With a gentle flick of his fingertips, Qin Yu caused the dark blue Soul Sound Talisman to slowly float in front of him. The Soul Sound Talisman was no bigger than the palm of his hand, but its surface was covered with extremely ancient divine runes. Each rune was interconnected, forming an extremely hidden network for transmitting Fate Soul.
Qin Yu didn't rush to activate it. Instead, he slowly closed his eyes, sending a wisp of divine sense, like a fine thread, into the depths of the Soul Sound Talisman. His divine sense continuously traversed the densely packed Fate Soul imprints within the Soul Sound Talisman. After only a few breaths, Qin Yu slowly opened his eyes, a cold glint in them. "As expected." "This Soul Sound Talisman corresponds to only one person." "It's also the only Soul Sound Talisman connecting Yuan Cangming and the person behind the Hua Lineage."
After he finished speaking, he slowly placed the Soul Sound Talisman on the side of the table. Then Qin Yu reached out and picked up the yellowed ancient map. He gently unfolded it with both hands, and with a whoosh, the ancient map slowly spread out, almost covering the entire tabletop. Qin Yu's gaze slowly swept over it, but at just the first glance, his eyes suddenly froze. This was no ordinary map at all.
The entire map is meticulously divided into countless Eternal Nonexistence Limitless Domain, with every ancient road, floating city, forbidden zone, and even source mine marked in great detail.
However, what truly made Qin Yu's pupils shrink was not these things, but rather two names densely marked on the right side of the map: --The Chi Lineage. --The Ju Lineage. Qin Yu slowly lowered his head, his gaze constantly shifting. On the map were all the main branches, sub-branches, outer strongholds, secret teleportation nodes, resource mines, and secret realms where disciples were secretly trained by the Chi Lineage family...
Almost everything was marked, and next to each branch, the person in charge and their shift were recorded in detail. The same was true for the Ju Lineage. All their strongholds, all their outer branches, all their hidden branches, and even a very few secret strongholds that outsiders were completely unaware of were all completely depicted.
The entire map was essentially a map of the combined power of the Chi Lineage and Ju Lineage. Qin Yu stared at the dense markings, remaining silent for a long time. After a moment, he slowly exhaled, his eyes growing increasingly cold. "It seems..." "both the Chi Lineage and Ju Lineage have scoundrels within them." His fingertips lightly traced the map, his gaze lingering on the most hidden locations.
"Moreover..." "This person's status is definitely not low." "These places" "are not secrets that ordinary disciples, let alone stewards, can access." "To be able to grasp such a complete layout" "is at least at the elder level." Qin Yu slowly closed the map, but a chill rose from his back. If this map really fell into the hands of the Hua Lineage...
At that time, Chi Lineage and Ju Lineage will have no data points, and their existence will be completely exposed. Thinking of this, Qin Yu's killing intent intensified. "It seems..." "Things are far more complicated than I imagined."
... Then, Qin Yu picked up the Soul Sound Talisman again. He slowly stroked the Soul Sound Talisman runes on its surface, a faint smile appearing on his lips. "Who exactly are you?" "Tonight." "You will find out." As soon as he finished speaking, Qin Yu's Ring Master Soul Diagram slowly activated, and an extremely subtle fluctuation of Fate Soul energy flowed into the Soul Sound Talisman.
The next instant, his voice began to slowly change. Within moments, his aura, the fluctuations of his Fate Soul, and even the slightly somber tone of his voice were identical to Yuan Cangming's. Qin Yu remained calm and slowly spoke, "The secret scroll has been retrieved, the elixir is complete. Meet me at the usual place at 1-3 AM today."
A soft hum resonated in the Soul Sound Talisman, and an invisible ripple vanished into the void, restoring tranquility to the room. Qin Yu waited patiently, but after only ten breaths, the Soul Sound Talisman vibrated again, and a deep, aged voice slowly emerged. "Alright." "See you at the usual place."
As the sound faded, the Soul Sound Talisman fell silent once more. Qin Yu slowly put the Soul Sound Talisman into his sleeve, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Heh..." "They've taken the bait." The next moment, his figure transformed into a streak of light, and with a single step, he vanished from the room.
... In the depths of the bamboo forest in the west of the city, the night was still deep. Moonlight filtered through the bamboo leaves, casting dappled shadows on the bluestone path. An inconspicuous ancient mansion sat quietly in the deepest part of the bamboo forest. If it weren't for the ancient map marking it, no one would have imagined that this was the place where Yuan Cangming and the people behind the Hua Lineage secretly met.
At this moment, Qin Yu had already arrived at this place. He stood high in the sky, his gaze sweeping over the entire ancient house. Then, he slowly raised his right hand, and thin, thread-like Fate Soul Dao patterns flowed slowly from his fingertips. These Dao patterns had no light or spiritual energy fluctuations, but they silently merged into the surrounding area of the entire house.
On the east side, a Fate Soul chain slowly sank into the ground; on the west side, a causal Dao pattern silently unfolded; on the north and south sides, countless extremely obscure Order Adjudication patterns intertwined with each other. In just a short moment, the entire outer perimeter of the ancient house had been completely transformed into an extremely concealed Slaughter and Cause-Trapping Formation, the formation hidden in the heavens and earth.
Blending seamlessly into the night, without any outward fluctuations, without any manifestation of Daoist principles, and without even the slightest anomaly in the space itself, if someone were to step inside, even a cultivator at the Wuji Realm would find it extremely difficult to detect the existence of this formation until it is truly activated. Qin Yu slowly withdrew his right hand, and then took a step forward.
