Chapter 72: Outside the City Gate, Meeting an Old Acquaintance Again

How extraordinary is that Soul Jade?

Even the middle-aged scarred man is not entirely sure.

He only knows that because of that Soul Jade, the elders of the Yin Sha Sect regard Qianwan as a precious treasure.

Otherwise, with the methods of those demonic cultivators, encountering such a pure Yin soul, they would have likely used her for sacrificial refinement long ago.

Upon learning this, Su Yi couldn't help but glance at Qianwan and asked, "Do you still remember that Soul Jade?"

Qianwan shook her head and whispered, "It accompanied Wu Ruoxiu since my awakening. Everything else is a complete blank."

It was also her first time knowing that she used to reside in a mysterious Soul Jade, rather than being a Yin soul formed after a person's death.

This left her feeling lost, wondering who she really was before.

"How did the Yin Sha Sect obtain that Soul Jade?"

Su Yi turned his gaze back to the middle-aged scarred man.

The middle-aged scarred man shook his head.

His position in the Yin Sha Sect was not high, so he didn't have access to such confidential matters.

After thinking for a moment, Su Yi inquired about other matters related to the Yin Sha Sect.

As it turns out, since the massacre that occurred over a hundred years ago, the surviving remnants of the Yin Sha Sect had secretly regained some strength after lying dormant for more than a century.

Currently, in the main headquarters of the Yin Sha Sect, there was one Sect Master, two Deputy Sect Masters, and nine Elders.

In addition, the Yin Sha Sect had established six branch divisions, spread across different territories within the Great Zhou Empire.

Each branch division had one Division Master and four Protectors, overseeing disciples and descendants in their respective areas.

The scarred middle-aged man, as well as Wu Ruoxiu and Weng Yunqi, were members of the Yin Sha Sect belonging to the "Gun Prefecture Branch Division."

Upon learning this, Su Yi immediately understood.

The Great Zhou Empire was divided into "Six Provinces and Thirty-Six Prefectures," and it was inevitable for the six major branch divisions of the Yin Sha Sect to be established within the territories of the six provinces.

For example, the Gun Prefecture where Yunhe Prefecture was located had a branch division of the Yin Sha Sect.

In other words, the influence of the Yin Sha Sect likely spread throughout the Great Zhou Empire by now!

Of course, in Su Yi's view, relying solely on insignificant characters like the scarred middle-aged man, the Yin Sha Sect wouldn't be able to stir up much trouble.

Just like the scarred middle-aged man himself, although he was a disciple of the Gun Prefecture Branch Division, he didn't even know who the Division Master of Gun Prefecture was...

It was truly a comical situation.

The only thing the scarred middle-aged man knew was that Wu Ruoxiu's master, Weng Yunqi, was originally one of the four Protectors of the Gun Prefecture Branch Division. However, his whereabouts became unknown after he defected.

Upon learning all this, Su Yi couldn't help but ponder.

Ten years ago, Weng Yunqi and Wu Ruoxiu had fled, taking with them the mysterious Soul Jade, the Soul Nurturing Gourd, and a secret scroll on nurturing corpse insects.

And not long ago, when Su Yi killed Wu Ruoxiu, everything except for the mysterious Soul Jade had fallen into his hands, including Qianwan.

This raised a question: Why did all these treasures end up in Wu Ruoxiu's possession if she was just Weng Yunqi's disciple?

Where did Weng Yunqi go? Was he dead or alive?

"If I had known that Qianwan's background had such hidden secrets, I shouldn't have killed Wu Ruoxiu with a single sword..."

Su Yi sighed softly in his heart.

He hadn't anticipated that Qianwan's origins would involve so many hidden truths.

"No matter what, if I want to uncover Qianwan's origins, I'll probably have to start with the Yin Sha Sect..."

Su Yi didn't dwell on it any longer.

He wasn't particularly concerned about Qianwan's true identity.

However, if the girl herself wanted to uncover the truth in the future, he wouldn't mind lending a hand.

"Elder, I have revealed everything I know. Please have mercy and spare my wretched life," the scarred middle-aged man pleaded in panic, bowing his head.

At that moment, a hurried sound broke through the darkness from a distance. Soon, Cheng Wuyong, Yuan Luoxi, and others appeared on the scene.

When they saw Su Yi and the bodies lying nearby, Cheng Wuyong and the others couldn't help but be surprised.

"You were chasing after them?" Su Yi asked.

Cheng Wuyong nodded and said, "Reporting to Master, these guys sneaked towards an old dilapidated temple under the cover of night. They looked suspicious, and when I discovered them, they fled in a panic. Little did they know, they would run into Master's hands."

"It's over..."

The scarred middle-aged man felt as if he had lost everything, his heart filled with despair.

"They are members of the Yin Sha Sect. There's only one survivor now. Deal with him yourselves," Su Yi instructed.

After giving his command, Su Yi picked up the Soul Nurturing Gourd and left with Qianwan, heading straight away.

Cheng Wuyong naturally didn't hold back and ordered the guards to tie up the scarred middle-aged man, intending to bring him back to Guangling City for thorough interrogation.

"Miss, what are you looking at?" Cheng Wuyong suddenly noticed that Yuan Luoxi's expression seemed off.

Yuan Luoxi murmured softly, "Uncle Wuyong, did you notice just now? There's a red-clad girl floating around Master. She looks really beautiful... big eyes, fair skin, excessively beautiful..."

Cheng Wuyong narrowed his eyes and said, "Miss, if I'm not mistaken, that should be a ghost subdued by Master."

"A ghost?" Yuan Luoxi was surprised.

"Yes."

"But this ghost doesn't look scary at all. I've never seen such a stunningly beautiful ghost before," Yuan Luoxi said with envy.

