Gu Changqing lay on the trunk, intently watching the situation inside the temple, waiting for an opportunity. Then he saw An Guo Xie suddenly look to the right and see the little monk who was unconscious on the ground flash a knife light that was not bright enough but seemed to shine in his heart, remembering the decline of his family, remembering the strength that was despised by others, resentment difficult to disperse.

  Then he saw Anguo Xie being cut by a sword, his bones softened, and he barely parried the sword. He saw Xiaohe's dark weapon fly out, raised his long sword, saw Anguo Xie's left palm exerting force to swing out, saw the dark weapon split into seven paths in mid-air, most of which bypassed Anguo Xie's defense, ignoring his dodge, and hit his body.

  Then, he saw Anguo Xie's body swelling up, as if a sandstorm was about to burst out. He saw the little monk holding a sword in his left hand, emitting a resolute and murderous sword light. He saw Anguo Xie being stabbed in the middle of his eyebrows, falling powerlessly to the ground, never to breathe again.

  Wait, An Guo's evil brow pierced his heart with a sword, powerless and fell to the ground, never to breathe again?

  Gu Changqing seemed to be watching a series of flashing scenes before finally waking up in the last scene, what happened?

  "White-headed Vulture" An Guo Xie unexpectedly had a sword in his brow?

  He who had all nine apertures open actually died just like that? Killed by a monk who looked weak and feeble?

  Gu Changqing's mouth was half open, with a feeling as if he had just been dreaming. The movements of An Guojie and Xiao He Shang seemed to be replaying in his mind in slow motion, not feeling real at all.

  He subconsciously patted his own cheek, the pain making him realize that everything was real. The strongest of the old man's disciples, a master with nine apertures open, ranked thirty-sixth on the human list, "White-headed Vulture" An Guo Xie, had really died in front of him, dying at the hands of an unknown little monk!

  And just a few breaths ago, he was still the absolute winner, torturing that little monk to the point of near death and coma.

  Who can tell me what's going on? He silently screamed in his heart, but one thing he could confirm was that Little Monk was absolutely a master, a much more powerful master than himself!

  After Meng Qi healed the sword wounds on Anguo Xie's body, he was about to search him for anything useful when he suddenly heard a commotion coming from outside. He immediately turned around and asked in a low voice, "Who?"

  Whether friend or foe, he could only raise his voice in warning.

  Gu Changqing composed himself from the shock, calmly jumped down from the treetop and walked towards the temple: "Little Shifu, you were seeking help in the inn earlier, so I came over to take a look. I planned to confirm your identity and then invite a few seniors to assist. Who knew that you would kill An Guo Xie yourself."

  When he got to the second half of the sentence, there was a slightly unreal subtle feeling.

  Meng Qi almost couldn't recall who this weak-looking bookworm was, but for Gu Zhangqing, it was just an evening matter, only a few hours had passed. However, for Meng Qi, this was almost a story from three months ago, and they had only met once, briefly seeking help. If not for his good memory, he would have blurted out "Brother, who are you?"

  He went through a rich experience, calmly clasped his hands together: "Amitabha Buddha, because of the family master's affairs, the little monk was captured by Anguo Xie and suffered greatly. Therefore, when I saw several young heroes, I couldn't help but ask for help. I don't know the surname and name of the young heroes, can get your help, the little monk is grateful."

  He deliberately didn't mention the battle just now because he hadn't thought of an excuse yet.

  Gu Changqing waved his hand and said with some embarrassment: "I am Gu Changqing from the Gu family village, I just came to take a look, how can I be considered as lending a helping hand?"

  "To have a mind to save people and take actual action, it's enough to show that Gu Shizhu has a heroic heart. Meng Qi said sincerely, at the same time, his heart moved slightly, Gu Changqing seemed to be a local of Xiyu, he should be quite familiar with the vast Gobi Desert, and his own actions to find Xiao Shidi still need to trouble him for help."

  He is not a ruthless and unrighteous person, so after escaping, he thought about finding and rescuing his younger brother. As for the master's side, although Shaolin did not expect that the crying old man would suddenly appear after being missing for many years and intercept their own master, they dared to send the master to Xiyu to question the "landlord" of the Diamond Temple, so he must have had enough power to protect himself. At most, he was injured by the crying old man - besides, in a foreign land, his own people couldn't help him anyway.

  Upon hearing the praise, Gu Changqing's face involuntarily revealed a hint of pleasure and self-satisfaction: "This is what we upright people should do. I shouldn't be praised by Little Master, but I don't know what Little Master's Dharma name is? To be able to kill An Guo Xie, you must not be an unknown person from the Great Jin Dynasty."

  He heard from Meng Qi's accent that he was a monk of Da Jin.

  "The little monk's name is Zhēn Dìng, just now he relied on his unique secret method to quietly open the acupoints, and also hid a bottle of poisonous liquid and a poisonous dart. He took advantage of ān Guó Xié being unable to focus due to his injuries and killed him. His actual strength was far inferior to ān Guó Xié's." Mèng Qí had already thought of an excuse, pushing the blame onto someone with exceptional skills who could break through acupoints. Anyway, ān Guó Xié was already dead, no one knew that he had crippled his own dantian and broken his own arm, nor did anyone know if the sword and knife were his spoils of war or not, being utilized by himself.

  Gu Changqing thought back to the process earlier, except for a slight mistake at the beginning, it seemed quite consistent, and the name "Zhēn Dìng" was indeed unknown. He smiled and nodded: "An Guo's evil deeds spread across the vast ocean, cruel and powerful, but ultimately died under his own carelessness, truly the heavenly way is fair, cause and effect are rewarded."

  Facing someone like me who's overpowered, anyone would be careless... Meng Qi mocked himself inwardly.

