Fine snowflakes drifted over the streets and alleys of Demon Sword City.
One after another, Inner Sect Disciples clad in white robes strode through the alleys, their expressions icy cold.
In a house on Tile Wood Lane, Outer Sect Disciples wearing blue robes gathered around a fire to warm themselves.
A cultivator needed at least to reach the ninth heaven of the Qi Refining Stage to have some resistance to heat and cold.
By the Foundation Establishment Stage, they could be impervious to the elements.
However, this group of Outer Sect Disciples was huddling together to stay warm in the current freezing conditions.
Of course, the most important thing was to chat idly and pass the time.
Inside Demon Sword City at the moment, Inner Sect Disciples patrolled everywhere, while this group of Outer Sect riffraff had already lost the privilege to leave their courtyards, stuck inside, extremely bored.
The Outer Sect Disciples did not understand the full picture; they only saw the demon rebellion and were unaware of the emergence of the Immortal Artifact.
Thus, when the Sect’s army arrived, they were surprised to discover that the consequences of the rebellion at Centipede Ridge were more serious than they had imagined.
The entire upper echelon of the Soul Refining Sect had mobilized, with over ninety percent of the Inner Sect Disciples arriving in Demon Sword City.
Those Inner Sect Disciples, who were usually aloof and shrouded in mystery, were now visible everywhere within Demon Sword City.
The vast Demon Sword City was completely sealed off, with entry and exit prohibited.
And Guan Xiaoshun’s group of Outer Sect riffraff, who had luckily returned alive through underground tunnels, were directly confined within Tile Wood Lane and not allowed to leave even a step.
Furthermore, after the arrival of the Sect’s army, the Elders personally appeared to interrogate every surviving Outer Sect Disciple, asking about their experiences in the underground tunnels.
These clueless Outer Sect Disciples had no idea that their names had flickered on the Yama King’s register several times already.
If the Sect discovered that someone had witnessed the emergence of the Immortal Artifact, they would be immediately silenced.
Luckily, this group of Outer Sect Disciples moved quickly and did not witness the emergence of the Immortal Artifact; they only knew about the demon rebellion at Centipede Ridge.
Therefore, after the interrogation ended, not a single one of these Outer Sect riffraff died, and no one was silenced.
The Sect’s disposition toward them was merely temporary confinement, forbidding them to go out.
Meanwhile, the Soul Refining Sect mobilized all its Inner Sect Disciples in white robes to search for the Immortal Sword throughout the city.
If they could find and subdue the legendary Immortal Artifact, the Soul Refining Sect would gain top-level combat power.
Even if they couldn’t subdue it, they had to seal it and ensure that it would never fall into the hands of Path of Immortality cultivators.
This search continued for three months, with the white-robed Disciples scouring every corner of Demon Sword City, until the arrival of the lunar New Year, but still without any progress.
Not a trace of the Demon King of Centipede Ridge was found, except for a few severed limbs unearthed from underground.
And Elder Yan Xiaoru, who was left underground at the time, along with another unlucky Outer Sect Disciple, had similarly disappeared without a trace, not even a single hair found.
After opening up the collapsed underground mine, they found shattered remains of the Sun Moon Pot, revealing just how intense the battle had been.
Since even a top-grade Spiritual Treasure like the Sun Moon Pot had exploded, it wasn’t surprising that Elder Yan, trapped underground, was left with no remains.
But what about the Immortal Sword?
Where had that Immortal Artifact level sword gone?
Elder Yan’s death was one thing, but the whereabouts of the Immortal Sword had to be found.
The Soul Refining Sect mobilized everyone, resolving to excavate down three feet if necessary to find out where that ancient Immortal Sword was.
…
Amidst the drifting snow, Li Yuechan walked out from Ning Wan’er’s courtyard, exhaling a breath of cold air under the moonlight.
Her expression was somewhat despondent and tangled.
For the past three months, she had been investigating the whereabouts of her brother.
However, after the news of Elder Yan’s possible death spread, Ning Wan’er, as a direct disciple of Elder Yan, saw her status in the sect plummet dramatically.
Elder Yan’s other three direct disciples had already switched allegiances and taken other elders as their mentors.
Geniuses capable of becoming direct disciples were not lacking in offers of mentorship.
But Ning Wan’er’s cultivation was too weak, her time within the sect too short, and she lacked connections, which meant she had no channels through which to seek a new mentor.
At this point, the elders of the Demon Sect were preoccupied with searching for the Immortal Sword, and temporarily no one paid attention to this young girl who had just entered the sect.
During these days, Li Yuechan often came to talk with Ning Wan’er, enabling her to step out of her confined situation.
This was one of the few privileges that the greatly downgraded Ning Wan’er still had.
After leaving Ning Wan’er’s courtyard, Li Yuechan walked alone on the streets where snow drifted down and heaved a deep sigh.
“Still no results…”
The sect had almost deployed its full force, yet they still could not find the whereabouts of the Immortal Sword, her own brother, or Elder Yan.
Everyone believed that Li Muyang and Yan Xiaoru were dead, but the young girl firmly believed her brother was still alive.
This was not a refusal to accept reality, but rather that her brother genuinely was still alive.
The girl took out a small sachet from her bosom. The sachet seemed ordinary, but it contained some of her brother’s hair.
It was hair Li Yuechan had collected strand by strand while doing laundry for Li Muyang. The hairs, long and short, could be used to perform techniques and link to Li Muyang.
What had originally been a casual act now proved useful.
According to a senior, based on the techniques performed on these hairs, her brother was still alive and even within Demon Sword City.
“…Only his aura is flickering, sometimes distant, sometimes near, quite peculiar.”
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The voice of a mysterious woman whispered in Li Yuechan’s ear.
“I suspect there is a secret realm within Demon Sword City, and that your brother is currently in that realm.”
Unfortunately, the current senior’s power was waning and could not accurately trace the entrance to this secret realm.
“Let’s wait for some of the Inner Sect disciples to withdraw from the city,”
the mysterious woman’s voice whispered again in Li Yuechan’s ear, “Right now, the city is full of Inner Sect disciples and several elders from the Soul Refining Sect; any minor disturbance could attract their attention, so we must not act rashly.”
“But these elders can’t stay here forever. After a while, when the elders of the Soul Refining Sect have mostly withdrawn, and the Inner Sect disciples of the Demon Sect have also pulled out some,”
“then we can make our move. We’ll kill a few Inner Sect disciples, drain their blood and essence, and with my restored strength, I can help you find your brother.”
The voice of the mysterious senior resounded in her ears, and Li Yuechan slowly nodded.
This mysterious senior cared greatly for her, and the two had long since established a relationship akin to both mentor and friend.
After Li Yuechan was unexpectedly severely injured while killing a Demon Cultivator in Yunxiao City last time, the senior had abandoned the plan for Li Yuechan to kill Demon Cultivators to restore her strength.
Such conspicuous actions were too dangerous for the current Li Yuechan.
But now that her brother was in a perilous situation, she could not help but bring up the matter again.
The girl in the swirling snow had a determined gaze.
Her brother had saved her life and took great care of her.
Now that her brother was in jeopardy, both emotionally and rationally, she could not just stand by!