Inside the hall.
Second Elder Feilu and the other Yaoyue Palace elders were growing anxious.
Originally, according to their plan, they intended to use this opportunity to eliminate Feiyan, Han Dong, and even Ancestor Fenghua and the others.
They simply never expected that Ancestor Fenglie, whom Xuanxin Daozun had testified was dead, would actually return to life. This immediately disrupted their plans and gradually shifted the unfavorable situation against Han Dong and the others. Moreover, Feiyan kept babbling there, saying some inexplicable things, which made the others increasingly apprehensive.
Elder Feilu knew that if things dragged on like this, it would only become more and more disadvantageous for him. Contemplating a preemptive strike to eliminate Han Dong and the others first, just as he was conveying his intentions to Zhong Yulong and the others, a voice abruptly sounded.
"The person you're looking for has been hiding at Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa all along, and you ridiculous fools are wasting time here!"
Whose voice?
No one knew.
The voice seemed to come from the heavens, yet also from the earth, and even from all directions. The elders of the major sects, including experts who had forged Dao-hearts, and even reincarnated great powers, all tried to trace the source of the voice, but none succeeded.
"What cowardly rat, hiding your head and concealing your tail! Show yourself!"
"Who is speaking?"
"Which senior might you be, sir?"
No matter how the people inside the hall questioned, there was no response.
Everyone was curious about who the speaker was and also wanted to know what the words meant. The person they were looking for was hiding at Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa?
Could it be referring to that Young Lord Chiyan, whose authenticity was unknown?
Unclear.
No one knew.
However, it seemed some believed it. Several reincarnated great powers vanished in a flash the moment they heard it. Immediately after, Murong Tian, Wan Dongfang, and the other members of the Ten Great Prodigies also disappeared one after another. Then, the sect heads and elders of the major sects followed suit. Soon, everyone else swarmed away in a chaotic rush.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Qian Shan immediately took Han Dong and Ouyang Ye and left. At the same time, Fenghua, Fenglie, along with Feiyan and the others, also vanished in a flash.
"Sister Qian Shan, was that some kind of diversion tactic you used just now?"
On the road, Ouyang Ye asked in surprise.
Qian Shan frowned and shook her head, indicating that the voice earlier was not her doing.
"Ah! If it wasn't you, then who was it?"
If possible, Qian Shan also wanted to know the answer to that question. The moment the voice sounded, she too had immediately tried to trace it, but unfortunately, she couldn't detect the source at all—there wasn't a single clue.
"Could it be that Lao Jiu is really hiding at Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa right now?"
Ouyang Ye's heart was filled with unease, excitement, and also fear. She both hoped the news was true and also hoped it was false.
The reason for hoping it was false was simple: the news was exposed. Now, all the major sects were swarming out in full force, and among them were so many reincarnated great powers—and those were only the known ones. As for the experts hidden in the shadows, who knew how many more there were? Moreover, they were all targeting the Mysterious Turtle in Lao Jiu's possession. In other words, if Lao Jiu was truly hiding at Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa, then this time he was probably...
While hoping the news was false, she also hoped it was true.
Because she really wanted to know if Lao Jiu was Young Lord Chiyan.
This was very important to her.
It wasn't just important to Ouyang Ye; it was also important to Han Dong. She too wanted to know if Lao Jiu was Young Lord Chiyan.
Originally, Han Dong wasn't particularly concerned about this question, as she had no prior connection with Young Lord Chiyan. However, she truly wanted to know just who that Lao Jiu was, to make her master revere him so.
They felt this way, and Qian Shan was no exception.
She also wanted to know who that mysterious and eccentric Lao Jiu really was, whether he was Young Lord Chiyan, and whether he was the heir of the King.
Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa wasn't far from Yaoyue Palace.
By the time Qian Shan and the other two arrived, the experts from the major sects had long since reached the location and were already forcefully breaking the formation enveloping Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa.
Having just barely escaped from Yaoyue Palace, Qian Shan would not let Han Dong and the other take risks again. After arriving at Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa, she hid them away to observe the situation quietly. Feiyan was with Ancestors Fenghua, Fenglie, and the others, so she was very safe now, and Han Dong naturally had no reason to worry.
Boom!
Crack!
Murong Tian from the Immortal Mansion led Shen Tuhao, Han Feng, and the other twenty-four Immortal Prodigies in attacking the formation.
Wan Dongfang from the Changhong Branch led Gao Yuan, Lei Guang, Qihang, and the other Nine Dragons and Eighteen Elephants in attacking the formation.
Cao Hongyun from Hunyuan Gate, Zhong Yulong from Yaoyue Palace, Wang She from the Huwei Wang Family, Young Lord Zhuchi from Heifeng Cave—all the prominent figures among the younger generation of the Great Northwest—displayed their unique abilities.
The formations at Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa had all been personally arranged by Han Dong. Although they could be considered quite profound, facing the combined assault of so many prodigious talents, the formation enveloping the villa didn't hold out for long before collapsing.
After the formation collapsed, Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa came into view.
Surprisingly, no trace of Gu Qingfeng was found within the villa. Instead, they discovered a little girl playing a guqin in the garden.
The little girl seemed not to have expected the formation to collapse, nor to have so many people suddenly arrive. She stood there dumbfounded, utterly astonished.
"Jin'er?"
The moment they saw Xiao Jinr, Qian Shan and the other two, hidden in the shadows, instantly flashed into view and rushed in without regard for anything else.
"Jin'er... Weren't you with your grandfather? Why are you here?"
A few days ago, when they left Wuse Mountain, Qian Shan had entrusted Xiao Jinr to Master Wenzhu. She didn't understand why Xiao Jinr, who should have been fine, had appeared at Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa. She asked in surprise and doubt, "Where is your grandfather?"
As soon as the words fell, an old man walked out from inside the garden. It was indeed Master Wenzhu.
Seeing so many people from the major sects arriving at Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa, Master Wenzhu was instantly frightened, his face turning deathly pale.
"Master Wenzhu, why are you at Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa?"
"It's Jin'er... Jin'er insisted on coming here to find Young Lord Chiyan. This old man... simply couldn't stop her."
Master Wenzhu felt like crying but had no tears. The Xiao Jinr of today was no longer the Xiao Jinr of a few years ago. The little girl's strength had long surpassed Master Wenzhu by a wide margin. He couldn't persuade her, couldn't control her, and couldn't stop her.
"Young Lord Chiyan... is he really... here?"
Xiao Jinr nodded and said, "Yes, Big Brother returned here after leaving Wuse Mountain. He's been helping Senior Kumu rebuild his primordial spirit. It should be almost done now. Big Brother said he could successfully help Senior Kumu's primordial spirit be rebuilt today."
Upon hearing that Young Lord Chiyan was at Xiao Zhe Mountain Villa, everyone immediately released their divine sense to probe. But no matter how they probed, they couldn't detect anything. Qian Shan also released her divine sense to probe, but similarly found nothing. They were all experts, possessing powerful divine senses. With a single sweep of their divine sense, they should be able to clearly perceive everything within the villa. Not to mention a person, even an ant shouldn't be able to escape their notice.
However.
Everyone swept and swept again, yet still found nothing. They began to suspect if they had been tricked.
But.
Right at that moment, the door to the house slowly opened.