However, speaking of receiving a Heaven-Bestowed Word...

Wu Xingxue turned his head to look at Xiao Fuxuan and suddenly raised a hand, brushing it against the base of his ear bone.

It was said that High Immortal Tianxiu's sword was faster than the thunder of the Nine Heavens, capable of separating the head from the body of any rule-breaker in the blink of an eye. The Evil Demons of the four directions all had to keep a distance of thirty feet from him, and it was even more impossible for ordinary people to get close.

Wu Xingxue had already extended his hand before he remembered this abrupt action. It was too late for regret.

However, the sword in Xiao Fuxuan's hand only lifted slightly before lowering again. The buzzing vibration had just begun when it ceased. From a wild display of its sharp edge to sheathing its gleam, it all happened in an instant.

Wu Xingxue was stunned by this change. He saw Xiao Fuxuan turn his head, his gaze dropping to glance at his fingers. "What are you pressing?"

His voice was very deep, and his throat vibrated slightly when he spoke.

Wu Xingxue curled his fingers and withdrew his hand. "Oh," he said, "Where is your 'Mian' character? It seems like it has never appeared."

Xiao Fuxuan glanced at the straw shed. There were too many miscellaneous people, and he seemed unwilling to say more. He only answered with two words: "It's gone."

'That makes sense.' The Immortal Capital had been destroyed and Lingtai was no more, so it was normal for the Heaven-Bestowed 'Mian' character seal to be gone. Wu Xingxue felt as if his mind had suddenly been clouded for some reason, asking such a superfluous, foolish question.

He waved his hand, about to skip past the topic, when he heard Xiao Fuxuan say, "It wasn't always visible in the past either."

Wu Xingxue was a little curious. "Not always visible? What, can a Heaven-Bestowed Word appear and disappear at will?"

"Mm."

"Then under what circumstances does it hide, and under what circumstances does it appear?"

"..."

For some reason, Xiao Fuxuan didn't answer.

He just raised his hand and pinched the neck bone where the 'Mian' character should have been, glanced at Wu Xingxue, and then walked straight toward the straw shed.

Wu Xingxue: "?"

"Why do you say they were Summoned?" Xiao Fuxuan asked the woman bundled in a thick padded jacket as he walked to the edge of the straw shed.

An Immortal Sect disciple beside them was about to stop him, but was held back by another, who stared at Xiao Fuxuan with a hesitant expression.

"Because there was a word on the neck." The woman raised her hand to gesture. Because her midwinter jacket was thick, she looked a bit clumsy, which further accentuated the sorrowful emptiness in her reddened eyes.

'A word on the neck?'

Wu Xingxue was completely baffled.

Fortunately, the Immortal Sect disciple couldn't bear it and helped explain, "This matter has been causing a stir in the outskirts of Yuyang for a while now. The first family to suffer was a woodcutter's. He was a perfectly fine person, but one day he woke up and a word had suddenly appeared on his neck, just like... just like it was Heaven-Bestowed, grown onto his body, impossible to wash or scrub off."

He glanced at Xiao Fuxuan's neck, then quickly looked away. "Then, that very night, the woodcutter disappeared. Along with him, his regularly used axe and the incense burner offered before the family shrine also vanished."

"An incense burner?" Yi Wusheng asked, puzzled.

"Yes, an incense burner." The Immortal Sect disciple nodded. "His family found it strange and searched everywhere, but couldn't find him. Seven days later, everyone in his family, old and young, had the same dream."

"They dreamt that the woodcutter was sitting cross-legged on the shrine, holding an axe in one hand and the incense burner in the other, with his own severed head resting on his lap. Blood dripped from his severed neck, covering his entire body, and the head even spoke."

"What did it say?"

"It said he had been Summoned to become an Immortal, and was enshrined in the cliff temple in Great Sorrow Valley, telling his family to remember to send him some incense offerings."

"When the family woke up, they came to our sect for help. But as everyone knows, Great Sorrow Valley has been sealed for a long time, and people don't go there lightly. Later, a few senior brothers and sisters couldn't stand it, so they took some Dreamless Pills bought from the Hua Family and made a trip to Great Sorrow Valley."

"With the help of the Dreamless Pills, the senior brothers and sisters were fine. But in their hurried trip, they couldn't find the woodcutter. They only found his broadaxe, all bloody."

Hearing "the Hua Family's Dreamless Pills," Wu Xingxue was startled for a moment and glanced at Yi Wusheng.

He saw him lower his gaze and nod, pulling the cloth covering his mouth and nose further up to hide most of his face, his expression somewhat pained.

The people of the world all relied on the Dreamless Pill to enter and exit the perilous Great Sorrow Valley, yet the one who created the Dreamless Pill didn't have such fortune himself.

It's truly... unreasonable.

