The scorching flames transformed into a phoenix, sweeping towards Run Sheng, and in the ethereal distance, the cry of a phoenix seemed to echo.

Previously, in the corridor, the old entity behind the stone door had initially burned everyone indiscriminately, a tactic Run Sheng could easily defend against. But now, with a concentrated attack specifically targeting him, Run Sheng dared not be careless.

He clenched his right fist, his Qimen gradually opening, and the ravines on his body flowed faster. Then, blood mist spewed from his Qimen, and fresh blood flowed through the ravines.

This was Run Sheng’s strongest punch in his normal state, second only to fully opening his Qimen.

His fist collided with the fiery phoenix, blood forming a barrier, and air currents swirled.

However, after being shattered, the fiery phoenix instantly transformed into countless firebirds, continuing to surge towards Run Sheng.

The distance was too close, and Run Sheng was in the middle of a breath, leaving him no time to react.

Firebirds struck Run Sheng one after another, and he grunted, his body marked with fist-sized charred spots.

On Daozhang’s side, a man wielding two sabers broke away from the group and walked towards Run Sheng.

He dared not rush, fearing that going too fast might accidentally injure him with his leader’s flames.

He planned to walk over slowly, deliver the finishing blow, and then pick up the Hu Lu from the scorched corpse.

As someone who only trained his physique, his fighting style usually had to be very precise. His greatest advantage was close-quarters combat, and his greatest disadvantage was being hit from a distance by a pre-prepared spell, as Run Sheng was now.

Li Jun was no ordinary Zoujiang Zhe. This advantage allowed him to firmly control the situation, and Run Sheng would remain in a state of passive suppression.

However, Run Sheng had initially stood there openly, waiting to be attacked, precisely to create an opening.

A domain unfolded behind Run Sheng, rapidly encompassing him and his surroundings.

The speed of the arrogant firebirds all slowed down, allowing Run Sheng, now able to breathe, to continuously punch and shatter them in batches.

As for his injuries, they were not light, but not critical either.

Chen Xi Yuan leaped forward, landing above Run Sheng’s head.

Run Sheng held up one hand, caught her foot, and then pushed her upward, allowing Chen Xi Yuan to gain momentum and soar into the air.

Her speed wasn’t astonishing because Xiaoyuan hadn’t given him the precise angle and force, so Run Sheng dared not exert too much strength.

But it was enough. The opposing Li Jun was also in a moment of calm after casting a spell, and Chen Xi Yuan seized this opportune moment.

Immediately, Run Sheng formed a fist with his empty hand, and the Huanghe Chan on the ground was drawn into his grasp. He then charged towards the dual-saber man.

Initially, Li Jun was surprised that Run Sheng could disperse his fiery phoenix, but not panicked, as he believed the subsequent changes in his spell would severely wound him.

But when Chen Xi Yuan’s figure appeared, fear flickered in Li Jun’s eyes.

He had not only been present at the museum’s ambush that day but had also participated, so he knew very well the terror of this Chen family girl.

Unless the old entity intervened, it would be difficult to find many among the younger generation who could rival her in a normal one-on-one fight.

“Retreat!”

The command was issued with decisive resolve.

However, Chen Xi Yuan, like a plummeting cannonball, ignored Li Jun and his subordinates around him, plunging directly into their midst.

Upon landing, a middle-aged man wielding a Fumo Gun struck at her, and a lean man moved like a ghost, attempting a close-quarters assassination.

But both the shadow of the gun and the shadowy figure seemed slow in Chen Xi Yuan’s eyes at this moment.

Her green flute first parried the gun in front of her, then swept elegantly, releasing a dark green light that struck the blurred figure. Her already fast speed then increased further, bringing her directly before Li Jun, and she brought the flute down on his head.

“Bang!”

The middle-aged man with the gun stumbled, and the lean man flew backward.

Li Jun’s head exploded directly.

But instead of blood, there were only strips of cloth and paper scraps.

Chen Xi Yuan refocused her gaze on a spot, took a sideways step, and raised her green flute again.

The vision in that area distorted, and Li Jun, knowing he had been seen, lowered the Dao robes that had covered his face. As he retreated, he said,

“Miss Chen, regarding what happened that day, please allow this humble Daoist to apologize and offer compensation.”

