Su Shi'er was also watching the battle from afar, but he did not rush to act. Instead, he turned to the two women and asked.
"What are the origins of these two? I vaguely heard earlier that they seemed... to both know Elder Shen?"
Chu Hongyue hastily explained, "This is one of the few ownerless lands in Muyun Prefecture, belonging neither to the five great forces nor to any other faction. Most of those here are Rogue Cultivators."
"A hundred years ago, Master brought us here to settle down. Though we lived in seclusion and cultivated quietly, over time, we still made quite a few friends."
"Senior Witty Scholar and that Old Monster Huang are both Rogue Cultivators who cultivate here in seclusion. They were also Master's old friends and shared a deep friendship with her."
"Several decades ago, the five great forces of Muyun Prefecture fell one after another, leaving Demon Shadow Palace as the sole dominant power. Old Monster Huang and several companions then sought refuge with and joined Demon Shadow Palace."
"After that, he came several times, hoping to invite Master to join Demon Shadow Palace with him."
"After Master repeatedly refused, he directly resorted to violence this time."
Su Shi'er nodded slightly and continued asking, "What about this Witty Scholar? Has no one invited him to join Demon Shadow Palace?"
His calm expression and gaze revealed none of his thoughts or intentions.
Yet inwardly, he was rapidly considering Witty Scholar's origins and circumstances.
The other man's earlier act of watching in secret had left Su Shi'er with many doubts. Naturally, he had to get to the bottom of it.
"Senior Witty Scholar has always been like a divine dragon whose head is seen but never its tail. Under normal circumstances, he only comes once every ten