Those two groups were already seeing red, and now it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say they were jumpy as hell—stirring up their hostility was as easy as saying a single word.
After fighting for so long, why should they let someone else swoop in and take the prize? So Wen Jiayin and the others instantly became everyone’s target.
A disaster was closing in.
Wen Jiayin, Zhi Chang’an, and Li Youxi all frowned—none of them wanted trouble for no reason.
Ironically, the most relaxed person was Chu Mingqi, the one who’d started all this mess.
She thought, “Anyway, Bai Hansu is so strong, isn’t it easy for her to deal with those people? What’s the big deal?” Luckily, Wen Jiayin didn’t know what Chu Mingqi was thinking, or she’d have kicked her over to those two groups to let them teach her a lesson and knock some sense into her!
The two groups exchanged glances, as if they’d reached a silent agreement, and started closing in on Wen Jiayin’s group—except for one person.
Bai Hansu’s eyes darkened slightly.
She gently plucked her zither strings, and a wave of murderous sound sliced through the air, leaving a perfectly placed, not-too-deep cut on everyone’s left chest.
Whether they were Qi Refining or Foundation Establishment cultivators, not a single one could dodge.
No one had time to react.
The feeling of death’s scythe brushing their necks was terrifying—they broke out in a cold sweat, and their crazed minds sobered up a bit.
“One more step, and you die.”
That last word, “die,” stabbed into everyone’s heart like an ice blade.
Just one move was enough to show both groups the huge gap between them and the other side.
Sure, they wanted to fight for the spirit herb, but risking their lives? No way.
You can always try your luck for another spirit herb, but you only have one life.
Even the fiercest ones just now felt like their legs were stuck in a swamp, unable to move.
“Let’s go.” Seeing the others were intimidated, Bai Hansu spoke softly to Wen Jiayin.
“Oh… oh, yeah, let’s go.” Not only were the other side scared by Bai Hansu’s ruthlessness, even their own group was startled.
Wen Jiayin almost thought Bai Hansu was going to kill them all.
But thankfully, Hansu was still pretty rational.
“I like it when people are decisive like this.
Hey, simple and direct—beat them into submission and there’s no more nonsense!” Li Youxi praised Bai Hansu’s actions.
“If you like it so much, why don’t you go with her?” Zhi Chang’an jabbed at her with a sour tone, hoping she could swap Jiayin back—this woman had been hogging Jiayin ever since she showed up, so annoying!
“…I never said I wanted to go with her…” Li Youxi muttered, feeling especially wronged.
She didn’t get why Zhi Chang’an was suddenly mad.
She wanted to defend herself, but Zhi Chang’an had already walked off, so she had to hurry to catch up.
“Those clothes… is she an inner disciple of Jing Dao Sect?” The people behind them whispered.
“She really is from Jing Dao Sect! Good thing we didn’t fight them just now, or even if we won, we’d be in deep trouble!”
“Forget it, forget it.
Disciples from big sects like them wouldn’t care about these little things anyway.
No conflict is good… Wait! Where’s the spirit herb?!”
“Who—who stole the spirit herb in the chaos just now?!”
“It wasn’t us… it was that male cultivator who was just standing here! He’s gone now!”
“Pah! Wasn’t he with you guys? So that’s it, you had him stir up trouble and then snatch it? Despicable!”
“Bullshit! Wasn’t he with you? Trying to frame us? Thief crying thief!”
“I’ve never seen him before! He’s not one of ours! If you want trouble, bring it on!”
Hearing the commotion behind her, Wen Jiayin glanced back.
The two groups were fighting again, and sure enough, the guy who started it all wasn’t a good person.
What a bunch of idiots, getting tricked by a few words.
Chu Mingqi laughed at them in her heart, totally enjoying the drama.
But when she turned around, the other four were already near the misty area, their figures almost out of sight!
“Not even going to wait for me?!” A bunch of jerks! Chu Mingqi stomped her foot in anger.
Normally, she’d have given up already, but thinking about how many demonic cultivators might be lurking in this secret realm, she got scared and hurried to catch up.
No one knew what the mist in the secret realm was made of, but it could block a cultivator’s spiritual sense.
Wen Jiayin couldn’t see anything more than ten meters away, and neither could the others, so they didn’t dare walk too fast for fear of getting separated.
After being a cultivator for so many years, suddenly losing the use of their spiritual sense was basically like being blind.
Wen Jiayin and Zhi Chang’an were a bit better off, since they’d experienced similar situations in the Demon Subduing Hall and were used to it.
