Chapter 988: The Secret of Master Huang Songshan

At that moment, the blood‑red light curtain outside the ancient temple suddenly surged violently. A chilling voice echoed from all directions:

"Found you."

Yan Xirou's complexion changed drastically, and she swiftly formed a seal to lay down a defensive array. She looked up at Han Wuxian, who was still bathed in golden light, and gritted her teeth: "Wake up quickly! The Xuanmen have broken the seal!"

Han Wuxian snapped his eyes open, and the golden light was completely absorbed into his body.

A deafening boom rang from outside the ancient temple, and three figures shattered the barrier and entered. Leading them was an elder in a purple robe, holding a bronze ancient mirror.

"Han Wuxian, by order of the Xuanmen Headmaster, I will take your life!"

Yan Xirou stepped in front of Han Wuxian, whispering, "They are the three Elders of Xuanmen, all at the Nascent Soul stage. I'll hold them back; you find a chance..."

Han Wuxian inhaled deeply, "Don't rush, I have a way!"

Han Wuxian spread his hands outward, drawing a circle in front of him, and the surrounding light seemed to vanish in an instant.

Yan Xirou was stunned, her heart filled with overwhelming shock!

He had only just entered the Golden Core realm, and already could manipulate the Light Dao law?!

It was far smoother than the passive use Han Wuxian had shown before, as if he were a cultivator who had soaked in this path for years.

This made Yan Xirou even more curious about his identity, but she knew nothing of Han Wuxian's past and could not guess his origins.

Yan Xirou felt everything go black before her eyes, and absolute darkness enveloped the surroundings. Even her spiritual sense was suppressed by some force, unable to perceive the environment.

"Is this... the true Light Dao law?!" she was shaken to the core.

In the darkness, Han Wuxian's voice sounded at her ear, "Don't move, follow my guidance."

She felt a warm hand grasp her wrist, pulling her swiftly. At her ear came the shocked and angry roars of the three Xuanmen Elders:

"What's happening?!"

"Stay on guard!"

"That kid is acting strange!"

In the darkness, a speck of golden light suddenly ignited, like a firefly in night. The glow rapidly expanded, forming a golden light bridge that spanned the void.

"Go!" Han Wuxian hauled Yan Xirou onto the light bridge. Their figures vanished from the spot in an instant.

"Trying to run?!" the purple‑robed elder shouted angrily, and the bronze ancient mirror in his hand erupted with a piercing blue light, tearing a fissure in the darkness.

However, it was too late; the two of them had already fled thousands of li using the light bridge.

In some valley, golden light flickered, and the silhouettes of Han Wuxian and Yan Xirou materialized.

"You..." Yan Xirou began to speak, but saw Han Wuxian's face turn pale and his body sway.

She hurriedly steadied him, "Are you alright?"

"No problem, this time I finally led the lady to escape the calamity," Han Wuxian laughed.

Yan Xirou hummed, "If I hadn't saved you, I would have left long ago."

Han Wuxian chuckled, knowing she was right. Had Yan Xirou not intervened earlier, he would likely have been captured and tortured.

"What do we do next?" Han Wuxian asked.

Yan Xirou fell silent for a moment, then looked at Han Wuxian, "I... actually have a destination, but you...."

"If the lady already has a place to go, there's no need to worry about me," Han Wuxian said seriously, since it was his own trouble after all, and it was natural for Yan Xirou to want to shake off this hassle.

"I can't quite say that, but... you need to change your appearance."

"Oh?"

After a few days.

The two traveled to the Kun Dao region of the Nan Ting Mountain Region, and gazing at Huang Songshan not far away, Yan Xirou's expression grew increasingly complex.

Beside her, Han Wuxian could no longer hold back, "Why dress me up as a woman?!"

At this moment, Han Wuxian no longer resembled the handsome, carefree youth he once was; after Yan Xirou's makeover, he looked even more feminine than a woman—delicate, fragile, evoking pity in anyone who saw him.

