Hearing the commotion, Du Xuan, Yin Luan, and Zou Lian immediately set off and arrived at the foot of the mountain.
“Demon Subduing Seventh Style, Heaven-Capturing Net!”
A dozen experts from the Demon Subduing Division formed hand seals, manipulating streams of white qi to condense into a massive net spanning ten zhang across.
Their target was Mystic Master.
Yet there was no trace of panic on his face. The net, formed from qi, halted three feet away from him, blocked by an invisible barrier that prevented it from advancing even an inch.
“You’ve come?”
His gaze swept over the group before settling on Zou Lian.
“Who are you?”
Zou Lian’s expression was impassive, her tone icy cold.
“Who I am doesn’t matter,” Mystic Master replied with an amused smile. “Though I couldn’t obtain the materials I wanted, meeting the most talented disciple in the Demon Subduing Division has made this trip worthwhile.”
“You’ll spill everything you know.”
She raised her spiritual longsword, her aura sharpening once more. The Little Snake Demon, standing nearby, couldn’t help but take a few steps back.
In terms of sheer oppressive presence, Du Xuan was leagues behind her!
“You can’t keep me here.”
With a wave of his fly whisk, Mystic Master shattered the heavenly net. The backlash struck the dozen Demon Subduing Division experts, who clutched their chests in pain.
Seeing how effortlessly he had broken the Demon Subduing Division’s technique left Du Xuan with a chill of lingering fear.
It was a good thing that, up on the mountaintop, he hadn’t gone all out right away and had instead toyed with his prey like a cat with a mouse. If he’d fought seriously, the blood talisman in her hand probably wouldn’t have done much…
Zou Lian’s expression turned frigid. White light gleamed from her spiritual longsword, slicing the very air apart and sending a chill down everyone’s spines.
“Victory will belong to the Demon Subduing Division as well,” Mystic Master said flatly. “Thirty years ago, you suppressed the chaos—but in doing so, you violated far too many taboos.”
“Thus, defeat will come to the Demon Subduing Division too. Cherish these good days while they last. They won’t endure for much longer.”
“Demon Subduing Ninth Style, Devil-Sealing Art.”
Zou Lian wasted no more time. She pointed her spiritual longsword at Mystic Master and slashed through the air from afar.
Whoosh!
Sword light flew forth from the blade, morphing midair into the forms of a sword, a saber, and a bow before hurtling toward the enemy in unison.
“Smoke Escape.”
Mystic Master hurled a pottery jar. With a bang, it shattered, coalescing into a Black Smoke Giant with only half a body.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The threefold sword light collided with the Black Smoke Giant, erupting in a blinding flash of white.
“Ah, my eyes!”
The Little Snake Demon let out a sharp cry and hurriedly covered her eyes. The others turned away or squeezed their eyes shut.
A moment later, the light faded.
Mystic Master was gone.
“He got away?”
Du Xuan blinked her dry eyes and peered ahead.
In just that short time, Mystic Master had vanished from sight, as if teleporting into thin air.
“He knows escape arts,” Zou Lian said as she sheathed her spiritual longsword. “To stop him, we’d need to set traps around the area first.”
In her haste to rescue them, she had led the Demon Subduing Division straight here without a moment’s rest, leaving no time to prepare for escape techniques.
Moreover, Chaotic Grave Mountain was still a mountain, after all. Sealing off the entire area would require far more manpower than they had.
Even the strongest and most talented among the Demon Subduing Division’s younger disciples couldn’t capture Mystic Master alive.
“Senior Sister,” Du Xuan hesitated before asking, “what he said earlier—about how the Demon Subduing Division violated taboos during that chaos…”
“You don’t need to know right now,” Zou Lian cut her off curtly. “If the time comes, Master will tell you.”
“…”
She hadn’t denied it.
In other words, the Demon Subduing Division really had done something back then—something that couldn’t be made public? Was it connected to Mystic Master’s goals… and the forces backing him?
Du Xuan increasingly felt that this matter had spiraled far beyond anything she should be worrying about.
With Mystic Master fled, all that remained was the mountain outpost he had once used.
Zou Lian led the Demon Subduing Division members to the mountaintop to analyze intelligence and gather clues.
She had brought an entire team from the Secret Investigation Hall this time—every one of them an expert whose strength was no less than Du Xuan’s.
This went well beyond the level of aid requested in the letter.
Not to mention Senior Sister Zou herself, who could take on a hundred foes single-handedly.
Zou Lian pulled Du Xuan aside.
“Master sent me here,” she said sternly. “After receiving the letter, she seemed uneasy and ordered me to bring people and rush here at top speed, day and night.”
“Oh…”
Du Xuan knew she was in hot water and didn’t dare offer any excuses.
From past experience, talking too much would just mean a spanking when she got back…
“You have a strong sense of justice and want to serve your country and its people. That’s commendable,” Zou Lian said with a frown. “But your…”
Halfway through her words, Zou Lian’s expression stiffened. She turned her gaze toward the tree trunk off to the side ahead.
Du Xuan didn’t even need to look back to know who was there.
“I’m discussing serious matters with Senior Sister,” she said helplessly. “Can’t you go play somewhere else, Yin Luan?”
“Hmph… You’ve never spoken to me that politely.”
The Little Snake Demon, now discovered, showed no embarrassment. She strode out boldly, complaining with obvious displeasure.
“Senior Sister, your mind is probably full of nothing but Senior Sister right now. Her big chest means everything she says must be right, huh…”
“What kind of jealousy is that?” Du Xuan rolled her eyes.
When Senior Sister was lecturing, how could she not play along? Dare to argue back? She’d be strung up and beaten the moment they got back.
Zou Lian waited for the two to finish their playful banter before speaking again.
“In any case, your judgment this time was too rash, and your understanding of your own strength is off the mark. Master believes you haven’t reached the level required to carry out missions outside the sect yet. Once we’re back, you’ll undergo special training.”
“Sp-special training?”
At those two words, cold sweat beaded on Du Xuan’s forehead.
“Your talent is exceptional. If you devote yourself to cultivation, your future achievements will surely surpass mine,” Zou Lian said, her brows furrowing again at Du Xuan’s reaction. “What’s so bad about enduring a little hardship now?”
“Senior Sister doesn’t seem that much older than me…”
“I’ll apply to Master to assist during your special training.”
As it turned out, it was best to stay silent when one shouldn’t speak…
“When do we set out?” Du Xuan asked, her shoulders slumped in defeat.
“Come back with us,” Zou Lian replied, glancing at the Little Snake Demon nearby. “That way, we can avoid any more mishaps on the road.”
“Got it…”
Du Xuan responded listlessly.
Of course, even if her judgment had been a bit hasty this time, Du Xuan didn’t think she’d done anything wrong. At the very least, she’d saved those mountain bandits—and the people of Earthstone City, hadn’t she?
After finishing her lecture with her “junior brother,” Zou Lian approached the Little Snake Demon and addressed her.
“I heard from Du Xuan that you’re very interested in the Innate Cultivation Method?”
“Yes, Big-Chested Senior Sister.” Yin Luan kept her arms crossed over her chest, her head tilted forty-five degrees upward and to the side, cheeks puffed out as she huffed in response. “Can you teach it to me?”
“No,” Zou Lian said after a moment’s thought, her tone grave. “But I can write you a recommendation letter. It should make it easier for you to join one of the sects that possess the Innate Cultivation Method…”
