Chapter Eighty-Seven: The Missing Zongmin

  "Has the disciple of Neizong seen it?"

  "Look, those two in front actually have the cultivation of a Sword Master stage. This shouldn't be two of the main peak's senior brothers, I've only heard that each peak's senior brother has reached this level."

  There were whispers of discussion in the crowd, although it was unusually noisy at this moment, but with Lu Qing and their cultivation, they could still distinguish clearly. Apparently, they were talking about Luo Xin Yu and Nie Qing Tian right now. With everyone's mood, they wouldn't care about other people's discussions, and they blended into the crowd along the way.

  The castle is located in the central location of Luoshen City, and people have been walking along the main road. The buildings here are very distinctive, with houses mostly made of various stone materials, and there is often a layer of black iron railings outside the doors and windows that can be opened and closed, which shows how severe the beast invasion has been.

  And from the materials used for these railings, one can also see the identity, status and wealth of the owner. Like ordinary people, they are just ordinary black iron and yellow copper. The higher you go, the clearer it is that even the refined iron that can be cast into a four-product sword has been seen, and there are countless other materials.

  Similarly, the degree of ferocity here reached its peak in Luoshen City, where swordsmen were everywhere, and even minor disagreements would lead to life-or-death duels. Along the way, Lu Qing and others witnessed two such incidents. However, the cultivation level of these people was generally not high, only at the level of a sword attendant. Correspondingly, they did not have good mental cultivation either. They were completely gamblers who treated life and death as bets.

  "Did you hear?"

  "What?"

  "Recently, something strange happened in the city."

  "You're saying——"

  "It's that thing again. This morning, the city guards checked the resident population and found that over a dozen households, totaling thirty people, were gone."

  "What's the point, anyway? Even the lord of the city can't do anything about it. Up till now, no clues have been found. It's just that for now, things are still okay. But who knows when our turn will come, even some ordinary citizens with no cultivation at all."

  "Never mind, we are all lone survivors anyway. Our lives and families are the most important things. I still want to keep my life to marry a wife!"

  As they passed by a wine house, the crowd heard a conversation from two middle-aged men wearing worn-out clothes and carrying large black iron broadswords on their backs.

  Something unusual seems to have happened in this Luoyang City, thought Lu Qing secretly.

  After walking for about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, they arrived in front of a magnificent mansion. Although this mansion was not the tallest in Luoshen City, it was the largest in terms of land area, covering an area of at least ten mu. The surrounding walls were made of white stone and were several zhang high. At the entrance, two iron-cast dragon statues stood on either side, each with a pair of sword-wielding guards standing motionless behind them, like sculptures.

  What a majestic momentum! Lu Qing gave a silent compliment, indeed worthy of being the master of this city.

  Upon seeing Lu Qing's arrival, one of the guards stepped forward and said respectfully: "Everyone please follow me, the city master has set up a banquet for you in the main hall, please..." He then led the way into the mansion.

  Lu Qing and others exchanged a glance, knowing that it might be arranged by Master Xuanming, and they were not surprised. They followed him inside.

  Unlike the majestic exterior, the interior of the castle is very simple. The corridors and roads along the way have obviously not been renovated for at least a decade or so. The bluestone pavement was polished to shine, but it's unknown how long it took to achieve this appearance after being trampled on for who knows how long. This gave Lu Qing an added sense of anticipation towards the reclusive Lord of the setting sun city.

  The main hall was in a courtyard, where only some flowers and grasses were casually planted, withering away with the seasons, without many of those exotic treasures that bloom in every season. When he led everyone to the front door of the main hall, the guards retreated on their own initiative.

  As soon as they entered the main hall, they saw a large nanmu wood table in the center, with carvings of various flowers, birds, insects and fish around it, looking very simple and elegant. On top of it, all kinds of dishes and wine had already been arranged, and at the head seat, Peak Master Huiming was sitting quietly, with a middle-aged man wearing white martial attire on his left side, carrying a large red sword on his back, exuding an aura of strength and majesty.

  The second-in-command on the right was also a middle-aged man in white clothes, but he looked somewhat disheveled. The snow-white martial arts uniform even had several light gray stains, but Lu Qing saw at a glance that this was due to the residual smoke from using high-quality purple coal to forge swords.

  This man is a swordsmith, and Lu Qing has made up his mind about him.

  Haha, with a laugh, Xuan Ming spoke first: "Several of you disciples have made great contributions in this beast tomb riot, and it can be said that it has resolved a major worry in my heart. Today, I set up a banquet to express my gratitude, please take your seats."

  "Master Shu is in a critical condition, this is what we should do," Luo Xin Yu said.

  "Alright, let's not talk about that anymore. Please take your seats, for today I have prepared a special product from the Luoshen City region, Sunset Drunkenness, to treat you all." Xuanming smiled and stroked his white beard as he invited them.

