The top-level junior sister also wants to act weak today

The Sect Master nodded upon hearing this, stroking his long beard, and slowly spoke, "That's right. Whether this mission is dangerous or not is still unknown, but one thing is certain, it won't be easy. There's no clear solution to this matter, and it will definitely consume a considerable amount of time and energy. So if you want to refuse for the sake of cultivation, that's fine. However, since you're from the First Peak, I'll ask you first. If you disagree, I'll go find the Second Peak."

Jiang Yingxue couldn't relax her frown when she heard that.

Weird, so weird...

The children in several villages all disappeared overnight. Could it be related to the fact that in the original novel, the demon king needed ninety-nine pairs of boys and girls and a pair of royal blood as a lead to his arrival?

However, in the original novel, this matter was not mentioned until the Demon King was born. There was no mention of children in the village disappearing or the Xianyun Sect being ordered to carry out a mission.

Moreover, if the Demon King's subordinates really wanted to use this method to summon the Demon King, they would definitely hide it and find a pair here and there to be safer. Why would they be so blatant and make all the children in the village disappear?

Did you really think too much?

Moreover, this incident happened in Yun Country, which made her feel even more uneasy.

Anyway, I don’t plan to participate in the demon-hunting in five years, so I’ll accept the mission now and treat it as my last contribution to the sect.

Jiang Yingxue immediately said, "In that case, I'll go."

The clan leader looked at her, a glint of admiration flashed in his eyes, and then he nodded with satisfaction: "Okay, then it's your turn."

He stroked his long beard, his eyes gentle yet thoughtful. "Yingxue, not only do you have the cultivation base of the Nascent Soul Stage, but you can also summon an ice dragon. If you add the ice dragon's help, I'm afraid your strength will be stronger than even an old man like me."

At this point, he paused, as if weighing the pros and cons: "For this mission, I think you alone are enough. Is it okay for the others to stay and practice?"

As soon as the sect leader finished speaking, he was interrupted by Yan Chuan with a "No".

"The extent of this mission's danger remains unclear. But precisely because it's unclear, we can't let her act alone."

The clan leader frowned slightly, and said with a hint of comfort: "Yan Chuan, it is very common to carry out missions alone. Didn't you almost complete them alone before? And she has the Ice Dragon, so you don't have to worry."

"Yeah." Jiang Yingxue agreed, "I can do it alone."

"No, that's not possible." Yan Chuan looked at Jiang Yingxue. "Although you have signed a contract with the Ice Dragon, this summoning method is special. There is no guarantee that the Ice Dragon will be in optimal condition every time it is summoned. And what if the Ice Dragon happens to be trapped and cannot be summoned? What will you do?"

Jiang Yingxue crossed her arms and looked at Yan Chuan: "So what do you want?"

Yan Chuan did not give in. His tone was calm but revealed an invisible pressure: "I will go with you."

Jiang Yingxue was stunned for a moment. This tone, this attitude... If she hadn't already confirmed that Yan Chuan had no interest in her, she would have almost misunderstood something at this moment.

She turned her head away and snorted softly, her tone cold but unable to hide her slight awkwardness: "Whatever you want."

"Then we'll go too!" Chu Ying immediately pulled Cen Yizi along, "There's strength in numbers. The four of us can go there and come back quickly."

Cen Yi was stunned for a moment, then nodded obediently: "Yes, yes."

Seeing this, the clan leader smiled helplessly and said, "Alright then, this mission will be handed over to the four of you. Chu Ying is right, go quickly and come back quickly, let's set off now."

-

It was evening when they arrived at Luoying Village in Yun Country.

The night deepened, and the shadows of Luoying Village appeared desolate and dim. The surroundings were so quiet that only the whimpering sound of the wind blowing through the mountains could be heard.

In silence, the four of them turned the car around and went to the county town to find an inn to rest.

The streets of the county town were empty in the middle of the night, with only a few oil lamps hanging on the eaves, emitting a faint orange light, making the ground look mottled.

A few of them found an inn at random.

Pushing open the creaking wooden door of the inn, the dim light inside came into view, and the smell of aged wood hit me.

Behind the counter, the waiter was fast asleep on the table, snoring softly from time to time. When several people entered, their footsteps were a little hurried, and they were particularly clear in the silence.

"Is anyone there?" Chu Ying pinched her throat and called out softly.

The waiter shuddered, jolted awake, his eyes still hazy as he looked up. After seeing who was standing before him, he straightened up quickly and forced an apologetic smile. "Dear guests, are you visiting us so late at night and need a place to stay?"

"Yes." Yan Chuan's face was calm. He took out some change from his sleeve and placed it on the counter: "Two rooms will be enough."

Upon hearing this, the waiter hurriedly picked up the silver and said, "Okay! I'll arrange two rooms for you right away. Everyone, follow me."

"Wait a moment." Yan Chuan immediately stopped the man: "I want to ask you something."

"Sir, please tell me what you want to say, and I will answer all my questions."

Yan Chuan paused slightly and asked politely, "Did you know that all the children in Luoying Village disappeared overnight?"

When the waiter heard this, he immediately said, "Of course I know what you mean. This matter has caused a lot of uproar here. It's not just one village, but several villages have experienced such strange things."

Yan Chuan frowned: "Are the other villages also in your county?"

"Yes!" the waiter added, "They are all small villages under our county."

"When did this happen?"

"It's been over a month in other villages, but as for Luoying Village, it happened ten days ago. Look, the court has already sent people over, and they just arrived today. But they disliked our inn being old, so they didn't stay here and went to the new inn upstairs."

The waiter said in a panic as if he had let something slip, and hurriedly said, "But there are no rooms over there tonight. It's useless for you to go there. You'd better rest in our store first."

As he said this, he quickly stuffed the silver into his pocket, as if afraid that the few people would go back on their word.

If it were in the past, Jiang Yingxue would have changed her route long ago if she had a better room, but now she just wanted to get this resolved quickly, so she asked again, "Then do you know who the court sent? Moreover, this incident has been going on for over a month. Why is the court so slow to act?"

The waiter was stunned when he heard this: "Aren't you guys from Yun Country?"

Yan Chuan frowned slightly: "What does this have to do with it?"

"Well, okay, since you're not from Yun Country, it's not surprising you didn't know. A few months ago, Yun Country's Prime Minister vanished without a trace. The court deployed a large number of troops to search for him. I don't know what kind of magic potion the Prime Minister had given the Emperor, saying he wanted to see the man alive or his body dead. And so, they've been searching for months. If it weren't for this case ten days ago, the court probably wouldn't have bothered to come. Anyway, the loss of a hundred or so children won't affect them much."