Shen Yuan had already reached dusk when he descended from Hidden Dragon Mountain.

He was preparing to send his eldest, Shen Wenxing, to find the Immortal of Luoxia Mountain to inform him of the relic matter, when he suddenly noticed a luxurious carriage parked at the entrance.

Seeing the emblem of Qishan Clouds on the carriage, Shen Yuan's face instantly turned grim.

It's Qiyun Valley!

Shen Yuan hurriedly walked through the courtyard gate and saw Shen Wenxing sitting with Pei Yuwan in the wing room, both with solemn faces.

"Ah Die!"

Upon seeing him, Shen Wenxing quickly stood up and called out.

Suppressing the urgency in his heart, Shen Yuan slightly nodded and walked in.

"Who might this be..."

"You must be Uncle Shen, I'm Pei Yuwan, Wen'an's senior sister."

Pei Yuwan stood up and introduced herself.

"So you are Fairy Pei." Shen Yuan cupped his hands in greeting, then turned to Shen Wenxing and said, "It's time for dinner, go quickly and have your mother prepare..."

"Ah Die, something has happened!"

Before his father could finish speaking, Shen Wenxing interrupted immediately: "Wen'an... he has killed someone!"

So it's about this matter!

Shen Yuan's heart tightened, casting a glance at Pei Yuwan beside him.

Pei Yuwan promptly recounted the incident of Shen Wen'an killing Liu Hong.

"Uncle Shen, where is Junior Brother Wen'an now?"

Shen Yuan did not answer; after pondering for a moment, he asked, "How is Qiyun Valley planning to handle him?"

Pei Yuwan slightly shook her head: "This matter hasn't been thoroughly investigated yet."

"Ah Die's intention is for me to bring Wen'an back and have a proper inquiry before the Sect Leader and elders."

Shen Yuan nodded: "Having committed a mistake, that is indeed how it should be."

"Does Fairy Pei think Wen'an is such a person?"

After a turn in the conversation, he looked at Pei Yuwan and asked.

Pei Yuwan was taken aback, then shook her head: "Although Junior Brother Wen'an has an eccentric personality, he... should not be that kind of person."

"Uncle Shen, it would be better if you let me meet with Junior Brother Wen'an, to first understand clearly what exactly happened at that time."

"So that I can give Ah Die a heads up, letting him find some room to maneuver within the sect."

"Otherwise..." Pei Yuwan looked at the two with heavy expressions and said, "Otherwise, once the elders of the sect lose patience, this matter will likely have no room for further negotiation."

Shen Yuan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

It's good to see that someone from Qiyun Valley is still willing to believe in his son.

"Forgive me, Fairy Pei, but Wen'an went into the mountains. I was going to look for him today, but still haven't found him."

"Fairy, why not stay at my humble abode for a few days, and wait for him to return?"

He went into the mountains?

Pei Yuwan looked at the vast Hidden Dragon Mountain with some suspicion and, after hesitating for a long time, could only sigh helplessly: "In that case, then I'll disturb you."

Shen Yuan smiled and waved his hand: "Eldest, go have your mother prepare a room in the wing for Fairy Pei to stay temporarily."

Shen Wenxing stood up and nodded.

"Fairy Pei, please take a seat. I will go out for a moment."

Shen Yuan cupped his hands and left the wing room, caught up with Shen Wenxing, and said: "You need to go immediately to find the Immortal of Luoxia Mountain, inform Luoxia Mountain about the relic, and tell them that Hundred Beasts Mountain has already discovered the relic!"

Shen Wenxing was taken aback after hearing this!

"Then what about Wen'an..."

"We'll talk more when we return, hurry now!"

"By the way, also inform Luoxia Mountain about Wen'an killing a fellow disciple." After a brief contemplation, Shen Yuan instructed once again.

Realizing the gravity of the situation, Shen Wenxing asked no further questions, and immediately turned to leave the courtyard.

Shen Yuan went to the inner courtyard to have Hu Yufen and Huang Lingxiu prepare a room in the wing for Pei Yuwan to stay.

In the evening, the family hosted Pei Yuwan warmly.

Deep into the night, Shen Yuan lay on the bed, pondering the current situation.

Seeing his worried expression, Hu Yufen couldn't help but ask: "What has happened?"

Shen Yuan turned his head and glanced at her with a smile: "Nothing, let's sleep."

The events of the day had been too troublesome, leaving him overwhelmed, not wishing to speak and add unnecessary worry for his wife.

Hu Yufen sighed softly, not pursuing the matter further.