"If I had such a ghost as a subordinate, I would comb her hair every day, dress her in different dresses, and adorn her with all sorts of beautiful jewelry. That would be really interesting," Yuan Luoxi said, her face full of longing.

Cheng Wuyong: "..."

What kind of fetish is this?

...

Inside the dilapidated temple hall.

After returning, Su Yi sat alone and began to ponder.

This visit to the Ghost Mother Ridge had yielded substantial gains. He killed six Yin Corpse Exterminators and obtained a storage Ink Jade Pendant, nine spiritual herbs, fifty spiritual stones, and more than ten bottles of elixirs suitable for Qianwan's cultivation...

In addition, he traded six Yin Grass for seventeen spiritual herbs from Yuan Luoxi, among which five were of the second-grade quality.

Later, in the peach forest, he obtained three fourth-grade spiritual peaches and a one-foot-long Yin Sha Spiritual Vein.

Adding up all these treasures, Su Yi had more than enough cultivation resources to not worry about it in the short term.

As for the other areas of the Ghost Mother Ridge, Su Yi no longer planned to explore them.

He vaguely deduced that with the methods of the Yin Corpse Exterminators and those wicked cultivators from the Yin Sha Sect, they had probably already plundered all the treasures on the Ghost Mother Ridge.

"I wonder when Ling Xue will return..." Su Yi muttered to himself.

He planned to leave Guangling City in the near future and had nothing worth lingering for.

The only thing he was concerned about was Wen Lingxue.

At dawn, Su Yi and the group set off, leaving the Ghost Mother Ridge behind.

Outside the Cemetery of the Nameless.

Yesterday, two escorts were left behind to take care of the horses. When they saw Yuan Luoxi and Cheng Wuyong return safely, they breathed a sigh of relief.

Immediately, the group gathered and headed towards Guangling City.

However, on the way, Yuan Luoxi and the others walked while leading their horses, staying by Su Yi and Guo Bing's side without showing any impatience.

Su Yi noticed this change but remained indifferent.

Just before they reached the city gate of Guangling City, Su Yi suddenly remembered something and reminded them, "It's best not to mention anything about the Ghost Mother Ridge. Otherwise, I'm not worried, but you might get caught up in some trouble."

Caught up in trouble?

Yuan Luoxi was startled for a moment and quickly said, "Thank you for the reminder, Master. However, if the Yin Sha Sect dares to come looking for trouble, we won't be afraid."

She was full of confidence.

But obviously, this young girl misunderstood.

Looking at Cheng Wuyong and the others, they all had expressions of doubt.

After thinking for a moment, Su Yi decided to explain a little more, saying, "If Ge Changling finds out that you were with me today, it will be hard to say whether it's good or bad for you."

Ge Changling!

Cheng Wuyong's face changed drastically. He was one of the top three "Nine Kings from External Clans" in the Great Zhou Dynasty, known as the Sea-Swallowing King!

Thirty years ago, he was already among the top ten Martial Masters in the Celestial Realm!

The other guards also stiffened, their expressions blank.

How did they end up having a connection with Ge Changling on this trip to the Ghost Mother Ridge?

He was like a god of war in the mortal world, a legend that could make the Great Zhou cultivators look up to him!

Yuan Luoxi, who was originally confident, widened her eyes, her beautiful face filled with confusion.

Ge Changling?

According to her father, he was a martial arts giant that the Yuan Clan revered...

After a while, Cheng Wuyong regained his composure and respectfully asked, "Master, could it be that there is some connection between the matters on the Ghost Mother Ridge and the Sea-Swallowing King?"

Su Yi dared to call Ge Changling by name, but Cheng Wuyong didn't dare.

Su Yi casually replied, "With his status, he shouldn't trouble you. But if, by any chance, you do encounter trouble, let him come to me."

These words made Cheng Wuyong's inner turmoil even worse. It seemed that the Sea-Swallowing King might indeed cause trouble for Master Su?

What was most unbelievable was that Master Su seemed completely unconcerned about the threat from the Sea-Swallowing King!

This little incident caused Yuan Luoxi and her group to have even more awe towards Su Yi.

As for Guo Bing, he was the most relaxed among them.

Although he was also puzzled, he had no idea how terrifying Ge Changling, the Sea-Swallowing King, was.

Ignorance breeds fearlessness.

"Miss Luoxi, you've finally returned!"

Suddenly, a hearty laughter resounded from the distance in front of the city gate. A young man in a jade robe, elegant and refined, walked towards them.

Behind him, an old man in a black hat followed closely.

It was none other than Zhang Yuanxing and his attendant, Xiong Lao.

When Su Yi saw this person, his eyes showed a slight difference.

Two days ago on Lingzhu Island, this young master from the Zhang Clan in Yunhe County had boasted that if Su Yi were to serve him, it would be like a good wind supporting him, capable of propelling him to the pinnacle...

At that time, it amused Fu Shan.

As for Su Yi, he naturally treated it as a joke and didn't take it to heart.

However, he didn't expect to encounter the person again at this moment.

"Oh, Su Gongzi? How come you're walking with Miss Luoxi?" Almost at the same time, Zhang Yuanxing also saw Su Yi and couldn't help but be surprised. "Are you planning to join the Yuan family and serve Miss Luoxi?"

The smile on his face faded, and his brows furrowed slightly, showing a trace of displeasure.

After witnessing Su Yi's performance at the Dragon Gate Banquet, he admired him and had even extended an invitation, hoping that Su Yi would help him and promising not to treat him unfairly.

Who would have thought that in just two days, Su Yi would appear by Yuan Luoxi's side!

This was a huge slap in the face!