Seeing the Wretched Black Demon, a man who dared to snub even the Nine Souls Sacred Clan, kneeling in front of Master Yin Ren, Princess Xiaoxiaoâs face paled in horror. She suddenly realized something.
Without any hesitation, she took out a talisman and invoked its teleportation power.
Pah!
However, an aged hand suddenly grabbed her wrist. It forcefully pumped a tremendous amount of spirit power into her wrist, disabling her teleportation formation.
âWhere are you heading to, Princess Xiaoxiao?â Master Yin Ren asked with an unnerving smile.
âWho in the world are you?â Princess Xiaoxiao asked.
âYou need not be afraid, Princess Xiaoxiao. As long as you remain obedient, I wonât do anything thatâll harm you,â Master Yin Ren said. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
He gathered yet another surge of spirit power and quickly constructed a formation to bind Princess Xiaoxiao, sealing off her spirit power and martial power. Even though he didnât tie her up, she was no different from a mortal at the moment.
In her current state, there was zero possibility of her escaping from Master Yin Ren.
After Master Yin Ren was done dealing with Princess Xiaoxiao, he turned to the Wretched Black Demon and asked, âDid you obtain it?â
Master Yin Ren didnât even allow the Wretched Black Demon to rise to his feet. He simply questioned the latter from a higher position, as if such were the natural positions between them.
Despite the Wretched Black Demonâs notoriety, he was still nothing more than a servant to Master Yin Ren.
The Wretched Black Demon began sweating buckets upon hearing those words.
âDonât tell me that youâve failed.â
Fury blazed in Master Yin Renâs eyes.
The Wretched Black Demon quickly lowered his back and kowtowed desperately, saying, âMilord, that old thing from the Zhuge Clan was simply too cunning! When he ordered his clan members to burn their life force, I thought that he was planning to make one last desperate struggle.
âYet, he actually invoked a teleportation formation instead! He sacrificed his entire clan just so that Zhuge Feiluan can get away! Iâm absolutely certain that the treasure is with Zhuge Feiluan right now.
âHowever, thereâs no need to worry. The Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chief isnât dead yet. If you interrogate him, he might just give away Zhuge Feiluanâs whereabouts,â the Wretched Black Demon said.
He took out a spherical formation and tossed it into the sky. The formation exploded in midair, and countless bodies appeared in the sky.
Princess Xiaoxiaoâs breathing hastened out of fear. She could tell that those bodies belonged to those from the Zhuge Clan⦠just that they had all been reduced to corpses. Mutilated corpses.
There was one person who was still alive, and that was the Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chief. It was just that he appeared to be in a state worse than his dead brethren.
The Wretched Black Demon pulled the Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chief into his hand and bellowed furiously, âOld thing, you better tell us where Zhuge Feiluan has gone to!â
The Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chief was in a feeble state, but he didnât pay any heed to the Wretched Black Demon. Instead, he turned his gaze toward Master Yin Ren.
âYou⦠You are the masterminds?â
The Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chief grew agitated upon seeing Master Yin Ren and Princess Xiaoxiao. The truth was more than apparent to him, especially with the Wretched Black Demon kneeling on the ground.
âZhuge Clanâs Clan Chief, it looks like youâre misunderstanding something. This has nothing to do with young friend Chu Feng or Princess Xiaoxiao, though you are right to say that Iâm the mastermind,â Master Yin Ren replied.
âYou sure are brazen. Yin Ren, when have I done you any injustice? Why must you do this to my clan?â
Despite the feeble voice of the Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chief, one could still feel his burning anger.
âBrother Zhuge, I really didnât expect such a brainless question to come from someone like you. If only you were willing to hand over the treasure, your Zhuge Clan could have been spared from this catastrophe. Youâre the one who brought this upon your own clan. You shouldnât be pointing your fingers at me.
âHow about this? Tell me where Zhuge Feiluan went. In exchange, Iâll spare your life and help you rebuild your Zhuge Clan,â Master Yin Ren walked over to the Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chiefâs side and said.
