Inside the vermilion tower, firelight flickered, while outside an ominous wind blew in gusts.

The mist on Zongwu Mountain never dissipated. A brightly lit vermilion tower was squeezed into the valley, as if a mirage floating in from somewhere. The stench of corpses and the aroma of wine wafting out from the tower were scattered by the wind, allowing Su Si's taut heartstrings to relax a little.

This fake elder Shi Jingzhi attracted attention, but fortunately no one paid heed to the servants, so he and Yan Qing had the fortune to go outside for some fresh air.

However, besides taking a few breaths of fresh air, the two had more important things to do - Shen Zhu was left outside the vermilion tower to investigate the surrounding situation. They needed to exchange information with her, lest their plan be exposed and they wouldn't even know where to escape to.

As agreed, after Shen Zhu finished her investigation, she was supposed to wait near the entrance of the valley. However, when the two passed the red lantern at the entrance, forget about any markings or signals, there wasn't even a sparrow's feather nearby.

The two had no other choice but to wait there for the time being.

Su Si leaned against the stone wall, looking at the barren Zongwu Mountain, and forcefully exhaled a breath of turbid air: "They say the Red Hook Sect is first and the Ling Sect is second among the demonic sects, and the two are like fire and water. After taking a look just now, I feel that the Red Hook Sect has been wronged a bit."

The Ling Sect was loose and disorganized, only knowing how to live off Yan Budu's old foundation. With such a large family and business, it wouldn't collapse overnight. The Red Hook Sect had also lost its leader, but it governed strictly and was ambitiously moving upward.

For the two to be neck and neck in the martial world, it was nothing more than the barefooted Ling Sect not fearing those wearing shoes, taking the tenet of "shamelessness" to the extreme, unlike the Red Hook Sect which took into account its reputation in both righteous and evil circles.

Su Si had previously thought that the Dark Blood Witch was just badmouthing her opponent, but now reflecting on it, what she said wasn't wrong.

Yan Qing absentmindedly grunted in acknowledgment, seeming a bit distracted.

"What are you thinking about, San-zi? Suddenly seeing a relative, can't react?"

That Yan Zheng also had a pair of ghost eyes and wasn't too old, at most a year or two older than them. Yan Qing had never seen any other "relatives" besides his own father in this life, so it wasn't strange for him to be in a daze for a moment.

Who knew that when Yan Qing spoke again, the topic had gone far afield: "Don't you think he's a bit like Senior Brother Yin?"

"Huh?"

"The look in his eyes." Yan Qing was used to seeing his own ghost eyes and wasn't interested in those of others. Rather than those blood-red eyes, he was more concerned about what was behind them. "When I first met Senior Brother Yin, he also gave me that feeling - I can't describe it well, but he looked lifeless, as if not interested in anything."

Su Si thought for a moment and felt it made a lot of sense. The master and disciple of Ku Mountain Sect were equally dangerous, but Sect Leader Shi still had all seven emotions and six desires, and one could see humanity and thoughts in him. Yin Ci was more like a pool of ink-stained dead water - who knew what was hidden underneath. If he had to say who he feared more, deep down Su Si was still a bit more afraid of Yin Ci.

It was only recently that their Senior Brother Yin, for some unknown reason, lost that gloomy air and gained a bit of liveliness. Only when Yan Qing clearly pointed it out could Su Si match it up with his memory.

...But this Yan Zheng, lifeless?

When in the Red Hook Sect, Su Si had learned a bit about Yan Zheng's story - Yan Zheng's parents were killed by Taiheng, and when he was fourteen or fifteen, he was brought back to the Ling Sect by Chai Xin. He had good aptitude but rarely appeared in front of others, always obediently allowing Chai Xin to manipulate him.

But for Yan Zheng to be willing to become the Sect Leader, he must have his own goals. After all, strength was revered in the demonic sects, and it wasn't easy to be a puppet Sect Leader.

Chai Xin wouldn't force him to sit in that position. If Yan Zheng truly had no ambitions, he could have just become a nominal elder, enjoying blessings without stirring up trouble.

