Chapter 25: Mo Qiu of the Mo Clan(3)
Translator: Sissy That Walk
After finishing that, Mo Qiu was about to turn back and leave. “Cultivator Mo, now that everything is sorted out, why don’t we forget about this unpleasant business and make up? I understand there is no room available for you. We have a spare room. You can have it if you like.” said Luo Jianqing in a casual .
Little Nineteen exclaimed, “Brother, I thought we have run out of rooms. You…”
Luo Jianqing said, “I can sleep over with others. That’s all right.”
Hearing that, Mo Qiu fell into silence, all the while looking at Luo Jianqing with a smile.
Looking calm, Luo Jianqing said, “Cultivator Mo, what do you say?”
Mo Qiu asked instead: “Are you bribing me?”
Luo Jianqing ignored his question.
Mo Qiu laughed, “How interesting. The Tai Hua Mountain and Tai Hua disciples. Hahahahahha. Fine, I accept your invitation. But you don’t have to crash with others, I can share the room with you.”
Upon hearing those words, a glint of dim light flashed across Luo Jianqing’s eyes yet he remained silent.
After the meal, Luo Jianqing led Wei Qiongyin somewhere outside to ask about the Mo Clan. After hearing the things about the Mo Clan, the eyes of Luo Jianqing gradually grew darker. At last, he laughed, “I see. I didn’t know that the Mo Clan was the leading clan of the Eight Clans in the ancient times.” Then they returned to the tavern.
That night, Luo Jianqing made a bed on the floor. Seeing that, Mo Qiu asked with a twisted smile: “Little pretty. Do you think I’m a bad sleeper or are you frightened that I might hara.s.s you in the middle of the night?”
Luo Jianqign replied nonchalantly in a cold tone, “It’s me. I’m the bad sleeper.”
Mo Qiu laughed.
In the midnight, Luo Jianqing was still wide awake. With his robe on, he lay on the floor gazing at the ceiling and was reminded of something that happened long time ago.
In his previous life, after he learned the death of his two little brothers, he risked returning to the North for revenge. But he only found Zuo Yunmo’s sword ta.s.sel. What’s worse, he was also attacked by many cultivators from the righteous factions. Wounded as he was, he was simply no match for those a.s.sailants and so he fled into a valley.
It was easier to get in than to get out.
Luo Jianqing was not as fortunate as Li Xiuchen. After Luo fell into the valley, he did not find any magic treasure or medicinal plant, but a skeleton and a letter written in blood. The letter indicated that this corpse was a cultivator of the Mo Clan. Having failed the mission, he knew that his kin would definitely be isolated and even slaughtered by others of the Mo Clan.
The letter didn’t reveal why the other branches of the Mo clan would be so furious by what this man did that they would hold his kin responsible. But the letter harbored such an implacable hatred, that, even after thousands of years, can still be felt when Luo Jianqing read it.
“My sin had nothing to do with my descendant. Please help them, in return I would give you all my magic treasures, medicinal herbs and all my belongings.”
Luo Jianqing didn’t find any magic treasures and medicinal herbs. All he could find was a skeleton in front of him. However, Luo Jianqing owed him a debt of grat.i.tude, for in order to regain his strength, he had no choice but to absorb all the remaining spiritual power in that skeleton by performing an evil cultivation skill.
This senior cultivator was an immortal stage expert. Even his bones contained tremendous power, but after the spiritual power was absorbed, the bones turned into a pile of ash and drifted away with the wind.
Before he left, Luo Jianqing kneeled and kowtowed three times in front of the blood letter. He swore to himself, “It’s my fault that your skeleton has gone with the wind. Given the chance, I will find your descendant and I would do my utmost to protect them.”
That senior cultivator was a member of the Mo Clan. According to Wei Qiongyin, a branch of the Mo Clan had been exiled to the cold plain for over tens of thousands of years.
If it was true, Mo Qiu would probably be the descendant of that senior cultivator.
Although that happened in his previous life, Luo Jianqing still couldn’t forget the fact that it was the senior cultivator’s skeleton that gave him the chance to get out. It was one thing that he forced Mo Qiu to apologize to Xie Zizhuo and the Tai Hua Mountain, but when it came to his previous commitment to the senior cultivator, it was another story all together.
“But…. who took the magic treasures and medicinal herbs….”
“Little pretty, what are you saying?”
Surprised, Luo Jianqing looked up and saw Mo Qiu, who was looking at him from the side of the bed with a smile on his pretty face. Luo Jianqing found his smile odd as it didn’t look like one should be showed to his peer, but rather an amiable one an elder would show to a junior cultivator.
However, from a worldly perspective, Luo Jianqing was indeed a junior compared to Mo Qiu, as he was more than a dozen years younger than him.
Luo Jianqing didn’t reply. He closed his eyes and asked, “Cultivator Mo, are you going into the Liu Yan Valley?”
Mo Qiu grinned, “so, are you going inside, too? For Tai Hua Mountain, the opening of Liu Yan Valley is simply too good an opportunity to miss.”
