Chapter 453 - 445: The Big Four 2
"Alright! The two of you can get away with this on the mountain normally, but is now really the time to be bickering? You’re not children anymore, so mind the occasion! Yan’Er, Zhu Jiuqian is your senior, and his Martial Arts Cultivation is far greater than yours. Don’t you know how to show some respect?" Just as Elder Murong was on the verge of exploding, Dilaka, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up.
The moment he finished speaking, the fluctuations of Murong Yan’s Primordial Power abruptly dissipated. She shot Zhu Jiuqian a glare, huffed coldly, and her expression returned to one of solemnity.
Seeing this, Zhu Jiuqian quickly waved his hands. "Dilaka, don’t be so serious. It was my fault. I’m just too much of a kid at heart, haha..."
He gave a simple, honest laugh and shot Murong Yan an apologetic glance before speaking with some surprise, "Strange. In previous years, even the Dean, who we never see normally, would make an appearance during the student reception. Why isn’t he here this year..."
"Now that you mention it, that’s true." Shan Qiuhen suddenly seemed to recall something and said with a wry smile, "The Dean’s Cultivation is just too high. Even when he did show up in past years, you could hardly sense his presence unless you saw him with your own eyes."
After he spoke, Shan Qiuhen, Zhu Jiuqian, and Murong Yan began looking around. Dilaka cleared his throat. "You can stop looking. Here’s the situation: a few terrifying old-timers have come to the mountain, and the Dean is with them, so he won’t be coming to the reception this year. However, Jiuqian, in a little while, I want you to pay close attention to a couple of kids named Little Tiger and Ta Shan. If all goes as expected, those two will become your direct-line students. As for taking them as your disciples, you can decide that for yourself when the time comes."
"Terrifying old-timers?" Murong Yan murmured.
"Don’t ask what you’re not supposed to ask, and don’t say what you’re not supposed to say. Now hurry up and get over there. Don’t keep this year’s new students waiting." Dilaka rolled his eyes, and after leaving them with those words, he shot through the air and vanished, leaving the three and the dozen or so mountain members behind them to stare at each other blankly.
"Honestly! My brother is so annoying!" Murong Yan complained petulantly, then chased after him, grinding her teeth.
’Ta Shan? Little Tiger? Taking them as disciples? It’s a bit of a mess...’ Zhu Jiuqian pinched his chin and smiled, then exchanged a look with Shan Qiuhen. He signaled for the dozen or so people behind them to follow, and they all sped toward Mu Chen’s group...
Meanwhile, within Holy Tomb Mountain, a simple bamboo house was nestled in a small, secluded bamboo forest. The house wasn’t large, but it had everything one could need. On the main door of the small building, a single word was written on a square of white cloth: "Nothingness." The calligraphy was sloppy and crooked, ugly at first glance. But upon deeper contemplation, it felt profound and mysterious. As for what it was meant to express, only those who understood could know.
And right now, a figure completely shrouded in black mist was standing before this cloth, gazing at it. If you weren’t looking directly at him, you would be completely unable to sense the slightest trace of his presence. Even if you saw this person’s figure with your own eyes, a subconscious urge to immediately forget him would well up inside you.
"It’s been a while..."
An ethereal, ancient voice, accompanied by the sound of shuffling footsteps, drifted out from the bamboo house. Soon after, a white-haired old man emerged. He was dressed in rags, barefoot, and his chest was exposed.
Looking at the old man, Mo Yang—the figure shrouded in mist—furrowed his brow. In a hoarse and grating voice, as if he could barely make a sound, he uttered a single word.
"Nameless?"