6 Journey to Canglang

It was the Little New Year, and the mortal town was ablaze with lights, its streets and alleys overflowing with laughter and cheer.

In a tea shack on Ping'an Street named "Wutong Residence," Nan Xinjiu frowned as he looked at the jade plaque at his waist. A crack had appeared in the center of the plaque—the formation he had set up at Chuyun Residence had been broken.

Nan Xinjiu, who had just sat down, stood up abruptly.

Xiao Chinan, sitting opposite him, noticed the change in his expression and asked, "Brother Nan, what has happened?" He paused, then added, "Brother, you can always trust Chinan."

At that moment, two sword-delivered letters pierced through the air and flew into Nan Xinjiu’s hands. Nan Xinjiu pressed the letters to his forehead. A moment later, he looked at Xiao Chinan, his expression obscure and tinged with wariness.

"Something has happened at home. I fear I cannot chat with you in detail today, Brother Xiao; we shall have to meet another time."

Before Xiao Chinan could respond, he severed the communication talisman in his hand, and his figure instantly vanished from the tea shack.

Xiao Chinan’s eyes flickered. Watching the direction in which Nan Xinjiu had disappeared, he took out a voice-transmission talisman and said, "Go and check what has happened to the Nan family."

Half a quarter of an hour later, a hoarse voice sounded from the talisman: "Nan Huaisheng and Li Ciying, a disciple of Wanren Peak who was staying with the Nan family, were abducted a quarter of an hour ago."

Xiao Chinan frowned. "Do you know who did it?"

"Unknown, but I heard that person went to the Peach Wood Forest."

The Peach Wood Forest?

Xiao Chinan was slightly stunned. It took him a moment to regain his focus. "Continue to watch the Nan family’s ancestral grounds."

As the connection cut off, a blurred humanoid figure emerged from his shadow. "Young Clan Head, shall we follow?"

Xiao Chinan mused, "I had just called Brother Nan here, and immediately after, his daughter is abducted. The timing... it is as subtle as it was four years ago. If I do not go to rescue her, Brother Nan will likely never trust me again."

He flipped his right hand, and a snow-white long saber appeared in his palm. "Zhu Yun, you will come with me to the Peach Wood Forest."

-

At the boundary between the Peach Wood Forest and the Mirror of Heaven and Earth, there were Nan family cultivators stationed every day. Today was no exception, but unfortunately, those few were only at the Foundation Establishment stage. They were killed by the cloaked figure in a few swift movements, not even managing to crush their jade alarm plaques.

The journey was bumpy, and Huaisheng had fainted three times. The cloaked figure seemed afraid she might die; whenever she fainted, he would stop to feed her a few drops of medicinal water.

Compared to her, Ciying was in much better condition. The cloaked figure had only sealed his spiritual power, leaving him unable to speak or wield his Wanren sword, forcing him to watch helplessly as Huaisheng drifted in and out of consciousness.

The cloaked figure used several teleportation talismans, and within a quarter of an hour, the three of them had crossed the barrier and entered the Peach Wood Forest.

The forest was teeming with exotic beasts, and the black fog was so thick that even the falling snow could not cover it. Even though his cloak could mask his aura and blend him into the forest, the cloaked figure had to remain on high alert.

Ciying looked around. For some reason, the aura here felt familiar. He had been found by True Lord Yun Miao in the Peach Wood Forest of the Western Continent; was that why he felt this way?

While he pondered, the cloaked figure passed through a dense thicket and arrived at a dried-up riverbed. Across the riverbed lay a cluster of withered, low houses, surrounded by a fence, with nearby dried and cracked ponds and farmland. A stone tablet stood in front of the huts, inscribed with the words "Luoxia Village."

Luoxia Village was a settlement eroded by the Peach Wood Forest. Its original grey tiles and white walls had long been stained ink-black by the fog. There was no sign of life, save for the occasional beast with blood-red eyes.

The cloaked figure lifted the two children effortlessly, moved like a ghost across the riverbed, and slipped into a silent house, tossing them into the main hall.

Huaisheng woke up at that moment. After the night's ordeal, she had expected to be in bad shape, but her spirit held up—likely thanks to the medicinal water the cloaked figure had fed her. He seemed to know exactly which medicine could keep her alive.

Huaisheng silently surveyed the surroundings, then glanced at the ground, and finally looked at the cloaked figure.

A fleeting glimmer of spiritual light appeared in the cloaked figure's hand. Huaisheng recognized the aura of a voice-transmission talisman. He was communicating with someone.

