Tianyi Demonic Sect

Most children couldn't see this, but An Jing understood it clearly.

Xuanming Manor frequently hunted fierce beasts, and even apprentices like them could receive beast meat as an extra meal; compared to ordinary hunting parties, they certainly possessed special techniques.

A battle formation designed for fierce beasts should be the foundation.

However, with An Jing's martial arts foundation, he could vaguely discern that this battle formation wasn't just targeting fierce beasts... but also some larger, more vicious monsters.

Moreover, this battle formation targeted fierce beasts that were "trapped in one place." But logically, they should also be prepared for fierce beasts that "launched surprise attacks."

Could it be that Xuanming Manor had some method to lure fierce beasts into traps?

He couldn't figure it out, but practicing it was never a mistake.

An Jing's heart was currently churning with doubts, but he had prepared everything and was just waiting for a cloudy night.

This day did not make An Jing wait too long.

In the mountains, one loses track of time, but the seasons are obvious; the weather had recently become increasingly hot, clearly entering summer, and as the long winds blew, thick clouds began to shroud the world.

Looking out at the distant mountains, the ink-black outlines of the dark clouds surged and expanded with the wind, like a living creature, exuding a somber and heavy sense of oppression.

A storm was coming.

"That's it for today."

Even the instructors at Xuanming Manor wouldn't make people train under these conditions; he dismissed the boys and girls to return to their dormitories and wait.

"Yeqi, Cang, you two wait a moment."

When they were dismissed, An Jing signaled for his two closest friends to stay behind. Gu Yeqi naturally agreed happily, and Cang Linzu was initially quite curious, but after considering a certain possibility, he couldn't help but shiver: "Wait, Brother Jing, you aren't going to make us practice martial arts in a rainstorm, are you?"

"Although it is indeed useful, I'm afraid the cold will seep into my body..."

"Do I look that terrifying?" An Jing blinked in confusion: "Do you think of me as that bad? I take good care of my brothers and sisters."

He had completely forgotten that the leg-training day he scheduled for his squad made the other eight members want to claim they had stomachaches the moment they heard the words, and Gu Yeqi and Cang Linzu, as his deputies, often had to accompany him for extra training.

The youth said seriously: "You misunderstood; I just have some things to tell you."

Saying this, An Jing handed two small booklets to them: "These are my insights on the Linyuan Qi-Nurturing Stake and the Armor-Piercing True Energy, including some... well, you know where the martial arts come from."

In the eyes of the two, filled with pleasant surprise, An Jing's expression was quite solemn: "The Manor Master told me not to pass these on, and I don't want to break the Manor's rules, but you can probably tell, right? The battle formation the Manor Master wants us to learn... our entrance trial might be to hunt fierce beasts."

"Hmm... indeed." Gu Yeqi nodded slightly in agreement; everyone had spent a long time with Zhang Ying and naturally knew the terror of fierce beasts.

Cang Linzu hesitated for a moment before saying: "I actually don't think it's just ordinary fierce beasts—the things that battle formation deals with are huge, or perhaps extremely dangerous."

"Perhaps, they might even be fierce beasts with demonic bloodlines."

"Yes, that is exactly what I am worried about." An Jing did not deny this speculation: "Regardless, it is very dangerous."

"To tell you the truth, I really don't want you to die, so even at the risk of breaking the rules, I must pass my insights on to you."

"Wait." Sensing something, Gu Yeqi frowned: "Brother An, are you... going to do something dangerous?"

Cang Linzu was not as sharp as Gu Yeqi, but upon hearing this, he also reacted; An Jing's attitude was clearly like someone giving final instructions—no, it hadn't reached that point yet, but one could clearly hear An Jing's anxiety: "Is there anything we can do to help?"

"If you can become a little stronger and protect yourselves, that is help enough for me."

An Jing sighed; if their progress in practicing the Armor-Piercing True Energy hadn't been so slow, he would have given them his insights long ago—if their level wasn't high enough, learning his techniques would only cause them injury: "I've watched people I know leave one by one, and I don't want the two of you to suddenly leave one day."

He patted both of their shoulders: "Work hard."

Boom.

A dazzling bolt of lightning fell from the distant sky onto the mountain, connecting heaven and earth, leaving the entire world in a pale glare.

The rain poured down.

The two looked at An Jing, then nodded in silence.

Time passed.

Late at night.

In the pitch-black dormitory, a flash of lightning lit up the room, then the light faded, leaving only a pair of open eyes in the darkness.

An Jing got up and first changed into a prepared set of clothes, piling his original clothes up in the bed to roughly form the shape of a person.

With his strength, he could easily shake his wet clothes dry, but for the sake of caution, it was better to change into something else for exploration.

He left the dormitory without a sound; the torrential rain masked his footsteps, and the dark clouds obscured the stars and moon, hiding his figure. An Jing crossed the Medicine Pavilion at top speed and headed all the way toward Dongshan Manor.

Medicine Pavilion.

Manor Master Yao, or rather, Vice Envoy Yao.

The white-haired old man narrowed his eyes, the ghostly green flames in his pupils contracting, allowing him to clearly see a red phantom of blood energy leaving the dormitory and heading toward Dongshan Manor.

"Heh heh..." he muttered to himself, his tone gentle: "It is just as the Northern Patrol Envoy said; the smarter the child, the more they like to explore secrets."

"A good thing!"

He revealed a hearty smile: "Those who follow the rules are of the lowest order."

"Only those who can break their awe of 'majesty' and 'rules,' 'deities' and 'life and death,' and even 'Heaven's Will' and 'fate' deep within their hearts, and find the answers they want for themselves, are the ones who belong to my Tianyi Divine Sect!"

"An Jing... will you be a Star Constellation Heavenly Official or an All-Evil Divine General? A Mysterious Yin Goddess is naturally impossible, but if you are a Seven Killings..."

Shaking his head slightly, Vice Envoy Yao of the Tianyi Divine Sect seemed to find his own guess too absurd, and thus he kept his mouth shut.

But he still kept his gaze fixed in the direction of An Jing, turned his head with a smile, and sat back down in his chair.

Checking the time, the old man picked up an hourglass, flipped it over, and began to keep time.

Vice Envoy Yao picked up his tea and took a sip, the dark green flames in his eyes flickering unsteadily: "Let's set a time limit—we can't have him wandering around as he pleases and causing too much of a stir."

"Still, I am truly curious about how he will feel when he discovers the truth."

At the same time.

[You have been discovered.]

The mysterious, ethereal voice rang out, but An Jing, who was sprinting through the night, was not surprised: "I know. Thank you for your help last time, but this time I am very clear that Manor Master Yao has already discovered me."

[Oh?]

Seeing An Jing respond so calmly, the voice could not help but be somewhat surprised: [Not bad, worthy of one with innate wisdom. Since that is the case, how do you intend to deal with it?]

"If I haven't guessed wrong."

An Jing did not answer the mysterious voice's question immediately, but instead spoke to himself: "The entire Xuanming Manor should belong to the famous sect known throughout the Northwest, the Zuntian Shenyi Sect, which is what the world calls the 'Tianyi Divine Sect'."

"And the Tianyi Divine Sect has another rather well-known alias."

"The Tianyi Demonic Sect."