  When everyone sat down, Xuán Míng introduced again: "The one on my left is Gu Jiàn, the master of Gǔ Jiàn City in Luò Rì City. The one on this side is Wū Tiě, the master of Wū Tiě Temple in Luò Rì City. Master Wū specializes in sword casting and you are a descendant of Lù Qīng's family who also casts swords. You should spend more time discussing with Master Wū when you have the chance."

  Everyone heard the words and stood up to see the ceremony, and after hearing the introduction of Lu Qing at the end, Wu Tie couldn't help but look at Lu Qing twice, with a faint glint in his eyes flashing by. The ancient sword wind beside him also stared at Lu Qing for several eyes, with a hint of obvious praise in his eyes.

  The banquet began soon, and Xueming, having already entered the Sword Soul Realm, did not require food, so he just drank a few cups of Sunset Drunkenness and left. No one said anything about it; this was due to their difference in status.

  After Xuan Ming left, the atmosphere on the seat became much more lively. After all, a great master of swordsmanship was sitting there, and even if he had restrained all his aura, every move still brought an unspoken pressure to the crowd. This pressure seemed to come from the soul, making Lu Qing's mind turn much slower.

  The sunset on the table was intoxicating and endless, with Xu Ming's departure, everyone else also let loose. Soon, Gu Jianfeng and Wu Tie won over Duan Qingyun and others with their generosity, cups and dishes were exchanged endlessly, and the ground was quickly filled with more than a dozen empty jars.

  Although Luo Xin Yu and Lie Feng's cultivation was not bad, they were clearly no match for the wine. Although they could use their cultivation to force out the wine fumes, doing so would only make them look ridiculous, so they simply drank a few cups with the two women before excusing themselves. They chatted with Yi Ruoyu and the other three women about some of the customs and interesting stories of Luoshen City, listening as Ming Xue'er's big eyes sparkled with curiosity, her face filled with wonder.

  "Lord of the castle, something's wrong—" Just as everyone was having a great time at the banquet, an untimely voice rang out. A few breaths later, a large man wearing black iron chainmail and clearly not an ordinary city guard rushed in from outside.

  The old sword's eyebrows furrowed, and he scolded, "You, the head of the city guards, do you have any discipline at all? Don't you know how to report properly? Do you not put your city lord in your eyes?" At this time, Wu Tie, who was drinking happily beside him, was also obviously annoyed by the interruption. His slightly drunken and reddened eyes stared fixedly at the big man.

  "Two seniors," the man said, seemingly ignoring their expressions, his tone urgent, "Just heard a miserable cry in the south of the city, three households disappeared, I have already ordered to encircle and surround."

  "What!" Gu Jianfeng and the other person exclaimed in unison, and in an instant, a layer of crimson sword energy floated up on both of their bodies. A large amount of alcohol vapor rapidly evaporated from their bodies, and after a few breaths, they were completely sober.

  Duan Qingyun and others also seemed to know that something was wrong, so they all activated their sword aura to evaporate the wine on their bodies. Gu Jianfeng and Wu Tie had already turned into two residual shadows and slipped away. Lu Qing and Nie Qingtian, who had a large capacity for alcohol, didn't bother to get rid of the wine fumes and chased after them first. Behind them, Ling Xin, Ye Ruoyu, and three other women followed closely. Ming Xue'er obviously knew she couldn't keep up with everyone's speed, so she stomped her small feet in frustration but still followed tightly behind.

  At this time, everyone's cultivation was revealed. Gujian Feng transformed into a crimson sword light and flew towards the south of the city under the astonished gaze of the crowd, while Wutie leaped onto the rooftops, each jump covering tens of meters, clearly familiar with the terrain of Luoricheng, taking a straight path.

  Behind him, Lu Qing, Zhao Qianye, Luo Xinyu, and Nie Qingtian followed closely, with Yi Ruoyu lagging a few steps behind. Next came Yu Jihua and Su Yun, the two women, and finally, the last two were undoubtedly the weakest, Duan Qingyun and Ming Xuer.

  Seeing Ming Xue'er insisting on following, Su Yun and the two women slightly paused and brought her along. With everyone's speed, they quickly arrived at the south of the city.

  At this time, a large number of city guards gathered in the south of the city. This was obviously a gathering place for ordinary people, and the houses were all simple one-story stone huts. About thirty city guards surrounded three stone huts in the corner, blocking the crowd that had come to watch from all around.

  Gu Jianfeng was standing in front of the stone house with a frown on his face before Lu Qing and the others arrived, and when he saw Lu Qing and the others who came with Wutie, who looked like they were from the inner sect, the city guards did not block them and made way for them to enter.

  "How is it?" Wu Tie asked with a gloomy face.

  He nodded and Gujian Feng said, "This time there might be some clues."

  Everyone might as well guess, what led to the strange disappearance of the people of Luoshen City? Those who have ideas can go to the book review area to speak out, and those who guessed correctly will be rewarded with 10 points.