The two clerks at Bai's Rice Shop immediately bowed respectfully upon seeing the old lady appear, "Clan Leader."

They were clearly a bit surprised, evidently not expecting the clan leader to personally intervene in this matter.

On second thought, given the commotion just now, if the clan leader hadn't intervened personally, they surely would have failed.

What clan leader? Chu Jingtang and his two companions were taken aback, speculating, could it be?

Instinctively, they looked towards the distance, where the swirling dust was still rising and pushing closer.

They weren't wrong; the arriving figure was indeed Granny Qi, the clan leader of the Bai Family.

Granny Qi gestured slightly for the two clerks to forgo formalities and then turned to Chu Jingtang and his companions with a kind expression, "May I know the esteemed names of the three of you?"

The three exchanged glances, feeling a bit perplexed, uncertain whether they should deceive others or reveal their true identities.

The issue was that deceiving her might be inappropriate, given that she was the Bai clan leader, clearly someone of high moral integrity. Moreover, her intervention just now was truly breathtaking.

The three of them hadn't evolved to the realm of Shi Chunhe and Wu Jinliang, where seeing a mountain was just seeing a mountain, and seeing water was just seeing water.

They were still easily dazzled by the halo of status and authority.

If it were Shi Chunhe and Wu Jinliang in this situation, they'd probably lie first and apologize later, since to them, apologizing wasn't considered a disgrace.

Fortunately, Granny Qi's benevolent demeanor was unmistakable. Seeing their difficulty, she didn't press them, instead chuckling, "Alright, if you don't want to say, then don't. But you've seen the situation we're in now, letting you leave like this isn't safe. Why don't you contact Gao He? Since he knows the Extreme Fire Sect members are about to act, he should have people ready to assist. I'm not comfortable letting you go without personally handing you over to your contact."

Chu Jingtang and his companions naturally knew who Gao He was. The fact that they were chosen by the sect for important tasks meant they weren't ordinary people. Hearing the mention of Gao He, they exchanged looks once again, realizing her presence wasn't due to a close relationship with the Master.

She clearly didn't know that the person beside Wu Hehe was the actual leader.

However, this wasn't important. What mattered was that the Master managed to attract her rescue without exposing his identity.

To be honest, deploying such significant force for their rescue touched them deeply, subconsciously reinforcing their sense of security and allegiance.

"What's the matter, it can't be that you're unable to contact Gao He? Or are you worried I have ill intentions?" Granny Qi added with a smile.

Though spoken in jest, her words exerted an inexplicable pressure on the trio.

Chu Jingtang pondered for a while, eventually taking out the Mother-child Talisman and turning to send a message to Shi Chun: The Bai clan leader's presence, she personally intervened to assist us earlier. Now letting us leave unchecked is potentially dangerous. She wishes to hand us over to our contact in person, urging me to get in touch with Mr. Gao.

The last sentence carried a crucial reminder; he believed that the two would understand what it meant.

Having sent the message, he concealed the talisman back in his sleeve and turned to Granny Qi, nodding slightly as a gesture of patience.

Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang, hiding not too far away, crowded together to read the same transmitted message and were quite surprised.

"No way, the Bai clan leader, Granny Qi, came personally to aid?" Wu Jinliang murmured, somewhat incredulously.

Shi Chun said slowly, "No wonder she could create such an impressive commotion."

The initial rescue intention sent to Bai Qiru was indeed to spur the Bai family to send top experts to help, but they hadn't expected to provoke the very best of the Bai family.

Considering this, he couldn't help but mutter, "Is it really to guarantee absolute success? Is Huang Yingying really that important?"

Wu Jinliang found it equally baffling, "They talk about expelling Bai Qiru from the Bai family, but everything seems peculiar. Honestly, isn't it possible this whole thing is staged? The Extreme Fire Sect is merely targeting Chu Jingtang and the other two, yet such high-caliber experts are mobilized? This treatment seems overly exaggerated; I'm having a hard time believing it."

