“Zhiwei, your Divine Sense has greatly increased. Try releasing it externally. I want you to investigate the Su Residence, and then extend it as far as you can.”

Lin Zhiwei nodded gently. She stood in the center of the room and closed her eyes.

Hum.

An invisible ripple spread out from her body, passing through the walls like a phantom breeze. Her brows furrowed slightly, then relaxed, as she carefully parsed the flood of information flowing back into her mind.

Zhou Kai did not disturb her. He watched her face, analyzing her reactions.

After a moment, Lin Zhiwei’s long eyelashes fluttered. She slowly opened her eyes; her gaze was clear and sharp.

“How is the situation?” Zhou Kai asked.

“Reporting to Husband,” Lin Zhiwei said, her voice filled with certainty. “Within the Su Residence, aside from the three of us, there are no living human auras. Father Su, Mother Su, and those servants we saw earlier… they are not real people.”

Zhou Kai nodded. It was just as he had suspected.

The Town Head was the highest-level Rule Guardian here, yet his Divine Sense was only at the first layer of Foundation Establishment. Anyone with a Divine Sense stronger than his could likely pierce the veil of this place.

“Oh?” Zhou Kai leaned back. “Then what are they?”

Lin Zhiwei organized her thoughts before speaking softy.

“They… seem like Phantoms formed from a very pure, clean, yet extremely weak Soul Power Aggregate. This Soul Power is fragile. I’m afraid even a cultivator at the first layer of Qi Condensation could easily disperse them with a wave of their hand.”

She paused, a strange expression crossing her face.

“Also, when I investigated Fairy Shen’s room earlier, I found her aura… very strange.”

“How so?”

“Fairy Shen’s realm is extremely unstable,” Lin Zhiwei explained. “At times, it feels as sharp as the fourth layer of Spirit Shaping. Then, it suddenly drops to fluctuations equivalent to the seventh layer of Sword Control. Her aura is chaotic—sometimes strong, sometimes weak.”

Hearing this, Zhou Kai breathed a sigh of relief.

“So that’s it. This must be what Hanyi mentioned. Forcing a breakthrough before the time is right results in a period of weakness. It seems she wasn’t lying.”

Zhou Kai stood up, his eyes cold and decisive. “Let’s go take a look at the town entrance.”

Now that Lin Zhiwei’s Divine Sense could perceive the true nature of this place, the priority was finding a way out of this damned ghost town.

The two left the Su Residence one after the other.

The streets of Red Cliff Town still presented a scene of “peace and prosperity.” Pedestrians bustled back and forth; vendors hawked their wares with gusto.

But in the eyes of Zhou Kai and Lin Zhiwei, the illusion was shattered. These weren’t people. They were merely clusters of weak Soul Power Aggregates, drifting about like a soulless Shadow Puppet Play.

Soon, they arrived at the town entrance.

The stone stele engraved with “Red Cliff Town” stood silent and imposing. Behind it lay the road leading to the outside world—or so it seemed.

Lin Zhiwei stopped walking. She closed her eyes, concentrating.

Suddenly, her expression turned grave. “Husband, there is an array here.”

She reached into her Storage Bag and retrieved several oddly shaped magical tools: a Compass, a set of Array Flags, and various unknown metal components.

She moved with the precision of a master, arranging the tools in specific positions. Her hands formed rapid seals, and she chanted incantations under her breath.

Buzz.

Faint streams of spiritual light flowed between the tools, connecting them in a glowing web.

After roughly the time it takes an incense stick to burn, Lin Zhiwei opened her eyes. Her expression was complex—a mix of confusion and disbelief.

“What is it, Zhiwei?” Zhou Kai asked. ” is it a killing array?”

Lin Zhiwei pursed her lips. “Husband… this array… if you say it’s simple, it truly is simple. But it has a certain cleverness to it.”

“Get to the point.” Zhou Kai hated riddles.

“The point is,” Lin Zhiwei looked him in the eye, “according to my investigation, as long as one’s Divine Sense Intensity reaches the level of the Foundation Establishment stage… they can ignore this array entirely. They can simply walk out and leave Red Cliff Town.”

“Oh?”

This was an unexpected surprise.