In this current situation, no matter how you looked at it, weren't they in cahoots?

Su Si had no goodwill towards the Ling Sect and spoke even more bluntly: "Not interested in anything, then why cause trouble for us before? This time he even summoned members from all over - no matter how you look at it, his wicked heart is restless and he can't wait."

Yan Qing said good-naturedly: "Mm, maybe I misjudged. I just..."

He abruptly stopped mid-sentence and raised his Compassion Stone Sword wrapped in cloth. Su Si almost immediately guarded Yan Qing's back, his flesh-cutting knife flashing with cold light in the night.

Hostile intent.

That hostile intent flashed by, as thin as an ox hair, but enough to make the hairs on the back of their necks stand up for a moment.

The hostile intent was undoubtedly directed at them. There was no killing intent, but the momentum was startling enough. If the Ling Sect's demons had discovered their identities, they wouldn't play around in such a roundabout way.

The problem was, besides major sects like the Ling Sect, Taiheng, and Red Hook Sect, there were quite a few minor sects and lone warriors trying their luck in the surroundings. They had just arrived and didn't know which big shot they had alarmed.

Did the other party take them for Ling Sect lackeys, or had they discovered they were from Ku Mountain Sect?

Su Si had rich experience in fleeing. Seeing no figures appear, he grabbed Yan Qing: "Things aren't looking good, let's head back to the vermilion tower first."

But as soon as he was about to take a step, an arrow shot over with the momentum of splitting the air. This time, the hostile intent was filled with murderous air, as if in warning - if they dared to walk back, they would definitely be immediately nailed dead on these stone steps.

At the same time, a thick hostile intent directly pointing at the two also appeared near the vermilion tower, forming a perfect encircling momentum. Now the two were completely stuck, unable to advance or retreat. Before Su Si could react, he saw a figure staggering and running over-

It was Shen Zhu.

Shen Zhu's face looked quite unsightly, with an arrow still stuck in her shoulder. She grabbed Yan Qing while panting heavily, swiftly hiding behind him as if finding a life-saving straw: "Good little brother, help big sister block a bit!"

Yan Qing hadn't reacted yet when Su Si twisted his waist, his flesh-cutting knife slicing an incoming arrow in two with one stroke.

The disciples of Yueshui Bureau focused on investigation and exploration, so their lightness skill was still quite good. Based on Shen Zhu's reaction alone, it was difficult to judge the opponent's level. Who knew what thing Miss Shen had provoked while scouting outside.

But looking at the current situation, rather than killing them, the other party was more unwilling to let them escape back to the Ling Sect. And they happened to not be people of the Ling Sect, so there was still room for negotiation in this matter - the three exchanged glances and together used their lightness skill to charge into the desolate corner shrouded in thick fog.

Seeing that they were far from the vermilion tower, Shen Zhu gritted her teeth and pulled out the arrow: "I say, hero, since this young lady has already caught a glimpse of you, why not forthrightly show yourself."

Moonlight shone on the light mist, and the valley was silent.

Shen Zhu's face was as pale as paper, but she showed not the slightest hint of weakness. She finally managed to catch her breath and raised her voice: "We've already exchanged a couple moves, can't you tell? If we were people of the Ling Sect, we would have long ago returned to the vermilion tower without regard for anything else."

"Indeed, if you were people of the Ling Sect, you would have been shot dead by me at the entrance earlier."

A deep voice converged into a thread, transmitting over.

"That footwork just now... are you from Yueshui Bureau? You'd better not meddle in other people's business. Just keep me company for an hour or two, and I won't hurt you."

Su Si snorted and immediately changed his voice, speaking in a crisp, girlish tone: "Bullying defenseless girls is one thing. But asking someone to keep you company for an hour or two in the middle of the night, have you no shame?"

With this sudden disturbance, the person opposite was caught off guard and let out a hint of breath. Su Si seized upon this momentary pause and instantly closed the distance, charging straight towards the source of the breath.