"In short, after that, families kept suffering in similar situations. A word would suddenly appear on their necks, and then they would disappear that same night. Even if they were tied to the bed with ropes, with someone watching them day and night without rest, it was no use. The person watching would always fall asleep suddenly. The ropes binding them weren't untied, but they were covered in blood. It was as if..."

The Immortal Sect disciple said with a green face, "It was as if the bound person had been cut open along the ropes and moved out. No matter how they disappeared, the missing person would send a dream saying they had been Summoned to become an Immortal, and that offerings should be sent to Great Sorrow Valley."

"This is another family that has suffered." He pointed at the woman. "Both of her daughters are gone, so the few of us are accompanying her to search. Actually—"

His lips moved, as if he wanted to say that searching would be futile. But seeing the woman's reddened eyes, he swallowed his words.

"For such a dangerous matter, your sect only sent three people?" Yi Wusheng asked in surprise.

"Didn't the Canglang Northern Domain of the Endless Sea collapse two days ago? Most of the disciples from our sect went there and suffered great losses. Our sect isn't a major one, so we're really short on manpower," the three disciples grumbled.

Wu Xingxue had originally intended to go to the straw shed to wait for nightfall, but after hearing this, he turned on his heel and went back to the carriage.

He had forgotten what it tasted like to be reviled by the entire world.

But for now, rather than scaring a few nameless little devils from the Immortal Sects, it was better to wrap himself in a blanket in the carriage and take a nap.

He hoped that in this deep sleep, he would dream of something, be it Magpie Capital or the past, but there was nothing.

Strangely, he didn't dream of any distinct scenes or any complete people. Instead, he dreamed of that 'Mian' character, glowing with a faint golden light, so close it was as if it were right in front of his nose...

Wu Xingxue's eyes snapped open. He saw Xiao Fuxuan standing in front of him, leaning down.

He licked his dry lips and grabbed Xiao Fuxuan's wrist. "You—"

Before he could finish, Wu Xingxue heard a light clanging sound. He looked down and saw a pair of silver bells dangling from Xiao Fuxuan's fingertips. They were just like the Flower-Protecting Bells from the Hua Family that had been tied to his wrist before.

"What is this for, are you going to restrain me again?" Wu Xingxue stared at the bells, a bit dazed.

Xiao Fuxuan didn't answer. He let him grip his wrist, but his fingers moved a few times, tying the pair of silver bells to Wu Xingxue's waist.

When he lowered his head, his ear bone and neck were very close.

Wu Xingxue subconsciously glanced at the spot where the 'Mian' character should have been.

"The Heavenly Lock can't be undone. There is only this," Xiao Fuxuan said in a low voice.

Wu Xingxue hesitated for a moment before letting go of his hand.

'The chains can't be undone, so what? What does that have to do with the bells?'

Before long, he understood the meaning of this sentence.

Outside the carriage, the sun had already set. According to what the Immortal Sect disciples had said, they could now cross the bridge and enter the valley.

Wu Xingxue followed Xiao Fuxuan out of the carriage. The others were already at the edge of the suspension bridge.

At night, a biting wind suddenly picked up in Great Sorrow Valley. As Wu Xingxue walked over, the chains on his body were constantly rustling.

The chains were actually very thin. He couldn't see them but could feel them, each lock nail piercing through his bones and into his spirit-soul, following him like a shadow.

"What's that sound?" As they got closer, the Immortal Sect disciples heard the noise and muttered. They followed the sound with their eyes, and their gazes landed on Wu Xingxue.

They instantly became alert, but when they saw the silver bells at his waist, they quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Wu Xingxue took this in and said softly, "Oh... I was wondering why you suddenly hung bells on me for no reason."

He turned his head back and saw Xiao Fuxuan's cold face.

"High Immortal? You..." He looked into Xiao Fuxuan's eyes, about to speak.

But before he could speak, Xiao Fuxuan raised his sword, prodded his lower back with the scabbard, and said in a low voice, "Get on the bridge."

'Fine.'

'You have the sword, you call the shots.'

Wu Xingxue walked forward along the long suspension bridge.

Ahead were Ning Huaishan and Duan Bi. They had run around and come back, showing no noticeable change. They only instructed him from time to time, "City Lord, we've cleared away those filthy Yin Creatures from the surroundings. When we enter the valley in a bit, don't stray too far from us. You don't need to act against those little things, we'll take care of them."

Wu Xingxue looked at the backs of their heads and replied casually, "Oh, how nice of you."

"Of course!"

They had said before that things were densely packed beneath this suspension bridge, and that crossing at night was the only way to avoid startling them. Wu Xingxue pondered the reason for this as he felt what was beneath his feet.

But he found that the space under the suspension bridge should be empty; nothing was clinging to it. Had they been mistaken? Or had those things disappeared for some reason?