Mortal: Fairy Song Yu has issued you a task.

Chapter 21 Crisis Approaching

The night was as dark as ink, heavily enveloping the Luoyun Sect.

The main peak, shrouded in purple mist year-round, appears even more mysterious under the cover of night.

In the stillness of the night, two streaks of light, one purple-gold and the other crimson, shot from the distant horizon and hurtled toward the cloud-shrouded peak.

The beam of light pierced through the purple mist and disappeared into a magnificent palace atop the peak. The light faded, revealing two figures.

One was an elderly man with black hair and a chiseled face, dressed in a red robe. The other was a man with his hair tied up and wearing a brown robe, with sharp eyes; he was none other than Wei Changqing, the peak master of Hidden Sword Peak.

At this moment, the main hall was brightly lit, and the atmosphere was solemn. On both sides of the spacious hall, a dozen or so large pear wood chairs were neatly arranged, filled with Core Formation stage cultivators.

The people communicated only by slightly moving their lips, using telepathy to make the huge council hall so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Deep inside the hall, on a platform several steps higher than the ground, stood three empty armchairs.

Wei Changqing looked around and saw that, along with himself and the red-robed elder, the peak masters and deputy peak masters of the six peaks of Luoyun—Tianquan, Yinjian, Huanshi, Baifeng, Suoyan, and Huoyun—were all gathered here. Moreover, several Core Formation cultivators from the Ancient Sword Sect were also seated at the table.

"Junior Brother Wei, Junior Brother Duan, you're back." Upon seeing the two appear, Feng Zhuohe, the peak master of Tianquan Peak, stood up and took a few steps to greet them.

"Upon receiving the urgent message, we rushed back immediately without delay." Wei Changqing and the red-robed elder, who was also the Duan Peak Master of Huoyun Peak, bowed to each other.

"Thank you for your trouble, senior brothers." A clear and melodious female voice rang out. It was Peak Master Song of White Phoenix Peak. "If it weren't for the frequent disturbances in both the righteous and demonic paths, we wouldn't have had to trouble you two to travel back and forth like this."

"It is our duty to share the burdens of the sect," Wei Changqing replied in a deep voice.

As soon as they finished speaking, three even faster beams of light shot into the hall one after another, passing over everyone's heads and finally landing in the main area on the high steps.

The light faded, revealing three figures.

In the center was an elderly man with silver hair and beard and a kind face;

On the left is a middle-aged Taoist priest with a sallow complexion and a serious demeanor;

The remaining person was a very young child who only reached the waist of the other person.

The moment this strange trio appeared, an aura of Nascent Soul stage power emanated from them, causing all the Core Formation cultivators below to shudder and rise to their feet, bowing respectfully.

"Greetings, two Supreme Elders!" "Greetings, Senior Fire Dragon!"

These three were Cheng Tiankun and Lü Luo, two Grand Elders of the Falling Cloud Sect at the early Nascent Soul stage, and Huolong Tongzi, a sword cultivator of the Ancient Sword Sect at the early Nascent Soul stage.

Cheng Tiankun turned slightly to the side and gestured to the boy, "Fellow Daoist Lan, please take a seat."

Fire Dragon Boy gave a soft "hmm" and, without any hesitation, leaped onto the armchair on the right.

He bent one leg and placed it on the chair, while the other foot dangled a few inches off the ground. His small body looked quite peculiar against the backdrop of the large armchair.

However, none of the cultivators below the stage dared to show any unusual behavior. Only after Cheng Tiankun and Lü Luo took their seats did everyone else sit down.

Cheng Tiankun's gaze swept across the entire room, his originally gentle eyes now revealing a hint of solemnity.

"Previously, Junior Nephew Song reported to me that two suspicious disciples had been discovered within the sect. After a thorough investigation, it has now been confirmed that they are spies planted in our sect by the Heavenly Fiend Sect, one of the six major demonic sects!"

Hearing this, the many Core Formation cultivators were not surprised. Which sect doesn't have spies within it?

Cheng Tiankun continued in a deep voice, "What's even more troublesome is that, after much effort, we've discovered that the Heavenly Fiend Sect is plotting to invade our sect!"

