Leng Qingze! Get Over Here!

As the old woman cradled the severed hand with its dried blood, tears and chilling murderous intent flickered in her eyes! For a female cultivator to attain her current cultivation realm, her lifetime along the path of the Dao was bound to be defined by even greater decisiveness and bloodshed! Now, beholding her granddaughter’s severed hand, the killing intent in her heart condensed into something nearly tangible! Surges of primal energy roiled around her, and her breathing grew slightly rapid. Yet within a single breath, the old woman mastered her state of mind. She placed the severed hand back into her storage ring and spoke with frigid eyes. "Young friend, this array..." Li Guanqi nodded slightly, narrowing his eyes. "This array was definitely not inscribed on-site by the culprit. It was likely transferred from an external medium, much like an array plate." The old woman’s gaze turned icy, her voice chilling to the bone. "Meaning... there is a traitor within the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect!" As her words fell, she glanced up at the sect-protecting barrier, which had already closed across the sky. The veins along her forehead throbbed rhythmically, showing how hard she was striving to rein in her murderous fury. Li Guanqi said nothing more. Rising to his feet, his divine sense surged forth like an overwhelming tide, engulfing the entire residential palace! In an instant, the memories of every maidservant and attendant within the residence were laid bare before his eyes. Suddenly, Li Guanqi’s brow furrowed, and he murmured in surprise, "Nothing?" Li Guanqi narrowed his eyes, his white irises resembling a cold, bottomless pool. "Senior, take me to Ye Bingxin's quiet cultivation room to have a look." Collecting her emotions, the old woman took a deep breath. "Very well. It's in the rear courtyard. I'll take you there." *Swish! Swish!* In a flash, the two arrived at the side palace in the rear courtyard. This place served as Ye Bingxin’s private residence; under normal circumstances, almost none of the maids or attendants would dare approach unless summoned. A teal cultivation tower came into view, the entire rear side palace already sealed by a boundary barrier. After the old woman personally unsealed the barrier, the two stepped into the tower. The floor was paved with white-jade-like tiles, every single one crafted from high-grade spirit stones. Beneath the spirit stone tiles were numerous inscribed arrays, filling the bright space with swirling mist. Li Guanqi closed his eyes to sense the surroundings, and within his inner vision, he quickly detected a subtle anomaly in a corner. Shifting over to the corner, he slowly opened his palm. In an instant, terrifying lightning erupted, slicing the local space apart! Crackling purple lightning screeched incessantly, sounding like the cries of ten thousand birds. The space within a zhang was instantly cleaved apart, and a sliver of silver light was dragged forcefully out from the void. Seeing this, the old woman’s heart trembled. After all, in the time since the incident occurred, she had visited this quiet cultivation room more than five times. Yet every single time, she had returned empty-handed, finding not a single clue! Li Guanqi had only just arrived for the first time, yet he had already uncovered the fluctuations between the spiritual vein and the room's spatial fabric. However, she noticed that after extracting the spatial fluctuation, Li Guanqi fell completely still. Gradually, Li Guanqi's brow knitted tightly, and his expression darkened. *It's not Gu Xici?* *This aura doesn't belong to Gu Xici at all. It's completely unfamiliar... one I've never encountered before.* Li Guanqi’s expression shifted repeatedly. He had never expected the mastermind behind this would not be Gu Xici. This caught him somewhat off guard. "Young friend, is something the matter?" The old woman had been keeping her distance, terrified of disturbing him. Yet seeing him stand frozen in silence for so long, she could no longer hold back from asking. Li Guanqi seared this wisp of aura firmly into his memory, let out a long breath, and murmured, "It's nothing. I merely discovered a few things." "The other party's cultivation is formidable. Compared to me... they are only stronger, not weaker!" Hearing this, the old woman drew a sharp breath of cold air. Over this period, she had already been in contact with Ye Xuan