Chapter 58: Below Jiulian Peak, in the Qingyin Elegant Pavilion

There are always greater masters among masters. If one becomes the greatest master in the world, they might die even sooner than others. (Gu Long)
……
“Are you young masters heading to Lianhua Town? Also for that treasure?” Green Pearl asked, riding on her mount.
Liu Yi nodded and said, “We’re just going to take a look. Besides, we’re also there to see the flowers in Lianhua Town—it’s not all about the treasure.”
Green Pearl smiled and continued, “Our Qingyin Elegant Pavilion is located behind Lianhua Town, on Jiulian Peak. It’s not far at all from Lianhua Town.”
Liu Yi actually had another plan in mind. If he went home, the demons would surely bring trouble to his family. But if he hid at the Qingyin Elegant Pavilion for a month, probably few people would remember him by then, as they would have already gone everywhere in search of that treasure map.
The Great Sword King asked, “Miss Green Pearl, what does your Qingyin Elegant Pavilion think of this treasure?”
Green Pearl laughed and said, “We’ll take it! The treasures inside aren’t that important. But that ancient sword and peerless sword techniques are truly remarkable. If we get them, maybe our Qingyin Elegant Pavilion can rank first in the human world!”
It seemed the Qingyin Elegant Pavilion really wanted Liu Yi to teach these women about music. Along the way, Green Pearl and the others were extremely polite, and it wasn’t fake at all.
Three days had passed since they left Jianmen Pass. The group chatted and laughed, making time seem to pass slowly. The Ten Heroes, who had been a bit grumpy at first, had long forgotten their anger after Green Pearl smiled at them and apologized repeatedly.
That day, at the hour of Wei, the group finally arrived at what Green Pearl had called the Qingyin Elegant Pavilion. It turned out that the pavilion was nestled among four surrounding peaks, with small stone houses built of marble—there were at least hundreds of them, forming a small village. The floors of these houses were all paved with marble, creating a magnificent sight. This was indeed the Qingyin Elegant Pavilion—well done, truly worthy of a lady’s residence!
Liu Yi and his group dismounted and tied their horses outside the village. Then, led by Green Pearl, they went inside…
Along the way, they saw clean little houses. At the entrance of each house, there was a girl playing the zither, each with a different melody and playing style, producing distinct sounds. Further in, near the back stone houses, some girls danced with swords while playing the zither, while others played the xiao flute alongside it!
The Great Sword King marveled as he walked, “This place is really nice. But what can the Great Sword King do here? Just watch beautiful girls to pass the time?”
Green Pearl smiled at him and said, “Don’t you think practicing swordsmanship while listening to the zither is a good place? Consider it training!”
The Great Sword King thought it over and agreed, “I still haven’t mastered the ‘Autumn Leaf Sword Technique’ taught by the Wolf King. It’s a good chance to strengthen it now, so I won’t get beaten so badly later.”
Led by Green Pearl, the group finally reached the bottom. This must be the lowest level of the Qingyin Elegant Pavilion. In front of them was a two-story stone building that looked just as tidy, but no one was playing the zither or practicing swordsmanship at the entrance.
Green Pearl said, “My four elders have been in seclusion and haven’t come out. I’ll go invite my master!” With that, she pushed the door open and went inside.

Before long, Lü Zhu came out from inside and said, “My master asks everyone to come in.” With that, she led the way forward. Liu Yi and the others followed her inside. Only upon entering the stone house did they realize it was a completely different world. They hadn’t noticed how large the house was from the outside, but inside, it was quite spacious. Though not as large as the Buddhist or Divine sects’ halls, it was still quite big. Chairs and wooden tables were placed on both sides, and Liu Yi and the others sat down accordingly.

Lü Zhu continued, “Please wait a moment. I’ll go invite my master to meet you.” With that, she headed toward the back of the screen in front of them!

In the time it took to brew tea, a middle-aged woman stepped out from behind the screen. Her long hair was tied up, she wore dark yellow clothing, and with her hands in front of her, she sat down at the seat opposite the screen.

Lü Zhu said, “This is our sect leader. She usually doesn’t meet ordinary people!”

Liu Yi thought to himself, “It seems impossible to tell this woman’s age just by looking at her appearance. It’s not hard for those with high cultivation to retain their youth.”

At that moment, the middle-aged woman, known as the sect leader, spoke up, “I’m truly sorry for inviting you young masters to Qingyin Elegance Pavilion so abruptly. It makes me feel quite guilty, hehe.”

Liu Yi bowed and asked, “May I ask, Lady Sect Leader, does Qingyin Elegance Pavilion belong to the righteous path?”

The middle-aged woman replied, “Of course. Qingyin Elegance Pavilion is one of the three major sects in the human world, so it certainly belongs to the righteous path.”