Chen Xi Yuan continued to chase, closing the distance as she spoke, “I accept your apology, but I don’t need your compensation.”

“Miss Chen truly has the demeanor of the Dragon King’s lineage. This humble Daoist admires you!”

Chen Xi Yuan: “I want you to experience what you did to me that day. Afterwards, I will also apologize to you!”

Li Jun: “…”

The man with the staff and the lean figure attempted to strike again, hoping to block Chen Xi Yuan’s pursuit for their leader.

As a result, one was intercepted by Lin Shuyou, and the other by Tan Wenbin.

Lin Shuyou’s twin jiǎn struck rapidly at the staff-wielding man, forcing him to parry with all his might.

Tan Wenbin’s situation was simpler. No matter how exquisite his opponent’s movements were, they couldn’t escape his five senses. He was too lazy to try to quickly dispatch his opponent; he just needed to keep them busy and unable to assist. He was just toying with them.

Mainly, Chen Wai Dui was too powerful. So powerful that his side only needed to be a cheering squad.

Once Chen Wai Dui dealt with that Daozhang, then returning to help him with the current opponent would be a simple matter, wouldn’t it?

Soldiers fight soldiers, generals fight generals. Only by understanding one’s position can one better conserve resources.

Casually glancing over, Tan Wenbin noticed A You fighting with such intensity next door, as if he wanted to trade injuries to quickly kill his opponent.

Tan Wenbin could only silently call out in his heart, “A You, take it easy. You haven’t fully recovered since inserting the talisman needles.”

Lin Shuyou: “Oh!”

Lin Shuyou immediately slowed his offensive, and the staff-wielding man breathed a sigh of relief.

But when he saw his leader being chased by that woman, a shadow immediately fell over his heart, and then he, in turn, began to swing his Fumo Gun recklessly in attack.

Lin Shuyou didn’t engage, only feigning responses, and when he sensed the opponent trying to disengage, he would press forward again, preventing them from escaping.

It was the same for Run Sheng. Although he had a clear advantage against the dual-saber man, he was not in a hurry.

When it came to being meticulous and managing resources, Tan Wenbin couldn’t compare to Run Sheng when traveling, not to mention that Run Sheng now had another person to “advise” him. Now, Run Sheng even burned joss paper with meticulous care.

An advantageous situation demanded an advantageous strategy. Fighting inefficiently would be disrespectful to the advantage established earlier.

Li Zhuijuan gave no commands. In this situation, there was no need for commands at all.

Chen Xi Yuan alone could suppress the entire opposing team; his own people only needed to play a supporting role.

Li Zhuijuan moved alone. As he passed Run Sheng’s previous location, amidst a scorched patch of earth, he picked up the Hu Lu, blew on it, and wiped it clean.

Even white magma couldn’t destroy it. No matter how powerful the previous spell was, it couldn’t have harmed it.

The young man, holding the Hu Lu, continued to circle the battle. He walked onto the steps, where a Daoist nun lay.

The Daoist nun had ten bloody claw marks on her chest, and her abdomen was split open, a gash from which blood still flowed, indicating a state of absolute severe injury.

Moreover, a Luopan in her hand and a scattering of small wooden sticks with carved patterns around her indicated her identity as a formation master.

Seeing the young man approach, the Daoist nun’s eyes showed deep apprehension.

“You…”

Li Zhuijuan picked up a small wooden stick, played with it in his hand, and asked,

“Did you make this yourself, or did you bring it from home?”

The Daoist nun’s eyes were filled with confusion. After a moment of hesitation, she replied, “My master bestowed it upon me.”

Li Zhuijuan: “So, you don’t know Jiguanshu?”

Daoist nun: “I… don’t.”

Li Zhuijuan nodded: “Then your master has quite some ideas.”

These small wooden sticks were products of the Jiguanshu concept, and when setting up formations, they could greatly improve efficiency due to this advantage.

Although Li Zhuijuan could now set up temporary formations easily, he still dared not discard physical small formation flags, always carrying them in his bag.

The former simply pursued simplicity and efficiency, but in terms of actual strength and stability, reliance on formation flags was still necessary.

Li Zhuijuan understood this idea.

After this wave ended and they returned, he planned to rework his black small formation flags… No, he would just completely overhaul everyone’s equipment.