Sensing she was awake, the cloaked figure turned. He wore a thin, cicada-wing mask of a martial general, his entire face hidden by his hood. Standing in that eerie room, he looked no different from a ghost.

Ciying struggled to block the path in front of Huaisheng. The masked man looked at him with interest and strolled toward them. Huaisheng immediately poked her head out from behind Ciying and said earnestly, "Little New Year, cannot, kill."

"Cannot kill on Little New Year."

This was a custom that had formed in the Central Plains over the last ten thousand years, intended to accumulate merit on the day of ancestral worship so that the ancestors might protect their descendants through the impending calamity of the Canglang Realm.

Was she trying to persuade him not to kill using the customs of the festival, and perhaps probe his identity at the same time?

A faint smile flickered in the masked man's eyes. It was said that Nan Xinjiu’s daughter was afflicted with yin poison, only opening her eyes at one year old and speaking at two, usually sluggish and dim-witted like a simpleton. Looking at her now, she was sharp; she didn't look like a simpleton at all.

He had always liked clever children. It was a pity that "the one" rarely woke up, and yet had specifically demanded she be captured. Coupled with Nan Xinjiu’s persistent investigation into what happened four years ago, he had no choice but to abduct her—to kill two birds with one stone and eliminate Nan Xinjiu as well.

The masked man stopped two steps away from them. He pressed his palm to the floor, and a silvery-white formation pattern immediately emerged on the dark stone. The pattern was circular, about three meters in diameter, and as soon as it appeared, a binding force seized both Huaisheng and Ciying.

"If you don't want to die, stay here quietly."

Neither child spoke; they just watched the masked man quietly, appearing quite compliant.

The masked man was satisfied. His communication talisman lit up again, and as he pressed it to his forehead, he frowned and hurried out of the room.

-

As soon as the masked man left, Huaisheng looked at Ciying. "You, followed, why? Dangerous, stupid."

Ciying gave her a cold look. "Shut up and save your energy."

He stared at a point outside the formation and whispered in his mind, "Come out."

There were no lights in the house, only a sliver of snow-white light slanting through the door crack. Within that thin halo, a fluffy paw tore through the air, and a plump white fox emerged, standing outside the formation and staring at Ciying.

Ciying continued in his mind: "Didn't you say you were some super-powerful fox spirit? It's time to show your strength; send us back to the Nan family!"

The white fox’s chubby face showed a look of dissatisfaction. "I told you, I am a Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox, a god! How many times do I have to say it for you to remember? When will that broken head of yours recover its memory?"

Despite calling itself a Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox, it only had one tail.

Ciying said, "Fine, Nine-Tails, since you're so powerful, can you send us back?"

The white fox replied, "No. I have only one soul left, and all my soul power is stored in your sea of consciousness. Your sea of consciousness is shattered, so naturally, I cannot use my power."

Ciying sneered, "Then besides sleeping in my head, what can you do?"

"..." The white fox raised its paws guiltily. "I can break the curse sealing your magic." With a swipe of its paw, it pulled a pitch-black curse from Ciying’s body and crushed it.

As the curse shattered, Ciying felt his sealed spiritual power return. He had a tracking talisman hidden in his chest, which he had activated while chasing the masked man. Even if Master Ying Yu couldn't arrive in time, he could at least relay their location to Nan Xinjiu.

The only fear was that this house could cut off the aura of the tracking talisman, preventing Nan Xinjiu from finding them. The masked man kept the voice-transmission talisman in his hand, clearly waiting for his accomplices; they had to leave before those accomplices arrived.

Ciying looked at the white fox again. "Can you handle the formation on the ground?"

-

The white fox shook its fluffy tail with arrogance. "How could a mere lower-realm curse formation stump me? Even if my divine power is gone, I can tear an opening for you to get out. Don't worry, the person outside won't notice."

Ciying narrowed his eyes. "Can you kill the man outside?"

"I am of the Nine-Tailed Spirit Fox clan. If your sea of consciousness weren't broken, even with only one soul left—"

"Fine, tear the opening."

"..."

Ciying couldn't be bothered to listen to its boasting. He thought for a moment, then took the tracking talisman from his chest and hung it around Huaisheng’s neck, hiding it inside her clothes. He mouthed to her, "Hold onto me tightly later, and don't make a sound. If there's danger, run away yourself and find a place to hide."

