Upon the mountain path.
Gu Luoli was already in a perilous situation, as five people forced her into a corner.
The leader smirked and reached out toward her.
A flash of resolve flickered in Gu Luoli's eyes. A faint golden light struggled to ignite deep within her Double Pupils, as she prepared for a life-and-death struggle!
Inside the ring, Yun Miaoyi sighed repeatedly. Her soul form fluctuated violently, yet she was powerless to help.
Just at this critical moment—
Pfft! Pfft! Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!
Five extremely faint thuds rang out almost simultaneously.
The leader's hand was only three inches from Gu Luoli's chest when it suddenly froze.
The smile on his face stiffened, and his gaze quickly became vacant and lifeless.
Then, he, along with his four companions beside him...
...slumped down silently and collapsed to the ground, like clay dolls drained of all bone and blood.
There was no blood, no wounds, and not even a ripple of spiritual energy.
Five living Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivators had lost all signs of life so bizarrely and without warning.
The mountain breeze blew, swirling a few fallen leaves that landed on their still-warm corpses, adding to the deathly silence.
Gu Luoli was stunned.
She stared blankly at the five corpses on the ground, then looked around in confusion.
The empty mountain was quiet, save for the sound of the wind.
What just happened?
Who made the move?
She hadn't even felt any fluctuations of spiritual energy or Divine Sense!
These people just... died?
Inside the ring, Yun Miaoyi's remnant soul also fell into extreme shock and silence.
In life, she had not only been an Eighth-Grade Alchemist but also a Mahayana Stage Cultivator, with a Divine Soul strength far exceeding the ordinary.
Yet in that moment just now, she too had felt nothing!
No spatial ripples, no disturbances in the laws, and not a single trace of energy leakage!
Those five Foundation Establishment Cultivators were as if their life imprints had been directly "erased" by some supreme will!
What kind of method was this?!
To be able to do this so silently and without a trace, the cultivation of the person who acted had already surpassed the scope of her understanding!
"Is it... is it that Palace Master Gu?"
Yun Miaoyi's voice echoed in Gu Luoli's mind, carrying a hint of disbelief.
Other than that existence she had caught a fleeting glimpse of yesterday...
...she really couldn't think of anyone else who would save Gu Luoli at this time and in this place.
Gu Luoli's delicate frame trembled slightly, a complex expression appearing on her pale face.
There was the daze of surviving a disaster, the fear of the unknown method, but more than anything, an indescribable excitement.
If it really was that Palace Master... she had not only truly noticed her but even stepped in to save her?
This... what did this represent?
"Senior Yun..."
Gu Luoli's voice was dry. "We..."
"Leave, quickly!"
Yun Miaoyi quickly calmed down and said in a low voice,
"Regardless of whether it was that Palace Master, this is no place to linger!"
"Let's get to the city ahead first!"
"If it really was her, since she acted, there will surely be a chance to meet her!"
Gu Luoli nodded vigorously, suppressing the turbulent waves in her heart.
She took one last look at the bizarre corpses on the ground.
Supporting her weak body, she quickened her pace and staggered toward Linyuan City.
Zuichun Pavilion, private room.
Gu Han withdrew her gaze, as if she had merely brushed a speck of insignificant dust from her sleeve.
She drained the wine in her cup, smiled slightly at the girl playing the zither, and set down three Mid-Grade Spirit Stones.
"The zither was played well, and the song was sung beautifully. This is your reward."
The girl was overwhelmed by the favor and hurriedly stood up to bow gracefully.
"Thank you for the generous reward, Young Master."
She looked up, stealing a glance at the exceptionally handsome and mysteriously poised Young Master before her.
His brow was relaxed, his gaze deep, and a faint smile played on his lips; she seemed to be in a very good mood.
Yet for some reason, the girl felt there was always an indescribable feeling about this Young Master.
He was clearly sitting there, yet he also seemed as if he weren't.
That look she gave out the window just now, that flick of her finger... though the girl didn't understand why, it made her heart throb inexplicably.
"Young Master..."
The girl plucked up her courage and asked softly,
"Are you waiting for someone? Or... looking for someone?"
Gu Han glanced at her with some surprise; this girl was quite clever.
"You could say that."
She replied casually, standing up to straighten her unwrinkled robes.
"Someone... who perhaps shares a karmic bond with me."
Having said that, she spoke no more. With a slight nod to the girl, she walked out of the private room, swaying her folding fan.
The girl stared blankly at her departing back.
It wasn't until the madam came in to clean up and saw the three Mid-Grade Spirit Stones on the table that a cry of surprise snapped her out of it.
"Where is that Young Master?"
"Gone..."
"Oh my! These are Mid-Grade Spirit Stones! This Young Master is truly generous!"
"And he was so handsome... Girl, did he..."
The girl shook her head, her thoughts still lingering on those deep eyes and that casual flick of a finger.
Gu Han left Zuichun Pavilion but didn't go far.
She strolled along the most bustling street in Linyuan City, her Divine Sense like an invisible net, quietly enveloping the direction of the city gate.
She was waiting—waiting for that heavily injured, stubbornly advancing girl to enter the city.
About two hours later.
Gu Han was pausing in a shop selling ancient books, flipping through an atlas introducing Yao Beasts.
Within the perception of her Divine Sense, a weak but determined aura finally appeared at the city gate.
Gu Luoli stepped into Linyuan City.
The bustling voices and the array of shops allowed her tense nerves to relax slightly, but what followed was an even deeper exhaustion.
Her face was frighteningly pale, her steps unsteady; every step seemed to drain her of all strength.
Under the strain of the forced march and the previous battle, the damage to her dao foundation seemed to be worsening, and bouts of sharp pain radiated from her Dantian.
"Senior Yun... I... I don't think I can hold on..."
Gu Luoli's consciousness was slightly blurred. She leaned against a nearby wall, gasping for breath.
"Luoli! Hang in there! Find a place to stay first!"
Yun Miaoyi's anxious voice rang out.
Gu Luoli's unfocused gaze swept across the street, spotting a fairly clean-looking inn not far away—the "Yuelai Inn."
She bit her lip and, using the last of her strength, staggered toward the inn.
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