bowed, and only then did she get the first bite of food in these days.

At first glance, the scene seemed like a naughty senior brother bullying a junior sister, teasing her and insisting that she bow before giving him food - in fact, the bowing part was completely the instinct of the glutton.

As soon as he met this group of strangers, Cheng Qian immediately instructed Shuikeng: From now on, she is not allowed to show her wings in front of anyone, otherwise she will not be given any food.

The female cultivator next to her probably thought that the plump girl was quite funny, so she asked casually, "Why did your sect accept such a young disciple?"

Cheng Qian smiled at her calmly, "One time, one of my junior brothers was having fun and found her on the way down the mountain to the market. The harvest may not be good in recent years, so someone in the village down the mountain must not be able to afford to raise her. My junior brother felt sorry for her and brought her back. Senior, think about it, for us cultivators, ten or twenty years pass in the blink of an eye, but it is enough for her to grow from a toddler to a grown-up girl. Her young age will not be a problem, she will grow up quickly."

The female cultivator couldn't help teasing him, "You haven't even completed one 'Fingers Flick', yet you talk like an adult. If it were you, you should go back with us to heal your wounds. Even if your brothers travel day and night on flying horses, it would take at least a day or two."

Cheng Qian wiped the porridge that leaked from the corner of his mouth and replied, "It's okay for me to go alone, but it's not good to bring my junior sister to trouble the seniors. I'd better wait for the senior brothers. Now that the master is not here, I have to listen to the senior brothers. I don't have any ideas, so I dare not make decisions on my own."

Female cultivator: “…”

She didn't see at all how this kid had no ideas.

Perhaps because of his young age, Cheng Qian was not very good at dealing with people. He seldom took the initiative to say anything, nor would he deliberately try to make friends with others. He was polite and a bit well-behaved - everything about him was good, except that he was stubborn.

He was covered in wounds, including those from being scratched and bitten by wild beasts and various bruises. The cloth wrapped around his arm had already stuck to his hand due to the dried blood.

Logically speaking, if he didn't die after coming out of the Forget-Sorrow Valley, he would be injured at least. Moreover, he was with a babbling little girl, so he should have been exhausted long ago. But Cheng Qian acted as if nothing had happened. He would rather sleep in the open air by the Forget-Sorrow Valley than go with them. He was very tight-lipped about what happened in the valley and no matter how much he was asked, he couldn't tell them a single word.

When the moon was above the willows, Yan Zhengming, who had received the news, came rushing over.

He came alone, without Li Yun and Han Yuan, and even without a Taoist child. Before the carriage pulled by the Divine Eagle had even come to a stop, Yan Zhengming had already lifted the curtain and jumped out.

Yan Zhengming had been worried and frightened for days, and he was full of anger. But when he saw Cheng Qian's bloody and miserable appearance, half of his anger was scared away. When he looked for his master and didn't see him, the other half disappeared immediately.

Yan Zhengming ran over quickly, first hurriedly caught the puddle that fell into his arms, then pulled Cheng Qian up and asked repeatedly: "What's going on? How did you get into this state? Where have you been these days? Where is the master? Why did he leave the two of you here alone?"

Cheng Qian didn't answer, but just stared at him blankly.

Yan Zhengming's heart was beating wildly, and he asked anxiously, "Xiao Qian, what's going on?"

Cheng Qian said nothing. His eyes slid across Yan Zhengming's face and swept over the unfamiliar monks around him.

After all, the cultivators from Qinglong Island were from different backgrounds. They knew at a glance that the other fellow disciples had something to say to each other, so they consciously withdrew.

Cheng Qian then let out a breath, and took out a small seal from his bosom with his uninjured hand. He handed it to Yan Zhengming and said in an almost inaudible voice, "This is the seal of the headmaster, senior brother. Master asked me to bring it to you."

Yan Zhengming was stunned for a while, then he reacted. He took a step back and the color on his face suddenly faded away.

He looked at the seal held in Cheng Qian's palm, which was stained with blood and dust, and it was as if he saw some ferocious beast. For a moment, his eyes were almost filled with fear.

Cheng Qian's subsequent words blocked his last chance of retreat.

"Master is dead," Cheng Qian said, "He said that you will be the leader of Fuyao Sect from now on."

"No..." Yan Zhengming shook his head instinctively, and pushed Cheng Qian away in panic, saying incoherently, "I don't... you, you, take this away, don't give it to me! What nonsense are you talking about? How could the master die?"

Cheng Qian: "I watched him lose his soul."

"Impossible!" Yan Zhengming's eyes widened, unable to speak, he just kept denying, "Impossible!"