Jiguanshu was a niche path in Jianghu, first, because, like formations, it was difficult to learn, and second, not because it wasn’t suitable for combat.

It was very suitable for combat. For example, Zhou Yunfan could control his maid puppet to directly blast the short, stout old man into severe injury.

It was expensive.

So expensive that even a Jiguanshu genius like Zhou Yunfan, after being expelled from the Zhou family, had to marry into the Ding family to obtain the resources needed for progress.

Li Zhuijuan was also very poor now. Although he had picked up many things since coming to Luoyang, they were all tools. After all, no one carries a warehouse when Zoujiang.

The truckload of materials Zhao Yun brought back from Jiujiang last time was mostly used for building the Dojo.

He was really short on materials now. Relying on A Li to retrieve various textured spirit tablets was merely a drop in the ocean.

Fortunately, he now had two more enemies.

First, to the Zhou family; that would definitely solve the problem of needed Jiguanshu materials. After the Zhou family, then the Ding family, and then he wouldn’t be short on money the next time he wanted to do something.

Actually, it would be simpler to just tell the Old Lady and have Uncle Qin and Aunt Liu go. But the problem was that if Uncle Qin and Aunt Liu ransacked the homes, those things couldn’t go to him.

It would be like adding insignificant items to the already unimaginably wealthy ancestral homes of the Qin and Liu families.

So, revenge was something he had to do himself.

He could call Zhao Yi; that guy used to be very rich, but now he was poor too.

He could also call Chen Xi Yuan; she was easily fooled.

Most importantly, she was incredibly rich and looked down on such things, so there was no need to share the spoils with her.

The Daoist nun looked at the young man’s profile, trying to speak several times but stopping.

She didn’t know what this mysterious young man was thinking about right now, was he thinking about how to kill her?

Currently, her leader was being chased and beaten, and her three companions were entangled and unable to assist, meaning she had no one to protect her.

“Bang!”

Li Jun was caught by Chen Xi Yuan and then sent flying by a strike from her flute.

Seeing this, the Daoist nun finally gathered her courage and asked,

“Can you spare my life?”

Li Zhuijuan nodded: “Yes.”

The Daoist nun’s face, pale from excessive blood loss, broke into a smile:

“Thank you.”

Li Zhuijuan dropped the small wooden stick and picked up the Hu Lu again, playing with it.

Perhaps due to being close enough to Daozhang, the Hu Lu was now emitting a slight tremor even without incense.

The young man pinched out karma fire with his fingertips, flicked it a few times across the Hu Lu’s surface, then initiated Zouyin. This time, he saw special patterns emerging on the Hu Lu’s surface.

After memorizing these patterns, Li Zhuijuan ended Zouyin, spread his right palm, first letting blood mist fill it, then condensing bloodlines to simulate the dynamic patterns on the Hu Lu for analysis.

Chen Xi Yuan was right; the Hu Lu’s grade was indeed very high.

However, there seemed to be a contradiction here. The Bixia Sect gave the nurtured item within the Hu Lu to their Zoujiang Zhe but kept the Hu Lu at the sect. They certainly couldn’t have predicted this wave in advance.

That could only mean that once the nurtured item left the Hu Lu, at least until that Zoujiang ended, the nurtured item could not be put back into the Hu Lu.

Once it’s in, it can’t come out?

Or perhaps, each time the nurtured item is removed and put back, it requires a long period of time?

In that case, this thing seemed a bit like a white elephant.

He was only short on things now. After Zoujiang, he would be richer than Chen Xi Yuan. An artifact that couldn’t show results in the short term, no matter how precious, would be meaningless to him.

Unless he could solve this problem.

He would have to first see what this nurtured item actually was, and whether it was worth racking his brain over this uncertainty.

Li Jun was utterly miserable now. Even with various spells and techniques, he couldn’t change his current predicament.

Under Chen Xi Yuan’s offensive, even escaping and dodging had become a luxury.

If all four of his subordinates were present and could cooperate well, he might have been able to struggle for a while. But now that his subordinates were all separated, he had been put in a difficult situation from the start.

However, he hadn’t used the nurtured item yet, likely intending to save it as a last resort for a chance to escape death.

Li Zhuijuan rested his chin on his hand. It seemed he had to wait a little longer.

