The Yan Pan Mountains!

Deep in the night, the round moon hung high, casting its silver glow everywhere. This blanket of moonlight gave the mountain range an illusion of silver attire, and everything appeared hazy and blurred.

Suddenly, a hand extended from the ground. It was as pale as paper; at first glance, it looked like the hand of a dead man.

Several moments passed, and then a head emerged from the earth. It was the face of a young man, equally pale, but his brow held a resolve not found in others his age. If anyone were present, they would undoubtedly think a corpse had come back to life.

It was none other than Qin Feiyang.

He gasped for fresh air. Under the moonlight, he scanned his surroundings, his eyes filled with amazement.

Did I... survive?

After a while, he muttered to himself as he dragged his body out of the ground. Having lost his left hand, climbing out was a struggle.

I'm still in the Yan Pan Mountains. But why am I alive?

Qin Feiyang knitted his brows, examining his internal condition.

So, that's how it is... Jiang Zhengyi didn't kill me...

Upon noticing the wound near his heart, he suddenly understood.

Wait a minute! If Jiang Zhengyi didn't kill me, he almost certainly didn't kill the White-Eyed Wolf and the others either!

His spirits lifted. He quickly swallowed a healing pill and used his True Qi to fling aside the mud beneath his feet. The White-Eyed Wolf quickly came into view.

"White-Eyed Wolf..." he called out, crouching beside the White-Eyed Wolf and pressing a hand on its belly. He could feel its heartbeat.

After pulling the White-Eyed Wolf out and feeding it a Top-Grade healing pill, Qin Feiyang resumed digging. However, less than an hour later, he still hadn't found Ling Yunfei and the others.

Where are they?

Sitting on the ground, a chilling thought crept into his mind. Could they have been turned into ashes?

He grabbed the White-Eyed Wolf and entered the ancient castle.

"Boss, are you okay?"

"Do you know what we've been through these past five days?"

Fatty and Lu Hong immediately surrounded him, looking at him with concern. Five days ago, they had desperately wanted to go out and help, but rack their brains as they might, they couldn't figure out how to leave the ancient castle. All they could do was pace anxiously, feeling helpless. Every moment of those five days had been an agonizing wait for them.

"It's been five days?" Qin Feiyang was taken aback. He shook his head and said, "It's nothing, I just lost an arm."

Lu Hong retorted angrily, "Lost an arm, and you call it nothing?"

Qin Feiyang said, "Really, it's fine. Five days ago, after I passed out, did you hear any commotion?"

"We heard Jiang Zhengyi telling Lo Qingzhu to live on," Fatty replied. "Then we heard the sound of earth rumbling. Finally, we could only faintly hear the sounds of battle. After a while, everything outside fell silent."

The sound of earth rumbling...

After a moment of thought, Qin Feiyang said, "Indeed. It seems Jiang Zhengyi was only pretending to kill us; he was actually protecting us."

He led Fatty and Lu Hong to the sinkhole. "Since Jiang Zhengyi told Lo Qingzhu to live on, she must be here too. Help me search for them."

The two immediately began to search carefully.

"Elder Jiang, are you still alive?" Qin Feiyang murmured, looking up at the round moon, an overwhelming sorrow washing over him.

Deep down, he knew. The chances of Jiang Zhengyi being alive were incredibly slim.

Suddenly, he felt something in his clothes. Reaching in, he pulled out an item, and his entire body trembled in shock!

At a glance, he realized this wasn't his Qiankun Bag!

He hurriedly checked its contents. The next moment, he pulled out a blood-soaked piece of clothing.

"This is Jiang Zhengyi's robe!" Qin Feiyang's eyes quivered. On it, he saw several words written in blood.

Kneeling on the ground, he spread the robe out and peered at it carefully under the hazy moonlight.

"Feiyang, by the time you wake up, I will have already died at Zuo An's hands. In this lifetime, I have no regrets, save for Qingzhu and Qianxue. I hope you can take care of them, mother and daughter. Consider the treasures in the Qiankun Bag your reward."

These were the words Jiang Zhengyi had left for him.

Qin Feiyang slumped to the ground, gazing at the blood-soaked words, tears uncontrollably sliding down his cheeks. His face was contorted with pain.

After a moment, Fatty and Lu Hong walked over. Seeing the words written in blood on the robe, they too were overcome with sorrow.

"Did you find them?" Qin Feiyang asked, his voice hoarse.

"No," they both replied, shaking their heads.

"Keep searching! Expand the search area! We must find them!" Qin Feiyang ordered.

"Okay," they both nodded and split up to search.

However, even after an hour, their search yielded nothing.

Fatty said, "Boss, I know this is hard for you to accept, but I have to say it. Ling Yunfei, Lo Qingzhu, and the others... they've most likely been eaten by fierce beasts..."

"Impossible!" Qin Feiyang roared, leaping to his feet. "Jiang Zhengyi would surely have put them together with me! If they were eaten by fierce beasts, neither the White-Eyed Wolf nor I would have survived! Besides, there are no traces of fierce beasts anywhere near here!"

Lu Hong suggested, "Why don't we wait for Brother Wolf to awaken? Let him sniff around. He might discover some clues."

After calming down, Qin Feiyang led the two of them back into the ancient castle. There was still no sign of the White-Eyed Wolf awakening.

Lu Hong asked worriedly, "What about your lost arm?"

Qin Feiyang replied, "The Rebirth Pill can regenerate an arm. I just don't have the Elixir Formula for it at the moment. But the Elixir Scripture certainly contains it, so don't worry."