This time, Cheng Qian did not answer. He kept handing over the seal of the leader and looked deeply at Yan Zhengming. The sadness on his face was so heavy that it seemed that it should never appear on a young man.

"It's true," he murmured, "Brother, it's true..."

Before he could finish his words, Cheng Qian's head suddenly drooped weakly to the side, and he fell down without any warning.

Yan Zhengming subconsciously reached out to support him, and he didn't know where he touched, but a shocking blood mark immediately appeared on his snow-white sleeve.

Cheng Qian's body was icy cold, and Yan Zhengming almost felt that he had stopped breathing. He hurriedly turned Cheng Qian over and stretched out two fingers to feel Cheng Qian's breath, but his hands were shaking too badly, and after groping for a long time, he couldn't figure out what was going on.

Shuikeng usually doesn't make much noise, but she can't speak after all. At this moment, she had no way to express herself but to cry - in these few days alone, she had cried almost all the tears she had accumulated in her life.

Yan Zhengming's ears were buzzing, and his mind was blank. He tightly grasped Cheng Qian's hand. The seal of the headmaster in his palm was as cold as ice, and he couldn't warm it up no matter how hard he tried. For a moment, he could only mechanically repeat: "Don't cry, Shuikeng, don't cry."

He didn't know how long he had been kneeling stiffly on the ground, maybe a long time, maybe just a blink of an eye. Someone grabbed his shoulders and shook him hard a few times. Yan Zhengming looked up blankly and saw an unknown monk from Qinglong Island looking at him with a worried look on his face.

Yan Zhengming felt that his face must be uglier than a ghost, because he found that the monk seemed to have misunderstood something and subconsciously did the same thing as him - reaching out to feel Cheng Qian's breath. After a moment, the monk breathed a sigh of relief, raised his head and said, "He's still breathing. I have elixirs and medicine for injuries. Don't worry, it may not be that serious."

Yan Zhengming nodded, then bit the tip of his tongue fiercely. The sharp pain and the smell of blood rushed to his brows. He came back to his senses from the chaos, tried to calm down, and calmly took the seal of the head from Cheng Qian. He held it in his hand, leaned over and picked up Cheng Qian, and said to the puddle: "Can you walk by yourself?"

Shuikeng carefully stood on tiptoe, stretched out his arm, and grabbed the corner of his clothes.

Yan Zhengming sat in the carriage pulled by the Divine Eagle and took a whole day and night to get back to Qinglong Island. He was so confused that he could hardly breathe. Intellectually, he knew that what Cheng Qian said was probably true. The master had always been too pampering to them and not strict enough. As long as he was alive, he would never leave Cheng Qian and Shuikeng in such a dangerous place.

Li Yun and Han Yuan were waiting anxiously on Qinglong Island. When they saw him coming back, they immediately rushed over.

"What happened to Xiao Qian?"

"Where's the Master?"

"Yes, why didn't Master come back with us?"

"Where did you find them?"

"I don't know!" Yan Zhengming strode past his two junior brothers, feeling so annoyed that he almost wanted to yell, "Don't ask me, don't make a fuss! Wait until he wakes up!"

But Cheng Qian remained unconscious. The injury was one reason. But he also spent three or four days in the Forget-Sorrow Valley with puddles around him, and he certainly didn't dare to close his eyes.

Yan Zhengming stayed with him all the time. At first, he was eagerly waiting for Cheng Qian to wake up, and couldn't wait to know what had happened in Wangyou Valley. But the more time passed, the more scared he became.

As soon as he closed his eyes, he thought of Cheng Qian, covered in blood, looking at him deeply and telling him that his master was dead. This kept him awake at night.

In extreme anxiety, an idea naturally came to Yan Zhengming's mind. He thought: "I might as well quit my job and go home to be a young master."

As soon as this thought came to his mind, it occupied his entire thoughts.

Yes, anyway, his family has plenty of money, and it is enough for him to live a mortal life in wealth and glory for several decades. Why would he need to cultivate immortality or practice Taoism?

As for his fellow apprentices, he could just take them home together. Those who wanted to continue practicing martial arts could practice martial arts, and those who wanted to study could be sent to take the imperial examinations. Wasn't it just a matter of having a few more pairs of chopsticks at home?

Being the head of a sect - don't be kidding, the only thing he knows how to do in his life is being a young master!

Yan Zhengming thought to himself that he couldn't even carve a basic talisman, and his basic sword skills were only barely passable. Not to mention those powerful ones, even a random Taoist boy serving tea and water on Qinglong Island had higher cultivation than him. If he were to become the head of the sect, what could he accomplish?

