Old Friends Part Ways by the River

"This happened two weeks ago," Steward Hu sighed and began his story. "Two weeks ago, at night, I suddenly heard a woman singing in my sleep.

At first, I didn't pay it any mind until the next morning, when the captain of the manor's guard suddenly died.

His appearance was extremely gruesome. He seemed to have encountered something terrifying; the whole person looked like he died of fright.

Since then, every night, a woman's singing can be heard in our Hu family manor.

However, no matter how I search with my men, I can't find out where the singing is coming from.

Every morning, someone in the manor dies. Even if I gather everyone together and we stay awake all night.

The next day, someone still goes missing and dies. Up until now, our Hu manor has lost nearly twenty people.

Many servants have resigned and left. Many people say I'm cursed."

"There are no ghosts or monsters in this world. It must be some scoundrel causing trouble," Wang Tao said disdainfully. "Steward Hu, don't worry. I'll personally patrol the Hu manor tonight and guarantee I'll catch the culprit."

"Good. Be careful, you few prodigies. If you need anything, just ask," Steward Hu said quickly.

"Tonight, gather everyone remaining in the manor. No one is allowed to leave. I want to see who's causing trouble," Wang Tao said sternly.

"No problem. We'll leave it to you few prodigies then," Steward Hu nodded.

Watching Wang Tao make his arrogant promise, Xu Zimo didn't say a word. He merely smiled faintly.

Whether the sect's mission was completed or not meant nothing to him. He was only here to take something.

He even wished they would all die. The more that thing devoured, the stronger it would become, and the greater its use to Xu Zimo in the future.

As they were chatting and eating, a little girl suddenly ran in from outside.

"Daddy, do we have guests?" the little girl asked, her voice childish and sweet, with two small braids. She looked only about four or five years old.

"Ying'er, come to Daddy," Steward Hu seemed to dote on his daughter. He quickly pulled the little one into his arms and introduced her to everyone. "This is my daughter, Hu Yingying. She had a serious illness a while ago. Fortunately, this curse didn't target my daughter."

After they finished eating, the sky gradually darkened. The light rain falling from the sky seemed to be getting heavier.

Raindrops began to fall one by one along the eaves, and the entire Hu family manor was enveloped in a faint mist.

Then, Steward Hu called all the remaining servants to the side hall. In fact, there weren't many people left in the manor.

With some servants dead and others gone, the number of people in the vast Hu manor was less than twenty.

"We'll patrol the east courtyard, and you patrol the west courtyard. How about it?" Wang Tao asked, looking at Xu Zimo and the others.

"Kid, do you want another beating? It's not your place to bark orders," Xiao Guizi said to him.

Then, he turned his gaze to Xu Zimo, awaiting his instructions.

"You guys go patrol. I'll stay in the main hall to protect Steward Hu and the others," Xu Zimo said, stretching lazily, sounding rather bored.

"Okay," Wang Tao didn't dare say anything more and left with the people from the Divine Sun Sacred Sect.

"Senior Brother, we'll go patrol the west courtyard then," Xiao Guizi said from the side.

Xu Zimo looked up. The rain in the sky seemed to be getting heavier, and the darkness of the sky gave off a particularly eerie feeling.

"What's there to patrol? Let's just go back and rest early," Xu Zimo said indifferently and then went to the side hall.

He left Xiao Guizi and Lin Ruhu looking bewildered.

Ren Pingsheng rushed home. After taking the pill Xu Zimo gave him, his injuries had mostly healed.

His mind was now filled with the matter of his ancestor Great Emperor Tunri's inheritance.

Finally, as the sky gradually darkened, he arrived at his Ren family's ancestral shrine.

Since their Ren family had declined, few people had come to the ancestral shrine anymore.

He opened the small wooden door, eroded by time. The light inside the ancestral shrine was dim, and the air was stuffy.

Directly in front was the statue of his ancestor, Great Emperor Tunri, covered in dust and cobwebs.

This statue was carved by later generations based on the ancestor's portrait. However, no matter how skilled the craftsmen they hired, they couldn't perfectly replicate the ancestor's appearance.

In the end, the descendants only carved a statue from behind.

Ren Pingsheng walked up to the statue, knelt, and kowtowed three times, then bowed three more times.

He then approached the statue and slowly moved it aside. Ren Pingsheng searched the altar and found a loose hidden brick.

He pushed the brick aside, revealing a hidden slot. The shape of this slot was identical to the shape of a flute.

Ren Pingsheng's breathing quickened. His mind went blank, and his hands trembled as he placed the flute into the hidden slot.

Then, the entire ancestral shrine began to shake. Endless spiritual energy began to condense above the shrine, and a profoundly deep vortex appeared before Ren Pingsheng.

The moment this vortex appeared, space collapsed, and countless air masses were squeezed and exploded, turning into streaks of air arrows that scattered around.

Ren Pingsheng looked at the scene before him, his heart filled with excitement. He murmured, "Yue Buli, just you wait. When I return, I will crush your Heavenly Sword Sect."

Ren Pingsheng, with surging emotions, walked into the vortex. Then, the vortex closed, and the surroundings returned to normal, as if nothing had happened.

Inside the True Martial Sacred Sect, atop Miao Liu Peak where the Sixth Elder resided, Baili Xiao sat within a white lotus.

This white lotus was an heirloom from Empress Hongtian. Baili Xiao's expression was indifferent, a lock of her beautiful hair fluttering in the gentle breeze.

Spiritual energy condensed within the white lotus, constantly nourishing her body. White mist swirled around her, making her appear like an immortal maiden descended from the heavens.

Her white robes billowed, her skin was fairer than snow, her lips bright and teeth white, as if even a glance was a profanity against her.

After a long time, the immortal spiritual energy surrounding her seemed to grow ever stronger.

Suddenly, with a "bang," Baili Xiao's Xuan Gu meridian point on her right hand broke through, and she advanced to the Condensing Pulse Realm. Boundless spiritual energy surged through her body.

She slowly stood up and emerged from the white lotus, walking with graceful steps. Beside her, two maids had already been waiting for a long time.

These two maids were the twins Xu Zimo had seen during the freshman trial: Xue Qianxue and Xue Mengmeng.

"Sister Xiao, you've broken through to the Condensing Pulse Realm!" Xue Mengmeng asked with a twinkle in her large, adorable eyes, her voice filled with surprise.

"I just broke through. You two should work hard too," Baili Xiao said with a soft smile.