Daoist nun: “My sect once offended the Bixia Sect. Later, I offered to follow Li Jun as his Dragon King to Zoujiang in exchange for the Bixia Sect sparing my sect.”

Li Zhuijuan had no interest in such matters and didn’t respond.

Daoist nun: “I’ve helped him to this point, and I’ve done everything I could. I feel I have a clear conscience, don’t you think?”

Li Zhuijuan remained silent, seemingly not having heard.

The Daoist nun sighed to herself, “I want to live. I don’t want to die. I’m still young, and I still have my grand path of formations to pursue.”

Li Zhuijuan still watched intently over there. Chen Xi Yuan was preparing for the final three-step suppression. At that point, Li Jun would have no choice but to make a final desperate stand.

The Daoist nun smiled sadly, saying, “It seems I was fortunate to be severely injured by that old cat demon’s sneak attack. As my master said, the ways of the world are truly without…”

“Buzz!”

All the small wooden sticks on the ground first stood up, then assembled into a small Grand Tutor’s chair. The Daoist nun threw the Luopan in her hand forward, and the Luopan landed on the small Grand Tutor’s chair, embedding itself.

A formation, large enough to cover the entire area, immediately took shape!

At the same time, the blood on the ground around the Daoist nun automatically drew a circle, forming a Shura Blood Fiend Formation, with the Daoist nun herself as the core. Blood-red vines burst from the wound on the Daoist nun’s abdomen, strangling towards Li Zhuijuan, who was sitting right beside her.

And the Daoist nun’s entire face instantly turned from pale to green. Her original severe injuries could have been recuperated, but now, she was almost using her life to launch this surprise attack.

The Daoist nun’s companions perceived the formation above their heads. Their morale immediately boosted, and they prepared to launch a new offensive at all costs during this ebb and flow, to break free from their opponents and support their leader.

Tan Wenbin and Run Sheng also noticed the formation overhead, but they showed no panic, not even bothering to look more serious.

Because they had already seen Brother Xiaoyuan sitting next to that Daoist nun. They didn’t believe anyone could set up a formation right under their Brother Xiaoyuan’s nose.

The blood-red vines were obstructed just as they were about to touch the young man. A circle of black formation patterns appeared around the young man, and karma fire surged, enveloping and blackening the blood-red vines.

The Daoist nun’s eyes widened in astonishment, her face filled with disbelief.

The young man in front of her didn’t even turn his head to look at her because of her sneak attack. He merely raised his left hand and pointed at her location.

The black vines retreated, fiercely piercing through the Daoist nun’s body, lifting her entire body from the steps, like a sacrificial offering placed on an altar.

And the Luopan rotating on the small Grand Tutor’s chair in front, after a brief pause, began to reverse.

The Daoist nun’s three companions had anticipated a shift in power, but it didn’t happen. They had already gone all out, but instead of their opponents, they themselves were suppressed by the formation.

This sudden change, being forcefully pulled down after building up momentum, exposed huge flaws in all three of them.

There was nothing they could do. They trusted their companion too much and relied too much on past experience.

With such exposed weaknesses, even if Tan Wenbin and the others wanted to stall and wait for Chen Wai Dui’s support, they would feel a bit embarrassed.

The staff-wielder’s steps faltered, his guard open. Lin Shuyou first used his jiǎn to deflect the Fumo Gun, then struck his chest with another jiǎn. As his opponent was sent flying, Lin Shuyou crossed his twin jiǎn, his vertical pupils trembling intensely. A series of trident phantoms materialized and pierced through his opponent’s body.

When the man landed, he immediately stood up, still holding the Fumo Gun. This was driven by physical inertia, but in reality, his soul was riddled with holes.

After standing for a moment, he fell backward again.

The lean man in front of Tan Wenbin seemed to have suddenly lost his sense of direction. He kept turning around and actually exposed his back to Tan Wenbin.

Tan Wenbin had no choice but to use Wugan Cheng She, stunning his opponent further. He then jumped onto his opponent, tackled him, and, after sitting on him, waved his blood-glowing arms, delivering the most orthodox Tongbi Quan.

When he stopped, the upper body of the man beneath him had turned into a pulp.

Tan Wenbin stood up, the blood-red glow on his body dissipating. After the last “crash course,” he listened to Brother Xiaoyuan’s advice to trust the abilities of the four spirit beasts and let them play freely as much as possible.

