As the Drunken Sword Immortal whose past connections and encounters with the Moon Worshiping Cult Master were countless and complex, he was naturally quite familiar with the Cult Master's true name. He was also deeply and keenly aware of the man's overwhelming power.
He understood perfectly well that among all the cultivators currently alive in the entire world, perhaps only his own Sword Master could possibly surpass the Moon Worshiper in raw strength. Therefore the Drunken Sword Immortal who had originally intended to seize this golden opportunity to punish evil and promote righteousness while also earning himself twenty or thirty bottles of exquisite wine, suddenly froze completely in place as if under a paralysis spell when he heard Li Xiaoyao casually mention the name Shi Jieren.
"Hello? What is wrong with you? Why are you not talking anymore?" Li Xiaoyao who enjoyed a relationship with the Drunken Sword Immortal as both mentor and friend waved his hand directly before the man's eyes while asking with obvious curiosity.
"Shi Jieren you said? You are telling me the guy you just encountered was actually called Shi Jieren?" The Drunken Sword Immortal quickly snapped back to reality and looked at Li Xiaoyao and the others with visible shock and disbelief.
"That is absolutely right. That arrogant guy said so himself with his own mouth" Li Xiaoyao replied while looking somewhat puzzled by the reaction. Still he nodded slightly to confirm.
Reflecting carefully on Li Xiaoyao's earlier detailed description of Shi Jieren's physical appearance, approximate age and overall temperament, the Drunken Sword Immortal became increasingly certain beyond any doubt that the person who had just appeared here was definitely the legendary Moon Worship Sect Leader himself.
After confirming the Moon Worship Sect Leader's true identity in his mind, the Drunken Sword Immortal looked at Li Xiaoyao and the others with profound surprise while saying "You actually claim that Shi Jieren attacked you here just now but that he was somehow scared off by your combined strength and teamwork?"
"Yes that is exactly right" Li Xiaoyao replied confidently while nodding his head.
"Ignorance truly is fearlessness and blissful indeed. If that man really is Shi Jieren then even if all of you combined your forces together you would absolutely not be any match for him whatsoever. I genuinely do not know why he chose to leave when he did but you young people have miraculously saved your own lives through sheer luck."
The Drunken Sword Immortal naturally did not believe Li Xiaoyao's naive interpretation of events for even a moment. How could the Moon Worship Sect Leader possibly be scared off by these inexperienced youngsters? That scenario was completely and utterly impossible.
"Is this Shi Jieren person really that overwhelmingly powerful? I think you are greatly exaggerating his abilities. Otherwise he would not have been injured multiple times by Alex's attacks..."
Lin Yueru who stood nearby clearly could not stand listening to the Drunken Sword Immortal's words which only served to build up others while undermining their own accomplishments. She could not help but interject with her contrary opinion.
"That is correct..." Lin Yueru's defensive words prompted immediate nods of agreement from both Li Xiaoyao and Liu Jinyuan.
The earlier intense battle between Alex and the Moon Worshiping Sect Leader had involved only a few brief exchanges of moves. Yet ultimately they had witnessed Alex seemingly prevail. They had all clearly seen the Moon Worshiping Sect Leader being kicked backward and sent flying through the air with his nose actively bleeding.
"You are telling me you can actually defeat Shi Jieren in combat?" These shocking words struck the Drunken Sword Immortal like successive thunderclaps from the heavens. His eyes widened dramatically while staring at Alex with absolute disbelief and astonishment.
How could such a remarkably young man actually manage to defeat the legendary Shi Jieren? It seemed completely impossible by all logic. Could this young man's cultivation level possibly be even greater and higher than his own?
"Uh that is impossible. It was purely just a fortunate coincidence..." Under the Drunken Sword Immortal's intense penetrating gaze, Alex hurriedly shook his head and quickly spoke the honest truth.
The slight temporary advantage he had managed to achieve was only due to the magical properties of his equipment and the specific nature of his techniques. If they truly fought in a prolonged battle without any tricks he would absolutely not be the Moon Worshiper's opponent.
The Drunken Swordsman's mind was currently in complete chaos and confusion. He genuinely did not believe that Alex could actually defeat the Moon Worshiping Sect Leader in fair combat.
