Huh...

This was the reaction of everyone in attendance, and the scene instantly became lively.

"Impossible, Shi Chun couldn't possibly be a match for Li Hongjiu."

"Exactly, let alone injure Li Hongjiu."

"If Shi Chun went up against Li Hongjiu, his only option would be to flee."

"With Li Hongjiu's strength, one could even say he is the foremost fighter below the Human Immortal Realm."

"We saw with our own eyes how Shi Chun wielded a bunch of magical treasures only to be beaten into retreat by Li Hongjiu."

The messengers from the sects all chimed in to vouch for Li Hongjiu, as if he were their elder. The situation left Guang Haoyou and his group bewildered.

It was through these accounts that Guang Haoyou and the others learned what had transpired after their master parted ways with them.

It sounded credible, but what puzzled them was how the disparity between their master's two encounters with Shi Chun could be so stark. Listening to these people, it didn't even sound like they were talking about the same person. It felt as though their master's strength had abruptly surged by a tremendous margin.

The problem was, if their master truly possessed such strength, how could he have been injured by Shi Chun before and needed deceit to escape?

So, they also understood the point of skepticism the sect messengers were trying to raise.

Meanwhile, the elder of Yanbao Sect, though suspicious, was also perplexed. He thought that these disciples seemed to have no reason to collude and deceive him. He immediately asked, "When did you see Shi Chun defeat your master?"

Guang Haoyou pointed towards other sects. "Just as they said, after Shi Chun attacked while masked, our master pursued him to intercept, and the two clashed. Our master suffered some setbacks."

The elder of Yanbao Sect continued questioning, "What kind of setbacks?"

When it came to details, Guang Haoyou began to stammer and secretly signaled to the elder. It wasn't that he didn't want to tell the elder, but some things were inappropriate to say openly in front of all sect members. Their master's usage of Heavenly Thunder had destroyed so many magical treasures belonging to other sects; it truly wasn't something he wanted to admit.

The elder wasn't foolish and immediately realized there was some confidential matter involved. He vaguely brushed it aside and shifted the focus to inquire about Li Hongjiu's injuries. Guang Haoyou then relayed Li Hongjiu's explanation.

After that, some of the sect representatives who had hurried over decided to leave, while others chose to stay.

Guang Haoyou and his group didn't get to rest; their elder instructed them to continue searching for Divine Fire. As for Li Hongjiu, they were told not to bother looking for him. Whether they could secure greater benefits for the sect was uncertain; the kite's string was cut, and where it flew was out of their control.

The Qianyan Sect group stayed nearby without leaving, having lost a few people. They seemed terrified and unwilling to take further risks.

Gong Shixi inwardly let out a sigh of relief. Judging by the situation and the sinister expressions of the various sect elders, it was clear they would not let Shi Chun pass this hurdle easily.

They stayed to listen for updates, in case the situation changed. This would allow them to report adequately to their superiors later...

In the sprawling wilderness, the Shudao Mountain group finally stopped their rushing and landed, confronting the trailing group of Yin Tianlu.

Gu Lianni scolded, "Why won't you stop following us?"

Following the commotion at Forbidden Lake, Shudao Mountain had tried to shake off the entangling sects during the chaos of the escape. But who would have thought that Yin Tianlu's group not only didn't flee with the Refining Heaven Sect, but stubbornly kept following Shudao Mountain, refusing to let go.

Those siding with the Extreme Fire Sect included members from Golden Appearance Hall, East Cloud Island, and Fall Flame Mountain.

Actually, the Extreme Fire Sect was not allied with those three sects. Yin Tianlu glanced at the members of those three sects, unsure why they decided to latch onto Shudao Mountain alongside him.

Yin Tianlu responded, "The world is vast; are you claiming your Shudao Mountain has jurisdiction over where we go?"

In truth, he was still trying to verify whether the Divine Fire Treasure truly existed. If it was real, Shudao Mountain would undoubtedly continue to seek the Divine Fire.

Had his group not suffered severe losses—along with their primary magical treasures being destroyed by the relentless lightning storm—he would have considered forcibly striking back long ago instead of persistently following.

Seeing their opponents' superior numbers, Gu Lianni could only swallow her anger, leading her contingent to fly off again.

Yin Tianlu waved his hand, motioning for his group to keep following.

The people from Golden Appearance Hall, East Cloud Island, and Fall Flame Mountain also silently took off, continuing to observe closely...

"Chun Tian!"

On Lake Heart Island, Zhener excitedly hopped over to Shi Chun as he descended with two companions. She hugged him tightly, clearly overjoyed, and expressed her emotions by planting several kisses on Shi Chun in front of everyone.

Xu and You—one giving an awkward smile and the other remaining relatively silent—both quietly observed Master Nine while also keeping a watchful eye on the surroundings.

Reclining with his head resting and legs crossed on a stone, Master Nine slowly stood up, studying the group.

Shi Chun seemed to have eyes only for Master Nine. After perfunctorily pushing Zhener away, he strode quickly to Master Nine, cupped his hands, and greeted, "Master Nine."

Xu and You hurriedly followed suit with respectful gestures.

Master Nine grunted and asked, "Trouble resolved?"

Shi Chun replied, "Managed to temporarily shake them off."

The youthful-looking Master Nine clasped his hands behind his back. "I hear from Zhener that you're here to propose?"

Shi Chun answered, "Yes. Zhener mentioned that to live here with her, I must first propose to the elder overseeing this place, and only upon their approval can I establish myself here. Hence, I have come to pay my respects and present my proposal."

