A Lifeless Town

Yun Bei Fen looked at Mei Chao Bing with a sad expression. Mei Chao Bing's Master really hadn't been a nice person. He had already known that before but seeing his senior martial brother like this just made him realize this point once again. If he had been nicer, then things wouldn't be like this. Mei Chao Bing wouldn't need to be so sad all the time. It really was a pity.

He couldn't help but wonder if there was anything he could do about it. He couldn't bring Mei Chao Bing's Master back or make him into a better person but maybe he could do something else for him that would make him happy again?

He pondered but couldn't come up with anything. He really wished that his senior martial brothers were there so that he could ask them for some advice. Unfortunately, he could only wish for that and it still wouldn't become true.

Well, his first senior martial brother would come by sooner or later but he didn't know just when that would be. And if he didn't have any idea, then he also wouldn't get any further. It was a very difficult situation.

Mei Chao Bing pulled himself out of his thoughts and patted Yun Bei Fen's head. "Don't think about it any further. Anyway, we can only try to be vigilant so that we won't step right into their traps. I guess I'll go and tell your Master after all. In the end, as long as they know, they can try to think it through. And your Master and Elder Xing know my Master probably better than I do. So maybe they'll be able to anticipate whatever he is planning."

Yun Bei Fen nodded. If his senior martial brother said so, then it had to be true.

"Alright, you've practiced quite some time already. How about we go to sleep now? We've been working all this time so you're probably tired."

Yun Bei Fen looked up at the sky that was slowly turning a little darker even though it definitely couldn't be called night. "I can still practice some more. I don't mind." He didn't want to give up yet. He still had to learn a lot so that his senior martial brother Mei could be proud of him.

Mei Chao Bing originally wanted to try and convince him but in the end, he nodded. "Alright, if you think so, then you should definitely continue." Anyway, it was good if he practiced some more. That way, he would be less vulnerable in the future. He shouldn't try to stop him just because he wasn't there with his thoughts.

Yun Bei Fen nodded happily and then got up again, lifting his sword to try further. This time, Mei Chao Bing also paid attention and tried to give him advice when he could. Well, it wasn't that easy. Yun Bei Fen had already grasped the concept and would just need to spend more time on it. There wasn't much he could do about that other than accompanying him and reminding him every now and then that things would turn out well if he just kept at it.

While the two of them were immersed in the training, a man stood on a hill not far from the town, his black robe and hair billowing in the wind. He watched the letter that Elder Baili had written rise into the air and then fly off toward the direction of the Teng Yong Sect.

The man continued to stand there until the letter had vanished in the distance and then turned back to the town. The gaze from his black eyes brushed over the streets that were currently empty because the arrival of all those cultivators had worried the common people and made them stay in their houses more often than not.

Right now, nothing could be seen of the young cultivators of the Teng Yong Sect either. And the other sects had mostly found accommodations in other towns nearby, leaving this place empty and desolate. In a way, this town looked just as lifeless as the parts of the border region that Mei Chao Bing and the others had investigated previously.

In the end, the man sighed and turned away, rushing toward a place further inside the border region. He only stopped when he reached a humongous gate at the heart of the region.

With a dispassionate face, he took out a piece of jade that looked remarkably like the one Elder Feng had given Mei Chao Bing once upon a time. He inserted it into a slot in the gate and the wings opened.

The man stepped through, waiting for them to close behind him before he made his way through the corridors on the other side, finally reaching another set of doors in the deepest part of the site.

He stopped in front of them and clasped his fists, bowing despite nobody being able to be seen. "You were right, Master. They did indeed sent a message to the Teng Yong Sect."

"What about the Jian Chu Sect and the other two?"

"Nothing as of yet. Should I return to gather more information?"

There was a slight pause from inside before a sigh sounded. "No need. Knowing them, they won't do anything soon. They're both much too careful. Just return to your usual task. It wouldn't be good for you to run into any of their disciples."

The man kept quiet for a moment but then nodded. "Yes, Master." With that, he turned around and left, leaving the corridor empty safe for the slight echo of those words.