The Return of Stars to the Jianghu

Chapter 12 The Red-Clothed Cult of Mount Emei Joins the Tang Cult

The Northern Plains and the Central Plains were not peaceful, and the Southern Plains were naturally not spared either.

The death of an envoy sent to the State of Chu by the Nanzhao Kingdom, coupled with its dispatch of troops to attack the State of Nanyue, is truly perplexing. Nanping also seized the opportunity to launch a northern expedition, opening a southern front for the Nanyue Kingdom. Meanwhile, the State of Meng to the west had already amassed troops west of Nanyue.

……

All of this was naturally beyond the knowledge of Luo Yifei and his group. The rural people only knew about crops and harvests; the war seemed to have nothing to do with them for the time being. It wasn't until the Southern Han emperor decided to join the fray that the subsequent conscription finally shattered the people's hard but barely self-sufficient lives.

The traveling merchants still brought them some news: the Later Tang Dynasty had effectively controlled the southwestern territory of Qi, but unexpectedly, under the instruction of the Tang Clan, the first sect of the Later Tang Dynasty, they left territory for all the major and minor martial arts sects in Qi, and did not exterminate them. All those who were willing to submit were brought under the Tang Clan's control.

The more Luo Yifei knew, the less he understood the rules of this world. How could a martial arts sect be able to emerge unscathed from a power struggle between emperors? Shouldn't true men be fighting bravely, battling to the death? Could it be that these martial arts sects have no sense of belonging to their respective countries?

Luo Yifei posed this question to Qi Yuan.

Qi Yuan pondered for a long time before slowly saying, "Aside from some sects with royal backing, most sects are actually targets of various countries' courts and are also the main source of conscription. Martial artists are either in the martial world or in the imperial court. Those who follow the right path receive much help, while those who stray from it receive little. Qi has lost the hearts of its people and has long been a piece of meat on the chopping block. Now it is at the mercy of others."

"Actually, there's something I've been wanting to ask," Luo Yifei couldn't suppress his curiosity. As he became more familiar with Qi Yuan and the others along the way, he stopped being so polite and started speaking in his usual normal manner. "You also believe in Qi, so what does it have to do with the Qi of the Qi Kingdom?"

"It's alright. This Qi Kingdom now belongs to the Long family. Qi is just the name of the kingdom. My ancestors' surname was Qi, but we have no connection with the Qi Kingdom. However, I've heard that there was a Qi Kingdom in ancient times, and the royal family all had the surname Qi. Perhaps they were my ancestors." Qi Yuan answered Luo Yifei's question seriously. He wasn't displeased at all. On the contrary, he felt relieved and thought to himself that Luo Yifei had finally let down his guard, and the two of them might become good friends in the future.

Qi Yuan, a wanderer of the martial world, was naturally known for his chivalrous deeds, and although he made countless enemies, he also made many friends. However, he never expected that this otherworldly being named Luo Yifei would be so wary, saying he was looking for a friend named Shen Lixi in the East. Qi Yuan offered to help him find her, but Luo Yifei politely declined.

Luo Yifei's backpack remained unopened. Back on Mount Emei, to avoid alerting Luo Yifei and arousing suspicion, Lin Quan opened the backpack but didn't rummage inside. He only saw a black garment on top, resembling night-clothes. Lin Quan told Qi Yuan that it wasn't night-clothes but amphibious clothing.

……

Lin Quan knew, of course, that it was a diving suit, and he could guess what else was in the bag. He knew better than anyone what the Phoenix Squad needed to carry on missions. He was one of the earliest participants in tunnel research. However, in the early years, the tunnel's condition was extremely unstable, shutting down and resuming operations without any discernible pattern. An accident severed his connection with Earth, leaving him stranded here for over twenty years.

A few months ago, Luo Yifei and Shen Lixi came to Mount Emei to retrieve the sword and the history notebook, and he knew that people from Earth had come. He sent people to search, but still couldn't find any trace of the tunnel. However, a few months later, he "saw" the tunnel in the same place he had searched before. Perhaps this tunnel is still like it was, opening and closing intermittently, just like back then.

Lin Quan built a pagoda and residence at the location of the tunnel, and construction was in full swing. Hearing that the Later Tang army was attacking, he didn't panic. Instead, he secretly sent Luo Yifei's drone, which he had found in the forest, to the Tang Clan along with a letter.

When the Later Tang army reached the vicinity of Mount Emei, they bypassed it. The news that the Red-Clothed Cult had joined the Tang Clan naturally spread like wildfire throughout the martial arts world.

……

Seeing that Qi Yuan answered very seriously, Luo Yifei continued, "Actually, I have another question. That time, I was locked in the thatched hut with that man in black named Shi Hao. He told me that his arrow was poisoned. But I saw that Miss Lin Lei and the senior brother of the Red-Clothed Sect were fine. Could it be that the Red-Clothed Sect is also very good at detoxification?"

"Yes and no. I was the one who cured the poison. That day, we were heading north to the main peak of Mount Emei when we happened to meet our old friend from the Red-Clothed Sect, Miss Lin Lei, and stopped to rest. Little did we know that Shi Hao had been secretly watching us. You caused Shi Hao to hastily shoot an arrow, injuring Miss Lin Lei. After she fell, she waved her sleeve and released a drug called 'Mengshi Powder,' which knocked all of us unconscious. The Red-Clothed Sect brought us back to Mount Emei. This 'Mengshi Powder' is not just for making people unconscious. After we woke up, I used the Red-Clothed Sect's medicine cabinet to prepare the antidote."

"When Shi Hao told me this, he seemed very confident. He went to assassinate you, so he must know something about you. Didn't he know you could produce the antidote?"

"He probably knew that I wouldn't be able to find all the ingredients to make the antidote in a short time, but he didn't expect that the Red-Clothed Sect always kept a little bit of all kinds of rare herbs on hand."