Luo Jianqing asked, “Why don’t you go inside with the Mo Clan? I heard that Mo Feng, the third eldest son of the Mo Clan had come this time and he would be followed by the other members of the Mo Clan.”
Mo Qiu remained silent.
But Luo Jianqing had figured out why.
His family had been exiled for tens of thousands of years, and so possibly this time he went behind his family’s back and sneaked out to the Liu Yan Valle. Since the Mo Clan wouldn’t accept him, he wanted to get in as a rogue cultivator.
Thinking of that, Luo Jianqing said, “Cultivator Mo, how about joining us? Even if you can’t get many magic treasures, at least you will have a better chance at getting out alive.”
Mo Qiu gave an inconspicuous smile and suddenly asked, “Luo Jianqing of the Tai Hua Mountain. Why are you being so nice to me? What do you want?”
Luo Jianqing froze a bit. When he opened his eyes, he saw Mo Qiu pulling half of his body away from the bed and staring right at him from a distance of less than three inches.
As astonished as he was, Luo Jianqing struggled to remain calm. After a while, he said, “If you don’t like it, just forget it.”
Instead of an immediate reply, Mo Qiu looked at the sword texture on Luo’s glabella, and finally fixed his eye on a little cinnabar mole. Mo Qiu asked, “You have a cinnabar mole on your glabella?”
“Hmm,” muttered Luo Jianqing instead of giving him a direct answer.
Before Mo Qiu removed his gaze, he took a few more looks out of curiosity. Then he said, “I am used to be a rogue cultivator. There is no need to worry about me. I’m a late-stage Gold Core expert, and so I will have no trouble getting out alive.
Luo Jianqing didn’t keep persuading him. After all, he had had a tiring day, and he gradually fell asleep
The next day, when Luo Jianqing opened his eyes, Mo Qiu had already gone. He noticed a few spiritual stones on the table, and when he picked them up, he found a piece of paper. Seeing this, Luo Jianqing put on a smile in resignation.
Did Mo really think he would like to sleep on the floor all night for a few stones?
If not for the grat.i.tude he felt towards the senior cultivator, he would have made Mo Qiu pay for what he had done yesterday.
The next day, before all people got ready to enter the Liu Yan Valley, Wei Qiongyin found Luo Jianqing and told Luo some information he learned yesterday.
There was indeed a genius disciple named Mo Qiu, and he was the descendant of those who had been exiled to the wasteland. Once he reached the Nascent Soul Level, he would be accepted by the Mo Clan. He also made a name among the younger generation of the Mo clan, but he had been living in the wasteland all the time and never showed himself in the thirty-six states.
Thinking about that, Luo Jianqing said, “Mo Qiu is only a hair’s breadth away from the Nascent Soul. I’m afraid his arrival at the Liu Yan Valley was an attempt to break through the Gold Cord level. Once he reaches the Nascent Soul stage, he would be accepted by the Mo Clan and he would not have to go back to the isolated wasteland.
Wei Qiongyin nodded in agreement.
The disciples of the Tai Hua Mountain were ready to go. Early in the morning, they followed Master Shan to the plain outside of the Liu Yan Valley.
At that time, tens of thousands of rogue cultivators had already been there, and countless small schools had also sent their best disciples. They were not after some big, magic treasures, a little experience to help with their cultivation would do.
Following Master Shan, Luo Jianqing greeted people from the Four Sects, Eight Clans and Sixteen Schools. When he met Mo Feng, Luo Jianqing looked at him up and down, and then he asked, “Cultivator Mo, do you know Mo Qiu?”
Mo Feng was a rather muscular man and he replied with a frown, “Mo Qiu is a member of one of our branch families living in the wasteland. I’ve heard about your conflict with him. Allow me to apologize to the Tai Hua Mountain on his behalf. But I don’t know him that well. He has been living in the wasteland before. I’m afraid this is the first time he has come to the thirty-six states.”
Luo Jianqing agreed with a nod.
After two hours, the gap between the gate was wide enough for a man to get through. After sweeping a look at Li Xiuchen, a disciple of the Tai Hua Mountain, Luo Jianqing slightly squinted his eyes and flew to the gate.
Meantime, all the cultivators flew to the gate at their fastest speed. All of them wanted to be the first one to get in.
Luo Jianqing was the fastest among them. He got in as quickly as he could. Seeing that, Master Shan touched his goatee with satisfaction. On the other side, the Master of the Duanhun Sect complained “You are the closest to the gate, so you are the first to get in. Let’s see. The second must be one of our men.”
Before he could finish his words, a scarlet figure flew into the gate.
The master was stunned with his mouth wide open.
Master Shan was also stunned for a while, and then he laughed, “How about that? Elder Liu, I knew that man. He is Mo Qiu, and he was defeated by our eldest disciple, Luo Jianqing. He was forced to apologize to us in the tavern yesterday. Look, your men can’t even compete with a rogue cultivator.”
Twitching his mouth, the master of the Duanhun Sect almost fainted.
The Liu Yan Valley was now officially open. Thousands of cultivators rushed in to compete for the ultimate prize!