Wait a minute, where is my master?

"Dad, am I hallucinating or did I just hear Taoist Jin Xu's voice?"

Zhao Dabao looked at his father beside him, bewildered.

"It's not a hallucination, your old man heard it too,"

said Zhao's father offhand.

Then, he instantly extended his Spiritual Sense over the entire secret chamber, trying to locate the speaker.

But he found no one else in the secret room.

"Sound Transmission Skill over a thousand miles?"

Zhao Dabao's father did have some insight.

Thinking thus, he expanded the range of his Spiritual Sense to cover the entire Zhao family estate, still finding no one.

"Heh!"

Zhao's father, obstinately stretching his Spiritual Sense to its utmost reach, still found no sign of Jin Xu.

Alright, he gave up.

The technique was indeed called "thousand-mile Sound Transmission," but no one had actually heard of a case where someone transmitted their voice directly over a thousand miles - even a hundred miles was rare. One reason was that it consumed too much Spiritual Power, and the other was that few people could achieve such refined control.

Besides, if the distance was too great, cultivators would use a Communication Jade Token.

Why bother with such exertion.

"Brother Zhao, it's not a hallucination. Uncle, you can stop searching, I'm still in the Taoist temple on Little Platform Mountain,"

the pleasing voice sounded again.

...

The bright moon was high, the stars were twinkling.

In a room in the back courtyard of Xuanxu Temple on Little Platform Mountain.

Jin Xu was sitting cross-legged on the bed, chatting idly with the Zhao father and son.

An hour ago.

The young Taoist returned to his room and briefly studied the Sound Transmission Skill of the Tingfeng Building.

Then, in less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea, he had learned it.

Operating under the principle that practice is the sole criterion for testing truth,

Jin Xu practiced with both the old village head of Da An Village and the aged constable from Qian Deng Town.

What he did was,

he chatted with the old village head about planting and maintaining trees and discussed with the old constable of Qian Deng Town whether the town's public security had improved.

After that, the young Taoist found that he effectively became a one-way mobile phone that required no dialing and incurred no charges.

"This Sound Transmission Skill doesn't seem to consume anything at all; I've been chatting for so long, but my Golden spiritual power and Spiritual Sense haven't decreased in the slightest,"

Jin Xu thought to himself.

Well, he wanted to test the limits of this Sound Transmission Skill.

So, he spread his Spiritual Sense to Gusu City.

Upon barely sensing the Zhao family's territory, he located the Qi of Zhao Dabao, reached out with his Spiritual Sense, and was about to ask how Uncle Qian was faring when he noticed that Fatty Zhao was about to be beaten.

Jin Xu felt it would be rude to speak up.

As a result, he accidentally overheard discussions about one of the twenty-four Mystic Treasure Pearls being genuine, Zhao Qian in seclusion, and someone preparing generous gifts to ask for his help with a problem.

The young Taoist couldn't help himself and gave a warning.

Having already accepted their family's heirloom treasure bead, he couldn't bear the thought of letting them prepare another generous gift only to make a wasted trip.

Kind-hearted young Taoist.jpg

In the secret room of the Zhao family in Gusu City,

stood two plump men, one older and one younger.

"Taoist Jin Xu, what are you doing?"

hearing Jin Xu's words, Zhao Dabao took the initiative to inquire.

"Did I disturb brother Zhao and Uncle? I came to inquire about Uncle Qian's injury, and at the same time, to test this new Sound Transmission Skill I learned."

said Jin Xu in his gentle voice.

"Oh, oh, Grandpa Qian's injury has already healed up, and he's in seclusion right now; he might be advancing to the Void Refinement Realm."

Zhao Dabao replied.

"Taoist Jin Xu, when did you..."

Zhao's father wanted to find an adjective, but didn't know what to say. To ask when he had come seemed odd since the man wasn't physically present, but acknowledging his absence would contradict the fact that they could hear his voice.

Fortunately, Jin Xu understood what he meant.

"Hmm, I arrived before you slapped Zhao brother," Jin Xu explained.

"..."