This indeed elevated his strength, but some animalistic habits became increasingly evident, affecting his image to a certain extent.

Run Sheng’s situation was much simpler.

The dual-saber man tried to leap for a cross-slash, but the formation pressure suddenly fell on him. He immediately plopped down, kneeling before Run Sheng.

All Run Sheng had to do was take the Huanghe Chan and swing it horizontally. The dual-saber man’s head detached from his neck, flying freely.

Being the disadvantaged side and then encountering a “backstab” from a close teammate, such a situation was entirely normal.

When Li Jun sensed the formation pressure about to fall upon him, he knew that if he didn’t fight back, he would lose all hope.

He pointed his finger at his chest, then forward, and an ancient-looking “long-handled knife,” only half a finger-joint in size, pierced through his flesh and flew out.

Chen Xi Yuan sensed the danger. Her domain seemed unable to suppress this knife, and it would even track her through the domain. If she didn’t retract her domain and dodge now, it would likely pierce through her body.

Li Jun was certain Chen Xi Yuan would dodge. At this moment, he had already activated a secret technique. Veins on his legs burst open, blood streaming, waiting for the domain to retract, then desperately escaping in one direction.

As long as he escaped into the darkness, he would have a chance to survive!

However, an unexpected scene occurred, catching both Li Jun and Chen Xi Yuan off guard.

The young man sitting on the steps tapped the Hu Lu in his hand. Bloodlines from his palm seeped into the Hu Lu’s surface, and patterns flowed.

With the young man’s soft utterance:

“Collect.”

The small long-handled knife that even Chen Xi Yuan feared immediately turned around, flew towards the young man, and then plunged into the mouth of the Hu Lu.

Li Zhuijuan only felt a warmth from the Hu Lu, its mouth glowing red, and the opening actually sealed shut.

Considering the sturdiness of this thing, trying to chisel out an opening without damaging the Hu Lu’s integrity seemed almost impossible.

Li Jun didn’t flee, even though blood was gushing from his Daoist robe.

Because fleeing was meaningless now. Chen Xi Yuan’s domain hadn’t been retracted; it still enveloped him.

He just stared blankly at the young man’s location.

If he had initially thought his Hu Lu was merely picked up by their group, now, he was almost certain that Fengzhu Hong Sheng must have met with an accident, and it must be related to their group.

His allies were either searching for opportunities in the Yu family ancestral home or hunting surviving demonic beasts, all without exception living in fear and caution, evading the pursuit of the old entities.

But this group of theirs was actually hunting old entities?

Although he wasn’t from the Dragon King’s lineage, he had, after all, associated with those three from the Dragon King’s family for so long. Li Jun believed that even if those three revealed their trump cards, it wouldn’t give him such a shock.

Chen Xi Yuan’s flute rested against Li Jun’s head.

Li Jun relinquished all defense and vigilance.

“Miss Chen, does this humble Daoist have a way out?”

“That day in the museum, did you give me one?”

Li Jun nodded and asked, “Who is that person?”

“Even your Martial Uncle doesn’t know.”

“Fengzhu Hong Sheng is this humble Daoist’s Martial Grand-Uncle.”

“No difference.”

“No need to dirty Miss Chen’s hands. This humble Daoist will self-dissipate.”

Chen Xi Yuan remained silent.

Cracks appeared on Li Jun’s face, quickly spreading across his entire body. Then, starting from his feet, his body continuously split apart, scattering like flying catkins.

When only his neck and head remained, Li Jun spoke:

“Miss Chen, this humble Daoist’s heart lacked benevolence, which led to this outcome. This humble Daoist is unworthy of this Daoist robe. Alas…”

Chen Xi Yuan: “Stop talking nonsense, it’s just because you couldn’t win.”

Li Jun glared at Chen Xi Yuan. Just as he was about to dissipate down to his mouth, he seized the last moment to say:

“Lost…”

The person completely dissipated.

On the ground, a Daoist robe remained.

Tan Wenbin clapped his hands and reminded, “Check it, touch the body, be thorough!”

Chen Xi Yuan picked up Li Jun’s Daoist robe and found a peach wood sword inside. A smile immediately appeared on her face.

As Li Zhuijuan approached with the Hu Lu, Chen Xi Yuan happily handed him the peach wood sword:

“Little brother, look, he dropped something!”

