Convergence

Ghost Forest was silent. No insects chirped or grasshoppers leaped amid the mist-shrouded woods, and the ground carpeted with rotting leaves was covered in a thin layer of white frost.

Firewood crackled. Through the air warped by the blazing flames, Xu Yuan watched the beautiful woman wrapped in a felt blanket across from him.

Stray locks of hair fell beside her temples. Xia Qing lowered her eyes, her long, thick lashes trembling faintly.

Compared to the dignified nobility she had carried when they first met, she now looked utterly haggard. Wrapped quietly in her blanket as she sat on the ground, she stared wordlessly at the leaping campfire before her.

Retracting his gaze, Xu Yuan raised a hand and rubbed his brow.

Three days had passed since he parted ways with Tang Ruofu.

According to the original plan, Tang Ruofu should have made his move against that Heavenly Oversight Pavilion Holy Maiden by now. He just did not know whether he had succeeded.

With that thought, Xu Yuan gave a soft snort and gathered his thoughts, his gaze sweeping over the withered forest blanketed in white frost.

This forest was cold—abnormally cold.

It should have been late autumn outside. All Swords Valley was shrouded in Ghost Mist, so its temperature was somewhat lower than the outside world's, but it should never have been cold enough for dripping water to freeze into ice.

A high-ranking Yingui should be lurking in this forest. He simply did not know where it was hiding now.

The thought flashed through Xu Yuan's mind, and he did not dwell on it further.

Though Yingui—monsters born from corpses—possessed little intelligence, they still had the instinct to seek advantage and avoid harm.

Otherwise, Sword-Forging Valley could never have expanded to such a scale. It would have long since