Enshrinement as a God

'Tu Xingsun...!'

Liu Yezhi, who had accompanied Xi Xichang to the Hermit's Valley years ago, had not forgotten his face, which had been dispatched from the Black Contemplation Fortress.

Who could have expected that this man, of all people, would approach them in this vast Black Contemplation Fortress?

The startled Liu Yezhi unconsciously stroked his human skin mask.

If their identity were to be revealed in the Black Contemplation Fortress, it was not certain whether they could return to the Qingcheng Sect intact.

He was only able to regain his composure after confirming that the cumbersome and stuffy human skin mask was still firmly attached.

"They are not for sale, as they are not good enough to be used as merchandise."

Xi Xibal also seemed a little surprised that there was someone who was interested in the swords, but he did not lose his composure and responded skillfully.

"That's a pity. Are you doing business here in the Black Contemplation Fortress, following your father, even though you are so young?"

"This person is not my father, but a warrior who is escorting me. In fact, since I am new to business and this is the Black Contemplation Fortress, I needed an escort."

Xi Xibal, thinking that the man was a little persistent, answered without much thought.

"New to business and even an escort... you must be the son of a merchant family, right? Moreover, the skill of your escort also seems to be extraordinary..."

At Tu Xingsun's behavior of holding on to the end of his words, Xi Xibal also felt a sense of suspicion and at the same time detected a suspicious atmosphere.

[This man is the leader of the Dust Division of the Black Contemplation Fortress, and he has met me and the young lady before.]

Liu Yezhi's telepathic message was a decisive word that turned Xi Xibal's suspicion into a conviction.

"Did you have a good business?"

"Fortunately, I was lucky and was able to sell all the goods I had prepared, and since I was here, I was thinking of watching the coronation ceremony of the Black Contemplation Fortress and then going back."

"If you're here, why don't you also participate in the martial arts tournament? It is said that the winner of this place will be personally bestowed with a treasure by Mo Guangdi."

"How can I, who can barely take care of my own body, participate in such a tournament where masters are abundant..."

"Ha! Is that so?"

Tu Xingsun, looking at Xi Xibal's hand, which was full of hard calluses, let out a hollow laugh.

Xi Xibal, who was spewing out a clumsy lie.

And the old master who was wearing a human skin mask.

Tu Xingsun, twitching his nose, was narrowing down their identity in one go.

Although Xi Xibal wanted to get rid of Tu Xingsun, Tu Xingsun was not letting them go easily.

Although Liu Yezhi wanted to help Xi Xibal, he held back his impulse because if he were to step forward and Tu Xingsun were to notice him, it might rather cause trouble.

However, he was tensing his whole body and was in a state where he could strike at any moment, in preparation for any unforeseen circumstances.

It was a completely unexpected hand that saved the two who were in a difficult situation.

"You, follow me."

Tu Xingsun and Xi Xibal, who were talking, felt a chill run down their spines at the sudden word of a giant who had appeared like a ghost.

Especially Liu Yezhi, who had been tense and had been preparing to strike, almost drew his sword in front of him.

"Who are you?"

The giant, who was covering his face with a veil, did not answer Xi Xibal's question.

Xi Xibal, looking troubled, looked back at Liu Yezhi.

[What should we do?]

[Although we don't know the reason for calling us, it seems that it is a priority to leave this place for now.]

At the appearance of the giant, Tu Xingsun's light mouth was firmly closed as if it had been glued.

Liu Yezhi thought that even if he were to get into trouble by following the giant, the situation would not get worse than now, when he was meeting Tu Xingsun.

"I will follow you. Please lead the way."

As Xi Xibal answered, the giant finally turned his body and strode towards a pavilion.

"Then we'll be on our way."

Xi Xibal turned his back with a light eye signal. Tu Xingsun, without even thinking of catching them, looked at their backs like a dog that had been chasing a chicken and swallowed his dry saliva.

"...Isn't that a person from the So family manor?"

