“Kidnapped by someone else?”

In the Kunwu encampment, amid the deep night, only one lamp was lit by the window, stretching Hengxu Zhenren’s silhouette long across the floor. Listening to Yue He’s report from behind him, his voice carried a note of unexpected surprise.

How could Yue He have anticipated this on his way back?

When he encountered that person in the prison, he had already sensed something was wrong. The person hidden in the darkness wielded a sword with fierce momentum – somehow it felt familiar.

Almost instinctively, he thought of Yashan.

But the final outcome was “when snipe and clam fight, the fisherman profits.” A mysterious third party had suddenly emerged halfway through, directly kidnapping Chen Tingyan. After the surge of earthly yin energy, no traces were left at the scene.

Both he and his opponent, who was suspected to be from Yashan, were naturally deeply astonished. However, at such a moment, though they both guessed the other was an acquaintance, they would absolutely not voluntarily expose their identities under such circumstances. Upon seeing Chen Tingyan vanish without a trace, both reacted in the shortest time possible and swiftly retreated.

Throughout the journey back, Yue He had been pondering this matter.

Especially the earthly yin energy…

“He was indeed kidnapped, and by someone with extremely high cultivation.”

After carefully reporting the details, a few traces of inexplicable bewilderment appeared on his handsome yet slightly sinister features.

“But Master, this mysterious person used earthly yin energy. Could there still be some ghost cultivation expert hidden in Wangsi City that we haven’t discovered?”

One must know that in the current Wangsi City, the ghost cultivators who should have fled had long since escaped. The entire city had been searched street by street, and the ghost cultivators who hadn’t left were at least controlled like Chen Tingyan to prevent trouble.

Only the Immortal Wuzhong in the old alley was an exception.

But he shouldn’t have any connection to this matter anymore, and didn’t seem like the type who would secretly kidnap Chen Tingyan.

Yue He felt that encountering people from Yashan wasn’t surprising, and encountering others interfering wasn’t surprising either. What was surprising was that this person used not spiritual power, but soul power.

Hengxu Zhenren slightly closed his eyes, his brows adding a few traces of gloom between the swaying shadows, but he said: “Those who can use earthly yin energy are not necessarily only ghost cultivators…”

“Not only ghost cultivators?”

At the Yashan encampment, Kou Qianzhi opened his eyes wide in slight surprise, standing in the room with his sword in his arms. After hearing Jian Chou’s words, he was somewhat astonished.

Several disciples under Fudao Shanren were all in the room.

Jian Chou, Shen Jiu, Chen Weishan, Bai Yin, Jiang He. Of course, there was also Fu Chaosheng, who naturally stood here listening together.

All four corners of the room were lit with lamps, making it very bright.

Jian Chou slowly paced from one end of the room to the other, her eyes lowered in deep thought, saying: “I am a cultivator, but because I practiced extreme realm techniques after my body and soul separated years ago, I can mobilize soul power. Moreover, besides me and this method, there are not necessarily no other people who can use other ways to mobilize earthly yin energy…”

It’s just that this person…

Was somewhat special.

Everyone easily heard the inexplicable concern hidden in Jian Chou’s words, so they exchanged glances.

Shen Jiu said: “Who are you referring to as ‘other people’?”

Jian Chou looked up at him, remained silent for a long while, and finally shook her head, saying: “I cannot think of a reason why this person would interfere in this matter. But since Chen Tingyan didn’t fall into Kunwu’s hands, that’s still good – nothing serious should happen.”

Saying half while leaving half naturally made people curious.

Shen Jiu nearly choked to death.

But Jian Chou had no intention of continuing further. She only turned to take her leave, saying: “Today’s council has decided to set out again at dawn to attack the next city in the extreme realm. Chen Tingyan’s matter will no longer be dealt with for now – I will handle the rest myself. It’s already late tonight, fellow junior brothers should rest first. I’ll take my leave.”

After speaking, she walked toward the door.

Fu Chaosheng automatically rose from his seat to follow.

Kou Qianzhi, Shen Jiu and others naturally escorted her out together. But just as they reached the courtyard gate and were about to bid farewell, the youngest, Jiang He, suddenly called out: “Senior Sister.”

Jiang He looked like a chubby little boy, with extremely intelligent features. When Jian Chou first entered the sect, he was already at Golden Core stage, ranked eighth, the youngest among Fudao Shanren’s disciples. Now, over eighty years later, Jian Chou had already reached mid-stage Void Refining, but Jiang He was still at Golden Core stage.

His cultivation hadn’t moved an inch.

Toward this junior brother, Jian Chou had always harbored a strange feeling in her heart.