He struck mercilessly, the cold gleam of the meat-cutting knife flashing as it aimed for the person's throat, but was stopped in mid-air by two fingers.

The opponent had intercepted this move with just their strength alone.

The person wore a mask, carried a long bow on their back, and wore dirty beast-hide finger guards. Seeing his attack fail, Su Si was about to retreat, but found that the meat-cutting knife was tightly clamped between the person's fingers. Su Si had never suffered such a setback. He immediately abandoned the knife and changed tactics, his fingers jabbing towards the eye holes of the person's mask—

But he struck empty air.

The opponent exclaimed in admiration and retreated half a step, neatly dodging Su Si's attack: "Good lad, how dirty. It was you pretending to be a woman just now, wasn't it? I was wondering where this little girl suddenly appeared from."

There was no tension in the person's words, but rather a hint of appreciation. Su Si had thought he would have the advantage in close combat, but unexpectedly, he didn't even touch the corner of the opponent's clothes. The person was clearly not young, had a sizable wound on their waist and abdomen, and was using a bow as a sword to fight, yet they were not at a disadvantage.

"Your style doesn't seem like Yueshui Bureau. Let me think, the Red Scorpion Feet of the Red Hook?"

In just a few words, the person had exposed Su Si's background, and the laughter in their voice deepened.

Yan Qing, having confirmed that Shen Zhu's injuries were not serious, also joined the battle with his great sword. After a few moves, the masked person leisurely exclaimed "Oh", sounding a bit delighted. The meat-cutting knife danced and the great sword struck with the force of a thousand pounds, but the person fought them both without any sluggishness, not revealing a single opening.

This battle was like a quagmire - the more they fought, the deeper the two from Ku Mountain Sect sank. This person had probably only used two or three-tenths of their strength at first, completely testing their abilities. After a few incense sticks had burned, let alone showing fatigue, the person became more and more steady as the fight went on, making one involuntarily feel dread.

And they didn't even know what the person's goal was.

Faced with this unexpectedly powerful enemy, Su Si couldn't help but grow anxious: "Shen Zhu, who on earth is this person?"

Shen Zhu clicked her tongue: "This person is using the Fog Tomb Formation to conceal themselves and is preparing a large-scale formation nearby. I found the qi fluctuations strange, so I followed them and happened to run into him drawing the formation... This is my fault, I didn't withdraw cleanly enough and was noticed by him."

Su Si inwardly gave a wry smile. Although Shen Zhu said it was her fault, they both clearly understood - this person's strength was unfathomable. Let alone Shen Zhu, even he, who had received assassin training, might not have been able to escape unscathed. Shen Zhu had originally gone to investigate the surrounding situation. It was purely bad luck to run into this person.

To avoid accidents, she had even specifically brought Lord Bai along. Who knew if that goose was slacking off somewhere.

The creation and activation of a large-scale formation was not the work of a moment. This person was probably worried that Shen Zhu would reveal the secret, so he chased her here and took the opportunity to round up all of them waiting at the door as well.

Yan Qing tightly closed his eyes, his aura gradually stabilizing. He used his great sword to block the opponent's long bow and spoke frankly: "I see that Senior's techniques are gentle and do not seem like those of the demonic sects. We can swear here that we absolutely will not reveal Senior's secret."

"Not bad, young man, but unfortunately I'm not so righteous as to believe people's oaths." The masked person sighed lightly, "How about I swear not to kill you, and you come with me?"

He asked, but had no intention of waiting for an answer.

A bell-like might erupted, not spreading outwards, but reverberating endlessly in this small space like an echo. This time, the masked person did not hold back. Su Si immediately spat out a mouthful of blood and was blasted back several steps. The great sword in Yan Qing's hand hummed in resonance, numbing his tiger's mouth. He was about to counterattack when Shen Zhu pulled on his sleeve.

She lightly snorted, her expression calm: "Enough, we are no match for this person. Fighting recklessly might alert the Ling Sect. Better to go with him for now. This person has not been trying to kill us, so his words can probably be trusted. Since we've encountered this, let's consider it a fated calamity—"

Su Si: "...Isn't it because you led him here!"

