Jiu Yue Zhēnjūn still felt uneasy. She extended her divine sense and swept it across Lu Wangyou's body. Her eyes sharpened the next moment as she raised her hand and grabbed a tiny gray speck from the air, instantly crushing it between her fingers.
With a cold expression, Jiu Yue Zhēnjūn said, "Hmph. These evil cultivators are truly cunning. To have laid their hands on my disciple, they deserve death."
Lu Wangyou was startled. He had already been cautious, yet the evil cultivators had still managed to plant something on him. The thought of what could've happened sent a chill down his spine.
"Master, I suspect the other cultivators who escaped with me may also have been marked. Please help them eliminate any lingering danger."
They had all endured hardship together. Lu Wangyou was more than willing to repay that debt.
Jiu Yue Zhēnjūn did not object. he turned to Tan Zhēnrén and said, "Tan Daoyou, please bring those escapees to see me."
"Yes, Zhēnjūn," Tan Zhēnrén replied readily. He was more than happy to have someone handle the aftermath. With a flick of his wrist, he sent out a transmission talisman.
Only then did Jiu Yue Zhēnjūn turn back to Lu Wangyou."Wangyou, explain everything that happened in detail."
"Yes, Master."
Lu Wangyou began recounting the incident. Not long after, the other cultivators who had fled arrived one after another, adding their own accounts. Soon, the matter of evil cultivators abducting outstanding disciples to use as furnace vessels was fully exposed.
But before Jiu Yue Zhēnjūn could interrogate the captured minions of the evil cultivators, word came that all of them had died in the dungeon. Tan Zhēnrén's examination revealed that their seas of consciousness had exploded. They had clearly been silenced.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Tan Zhēnrén spoke with unease, "Jiu Yue Zhēnjūn, this was my oversight. I didn't expect the evil cultivators to infiltrate the dungeon."
Jiu Yue Zhēnjūn stared at Tan Zhēnrén for a long time. Just as he was about to kneel in panic, he finally said, "You do bear some responsibility, but it's not entirely your fault. The evil cultivators must have placed restrictions inside those captives' seas of consciousness. Once they realized the plan at Xiafei Valley had been exposed and their minions captured, the restrictions were triggered to silence them, cutting off any trail we could follow."
"Zhēnjūn is wise. Then, what should we do next?" Tan Zhēnrén asked respectfully, relieved to have avoided a scolding.
After a brief moment of thought, Jiu Yue Zhēnjūn said, "There's no need to keep this quiet. We must make it known far and wide. Who's to say the evil cultivators are only targeting people in our western region? The other four regions might be facing the same threat, but it simply hasn't come to light yet."
"You're right. If all cultivators remain on alert, the evil cultivators won't find it so easy to succeed. We may even manage to catch one of them and trace it back to their lair."
Soon after, elders from the sects and clans of the rescued disciples, along with elders from the Loose Cultivator Alliance, arrived at Xiafei Town. After confirming the truth, they all agreed with Jiu Yue Zhēnjūn's proposal.
The news spread rapidly throughout the Weiyu Realm. The evil cultivators suffered repeated setbacks in their subsequent operations. They came dangerously close to being traced back to their base, forcing them to withdraw their hands from the shadows.
Of course, Yun Xi had no idea that her meddling had set all of this in motion. The flap of a butterfly's wings once again shifted the course of events.
At that moment, Yun Xi and Xia You came crashing down into a desolate courtyard. It was the middle of the night, and the full moon overhead allowed them to see their surroundings clearly.
Yun Xi pushed herself off the ground and used a Dust-Cleansing Technique to tidy her appearance. Xia You, in slightly better shape, was already looking around the yard.
"Wei Daoyou, where are we?" she asked.
Yun Xi took a deep breath. "I'm not sure. But the spiritual energy here is incredibly thin."
She released her divine sense, letting it spread out to explore the area. It was the quickest way to assess their surroundings.
Moments later, Yun Xi withdrew her divine sense and spoke with mild frustration. "This seems to be the mortal realm."
"Huh? How did we get teleported here?"
After thinking for a bit, Yun Xi said, "I think the teleportation array was destroyed right after it sent us off. We must have been tossed out halfway through. Lucky for us. Otherwise, we would've been torn apart by spatial forces."
Xia You nodded in relief, then asked, "What about the two fellow from Baihua Pavilion?"
"I don't know. We were thrown out one after the other, so they probably aren't too far. We'll go looking for them after daybreak."
"Alright."
Xia You had no objections. The fact that the two of them landed in the same place was likely thanks to that red thread. She trusted Yun Xi's judgment.
Dian Dian poked its little head out from Yun Xi's embrace, sniffed the air, then spoke through divine sense, "Master, what is this place? The spiritual energy is so scarce."
"This is the mortal realm. We'll find out exactly where once it's daylight."
Dian Dian blinked its beady black eyes and continued, "Master, the Flying Mist Butterfly said it can't fulfill your agreement. All its eggs were destroyed, and it was forced to flee its habitat. It wants to form a contract with you."
"So it realized it can't protect itself and wants me to be its free bodyguard?"
"Master, it's still a third-rank beast. That's somewhat useful."
"Fine. Since it's third-rank, I'll lower my standards and contract with it."
Yun Xi didn't mind having an extra butterfly ornament. Besides, during her fight with the late-stage Golden Core evil cultivator, she'd noticed that the powder from the Flying Mist Butterfly's wings had unusual properties. She wanted to study it further, so she agreed.
She formed a hand seal and drew out a contract formation, choosing a master-servant pact.
The Flying Mist Butterfly clearly wasn't happy about that. It fluttered its wings and tried to claim the master's position in the formation, only to fall straight down and land at Yun Xi's feet.
Yun Xi bent down, pinched the butterfly's wing, and tossed it back into the servant's spot. She then quickly sealed the contract. The formation shrank, split into two, and imprinted on both Yun Xi's and the butterfly's foreheads. The contract was sealed.
Dian Dian couldn't help mocking the butterfly, "I told you to behave. You tried to make yourself my master's master? Are you tired of living? If my master didn't still need your eggs, she would've crushed you a moment ago."
The Flying Mist Butterfly was frustrated that its thoughts had been exposed. It snapped back, "We're both spirit beasts. Why didn't you help me?"
"Why would I? I only advanced to second rank thanks to Master's support. I don't owe you anything."
Dian Dian wasn't the least bit afraid of the butterfly. Sure, it wasn't strong, but the Flying Mist Butterfly was even weaker. Plus, Dian Dian could sniff out treasures for its master, unlike that useless butterfly.
Yun Xi ignored their squabble. She waved her hand, allowing the butterfly to settle into her hair. Then she turned to inspect the empty building, planning to rest there for the night.
But before they could enter the house, someone opened the courtyard gate, holding a lantern. The next moment, a blood-curdling scream echoed into the sky.
"Ghost!!!"
After shouting, the person's eyes rolled back and they fainted on the spot. Yun Xi and Xia You both frowned slightly.
"Xia Daoyou, do I look like a ghost?" Yun Xi asked, touching her own face.
Xia You shook her head. "Of course not. We cultivators are nourished by spiritual energy. There's no such thing as an ugly cultivator. That mortal clearly hasn't seen much of the world."
That was what she said, and she genuinely believed it. Xia You was confident in her appearance. If she hadn't been, she wouldn't have suffered betrayal from Pan Yuan back then.