Proposal? Xu and You strained their faces to suppress expressions of bewilderment. They thought they understood, yet also felt they didn't.

Master Nine grunted, his gaze circling between the three before saying, "Wait here while I go inform him."

Taking a single stride, he vanished into the cavern on the island.

Once Master Nine left, Zhener approached Shi Chun again, holding his hand tightly and whispering, "Are you afraid? I'm a little scared."

Using the proposal as a pretext to break the formation, Shi Chun had truly come for her. The fact that he was willing to take such a great risk made her immensely happy, but after the joy subsided, only fear remained.

She knew all too well the consequences if those old monsters uncovered their intentions.

Shi Chun reassured her, "It's alright."

He was actually somewhat afraid too, but far less so than Zhener. He had already prepared an escape plan; the only thing he feared was that the escape route might be blocked or events might deviate from his expectations.

Xu Anzhang leaned closer and whispered, "Proposal? What does that mean?"

Shi Chun replied dismissively, "You'll find out when the time comes. Knowing too much before then will only harm you."

Alright then, Xu and You had no choice but to shut up and remain highly alert to their surroundings.

Shi Chun didn't feel like explaining further. He used his right eye's superpower to carefully observe the Earth Heart Tower below. This was something he hadn't managed to do previously, as he'd been preoccupied with fleeing. This time, he intended to study it thoroughly.

The result wasn't favorable. He couldn't discern any details—it appeared to be a fusion of radiant multi-colored light, preventing him from identifying layers or structure. Every strand of brilliance seemed like the glow of a Fire Spirit.

Looking from the tower's top downwards, it felt as though the entire tower operated with an overwhelming power from massive Fire Spirits—a thickness and magnitude that exceeded his current understanding.

At the tower's base layer, Master Nine materialized before the cross-legged elder after flashing through the area.

He crouched slightly and sat down sideways.

Glancing at the empty surroundings, he spoke to the air, "He's really come back for Zhener. Elder, they wish to meet you and propose in person. To make it believable, I had to come down here myself. So, what now?"

A rambling male voice echoed, "He's truly risking it all for Zhener."

A woman's voice resonated with a tinge of envy, "Zhener has truly found someone who feels deeply for her, someone who dismisses danger in the face of genuine love. It's truly wonderful."

The elder slowly opened his eyes and spoke, "It seems she has indeed found her opportunity to leave. Let us hope she manages to escape successfully. We must do what we can to smooth her way. Since there are three of them, I'll redirect the other two when I meet them. Seven, the task of boosting their courage is yours."

The woman's voice chuckled lightly as it replied, "Alright."

The elder instructed, "Go now and bring them to me."

"Got it," Master Nine chuckled, instantly transforming into a streak of blue light and vanishing.

When he reappeared, he had returned to his casual posture, emerging lazily from the cavern entrance on the island and waving to Shi Chun and the others. "The elder agrees to see you. Come along, follow me."

"Thank you, Master Nine," Shi Chun smiled and nodded, pulling along a visibly nervous Zhener as they followed. He whispered to her reassuringly, "Trust me, it'll be fine."

"Okay," Zhener nodded.

What could Xu and You do? After a shared glance, they braced themselves and followed, feeling extremely uneasy.

Their fear came more from uncertainty. They could deduce where they were, but couldn't understand the nature of Shi Chun's connection to this place. It seemed almost magical—or perhaps orchestrated? Was Shi Chun merely executing a plan set by their superiors?

Unaware of any answers, they could only follow blindly.

Upon entering the cavern, the trio realized the rocky island was merely its exterior. At the tunnel's end was a threshold, which, upon crossing, led into a circular metallic space. The curved metallic walls in the center obscured whatever lay behind them.

The wall and floor patterns bore chaotic designs with no identifying significance. The overall architecture appeared minimalist, entirely devoid of decoration, though they did see red, blue, and pink Divine Fire floating overhead, almost as if illuminating their way. Subconsciously, the three exchanged glances, aware that none of them could absorb the Divine Fire.

Master Nine led them on a partial circuit, past a railing surrounding a staircase descending to the lower level.

On the second level, the surroundings resembled the ones above. They continued another circuit before encountering another staircase.

Descending to the third level, they not only saw Divine Fire of varying hues but also spotted two pudgy, white-skinned, lotus-like children playing. Upon noticing them, the children skittered off to the wall. The trio glanced at Zhener, who unsurprisingly seemed entirely nonchalant.

They circled and descended repeatedly. Each level's passage broadened while maintaining a similar emptiness, until they reached the bottom level, stopping before an elder seated cross-legged with horns atop his head.

The elder scrutinized them as well.

Pointing at Shi Chun, Master Nine introduced, "Elder, this is Shi Chun, the one proposing."

The elder's gaze shifted to the two companions. "What are those two here for?"

Master Nine shrugged, "Not sure."

The elder immediately snapped, "Get out."

Xu and You stiffened in fear, their eyes pleading with Shi Chun.

Zhener showed some surprise and hesitance.

Shi Chun hastily bowed and explained, "They're here to assist..."

The elder cut him off flatly, addressing Master Nine, "How many times must I say it?"

Master Nine promptly gestured gently to Xu and You, signaling, "Don't worry, we just have some matters to discuss. You can head upstairs for now; I won't be escorting you. Simply retrace your way back. Once things are sorted, Shi Chun will come find you."

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