Chen Ping shook his head. “You go ahead.”
“Senior?” Ling Shuang and Lie Tian were both stunned.
“I am going to find Shi Yan and Ying Wu.” Chen Ping’s gaze was resolute. “They are overdue and have not returned, so they must have encountered trouble. I cannot abandon them.”
“But Senior, the outside is now full of search parties. It is far too dangerous for you to act alone!” Ling Shuang said anxiously, genuine worry evident in her eyes.
Lie Tian also tried to persuade him. “Senior, Shi Yan and Ying Wu are both cautious and clever young people. Perhaps they were merely delayed by something, or they are hiding somewhere. If you go out now, in case…”
“There is no ‘in case’.”
Chen Ping’s tone was calm, yet carried an unquestionable determination. “I came to the Myriad Beasts Sect with them. I have the responsibility to find them and bring them out safely.”
“You go to the secret realm first. Tell me the exact location and the method to enter. After I find them, I will naturally come to join you.”
Seeing that Chen Ping’s mind was made up, Ling Shuang knew further persuasion would be useless.
She bit her lip, took out a fiery red feather-shaped jade pendant from her bosom, and handed it to Chen Ping. “Senior, this is the Li Huo Pendant. It is one of the keys to opening the entrance to the secret realm.”
“The entrance to the secret realm is in the deepest part of the Scarlet Flame Canyon, about twenty thousand li in the southwest direction. There is a crimson rock wall that burns eternally.”
“Hold the Li Huo Pendant, channel fire-attribute spiritual power to activate it, and at the same time use divine sense to inscribe the spell seal that I am transmitting to you. That will open a temporary entrance.”
As she spoke, she transmitted a complex and profound spell seal into Chen Ping’s mind with her divine sense.
Chen Ping sensed it briefly and memorised it, then took the Li Huo Pendant and put it away.
“Senior, you must be careful! We will wait for you in the secret realm!” Ling Shuang looked at Chen Ping, her expression complicated.
“Senior Chen, take care!” Lie Tian and the other Myriad Beasts Sect disciples all bowed, their eyes filled with gratitude and expectation.
Chen Ping nodded, said no more, and with a flicker of his figure, vanished from their sight as if merging into the air.
He did not even cause the slightest ripple in space.
Ling Shuang gazed in the direction where Chen Ping had disappeared, lost in thought for a moment. Then she suddenly came to her senses, suppressed the unusual emotions in her heart, and turned to Lie Tian. “Sect Leader Lie Tian, we must set off immediately as well!”
“Please have the lightly injured disciples help support the seriously wounded. We leave now!”
Under Ling Shuang’s leadership, this mixed team composed of the elite from the Profound Heaven Sword Sect and the remnants of the Myriad Beasts Sect quietly withdrew from the hidden valley and stealthily headed towards the Scarlet Flame Canyon in the southwest.
…
After leaving the valley, Chen Ping pushed his spatial escape technique and concealment divine ability to their limits.
He moved like an invisible shadow, swiftly shuttling through dense forests, mountain rocks, and shadows. His divine sense acted like the most precise radar, radiating outwards in all directions with himself as the centre.
He carefully searched for any traces that might relate to Shi Yan and Ying Wu, while skilfully avoiding one patrol after another, both open and hidden.
Following the route provided by Lie Tian, he first searched for a distance towards the Profound Heaven Sword Sect and discovered several faint remnants of battle aura, along with the Myriad Beasts Sect’s unique secret marks.
The marks pointed in another direction, seemingly a remote side path leading to the old site of the Myriad Beasts Sect.
Chen Ping’s heart tightened. Could the two of them have been exposed while scouting the old site?
He immediately changed direction and followed the guidance of the marks.
The closer he got to the periphery of the old Myriad Beasts Sect site, the denser the patrols became, and the more tense the atmosphere grew.
Chen Ping had to be even more cautious. Sometimes he even needed to lie in wait for long periods, only moving during the gaps when patrols changed shifts.
Along the way, he discovered more traces of combat, and… bloodstains.
From the aura, they were mixed with those of Shi Yan and Ying Wu!
Chen Ping’s heart sank further.
Finally, near a narrow mountain gorge about a hundred li from the core area of the former Myriad Beasts Sect, Chen Ping detected intense residual energy and a large amount of fresh blood.
The rocks on both sides of the gorge bore clear marks of sword slashes and spell bombardments. The scene was one of utter devastation.
In the air, besides the auras of Shi Yan and Ying Wu, there were at least five or six different violent fused-beast auras, as well as two sinister auras from demonic sect cultivators.
“They were ambushed here…”
Chen Ping’s eyes turned ice-cold.
From the traces at the scene, the battle had been extremely fierce. Shi Yan and Ying Wu had clearly put up stubborn resistance, but the enemy had greater numbers and seemed to have come prepared.
He searched carefully and found a small torn piece of black cloth in a rock crevice. It carried Ying Wu’s faint personal fragrance and was stained with some blood.
Chen Ping gripped the scrap of cloth, his knuckles turning slightly white.
Following the faint lingering auras and some barely perceptible drag marks on the ground, Chen Ping tracked them.
The traces eventually vanished near a cave entrance halfway up the mountain slope, concealed by dense vines.
The entrance was masked by a simple restriction, but from inside came muffled voices of people talking and… the sound of a woman sobbing and struggling!
Chen Ping’s eyes suddenly turned frigid, his killing intent almost solidifying into substance. His figure flashed like lightning, silently passing through the crude restriction and entering the cave.
The interior of the cave was quite spacious, illuminated by several eerie green soul lamps.
Seven or eight fused-beast warriors of various forms sat together in a circle, laughing loudly, sharing wine and meat. Scattered on the ground were some small items looted from Shi Yan and Ying Wu.
Deep inside the cave, two thick stone pillars held two bound figures.
It was indeed Shi Yan and Ying Wu!
Shi Yan’s condition was extremely grave. He was covered in blood, with many wounds exposing bone. One arm was bent at an unnatural angle, clearly fractured.
His head hung low, his breathing faint. He was in a semi-conscious state.
As for Ying Wu… her state ignited even greater rage in Chen Ping!
Her outer robe had been torn to shreds, exposing bloodstained undergarments. Her fair skin was covered in bruises and wounds.
A fused-beast leader with curved goat-like horns and a lewd face was grinning obscenely.
He reached out, trying to tear away the last of her clothing, his breath reeking of alcohol. “Little beauty, stop struggling. After this master has had his fill of fun, I might even spare your life and offer you to Lord Zhen Gu as a plaything. Hahaha!”
Ying Wu struggled desperately, her eyes filled with tears of despair and humiliation. But her spiritual power had been sealed, and her injuries were serious. She was utterly powerless to resist.