Approaching the hour of Zi, Shen Yuan instinctively glanced at the White Jade Turtle Shell in his Sea of Consciousness, awaiting the refresh of the hexagram.

[Hexagram refreshed!]

[Today's Hexagram · Great Misfortune]: Family member Shen Wen'an will face a Life and Death Tribulation, proceed cautiously!

Another hexagram of great misfortune!

Shen Yuan sat up in shock, his expression grave!

He had visited the Dragon Tamer's Mansion himself, around which there are no dangerous places.

Shen Wen'an also assured that he wouldn't go too deep...

No way!

Shen Yuan hurriedly dressed, and under the cover of night left his home heading towards Hidden Dragon Mountain.

In the pitch-black forest, Shen Wen'an staggered forward, using a sword as support.

Since emerging from the valley relic of the Dragon Tamer, he had sensed something amiss.

It felt as though a certain force was stirring within him, constantly affecting his consciousness.

This force originated from the depths of his soul; though unintentionally, the attempt to alter his thoughts still triggered instinctual resistance from his body.

The battle on a soul level rapidly consumed his Divine Spirit Power.

At this moment, Shen Wen'an's head throbbed intensely and he was on the verge of fainting.

"Wen'an?"

As he leaned against an ancient tree to rest, he vaguely heard a familiar call from the darkness ahead.

"Ah Die..."

Shen Wen'an weakly called out, his body unable to bear any longer, he directly fainted!

"Wen'an!"

Shen Yuan was astonished, he rushed forward to catch his son.

"Wen'an?"

He called out urgently, but Shen Wen'an was deeply unconscious, giving no response.

Not daring to delay, Shen Yuan immediately carried him on his back and hurried down the mountain.

Morning.

Another carriage arrived in front of the manor at Blackwater Manor.

The carriage slowly came to a stop, and after Wei Qiuling and Yu Jin got off, they eagerly walked into the courtyard.

In the courtyard, Pei Yuwan, who was cultivating, saw Wei Qiuling and the others, and her brows furrowed slightly.

"Junior Sister Pei?"

Wei Qiuling was clearly surprised to see Pei Yuwan at the Shen Family, having encountered her unexpectedly.

Pei Yuwan seemed somewhat displeased with her, and she perfunctorily cupped her hands, "Senior Sister Wei, what brings you to the Shen Family?"

Wei Qiuling smiled slightly, "Yunzhong County belongs to my Luoxia Mountain. The Shen Family is in Yunzhong County. Can't Senior Sister visit?"

At this moment, Shen Wenxing, having heard the commotion, also came out.

"Immortal Pei, Immortal Wei."

Seeing Shen Wenxing, Pei Yuwan immediately rose to greet him, "I heard some noise last night. Has Junior Brother Wen'an returned?"

Shen Wenxing hesitated for a moment and cupped his hands, "I wouldn't dare hide it from Immortal Pei, but indeed, Wen'an has returned."

"But..."

Pei Yuwan frowned, "What happened?"

Shen Wenxing did not answer but directly gestured, "Please follow me, Immortals."

Under his lead, the three came to Shen Wen'an's residence.

Inside the room, Shen Yuan stood with his hands behind his back in front of the bed, looking very grave.

Shen Wen'an had been brought back the previous night but remained unconscious.

He had carefully examined him.

The spiritual power within his body was running normally, and aside from an external wound on his shoulder, there were no other anomalies.

Helpless, he had to ask the eldest to bring Pei Yuwan over.

After all, Qiyun Valley is well-versed in Alchemy Dao; with no separation between alchemy and healing, they could only rely on her in such a time.

The three reached the door, and Shen Yuan quickly cupped his hands, "Wen'an is injured, and I must trouble Immortal Pei to help diagnose and treat him."

Seeing the unconscious Shen Wen'an, Pei Yuwan couldn't bother with formalities and went straight to the bedside, grasping his wrist.

Taking this opportunity, Shen Yuan signaled with his eyes for Wei Qiuling to talk outside.

When the two arrived outside, Shen Yuan cupped his hands, "Immortal Wei, regarding the relic, I have an unsolicited request."

Wei Qiuling nodded slightly, "Please say, Patriarch Shen."

Shen Yuan hesitated for a moment and said, "I wish to inform Qiyun Valley about the relic as well."

Wei Qiuling lightly frowned and then smiled faintly, "Is Patriarch Shen planning to use the relic as a chance to secure a lifeline for Junior Brother Wen'an?"

Shen Yuan nodded.

Since learning that his son had killed a fellow disciple, he had pondered over it for a long time.

