Ye Qiu personally guided Yun Xi, step by step, until she had fully mastered the Golden Finger technique. After that, the two of them were once again swept up in a tempest of passion.
When the loving ended, they finally began to put their clothes back on.
At that very moment, three million li away from the Undying Mountain, in a hidden fold of space, stood a middle-aged man clad in purple robes.
This man was none other than Yun Xi’s father, Yun Shan, the current sect master of Azure Cloud Sword Sect.
With his cultivation, Yun Shan could have reached the Undying Mountain long ago. Yet before he even drew near, he sensed the auras of several saint-level experts and chose to remain here instead.
“Hm?”
Yun Shan’s brow suddenly rose. He muttered, “Xi’er has activated the array rune again.”
“Could she have run into trouble?”
Worry flickered across his face. He pointed a finger into the void.
Instantly, ripples spread through the air like water, forming a flat mirror-like surface.
The next second, his eyes bulged.
Within the mirror appeared the faces of Yun Xi and Ye Qiu. Fury surged through him at once.
Especially when he saw Ye Qiu holding Yun Xi, one hand still roaming mischievously over her body, both of them dishevelled, Yun Xi’s hair in disarray and her eyes brimming with spring passion. A blaze ignited in Yun Shan’s heart.
“That bastard! Daring to bully my daughter! This seat will tear you into eight pieces!”
Yun Shan glared at Ye Qiu in the mirror, looking as though he wanted to devour him alive. It was terrifying.
After watching a little longer, Yun Shan noticed that Yun Xi was letting Ye Qiu do as he pleased without the slightest resistance. Confusion appeared in his eyes.
“Strange. Why isn’t Xi’er fighting back?”
“Could she really have fallen for that boy?”
“Who on earth is that kid? Why has this seat never seen him before?”
“There are so many outstanding young men in Azure Cloud Sword Sect pursuing Xi’er, yet she never spared them a proper glance. Why has she fallen for him?”
Yun Shan studied Ye Qiu carefully and thought, “The boy isn’t bad-looking. He has a bit of this seat’s charm from my younger days. Pah, pah, pah! What is he compared to this seat?”
“When this seat was young, I was the number one handsome man of the Eastern Wilderness. Countless peerless beauties could barely walk when they saw me. They wept and begged to become my dao companion… I’m getting off track.”
“How could Xi’er fall for that boy?”
Suddenly, towering rage filled Yun Shan’s eyes. “Xi’er is naive and inexperienced. That boy must have sweet-talked and deceived her. That’s why she fell for his tricks.”
“Fine, you little punk. You actually dared to trick Xi’er. You’ve got some nerve.”
“Just you wait.”
“The moment you step out of the mountain, this seat will personally rip you apart!”
…
At the same moment,
Outside the Undying Mountain, hidden in the darkness of the void, stood four saints: the Yin-Yang Cult’s Supreme Heavenly Venerable Wuji, Great Elder Li Chaohui of the Primordial Holy Land, Elder Tuoba Yunhe of the Desolate Ancient Holy Land, and Deputy Cult Master An Zaitian of the Heaven-Mending Cult.
“It’s been so long. Why hasn’t anyone come out yet?”
Tuoba Yunhe was growing impatient. If not for his fear of the mountain’s mysterious restrictions, he would have charged in long ago to investigate.
“Brother Tuoba, patience. The Undying Mountain stays open for a full month. Only a few days have passed. We can wait,” Li Chaohui advised.
Tuoba Yunhe replied, “I just want to know who killed my grandson.”
At that point, An Zaitian spoke. “Do you think it could have been people from the Beast Emperor Sect who killed An Ruoxi and the others?”
Tuoba Yunhe answered, “From what I know, only two people from the Beast Emperor Sect entered this time, the sons of Wu Tian.”
Wu Tian was the current sect master of the Beast Emperor Sect and the father of the brothers Wu You and Wu Lü.
Their family had an interesting naming tradition. Wu You’s grandfather, the old saint who once attacked the mountain with a sacred weapon and ultimately perished, was named Wu Fa.
Three generations: Wu Fa, Wu Tian, Wu You, Wu Lü. Together, it read “no law, no heaven, endless worry and anxiety.”
Tuoba Yunhe continued, “Though Wu Tian’s two sons have decent cultivation, they are absolutely no match for my grandson, An Ruoxi, and the others.”
“Even if those brothers grasped some secret technique, they wouldn’t dare raise a hand against disciples from our major sects.”
“I’m not looking down on the Beast Emperor Sect. They wouldn’t have the guts to challenge several great powers at once, even if we lent them a thousand lives.”
“What’s more, the old saint of Beast Emperor Sect is dead. The sect now is weaker than an ant.”
An Zaitian said, “What if they were fighting over the supreme opportunity?”
“If the Beast Emperor Sect obtained the supreme opportunity, they could rise to become a top power in the Eastern Wilderness.”
“For that supreme opportunity, it’s possible they struck lethal blows against disciples from our sects.”
Tuoba Yunhe replied, “Brother An, if you suspect the Beast Emperor Sect, why not call Wu Tian over and ask him directly?”
As saint-level experts, once they extended their divine sense, nothing within millions of li escaped their perception, let alone Wu Tian, who stood less than a thousand metres away.
At that distance, they could even hear his heartbeat clearly.
Hearing Tuoba Yunhe’s words, An Zaitian stretched out his right hand. In an instant, his five fingers became five enormous iron hooks. They crossed a thousand metres and clamped onto Wu Tian’s shoulder.
Wu Tian stood motionless, completely unaware of the danger.
He had just received news from his sect that Wu Lü’s life lamp had also gone out. In that moment, all hope turned to ash.
In just a few days, he had lost his father, then both his sons. The blows were too much for Wu Tian to bear.
Now he had only one thought: find the murderer who killed Wu You and Wu Lü and avenge his sons.
As for the supreme opportunity or strengthening the Beast Emperor Sect, those grand ambitions had been cast far from his mind.
When a man’s family is dead, what use are grand ambitions?
Lost in crushing grief, Wu Tian suddenly felt someone grab his shoulder and hoist him into the air.
“Who’s there?”
Wu Tian snapped awake. Looking up, he recognised An Zaitian and asked gravely, “Deputy Cult Master An, the Beast Emperor Sect has no grudge with your Heaven-Mending Cult. Why treat me like this?”
An Zaitian said nothing. He simply dragged Wu Tian in front of him before releasing his grip.
Wu Tian saw Supreme Heavenly Venerable Wuji, Li Chaohui, and Tuoba Yunhe. Shock flooded his heart.
“Why have so many saints appeared at once?”
“And especially the Yin-Yang Cult. Even Supreme Heavenly Venerable Wuji came in person. What on earth has happened?”
Terrified and astonished, Wu Tian hurriedly bowed to them all with perfect courtesy. “Wu Tian pays respects to the Heavenly Venerable and to all the seniors.”
An Zaitian asked, “Wu Tian, let me ask you. Did your two sons kill my grandson An Ruoxi?”
An Ruoxi is dead?
Wu Tian froze for a moment before replying, “Deputy Cult Master An, you have misunderstood.”
“I know exactly how much strength the Beast Emperor Sect possesses. Before You’er and Lü’er entered the mountain, I repeatedly warned them never to make enemies, especially not to raise a hand against disciples from the top sects of the Eastern Wilderness.”
“You’er and Lü’er always obeyed me. They would never go against my instructions.”
Wu Tian’s voice suddenly began to tremble. “Moreover… my You’er and Lü’er… they… they both died inside the Undying Mountain!”