But Li Xiaoyao and the others standing beside him were absolutely certain about what they had witnessed with their own eyes. Since the Drunken Swordsman had not seen what actually happened during the fight with his own eyes, he could not come to any definitive conclusion for the time being.
...
Let us not dwell on how deeply shocked and utterly confused the Drunken Swordsman was feeling at this particular time. On the other side of the region a quirky and energetic girl was happily skipping around without any apparent care.
Although darkness had already fallen and night surrounded her, she traveled alone but did not appear afraid at all. She seemed so genuinely innocent and carefree that she appeared to have absolutely no idea what fear even was.
"The princess is still nowhere to be found. Anu is becoming so anxious and worried."
The words that naturally came out of the girl's mouth possessed a very pleasant rhyming quality. After walking forward for a while longer the girl stretched out her delicate fingers and moved them in a particular pattern.
A thread of connection appeared between her fingers. This was a magical tool uniquely mastered by young Miao girls. It involved spiritually tying two people's fingers together with an invisible red string. Once established the red string itself disappears from sight but no matter how incredibly far apart the two people are, as long as they deliberately move their fingers in the right way a thread of connection manifests between them.
The subtle force transmitted through the string allows one person to accurately sense the other's general location and even transmit simple emotional information back and forth.
Anu and Zhao Ling'er had been extremely close friends since their early childhood and a thread of connection had been ritually tied between them many years ago. This thread of connection had now become Anu's greatest and most valuable asset in her quest to find Zhao Ling'er.
It was entirely thanks to this mystical thread of connection that Anu who lived far away in distant Nanzhao had been able to detect Zhao Ling'er's recent dramatic mood changes. She knew her friend was in genuine danger and this discovery had initiated the Nanzhao Kingdom's urgent mission to search for their missing princess.
"Hmm I feel like I am definitely getting much closer now..."
Using the thread of connection as her primary guide and compass, Anu could clearly sense her increasing proximity to the princess. With a happy smile spreading across her face she continued walking forward with renewed energy and determination.
Although the princess's exact location had been shifting and moving recently, as long as the thread of connection continued to exist between them Anu knew with absolute certainty that finding her was only a matter of time and persistence.
Sure enough it did not take very long at all. Following the precise directions continuously given by the thread of connection, Anu soon discovered a stunningly beautiful young woman resting on cold rocks inside a hidden cave. Most astonishingly and shockingly, below the girl's slender waist she possessed a long serpentine snake tail instead of human legs.
"Ah I have finally found the princess..."
Seeing the girl with the distinctive long snake tail clearly visible, Anu's face immediately filled with overwhelming surprise and relief. She quickly trotted over to her friend without even showing any fear or revulsion at the shocking sight.
After the two friends met and emotionally reunited, Anu carefully explained that the main reason for Zhao Ling'er's current snake tail transformation was directly related to her pregnancy and the awakening of her Nuwa bloodline.
And just as events unfolded in the original story, with Anu's constant gentle encouragement and moral support, Zhao Ling'er gradually mustered up enough courage to accompany Anu out of the dark cave. Together they would search for Li Xiaoyao and reunite her with her beloved.
"Hey princess what kind of person is the prince consort really like?" Anu asked Zhao Ling'er with obvious curiosity while bouncing around energetically like a cheerful forest elf.
"Brother Xiaoyao? He is a very interesting and genuinely kind person deep down although he may sometimes appear frivolous and careless on the surface."
As the old saying wisely goes, a short absence makes the heart grow fonder just like newlyweds. After these many days of painful separation the longing in her heart had grown tremendously strong. While thinking fondly of Li Xiaoyao, Zhao Ling'er unconsciously smiled with genuine warmth and affection.
Tap tap tap...
Just when the two young women were walking together through the wilderness under the night sky, suddenly a mysterious man with pure white hair and a long white beard appeared before them. He possessed an immortal and otherworldly appearance and walked toward them step by measured step. He radiated a calm and utterly natural aura as if he was completely integrated into nature itself and part of the world around him.
A small wild rabbit was peacefully eating grass nearby. The creature did not react at all to the passing of this strange man as if it could somehow sense instinctively that he harbored absolutely no ill will or hostile intent toward it whatsoever.
"Zhao Ling'er you must accompany me to Mount Shushan immediately."
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