Chapter 36: Sect's Hidden Concerns
After visiting relatives and friends, it was already night.
Zuo Lingquan went out with his fifth brother in the morning, but couldn't find anyone halfway there. Zuo Lingquan was naturally worried about his safety. After searching for a long time without finding it, I had no choice but to return to Zuofu to inform my third uncle.
The third uncle, Zuo Hanchou, knew his son too well and was not in a hurry after hearing the news. He gave instructions to the housekeeper. Within two quarters of an hour, the housekeeper found his whereabouts and said he was drinking in a brothel and refused to come back.
Seeing this, Zuo Lingquan felt relieved and didn't stay any longer. He took the things he bought and rode out of the city overnight, returning to Qihuang Valley.
There is a discipline room in Qihuang Valley dedicated to controlling the practice of disciples. The discipline is very strict. At night, there is no sound in the entire valley. Even if you are not sleeping, you can only move around in your own room and are not allowed to visit.
Zuo Lingquan walked through the silent road in the valley and returned to the bamboo forest outside the waterfall.
The moon and stars were sparse in the valley, and thousands of bamboo leaves rustled among the winding paths of the bamboo forest. You could still vaguely hear the whispers of girls coming from the bamboo huts. It was probably that some senior sisters could not sleep and were huddled in a bed chatting.
Zuo Lingquan walked very lightly, placed a dozen boxes of rouge at the entrance of Senior Sister Xiaohua's courtyard, and walked towards the cold pool under the waterfall.
Looking up, there were no lights on the top of the stone cliff, but through the moonlight, a vague figure could be seen sitting cross-legged on the stone platform.
Zuo Lingquan was holding the wooden box containing the skirt in his hand. He wanted to say hello, but he was worried about disturbing the sleeping senior sisters.
Fortunately, Wu Qingwan had a keen sense. When Zuo Lingquan walked into the stone cliff, he had already heard the footsteps and raised his hand to tickle them.
Seeing this, Zuo Lingquan walked up the winding stone stairs and soon reached the cliff.
Under the silver moonlight, Wu Qingwan stood up from the stone platform, saw the exquisite wooden box in Zuo Lingquan's hand, paused slightly, and said softly:
"Did you even buy me something?"
Zuo Lingquan handed the wooden box to Wu Qingwan: "Last time I accidentally scratched Senior Wu's skirt. When I was buying rouge for my senior sisters today, I bought one. ơɱ"
"You are thoughtful." Wu Qingwan has been practicing since she was a child. She is not as fussy as a secular woman. She took it generously without opening it. She took it to the wooden house and put it down, and then walked out with a tray.
There was a row of silver needles and several unknown medicine bottles on the tray, which were obviously prepared in advance.
"Ling Quan, come with me and I'll try acupuncture on you."
Wu Qingwan held the tray and walked along the stone flat to the bottom of the waterfall.
Zuo Lingquan knew that there was a "water curtain cave" under the waterfall, which was Wu Qingwan's daily practice place, but he had never entered it. At this time, Wu Qingwan followed behind and entered the back of the roaring waterfall. What appeared in front of him was a large stone chamber.
The stone chamber is three feet in diameter and clean, with an unknown pearl inlaid on top as a light source.
There are several portraits of old men hanging on the wall. Judging from the inscriptions, they should be the previous valley owners of Qihuang Valley. One of them is that of Yue Pingyang. Judging from the portrait, he is just an ordinary middle-aged man.
Zuo Lingquan glanced at the portrait and asked: "Senior Wu, where is the Imperial Master? Why have I never seen him?"
In the middle of the stone room was a white jade stone bed. Wu Qingwan was sitting on it, sorting out the utensils. She paused when she heard the words, hesitated a little, and then answered:
"In retreat, practitioners can stop eating grains when they reach the Spiritual Valley. The higher the level of cultivation, the longer the retreat. It is common to not come out for several years. Come here and lie down."
Zuo Lingquan nodded thoughtfully, without asking any further questions. He walked to the side of the white jade bed and raised his hand to touch it. The jade was hard in texture and the tentacles were warm but not cold. He didn't know the specific material.
Wu Qingwan was wearing a goose-yellow dress, sitting sideways on the edge of the stone bed preparing silver needles. Her silhouette looked like a skilled female nurse.
Although he was alone and alone, Zuo Lingquan didn't have any strange thoughts. He took off his shirt and lay down and waited.
After Wu Qingwan prepared the silver needle, she took the small porcelain bottle from the tray, put the liquid inside on her fingertips, and gently applied it to the acupuncture points on Zuo Lingquan's back. Zuo Lingquan was lying in the middle of the stone bed, and Wu Qingwan could only bend her body slightly, her cloud-like hair hanging down from her shoulders sweeping back and forth on her broad back, carrying a faint fragrance.