Fatty Zhao fell silent for a moment; it was bad enough being hit by his father at his age, let alone having a friend witness it.

Zhao's father, on the other hand, had a different thought; the genuine family heirloom treasure bead had already been given away, and it wasn't really appropriate now to remind the recipient that one of the storage magical items they had sent contained a genuine one.

So in such a fortuitous coincidence, letting the other party know the news couldn't be better.

Firstly, it ensures that a treasure doesn't go unnoticed, allowing the little Taoist to understand the value of the storage magical device.

Secondly, if you're giving someone something valuable, it's essential to make them aware of its worth.

Some people value subtlety or are too shy to spell it out, and sometimes the recipient is not quite discerning, which often lets a kind gesture go in vain.

This situation now is the best.

"Ahem, I've made Jin Xu laugh. Dabao and I were just sparring a bit; after all, once he has a Spirit Root, he can start cultivating. It's good for him to get accustomed to it early."

Uncle Zhao offered a symbolic face-saving comment for his son.

"Right, since little Taoist Jin Xu overheard the conversation between me and my son, then..."

"Uncle Zhao, I truly cannot help with this matter,"

the little Taoist said calmly, refusing.

Not to mention he only knew six magic skills at the moment, two of which he had learned in the past few days.

Just speaking of the Spirit Root, Jin Xu didn't even know what type he himself had!

Seeing the little Taoist's refusal, Zhao Dabao secretly nudged his father's back.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Jin Xu took his leave, and his Spiritual Sense dispersed.

"What were you nudging your old man for just now?"

Uncle Zhao turned to ask.

"Based on my understanding of little Taoist Jin Xu, he doesn't tend to deceive others. If he says yes, it's yes; if no, it's no. I was worried you might not understand him and insist on asking him."

"Heh, now you're lecturing your dad."

A large hand akin to a fan was raised.

...

Within the Taoist temple, Jin Xu's eyes gleamed with delight.

He looked down at the jade token in his palm.

This wasn't the one inscribed with the secret sound transmission skill.

It was the communication jade token that Xia Yunzhao left for him.

Just as he retracted his Spiritual Sense and was studying which of the twenty-four Mystic Treasure Pearls was the real one,

he felt the jade token stir and took it out.

"I have spoken to the Empress about the Seven Star Token. Her Majesty hopes you can make a trip to Shangjing City to discuss in person. — Xia Yunzhao"

There was another message above this one.

"There is an urgent matter at home, and I must return quickly. I had no time to say goodbye in person. Please don't be offended. Looking forward to our next meeting. — Xia Yunzhao"

"Hiss, looks like I forgot to reply to her message before."

Jin Xu thought to himself.

Then he frowned slightly; it seemed he wouldn't have a couple of days of peace before he had to make his way to Shangjing City again.

"Shangjing City, the capital of the Great Xia Dynasty. Xu Qian went to this place before, right?"

The little Taoist murmured to himself. Having perused the library of the night watchman, he had come to understand some of the basic geographic knowledge of the Nine Provinces Realm.

"...!?"

Suddenly, Jin Xu realized what had been nagging at him for the past few days, the sense of having forgotten something!

The message from Xu Qian!

He was so preoccupied with resolving the issue in Gusu City that day that he put the matter to the back of his mind.

Now remembering, the little Taoist hastily looked through his storage magical device for the jade token.

He found Xu Qian's message.

Two large "Save me" texts displayed inside the jade token. The timestamp was three days ago.

"I hope he's alright..."

Jin Xu silently prayed.

However, he had forgotten to reply to Xia Yunzhao's message again.

...

In Shangjing City, within a tranquil, exquisite, and luxurious palace,

Xia Yunzhao sat on a soft couch, puffing up her cheeks as she looked at the communication jade token in her hand.

Jin Xu hadn't replied to her message again!

"Someone, keep that cultivator who was 'impersonating' the night watchman at the city gate in jail for another seven days!"

"Yes, Your Highness,"

a maid replied from the corner, and then turned to leave the hall.

Xu Qian in a certain prison

"_(:з」∠)_Exhausted.avi"