"I am a cultivator from Lianyin Hall; a few centuries ago Lianyin Hall was destroyed by enemies, but some disciples still operate in the Eight Dao realms. With my background, I should be able to take temporary refuge there," Yan Xirou said.

"Lianyin Hall? Do you practice the Way of Musical Harmony, lady?" Han Wuxian asked curiously.

"That's one way to put it," Yan Xirou replied, saying little else, though Han Wuxian keenly sensed she harbored some unspeakable secret.

After entering a mortal city, Yan Xirou led Han Wuxian to an old residence.

"Is this the gathering place of your Lianyin Hall cultivators?" Han Wuxian asked.

"Hold your tongue for a moment; I'll negotiate with them."

Han Wuxian nodded, and suddenly two Nascent Soul female cultivators appeared before them. The two glanced at each other, then recalled something: "Isn't that Yan's junior disciple?"

"Yan's junior disciple truly is extraordinary; back then you were taken in by senior sister, yet your Primordial Yin was completely lost. Everyone said you wouldn't live past three years, but in the blink of an eye six hundred years passed, and you have already attained the Nascent Soul!"

Yan Xirou clasped her hands and said, "I've met Uncle Zhou Yun and Uncle Li Fuxin."

"No need for formalities. Lianyin Hall no longer exists, and since you've already broken through to the Nascent Soul, we can converse as peers," Zhou Yun smiled.

"Yan Daoist, are you here this time because of the tomb of Huang Songshan of the Xuan Kun Dao?" Li Fuxin looked at her solemnly.

Yan Xirou was taken aback, shook her head, "No. I ran into some enemies outside and came here to lay low for a while; I hope the two of you Daoists can give me shelter."

The two Zhou Yun exchanged glances, then burst into laughter, "Since that's the case, why not join us to explore Huang Songshan's tomb?"

"Hm?"

"What treasure does this Huang Songshan possess that warrants the two of you inviting me, a humble lady?" Yan Xirou asked.

"That story is a long one," Zhou Yun laughed, "Back then the Youming Jie invaded the Five Realms, and left a Yin‑Yang Rift in the Nan Ting region. Yan Daoist, have you heard of it?"

"Isn't that area the territory of the demon tribes?" Yan Xirou frowned and asked.

Back then he also heard that the Kan Dao was heavily attacked by the demon tribes, and it was the Xuanmen that employed the power of the Renyan Tower to suppress those demons, forcing them to retreat to the demon gathering place near the Yin‑Yang Rift.

After the Renyan Tower was destroyed over a hundred years ago, the Nan Ting Mountain Region suffered from land subsidence, pot‑demon calamities, and countless other natural and man‑made disasters, making it far from safe.

"When the two of us sisters fled disaster earlier, we happened to meet a Xuanmen cultivator. After serving him for two nights, we heard that the Golden Core cultivator Huang Songshan of the Xuan Kun Dao once entered the Yin‑Yang Rift, and allegedly stole a tremendously powerful treasure!"

Yan Xirou's eyes widened, "Such a thing... does that Xuanmen cultivator have any proof? I heard Huang Songshan only died a hundred or two hundred years ago; if this really happened, how could he have lived that long?"

"Eh, just listen to me explain it slowly." Zhou Yun said with a smile, combining the information they had gathered from the major investigation and their inquiries, and told it to Yan Xirou.

As it turns out, after Venerable Huang Song achieved Golden Core back then, he had dealings with a cultivator called Daoist Qing Feng, and that Daoist Qing Feng somehow got involved with a monster emperor from the monster race, and it is said that this monster emperor is of considerable background.

Back then, when Kan Dao was attacked, it seems there was also a trace of Daoist Qing Feng involved, and before that Venerable Huang Song, relying on the identity of his good friend Daoist Qing Feng, paid a visit to the Yin-Yang Rift as a guest.

Soon after, the monster race side immediately imposed a lockdown, as if they were searching for something.

"Based on this, we conclude that Venerable Huang Song must have stolen something back then; otherwise, there would not have been an early lockdown and a late cessation of smoking, but after Venerable Huang Song's visit, a lockdown was imposed—then there must be a problem!"