He disappeared into the dense bamboo grove not far away, his presence completely vanishing. The entire area seemed as if no one had ever been there. Only his calm and deep eyes, peering through the gaps in the bamboo forest, silently watched the ancient mansion, waiting for the true mysterious figure of the Hua Lineage, hidden behind the scenes, to appear.
At the hour of Chou (1-3 AM), the hustle and bustle of the Heavenly Ruins Floating City. Deep in the bamboo forest, the night breeze gently blew, causing the green bamboo leaves to sway softly and rub against each other, making a soft rustling sound. The entire ancient house stood quietly under the moonlight.
The surroundings were eerily quiet, and Qin Yu remained hidden among the bamboo shadows not far away, his entire being blending into the night sky, not even a trace of his Fate Soul surfacing. At that moment, a tiny ripple suddenly appeared in the space above the ancient house.
It wasn't a forced tearing of the void, but rather someone who had mastered space to an extremely high level, merely creating a crack in the void large enough for someone to pass through. The next moment, a figure shrouded in a black robe slowly stepped out from the spatial crack.
He was completely covered in a black robe, even his face was hidden in shadow. After landing, he did not rush into the old house, but slowly raised his head and scanned his surroundings with extremely vigilant eyes.
After a moment, confirming that everything around him was normal, he stepped to the front of the old house. The long-sealed wooden door creaked open, and the man in black robes entered the courtyard, then gently waved his sleeve. Whoosh—a bronze lamp lit up first, then a second, a third...
Within moments, one ancient lamp after another lit up the entire old house, their dim yellow light slowly dispelling the darkness and illuminating the courtyard in a flickering glow. At the same time, outside the bamboo forest, Qin Yu still did not rush to appear. He slowly closed his eyes, and within his sea of consciousness, the Ring Master Soul Diagram began to operate slightly.
The subtle and elusive divine sense spread silently in all directions like a gentle Qingfeng. The entire bamboo forest, spanning a hundred miles, was swept by the divine sense, revealing no ambush and no second fluctuation of Fate Soul. The divine sense expanded outwards further, and the surroundings remained peaceful. Within a radius of a hundred miles, apart from the aura emanating from the ancient house, there was no other trace of anything unusual.
Qin Yu slowly opened his eyes, a cold glint flashing in them. "He really came alone." "It seems..." "This person trusts Yuan Cangming completely."
As soon as he finished speaking, Qin Yu no longer concealed his aura. He took a step forward and stood quietly outside the ancient house, the clear moonlight gently bathing him.
A figure in Qingyi stood with his hands behind his back, Qin Yu's expression calm, yet his voice carried clearly throughout the ancient mansion. "The Hua Lineage." "Come out."
Inside the room, the figure in black robes paused slightly, then slowly turned around, reached out and pushed open the door. The wooden door creaked open. An old and upright figure stood quietly inside, and only then did he slowly remove the black cloak from his head.
Qin Yu finally saw his appearance clearly. He was an elderly man around sixty years old, wearing a dark black robe with extremely intricate dark gold patterns embroidered on the hem. The robe was wide, but it could not hide the dignified demeanor that he had developed from being in a high position for a long time.
His temples were already streaked with silver, but he did not look old at all. Instead, he appeared more composed and unfathomable. His eyes were like a deep, cold pool, without any emotional fluctuation. He simply stared at Qin Yu, yet it made one feel as if they were in an ice cave.
The entire old house was filled with a suffocating pressure upon his arrival. At the Eternal Silence Realm · Supreme, Qin Yu quietly gazed at the person before him, his expression unchanged. The old man also stared intently at Qin Yu. Their eyes met, and the air seemed to freeze. After a moment, the old man finally spoke slowly.
His voice was icy cold, devoid of any warmth. "Who are you?" "You... are not a member of the Ancient God Clan." A faint smile slowly curved Qin Yu's lips. His voice was calm. "You..." "are not worthy to know my name."
At this point, his gaze slowly fell on the old man, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. "However," he continued, "I know," "you are a member of the Hua Lineage." Before he could finish speaking, the old man suddenly burst into laughter. "Hahahaha..." The laughter echoed throughout the entire old house.
However, a smile never appeared on his face. His eyes remained cold as ice, and there was not a ripple between his brows, as if his laughter just now was merely a mockery.
After a long pause, he stopped laughing, lowered his eyes to look down at Qin Yu, and said with a hint of sarcasm, "Such arrogance. You are only at the Eternal Silence Realm Initial Stage, yet you dare to be so arrogant in front of this old man." He slowly put his hands behind his back, and the overwhelming pressure of the Eternal Silence Realm · Supreme appeared faintly, sweeping across the entire courtyard.
"Do you recognize me? Hua Yin, the Grand Elder of the Hua Lineage!" "Don't you know that insulting the Hua Lineage is a grave offense? Moreover, you've provoked me; are you truly not afraid of death?" Qin Yu slowly raised his eyes, a slight smirk playing on his lips, a cold indifference in his gaze. "Since I dared to lead you here alone, do you think... I would fear death?"
Hua Yin raised an eyebrow, a scrutinizing glint in his eyes as he carefully examined Qin Yu from head to toe. His voice gradually deepened. "So... it was you who stole the secret scroll of my Hua Lineage a few days ago, and Hua Lingxi, along with a host of her disciples, died at your hands."
His gaze was fixed on Qin Yu, a chilling smile curving his lips, utterly contemptuous. "With your cultivation level, Eternal Silence Initial Stage, do you even deserve to act like this?" A chaotic, cold glint flashed in Qin Yu's eyes, his expression remaining impassive throughout, yet his voice was icy and biting. "It's me." "So what?"
The air in the courtyard suddenly froze, and all was silent. The two stood facing each other in the courtyard, and an invisible and intangible killing intent intertwined and entwined in the deep night.