Liu Yi continued, “Then may I ask why you used poison to force us to come to Qingyin Elegance Pavilion? Is this what the righteous path does?”

The middle-aged woman frowned and said, “Lü Zhu, how did you do this? What kind of poison did you use?”

Lü Zhu glanced at the middle-aged woman and then at Jili’er, saying, “Auntie, that’s not poison. Our Qingyin Elegance Pavilion doesn’t use poison at all. That was my ‘Ten Fragrance Flower Dew Pills.’ I just wanted to scare those scholars a bit.”

The middle-aged woman gave Lü Zhu a look and laughed, “You little girl.” Then she turned to Liu Yi and said, “Young Master Liu, you’ve fallen for Lü Zhu’s trick. That’s not poison at all—it’s a tonic used for training!”

Liu Yi glanced at Jili’er and then at Lü Zhu, noticing that Lü Zhu’s eyes were rolling left and right as if deep in thought.

Suddenly, the middle-aged woman seemed to remember something and hurriedly said, “Look at me—I’m really old. I haven’t even introduced myself yet. Young masters, I am the owner of Qingyin Elegance Pavilion. You may call me Granny Qin.”

Out of courtesy, Liu Yi and the others bowed and said, “Hello, Granny Qin.”

But A Jiu couldn’t stay still and quickly asked, “Why call you Granny Qin? You look so young! You’re only a few years older than us!”

Granny Qin shook her head and laughed, “Little girl, I’m almost two hundred years old. How can I compare to you?”

Upon hearing this, not only was A Jiu surprised, but everyone else was too. It was hard to believe that someone who looked like thirty was actually almost two hundred years old.

Lü Zhu rubbed her hands behind Granny Qin and said, “Granny Qin must have some secret technique to keep her looking young.”

But Liu Yi didn’t want to discuss this topic anymore. He asked, “May I ask Granny Qin, if we come here, will we be held captive here?”

Elder Qin shook her head quickly and said, “How can a young man speak like that? An old woman has loved the zither her whole life, yet a hundred years have passed in the blink of an eye, and she hasn’t even met a true connoisseur. Recently, I heard that Lord Liu once played a tune at the Divine Gate. How wonderful it must have been! That’s why I wanted to invite Lord Liu to the Qingyin Elegant Pavilion.”

Liu Yi replied, “Rumors in the jianghu are mostly exaggerated. You shouldn’t believe them, Elder Qin.”

Elder Qin smiled and said, “Of course, I don’t want to believe them either. But even I, the old woman who plays the zither for the head of the Divine Gate, have experienced it firsthand, which is why I believe the jianghu rumors.”

Lü Zhu hurriedly said, “Sir, please stop being modest. We just want some guidance. Besides, it’s only for a month—you can leave anytime after that.”

Elder Qin added, “I also heard that Lord Liu’s situation isn’t good. The dark sects of the demons keep sending assassins after him. Moreover, there’s the demon lord—seems there are some complicated matters between you and that lord, as rumored in the jianghu…”

Before Elder Qin could finish, Liu Yi quickly said, “No, no, I just offended people from the dark and demon sects.”

A Jiu took Ji Li’er’s hand and chuckled, “Haha, this fool is terrified of that July just from hearing her name.”

Ji Li’er looked at A Jiu and said softly, “We should find a way to resolve this. After all, it’s a scholar who’s ruined that girl’s reputation.”

A Jiu asked anxiously, “How? Are you feverish? Suggesting that the scholar marry that witch? Save it. Look at how she usually dresses—what’s the difference between seeing her or not? Maybe the scholar didn’t even see much.”

Ji Li’er remained silent.

Elder Qin continued, “So, this month is also to allow you to take shelter at the Qingyin Elegant Pavilion. The Qingyin Elegant Pavilion has always been allied with the Buddhist sect and the Cold Sword Sect. Even though the dark and demon sects are powerful, they probably won’t come here to cause trouble.”

King of the Great Sword nodded and said, “That’s good. At least we can rest peacefully for a month, eat well, and drink enough before facing them again.”

Lü Zhu added, “Also, the Qingyin Elegant Pavilion is located in the Nine Lotus Peak, where the scenery is extremely beautiful. If you’re tired, you can stroll around and enjoy it.”

Liu Yi looked at the group and then at Elder Qin, saying, “Since both of you have given so many reasons, it would indeed be foolish of me, Liu Yi, not to stay. But I’m afraid… my skills in music might disappoint you, Elder Qin, and the ladies.”

Elder Qin smiled and said, “Sir, no need to be modest. Zhu Zi, go and bring out my ‘Flying Waterfall Continuous Tune.’ Please play a piece for us.”

Lü Zhu nodded happily and said, “Okay.”

Liu Yi looked at the old woman and the young people, then shook his head helplessly with a smile…