"Ask heart?"
After Tang Zhuozhu entered the exhibition hall, she found no one there and called out.
"Wen Xin might have gone to eat. I'll wait for her here. Why don't you go take care of your own business first?"
Tang Zhuozhu stood before a painting and said to Ye Kunlun.
Ye Kunlun did not reply, for he sensed a faint scent of blood, subtle yet undetectable by his keen sense of smell.
In the darkroom at the rear of the exhibition hall, a strong scent of blood permeated the air.
In the dim light, a delicate and beautiful face could be seen, her mouth covered tightly by a large hand. A hint of panic flickered in her pure eyes.
"I'm talking to you."
Seeing Ye Kunlun unresponsive, Tang Zhuozhu turned to look at him.
Ye Kunlun made a shushing gesture and walked towards the darkroom at the rear.
Tang Zhuozhu felt a knot of nervousness tighten in her chest.
"Come out," Ye Kunlun said.
The owner of the hand in the darkroom, upon hearing Ye Kunlun's voice, loosened their grip slightly.
"Help!"
Yan Wenxin's cry for help echoed from the darkroom.
"Wen Xin!" Hearing her best friend's voice, Tang Zhuozhu immediately grew anxious and rushed towards the darkroom.
Ye Kunlun pulled her back. "Don't worry, she's fine."
With a creak,
The darkroom door was pushed open, and Yan Wenxin stumbled out in a panic. Blood stained the hem of her white skirt, making it look somewhat horrifying.
"Wen Xin!"
Tang Zhuozhu rushed forward, her face etched with concern. "Are you alright?"
"I, I'm fine." Yan Wenxin managed a weak smile, her face still pale with fright, and quickly took shelter beside Tang Zhuozhu, glancing back at the darkroom.
Ye Kunlun walked towards the darkroom.
"Ye Kunlun, be careful!" Tang Zhuozhu warned him.
Ye Kunlun entered the darkroom and closed the door behind him.
In the dim light, he saw Wu Jiuming's chest gushing black blood, clearly poisoned and rapidly losing vitality.
"Why are you here?" Ye Kunlun gazed at Wu Jiuming, his brows furrowed slightly.
"I, I wanted to scout the situation here for Mister..."
Wu Jiuming's voice was weak, a bitter smile on his face. "But I didn't expect them to find me. I almost didn't escape."
Ye Kunlun frowned as he listened.
Aside from his Thousand Shadow Technique and some minor tricks, Wu Jiuming's strength was merely at the Heaven tier.
Once he faced the Wu Shen people head-on, survival itself would be a stroke of luck.
"Cough cough..."
After speaking, Wu Jiuming coughed up some blood. "Mister should leave first. I'm afraid they'll pursue us."
Ye Kunlun flicked his finger, and a Nine Yuan Pill shot directly into Wu Jiuming's mouth.
"You can heal here first. I'll handle the situation outside."
Since Wu Jiuming was here to gather information for him, Ye Kunlun could not abandon him.
"Mister, Wu Lu's strength is formidable. Please be careful," Wu Jiuming cautioned Ye Kunlun.
Ye Kunlun turned to leave and casually cast a seal, completely isolating Wu Jiuming's aura from the outside world.
"Ye Kunlun, who is he?"
Tang Zhuozhu, having overheard Ye Kunlun's conversation with Wu Jiuming, let out a sigh of relief.
"A friend," Ye Kunlun said, looking at the still shaken Yan Wenxin, a flicker of surprise in his eyes. "My friend means no harm. Miss Yan must have been frightened!"
"N-no, it's fine."
Since Ye Kunlun was brought by Tang Zhuozhu, and he was also Ye Kunlun's friend, Yan Wenxin felt it inappropriate to say more.
Ye Kunlun glanced at the bloodstains on Yan Wenxin's skirt. With a wave of his hand, spiritual energy surged, washing away the bloodstains cleanly.
Then, Ye Kunlun erased the bloodstains in the exhibition hall.
"You two chat. I'm going out to handle something."
With that, Ye Kunlun left the exhibition hall.
Although Wu Jiuming's Thousand Shadow Technique was exquisite, it would inevitably leave behind some residual aura. Wu Lu, also of the Wu tribe, would surely track these traces.
After leaving the exhibition hall, Ye Kunlun fled in another direction, simultaneously altering the path of the aura Wu Jiuming had left behind.
Northeast of Dongtu Villa, there was a vast bamboo forest.
Ye Kunlun weaved through the bamboo forest, and within moments, several figures pursued him.
"You can't escape."
A gruff voice spoke, in less-than-fluent Chinese. "Wu Jiuming, bring your sister and return with me. The clan leader can spare your lives."
Ye Kunlun turned back, looking at the rugged man not far away, and smiled faintly. "I'm sorry, I don't quite understand what you're saying."
Wu Lu blinked in surprise. "You're not Wu Jiuming? Hand him over, and I can spare your life!"
"Such arrogance!" Ye Kunlun flickered, instantly appearing before Wu Lu.
He sensed a familiar aura from Wu Lu, the same aura as that child from Zhou Lie's residence that day.
Just then, several figures converged on their location.
Upon seeing the newcomers, Ye Kunlun said coldly, "You're too late!"
The newcomers were none other than Bai Yi and two others from the Thirteen Qintian Guards.
Bai Yi was slightly taken aback that Ye Kunlun had arrived first. After a brief moment of surprise, he stepped forward and bowed. "Greetings,楼主 (Louzhu)!"
"Stand aside!"
Bai Yi's ability to find this place indicated that they had not been lazy in the past two days, diligently executing the tasks he had assigned.
"I killed Zhou Lie!" Ye Kunlun spoke directly to Wu Lu, deliberately mentioning Zhou Lie.
As expected, Wu Lu's eyes flashed with ferocity upon hearing Ye Kunlun's words.
"You meddled in our affairs. You deserve to die!"
Wu Lu revealed his fury, and as he spoke, several figures attacked Ye Kunlun.
Ye Kunlun had not yet moved.
Bai Yi and the other three had already made their move.
In a flash, the group engaged in combat.
The Thirteen Qintian Guards, having received the complete Dao Heart Art from Ye Kunlun, had seen a significant increase in their strength.
Furthermore, the Dao Heart Art was effective against the Wu tribe's techniques, giving them the upper hand within moments!
Seeing this, Wu Lu flashed and attempted to flee into the distance.
Ye Kunlun's lips curled into a cold smile. "I have questions for you, and you think you can escape?"
Ye Kunlun took a step, and the next second he was in front of Wu Lu, blocking his path.
"First, answer a few questions for me... Hm?"
Before Ye Kunlun could finish speaking, he noticed Wu Lu's expression was vacant and dazed, something was amiss.
"Puppet Substitution Art? Heh heh..."
Bang—
Beneath Ye Kunlun's laughter, the Wu Lu before him exploded and vanished into thin air.
He then detected Wu Lu's aura again and pursued in another direction.
Sensing Ye Kunlun's pursuit, Wu Lu immediately ducked into a small courtyard.
After Ye Kunlun caught up, Wu Lu's aura vanished without a trace.
Creak—
Ye Kunlun pushed open the door and entered the small courtyard. The surroundings suddenly shifted, transforming into a terrifying place.
There were white bones everywhere, accompanied by an eerie, bone-chilling wind that sounded like the wailing of vengeful spirits.
It was as if the small courtyard had instantly become a slaughterhouse.
"A formidable soul-confounding formation."
Ye Kunlun carefully sensed his surroundings and realized he had walked into a soul-confounding formation meticulously prepared by the enemy.