“Ming De Yi, what do you mean by that?” HuLü Xing could no longer mask his displeasure and asked with a slight frown.

“What I mean should be clear enough,” Yu Shui Hui replied, her eyes half-squinted, each word spoken clearly, yet laced with malice. “You know exactly what you all are scheming, so don’t play dumb with me here.”

Hearing this, not only did HuLü Xing’s expression turn cold, but all the righteous sect members present, including Situ Wenwan, showed signs of discontent. However, Yu Shui Hui paid them no mind. She glanced back and signaled to her lead disciple, who immediately understood. With a swift wave of her hand, the disciples of Hehuan Sect, along with the disciples from Xing Yue Pavilion, quickly surrounded HuLü Xing and his companions.

“Master HuLü, we’re giving you two choices,” Yu Shui Hui said with a soft smile that didn’t reach her eyes, her voice delicate yet filled with a chilling threat. “First, you can go back to where you came from. Or second, step over our dead bodies if you want to continue looking for the one you’re after.”

Yu Shui Hui’s words were blunt, her tone pushing HuLü Xing’s anger to the edge. He tried his best to maintain a calm and composed front, but each word he uttered was squeezed out through clenched teeth, “Yu Sect Master, we have no intention of causing conflict. As long as we find the person we’re looking for, we will leave immediately. Is there really a need for you to push us like this?”

Yu Shui Hui chuckled, almost as if she’d heard the funniest joke. She raised her delicate hand and in a flash, produced a pink, fluffy-edged fan. She covered the lower half of her face with it, her shoulders shaking with laughter.

“Oh, Master HuLü, I almost forgot you could be so weak. If I hadn’t seen you twenty years ago, relentlessly cornering us with your pack of dogs, I might have believed you.” Her laughter abruptly ceased as she lowered her fan. “Master HuLü, you must be tired of wearing that mask. Today, I’ll do you the favor of tearing it off!”

Before her words even finished, Yu Shui Hui suddenly flung her fan forward. It spun through the air, creating a sharp wind blade aimed straight at HuLü Xing’s face.

It all happened so fast. Even though HuLü Xing had reacted quickly, pushing Situ Wenwan aside, he still couldn’t dodge completely. The wind blade slashed across his face, leaving a long, bloody gash.

“Husband!” Situ Wenwan gasped, her face filled with shock and anger as she turned to glare at Yu Shui Hui.

Yu Shui Hui caught the fan as it returned to her, now stained with HuLü Xing’s blood. She waved it casually, her beautiful smile laced with a hint of cruelty. “You… How dare you lay a hand on my husband…” Situ Wenwan stammered with fury, her delicate features twisting in anger. She pointed at Yu Shui Hui, shouting, “Get her! Capture her now!”

“Yes!” HuLü’s followers immediately brandished their magical artifacts and rushed at Yu Shui Hui without another word. Hehuan Sect’s disciples retaliated just as fiercely. In an instant, weapons clashed, and spiritual energy flew wildly.

Standing behind her lead disciple, Yu Shui Hui’s face remained expressionless as she swiftly reined in her smile. She ordered in a cold voice, “Capture every single one of them! Kill anyone who resists!”

“Yes, Sect Master!” the disciples of Hehuan Sect responded even louder. The master of Xing Yue Pavilion, Yan Fu, also called out, “Everyone, follow Sect Master Yu’s command!”

“Yes, Pavilion Master!” Xing Yue Pavilion’s disciples immediately joined the fray.

•

After arriving at Jiu Yao County with HuLü Xing and Situ Wenwan, HuLü Lan slipped away from the inn with two attendants. Although HuLü Xing and Situ Wenwan were seeking HuLü Yan, HuLü Lan had little interest in him; he had his own matters to attend to.

Once he was in a secluded spot outside Jiu Yao County, HuLü Lan pulled out a tracking disk from his storage pouch. He had found this device in the HuLü family’s storage vault, where it had been carefully preserved by HuLü Xing. It could be used three times, and HuLü Xing had already used it twice, leaving just one remaining use.

The tracking disk, no larger than a palm, was designed to locate a specific person. If an item with that person’s aura was placed next to the edge, the needle on the disk would point in the desired direction. The disk’s rarity lay in its ability to communicate with the user’s mind, often revealing more than just the surface answer.

HuLü Lan opened his left hand, placing the disk on his palm. One of his attendants took out a hairpin and carefully placed it next to the disk. HuLü Lan swallowed nervously, staring at the disk. After a moment of stillness, the needle began to move, slowly and deliberately, pointing to a direction behind him.

“Let’s go,” HuLü Lan said, clutching the disk tightly and signaling his two attendants. They nodded in response, and he instructed them to move inconspicuously, avoiding any form of transportation or flight. His parents would take time to find HuLü Yan, and he was in no hurry to reach his destination.

Following the needle’s direction, they journeyed day and night. After two days and one night, as dusk settled, the needle suddenly stilled, then began to spin wildly, almost as if disturbed by an unknown force. The pointer spun so quickly that it became a blur. HuLü Lan felt a tremor in his hand as the disk heated up.

“What’s going on?” HuLü Lan’s face paled, and he turned to his attendants in panic. He reflexively tried to discard the disk, but it clung to his hand as if rooted there.

“Damn it! What are you two standing around for? Help me get this thing off!” he screamed, his voice shaky with fear, as an unprecedented dread crept across his usually composed face.