Shi Chun: "Even if it's an act, let me ask you one thing, should we save those three?"

The question was indeed frustrating. Wu Jinliang couldn't help sweeping a finger at the Mother-child Talisman the other was holding, swearing, "Damn it, not trusting the contact. With existing danger as an excuse, what should we do? It's as if they're forcing us to meet."

It was possible that she truly intended to be helpful, possibly genuinely concerned, but he couldn't view Granny Qi's kind intervention as purely altruistic. Regardless of her reputed moral integrity, he didn't buy into it, suspecting something peculiar.

Shi Chun considered for a moment, saying, "Let one go scout the situation. If anything goes wrong, the other contacts the Demon Path to intervene."

Wu Jinliang knew this meant a decision was made. He sighed, "I'm the most suited to go since she wants to contact me. If I don't show up, it seems disrespectful."

Shi Chun looked at him and asked, "Can you handle it?"

Wu Jinliang scoffed, "Who do you think you're looking down on? It's not like I haven't encountered figures more formidable than this old lady. Let's go!"

Without delay, he slipped into the forest, circling in another direction to avoid revealing Shi Chun's location.

Watching him leave, Shi Chun appeared somewhat pensive. The previously rash Wu Jinliang who wielded a blade against danger seemed gradually to fade away.

The road wasn't far, and Wu Jinliang quickly emerged from another direction, heading toward the rendezvous point.

Regardless of whether it was Granny Qi, the two assistants from the rice shop, or the three people with Chu Jingtang, they all turned to look at the person descending from the sky.

Wu Jinliang landed next to Chu Jingtang, nodded to the two rice shop assistants, and spent most of his time sizing up Granny Qi.

Seeing Granny Qi also sizing up Wu Jinliang, one of the rice shop assistants quickly introduced, "Clan leader, he's the rice shop's Gao He."

He then turned to Wu Jinliang and introduced, "This is the leader of the Bai Family."

Wu Jinliang feigned exaggerated surprise and bowed slightly, "My apologies, my apologies, so you're the famous Granny Qi, my apologies for being disrespectful."

Granny Qi, leaning on her cane, smiled and said, "Where's the disrespect? You're quite polite."

In her heart, she was secretly puzzled. Wasn't it said that this guy was still holed up in Zhu Lang Pavilion? How did he end up here? What's going on with those extra guards? Even with such a big head, they failed to notice it?

Actually, she recognized Wu Jinliang as Gao He at a glance; it was unavoidable after hearing descriptions of Gao He's stature from others.

As they spoke, she glanced around again. Thinking that this guy would attract experts from the Extreme Fire Sect, she found it hard to believe that he came alone to provide support.

Wu Jinliang bowed again, once more apologizing, then suddenly raised his gaze, glanced at the two assistants, and feigned confusion, "Clan leader? Are you also part of the Bai Family?"

The two assistants glanced at each other, speechless.

Granny Qi smiled slightly, knowing that this meant Bai Qiru's expulsion from the Bai Family had a flaw exposed, but since she had come in person this time, she had already planned to reveal everything.

She really had no other choice. If she didn't encounter him openly, she wouldn't be able to at all. She knew he had gone to Divine Mountain. If she ran to Divine Mountain, he would be gone again, giving her no chance to plan.

With her identity, could she really go to Zhu Lang Pavilion just to "coincidentally" meet him?

Moreover, having heard that the three being sent away this time were key figures and had provoked the Extreme Fire Sect, she came in person to ensure nothing went wrong.

For her to come down from Divine Mountain this time wasn't easy either. With her status, she had to resort to blending in with the crowd of Bai Family members. If she were discovered, even with high virtue, the more secretive, the more humiliating it would be.

She looked at the two silent assistants and chuckled, "Naturally, we must give Mr. Gao an explanation."

Then she glanced at the approaching dust curtain, "There might be remnants of the Extreme Fire Sect searching; it's not suitable to stay here long. How about we switch to another place to talk?"

