Chapter 120: Leaving Qing Mao Mountain

The Bai Clan leader’s eyes flashed with killing intent. “Today, I’ll have that brat’s head!”

To a clan, unity was extremely important. If everyone began yearning for the outside world and abandoning the mountain village, how could the clan continue to exist? More importantly, the Bai Clan leader genuinely believed that there was nothing worth seeking beyond Qing Mao Mountain.

Within Bai Clan Village, Bai clansmen possessed status and protection. Once Gu Yue Clan and Xiong Clan were eliminated, the entirety of Qing Mao Mountain would belong to Bai Clan, making them the undisputed rulers of the mountain. This was the ambition passed down through generations of Bai Clan leaders.

Bai Ning Bing remained silent for a long time before finally looking at the clan leader with his ice-blue eyes.

“Clan leader, why are you so certain that he’s lying?”

The Bai Clan leader frowned. “Have you ever left Qing Mao Mountain?” Bai Ning Bing continued. “Have you actually seen what the outside world is like?”

The Bai Clan leader snorted coldly. “Even if I’ve never personally left Qing Mao Mountain, I know what kind of place the outside world is. I also know that brat is taking advantage of your curiosity. Perhaps he’s even secretly working with Gu Yue Clan or Xiong Clan to plot against Bai Clan!”

Bai Ning Bing sighed helplessly. Seeing that words alone would not convince him, he finally revealed the explanation he had prepared beforehand.

“Lin Feng wanted Bai Clan’s historical records because he once heard about the Five Xiangs while visiting Qi Clan Village in Southern Border. According to the legend, the Five Xiangs were Gu Immortals, and the descendants of their five bloodlines eventually formed five clans. Bai Clan is one of them.”

“The Five Xiangs?” The Bai Clan leader’s expression changed slightly. He vaguely remembered hearing the name from the elders when he was younger, but he had always regarded the story as little more than an ancient legend. After all, no one in Bai Clan had ever personally seen a Gu Immortal, while neither Gu Yue Clan nor Xiong Clan possessed any connection to such a story.

“There’s really a Qi Clan Village somewhere in Southern Border?”

Bai Ning Bing nodded. “Not only Qi Clan. Bai Clan’s records also mention Chi Clan, Ni Clan, and Xue Clan. Lin Feng became interested in them after hearing about the Five Xiangs, so he wanted to search our historical records for clues about their locations.”

The Bai Clan leader fell into thought. He had indeed heard from previous elders that Bai Clan’s ancestors had once been extremely powerful and maintained close relations with four other clans. For some unknown reason, those five clans eventually separated and gradually lost contact with one another.

Several hours passed before the matter was finally settled. Bai Ning Bing even swore that he would obey the clan’s arrangements for the next year, finally calming the Bai Clan leader’s anger.

In truth, the matter was not particularly serious. Bai Clan’s historical records contained little that could truly threaten the clan even if outsiders read them. What had frightened the clan leader was the possibility that someone from the caravan was deliberately influencing Bai Ning Bing and tempting the greatest hope of Bai Clan’s future to abandon the clan.

Now that he understood Lin Feng’s actual purpose, most of that fear disappeared. By the time Bai Ning Bing finally left the clan leader’s study, it was already midnight.

Moonlight poured across Qing Mao Mountain like clear water. A golden full moon hung high above the mountains, illuminating dense forests, scattered flowers, and endless stretches of Qing Mao bamboo. A dark-green stream descended from the heights, winding through the forest toward the foot of the mountain.

Farther away, mountain peaks stretched across the horizon, their outlines fading into dark shadows beneath the moonlight. Between them ran a narrow and winding mountain road, occasionally disappearing beneath the trees before emerging again farther down the slope.

Along that road, the caravan slowly departed Qing Mao Mountain, its long procession resembling a colorful caterpillar winding through the darkness.

Bai Ning Bing stood high above Bai Clan Village and watched the distant caravan for a long time, trying to distinguish a particular figure among the countless people below.

“We’ll definitely meet again.”

A faint smile appeared on his face. “When that happens, I hope you’ll show me something even more interesting.”

Within Bai Ning Bing’s aperture were several Gu capable of preserving sounds and images. Lin Feng had left them behind for him, and within them were scenes of the vast world beyond Qing Mao Mountain.

Meanwhile, inside the departing caravan, Lin Feng suddenly sneezed. He rubbed his nose and felt an inexplicable chill. Good thing I left those recording Gu with Bai Ning Bing. Otherwise, with that lunatic’s personality, he might really have secretly followed the caravan.

Just imagining it made Lin Feng uneasy. Bai Ning Bing was a walking disaster. With the Northern Dark Ice Soul Physique approaching its limit, he could self-detonate at any moment. If Lin Feng allowed such a person to stay beside him, he might wake up one day only to be blown apart without even knowing what happened.

At the front of the caravan, the Treasure Brass Toad continued leading the way. Each leap carried its enormous body hundreds of meters forward, allowing it to easily cross the steep and winding mountain terrain without being hindered by the narrow path.

Beneath the cool night sky, Jia Fu sat upon the toad with an extremely gloomy expression. This journey had already become one of the worst business trips of his life. Not only had the caravan failed to earn as many primeval stones as expected, Jia Jinsheng had also died in this remote mountain region.

After a long silence, one of his trusted aides finally approached him. “Master, what should we do now? Young Master Jinsheng is dead. Once we return, the clan leader will definitely demand an explanation. Shouldn’t we find someone to take the blame first?”

Jia Fu gave a cold chuckle before recounting an old story passed down among his ancestors, using it to warn his subordinate against such shortsighted thinking. Whether the Jia Clan leader ultimately believed his explanation was another matter. Jia Fu had already made his position clear and done everything reasonably expected of him.

He had sacrificed the precious Rank Four Bamboo Gentleman Gu and spent an enormous number of primeval stones during the investigation. More importantly, he intended to invite Tie Xue Leng to personally investigate Jia Jinsheng’s death. With such measures taken, neither the Jia Clan leader nor his greatest rival, Jia Gui, could easily find fault with him.

The trusted aide hesitated before asking, “Master, do you really believe Young Master Jia Gui was responsible?”

“Hmph! Other than that bastard, who could have arranged everything so cleanly?” Jia Fu’s expression twisted with anger, his eyes burning with hatred. “I was too softhearted before. I kept thinking that no matter how fiercely we competed, we were still brothers.”

His hands slowly clenched into fists. “But Jia Gui, since you’re willing to be this ruthless, don’t blame me for returning the favor.”