Chapter 201

Night deepened; the lights of Xiaqi Fang appeared exceptionally tranquil beneath the faint glow of the mountain-protecting grand array, as if the fierce battle of daytime and the gloom underground had never occurred. Yet beneath the foundation of this millennia-old market city, undercurrents still surged in silence. The interrogation results Gu Yusheng sent back were not optimistic — the three captured low-ranking Di E members knew little; they only confirmed that Kuixue Valley had indeed been preparing a "Grand Sacrifice" recently, of an extremely high grade, personally overseen by a Di E high-ranking figure known as the "Venerable Youquan." As for further details, they had no authority to know.

Ling Xiao was not surprised by this. The Di E organization was tight, its ranks strict; true core secrets would never reach peripheral members. What concerned him more was the feedback from the Xuntian Division's southern wilderness border monitoring — yin-sha fluctuations were chaotic, yet there was no large-scale anomaly. This defied common sense. Five key nodes destroyed, the transport chain severed; Kuixue Valley's blood sacrifice preparations should have been thwarted, yet Di E held their ground. There were only two possibilities: either they had sufficient backup plans or reserves, or... they were waiting for a more opportune moment, or perhaps all of this was itself a link in the plan.

This thought made Ling Xiao's gaze turn a few degrees colder. He recalled Minghe's final gaze — manic yet resolute — and his unfinished words. What Di E schemed was likely far deeper than imagined.

At the end of the Yin hour, dawn had not yet broken; it was the darkest moment before daybreak.

Shi Ran awoke from meditation, her eyes clear, spirit complete and energy full. A night of breath regulation had not only brought her state to its peak, but through deeper communion with the Xuntian Token, she had gained new insight into that "Ancient God's Residual Will." It was not a mere lingering thought, but more like a "gaze" and "acknowledgment" spanning vast time — silent, vast, carrying a compassionate resolve. It acknowledged her innate intent to "protect," and thereby resonated with her.

Ling Xiao was also fully prepared. He had changed into a set of dark blue close-fitting attire, over which he wore a simply styled dark gray cloak that concealed part of his features and aura. The Longyin Longsword still hung at his waist, but its scabbard now bore several faintly flowing patterns, as if sealing an introverted galaxy within. He stood there, his aura growing ever more沉凝 — like an iceberg that might erupt at any moment, yet also like a sharp blade sheathed in its scabbard, its edge completely concealed.

"Let's go." Without superfluous words, Ling Xiao pushed open the quiet room's door and strode first into the still-dim corridor.

Shi Ran followed close behind, likewise dressed in dark green form-fitting garments suited for movement, her long hair neatly tied up. The Xuntian Token was kept close against her body; a warm sensation continued to transmit from it, like a steadfastly beating heart.

The two disturbed no one in the market city; their figures like wisps of light smoke merging into the night, they left Xiaqi Fang silently, oriented themselves, and sped southward. Ling Xiao did not choose high-altitude flight escape; instead he clung to the terrain, using the shadows of mountains, forests, and ravines to advance at extreme speed, his aura restrained to the utmost. Shi Ran followed his lead, quietly extending the Xuntian Token's perceptual power; within a dozen li, the flow of spiritual qi, the auras of living beings, even subtle changes deep in the earth veins — all appeared like a blurry yet continuous scroll reflected in her heart-lake. This perception was not omnipotent, but it could effectively avoid many potential dangers and prying eyes.

At the southern wilderness border, the terrain grew increasingly barbaric; vegetation shifted from lush verdure to low, gnarled growth, and the air began to permeate with a faint, strange scent mingling scorching heat and damp gloom. The sky displayed an ominous dark red hue; even at dawn, not a thread of morning light could be seen, as if permanently covered by a thick layer of blood-scab clouds.

When still about a hundred li from Duan Yun Gorge, Ling Xiao suddenly paused, raising a hand to signal Shi Ran to halt. The two soundlessly hid behind a cluster of severely weathered reddish-brown rock pillars.

Shi Ran immediately focused the Xuntian Token's perception forward. About seven or eight li ahead, at the edge of a seemingly calm deadwood forest, there was an extremely faint and unnatural spiritual qi disturbance — like a deliberately arranged sentry array, yet also like the fluctuations emitted by some lurking creature, carrying a barely perceptible bloody stench.

"It's 'Corpse-Poison Lizards,' a low-grade demon beast unique to the southern wilderness, with extremely keen olfaction, often domesticated for sentry duty, especially fond of yin-sha environments." Ling Xiao transmitted his voice, the sound resonating directly in Shi Ran's consciousness sea. "In that forest ahead, at least twenty-plus are lurking. Their distribution appears scattered but actually seals off several必经 routes. Di E has posted a covert sentry here."

"Go around?" Shi Ran asked. With her Master's cultivation, forcefully killing or silently passing would not be difficult, but alerting the enemy was not the best strategy.

