The scent of blood in the air was faint, a mere garnish to the atmosphere.

A gust of wind swept past, curling up a few withered leaves. They rustled against the stone, adding to the desolation.

“This…” Gao Feiyang’s eyes widened. “There’s no one here? You have to be joking!”

Zhou Kai frowned deeply. His Divine Sense swept the area, confirming what his eyes were seeing. It was empty. Only a faint residue of Spirit Qi remained, proving that cultivators had been here not long ago.

“Senior Brother Song,” Li Youci broke the silence, looking at Song Tiancheng. “Didn’t you say the city was surrounded iron-tight?”

Song Tiancheng calmed himself and spoke slowly. “Since the Sect Master ordered a forceful assault, the main army must have already engaged the enemy. This place… I fear it is merely a decoy.”

Meanwhile, at the Yin Ruins Sect stronghold.

The sky was torn asunder. Ten massive warships dominated the horizon.

Countless giant beasts roared, joining the warships in a cluster attack against the endless mountain range below.

Disciples of the Calamity Abyss Valley formed battle formations, thrusting like a dagger into the Yin Ruins Sect’s lines. Sword light, magic treasures, and spellfire wove a net of destruction. Battle cries shook the heavens.

On the most magnificent treasure ship, Jie Sanxing stood with his hands clasped behind his back. His Daoist robes fluttered without wind, giving him the air of a transcendent immortal.

Behind him stood Song Buqi—Song Tiancheng’s father and one of the three Peak Masters of Calamity Abyss Valley. His expression was solemn and heavy.

Opposite them, ten thousand feet of corpse qi churned, coalescing into a gigantic skull. Green ghost fires burned in its hollow sockets.

A figure draped in a black cloak stood there, radiating a sinister, eerie aura. It was the Yin Ruins Sect Leader, a late-stage Nascent Soul Great Cultivator—the Wan Hai Old Demon.

“Wan Hai Old Demon,” Jie Sanxing’s voice wasn’t loud, but it carried clearly. “Do you know how hard it was for This Seat to spend months setting up a grand array here? To open this teleportation channel and nail down the spatial anchors, I even ignored the little demon cubs at my own doorstep.”

“I’ve been lurking here for so long, just waiting for a moment when you didn’t have other Nascent Souls around to get in the way!”

The Wan Hai Old Demon cackled strangely. “Jie Sanxing, do you think you can handle me with just this?”

“Whether I can or not, we’ll know once we try!”

Jie Sanxing laughed heartily. He flipped his large hand, and a chessboard appeared in his palm. The board was dotted with starlight, as if it contained a miniature universe.

Everyone held their breath. They expected an earth-shattering duel of supreme masters to unfold.

However, Jie Sanxing’s next move made everyone’s jaw drop.

He didn’t even look at the Wan Hai Old Demon. Instead, he took a step back, raised his leg, and planted a heavy boot squarely on Song Buqi’s ass.

“Oof!”

Song Buqi, caught completely off guard, let out a yelp as he was launched straight toward the Wan Hai Old Demon.

“Big Brother! What… what are you doing!?” Song Buqi stabilized himself in mid-air, a mix of shock and rage on his face.

“Call me Sect Master!” Jie Sanxing didn’t look back. His figure blurred, and he charged straight down—into the battlefield of Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, and Golden Core cultivators.

With a casual sweep of his sleeve, swathes of Yin Ruins Sect cultivators below were crushed by an invisible, massive force. They turned to ash instantly, not even having the time to scream.

Occasionally, a Golden Core cultivator would attempt a desperate resistance. Jie Sanxing would simply flick his finger from a distance.

Snap.

Magic treasures shattered. Flesh annihilated. Body and soul extinguished.

His attacks were so casual, it looked less like combat and more like he was dusting off a shelf. There was no solemnity of a duel, only the joy of crushing ants.

Song Buqi was dumbfounded. But the arrow was on the string; he had to fly.

With a furious roar, the majestic Qilin divine beast and the giant wolf by his side—both exuding Nascent Soul auras—pounced toward the Wan Hai Old Demon.

Wan Hai Old Demon was a famous devil who had been in the late Nascent Soul stage for a long time. He naturally had no fear of a mere early-stage Nascent Soul.

With a cold snort, demonic qi surged around him. Corpse generals and ghost soldiers materialized from thin air, engaging Song Buqi and his spirit beasts in a chaotic brawl.

For a time, demonic qi blotted out the sun. Ghosts wailed and wolves howled.

Song Buqi, despite having two Nascent Soul beasts and the secret support of Jie Sanxing’s array, was ruthlessly suppressed by Wan Hai and his sea of corpses. He was in constant peril, dancing on the razor’s edge of death.

After a good while, Jie Sanxing clapped his hands, dusting them off as if he had just finished a trivial chore.