But Li Youxi and Chu Mingqi were on edge, nerves stretched tight.
With the endless sea of mist outside, no one knew what dangers might be hidden inside.
“There’s demonic energy.” Bai Hansu stopped.
The mist didn’t affect her as much—though it was a bit blurry, it didn’t really matter.
Following a faint trace of demonic energy, she found a demonic cultivator who’d tied up a bunch of righteous sect disciples—a pretty good haul.
The people around Bai Hansu immediately put their hands on their weapons.
Wen Jiayin lowered her voice and asked, “Are there demonic cultivators nearby?”
“Yes.” Bai Hansu nodded.
Among the disciples tied up by that demonic cultivator, half were wearing Jing Dao Sect uniforms, so there was no way to ignore it.
Bai Hansu reached out and conjured an ice mirror in the air.
No one knew what spell she used, but it actually showed what was happening on the demonic cultivator’s side.
“They’re our sect’s disciples?”
“It’s them?” Zhi Chang’an and Chu Mingqi said almost in unison.
“You know them? Look closely, they seem familiar—weren’t they the ones who came in with you?” Wen Jiayin said excitedly, finally able to get rid of this troublemaker!
“…Yeah.” Chu Mingqi forced a smile.
Not only were her little followers in there, but also the Foundation Establishment cultivators she’d paid for.
And now they’d all been caught by a demonic cultivator—useless!
“If our fellow disciples are in trouble, we have to help!” Wen Jiayin almost couldn’t hide her excitement, but after thinking it over, she held it back.
Everyone except Chu Mingqi could tell what Wen Jiayin really meant.
Zhi Chang’an and Li Youxi were both eager to get rid of this troublemaker, so their fighting spirit was especially high.
Meanwhile, the demonic cultivator, unaware he’d been targeted, was counting his spoils.
The righteous cultivators he’d caught weren’t worth much, but there were a lot of them, and it was safe! He didn’t believe that disciples from big sects wouldn’t have a couple of protective treasures on them.
Plus, for their precious disciples, their Masters would use soul lamps to trace the killer from the disciple’s last moments.
He was always cautious and wouldn’t risk his life for a bounty!
Didn’t you see how the Duoye Sect, after messing with the righteous sect’s rising stars, ended up with their sect bathed in blood overnight? Of course, that was just what he’d heard, but he figured it was probably true.
Everyone in the demonic lands knew Duoye Sect had cozied up to Ji Hun Demon Lord, so other demonic cultivators usually left them alone.
But the righteous side was different, and since Duoye Sect had killed so many young disciples, this explanation made sense.
Meat is meat, even if it’s just a mosquito.
The demonic cultivator tied up the struggling Foundation Establishment cultivator a few more times, calculating how much bounty he could get.
Just then, a deadly attack came from above.
The tied-up Foundation Establishment cultivator’s eyes widened, his angry glare turning to shock.
A gust of wind swept flames so close it nearly burned off his eyebrows, and the heat made it hard to breathe.
Then a few notes from a zither floated by, and the demonic cultivator in the sea of fire let out two screams before falling silent.
The black-spotted flames devoured the demonic cultivator’s body, burning him to nothing.
“Are you okay? I’ll untie you now.” A gentle, familiar female voice sounded in the Foundation Establishment cultivator’s ear.
“Chu—Chu Martial Uncle?” The Foundation Establishment cultivator recognized her.
Wasn’t this Chu Mingqi, the little Martial Uncle who’d invited him to explore the secret realm together?
Thinking about how he’d taken her spirit stones and secretly looked down on her, but now had to rely on her to save him, he felt really guilty.
“Ugh, she’s putting on an act again.
Chang’an, stop watching, it’s cringe.” Li Youxi glanced carefully at Zhi Chang’an, and seeing she didn’t get mad at the more familiar way she called her, she felt a little happy inside.
“Anyone who didn’t know would think she was the one who saved him.
Hah, she didn’t even help with a single move, but she’s the first to take credit.
We didn’t pick up a fellow disciple—we picked up a big shot!” Zhi Chang’an was eager to complain to Wen Jiayin, so she didn’t even notice Li Youxi’s change in how she addressed her.
“The big shot’s about to leave, so let’s give her a proper send-off.
Best to pray we never see her again.” Wen Jiayin even put her hands together in prayer.
She didn’t know if any gods or buddhas in this world could grant wishes, but it couldn’t hurt to try.