Yan Zhengming thought so and immediately stood up and called in a Taoist boy who was serving him: "Zheshi, Zheshi!"

The Taoist boy Zheshi trotted over to him and said, "Young Master."

"Bring me a pen and paper. I need to send a letter home." Yan Zhengming quickly ordered, "Pack our luggage and get the boat ready. As soon as Xiao Qian wakes up, I'll go and say goodbye to the island owner."

Zheshi was stunned: "Master, are we going back to Fuyao Mountain?"

Yan Zhengming: "Why go back to Fuyao Mountain? Go home!"

Zheshi was surprised: "Master, that sect..."

Yan Zhengming waved his hand and said, "There is no Fuyao Sect anymore. The sect has been disbanded. Do you understand? Go quickly. It's only a few days away."

Ochre ran away in panic.

Cheng Qian woke up two days later. As soon as he moved, a hand was placed on his forehead. A familiar orchid scent came up, but for some reason the scent was much dimmer. Cheng Qian gently opened his mouth and silently called out, "Senior Brother."

His voice was too hoarse and he couldn't utter a word.

Yan Zhengming helped him up and handed him a bowl of water without saying a word.

Cheng Qian drank it all in one breath, then asked in a daze, "Where's my junior sister?"

Yan Zhengming said: "At Xiaoyue'er's place, there are maids watching over her."

Cheng Qian pinched his brows in confusion and asked again: "The Sect Leader's Seal... Yes, there is also the Sect Leader's Seal. Did I give it to you?"

Yan Zhengming took out a string from around his neck, with the small seal of the leader tied to the bottom.

Cheng Qian's confused and tense expression finally relaxed a little, and a bit of fatigue appeared on his face.

The Fuyao faction is in chaos every day. The older ones don't know how to give in to the younger ones, and the younger ones don't know how to respect their elder brothers. It seems like it was just yesterday that they had a quarrel, but when they face each other today, it seems like a lifetime ago.

Yan Zhengming sighed and asked softly, "Are you hungry?"

Cheng Qian shook his head. He leaned against the head of the bed for a while, and then he spoke in the silence of the room: "The reason why I, Junior Sister and Master were there was because we drew the wrong talisman that day."

Yan Zhengming did not interrupt him. He sat quietly aside and listened to him tell the whole story from beginning to end.

Cheng Qian had little strength and spoke incoherently. It took him a whole stick of incense to explain everything clearly. After Yan Zhengming finished listening, he remained silent for a long time.

The candle flame jumped and the flame was a little dazzling. Yan Zhengming came to his senses and used all his strength to straighten his back. For a moment, he felt that the seal of the leader on his neck weighed more than a thousand pounds and was about to bend his neck.

He stood up, gently placed a hand on Cheng Qian's head, and said in the most gentle tone of his life: "I'll have someone bring you a bowl of porridge, eat a little, and then apply the medicine."

Cheng Qian nodded obediently.

Yan Zhengming turned around and walked out, saying to himself, "Okay, now I know what happened. He's awake now, so I can go home tomorrow morning."

How nice it is to go home, with clothes and food provided for me, no need to get up early to practice swordplay, and no need to practice martial arts at night...

Just as Yan Zhengming walked to the door with a heavy heart, Cheng Qian suddenly said, "Wait, Senior Brother, are my books lost? Can you have someone bring those sword manuals to me?"

Yan Zhengming's hand, which had already touched the door, suddenly stopped. He stood there straight with his back to Cheng Qian, and his whole body seemed to be frozen.

"What?" Cheng Qian was stunned. "Is it lost?"

Yan Zhengming turned his back to him and asked in a hoarse voice, "I can't even get up, what's the point of reading the sword manual?"

"Master said that we have inherited the bloodline of the Fuyao Sect," Cheng Qian said, "Even if we can't get up, the bloodline is not broken. Besides, Master also told me to practice sword well in the future."

Yan Zhengming stood there for a long time, then suddenly turned around, walked back in two steps, and pulled Cheng Qian, who was leaning against the head of the bed, into his arms.

The seal of the leader was stuck on his collarbone, making it painful. He thought: "Fuck the sect, I am the leader of the Fuyao Sect, and I am not dead yet!"

He held her too tightly, as if he was holding on to a life-saving straw, and his whole body was so tense that it was trembling. For a moment, Cheng Qian thought he was crying.

However, he waited for a long time, but did not see the tears as expected. Instead, he only received a word from his senior brother whispered in his ear.

"It's okay," Yan Zhengming said, "It's okay, Xiao Qian, my brother is here."