Hearing him suddenly call her, she stopped her steps and smiled, saying: “Junior Brother Jiang, what is it?”

“I just feel that Senior Sister seems to be not very happy these past two days.”

He blinked his eyes and stuck out his tongue, looking somewhat cutely mischievous. But in fact, that gaze fixed on Jian Chou had a strange and serious transparency.

This statement was not meant as a joke.

Kou Qianzhi, Shen Jiu and others were all startled upon hearing this, then turned to look at Jian Chou.

In her moon-white robes, the hem gently falling, graceful gentleness and steady uprightness – two completely different temperaments perfectly blended in her.

She was both ice peak and snow lotus.

That pale face had delicate features, with lips still bearing their customary curve, a light smile that looked no different from usual.

But after hearing Jiang He’s words, her brows moved slightly. Looking back at Jiang He, she felt this eighth junior brother’s gaze had an indescribable transparency.

Pure without any impurities, extremely pure.

Thus, the curve at her lips gradually faded, and she lowered her head with a sigh: “Master’s selection of disciples truly includes no mediocrities…”

This was undoubtedly an admission.

Everyone was immediately somewhat surprised.

Even Fu Chaosheng became somewhat bewildered. Though he knew what “unhappy” meant, he couldn’t fully empathize. In this instant, he only recalled the questions Jian Chou had asked him after emerging from healing and recovering her cultivation.

Jiang He was a disciple Fudao Shanren had taken in very early. When Jian Chou entered the sect, he was already the youngest ranked, and whether in stature or cultivation, he hadn’t grown even a fraction over these eighty years.

People in the mountain gate weren’t without curiosity about this point.

But Yashan was never a sect that judged heroes purely by cultivation level. In such situations, they were even more considerate and understanding, so not only did no one criticize, but they took even better care of Jiang He.

When mentioning “Little Master Uncle Jiang He,” most disciples of Yashan would smile knowingly.

At this moment, he looked at Jian Chou, not avoiding her return gaze at all, his eyes bright and clear, only saying: “Senior Sister should do what she wants to do. Master said that Yashan has always been a ‘prestigious orthodox sect’ and has never shared the worldly views of the Nineteen Continents. Many things have no right or wrong, only success or failure.”

No right or wrong, only success or failure.

In this instant, Jian Chou’s heart was filled with mixed emotions.

She looked at Jiang He for a long time.

But Jiang He only smiled at her, blinked again, and waved his hand: “We’ll depart tomorrow morning, Senior Sister should rest well tonight too.”

“…Mm.”

Jian Chou slowly responded and nodded.

This time, it was she who stood in place, watching Jiang He walk back with the other junior brothers. Though his stature was much shorter, his steps while walking had an indescribable steadiness, and his back seemed shrouded in an impenetrable mist.

But everyone bore the backbone of Yashan.

Jian Chou suddenly smiled.

Fu Chaosheng watched her, and in his dark pupils, layers of dark green slowly surged up, like ancient water plants in a deep pool, with faint ripples of light flowing.

He said: “Are you speaking in riddles?”

Jian Chou shook her head but didn’t answer, only walked out of the gate, carrying her sword, proceeding along the long old alley toward the other end.

Her silhouette stretched long on the ground.

Like that day at the Ghost Gate battle.

Fu Chaosheng didn’t follow this time, only stood there, watching her figure until it disappeared into the depths of night.

The next morning, nearly ten thousand cultivators from the Nineteen Continents finished their preparations and once again advanced to attack the next city in the extreme realm. Jian Chou decided to re-infiltrate the extreme realm under the identity of Lian Zhao, returning to the Wuchang clan to investigate the depths of the extreme realm and the secrets behind it.

But Qu Zhengfeng would travel with the main army of cultivators.

So before departure, Jian Chou stood on the high city walls of Wangsi City and asked him: “I heard that Chen Tingyan, who should have been detained in prison last night, disappeared. The one who kidnapped him could command earthly yin energy. Has Your Majesty the Sword Emperor ever heard of this?”

Qu Zhengfeng stood with hands behind his back, his black brocade robes with gold threading fluttering in the wind. He didn’t look at her, only gazed at the patch of withered grass on the distant wasteland.

His voice was light and distant.

Only four words: “Never heard of it.”

Jian Chou stared at him for a moment, but ultimately didn’t pursue the matter further.

When the cultivators of the Nineteen Continents set out to attack the next city, she changed from her moon-white robes to wide black robes, inserted five red glass hairpins into her waterfall-like black hair, wound delicate ornate chains around her snow-white bare feet, and transformed into Lian Zhao.

On the same day, in Fengdu City of the extreme realm, Lihan of the Ghost King clan emerged from seclusion.