This cry was filled with such joy that, for a moment, all eyes were on Fang Shuwen.

This was especially true for Mo Beidou...

Mainly because the one calling out to Fang Shuwen was a young woman.

And a stunningly, stunningly beautiful one at that.

In terms of looks alone, she was even more beautiful than their own Young Chief of the Escort...

’What was her relationship with his Sixteenth Junior Brother? Had his junior brother already found a partner while he, the First Senior Brother, wasn’t looking?’

’No wonder he didn’t let me play matchmaker for him and the Young Chief of the Escort.’

In that instant, Mo Beidou’s mind was working with unprecedented clarity. One thought after another popped into his head, his wide eyes filled with an insatiable hunger for gossip.

Fang Shuwen was just as surprised.

"Miss Zhou?

"Elder Zuo?

"What are you two doing here?"

Inside this ruined kiln were none other than Zuo Qingshuang and Zhou Qingmei of Zhuji Pavilion.

He had just bid them farewell at Zhuji Pavilion not long ago, yet in the blink of an eye, they had met again in a ruined kiln in some nameless village.

Even Fang Shuwen couldn’t help but marvel at what a small world it was.

Since he knew them, Fang Shuwen naturally took it upon himself to make the introductions.

Upon hearing Zuo Qingshuang’s name, Lu Guiyan’s expression turned solemn with respect. She cupped her fists and said:

"So it is Fairy Su Yue in person. This junior, Lu Guiyan of the Lu’an Escort Agency, pays her respects to Elder Zuo."

Fang Shuwen was taken aback. ’Fairy Su Yue? What’s that? A nickname?’

Seeing his expression, Zhou Qingmei was amused and explained in a low voice:

"My master is very beautiful. When she roamed the Jianghu back in the day, it was inevitable that people would give her nicknames... For some reason, the name ’Fairy Su Yue’ just caught on and spread everywhere.

"Even though my master doesn’t really acknowledge it, she couldn’t do anything about it."

Fang Shuwen instantly understood. So that was the story.

’Thinking about it, your life in the Jianghu really isn’t your own... You don’t even get to choose your own nickname.’

’My reputation is still small, so not many people know me.’

’I wonder what kind of nickname people will give me when I make a name for myself in the future?’

As these thoughts ran through his mind, he proceeded to introduce Zhou Qingmei.

The people from the Lu’an Escort Agency had naturally heard of Miss Zhou of the Zhou Family and knew she was a True Disciple of Zhuji Pavilion.

When they heard Zuo Qingshuang’s identity earlier, they had already guessed who Zhou Qingmei must be, and now their suspicions were confirmed.

Lu Guiyan couldn’t help but study Zhou Qingmei’s features. She sighed inwardly. ’Worthy of being called the number one beauty of Julu City, indeed.’

Although both were from Julu City and held prominent statuses there, they logically should have had opportunities to meet.

However, Zhou Qingmei had earned her title as the city’s foremost beauty at sixteen and spent her years practicing Martial Arts at Zhuji Pavilion. Meanwhile, Lu Guiyan was constantly traveling the Jianghu, which was why the two young women were only just meeting for the first time.

After marveling at Zhou Qingmei’s beauty, Lu Guiyan found herself wondering something. ’How is Miss Zhou so familiar with Fang Shuwen?’

She suddenly recalled that during his earlier chat with Elder Shixian, Fang Shuwen had mentioned killing the Ghost Scholar at Zhuji Pavilion.

’His familiarity with Zuo Qingshuang and Zhou Qingmei from Zhuji Pavilion must stem from that.’

But this was Fang Shuwen’s private business, so she had no reason to pry.

Mo Beidou, on the other hand, instinctively gaped when he learned Zhou Qingmei’s identity.

He knew about the complicated history between Fang Shuwen and the Zhou Family, though Fang Shuwen had never gone into detail.

After all, he was the one who had called in a favor from Wang Tao to successfully recommend the then-unknown Fang Shuwen for a position as a Family Guard at the Zhou Family’s estate.

Mo Beidou may have been a coarse fellow, but he was still a man of the world.