  "But your swordsmanship and knife skills are also wonderful, even from a distance, I feel like I'm trapped in an illusion, my heart is racing with excitement. What school or sect did you come from?"

  "The little monk is a Shaolin disciple." Since he wanted to ask Gu Changqing to introduce a guide, Meng Qi did not hide the fact that he was looking for his younger brother.

  Gu Changqing subconsciously hummed: "So it's a Shaolin disciple, no wonder, no wonder. The knife and sword techniques just now were probably Ah Nan Broken Precept Knife Technique and Bodhidharma Sword Technique."

  Jin Gang Temple's good swordsmanship, so the Western Regions' trend of using swords is strong and prosperous. Even if Gu Changqing is a master of swordsmanship, he has also heard of Arhat Broken Precept's knife method, which is among the top in the world's knife path.

  As for Dharma Swordsmanship, it was his own interest.

  "My learning is shallow, I don't deserve excessive praise." Meng Qi replied with a humble attitude, then asked, "Master Gu Shi, because of the chaos in An Country, my master and fellow disciples scattered, I wonder if you have seen a monk younger than me, also dressed like this?"

  "No." Gu Changqing shook his head. "The monks from the Western Regions dress differently from those in Great Jin, and I have never seen it before. What exactly happened that made you split up?"

  Meng Qi pondered for a moment, thinking that since Gu Changqing had the courage to come and ask about An Guo Xie, this ninth-grade master, he would also have the guts to do something heroic. So he roughly told him what happened, but didn't mention his own attempt to escape. Finally, he said: "I don't know how familiar Master Gu is with the terrain of Hanhai, can you tell me a bit about it so that I won't be completely lost when searching for someone?"

  "Xuan Bei Dashi's fierce battle made the old man cry, such a shocking war, unfortunately, I couldn't witness it with my own eyes." Gu Changqing sighed and said, "My family has lived in Hanhai for generations, so I'm quite familiar with the terrain. It's extremely complex, not something that can be thoroughly explained in a short time. If you're willing to accept me, I'd like to guide you through it."

  Meng Qi had intended to ask him for "geographical knowledge" and introduce a reliable guide, but he unexpectedly volunteered, leaving Meng Qi momentarily stunned: "Gu Shi Zhu, where are your several companions?"

  Gu Changqing's face showed a hint of disdain: "I had always thought they were also chivalrous and righteous, able to share my sentiments, but now it seems they are all timid and afraid of trouble. Compared to Shifu's daring adventure to find her brother, they are really not worthy of mention. Therefore, I am willing to assist Shifu."

  To find true wisdom, one must dive deep into the vast ocean. At that time, bandits and robbers will be rampant, and the power of Luo's residence will be extremely great, with danger lurking everywhere.

  Hearing Gu Changqing's evaluation of the three companions, Meng Qi thought that he still wouldn't go and make friends with the Snow Mountain Sect disciples. They were timid and afraid of trouble, and it was very likely that they would betray their own whereabouts.

  He clasped his hands together and sincerely said: "Amitabha Buddha, I will thank the donor on behalf of my fellow disciple first."

  "Alright, Little Master Zhen Ding, when are we leaving? I'll go and bid farewell." Gu Changqing said as he did.

  Meng Qi waved his hand and smiled: "Don't worry, wait until dawn, then we'll have to ask Master Gu Shi for help buying a few sets of clothes and hats."

  "It's also because your outfit is too eye-catching, it's easy to be spotted by Zhen Luoju and You Xiangduo's men." Gu Changqing suddenly said.

  You Yu was another disciple of Lao Lao, nicknamed "Li Di Yan Luo", who was the leader of the 72 bandits of Helian Mountain. Although they were mainly active near Helian Mountain, the Hanhai business road was also an important source of wealth for them.

  Meng Qi added: "There may be horse thieves' spies in the oasis, if Xiao Shang goes to buy it himself, he will likely be targeted, so please help, Master Gu."

  "No problem, hehe, when the time comes, Little Master will have to change his tone, don't always say 'donor this' and 'donor that', or others will still be able to tell you're a monk." Gu Changqing said with a smile.

  After searching carefully, Meng Qi found a few things on Anguo Xie's body, including a bottle of healing medicine, a bag of silver coins, several precious stones, and a copper key.

  "This is the 'Resentful Spirit Body Repairing Pill' of the Crying Old Man's lineage, although its healing effect can't compare to the Hundred Herb Pill, it's still not bad." Gu Changqing recognized the pill bottle, unfortunately there were only two pills left inside.

  He showed no greed for these things, watching as Meng Qi put them away, since they were his spoils of war.

  Meng Qi thought that after finding his younger brother later, he would pay the labor himself, making it easier for Gu Changqing to accept.

  "What are these keys for..." Meng Qi swung that string of brass keys, clinking away.

  Gu Changqing thought for a moment and said, "An Guo is indeed a notorious thief in the vast ocean, with a wealthy family, but no one knows where his residence is. This must be the key to his various residences."

  "No one knows... how to find it..." Meng Qi said regretfully. If he could get the treasure of Anguo Xie, he would be able to live a life of luxury after leaving Shaolin Temple!

  Gu Changqing looked carefully and said, "It's not that there are no clues. Different countries and oases have different key designs. We can narrow down the scope based on the keys."

  "That makes sense." Meng Qi exclaimed, then temporarily put the matter aside and, together with Gu Changqing, bound An Guo Xie's corpse to a stone and threw it into the small lake, destroying all evidence.

  …………

  The next day, Meng Qi put on the white Confucian robe he had been fond of for a long time, wore a gauze hat, and left this oasis with Gu Changqing.

  By noon, a shop assistant frowned, something was wrong. Master Anguo had entered the temple last night, but he still hadn't come out by now. According to habit, he would have come over to take a stroll!