Jiang Yan had returned, and Bai Shenghai was overjoyed.
By now, the Kunlun Divine Palace had turned its gaze back toward Moyun Prefecture. Huoyan Valley was naturally facing one crisis after another.
As the current sect master of Huoyan Valley, Bai Shenghai bore the brunt of it and felt utterly stifled.
The Kunlun Divine Palace loomed like a colossal beast in his heart, making it hard for him even to breathe.
Bai Shenghai had a premonition that if anything went wrong during this trip to Hengshan City, he and Liu Qingqing might never make it back.
If that happened, Huoyan Valley would naturally face utter destruction.
Now, Jiang Yan had actually returned. The "tall one" in his heart had arrived, and there was someone who could help shoulder the pressure. So the current sect master of Huoyan Valley decided to hold a welcome banquet for Jiang Yan and, while they were at it, tell him about the sect's current predicament.
However, what left Bai Shenghai utterly astonished was that the moment he came into contact with Jiang Yan, the protective energies around them suddenly surged of their own accord. Jiang Yan's power was like a towering tidal wave, instantly smashing Bai Shenghai's protective force to pieces before engulfing him.
In that instant, Bai Shenghai was terrified. He felt as though disaster was upon him, as if he had glimpsed the great terror that lay between life and death.
It was only because Jiang Yan bore him no ill will that Bai Shenghai survived. Otherwise, that single clash would have been enough to kill him outright.
"J-J-Jiang, fellow Daoist... you!" Bai Shenghai's eyes widened, as if he had uncovered some earth-shattering secret. His voice trembled as he asked:
"Have you already advanced to the Jie Realm?"
Bai Shenghai had attained the