Zuo Lingquan lay quietly, not distracted, he only felt that Senior Wu was gentle and considerate, but before he could thank Wu Qingwan for his meticulous care, a sharp pain came from his back.
"Hiss—" Zuo Lingquan suddenly clenched his hands tightly, and his face turned pale at that time. It was only because of his strong mind that he didn't scream.
Wu Qingwan pressed Zuo Lingquan's shoulder with her left hand to prevent him from moving. She slowly twisted the silver needle with her right hand and asked knowingly:
"It hurts a bit, huh? Do you want to pull it out and take it slow?"
Big beads of sweat rolled down Zuo Lingquan's forehead, and he gritted his teeth and said:
"Hmm... not bad."
Wu Qingwan raised her eyebrows, knowing that Zuo Lingquan was showing off, and said softly:
"Be patient, this is just the beginning, it will hurt more in the back."
Zuo Lingquan's back hurt so much that he almost lost consciousness. His face turned a little pale and he stopped talking.
"Tsk--" Wu Qingwan saw Zuo Lingquan's deflated appearance and sneered, no longer trying to scare people, and asked:
"Just kidding. How do you feel?"
"The pain is excruciating, and I can't feel anything else."
Wu Qingwan nodded slightly and pulled out the silver needle:
"Get up and try your luck."
Zuo Lingquan stood up and sat cross-legged, closed his eyes and followed the steps recorded in "Qi Yang Jue", letting his energy sink into his Dantian, feeling the ethereal aura between heaven and earth with his heart.
The stone room became quiet.
Wu Qingwan sat beside him and waited quietly for a moment. Her eyes moved from Zuo Lingquan's handsome profile to the portrait on the stone wall. Deep in her eyes, she revealed a trace of barely perceptible anxiety.
The portrait on the wall was of Yue Pingyang, the national teacher, who was also Wu Qingwan's teacher and the pillar of the entire Qihuang Valley.
Zuo Lingquan had just asked about the national teacher. Wu Qingwan was very thoughtful. How could she not see the "thoughtful" look in Zuo Lingquan's expression?
Wu Qingwan regarded Jiang Yi as her daughter. Jiang Yi had asked about the national teacher's situation many times, but she really didn't dare to say it. Because the national teacher did go wrong in his cultivation, he has been unconscious in the secret room until now. He relied on the white jade beads and various natural treasures that he saved by eating frugally to stabilize the national teacher's body. No one knows when he will wake up.
Qihuang Valley is not a big sect, but there is no shortage of wolves around it. Let alone Fuqi Mountain, there are countless wild cultivators in the world, and no one does not covet the incense offerings of the small dynasty, as well as the Feng Shui treasures like Qihuang Valley with slightly more spiritual energy.
If the outside world knows that Qihuang Valley is no longer the same as it used to be, even if Jiang Yi comes from Qihuang Valley and controls the Great Dan Dynasty, he cannot give Qihuang Valley protection, because the court cannot support a thug who has lost his fighting power. So much incense money every year comes from the taxes of the people, not for free. If Jiang Yi still deliberately favors Qihuang Valley after knowing it, then Jiang Yi will probably lose power with it.
All Wu Qingwan can hope for now is that the master suddenly wakes up, or that another person who can stand on his own will appear.
Otherwise, including her, the five heads of the house can only watch the two hundred years of foundation handed over to others, and they will also go from being elders of a sect to outsiders who are excluded under the roof of others.
Wu Qingwan grew up in Qihuang Valley, how could she bear it...
...
Wandering in the mind, how much time has passed.
Zuo Lingquan opened his eyes and shook his head in frustration:
"I still don't feel anything."
"Alas..."
Wu Qingwan didn't know what to say. She was at her wit's end, but she didn't want Zuo Lingquan to lose confidence. After thinking about it, she smiled and said:
"It's nothing. It's not the first time. Go back and rest. I'll think of a way."
"Okay, Senior Wu, go to rest early."
Zuo Lingquan put on his outer robe and bowed to Wu Qingwan to say goodbye.
Wu Qingwan sat alone in the stone room for a while, with a sad look on her gentle and quiet face. After thinking hard for a long time, she put away the silver needles and utensils, got up and left the stone room, and returned to the wooden house on the stone terrace.
The wooden house was where Wu Qingwan slept. There was only one room. Except for a long table with a sword box, the furnishings were no different from those of an ordinary woman's boudoir.
Wu Qingwan has already reached the twelfth level of Qi Refining, and can stay awake for a long time, but sleeping is the fastest way to conserve energy, and you can't force yourself to sleep. She closed the door and walked to the bed on the inside of the boudoir. When she passed the round table, she saw the wooden box on it.
Wu Qingwan was restless just now, and she had forgotten about it. She sat down at the table and opened the well-made wooden box...