Since the Dragon Tamer's Mansion had already been exposed, he might as well share this information with Qiyun Valley, hoping that their master might intervene, and Qiyun Valley might show leniency over his actions considering the merit in discovering the relic.

But this matter would still need to be discussed with Luoxia Mountain.

After all, Luoxia Mountain is the true ruler of Yunzhong County today.

"Patriarch Shen needn't worry. After receiving the news from Brother Shen yesterday, Qiuling immediately contacted the sect."

"Luoxia Mountain is also willing to explore that relic alongside Qiyun Valley."

"My master has also agreed and will head to Qiyun Valley soon to plead for Junior Brother Shen."

"If Junior Brother Shen truly harbors no intentions of betraying the sect, the matter shouldn't be too severe."

Wei Qiuling's words held no falsehood.

Unlike the conservative Qiyun Valley, Luoxia Mountain's Sect Leader, who is Wei Qiuling's master, is a visionary.

Upon knowing that Shen Wen'an, who established ties with Lingshan Sword Immortal, hailed from the Shen Family of Yunzhong County, Luoxia Mountain spent considerable effort locating witnesses of the Qishan Market incident from years ago.

Through their narratives, Luoxia Mountain confirmed that Lingshan Sword Immortal indeed held Shen Wen'an in favorable regard.

With this confirmed, Luoxia Mountain clarified their principle.

In the Yangnao Land, they ought to ally with the Shen Family as best as possible.

Last night, after Wei Qiuling conveyed the message back to the sect, the Sect Leader of Luoxia Mountain, without hesitation, made a decision.

Hundred Beasts Mountain is too powerful for Luoxia Mountain to contend with alone, so partnering with Qiyun Valley seemed a sensible choice.

Moreover, this move benefited them thrice over—offering a favor to Qiyun Valley, befriending the Shen Family, and possibly leaving a favorable impression on that young Lingshan Sword Immortal.

Luoxia Mountain didn't care whether Shen Wen'an entertained thoughts of betraying Qiyun Valley; even if he did, if Qiyun Valley acted excessively, it might provoke that young Sword Immortal to intervene.

Then, Luoxia Mountain might seize the opportunity to connect with that Sword Immortal.

Qiyun Valley may have been illustrious once and might struggle to stoop to the level of Cyan Ruo Sword House, but not Luoxia Mountain, which, having risen from weakness, didn't see anything shameful in leveraging connections.

Hearing this, Shen Yuan felt a spark of joy in his heart.

"Many thanks to Immortal Wei!"

Luoxia Mountain's magnanimity surprised and impressed him.

Wei Qiuling, bowing slightly, noticed Pei Yuwan coming out of the room.

"Patriarch Shen, let's return."

The three returned to the room's entrance.

Pei Yuwan, with a stern expression, looked at Shen Yuan, "Uncle Shen, what exactly happened to Junior Brother Wen'an?"

She had just carefully examined Shen Wen'an.

His body was not seriously injured, and his spiritual power was abundant, even showing signs of breaking through to the Qi Cultivation Sixth Layer.

However, in the depths of his soul, there seemed to be a very deeply dormant power, which was weak yet overpowering.

Pei Yuwan couldn't determine what this power was but could faintly surmise that it was this force that rendered Shen Wen'an comatose.

Shen Yuan glanced at Wei Qiuling and then respectfully recounted the matter of the Dragon Tamer's relic.

"Forgive me, Immortal Pei, but as Shen Wen'an is a disciple of Qiyun Valley, this relic should have been disclosed to Qiyun Valley first."

"However, considering that Luoxia Mountain is Yunzhong County's lord."

"So, regarding this relic, I hope both backend Immortal Sects can negotiate on their own."

Relic?

Pei Yuwan frowned for a moment, looking at Wei Qiuling, "What does Luoxia Mountain think?"

Wei Qiuling smiled faintly, "Luoxia Mountain and Qiyun Valley share a profound relationship, and of course, we wish to explore it together with Qiyun Valley."

"However, this relic was discovered by the Shen Family, and Junior Sister Pei, when reporting, you mustn't forget the Shen Family's contribution."

Pei Yuwan was mildly taken aback but understood her meaning.

"Very well, I will report the relic to the sect immediately, but Junior Brother Wen'an's condition is dire."

"I will now return to He County to find Elder Ji, hoping he has a way to heal Junior Brother Shen."

After speaking, Pei Yuwan hurriedly departed.

She knew clearly that whether it was the relic's matter or Shen Wen'an's current state, there was no room for delay.

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