The yin energy here was dense, and her aura was like that of a dead object; most things in the Peach Wood Forest wouldn't attack her.

The white fox found the weak spot in the pattern and tore through the curse with a swipe. Ciying carried Huaisheng on his back and scrambled out of the house through a hole in the wall. The white fox behind him dimmed and turned into a beam of white light, flying back into Ciying’s ancestral aperture.

The night was vast, and a thin figure sprinted madly through the looming tree shadows.

Huaisheng clung tightly to Ciying’s neck. Suddenly feeling a chill on her scalp, she hurriedly said, "Left, front."

Ciying tilted his shoulder, hurriedly shifted Huaisheng from his back into his arms, and rolled on the ground, dodging a demon vine that swung from the left. The vine was as thick as two men's arms; a single strike would have caused severe injury.

Along the way, one was responsible for running, the other for warning. They had already dodged dozens of attacks from demon vines.

Ciying dared not use his spiritual power, not even to fly on his sword. Once he used spiritual power, not only would the masked man track them down immediately, but the nearby exotic beasts and demon plants would be enough to finish them off. These things loved nothing more than the flesh and blood of cultivators full of spiritual energy.

Ciying had run dozens of miles, his body growing weary, his movements becoming sluggish. Although the vine hadn't hit him, the force of the wind it stirred up caused a surge of blood to rise in his throat.

"Coming again. Behind you, a chicken."

The little brat in his arms was speaking more clearly, which gave Ciying a strange sense of comfort. He pushed Huaisheng gently forward, and the moment he stood up, he drew the Wanren sword, his movement like wind, thrusting fiercely at the beast behind him.

The beast was originally a domestic chicken, but after being eroded by foul energy for years, it had become a ferocious avian, eight feet tall, its body pitch black as if rolled in ink, with only a pair of blood-red, cross-eyed glares.

Ciying’s thrust had no spiritual power, but it was as swift as wind and fast as lightning. He succeeded in one stroke, piercing a hole in the chicken beast’s wing.

Ink-colored blood dripped down. The beast shrieked in pain, suddenly spread its wings, and flapped them violently at Ciying. A violent wind surged, blowing Ciying backward. He plunged his sword into the ground to stop his momentum. Huaisheng, hiding behind him, couldn't avoid the wind and was blown into a giant tree, nearly fainting from the pain.

The giant tree had been slumbering, but it was jolted awake by the impact and immediately lashed out with a pitch-black branch. Huaisheng hurriedly clutched the longevity lock hidden under her clothes. To her surprise, the demon tree didn't strike at her, but at Ciying, who was entangled with the chicken beast.

The chicken beast pinned Ciying with its wings and pecked at his head like a chicken eating grain. Ciying swung his sword to shave its wings while dodging the long, sharp beak, looking quite disheveled.

Just as the branch was about to strike, the chicken beast suddenly froze its wings, as if a soul-less creature had suddenly regained its senses. Its cross-eyed gaze stared blankly at Ciying, a flash of confusion and fear in its eyes. After that moment of hesitation, it glanced at Huaisheng and the giant tree behind her. The next instant, the chicken beast closed its eyes tight, lunged past Ciying, and slammed headlong into the branch swinging from the old tree demon.

With a loud "boom," the chicken beast was knocked flying by the tree demon and exploded into a cloud of black blood in mid-air.

This turn of events left both Ciying and Huaisheng stunned. Huaisheng inexplicably felt that the look the beast had given them before hitting the tree demon seemed to hold... an apology.

The tree demon struck, but it didn't end there. Its branches, like giant pythons, whipped through the air and lashed at Ciying again. This old tree demon was much more powerful than the chicken beast. While the chicken was mutated, it hadn't cultivated true demon power; it was strong and large, but its lethality was limited.

The old tree demon was different.

Ciying’s expression was grave, finally realizing something was wrong. The demon vines had retreated decisively once they reached this area, suggesting this was the old tree demon’s territory; other demon creatures wouldn't dare enter.

His cheek was scratched by the chicken beak, leaving several bloody marks lingering with a faint baleful energy. Ciying had no time to worry about it; he stood up with his sword, knowing he had to use his spiritual power now.

If he used spiritual power, he couldn't keep the little brat with him—it was too dangerous. He would have to use the Wanren sword to cut the tree demon's branches and then use a teleportation talisman to take her away and find a place for her to hide.

As he calculated, the thick branches brought waves of cold wind like lightning. In the flash of an eye, a thin figure rushed out and blocked Ciying.