âPui! You beast! Do your worst! If I let out even a cry, Iâll renounce my identity as a member of the Zhuge Clan!â
The Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chief spat at Master Yin Ren.
Master Yin Ren didnât dodge the spit, causing the Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chiefâs saliva to slather on his face.
âHaa. Iâll never understand people like you. Whatâs the point of putting on a brave front when youâre already in such an utterly helpless position?â
Master Yin Ren calmly wiped off the saliva on his face before placing his hand on the Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chiefâs head.
Princess Xiaoxiao immediately turned her head away. She couldnât bear to see what was going to happen next.
However, something unexpected happened instead. Instead of killing the Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chief, Master Yin Ren started treating his injuries.
âMilord, you areâ¦?â
Even the Wretched Black Demon looked at Master Yin Ren in confusion.
âUseless fool. If heâs willing to sacrifice his entire clan to help Zhuge Feiluan escape, how could he possibly be willing to divulge the latterâs whereabouts? However, thereâs no need for us to search for Zhuge Feiluan. That child⦠doesnât look like a heartless person,â Master Yin Ren said.
âYou bastard, Iâll kill you!â
The Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chief immediately figured out Master Yin Renâs plan. He garnered the entirety of his strength to lunge at Master Yin Ren, hoping to provoke the latter to kill him. It was just that he couldnât even muster the strength required for him to rise to his feet under Master Yin Renâs suppression.
âStop struggling. You should be praying right now. Pray hard that Zhuge Feiluan is a heartless person. Thatâs the only way your Zhuge Clan can preserve its lineage,â Master Yin Ren said with a devious smile.
By this point, the condition of the Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chief had stabilized to the point where he was no longer in danger of losing his life. However, his body was tightly trapped within a formation, such that he didnât even have the freedom to take his own life.
âI donât need to teach you what you have to do, right?â Master Yin Ren looked at the Wretched Black Demon and asked.
âMilord, Iâm afraid that someone might stand up for the Zhuge Clan if I openly use this old thingâs life to lure our Zhuge Feiluan,â the Wretched Black Demon said.
âAre you saying that you fear them more than me?â Master Yin Ren asked with narrowed eyes.
âYour humble servant dares not. Milord, I wonât disappoint you.â
The Wretched Black Demon quickly prostrated himself, and his body wouldnât stop trembling. He was extremely frightened of Master Yin Ren.
âWretched Black Demon, I have high hopes for you. Donât let me down again. Otherwise, Iâm afraid that I wonât be able to save you when the poison in your body acts up again,â Master Yin Ren said.
âMilord, please believe in my loyalty!â the Wretched Black Demon cried out.
âI donât like people who are all talk. Go and find Zhuge Feiluan. As long as you obtain the treasure, Iâll free you from the poison,â Master Yin Ren said.
âRest assured, Milord. Iâll give it my all!â
The eyes of the Wretched Black Demon visibly lit up upon hearing that he could be freed from his poison.
âGo.â
Master Yin Ren waved his hand.
The Wretched Black Demon quickly stowed away the Zhuge Clanâs Clan Chief and the corpses of the members of the Zhuge Clan before leaving the area.
With that, the only ones remaining in the area were Master Yin Ren and Princess XIaoxiao.
Looking at the foreign man standing before her, Princess Xiaoxiao asked once more, âWho are you?â
âI am someone whom your Nine Souls Sacred Clan used to look down on. I chose to tolerate the humiliation and quietly bide my time. I have another name other than Yin Ren, and thatâs my true identity,â Master Yin Ren said.
To Princess Xiaoxiaoâs shock, he plucked out his right eyeball.
Bam!
As fresh blood spurted everywhere, a spirit formation gate surfaced in midair. The gate was translucent, allowing one to see what was going on within.
Within the spirit formation gate was a cage, and trapped within the cage was a man. The man was pinned onto a black formation wooden board by 136 special formation nails.
Princess Xiaoxiao didnât recognize this man, but Chu Feng would have surely been able to identify him right away.
That man was none other than Chu Fengâs master, the Ox-nosed Old Daoist!