Li Zhuijuan gestured with his eyes for Chen Xi Yuan to look at the Daoist robe.

He remembered that Li Jun had used this robe to conceal his figure before.

Compared to this peach wood sword, the value of this Daoist robe was greater.

Chen Xi Yuan turned over the Daoist robe and said, “This material is indeed special.”

Li Zhuijuan: “You take it. After we leave the Yu family, find Grandma Yao to wash and alter it, and make a garment.”

Chen Xi Yuan: “But if I want to conceal my figure, I can just open my domain.”

Li Zhuijuan: “That night, when you were being chased in front of the soup shop, why didn’t you open it?”

Chen Xi Yuan: “Uh… that was because I was severely injured. Alright, little brother, I understand what you mean. I’ll take it.”

This material was fine; Tan Wenbin, Run Sheng, and Lin Shuyou were not suitable to wear it. Their movements during combat were too large, and it would simply tear. Wearing it himself would also be a waste. The young man had a purple-gold compass to cooperate with the formation, which could maintain a concealed state for a long time.

Li Zhuijuan walked towards the animal pens. The old cat demon lay on the ground, barely breathing, more exhaling than inhaling. Some small kittens were sprawled on it, others nestled beside it.

The scene looked warm and pitiful.

However, if one extended their gaze a little further inward, to the Yu family members with nails hammered into their heads, naked and kept like pigs, that earlier emotion would immediately vanish.

Li Zhuijuan raised his foot and gently nudged the old cat demon on the ground.

The old cat demon opened its eyes, its gaze cloudy.

But one could still tell that it first looked to the left, then to the right, and finally at itself. It looked at each small kitten beside it.

Li Zhuijuan spoke:

“I’ll give you the choice. Among these kittens, one must be your true form. Let it come out on its own, and I will spare the rest.”

All the fur on the old cat demon stood on end. If it weren’t on the verge of death, it would have instantly risen and torn the young man in front of it to shreds.

And the loving atmosphere that had just been created was now completely shattered.

Chen Xi Yuan: “So, it was never protecting these kittens, but itself?”

Li Zhuijuan: “It even deliberately caught many other kittens temporarily to better protect its true form.”

The old cat demon’s body swelled, pus oozed out, emitting waves of foul odor.

All the surrounding small kittens, upon smelling this, mutated. Their eyes glowed red, and then they quickly scattered and fled.

Chen Xi Yuan was about to open her domain, but she found that after running a certain distance, all the kittens began to spin in place.

“So, little brother, you had already set up a formation here…”

Even at the brink of death, the old cat demon refused to expose its true form. It preferred that the other kittens be buried with its true form, polluting them completely with demonic resentment.

Li Zhuijuan retreated a distance. After Chen Xi Yuan also walked over, the young man snapped his fingers.

Within the small formation circle, flames leaped up, burning everything clean.

Too lazy to look further, the young man entered the animal pens again and said,

“Let’s save the people.”

After clearing the battlefield, Tan Wenbin and the others also came to the animal pens.

The scene here made one feel physically uncomfortable.

Li Zhuijuan: “Brother Binbin, A You, you two grab them one by one and bring them before me. Brother Run Sheng, you pull out the nails. Chen Xi Yuan, if you see anyone bleeding heavily after having a nail removed, open your domain to help stop the bleeding.”

“Understood!”

“Understood!”

“Got it!”

Lin Shuyou specifically glanced at the uncooperative Chen Xi Yuan.

The first person was brought before Li Zhuijuan. Run Sheng disassembled the Huanghe Chan, using one hand to hold the person’s head and the other hand, with the铲头凹槽 (shovel head groove), to pull out the nail.

A milky-white flame appeared on the young man’s fingertip. He allowed the flame to enter the person’s wound, burned it for a short while, and then pulled the small flame out.

The person first lay on the ground, twitching for a while, then the dullness in their eyes gradually disappeared, revealing confusion and peace, and they slowly fell asleep.

Chen Xi Yuan: “These nails seem to be embedded in their bodies, but in reality, they pierce their souls. When the nails are pulled out, their souls rupture, almost certainly leading to death. Little brother, how did you do it?”

Li Zhuijuan: “It’s like stopping bleeding for a rough external wound, cauterizing it closed.”

