Zhang Yan had just exchanged a round of words with that Old Daoist; all those below had heard it clearly, and one and all revealed an unconsciously tense and grim look.

Zhang Boyant glanced in the direction where that Old Daoist had departed, and sneered, "Master Huang Yu? I have never heard of this name before. It must be some senior expert from within the Ten Sects. If the Pavilion Master later steps forward to seek his aid, he will unavoidably owe him a karmic favor. His abacus is indeed clattering loudly."

The Dragon Carp Siren had originally been lying concealed beneath the river water. At this moment it raised its head and poked out of the surface, speaking out, "Master, what is there to fear? Beneath this Chengyuan Gorge is the Cheng River, and these waters lead straight to the East Sea. Master also knows this little one’s skill in working with water; I can escort Master safely all the way out."

Zhang Yan pondered for a moment, then rejected this proposal, waving his hand, "Those who come to bar my way must also know your particulars. How could they not have taken precautions beforehand? If I really were to do this, eight or nine out of ten I would be falling into their calculations."

Wei Zihong suddenly had a flash of inspiration. He stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Honored Master, this disciple has a stratagem."

"Oh?" A hint of interest appeared on Zhang Yan’s face. "Speak, and let your Master hear it."

Wei Zihong straightened his back and said confidently, "Honored Master, why must you be in such a haste to depart now? There is a Forbidden Array guarding this mountain; we need not fear outside enemies attacking. If you Cultivate here for a year or half, could those people truly wait out there forever?"

Zhang Yan nodded and said, "Your idea, if it were in ordinary times, would not be bad. But this time the situation is different, and it cannot be applied here."

Wei Zihong started for a moment, then asked doubtfully, "Why not?"

Zhang Yan smiled lightly and said, "Ever has it been said, there are only a thousand days for the thief to steal, never a thousand days for the master to guard. Only by settling this matter as quickly as possible can we avoid endless troubles in days to come."

The Junyang Essence within his Gang Cloud still needed several decades before it could be completely Refining. Reasonably speaking, there was nothing wrong with Cultivating here; as long as he kept dragging things out, those three would sooner or later be unable to outlast him.

Yet things were not so simple, for the Junyang Essence touched upon the struggle of interests among all sects; this could not be evaded with a few clever tricks.

For now, at least, there was still Sect Leader Qin watching over things from behind, and the eyes of the experts from all sects were likely gathered here as well. With so many eyes upon them, that road-blocking party would not go so far as to utterly throw away their face. As long as this matter was settled openly and aboveboard, those people would have no pretext to trouble him in the future.

Wei Zihong listened and half understood, half did not, but he also realized that his method was not appropriate. He could not help but say in worry, "Then what should we do?"

Zhang Yan spoke in consolation, "The one blocking the path ahead cannot win by relying on numbers. Your Master has his own way of dealing with it; you need not fret overmuch."

He flicked his sleeve and rose to his feet, saying to Lu, Zhang, and the Dragon Carp Siren, "I am setting off now. After I leave, I must trouble you three fellow Daoists to escort this disciple of mine safely back to the Cave Mansion."

Lu Mei Niang, however, spoke anxiously, "Pavilion Master, if those people make a move against Sect Leader Wei..."

From that earlier exchange of words, she had also heard that the one blocking the road was likely of extremely high Daoist Cultivation. If they were to capture Wei Zihong and then use him to coerce Zhang Yan into submission, they might not be able to protect him. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Zhang Yan, however, did not mind, and said, "It is of no concern. Just follow along; there will certainly be no trouble."

As for those ahead blocking the road, since he, the principal party, was not to be found, if they instead, before the eyes of their peers, chose to make things hard on a junior, that would be to cast aside even the last shred of face. Doing so would not only bring them no benefit, but would instead leave them open to censure, giving the Mingcang Sect an excuse to intervene. Perhaps a few individuals might truly harbor such thoughts, but the sects standing behind them would never be so foolish. Moreover, he had the Dragon Carp as protector on this trip; minor figures with shallow Daoist Cultivation were not worth a thought.

After giving a few more instructions, Zhang Yan let out a clear shout and rode a streak of sword light skyward. He did not head up into the Extreme Sky to borrow the Gang Wind for travel, but instead followed the Cheng River’s waters all the way east. Though this was somewhat slower, if any mishap occurred, he could at any time rely on Water Escape and slip away.

After traveling for roughly two quarters of an hour, he suddenly felt a stir within, lifted his head to look, and saw a wisp of faint white smoke dropping from the blue sky above. When it fell upon the river surface ahead, it billowed outward, and from within walked out a person, holding a White Jade Ruler, clad in red robe and golden crown. His features were refined and elegant, a fine beard on his chest, looking about forty years of age. Only, his feet were both real and illusory, as though shrouded by a mass of cloud and mist. He said in a resonant voice, "Is the fellow Daoist Zhang ahead?"

Zhang Yan’s heart moved slightly. He could see that this was merely an avatar born of Shadow Transformation. His thoughts turned, and he reined in his tunneling light, standing upon the clouds with composed bearing. He pressed his fists together in salute and said, "That is I. I do not know which senior you might be?"

The Middle-aged Daoist avoided mentioning his own name, merely saying, "I would like to invite fellow Daoist to my Cave Mansion to stay a few days. Would you be willing?"