Xuanxiao was leisurely traveling with the Ancestral Witches when he suddenly looked up at the void without warning. His gaze was deep and distant, as though it could pierce through the endless Cang Qiong.
"Looks like we'll have to speed up. If we keep dawdling, you might really end up one or two brothers short." Xuanxiao spoke with a straight face, but the corners of his mouth curled slightly, betraying his undisguised glee at their misfortune. The Ancestral Witches saw it clearly.
"Second Uncle is way too nasty! From what Second Uncle means, those brothers we've never even met are probably being hunted right now, yet Second Uncle is actually snickering here." The Ancestral Witches secretly grumbled among themselves, muttering under their breath.
Xuanxiao could roughly guess what they were thinking from the expressions on their faces, but he did not care.
"If you have any objections, feel free to voice them. Your Second Uncle is the best at listening to other people's opinions." Xuanxiao spoke with a broad smile. He looked sincere, but in everyone's eyes, there was something indescribably strange about him.
"Who would believe that, Master? Anyone who does must be an utter idiot." Gou Chen heard Xuanxiao from the side and could not help curling his lip as he muttered under his breath.
"Really, Second Uncle?" Gonggong asked with an innocent expression. His clear eyes were filled with trust as he stared straight at Xuanxiao.
He was not the only one. Several other Ancestral Witches wore the same expression. Clearly, their thinking was exactly like Zhurong's—adorably simple.
However, Houtu, Xuanming, Dijiang, and Zhu Jiuyin wore hesitant expressions. They vaguely sensed a trap hidden in Xuanxiao's words, but for the moment, they could not figure out what it was.
Hearing Gonggong, Gou Chen was rendered speechless. He secretly sighed to himself, All right, I jumped to conclusions too soon. There really are quite a few "simple" fellows around me.
Seeing that Gonggong was about to speak, Gou Chen reacted quickly and covered his mouth.
Gonggong was startled by the sudden move and began struggling desperately, making muffled "Mmph, mmph" sounds while pleading for Xuanxiao's help with his eyes.
Gou Chen hurriedly explained to Xuanxiao, "Master, how could we possibly have any objections?"
"Really?" Xuanxiao raised an eyebrow, a trace of cunning in his eyes, as though he were looking forward to something.
By then, even the most slow-witted Ancestral Witch had realized that something was wrong.
Hearing Xuanxiao's question, they hurriedly shook their heads over and over.
"All right!" Xuanxiao looked at them and shook his head with considerable regret. His expression seemed to lament that he had failed to fool the Ancestral Witches.
"Whew, fortunately, Senior Brother stopped us. Otherwise, we'd definitely have been in trouble." The Ancestral Witches gazed at Gou Chen with gratitude. At that moment, they deeply understood how important it was to have a reliable senior brother nearby—at the very least, he could shield them from all the schemes of their "unscrupulous Second Uncle," Xuanxiao.
As Gou Chen looked at the grateful gazes of the Ancestral Witches, he could not help sighing inwardly. Sigh, I'm afraid I'll have plenty to keep me busy from now on.
He knew his master far too well. He was certain that Xuanxiao would throw all the trouble caused by the Ancestral Witches at him to handle.
He could almost see his future self rushing all over the Primordial Wilderness, busy cleaning up the messes caused by the Ancestral Witches.
At that thought, Gou Chen helplessly looked toward the void again and let out a heavy sigh.
At that moment, Gou Chen was filled with anticipation for the Three Pure Ones Xuanxiao had mentioned. He sincerely hoped they would not be like the Ancestral Witches—a bunch of simple-minded fellows who knew only how to use brute force.
Seeing that he had failed to trick the Ancestral Witches, Xuanxiao did not dwell on it. He directly used a Divine Ability, swept up Gou Chen and the Ancestral Witches, and sped toward the distance.
On the other side, "Big Brother, Second Brother, why don't you run ahead? I'll stay behind and hold him off!" Tongtian anxiously looked at the Qilin relentlessly pursuing them, then turned toward Laozi and Yuanshi beside him. His eyes were filled with determination and resolve.
Laozi let out a helpless sigh. "It's useless. The Qilin behind us is at least at the peak of the Great Luo realm. He isn't failing to catch us—he's deliberately toying with us. Even if you stay behind, you won't be able to stop him."