Chen Xi Yuan: “Then this flame is…”

Li Zhuijuan: “The Ming family’s ‘Fen Hun Qing Xin Jue’ (Soul Burning and Heart Cleansing Art).”

Chen Xi Yuan: “You’ve learned it.”

He had only gotten this book from the Three Squirrels when leaving the village.

Chen Xi Yuan remembered that the young man’s actual time spent reading the book was during the journey to Beiman Mountain.

Li Zhuijuan: “Mm.”

Chen Xi Yuan: “How did you… do it?”

Li Zhuijuan: “You should learn things quickly too.”

Chen Xi Yuan: “I used to think so too. And this is a secret art of the Dragon King’s family, after all.”

Li Zhuijuan: “No difference.”

The Ming family’s “Fen Hun Qing Xin Jue” happened to be able to sever souls, making it perfectly suitable for cauterizing and rejoining the souls of the Yu family members who were being bred here.

Next came the second, third, fourth…

There were many people here. Chen Xi Yuan initially thought the young man would stop to rest, but to her surprise, he kept sitting there, treating them one by one.

Sweat had already beaded on the young man’s forehead. Chen Xi Yuan knew that besides continuously performing this spell, the young man also had to maintain an extremely high level of detailed control, otherwise, he would directly ignite the souls of the people in front of him.

Watching the young man, clearly exhausted but tireless, Chen Xi Yuan’s gaze held both heartache and admiration.

She took a can of Jianlibao from Run Sheng’s backpack, opened it, walked over to the young man, and fed it to him.

Li Zhuijuan drank it all, and then his lips became even paler.

Chen Xi Yuan: “At first, I thought you were cold and heartless…”

Li Zhuijuan: “At first?”

Chen Xi Yuan: “Oh no, at first you were very cute. Later, after more contact, I realized you seemed very… calm.”

Li Zhuijuan: “I still am.”

Chen Xi Yuan: “You’ve shown me another side of you. You always maintain your state and pursue cost-effectiveness in every fight. But now, to save them, you’ve not only greatly weakened your state but are also on the verge of exhaustion. Little brother, please rest.”

Li Zhuijuan: “I want to be exhausted.”

Chen Xi Yuan: “Little brother, listen to your elder sister, take a rest. Your elder sister understands the kindness and warmth deep in your bones.”

Run Sheng closed his eyes. Tan Wenbin and Lin Shuyou, who were next to him catching people, silently exchanged glances.

As partners, they had never imagined that adjectives like “warm” and “kind” would one day be associated with their Brother Xiaoyuan.

Li Zhuijuan noticed that Chen Xi Yuan was controlling her domain to help him calm his breathing and recover his state. Although its effect was minimal when used on others, it was her kind intention.

The young man glanced at her and said, “Don’t use your domain to affect me.”

Chen Xi Yuan: “Just helping you relieve some fatigue.”

Li Zhuijuan noticed that he was currently enveloped by Chen Xi Yuan’s domain, so he said,

“I just want to be tired, I want to be exhausted, preferably with a little nosebleed.”

“Huh?”

“You also saw the commotion in the Yu family ancestral hall earlier.”

“Yes, I saw it.”

“As a successor of the Dragon King’s family, you should know what’s in the Dragon King’s ancestral hall.”

“There are the spirit tablets of past Dragon King ancestors, and… the spirit of the Dragon King. But how could the Yu family still have a spirit? The Yu family has become like this, the spirits of the past Yu family Dragon Kings must have all dissipated to prevent the changes in the Yu family.”

“That’s hard to say.”

“So, little brother, you think the commotion in the ancestral hall earlier was caused by the lingering spirits of the Yu family Dragon Kings?”

“That’s also hard to say.”

“Then…”

“I just think that if that ancestral hall had no spirits, there would be no other reason to create a commotion there.”

Chen Xi Yuan looked at the young man in front of her with a scrutinizing gaze again. She felt that every time she thought she understood him, she would soon realize that her understanding was too superficial.

“Little brother, so what you mean by deliberately wanting to be tired and exhausted is…”

“I think doing good deeds anonymously is a noble virtue, but wanting to be recognized for good deeds is also perfectly reasonable. I want the spirits of the past Yu family Dragon Kings to see what I’m doing, and to see that I’m working very hard.”