Dong Lanyu did not see the fleeting stiffness on the face of the sect leader of Dongyang Mountain.
The sect leader of Dongyang Mountain said, "Well, you all go and do what you should be doing."
Hearing this, Dong Lanyu suppressed his doubts and retreated with the disciple.
However, the more he thought about it, the stranger it felt. Distracted, he bumped into someone.
"Lanyu?"
"Jingyu, what are you doing?" Dong Lanyu looked up and saw a demonic plant in Jingyu's hand.
One of the most obvious changes brought to the Divine启 World after the unrest in the Far West was the appearance of demonic plants everywhere.
Demonic plants, as they were called, were ordinary flora that had mutated after being irrigated with demonic energy, causing their properties to differ greatly from their original forms. Previously, with demonic energy sealed in the Far West, alchemists who wanted to refine poison pills using demonic plants either had to purchase them from Wanbao Pavilion or risk their lives to find them personally.
"Are you going to refine poison pills with demonic plants?"
Dong Lanyu found an excuse for Jingyu without needing Jingyu to speak.
Jingyu said softly, "Yes, Lanyu, are you back from Sect Leader Xuanyou and Daoist Master Qianying? How was it? Did they give you any trouble?"
Dong Lanyu did not bother to explain to Jingyu that Sect Leader Xuanyou and Daoist Master Qianying had not seen him at all. He pouted and said, "Those two stingy old witches simply transferred the disciples of Shenqi Mountain away."
Jingyu's hand gripping the demonic plant paused. "The disciples of Shenqi Mountain have already left?"
"Didn't you see?" Dong Lanyu said, and immediately received news of the gathering at the peak of Qunyu Mountain. He said irritably, "So much trouble!"
Jingyu advised, "It's probably because of the departure of Shenqi Mountain. If such a big matter isn't explained clearly, the morale might be unstable. Lanyu, let's go, we should hurry over too."
He knew Dong Lanyu's personality very well. After persuading him a few more times, Dong Lanyu turned and walked towards the peak. Jingyu followed leisurely behind Dong Lanyu, snapping the demonic plant with one hand.
The emerald green demonic plant instantly turned into a cloud of gray smoke. A wisp of gray silk flew out from the smoke and shot towards the direction of Qianlian Sea.
...
On Jueren Road, amidst the vast mist, a person sat alone on the stone tablet at the crossroads.
He held a red lotus, and on his wide black robe, countless red lotuses bloomed, adding a touch of sinister charm to his features.
Suddenly, he waved his hand, retracting the red lotus, and reached out into the air, grasping a wisp of gray silk.
"Tsk, these people are truly gullible."
Liutian Yun rose from the stone tablet, and a wisp of gray silk flew out from his sleeve, transforming into a woman.
The woman's face bore some resemblance to the previously affectionate woman, but while Rouqing was delicate and seductive, this woman appeared somewhat dull and wooden, possessing only a beautiful face.
"My lord's plans are unparalleled. These mortals from the lower realms are no match for you," the woman said, her voice devoid of emotion and inflection.
Liutian Yun was truly disgusted by the dull voice and coldly ordered, "Shut up."
The woman obediently stood to the side.
Liutian Yun lowered his gaze and pondered for a moment, then said coldly, "Tell Yan Hua that she can let Li Tingyun lead people to Qunyu Mountain. As for that brat Qin Si—"
His voice trailed off, and his sinister eyes held a terrifying killing intent.
"I will personally take his life!"
Liutian Yun was inherently arrogant. Being nearly killed by Qin Si in the Red Maple Mountain Range fifty years ago was a thorn in his side.
He could never forget the collapsing snow mountain, the falling debris that threatened to bury him.
If it weren't for the numerous protective treasures he wore, he might have indeed met his end in that incident!
After so many years, he could finally exact his revenge personally.
The red lotuses on the hem of his robe bloomed, their emitted demonic energy merging into the lingering mist of Jueren Road.
Liutian Yun, without glancing at the chaotic spatial turbulence and rifts around him, tore open a spatial passage and stepped elegantly into it.
A short while later, two people walked back from the end of Jueren Road and stopped before the stone tablet where Liutian Yun had stood.
"It's here." The intense dark red robe fluttered as if by an unseen wind. Fair and slender fingers emerged from beneath the robe, touching the stone tablet on the ground. His narrow phoenix eyes gleamed with a fierce, dark intensity.
Beside him, a bald monk in green robes turned his prayer beads, and wisps of golden light emerged from them, silently purifying the demonic energy in the black mist.
"Daoist Master Qin's method is excellent. If not for this spirit-seeking worm, we would not have been able to track Liutian Yun's whereabouts," the green-robed monk said faintly, his voice imbued with a sense of pity for all beings.
With a raise of his hand, another large area of demonic energy was dispersed by the golden light.
"Daoist Master Tianshu praises me too much," Qin Si said without taking credit. "This method was developed by Feng Wuya, an alchemist from Shenqi Mountain."
If one were to ask who was most affected by Bai Shengyi's disappearance over the past fifty years, the people of Shenqi Mountain would first think of the increasingly wild and solitary Mountain Master Qin, and second, of Feng Wuya, who was always engrossed in poison pills.
It was unclear what had driven Feng Wuya to such a state. Originally an alchemist from the Feng family's direct lineage, he had always followed the path of righteous alchemy, focusing on healing.
But now, Feng Wuya had abandoned what he had learned and was solely researching poison pills, strange pills, and unorthodox methods. This had so angered the head of the Feng family that he had even had Feng family elders beat him several times.
Tianshu had clearly heard of Feng Wuya's situation and smiled faintly, "Alchemist Feng is a peculiar person."
Being able to create and achieve something in a field was undeniable proof of Feng Wuya's exceptional talent in alchemy.
"What do you plan to do now, Daoist Master Qin?" Tianshu sighed softly. "Liutian Yun and Li Tingyun joining forces for this scheme clearly intends to destroy Shenqi and kill you as well."
"Then let him come," Qin Si said word by word. His voice was not loud, perhaps even described as very soft, yet it reverberated in the air, emitting crackling electric arcs.
It was lightning.
An astonishing aura surged from him. Though he was doing nothing at that moment, he commanded an unyielding presence.
Even Tianshu, who considered himself well-traveled and knowledgeable, had to admit at that moment that Qin Si's ability to surpass figures like Master Kuli, Yue Bufan, and Lin Qingyu within fifty years to become the nominal leader of the righteous path had its reasons.
As they spoke, the two emerged from Jueren Road, one after the other.
The vast mist flew past them. Qin Si was somewhat lost in thought. Decades ago, in similar heavy fog, he and Bai Shengyi had disliked each other and even argued, but now… he wondered if his senior uncle had calculated Ai Yi's whereabouts.
After Bai Shengyi's disappearance, Daoist Master Qinglan first sought the ancestor of the Xun family and the master of Huyushan to deduce Bai Shengyi's whereabouts, but to no avail. He then attempted to deduce it himself but suffered a backlash. After five years of closed-door cultivation, he sought out Sect Leader Xuanfengzi of Xuantian Sect, but again, there was no success.
Five years ago, Daoist Master Qinglan entered closed-door cultivation again to deduce Bai Shengyi's whereabouts and had not emerged since.
Because of this, some people had impatiently used Daoist Master Qinglan's reputation to rise in prominence, claiming that Daoist Master Qinglan, as a ninth-tier alchemist, had cowered during such a great calamity facing the Divine启 World, which was a cause for shame.
However, Qinglan paid no mind to these rumors, nor did Qin Si.
They only wished to know when that person would finally return safely.