via transmission. After learning that Ye Xuan was allowed to return, she had naturally contacted him immediately. Ye Xuan had told his mother plainly that the unassuming young man before her was a genuine Tribulation Transcendence Realm powerhouse—and not merely an ordinary one, but one of immense strength! Yet even so, she now heard from Li Guanqi's own lips that the enemy's strength was only greater than his, not weaker! The old woman's expression sank instantly. This affair had already spiraled far beyond her expectations. Li Guanqi pondered for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "Let us head to the main sect hall first. Senior Ye shouldn't take much longer to return." Hearing this, the old woman could only force her mind to steady, leading Li Guanqi toward the main sect hall. Along the way, Li Guanqi's mind churned furiously with thoughts. The most important question, of course, was what the culprit hoped to achieve! Yet right now, he did not even know who the enemy was targeting, making it impossible to deduce their motive. After abducting Ye Bingxin, they had not made any demands, unlike Duan Xian before. At this thought, Li Guanqi's eyes narrowed slightly. If the other party truly came for him, then it was impossible for them not to know that he possessed the power to slay Tribulation Transcendence realm cultivators! Upon reaching the main sect hall, the old woman ordered wine and spirit fruits to be served, but Li Guanqi spoke up. "We have serious matters to attend to; tea will suffice." The old woman nodded slightly at his words and had the spiritual wine cleared away, replacing it with fine tea. Li Guanqi lifted his teacup, a sharp glint flickering within his eyes. Recalling the aura from the quiet room, his gaze drifted as unspoken thoughts turned in his mind. Setting down the teacup, Li Guanqi looked up at the old woman across from him and asked in a deep voice, "Did Ye Bingxin display any abnormalities recently? Or did she come into contact with anyone?" As he spoke, Li Guanqi silently spread his divine sense across the entire Nine Dragons Immortal Sect. It was still unknown who had arranged the spiritual vein array behind Ye Bingxin’s residence. The old woman frowned and pondered for a long while before letting out a helpless sigh. "I don't know..." "Ever since Xuan'er departed the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect, I have also been in closed-door cultivation." "Bingxin rarely needed to attend to sect affairs on ordinary days; she was focusing all her efforts on preparing to break through to the Mahayana realm." Li Guanqi suddenly rose to his feet, turned toward the old woman, and asked solemnly, "If... someone betrayed the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect and had a hand in this affair, would you be able to bring yourself to strike them down?" Suddenly! The main doors were slammed open, and a wind-battered Ye Xuan, his face coated in frost, shoved his way inside. His voice carried bone-chilling murderous intent as he rumbled, "No matter who it is, they shall die!" Hearing this, Li Guanqi rose helplessly, gave Ye Xuan a slight nod, and spoke with a conflicted tone. "Senior Leng... has a younger brother, doesn't she?" The old woman and Ye Xuan both felt their hearts lurch violently! The old woman’s eyes filled with disbelief, while Ye Xuan's face turned utterly grim. "Uncle?" Li Guanqi looked at Ye Xuan with complicated eyes, nodding faintly as he said softly, "He still carries the residual aura of that array upon him." Ye Xuan knitted his brows tightly, turning toward the old woman to ask, "An array? What array?" The old woman’s expression shifted rapidly. With a flick of her wrist, she brought out Ye Bingxin's severed hand. Cradling the severed hand with both palms, her heart bled. She knew her son's temperament all too well. When it came to Ye Bingxin, even his own maternal uncle would find no mercy. *Boom!* The instant Ye Xuan laid eyes on the severed hand, a surge of fury rushed straight to his head! The terrifying pressure of a half-step Tribulation Transcendence realm expert instantly flooded across the entire Nine Dragons Immortal Sect! Ye Xuan held the fair, slender severed hand, his tiger-like eyes turning instantly bloodshot. Infused with primal energy, his trembling, teeth-gritting roar reverberated across the entirety of the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect. "Leng Qingze!! Get over here!!"