There are still people behind

The borderlands between Wuyang Prefecture and Donghe Prefecture.

In truth, it was just the area around Cloud Mountain Cliff.

Yu Xiu stepped off the Flying Boat; he recalled that Su Wenjin had paid the contribution points for the vessel in advance.

He glanced toward the small town nearby, where people were still coming and going, though there were far fewer cultivators than before, and he saw no sign of Luo Fuyi with her sword and blade on her back; he assumed they had all departed.

"Guan Che!" Without lingering, Yu Xiu took out a palm-sized wooden sword.

This was what Su Wenjin had given him; once activated, it could track a target based on the aura left behind earlier.

Among similar secret arts, the most common was the Daoist paper crane tracking, which also had the lowest cost, requiring only a single talisman.

The Sword Sect's wooden sword was actually quite decent, all things considered!

Just as Yu Xiu was about to activate the wooden sword in his hand, his expression shifted, and he slipped into the dense forest.

A disciple of the Qingwei Sword Sect? He looked at a young man hurrying over from the distant town; the man's features were effeminate and carried a hint of gloom, his skin a sickly, pale shade.

Although this person did not wear the robes of a Qingwei Sword Sect disciple, Yu Xiu's Sword Heart could easily perceive the Sword Qi emanating from him.

He was undoubtedly a sword cultivator from the Sword Sect.

Hmm? The Sword Qi is impure, yet it is not the muddiness caused by pill toxins! Yu Xiu sensed it slightly and felt even more puzzled. Did he break through his realm by relying on external objects?

That's not right either.

His Sword Qi seems to be mixed with an aura that does not belong to a sword cultivator!

This fellow disciple of the Qingwei Sword Sect had certainly not attained his strength through normal cultivation; he had likely taken a crooked path!

Is he also looking for someone? Yu Xiu used Hidden Edge to suppress his aura entirely, watching silently as the young disciple walked into the forest and likewise produced a tracking wooden sword.

After a moment's thought, Yu Xiu followed silently behind him.

The man activated the wooden sword, and it flew from his hand, soaring into the air in a specific direction; his face lit up with joy as he snatched the sword back.

He then took out a communication talisman, said something into it, and watched as the talisman burned, turning into green smoke that drifted away.

Perhaps half an hour later, a figure exuding a cold, sinister aura arrived.

A Shadow Demon?! Yu Xiu's heart stirred.

Having cultivated a Sword Heart, his spiritual perception was far beyond that of an ordinary practitioner in the second stage, the Five Elements Realm.

He easily perceived that this newcomer was undoubtedly a Shadow Demon.

Although the aura belonging to the Shadow Demon was tightly sealed within its body, it could not deceive his Sword Heart.

Unsurprisingly, this Shadow Demon was likely one that had occupied the physical body of a cultivator after killing them during a breakthrough.

Aside from their essential nature as demons, such Shadow Demons were almost indistinguishable from normal cultivators; their bodies were perfectly adapted, making them the most difficult to detect!

Furthermore...

This Qingwei Sword Sect disciple had indeed taken a crooked path; otherwise, how could he be colluding with a Shadow Demon?

In his capacity as an enforcer from Dragon-Slaying Peak, seeing this situation meant he could strike immediately to act on behalf of the sect's justice.

However, he wanted to see what this Qingwei Sword Sect disciple was truly planning and who exactly he was looking for.

"Wei Guan, have you found the trail of that Guan Che?" the Shadow Demon whispered, his gaze deep and eerie, making even the Sword Sect disciple, Wei Guan, feel uncomfortable.

The gaze of such a Shadow Demon was highly aggressive, capable of unconsciously influencing a normal person's temperament, or even infecting them with demonic energy until they eventually fell into depravity.

Wei Guan hid his discomfort well and said respectfully, "Envoy Changqing, I have already found a lead."

"I made sure to take items related to Guan Che when I left the sect, so I have his aura!"