“Young Master, stay calm; this is normal,” one of the older attendants reassured him. “I was with the master when he used the disk to find… that person. It reacted the same way then.”

“And what did he do next?” HuLü Lan asked anxiously. “What am I supposed to do now?”

“Wait,” replied the attendant.

“Wait? For how long?”

Just as HuLü Lan finished speaking, the twilight sky darkened rapidly, as if ink had been poured across it, while a strange sound echoed around him. It was the frantic flapping of wings, and the unexpected noise made his heart race as goosebumps covered his skin.

Where was he?

“Xie Shui! Xie Bing!” he shouted, calling for his attendants, but no one responded. Confused, he noticed a faint glow illuminating figures in the dark, with the light focusing on one in particular. It was Ni Wenhui.

HuLü Lan steadied his nerves and took a step toward her, but before he could get close, the sound of frantic wing-flapping intensified, followed by Ni Wenhui’s labored breathing and Jing Tao’s desperate scream, “Wenhui!”

A massive eight-eyed chicken, its wings each nearly half a person’s length, lunged at Ni Wenhui with its razor-sharp beak. Frozen with fear, she stood still, her face pale, as hot tears streamed down her cheeks.

HuLü Lan was terrified, momentarily forgetting how to breathe. He wanted to rush forward, but the sight of the giant eight-eyed chicken, nearly blocking out the sky, kept him rooted to the spot. He could only watch helplessly as its beak moved closer to Ni Wenhui.

Then, with a loud ripping sound, the chicken was suddenly torn in two by a pair of hands that appeared out of nowhere. Flames flickered in the darkness, illuminating the gruesome scene as the chicken’s blood and organs splattered onto the ground.

Stunned, HuLü Lan stood there, stiff as a board, as the firelight revealed Ni Wenhui staring at the figure who had torn the chicken apart with her bare hands. HuLü Lan followed her gaze. Though the person’s side was toward him, his view inexplicably shifted to reveal the face. It was HuLü Yan.

HuLü Lan was struck with shock, as though a massive weight had slammed into him. He staggered back, barely managing to stay upright, before collapsing onto the ground.

Why was it HuLü Yan? He had considered so many people, listed countless names, but he never would have imagined it would be HuLü Yan—the beggar he despised, someone he couldn’t even stand to look at.

What was so special about that beggar? What had captured Ni Wenhui’s heart to the point she’d eagerly break off their engagement, as if possessed?

“HuLü Yan…” he muttered, trembling as his teeth chattered in rage. “In what way am I inferior to you?”

Infuriating!

He gripped the disk in his hand so tightly it began to crack under the pressure. HuLü Yan… That beggar dared to steal his fiancée and humiliate him like this… He would make HuLü Yan pay!

•

A loud explosion echoed across the sky, startling Mi Lu so much that he almost dropped the stick he was holding. On one end of the stick was a chicken leg, which had just brushed against the campfire, gathering a bit of ash. Mi Lu quickly lifted the stick and blew off the ash, glancing over at Jing Lan, who was sitting nearby.

Jing Lan, holding two sticks with chicken legs, looked up at Mi Lu and sighed, “This is the eighth loud noise this month. Who knows what’s going on out there.”

“No,” Mi Lu replied. “I wasn’t going to talk about that.”

Jing Lan looked puzzled, “Then what did you want to talk about, Sect Master?”

Pointing to the chicken leg, Mi Lu licked his lips, “When will this chicken be ready? I’m starving!”

Jing Lan sighed, “Give it a bit more time, Sect Master. Slow cooking over a low flame makes it tastier. Rotate it a bit to make sure it’s evenly heated, or the outside might cook while the inside stays raw.”

Mi Lu nodded, sighing as he stared intently at the chicken leg, then turned it again over the fire. Just then, Li Huai skipped over from their camp, eyeing the sizzling chicken legs hungrily before addressing Mi Lu, “Sect Master, this is the eighth explosion this month. Should we send someone to check it out?”

After a moment of silence, Mi Lu reluctantly tore his eyes from the chicken leg to look at Li Huai, blinking, “Check what?”

“To see if something major is happening out there,” Li Huai suggested.

Mi Lu shook his head, “No need.”

“Huh?” Li Huai looked confused.

“The Medical Hall has fallen, and many sect leaders have already perished. Isn’t that a big enough event for you?”

“Oh.” Li Huai hadn’t considered that, and he scratched his head sheepishly before squatting by the fire. “Sect Master, are we just going to hide out here forever?”

Mi Lu asked seriously, “Isn’t hiding here good?”

Li Huai thought about it for a while and nodded thoughtfully, “It’s good. We’ve got shelter, food, and enough spiritual energy to cultivate. As long as no one finds us, we could stay here forever.”

Mi Lu gave him an approving look, adding, “But spiritual energy is limited, so we can’t stay here forever. For now, hiding is a good strategy.”

“You’re right, Sect Master!” Jing Lan laughed, handing a chicken leg to Li Huai. “Let’s focus on living well today and leave tomorrow’s worries for tomorrow.”

“Exactly,” Li Huai agreed, chuckling as he bit into the chicken leg. Then he said, “By the way, Sect Master, we found a river with plenty of fish not far to the east. How about we go fishing later?”

Mi Lu’s eyes lit up, “Sounds great!”

The three of them finished their meal and then called others from the camp to join them at the river for fishing.