If one were to recall the atmosphere that the giant exuded, his unique veil, and his clothes, he was surely a master of the So family manor.

All the masters of the So family manor who had infiltrated the Black Contemplation Fortress were in Tu Xingsun's head without a single exception.

But the giant just now was a new person who did not come to mind at all, no matter how much Tu Xingsun searched his memory.

Then the conclusion was that there was a master whom he had not grasped...

'Or a master from the So family manor has come again from the outside...'

If it were the former, it would end with Tu Xingsun's one mistake, but if it were the latter, it was by no means a welcome thing.

The fact that he had not noticed the entry and exit of such conspicuous people as the people of the So family manor meant that they had infiltrated, deceiving the eyes of their people.

That meant that no one in the Black Contemplation Fortress had noticed their infiltration.

And the worst problem was that Jeshin had known this and had not shared the information with him and Shiyue.

Since he did not know, it meant that even Shiyue had not noticed, so it could only mean that Jeshin had even deceived Shiyue.

"Tsk."

Tu Xingsun, recalling Shiyue, who was preparing for the great event, staying up all night to the point of being emaciated, clicked his tongue with a troubled heart.

Tu Xingsun had no desire to get involved with the people of the So family manor as much as possible.

But what was happening inside the Black Contemplation Fortress.

And it didn't make sense that he didn't know about the new masters who had come from the So family manor.

Moreover... the reason why they had suddenly called the two was also very curious.

Tu Xingsun, looking at the pavilion where they had disappeared, worried for a moment and then shook his head and flew his body after them.

* * *

Thump! Thump!

Every time the small hand knife moved, pieces of wood fell to the floor.

The hand knife moved in one go and took off another piece of flesh the size of a fingernail.

The hand that was handling the fist-sized wooden sculpture was extremely meticulous.

Splash! Splash!

The fishing rod that was cast in the stream flowing on one side of the forest bent greatly.

Although the fish was thrashing and was pulling the fishing line, the man was more focused on the sculpture than on the fishing rod.

A small bead of sweat fell from the man's forehead.

Looking closely, dozens of pieces of wood that looked like unfinished sculptures were scattered on the floor at his feet.

Rustle...

Someone appeared, pushing through the bushes and shaking off his body.

"I think we've secured a safe distance now."

Her face, with her long hair tied up, was full of fatigue.

Xi Xichang and Jiang Ziya, avoiding the pursuit of the Tang Clan's martial artists, had taken a rough path instead of a straight road.

Thanks to that, they had been suffering all kinds of hardships, rummaging through the mountains for several days.

Jiang Ziya, as if his concentration had been broken by her appearance, looked at the wooden sculpture in his hand and then threw it to the floor without any lingering feelings.

"Then the camping life is over."

"Have you been doing that until now?"

Xi Xichang looked at Jiang Ziya as if she were dumbfounded by his strange behavior.

Although she had not thought much of Jiang Ziya's action of suddenly starting to carve when they had entered the forest, now his action had become excessive and was on the verge of being seen as an obsession.

"It's not going as I thought."

Jiang Ziya shrugged his shoulders as if he were embarrassed.

Looking at the unfinished sculptures that were scattered all over the floor, he also seemed a little embarrassed.

"What on earth are you trying to make?"

"Hmm... it's like a homework assignment."

Although it had started as a simple pastime, as he did it, he kept wanting to make it perfect.

"Isn't that splashing thing over there our dinner?"

"Oh!"

It seemed that Jiang Ziya had only then noticed that a fish was caught on the end of Tonglin.

How focused had he been that he had not noticed the fish that was caught right next to him?

Jiang Ziya let out a hollow laugh and reeled in Tonglin.

Thump!

The fish that was pulled up to the floor was of a considerable size.

It had struggled so much with Tonglin that the area around its mouth was torn, and its movements were also slow.

"You're really good at fishing with a fishing rod that doesn't even have a bait."

Xi Xichang said a word, looking at Jiang Ziya, who was tidying up Tonglin.