Upon hearing this, apart from the four peak masters of Baifeng Peak and Tianquan Peak who remained calm, all the other Core Formation cultivators showed surprise on their faces.

The air in the hall suddenly became heavier. Was the demonic path preparing to invade the Xi Kingdom?

Just as the room fell silent, a youthful yet weathered voice rang out:

"After receiving Fellow Daoist Cheng's message, I mobilized our sect's hidden agents within the Heavenly Fiend Sect. In recent months, there has been frequent movement within the Heavenly Fiend Sect. Not to mention the Heavenly Fiend True Monarch, who had previously disappeared without a trace, many Core Formation cultivators have recently gone into seclusion. Hmph! It seems the Heavenly Fiend Sect has grand ambitions!"

Fire Dragon Boy dangled his little feet, which were dangling in the air, and said calmly:

"However, the three sects of Yunmeng are not to be trifled with. Our Grand Elder Jin is already aware of this matter; I am merely acting ahead of time!"

Cheng Tiankun sincerely said to the Fire Dragon Boy, "I am deeply grateful for Fellow Daoist Lan's generous assistance this time."

"You're too kind. The three sects of Yunmeng are of one mind. How could I stand idly by while Luoyun Sect is in trouble?"

At this moment, the Supreme Elder Lü Luo, who had been silent all along, spoke up and steered the conversation back on track: "The Demonic Sect is coming on strong. We are now making the following arrangements, Hidden Sword Peak..."

About half an hour later, streaks of light scattered out of the majestic palace like shooting stars.

One of the streaks of purple-gold light headed straight for the main hall atop Hidden Sword Peak.

"Greetings, Peak Master Wei!" The disciples on duty outside the hall bowed and greeted Wei Changqing as he arrived.

Wei Changqing nodded slightly and asked casually, "By the way, how is my old friend's descendant doing in the sect these days, the one I asked you to keep an eye on?"

"Reporting to Peak Master, Junior Nephew Xu was recently assigned to enter the Cloud Mist Secret Realm."

"Yes, I understand."

Wei Changqing's expression remained unchanged as he turned and walked into the hall, his heart filled with unease.

-----------------

Even in the Cloudy Mystery Realm, there is a cycle of day and night.

During the day, the camp manager explained the various rules of the secret realm and the responsibilities of the array masters to Lin Jingchu, and told him that he could come back the next day to choose his duty officer. Finally, he was assigned a stone house.

After nightfall, Lin Jingchu did not stay in his stone house, but instead sat cross-legged by a clear stream.

Accompanying him were two newly acquainted array masters: a kind-looking middle-aged man surnamed Mu and a straightforward woman surnamed Li.

The stream babbled, insects chirped softly, and the oil from the plump stream fish dripped into the campfire, causing sparks to crackle.

"Junior Nephew Lin, try this grilled fish. Don't be fooled by the fact that life in the secret realm is more austere than outside; even the stream fish here tastes spiritual." The woman surnamed Li handed over a skewer of golden-brown, fragrant fish.

Lin Jingchu thanked him and accepted the gift, then asked the man surnamed Mu who was focused on flipping the grill, "Uncle-Master, you came in to guard the secret realm when it opened last time. Tell me about the duties of an array master."

"It's nothing more than maintaining the magic arrays in the various herb gardens, spirit fields, and beast gardens within the secret realm. But the most desirable job has to be patrolling the core restrictions of the secret realm."

"You only need to patrol once a day to check for any abnormalities. If there are any problems, just report them directly, and the elders guarding the secret realm will handle them. This job is not only easy, but also has a lot of free time."

The woman surnamed Li suddenly chuckled: "It's a cushy job, but even someone from a prestigious family like Senior Brother Mu can't get one, let alone us."

"Sigh~ My Mu family is not qualified to be called a prestigious family. Even the most powerful uncle in the clan is only at the late Foundation Establishment stage."

"That's better than..."

The two senior uncles chatted and laughed, while Lin Jingchu quietly ate his grilled fish.

After resigning from his post, he "coincidentally" ran into Xu Fuzi, and the two had a conversation.

Xu Fuzi's duty is to patrol the core of the secret realm's restrictions.