"Good. If you can find Guan Che, I can take it upon myself to record a merit for you within the sect." The Shadow Demon known as Envoy Changqing flashed a strange, ghostly light in his eyes, making Wei Guan feel even more uneasy, though the sensation quickly faded.

Seeming to notice Wei Guan's subtle disgust, Envoy Changqing sneered, "Do not harbor any delusions of returning to the Qingwei Sword Sect. You used evil arts to break through your realm; you know best how many lives compatible with your fate you sacrificed."

"If you dare to show even the slightest flaw, those ruthless people from Dragon-Slaying Peak in the Sword Sect will surely cast you into the Earth Fire Prison to grind your soul and dissolve your bones; you will never see the light of day again!"

At the end of his words, Envoy Changqing let out a chilling, sinister laugh: "But if you follow our sect, it is different. You used evil arts to break through, ruining your foundation as a sword cultivator, and you are destined to stop here. But if you switch to our sect's sacred arts, you will find they complement each other perfectly!"

"What is so good about being a sword cultivator? Aside from practicing the sword, it is always practicing the sword—practicing every day, every moment. The progress is slow, and it is exhausting and laborious. You know better than anyone how much you have suffered for your sword practice all these years."

"Look, in the end, what have you gained?"

The more Wei Guan heard, the uglier his expression became. It was not that Envoy Changqing was wrong, but that every word seemed to strike at his heart, resonating with him, earning his approval, and fueling his resentment toward the Qingwei Sword Sect!

No, he is hooking my inner demons! Being a sword cultivator of the sect, Wei Guan felt a jolt in his heart and quickly reacted.

These Shadow Demons and evil spirits were truly the most difficult to deal with; one wrong move and his inner demons would be stirred, and he would not be far from falling into depravity himself!

"Envoy Changqing, finding Guan Che is the priority." He quickly changed the subject, fearing that if he let the demon continue, he would be the one to suffer.

People of the Sword Sect are indeed hard to hook! Envoy Changqing sighed inwardly, though he remained calm on the surface. "Did you cover your tracks when you left the sect?"

"If you have attracted the pursuit of those ruthless people from Dragon-Slaying Peak, you will surely die!"

By the end of his words, the eyes of Envoy Changqing, glowing with a ghostly light, had become extremely dangerous.

Wei Guan forced a laugh: "I have been careful the entire way and will certainly not make any mistakes. The people at Dragon-Slaying Peak do not yet know that I used the blood sacrifice method to break through!"

Envoy Changqing gave an "Hmm" and said, "Hurry and track down Guan Che."

Wei Guan dared not dally, immediately spurring his wooden sword into motion and giving chase.

Once the man and the demon had departed, Yu Xiu finally strolled leisurely out from the dense forest: "Wei Guan!"

Breaking through via blood sacrifice with evil arts!

Colluding with a Shadow Demon!

Either one of these charges would be enough to see him dead, yet he had committed both.

His time of death had arrived!

What Yu Xiu had not expected, however, was that this Shadow Demon, Envoy Changqing, was also searching for Guan Che!

It mattered little, though; this Shadow Demon known as Envoy Changqing possessed strength roughly equivalent to the second of the Four Great Passes, the Five Elements Realm, likely no higher than the second layer.

Wei Guan, who had broken through using evil methods, was even more pathetic, having only just entered the Five Elements.

Had Yu Xiu struck earlier, both of them would already be a dead man and a dead demon.

Yet, Yu Xiu wanted to know if the demonized Guan Che had already colluded with Envoy Changqing.

If they had indeed joined forces, then none of them would be allowed to live.

He would simply beat them all to death.

In the end, Sword Heart Hidden Edge was truly useful.

Separated by a mere thirty meters, neither the Shadow Demon Envoy Changqing nor Wei Guan had sensed his presence in the slightest.

Lingering no longer, Yu Xiu pursued the man and the demon, heading deep into the mountains.

Just before leaving, Yu Xiu cast a faint, lingering glance in a certain direction, though he quickly withdrew his gaze as if it had been unintentional.

My Sword Heart's intuition cannot be wrong!

Behind them, there was someone else!