Shen Zhu smiled frankly: "That was then, this is now. As long as the green hills remain, there'll be wood to burn."

The latter half of the sentence carried a vague hint of warning. Yan Qing let out a long sigh and quietly loosened his hand, letting the Compassion Stone Sword get stuck in an inconspicuous crevice between the rocks.

Before long, the three from Ku Mountain Sect were strung together and dragged into the Fog Tomb Formation.

The person's formation was not far, located amidst a cluster of jagged, strange rocks, an extremely hard to find location. The masked person sealed the acupoints of the three, tightly tying them to a giant stone pillar, then carefully outlined runes with blood and ink, completely focused on the task.

Su Si was bored out of his mind and lowered his voice: "Where's my goose?"

Shen Zhu moved her injured shoulder and grunted back: "I let it escape in time, it's fine."

The three could speak, but the masked person was not far away, so no one dared to talk openly. They could only watch with wide eyes as the complex formation flickered with a dim light.

The masked person was afraid they would run away and wouldn't even tie them at the edge of the ghostly mist. He specially took out a Mist-Warding Pill, feeding the three some crushed bits so they wouldn't die under the influence of the Fog Tomb Formation.

The disciples of Ku Mountain Sect thus got to taste the freshness of the Mist-Warding Pill they had yet to obtain.

Although Su Si had suffered a clear loss, he wasn't exactly anxious. This person didn't seem to have any intention of silencing them. If their lives were in danger on this trip, Lord Bai would definitely come find him. Although he didn't know what this person planned to do, in any case, this formation was not targeted at Ku Mountain Sect. Since he had nothing better to do, he couldn't help but observe carefully.

This formation had been drawn for at least seven days and was nearing completion. The might of the formation was already vaguely showing through - the grass that had just a hint of green withered and blackened, crumbling to dust at a touch. There were many insect corpses on the ground, all lying on their backs with only empty shells left. The killing intent within the formation was thick and stifling, making it hard to breathe.

The more Su Si looked, the more uneasy he felt. His brows slowly furrowed: "Is this... a killing formation?"

At this time, the various sects were resting in their respective territories. Most of the foreign sects were scattered, with few experts holding the fort. To say what was worthy of being struck by a large-scale killing formation...

Yan Qing instantly realized and his face paled slightly: "The Vermilion Tower of Ling Sect?"

The Ling Sect has always been lax and undisciplined, with elders running amok everywhere. Now that a lead has emerged from Mount Zongwu, not only are all the elders from the main altar present, but most from the branch altars have also gathered inside the Vermilion Tower. If they were to be wiped out in one fell swoop, half of the Ling Sect's power would undoubtedly be destroyed in an instant.

Setting up a killing formation is no easy task. The fluctuations of the formation alone are extremely easy to expose. However, that only applies to ordinary locations—this is Mount Zongwu, where there are quite a few ancient, dilapidated formations, a group of remnant formations singing in unison day after day.

Now that the Ling Sect has also set up the Fog Tomb Formation, the demonic fog has concealed all unnatural traces, even saving the need for people to guard the formation.

If this truly is a killing formation targeting the Ling Sect's Vermilion Tower, Shi Jingzhi and Yin Ci might still be inside.

Yan Qing was anxious and impatient, wishing he could break through his acupoints on the spot. He clenched his teeth and tried to keep his voice low, "Miss Shen, can your sparrow... Miss Shen Zhu?"

Shen Zhu was completely unresponsive.

She stared fixedly at a corner of the formation, her soul seemingly pulled out of her body. After a long while, she finally managed to speak, her voice filled with an unbelievable shock.

"This is no ordinary killing formation. I know this type of formation."

With that, she shouted at the masked person, her voice incredibly shrill, carrying a certain bone-deep hatred.

"You madman, do you want to kill half the people on Mount Zongwu?!"

Author's Note:

Lord Bai: What slacking off? I took her there, alright! I took her there!