Since he had also been fishing when she had first met him, unbelievably, the weapon that he was carrying was surely a fishing rod.

"Why, are you curious about the method?"

"No, thanks."

Xi Xichang gathered the surrounding twigs and looked at Jiang Ziya.

Although she had been careful about starting a fire, thinking of the pursuers, it seemed that it would be safe enough to grill a fish at this point.

Jiang Ziya bent his body and carved the character for fire on the floor where the twigs were gathered, and then concentrated his internal energy.

Swoosh!

Xi Xichang looked at Jiang Ziya, who was starting a fire as if it were the legendary Samadhi True Fire, as if she were amazed.

Jiang Ziya picked up the limp fish and pierced its mouth with a twig in one go and placed it on the fire.

Crackle! Crackle!

The two, who had been making do with small mountain fruits or the emergency wall grain that they usually carried, clutched their hungry stomachs, looking at the fish that was being cooked deliciously.

Xi Xichang, after roughly making a seat, sat down with a plop.

She had had enough of the experience of running away from pursuit.

But since she could not get used to the sense of pressure of moving, avoiding someone's pursuit, her body and mind were very tired.

Jiang Ziya, looking at the fish that was being cooked on the fire, took the wooden block that he had prepared again and began to carve it.

Xi Xichang quietly watched Jiang Ziya's face, which was flickering in the flames.

Thanks to the influence of the flames, the appearance of Jiang Ziya, who was concentrating in the red light, looked like that of a master who was making a solemn work.

A strangely familiar face.

Although Xi Xichang was sure that it was not possible, it seemed that someone was constantly coming to mind from Jiang Ziya's face.

Scrape!

A piece of wood the size of a little finger fell to the floor in one go.

Xi Xichang turned her gaze from Jiang Ziya's face and blankly looked at the hand movements of him making the wooden sculpture.

Although it was a rough hand movement that was not very great, her eyes were strangely dizzy, and she felt dizzy.

Although she was looking at it quietly, her focus was not well on each of his hand movements, and Jiang Ziya, who was sitting in front of her, also looked blurry.

The cross-section of the wooden block that the hand knife had cut and passed was smooth and looked as soft as silk.

Xi Xichang felt a strange edge flowing from the hand knife, which was the length of a finger.

As the rough-shaped sculpture took its shape, she became tense when the wooden block was cut, and her breath stopped as if it would stop when it was carved out.

Was it a magic created by the darkness and the flames?

Since Jiang Ziya was a person who usually performed strange tricks, Xi Xichang thought that Jiang Ziya was now blurring her vision.

"Huh? Ah!"

Xi Xichang, who had been blankly looking at the carving that Jiang Ziya was doing, was startled by the smell that was brushing her nose and got up.

The smell of something burning was vibrating all around.

The fish that had been cooking deliciously was burning black while both of them were not paying attention.

"Oh no!"

Although Xi Xichang hurriedly took out the fish with a twig, half of the fish was already a piece of charcoal.

Jiang Ziya also let out a sigh as if it were a pity and then, after glancing at the sculpture in his hand, threw it into the flames without any lingering feelings.

"Ah! Why did you throw that away!"

Xi Xichang, while carefully peeling off the burnt part of the fish, was surprised when Jiang Ziya threw the sculpture into the fire and looked at Jiang Ziya.

She could not understand why he had concentrated so much on something that he would burn so easily.

"Since I don't like it, I have to throw it away."

"If you were going to do that, you should have just given it to me."

"What?"

As Jiang Ziya asked back, Xi Xichang also thought that it might sound a little strange depending on how one heard it and hurriedly waved her hand.

"No! I just said it because I was curious about what would happen when the sculpture was completed. It's an empty word, so don't misunderstand it strangely."

"I don't misunderstand it like that."

Leaving the flustered Xi Xichang, Jiang Ziya went back to the place where he had been fishing and gathered the remnants of the unfinished sculptures and threw them on the flames.

(End of Chapter)