Wu Jinliang, however, asked, "Is this the aftermath of Granny's actions?"

Granny Qi bitterly smiled and shook her head, "I'm ashamed to say it. I originally intended to quietly erase the trackers, but unexpectedly they had a shoddy fifth-grade magical treasure. It makes sense though; the Extreme Fire Sect is the number one artifact refining sect in the Demon Realm. Having treasures isn't surprising. Luckily, I came myself; otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable."

A shoddy fifth-grade magical treasure? Wu Jinliang was slightly surprised, then continued to flatter her, "Thankfully, it was Granny's skills at work, fortune indeed."

Granny Qi waved it off modestly, "It's not about being skilled. If I were really skilled, I wouldn't have failed to control my power, causing such a commotion that it's laughable. Let's not mention it, let's move to another place to chat."

Saying this, she didn't wait for agreement. With a wave of her sleeve, she wrapped everyone present away instantly, giving Wu Jinliang and the others who experienced the display of the Heavenly Immortal Realm firsthand a breathtaking view.

Shi Chun, who was peeking, also dared not linger and quickly snuck away.

Traveling swiftly across mountains and rivers, it was unclear how far they've flown. Granny Qi brought the group to a mountain peak. After releasing a wave of mana to probe the surroundings, she asked Wu Jinliang, "Should others avoid this conversation?"

Wu Jinliang harbored hidden vigilance but felt that in the presence of such an expert, vigilance was futile. He nodded to Chu Jingtang and the rest.

The three with Chu Jingtang left of their own accord, and the two assistants quickly followed, unsure if they were avoiding or watching Chu Jingtang and his group.

With no other people on the mountaintop, Granny Qi took a few steps with her cane and sighed softly: "Actually, it's simple. Before the Bai Family's ancestors became prosperous, they were just a little demon running a rice shop in Dazhi City. By fate, they met Huang Yingying's ancestor and loyally served by their side. That ancestor of Huang Yingying was remarkable, named Jin Zhan, whom you may have heard of. He was the supreme ruler of the Demon Realm back then. Thanks to his grace of reconstruction, the Bai Family emerged later.

Yet unforeseeable events occurred; the Demon Path rampaged, but how could someone as strong as Jin Zhan easily submit? In the end, he lost and fell in battle against the Demon Ancestor.

Without Jin Zhan, the Golden-haired Rat Clan faced continuous disasters, as the Phoenix Clan, whom they enslaved, revolted with external assistance and turned the tables completely.

The Phoenix Clan intended to eradicate the Golden-haired Rat Clan to eliminate future threats. Still, seeing this, the Bai Family's ancestors swiftly switched allegiance to the Phoenix Clan. To preserve the Golden-haired Rat Clan, they offered a strategy to repay evil unto itself, winning the Phoenix Clan's approval.

Thus, the Golden-haired Rat Clan became eternal slaves on Divine Mountain.

Though they preserved the Golden-haired Rat Clan, seeing Jin Zhan's descendants suffer made the Bai Family's ancestors deeply remorseful. Therefore, attempting to rescue the Golden-haired Rat Clan became a family creed, with the leadership only passed to those who uphold this legacy. Unfortunately, with the Phoenix Clan thriving over the years, and our Bai Family's limited strength, we've had to navigate through hardships to at least prevent their extinction.

For this, our Bai Family has ingratiated itself to the Phoenix Clan for generations. By the time it came to me, I even became a caretaker among them, earning the nickname Granny Qi.

Huang Yingying also saved a Phoenix Clan member by fate, earning freedom. He drifted to Dazhi City, suffering humiliation and near death. Finally, someone emerged as an extension of hope for the Golden-haired Rat Clan outside. How could he be allowed to perish easily? Unfortunately, seeking to protect him could not be done openly, lest it arouses the Phoenix Clan's suspicion and backfires, leading to the story of Bai Qiru being expelled for marrying Huang Yingying in defiance of the family."

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