"Then, Big Brother, what should we do?" Yuanshi asked anxiously, his brows tightly furrowed with worry.
Laozi pondered for a moment before saying, "Although I don't know why this Qilin keeps hounding us, I remember that the Phoenix Clan's territory isn't far from here. We can lure him there. Perhaps we can rely on the Phoenix Clan's strength to shake him off."
Though he said that, Laozi knew the plan would be extremely difficult to carry out.
This Qilin's strength was far above theirs. They might be caught before they even reached the Phoenix Clan's territory.
Moreover, even if they entered the Phoenix Clan's territory, the Phoenix Clan might not be able to withstand a peak Great Luo expert. They might even deal with the three of them as well.
But right now, Laozi truly could not think of a better solution.
Meanwhile, the Qilin pursuing the Three Pure Ones had eyes full of amusement.
It muttered, "I'm really too clever. As long as they don't die, I'll just keep chasing them. That way, Father won't be able to say I'm slacking off."
This Qilin was none other than Mo Yuan, the timid and trouble-averse son of Shi Qilin.
Ever since the Three Clans had begun their all-out war, Shi Qilin had strictly ordered him to leave Kirin Cliff and assigned him a pile of tasks to prevent him from slacking off.
However, Mo Yuan had his own way of dealing with it.
His pursuit of the Three Pure Ones was exactly the task he had received this time.
As long as he had not killed the Three Pure Ones, he did not consider himself to be slacking off. That was why he had been toying with them all along.
"Heh, these three brothers of ours look truly miserable." In the void, the Twelve Ancestral Witches looked down at the Three Pure Ones being pursued and could not help gloating. Their faces were alight with delight at the spectacle.
Xuanxiao and Gou Chen, meanwhile, stared in surprise at Mo Yuan, who was pursuing the Three Pure Ones.
Gou Chen looked at Mo Yuan with speechless disbelief and muttered, "This fellow really is fated to cross paths with us. Last time, he came looking for trouble with me; this time, he's making things difficult for my junior brothers. I really don't know whether to call him lucky or unlucky."
It's that coward! No wonder my divination showed that the Three Pure Ones were being pursued by a peak Great Luo expert but faced no danger of death. So Mo Yuan the coward was behind it. But even he has left Kirin Cliff. It seems the war between the Three Clans has reached its final critical stage. Xuanxiao thought this as he began carefully observing the Calamity Qi permeating the Primordial World.
Just as Xuanxiao had expected, the entire Primordial Wilderness was now shrouded in Calamity Qi. Countless living beings had been affected by it and fallen into frenzied slaughter, creating a scene of utter chaos.
"Strange. As a member of the Three Clans, why hasn't this fellow been affected by the Calamity Qi?" Xuanxiao curiously turned his gaze toward Mo Yuan once more.
"This fellow is unbelievably afraid of death. He actually managed to completely suppress the killing intent in his heart through his own cowardice. And even though the Calamity Cycle has reached its final stage, he's killed so few living beings. This time, his 'cowardice' really saved his life." Sensing the negligible Calamity Qi on Mo Yuan, Xuanxiao could not help shaking his head.
If Mo Yuan had not been so timid, then with his status as Shi Qilin's son, he would probably have been invaded by the Calamity Qi long ago and fallen into endless slaughter, unable to free himself.
Looking at the gloating Ancestral Witches, Xuanxiao secretly mused, Since Mo Yuan won't deliver a killing blow, I might as well use him to deepen the bond between the Three Pure Ones and the Ancestral Witches.
"Ah!"
A sudden scream rang out in the void. Ten Ancestral Witches were kicked down by Xuanxiao without the slightest warning. Houtu and Xuanming escaped being kicked because they were girls, but they now stared at Xuanxiao in terror and asked in trembling voices, "Second Uncle, what are you trying to do?"
"The ones below are your brothers. How can you just watch them fight alone? Since you're girls, I won't kick you down. Go down yourselves." Xuanxiao looked kindly at Houtu and Xuanming as he spoke.
Hearing this, Houtu and Xuanming did not hesitate in the slightest. They flew straight downward.
"You go down too. Remember to tell that coward not to reveal his connection with us." Xuanxiao instructed Gou Chen. Gou Chen nodded and followed them down.
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