Wait a minute, where is my master?

Three people had been running for four hours, of course, it was mostly Little White doing the running.

They arrived at one of the Great Xia border cities, Su City.

By then, it was late, and Jin Xu, accompanied by the two women, found an inn at random and rested for the night.

The next morning.

The little Taoist opened the window and looked out onto the street, intending to see what the weather was like today.

Suddenly, he froze.

Overnight, the streets had been draped in white gauze, and there were far fewer pedestrians on the road.

Jin Xu instantly let his Spiritual Sense spread out, enveloping the entire city, and in his inspection, he found that the entire Su City was like this, even seeing some very old, low-level monks silently burning paper money in every street and alley.

A sense of foreboding rose in the heart of the little Taoist.

He did not wake the two women who were still sleeping soundly next door, but left the inn quietly and headed straight for the Tingfeng Building's branch in the city.

He was wearing a dark Taoist robe and a dark, faceless mask, thinking he would stand out on the streets decorated with white gauze.

However, as he walked, he saw many cultivators dressed similarly to him.

Jin Xu did not know that his performance in the transfer formation on that day had earned him countless admirers, so it was normal to see people on the streets imitating his attire.

The little Taoist did not pay too much attention to this phenomenon. Guided by his Spiritual Sense, he quickly found the Tingfeng Building's branch in Su City. Many monks were standing in front of the building, queuing up to buy newspapers, all discussing fervently.

Jin Xu saw that there were quite a lot of people queuing in front of the building, and he would have to wait a long time if he joined.

So, he directly activated his "currency power" by taking out a high-grade Spirit Stone from his storage device and bought a copy of the newspaper from someone else's hand.

Indeed, the crucial news published by Tingfeng Building featured, as its first piece, news about Xia Xuanmin.

"Emperor Min of Great Xia, Xia Xuanmin, issued a document confessing his sins last night, passing on all his cultivation to the new Emperor, Xia Yunzhao, and ascended to immortality yesterday at the hour of Yin.

Shocking! A group of cultivators who have had their Essence and Marrow Washed has suddenly appeared in various parts of the Nine Provinces Realm, and Tingfeng Building is investigating the source.

Rumor has it! The Blazing Sun Sword Sect has actually taken in a male disciple with Ice and Fire Dual Spirit Roots, a rarity not seen in ten thousand years, and it is unknown to what realm he can cultivate.

Rumor! Ye Wuyang, one of the Four Elders of the Demon Sect, is suspected of having been killed by Great Xia's "Imperial Uncle" at the border.

Fact! The Qingmu Secret Realm is about to open, and cultivators from all over are gathering in Qing State, even the Nine Provinces' number one chef, who has been unheard from for twenty years, has appeared here, bringing his new invention 'prepared dishes' to the Cultivation World.

Insider news! The price of Alchemy Furnaces near Gusu City within Great Xia has suddenly skyrocketed, suggesting that a new alchemy sect may soon rise within Great Xia's territories, yet it remains to be seen whether it can surpass the once renowned Medicine King Valley."

This newspaper published six headlines in total, with content spanning over a dozen pages.

The first one alone took up ten pages, the first eight of which detailed the life of Xia Xuanmin.

The article described in full how he rose from obscurity, how he worked hard and governed diligently, and how he gradually retreated from power. The end of the article subtly mentioned Jin Xu, the mysterious "Imperial Uncle."

The last two pages were the confession document handwritten by Emperor Min.

The little Taoist frowned and finished reading the first ten pages, momentarily unsure what expression to wear.

That day in Shangjing City, he had sneakily used his Spiritual Eyes to observe Xia Xuanmin. Although the latter had little vitality left in his body, if he did not engage in battle, he could have survived another year or half without issues.

Now that such sudden news of ascension had come out of nowhere, Jin Xu was somewhat bewildered.

He took out the Communication Jade Token left by Xia Yunzhao and, after pondering for a long time, sent a message over.

"Condolences. Has another accident occurred in Shangjing City, or has the Demon Sect caused trouble again?"

The little Taoist stood in place, silently waiting for a while, until the Communication Jade Token in his hand lit up — the Empress Xia Yunzhao had replied with a message.

"Neither. Grandfather said he was a bit tired and missed Grandmother."

"Okay, if there's anything, you can call me at any time."

After Jin Xu sent the message, he fell silent and turned to return to the tavern.

...

When the little Taoist returned to his room, the two women in the next room had already woken up.

Yu Yaoer was the first to notice the abnormality on the street and came to Jin Xu's room to ask what had happened to her young master.

The little Taoist silently handed her the Tingfeng Building newspaper he held in his hands.

After Yu Yaoer read the news, she too fell silent for a moment.

She had a good relationship with Xia Yunzhao when she was in Shangjing City, so naturally, now that her friend's relatives had passed away, she picked up the Communication Jade Token and started sending her regards.

Little Fish Demon was clearly better at comforting people than Jin Xu, she did not put down the Jade Token once she had it in hand.

After Yu Yaoer had talked with Xia Yunzhao for a while, Little White also darted into Jin Xu's room, and the Snow Wolf immediately sensed the heavy atmosphere upon entering.

After learning the reason, Little White spoke a few words to Yu Yaoer to pass along to Xia Yunzhao.

"Sister Yunzhao, in the culture of our Snow Wolf Clan, family members who pass away naturally will be reborn in a new world where they can still see you from this world, and they will be reunited with those they have longed to see for ages. So please, don't grieve too much, otherwise your grandparents will feel upset seeing you like that."

Jin Xu sat in a wooden chair, glancing sideways at the Snow Wolf.

In his past life, he had no parents and was an orphan, so he couldn't empathize much with the death of family members, and at first, he thought there had been another accident in Shangjing City. But Xia Yunzhao's reply told him that Xia Xuanmin had chosen death on his own, so he was a bit at a loss for comforting words.

Fortunately, his two demon pets were much more articulate than him at this moment.

Jin Xu and his companions stayed in Su City for half a day more, discovering that the city had even set up a memorial hall specially for Xia Xuanmin, and the three of them went to pay their respects.

During the memorial service, the little Taoist noticed that many older Loose Cultivators and some middle-aged commoners came to mourn Xia Xuanmin and were extremely saddened.

Jin Xu inwardly marveled at Xia Xuanmin's powerful personal charisma.

After the three of them had finished paying their respects, they did not linger in Su City for too long but headed towards Qing State.

After all, their original intention was to travel to ease their minds, and Su City's current somber atmosphere was hardly suitable for that.

...

Half a day passed.

Little White was already carrying Jin Xu and his companion out of the Great Xia territory.

The journey from Gusu City to Qingmu City, they had already traveled halfway.

However, the scenery along the way did not bring any joy to the little Taoist, the farther they got from Great Xia territory, the heavier the mood became.

Just after leaving Su City, they could still see some thriving villages along the road.

But now, as they got farther away from Great Xia territory, Jin Xu began to understand why those commoners and older low-level Loose Cultivators cried so genuinely and truly during the memorial service.

Without comparison, one wouldn't realize how much better the security situation within Great Xia was than the outside world.

Along the way, they had encountered five completely destroyed small mountain villages, some looking long decayed, others as if they had just been slaughtered a few days ago.

Even on the way, the little Taoist and his group happened to stumble upon a gang of Evil Cultivators about to massacre a village for some sort of blood sacrifice.

Jin Xu casually disposed of them.

Yet even after being saved, the villagers were all in a state of terror, as if they rarely saw Cultivators.

The extreme contrast made the little Taoist, who had lived in Great Xia for several months, feel very uncomfortable.

But Yu Yaoer told him, this was the norm in the Nine Provinces Realm.