Ciying’s pupils constricted, his heart skipping a beat. He roared, "Get out of the way!"

Huaisheng didn't move; instead, she gripped the longevity lock under her clothes. The expected fierce attack didn't fall; only the wind stirred by the branches brushed past her ears.

Huaisheng looked up and saw the branch, wider than she was, hanging above her head as if frozen. She swallowed nervously and stepped back step by step until a thin, calloused hand grabbed her wrist.

The branch paused for a moment before moving again, like a python coiling on a gnarled branch, slowly reaching down and stopping an inch from Huaisheng’s nose. The old tree demon had no eyes, but Huaisheng felt a gaze. There was no killing intent in it.

"Plop." A clump of snow fell from the tree onto Huaisheng’s head, making her shiver.

She didn't dare move. The old tree demon seemed to realize she was cold; its branch flicked upward, gently brushing away the snow, and then slowly retracted.

Huaisheng was already drenched in a cold sweat. Though she didn't know what was happening, the old tree demon seemed to have no malice toward her—not only did it spare her, but it also spared Ciying.

As the two of them breathed a sigh of relief, a burst of spiritual light exploded dozens of miles away. The light came from a crescent saber; it was the same weapon the masked man had used to kill the Nan family cultivators at the base.

Huaisheng gripped the longevity lock on her chest again. "Chicken, drew, him, here. Run?"

The chicken beast hadn't just drawn the masked man. To force the masked man to use his spiritual power in the Peach Wood Forest, a baleful beast with actual demon power must have appeared.

Ciying frowned and looked at the old peach tree. The tree was thick enough for dozens of people to embrace. Its rough trunk was riddled with hollows, hidden among layered branches and whiskers; hiding inside would be hard to detect.

"I go, you don't," he said calmly. "The demon tree has no hostility toward you; your aura is hard to detect here. But I am different. That masked man must have some magic tool or method to detect the aura of the living."

"No."

Huaisheng didn't agree, but Ciying ignored her. He channeled his spiritual power, picked her up, and flew to a tree hollow ten zhang high. The hollow was about as tall as Huaisheng and not very deep, but it was more than enough to hide two children.

Ciying paused outside the hollow. Seeing the tree demon remained motionless, as if tacitly allowing his actions, he bent down and helped Huaisheng inside.

A foul stench greeted them. Huaisheng was already on the verge of fainting, and the smell made her head throb. Ciying swept away the dry bones and rotting leaves with his sword, took out two sets of robes from his storage ring, laid one on the floor of the hollow, and covered Huaisheng with the other.

After doing this, he took out a pill, pried open her mouth, and said, "Use your ten baby teeth to crush this pill and swallow it."

Huaisheng knew he was leaving. She swallowed the medicine, grabbed his sleeve, pointed to her chest, and said, "You, stay. I, have, protection."

Ciying smiled for once. "I know, this is the heart-guarding lock your Uncle Nan found for you; it can block a fatal blow from a Nascent Soul cultivator. But that man isn't trying to kill you; he has other motives. You cannot fall into his hands. As for me—"

He lifted his chin, acting smug. "I am the next sword master of Wanren Peak. To kill me is to make an enemy of the entire Ya Jian Mountain. Who would dare?"

Huaisheng didn't believe his big words, her hand clutching his sleeve refusing to let go.

"No," she repeated. "We, not, separate."

Frost coated the opening of the tree hollow. The little girl’s face was turned a pale, sickly shade by the faint snow light. She had been abducted in her sleep, her hair-binding fabric long since gone, leaving her looking disheveled and miserable.

Yet, there was no fear on her face. Those bright eyes looked quietly at Ciying, firm. "I'm not afraid. I don't want to be, alone."

-

"I know you're not afraid." Ciying pulled back his sleeve, wiped the dust from her face, and carefully wrapped her in the large robes. "If you're tired, sleep. When you wake up, Uncle Nan will be here. If he doesn't come, I will."

He lifted his hand and pressed it firmly on Huaisheng’s head, saying seriously, "Remember, Nan Huaisheng, you will never be alone. I will definitely come back."

Huaisheng wanted to say more, but the young boy had already turned and leaped away. The Wanren sword transformed into a clear light, carrying him toward Luoxia Village.

In the murky fog, the light was as dazzling as a star. The crescent saber not far away immediately turned and gave chase. At the same time, a giant hand formed of yin energy pierced through the falling snow and grabbed at Ciying.

