Song Yan glanced at Ling Xiaoxiao. If his guess was correct, Ling Xiaoxiao's father was already dead. This naive little girl was destined to die, either here or there. In this world... it's truly hard to live.

The elder rebuked, "Hosting an Immortal Master must not be neglected! It was my mistake to mistakenly serve a ten-year brew, but I cannot let the mistake continue! Immortal Master, wait a moment, I... will go fetch the correct one."

Ling Xiaoxiao wanted to speak, but was stopped by Song Yan.

"Elder, take your time."

"Immortal Master, please wait."

"No rush."

...

...

A moment later...

In a tent, Ling Xiaoxiao had gone out to "revisit old places and recover childhood memories," while an elder and a middle-aged man stood trembling inside the tent, recounting their stories verbatim to the seated young man.

Upon hearing, Song Yan understood.

Ling Xiaoxiao's father and a clan steward responsible for external affairs had already been replaced by two Demon Cultivators.

These two Demon Cultivators, Gu Chong and Gu Yang, were twin brothers, both at the Purple Mansion Realm, skilled in the art of Disguise and Concealment, and they hailed from... the Seven Great Bandits.

The reason they came here was to ambush around the Biluo Mountain Sword Alliance, and as for what they intended to do, they needed to wait for the Bandit Leader's subsequent secret orders.

Song Yanqi inquired, "For such a minor mortal clan, is it really necessary to send you two here?"

Gu Chong respectfully replied, "The master may not know, but the Bandit Leader sent us here both as a chess piece for an ambush, and to uncover the secrets of the Bell Hump clan."

Song Yanqi asked, "What secrets?"

Gu Chong replied, "This Bell Hump clan was once known as the Eye-Gouging Sword Hump clan. Though it has only existed for a thousand years, its ancestors lived for a very long time. That ancestor was quite an accomplished cultivator, and the Bandit Leader didn't specify their Realm, but I suspect... it might be Divinity Transformation."

On the other side, Gu Yang hurriedly said, "Master, I know, I know!

That person's name was Ling Handeng, born with blind eyes yet wielding the sword as eyes, an exceedingly terrifying figure thousands of years ago, who later disappeared without a trace. The Bandit Leader inadvertently learned that he was actually the ancestor of this Bell Hump clan.

The Bandit Leader said that he might be hiding secrets, though not holding out much hope, but still sent my brother and me to investigate."

Song Yan asked, "Did you find anything?"

Gu Chong replied, "Nothing found."

After speaking, he added, "Master, should we secretly pass this information to the Biluo Mountain Sword Alliance, to let them be aware of the Bandit Leader's conspiratorial ambush? As far as I know, many tribes around here have been infiltrated."

Song Yan shook his head and said, "You will act as you must, just assume that Xiaoxiao and I are already under your control."

Previously, at the Sword Alliance, he felt something off in the atmosphere, and after seeing the Blood Plum Blossom, he sensed the turbulence even more intensely. Indeed... just stepping out results in encounters like this.

However, he didn't want to inexplicably get involved without any benefit.

After thinking for a bit, he further asked, "Why do the Seven Great Bandits and Biluo Mountain Sword Alliance fight?"

Gu Yang hesitated for a moment before saying, "The Bandit Leader said... the era of dark catastrophe has arrived, and the fewer Righteous Dao disciples there are, the more resources we can have, but I don't believe a word of it."

On the other side, Gu Chong said, "Master, I happen to know a little. Ten years ago, while on an assignment, I saw a mysterious group of tribesmen come from outside, who were then welcomed in by the Bandit Leader."

His eyes showed a hint of recollection as he murmured, "That day, torrential rain poured down, and the sky rumbled with thunder and lightning. I was planning to go find a little fellow in the market below to collect some protection fees, and grab some elixirs, when suddenly I saw the black clouds parting, and a majestic, terrifyingly long shadow soaring out from the clouds.

The imposing sight rendered me breathless with fear, and I vaguely saw that the shadow seemed to be a giant dragon, with strange dragon patterns, black on one side and white on the other. On that black-and-white dragon stood thousands of cultivators...

The giant dragon entered the valley and was welcomed by the Bandit Leader, and I never saw it again.

As for what those cultivators, who rode the dragon, intended to do, it's beyond my authority to know.

But since their arrival, I can clearly feel our Bandit Leader accelerating his actions, and likewise, the other major bandits."

Song Yan suddenly asked, "Is 'Blood Plum Blossom' Feng Qiangwei from your place?"

Gu Yang quickly spoke up, "Master, she is not one of ours; she is a mighty force of the fourth bandit. We belong to the second bandit..."

Song Yan asked, "Why are the bandit names so peculiar?"

Gu Yang chuckled, "Master, the Bandit Leader said we do not rely on reputation to survive, nor do we need fame to attract outsiders to join; the lower the profile, the better. But since there are seven factions, there needed to be some distinction, so they drew lots for numbers. Whoever drew one was the first bandit, and our Bandit Leader drew two, so naturally, we are the second bandit, haha..."

Song Yan said, "Tell me everything you know."

The two of them nodded repeatedly, narrating one after another.

...

Night fell, stars glittering. Inside the tent, after embracing in joy with his Dao Partner, Song Yan suddenly asked, "Is the earth qi surge of Cyan Phoenix Valley about to occur?"

Ling Xiaoxiao, who was in a daze, asked confusedly, "Senior Brother, why mention that now?"

Song Yan replied, "I'll take you to see it."

Startled, Ling Xiaoxiao instantly woke up.

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