Seeing Ziqing’s composed response, the Great Elder felt a flicker of surprise inside — this girl didn’t seem nearly as unreasonable and difficult as Old Meng Five had made her out to be in his complaints, nor as petty and calculating.

The Great Elder smiled as well, saying, “It’s just… how exactly did you all manage to walk out of that formation array up on the summit just now?”

In truth, Ziqing had felt a small flicker of unease — worried that whatever important matter the Great Elder wished to discuss concerned the isolated island.

After all, the Dream Clan, no matter how one looked at it, remained under Nanzhao’s authority. The Dream Clan’s ancestors had, at Nanzhao’s request, destroyed the four sealing gates of the poison-beast world, and not long ago, the current Dream Clan leader had once again been tasked by the Nanzhao king with searching for the death seal.

Without question, the Dream Clan had always stood firmly on the same side as the Nanzhao royal family!

Ziqing knew that if it weren’t for Jun Beiyue, the Dream Clan would have moved against her long ago — let alone helping to keep things hidden from the Nanzhao royal family.

Of course, this unease wasn’t born of self-loathing, nor any contempt for her own origins — it was simply the fear of bringing trouble upon others.

Yet unexpectedly, the Great Elder hadn’t brought up the matter of the isolated island at all — instead, he was asking about the formation array atop Xuyu Peak.

Curious about that strange formation herself, Ziqing answered readily, “What we saw was mountains surrounding us on all sides — but Beiyue saw the real path. He’s the one who led us all the way down.”

At these words, unmistakable shock flashed instantly through the Great Elder’s eyes!

Jun Beiyue could see through the Xuyu Peak formation array!

He actually possessed such a gift!

Could it be…

Seeing the Great Elder’s shock, Ziqing hurriedly asked, “What’s going on here?”

“And… could this child see through it as well?” the Great Elder asked further.

Xiong Bao glanced at Ziqing, and seeing her nod encouragingly, he shook his head. “I didn’t see through it either.”

At these words, the complexity in the Great Elder’s eyes deepened even further.

Ziqing sensed vaguely that something wasn’t right, and asked again, “Great Elder, what exactly is going on here? Beiyue has never studied any sealing or formation techniques.”

“A natural gift! Heh heh, what a rare and remarkable talent indeed!” the Great Elder said with a laugh, though a flash of something resembling resentment passed through his eyes, as if he’d just understood something significant.

“Then why don’t I have it!” little Xiong Bao immediately demanded.

“That, we’ll have to properly ask the clan leader once he arrives. I’m not entirely certain myself.”

The Great Elder’s tone carried a certain weight of implication, leaving Ziqing even more unsettled. Pondering over Xiong Bao’s unusual constitution, she chose not to press the Great Elder further.

But soon enough, Jun Beiyue arrived, bringing the Dream Clan leader with him!

The Dream Clan leader wore white robes, with white beard and silvery hair, his complexion ruddy and healthy, radiating an almost immortal, sage-like bearing — and above all, his expression was warm, smiling, and deeply kind.

The moment little Xiong Bao laid eyes on the Dream Clan leader, he lit up with instinctive delight, blurting out, “Old grandpa!”

The moment the Dream Clan leader arrived, he hurried forward with a warm smile. “This must be Ziqing and Xiong Bao — heh heh, this old man has been waiting for you down at the harbor for so long.”

Such a warm, kindly elder naturally earned Ziqing’s respect at once. She hurried forward with Xiong Bao to greet him. “It is indeed us, junior generation paying respects to the Dream Clan leader!”

“Heh heh, no need for such formality — you should simply call this old man grandfather,” the Dream Clan leader said with a smile. Ziqing was eager to bring up Baili Weisheng’s condition, but the Dream Clan leader spoke first. “Where is this Mister Baili? Bring him to me right away — once a human-gu body suffers severe injury, there’s not a moment to lose!”

Overjoyed, Ziqing immediately led the way — Baili Weisheng lay in a room behind the main hall!

Everyone hurried toward the back of the hall together, with the Great Elder and Old Meng Five bringing up the rear.