Just as the giant hand was about to catch him, a dazzling spiritual light burst forth above the Wanren sword. Hundreds of talismans exploded simultaneously, as brilliant as fireworks in the dark night.

"Boom!"

Huaisheng watched the fireworks gradually fade, her body finally unable to hold on. Her vision went black, and she fainted again. In the moment she lost consciousness, she had only one thought—

*Don't die. Live.*

She hated it when people died for her.

-

The earth trembled as if a dragon were turning over. In an instant, countless beast prints of various sizes appeared on the flat snow.

Two cloaked cultivators stood by the dried riverbed, looking back toward the depths of the dense forest. One of them said, "The baleful beasts in the depths of the Peach Wood Forest have been disturbed. Those beasts are different from the ones near Luoxia Village; their demon power is tyrannical. If we can't find Nan Huaisheng in a quarter of an hour, tonight's operation must be called off."

If Huaisheng were here, she would recognize the speaker as the masked man.

The other cloaked figure wore no mask; the face hidden under the hood was covered in hideous scars. The scarred man lowered his eyes. "Since 'that one' specifically named Nan Huaisheng, if we give up tonight, how will we report back? I don't know how long that one will stay awake this time... Has 'Third' found her yet?"

The masked man said, "Third's treasure can only track the aura of the living. Nan Huaisheng is full of yin poison; hiding in the Peach Wood Forest is like a drop of water in the ocean. Finding her won't be easy. That one never stays awake for more than three days at a time. If we miss the chance today, we'll have to wait until he wakes up again. By then, he might not even want to see her. As for Nan Xinjiu, I'll find an opportunity to search his soul in a couple of days and kill him then."

The scarred man snorted coldly, "Once Nan Xinjiu returns to Ya Jian Mountain, how easy will it be to kill him? Do you think those swords at Ya Jian Mountain are just for show? And since this was your chosen location, and you set up a curse formation, how did Nan Huaisheng and that Ya Jian brat escape? You are a dignified peak Dan-stage cultivator; is this all you can do?"

Cultivators had all sorts of ways to track people, the most common being placing a restriction on the person. But Nan Huaisheng was a weak mortal; placing a restriction on her would kill her instantly. They hadn't dared to take the risk and could only abduct her quietly. With three peak Dan-stage cultivators, and in a place like the Peach Wood Forest, they had thought it was a sure thing.

Even the masked man was surprised. The two children—one with low cultivation and sealed power, the other a dying weakling—had disappeared from the formation without a sound. It was truly strange.

The masked man didn't care about the scarred man’s questioning. He said lightly, "I am also curious. How they escaped without the formation breaking. Even you couldn't have broken my formation."

The scarred man’s cold gaze turned back across the riverbed, his mangled right hand still dripping blood. That detestable brat had thrown hundreds of talismans at him, breaking his Cloud Yin Palm.

The brat had disappeared after throwing the talismans. But teleportation formations couldn't be set up in the Peach Wood Forest, and even teleportation talismans only worked for ten miles. The scarred man guessed he must still be nearby.

He said with murderous intent, "Catch that brat and search his soul, and we'll know. Maybe he hid Nan Huaisheng."

The masked man smiled mockingly. "That is the only successor of True Lord Yun Miao. Are you sure you want to search his soul? I don't dare provoke True Lord Yun Miao. If you dare, feel free."

The masked man hadn't even touched a hair on Ciying’s head along the way, precisely because he didn't want to face the entirety of Ya Jian Mountain, especially that madman Yun Miao. No one understood better than him just how crazy Yun Miao could get.

Hearing the name "Yun Miao," the scarred man’s eyes showed a hint of fear. He changed his tune: "Hmph, he caused such a ruckus that even the baleful beasts in the depths were disturbed. Whether he can survive is the question, why would I need to act?"

The high-level baleful beasts in the forest were a headache even for them. He didn't believe a child under seven could escape alive.

The masked man didn't commit, looking toward the southwest. "He didn't cause this commotion just to draw out the forest beasts. Someone is coming from the Mirror of Heaven and Earth."

The scarred man looked in the direction of his gaze. "Ya Jian Mountain people?"

"Yes, two swords are coming. Not sure which two."

Every sword at Ya Jian Mountain above the Dan stage was hard to deal with.

The masked man already had thoughts of retreating. The communication talisman at his waist lit up. He clicked it and heard a cold voice: "Nan Xinjiu has appeared. He seems to know where Nan Huaisheng is hidden."