The way Zhou Qingmei looked at Fang Shuwen was far from innocent...

’Could the kid have taken advantage of his position as a guard to steal the young lady’s heart?’

’Attaboy!!’

With Fang Shuwen making the introductions, the group gathered together.

Fang Shuwen was curious. ’Why aren’t Zhou Qingmei and Zuo Qingshuang staying put in Zhuji Pavilion? What are they doing all the way out here?’

But Zuo Qingshuang’s next words stunned him:

"We came here for Qiuyue Nunnery."

Before his death, Qi Wuwang had said he was taking the master and servant to Qiuyue Nunnery.

Neither Fang Shuwen nor Lu Guiyan knew what kind of place Qiuyue Nunnery was.

’And now, the place Zuo Qingshuang and Zhou Qingmei were headed was also Qiuyue Nunnery?’

"What exactly is this Qiuyue Nunnery?"

Lu Guiyan had been wondering how to broach the subject, but Fang Shuwen just came right out and asked.

Zuo Qingshuang, of course, would not hide anything from Fang Shuwen. She explained:

"Originally, there was nothing strange about Qiuyue Nunnery. It was just an ordinary nunnery.

"The nuns there didn’t even know any Martial Arts. They were just a group of ordinary women who observed a vegetarian diet and chanted scriptures.

"But just a few months ago, Qiuyue Nunnery suddenly became... different.

"Young men and women from the villages and towns around the base of Yanyue Mountain began to disappear frequently.

"Some of them had seen their parents and relatives right before bed, but by morning, they would be gone without a trace.

"At that time, some people suspected it might be people from the Jianghu causing trouble, so they hired a Ranger to help investigate.

"That man was quite capable. He followed the clues and eventually traced them to Qiuyue Nunnery.

"He wrote down his suspicions in a journal, left it at the inn where he was staying, and went to investigate Qiuyue Nunnery alone. He never returned."

Lu Guiyan’s expression grew solemn upon hearing this.

Fang Shuwen, however, was curious.

"And then?"

"Later, this matter alerted the Nianhua Zen Temple, one of the Seven Great Sects. At that time, Masters Liaokong and Liaowu of Nianhua Zen Temple were traveling with their disciples. After hearing about this, they decided to go investigate."

Zuo Qingshuang sighed.

"However, to be cautious, they had their disciples wait outside as support while the two of them entered Qiuyue Nunnery alone.

"They never expected that only Master Liaokong would make it back.

"And even he was gravely injured.

"He left one final message—’A demon resides in the nunnery; the Seven Sects must unite to destroy it’—before collapsing, and he hasn’t woken up since.

"Those two disciples didn’t dare to investigate further, so they reported the matter back to Nianhua Zen Temple.

"Nianhua Zen Temple then issued a summons to the Martial Arts world, inviting experts from each of the Seven Sects to lend their aid.

"But unexpectedly, the letter fell into Li Nanchen’s hands first, and he hid it.

"It was only discovered later while his room was being cleared out.

"Fortunately, the rendezvous time specified in the letter is the sixteenth of the tenth month. That’s three days from now, so we can still make it.

"As for my two senior brothers, one is in seclusion, and the other has shut himself away, so in the end, I was the only one who could go.

"Among the next generation of disciples, the two most outstanding ones are dead, and Xiao Qing’s injuries won’t heal anytime soon, so I brought Qingmei along to get some experience."

Lu Guiyan was puzzled when she heard this.

’Wasn’t Li Nanchen the First Senior Brother of Zhuji Pavilion’s current generation?’

’How did he die?’

But this wasn’t the time to press for details. She just asked:

"So where exactly is this Qiuyue Nunnery?"

"Oh, you might not know it by Yanyue Mountain. That’s the local name. We generally call it Wangbei Pass. It’s a key pass you must go through to head north on this road."

"..."

Fang Shuwen looked silently at Lu Guiyan.

Lu Guiyan could only respond with a wry smile.

There was no way Qi Wuwang didn’t know Yanyue Mountain was Wangbei Pass. He had obviously concealed it on purpose.

Zhou Qingmei’s gaze flickered between the two of them, and she blinked lightly.

...

...