He flew back to the treasure ship, looked down at the struggling Song Buqi, and said leisurely, “Wan Hai Old Demon, how does this gift from This Seat taste?”

The ghost fires in Wan Hai’s eyes jumped violently. His voice was hoarse with rage.

“Jie Sanxing! Do not forget, you once swore a Heavenly Dao Oath to form an alliance with my Yin Ruins Sect! Aren’t you afraid of violating the oath, breeding Heart Demons, severing your Dao path, and damaging your lifespan? Do you want to fall into eternal damnation?”

Jie Sanxing stroked his chin, wearing an expression of sudden realization. “Oh? Was there such a thing? How come This Seat doesn’t remember?”

“Wan Hai, are you senile? Did you mistake me for someone else?”

He paused, then grinned wide, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.

“Even if someone named Song Buran swore some oath, that’s his business. What does it have to do with me? This Seat is the Sect Master of Calamity Abyss Valley, Jie Sanxing! Isn’t that right, Wan Hai?”

“Shameless!” Wan Hai Old Demon cursed.

He knew that with Jie Sanxing present—and that chessboard hovering in the sky, threatening but not striking—he would gain no advantage today. If he continued fighting, he might actually fall here.

He didn’t hesitate. The demonic qi around him exploded, transforming into a thick streak of bloody light as he tore through the void to escape.

“Where do you think you’re going!” Seeing this, Song Buqi prepared to give chase.

Smack!

Jie Sanxing backhanded Song Buqi on the back of the head.

“Fool!”

“If a late-stage Nascent Soul is determined to run, can you catch him? Even if you did, if you killed him and provoked their Soul Formation Ancestor to come out, do you want the dignified Sect Master of Calamity Abyss Valley to be captured?”

Song Buqi rubbed his head, aggrieved. “Sect Master, then why didn’t you fight him yourself? Wouldn’t it have been better for me to handle the juniors?”

Jie Sanxing shot him a glance and spoke with earnest gravity.

“Among the three Peak Masters, you, Song Buqi, are the weakest. This Sect Master is letting you temper yourself between life and death to stimulate your potential. Do you understand?”

“My intentions are bitter and kind!”

In reality, he thought: Fight a peer? Wouldn’t that expose all my trump cards? What if I trip in the gutter? Losing face is small, but affecting my carefree life is big! Anyway, Song Buqi is thick-skinned and used to beatings. He won’t die!

Back at Wangchuan City.

Just as everyone was lost in thought, several disciples escorted two haggard cultivators over. Their auras were weak and wilting.

“Reporting to Senior Brother Song. We searched the entire city and only found these two alive. They seem to be the array masters maintaining the protective formation.”

The two were from the Fu family. Their cultivation was low, merely early Foundation Establishment.

Song Tiancheng opened his mouth to speak, but Li Youci moved first.

Her figure flashed. Her delicate hand reached out and grasped the void. The two Fu family cultivators trembled violently, their eyes instantly turning glassy and vacant.

Soul Searching!

Zhou Kai knew the main purpose of this trip was to uncover the secrets of the Cicada Raiment Art. Naturally, she didn’t want outsiders learning the key clues.

Song Tiancheng frowned, a flash of displeasure crossing his face. But Li Youci’s action was too fast; he couldn’t stop it in time.

Moments later, the two cultivators convulsed and collapsed limply to the ground. Dead. Their souls scattered.

“What is the situation?” Song Tiancheng asked in a deep voice.

Li Youci’s expression was indifferent.

“Wangchuan City has always been empty. These people were merely abandoned pawns thrown out by the Yin Ruins Sect to draw our attention and force us to divide our troops. The scattered soldiers outside were just decoys.”

Song Tiancheng nodded. “My father sent a transmission. The main battle is a great victory.”

He turned to Li Youci, his tone softening slightly. “Junior Sister Li, matters here are concluded. I must regroup with the Sect Master immediately. If you still wish to search for clues regarding Fu Weilun, please do as you see fit.”

With that, Song Tiancheng waved his hand. He led the Calamity Abyss Valley troops and the nineteen warships away, disappearing into the horizon in a grand procession.

“Grand Miss.”

Only after Song Tiancheng and the others were completely gone did Zhou Kai step forward, asking in a low voice.

“Did you find any special clues about the Cicada Raiment Art or Fu Weilun from their souls?”

Li Youci spoke slowly.

“Near Wangchuan City (Gazing River City), there is another city.”

“What?” Gao Feiyang froze.

Fish Baibai blinked her large eyes curiously.

“A city named ‘Wangchuan’ (Forgetfulness River). The clue lies right beneath our feet, inside this empty city.”

Gazing River versus Forgetfulness River.

One character’s difference, yet worlds apart.