Chapter 270 - 35: Great Demon in the Mountains
Every word from Elder Jian was a piercing blow.
Jian Wuchen buried his head even lower, his face alternating between ashen and livid.
He knew Elder Jian was right about everything. He understood the logic, but he just couldn’t control his emotions.
He had been one of heaven’s chosen his entire life; everything had always gone his way. When had he ever suffered such a deep and utter humiliation?
Some mud-legged bumpkin who came out of nowhere had killed his junior martial sister right in front of him, then simply vanished without a trace, leaving him the laughingstock of all of Qingzhou.
How could he possibly stomach this insult?
"I... was wrong," Jian Wuchen admitted sincerely.
Elder Jian glanced at him but didn’t continue the scolding. Instead, he walked to the wall, took down the massive Qingzhou Prefecture Geomancy Map, and spread it out on the floor.
"Come here."
Jian Wuchen quickly went over and squatted in front of the map.
"Anger and recriminations won’t solve anything." Elder Jian pointed at the map and said slowly, "Now, calm your mind and tell me, what is your plan?"
Jian Wuchen looked at the map, trying his best to calm himself.
Areas on the map were marked out one by one with red Cinnabar.
These were all the places the Celestial Sword Manor had focused its search on for the past half-month.
Radiating five hundred miles outward from Qingzhou Prefecture City as the center, almost all forests, villages, towns, and major roads had been marked.
It was safe to say a Celestial Net of Heaven and Earth had long been cast.
And yet, they just couldn’t catch that one fish.
Jian Wuchen’s gaze moved slowly across the map, his brow tightly furrowed.
"We’ve already searched all the official roads and waterways leading out of the region. The Qingzhou Prefecture has also dispatched officials to help us inspect all passing travelers and merchant caravans. Logically, it should be impossible for him to have escaped the Qingzhou border."
"At the same time, our people have scoured nearly every mountain range around Qingzhou Prefecture, even venturing into desolate areas rarely trodden by man, but we’ve still found nothing."
Jian Wuchen’s voice was filled with bewilderment.
He simply couldn’t figure out where this Chen Ye could possibly be hiding.
Elder Jian said nothing, merely watching him quietly, as if waiting for him to discover the problem himself.
Jian Wuchen’s gaze swept back and forth across the map. Once, twice, a third time...
Suddenly, his finger stopped on the southern part of the map.
It was a vast, boundless green area, completely unmarked by Cinnabar.
The Southern Wilderness Mountain Range!
"Here..." Jian Wuchen’s pupils contracted slightly. "Our men... they didn’t search the depths of the Southern Wilderness Mountain Range?"
"They went in," Elder Jian said calmly. "But they only scouted the outer regions. They didn’t dare go too deep."
"Why?" Jian Wuchen asked instinctively.
The moment he asked, he realized the answer himself.
Because of the mountain people.
The depths of the Southern Wilderness Mountain Range were the territory of those mountain people.
And those mountain people were no pushovers.
They reject the king’s law and show no reverence for gods or spirits, believing only in their own Mountain God. Each one of them is a fierce warrior with strange methods, and they are extremely hostile to outsiders.
"So, the only possibility is..." A vicious glint flashed in Jian Wuchen’s eyes. "That Chen Ye has fled deep into the Southern Wilderness Mountain Range and is hiding in one of the mountain people’s villages!"
It was practically the only explanation.
Because that was the one blind spot in the Celestial Sword Manor’s search.
"Elder, I understand now." Jian Wuchen stood up, his presence once again turning sharp and fierce. "I’ll take some men and personally make a trip to the Southern Wilderness Mountain Range!"
"Even if I have to tear those villages apart one by one, I will drag that bastard out!"
He had made up his mind.
The prestige of the Celestial Sword Manor could not be challenged, and he, Jian Wuchen, had to reclaim his honor with his own hands!
Seeing his murderous demeanor, Elder Jian’s brow furrowed.
"Stop."
Jian Wuchen paused, turning back in confusion. "Elder, do you have other instructions?"
"I ask you, how do you plan on going in?" Elder Jian looked at him, his gaze profound.
"We’ll just take our men and search directly, of course!" Jian Wuchen answered without a second thought. "If those mountain people know what’s good for them and hand him over, fine. But if they dare to harbor a criminal and remain stubborn, then they shouldn’t blame the swords of the Celestial Sword Manor for being indiscriminate!"
His words were filled with an unquestionable and domineering force.
This was Jian Wuchen’s usual way of doing things.
In his eyes, the Celestial Sword Manor was the overlord of Qingzhou. Why should they care what others thought when they acted?
They were just a bunch of mountain people. No matter how troublesome they were, would they really dare make an enemy of the entire Celestial Sword Manor?
However, after hearing his words, Elder Jian’s frown deepened.
"Foolish!"
Elder Jian barked, his voice low but carrying an immense authority that made Jian Wuchen’s Heart Spirit tremble.
"Do you truly think those mountain people are pushovers you can just walk all over?"
"Do you truly think the rules of the Celestial Sword Manor were established for nothing?"
The rebuke stunned Jian Wuchen. The arrogance on his face subsided somewhat, but he still said, unconvinced, "Elder, that’s not what I meant. It’s just that the Manor’s honor is at stake. We can’t just be timid and hesitant because we’re wary of some mountain people, can we? We can’t just let the murderer roam free."
"I’m not telling you to let the murderer go," Elder Jian said, shaking his head. "But I absolutely will not agree to you going in with such heavy-handed tactics."
"Why?" Jian Wuchen finally couldn’t help but voice his confusion. "I don’t understand. What is there to be so wary of with those mountain people? So they know a few crude mountain Magic Techniques and are a bit tricky to deal with because they have the terrain advantage. Surely our Celestial Sword Manor has no reason to be afraid of them?"
In his mind, the Celestial Sword Manor was the sky over Qingzhou.