Fatty said, "Didn't Jiang Zhengyi give you his Qiankun Bag? Who knows, there might be a Rebirth Pill inside. Let Master Fatty have a look."

Qin Feiyang nodded and tossed the Qiankun Bag to Fatty. Fatty and Lu Hong quickly began to sort through its contents.

Qin Feiyang stared at the blood-stained robe in his hands. The intense killing intent in his heart surged like a raging torrent, violently assailing his sanity. Fortunately, his willpower was strong. Anyone else in his place would have long since succumbed to madness.

"Strange, why are there only low-grade elixirs in the Qiankun Bag?" Fatty suddenly wondered aloud.

"That's normal," Qin Feiyang explained. "Although Jiang Zhengyi is the Grand Pavilion Master of Yan Province, controlling all the Treasure Pavilions in the towns, he is a man of integrity and wouldn't embezzle. The high-grade elixirs are most likely stored in the Treasure Pavilion's vault."

"That makes sense," Fatty nodded. He added, "However, the elixir materials for the Potential Elixir that Jiang Zhengyi collected in Pan County, as well as the materials won from the competition, are all in here. There are also probably hundreds of millions of Gold Coins."

Qin Feiyang's current concern wasn't the elixir materials or the Gold Coins, but the safety of Ling Yunfei and the others.

After putting away the Qiankun Bag, Fatty said, "Lu Hong and I have recorded everything Jia Hei and the others were saying. Should we contact Yan Nanshan and the others now?"

"You recorded it!" Qin Feiyang's eyes brightened.

Fatty grinned. "We've been with you for so long, we at least know that much."

"Well done!" Qin Feiyang patted his shoulder, took out an Image Crystal Stone, and poured his True Qi into it. Instantly, the Image Crystal Stone glowed brilliantly!

「Meanwhile, at the Martial King Palace in Yan Province, inside Yan Nanshan's private courtyard.」

"Hall Master, I'd rather die than believe Qin Feiyang would do such a thing!" Elder Wan's angry voice echoed from the upper floor of the building. "There must be something fishy about this!"

In the reception room of the loft, Yan Nanshan and a beautiful woman sat by a tea table, their faces grim. Elder Wan paced restlessly beside the tea table, his elderly face flushed with anger.

Yan Nanshan said in frustration, "Old Wan, can you please calm down?"

"How can I calm down?" Elder Wan exclaimed. "To say that Qin Feiyang and the others wanted to embezzle those elixir materials—is that even possible?"

"We don't believe it either, but those were Jiang Zhengyi's own words," Yan Nanshan said.

The beautiful woman added, "Jiang Zhengyi has always been fair and selfless. If he said it, then it must be true."

BUZZ!

At that moment, Elder Wan's Image Crystal Stone suddenly reacted.

"Who's sending a message at this hour?" he frowned. "Don't they know I'm extremely irritated right now?" He took out the Image Crystal Stone.

A phantom image quickly materialized. Upon seeing it, the three leaders abruptly stood up, their eyes filled with elation.

The phantom was Qin Feiyang!

「Simultaneously, within the ancient castle.」

Qin Feiyang looked at the three figures in the image and asked, "Hall Master, Elders, is there anyone else with you?"

The three shook their heads.

"Qin Feiyang, what on earth is going on?" Yan Nanshan asked urgently.

"Why did Jiang Zhengyi say you intended to embezzle those elixir materials?" Elder Wan demanded.

"And what happened to your arm?" Elder Ji added.

"What?" Qin Feiyang was astonished. "Jiang Zhengyi has returned to Yan City?"

Fatty and Lu Hong also looked incredulous.

Elder Wan replied, "Yes, he returned not long ago, along with Jia Hei and the Crown Prince."

That's not right! How could Jiang Zhengyi have returned? And with Jia Hei and the others?

Qin Feiyang lowered his head, his thoughts in a turmoil. After a moment, he looked up at Yan Nanshan and the two Elders. "What were you saying earlier about embezzling elixir materials?"

Elder Wan explained, "Jiang Zhengyi said that you, Lo Qingzhu, and the others tried to embezzle the elixir materials won from the competition. He claimed he discovered your plot and, upholding justice, killed you and Lo Qingzhu."

Yan Nanshan added, "He also said that you destroyed those elixir materials. Is this true?"

Elder Ji pressed, "Tell us the truth. Did you do it? Are those elixir materials with you now?"

Qin Feiyang closed his eyes, forcing himself to calm down and carefully consider everything. Yan Nanshan and the two Elders waited patiently.

Several moments passed.

Qin Feiyang's body trembled, and he snapped his eyes open, a brilliant light flashing within them. He looked at the three again and nodded. "The elixir materials are indeed with me."

"What?!" The three of them turned pale and slumped back into their seats.

So, what Jiang Zhengyi had said was true.

Qin Feiyang continued, "However, Jiang Zhengyi gave them to me personally. Hall Master, Elders, you must brace yourselves for what I'm about to say."

"Hmm?" The three exchanged puzzled glances.

Yan Nanshan said, "Go on."

Qin Feiyang said, "The real Jiang Zhengyi has been killed. The Jiang Zhengyi currently in Yan City, if this disciple is not mistaken, must be Zuo An in disguise."

Zuo An's strength is comparable to Jiang Zhengyi's. Only he could impersonate Jiang Zhengyi without being discovered.

The three of them shot to their feet once more, staring at Qin Feiyang in disbelief.

"Here's what happened…" Qin Feiyang recounted the events of five days prior in detail.

Afterwards, he had Yan Nanshan and the two Elders listen carefully to the conversation that Fatty and Lu Hong had recorded.

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