"Unnecessary." Ling Xiao's gaze swept over the deadwood forest and, farther beyond it, several bare, dark red cliffs that looked as if split open by a giant axe. "Kuixue Valley's outer perimeter is heavily guarded; this covert sentry is merely the first barrier. Forcibly clearing it or bypassing it could both trigger more concealed early-warning mechanisms. We wait."

His fingertips moved slightly; a nearly formless sword qi soundlessly sank into the rock beneath his feet, then spread outward like water ripples, briefly fusing with the surrounding earth qi to form a perfect "mimicry" camouflage that flawlessly concealed the auras, figures, and even body temperatures of the two of them, blending them seamlessly with the environment. Even a high-level cultivator scanning with divine sense would find it hard to detect any flaw unless they deliberately probed with meticulous care.

Shi Ran held her breath and focused, raising the Xuntian Token's perception to its maximum. She "saw" in the deadwood forest several lizard-like creatures covered in dark green viscous scales with crimson eyes, sprawled lazily in shadows or under dead branches, their long forked tongues occasionally flicking out to capture minute scent molecules in the air. Farther away, in the crevices of those dark red cliffs, there seemed to be even more obscure gazes directed their way.

Time flowed slowly in the oppressive silence. After about the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, on the eastern horizon the thick blood-scab cloud layer seemed to thin slightly, letting through a few threads of pale gray-white light — the southern wilderness's "day" had arrived, though it differed little from night.

Just then, on the west side of the deadwood forest, near a cliff, the ground suddenly bulged into a small mound, and immediately a short figure in earth-yellow tunneled out. This person wore tight leather armor colored like the soil, face smeared with camouflage paint, aura cold and gloomy, cultivation roughly at Foundation Establishment mid-stage. He moved swiftly and whistled; the Corpse-Poison Lizards reacted at once, all raising their heads and flicking their tongues toward a certain direction.

The short cultivator then made several hand gestures toward the cliff. Moments later, a crevice in the cliff opened and two figures flew out riding black bone birds, both clad in black robes with pale white masks — the standard attire of Di E stewards. The three converged, exchanged a few low words, seemingly handing over shifts. Afterward, half of the originally lurking Corpse-Poison Lizard group followed the short cultivator back underground, while the two newly arrived black-robed stewards drove the other half to redeploy throughout the deadwood forest, one of them even flying to the top of a taller dead tree and sitting cross-legged to serve as a lookout.

"During the shift change gap, the vigilance will have a momentary slack, and the array handover will have an imperceptible lag." Ling Xiao's voice sounded again. "Right now — stay close."

Before his words fell, his figure was already moving. No light, no wind-breaking sound; his whole person seemed to become a distorted ray of light, hugging the ground at an inconceivable angle and speed, passing through the area at the deadwood forest's edge that appeared densest but had just developed a momentary blank due to the shift change. The path he chose was precisely accurate, exactly avoiding all the Corpse-Poison Lizards' current perceptual focal points and also bypassing several hidden warning runes on the ground.

Shi Ran understood instantly; she pushed her movement technique to the limit while fully operating the Xuntian Token's perception, locking tightly onto her Master's nearly untraceable figure trajectory, following without a single step's deviation. She felt as if she had become a wisp of wind, a leaf drawn by an invisible force, drifting lightly through that forest of death. One Corpse-Poison Lizard seemed to sense something; it turned its head in puzzlement, its crimson eyes sweeping over the spot she had just passed, yet saw only the slightly swaying dead grass and the same gloomy air as ever.

In just a few breaths, the two had successfully crossed the first warning line, penetrating deeper into the more dangerous heart of the southern wilderness. The deadwood forest behind them gradually receded, as if merely an insignificant interlude.

"Master, Di E has laid such a tight covert sentry on the outer perimeter; the interior of Kuixue Valley is probably even more a dragon's pool and tiger's den." Shi Ran transmitted, heart still pounding. Just now, had it not been for her Master's seasoned experience, precise timing, and extremely clever concealment methods, passing through so easily would have been nearly impossible.

"All the more reason this shows the matter of Kuixue Valley is of utmost importance." Ling Xiao's speed did not diminish; he transmitted back. "The southern wilderness is vast, Di E has many strongholds, but for a 'Venerable'-level figure to personally oversee a 'Grand Sacrifice' — it is absolutely not ordinary. We must, before the night of the new moon, get as close to the core region as possible and ascertain the truth."

The two continued southward in stealth, avoiding two roving patrol squads and one early-warning zone relying on natural poisonous miasma along the way. The further south they went, the more恶劣 the environment became. The earth cracked, oozing dark red viscous liquid that reeked of sulfur and blood; occasionally one could see huge, unknown creatures' bleached-white skeletons half-buried in the red soil, while bizarre, aggressive low-grade monsters roamed in the distance. The sky was forever shrouded in those dark red clouds; light was dim, yet the temperature was abnormally stifling.