Zhou Kai raised an eyebrow. “So, you can come and go freely now?”

“In theory, yes.” Lin Zhiwei nodded, then hesitated. “However… this array’s main function seems to be isolation and screening. It is an Isolation Grand Array.”

She pointed at the empty road beyond the stele.

“For people whose Divine Sense is strong enough, it functions like an Illusion Array. We can leave without hindrance. But once we step out, if we try to look back… the array will affect our perception. We won’t see the town or the buildings anymore. We will only perceive this place as barren land.”

“So, it shields the truth from those outside, and traps those inside?” Zhou Kai mused.

“Yes,” Lin Zhiwei continued. “For Qi Condensation stage cultivators, once they enter the array’s coverage, they are trapped. They cannot leave unless their Divine Sense breaks through the threshold.”

She looked at him with concern. “Husband… if I go out now, when I come back, I probably won’t be able to see you or sense your presence anymore.”

“This array establishes an ‘entry-exit rule’ based solely on Divine Sense Intensity. The master of this place uses it as a filter.”

Hearing this, Zhou Kai froze for a second.

Then, a grin spread across his face. It widened until he couldn’t hold it back.

“Hahahaha!”

He threw his head back and laughed, rocking back and forth. He pointed a shaking finger at the invisible barrier.

“I understand! I completely understand now!”

Lin Zhiwei was baffled. “What does Husband understand?”

“The guy who set up this array is a genius! A terrifyingly pragmatic genius!”

Zhou Kai’s eyes danced with mockery.

“Don’t you see? I got hit by that damned Soul Poison, so my Divine Sense was damaged and dropped. This lousy array misjudged me as some weak Meridian Opening chicken! That’s why I got trapped!”

“And Shen Hanyi? She forced a breakthrough, destabilizing her realm. Her aura dropped, so the array judged her as an ordinary Sword Control cultivator and trapped her too!”

Zhou Kai kicked a pebble through the barrier.

“The master of this array never intended to trap second-realm cultivators! He simply doesn’t have the ability to hold us! This array is just a Newbie Filter! It’s a Paper Tiger that only bullies the weak!”

The more he thought about it, the funnier it became.

He had imagined Red Cliff Town as some profound, ancient horror. In reality? It was a low-level dungeon with a level cap.

As long as your Divine Sense reached Foundation Establishment, you were a VIP guest who could leave at any time. He and Shen Hanyi had just been incredibly unlucky to be debuffed when they arrived.

Zhou Kai reined in his laughter, his eyes turning sharp and predatory.

“Zhiwei… regarding your identity here in Red Cliff Town… what acts are absolutely forbidden?”

Lin Zhiwei was stunned by the sudden change in topic.

“According to propriety… I should be virtuous, gentle, and refined. I must not leave the inner quarters casually, nor show my face publicly without reason. And certainly, I must not engage in fights or damage my maidenly reputation.”

“Very good.”

A dangerous glint flashed in Zhou Kai’s eyes. He clapped his hands together.

“Come on. Follow your husband for a stroll on the streets.”

“Husband… why?”

Zhou Kai grinned, showing his teeth.

“You, my dear Zhiwei, are going to beat up a few ‘people’ right in the middle of the street! Let’s see exactly what Red Cliff Town’s ‘rules’ are made of… and just how scary this so-called ‘big trouble’ really is!”

“Ah?” Lin Zhiwei gaped, her mouth forming a perfect ‘O’.

Me? Beat people up in the street?

“No more ‘ah,’ my good Zhiwei.” Zhou Kai reached out and pinched her cheek affectionately. “We are both second-realm cultivators now! What do we have to fear from a bunch of Paper Tigers?”

Lin Zhiwei blinked. Looking at Zhou Kai’s expression—that look of a man delighting in stirring up chaos—her anxiety evaporated.

With her husband by her side, what did she have to fear?

She pursed her lips into a radiant smile and replied crisply.

“Yes, Husband!”

Side by side, they walked back toward the town center. Zhou Kai was already calculating how to lure out the “Master” of Red Cliff Town and squeeze every last drop of benefit from this place.

As for Shen Hanyi… that little warrior maiden was waiting back at the residence. He needed to put her on the agenda soon.