The Great Elder said with a cold chuckle, “Fifth Brother, you really do have a gift, don’t you — Fourth Sister missing for all these years, and you’re the one who managed to find her!”

“Big Brother flatters me too much. This wasn’t my doing at all — it was Fourth Sister’s own doing, giving birth to such a capable son. The Qiankun Poison Pouch is in their hands; it was they who brought Fourth Sister back, not me,” Old Meng Five said with a broad, cheerful smile, clearly in excellent spirits.

The competition for the position of clan leader had long been split between the eldest brother, backed by considerable strength, and the second and third brothers, of mediocre talent forming their own faction — while he himself had always kept the lowest profile of all, trampled underfoot within the family by the others. At last, after enduring all that hardship, sweetness had finally arrived.

Given Fourth Sister’s remarkable abilities, even the eldest brother, senior as he was, would have to step aside for her — especially considering how, years ago, several of the brothers had conspired together to sabotage her marriage. Now that Fourth Sister had returned, that debt would surely be settled.

Seeing Old Meng Five’s evident satisfaction, the Great Elder should have been furious — yet instead, he merely laughed cheerfully. “Indeed, indeed — Big Sister truly is remarkable, and the son she bore is even more extraordinary. Such rare, exceptional talent!”

These words carried a strange undertone — as if there was more meaning hidden beneath them!

Old Meng Five sensed something was off, but by then they’d already reached the back hall, so he said nothing further. He glanced once at the equally cheerful Great Elder, then shifted his attention to the room ahead!

Inside, though the Dream Clan leader’s understanding of human-gu bodies wasn’t especially specialized, he’d already gathered a clear picture of Baili Weisheng’s condition during the journey there.

By his estimation, the cause of the unconsciousness matched exactly what Nanny Gu had described — the deterioration of the body was now affecting the mental pathways. The body served as the foundation for willpower and spirit; once the body was destroyed, even the strongest soul would have nothing left to anchor it, and would inevitably vanish, dissolve into nothing.

Given the current situation, not even they — not even Nanny Gu herself — could say for certain whether Baili Weisheng would ever wake up.

For now, the only option was to preserve his body as quickly as possible!

The Dream Clan leader made his decision instantly and activated the corpse-sealing technique.

For a human-gu body, there was no choice now but to treat it as though it were already a corpse.

Ziqing gripped Jun Beiyue’s hand tightly, watching silently from the side, her lips nearly bitten to the point of bleeding!

How could they have been so careless?

This wretched scholar had always carried on so improperly, so full of energy, that everyone had genuinely believed he truly was as careless as he seemed. Since falling ill, he’d never once said a single word about pain or suffering — how could everyone have simply assumed he truly felt no pain, no suffering at all?

It wasn’t just Ziqing — Baili Xiaosheng beside her was blaming herself too, her young, delicate face drawn so tight it looked ready to crack, silently praying — Master must not die, Master must be okay!

As the Dream Clan leader’s hands moved, a faint layer of purple light enveloped Baili Weisheng’s entire body. Everyone watched with bated breath, hoping desperately that his peaceful face would once again break into that brilliant smile — and then, suddenly, a miracle happened!

Baili Weisheng’s once immaculate white robes gradually began to tear, and on his arms, his chest, his neck, his temples, behind his ears — a layer of glittering golden scales slowly began to emerge!

“Golden Jiao!”

The Great Elder and Fifth Elder cried out in unison, and even the deeply focused Dream Clan leader paused mid-motion, sucking in a sharp breath of shock!

This young man was actually a Golden Jiao!

Though a large section of Baili Weisheng’s chest and shoulders remained without scales, it did nothing to diminish his stunning, noble beauty — especially bathed in that soft purple glow, everything seemed dreamlike, ethereal.

Everyone watched in stunned silence. Then, in a matter of moments, beneath that purple light, the golden scales began dissolving in large patches, scattering into what looked like golden powder that dissolved back into his very body!

What… what exactly was happening?

Would Baili Weisheng wake up?