Around midday (estimated by internal spiritual power circulation cycles), the two reached the predetermined rendezvous point — Duan Yun Gorge.

This was a narrow ravine stretching between two pitch-black, iron-like, incomparably steep peaks. Within the ravine, gale-force winds howled year-round, whipping up fishy-salty dust and fine gravel that struck their protective spiritual light with rustling sounds. On the rock walls on both sides were dense wind-erosion marks like knife-carved axe-chopped traces, as well as some dim, long-ineffective ancient rune remnants.

Ling Xiao and Shi Ran stopped in a leeward rock hollow to rest briefly. Gu Yusheng and Mei Ruoxue had not yet arrived.

While waiting, Shi Ran couldn't help but ask: "Master, what role did the Xuntian Division ultimately play in the 'Shackles' and ancient secrets that Grandmaster investigated back then? Did Minghe truly find a method to 'break the shackles' by joining Di E, or... was he used?"

Ling Xiao gazed at the gloomy sky beyond the gorge mouth, silent for a moment, then slowly said: "The Xuntian Division's history is longer than all current sects. Records state it was established after the 'Absolute Severance of Heaven and Earth' in the late ancient era; its duty was to monitor heaven and earth, maintain 'Order,' prevent forbidden powers from reappearing, and ensure the cultivation path remained 'smooth.' This Order includes but is not limited to the sealing of certain ancient ruins, the control of certain forbidden knowledge, and the strict monitoring and even 'guidance' of cultivators who break through the 'Integration' realm and above."

"Guidance?" Shi Ran keenly caught this term.

"Correct." A trace of mockery flashed in Ling Xiao's eyes. "Within the Seven Sects, over nearly three thousand years, the number of cultivators who openly broke through Integration and stepped into higher realms is fewer than ten fingers. And every single one of these seniors, not long after breaking through, would receive an 'invitation' from the highest level of the Xuntian Division to go to a secret realm called the 'Ascending Dragon Platform,' supposedly to stabilize their realm and comprehend higher Heavenly Dao — after which they never publicly appeared in the world again, only occasionally sending vague edicts back to their sects. Over time this became almost a convention, and one of the reasons the Seven Sects hold the Xuntian Division in such awe — they control the passage to 'the Above' and its secrets."

"But Grandmaster suspected this wasn't the truth?" Shi Ran's heartbeat quickened slightly.

"Grandmaster's cultivation had reached the peak of Integration back then; he had touched that threshold. He once told me privately that he felt it was not a gate to 'Ascension,' but more like a... 'Confinement' lock. The so-called 'Guidance' might be a form of supervision or control. He went to the Ancient Battlefield to verify this guess from the spider-silk traces left by the ancients, and to seek a possible true path of transcendence." Ling Xiao's tone carried deep regret and coldness. "What he found was perhaps precisely what the Xuntian Division, or the power behind the Xuntian Division, would stop at nothing — even silencing — to cover up."

"As for Minghe..." Ling Xiao paused. "His nature is extreme, obsessed with power and revenge. Di E's宣扬 of 'breaking the shackles' might suit him perfectly. But Di E's methods are mostly blood sacrifice, summoning, utilizing ancient evil powers — such conduct likely runs counter to the true Great Dao of transcendence, more likely courting self-immolation, even opening Pandora's box. Minghe may not be unable to see clearly; he is simply already deep within, unable to turn back, or... unwilling to turn back."

Just as he spoke, Ling Xiao's expression shifted slightly; he looked toward the east side of the gorge mouth. Shi Ran also sensed it — two familiar auras were rapidly approaching, one with clear, steady sword qi, the other nimble and swift but carrying a hard-to-detect fatigue.

Moments later, the sword light converged, and the figures of Gu Yusheng and Mei Ruoxue appeared outside the rock hollow.

Gu Yusheng still looked devastatingly handsome, merely with a faint weariness in his eyes from a night of rushing and commanding. Mei Ruoxue was clearly heavily depleted, her face somewhat pale, but her eyes remained bright and sharp; upon seeing Ling Xiao and Shi Ran, she immediately saluted: "Master, Little Junior Sister."

"You've worked hard. How is Minghe's side?" Ling Xiao asked.

"He has been escorted into the 'Soul-Suppressing Prison' at the deepest part of the Silent Contemplation Grotto-Heaven, personally guarded by Eldest Senior Brother with the grotto-heaven's restrictions fully activated — absolutely secure." Mei Ruoxue replied quickly. "Eldest Senior Brother asked me to tell Master that the restriction inside Minghe's body is strange; it seems to have a faint connection with some distant existence. He is attempting further analysis, but it requires time."

Ling Xiao nodded; this was within his expectations. "And the follow-up at Xiaqi Fang?"