This person was the "Third" the scarred man mentioned. As soon as Third finished speaking, the scarred man immediately said, "We'll go over right now."

Just as he spoke, his back suddenly turned cold. Before he could even form a seal, he lunged backward. With a "boom," the spot where he had been standing was blasted into a giant crater. Hot waves surged, smoke billowed, and the riverbed cracked.

"Thunder Bead?"

The Thunder Bead was an Earth-grade magic tool. Taken by surprise, one could kill a Dan-stage cultivator. The scarred man hadn't dodged in time; his left leg was broken, and a hole had been blasted in his waist. The masked man was more fortunate, suffering only minor injuries.

The two looked across the riverbed. Through the swirling snow, the smoke cleared. The young boy was leaning on the Wanren sword, staring at them coldly, his clothes tattered and stained with blood.

"You said you could place the Thunder Bead at their feet without them noticing! How did they still find out?" Ciying asked the white fox in his sea of consciousness. "They aren't hurt badly enough. Hurry and get me out of here!"

"Stop complaining, you little brat! Do you know how much soul power it took for me to help you break that curse? Being able to ambush them is already incredible!" The white fox was listless, breaking the pot further. "I really need to sleep this time. Think of a way to escape yourself! You're an exalted immortal; even without your memory, you shouldn't be unable to deal with these small fry. Watch your sea of consciousness, and don't wake me up again!"

The white fox had used up all the soul power it had accumulated to break the masked man's formation. It had intended to sleep in Ciying’s shattered sea of consciousness to replenish its power, but this guy had detonated hundreds of talismans at once, nearly killing himself and blasting it out as well.

If it hadn't masked Ciying’s aura in time, this little brat would have died countless times over.

"Sleep then," Ciying coughed up a mouthful of blood and said coldly. "If I die, you won't survive either. Just wait with me; that ugly monster opposite is about to send a killing blow."

The white fox: "..."

The scarred man was indeed driven to a new murderous rage by Ciying. Forgetting everything else, he formed a seal with both hands, a fire-red gourd appearing in his palm. The pressure of a peak Dan-stage cultivator flooded toward the opposite shore like a flood.

"Since you are determined to die, then die!"

Ciying was shaken by the sudden pressure, blood leaking from his seven orifices. It felt as if countless flying swords were cutting his spiritual consciousness. He trembled, the two suns flashing before his eyes again.

"Li Ciying!"

The white fox hurriedly injected a sliver of soul power into his ancestral aperture. Ciying turned his eyes weakly, his voice threadbare. "Don't let them... through soul searching... find her."

He closed his eyes and fainted completely. The moment he lost consciousness, a light suddenly shone from his chest, and a small celadon bowl flew out, blocking the scarred man’s tidal pressure with a "clink," shielding him within a formation.

"Even with an Earth-grade protective treasure, it's useless. You must die today!" The scarred man threw the gourd into the air, shouting, "Go!"

A giant fire dragon roared out of the gourd's mouth, heading straight for Ciying.

The fire dragon illuminated all of Luoxia Village. The scarred man stared at Ciying, a bloodthirsty smile flashing in his eyes.

At that moment, the masked man beside him suddenly moved. His left hand pressed against the scarred man’s back, his right hand formed two fingers, and he stabbed into the scarred man’s ancestral aperture. A sword light hidden in his fingertips shot out, shattering the scarred man’s sea of consciousness in an instant.

The scarred man’s eyes widened in fear, but there was no life left in him. The fire dragon in the air vanished like a candle flame meeting the wind.

"I told you I didn't want to provoke Cui Yun Miao."

The masked man wiped the blood from his hand onto the scarred man’s cloak, his movements lazy and indifferent. He stared at the jade bowl shielding Ciying, his expression complex. The eyes under the mask, which had always held a smile, were now devoid of it.

"The Bowing Bowl... she actually gave it to you."

Tossing the cloak aside, the masked man formed a seal with one hand. A black curse seal rose from his palm and flew toward Ciying. As soon as the seal touched the jade bowl, it sank into the ground, forming a circle of black curse formation, firmly sealing the bowl's spiritual light.

"I'll do one good deed today. Stay quietly in this curse formation and don't make trouble, lest you lose your life again."

The masked man withdrew his gaze, his figure flickering and vanishing from Luoxia Village. Along with him disappeared the scarred man's corpse and the gourd hanging in mid-air.