Yang Guo: I'm invincible in the opening battle against Aunt Guo!

We entered the dimly lit ancient tomb passage again.

The atmosphere, however, was subtly different from before.

Little Dragon Girl led the way, her white robes appearing like a flowing moonlight in the dim light.

Yang Guo followed behind, keeping a step's distance.

The faint, cool fragrance emanating from her body lingered around my nose.

But the memory of that soft, cool touch just now kept flashing through my mind.

The two remained silent as they returned to the stone chamber with the jade bed.

The stone chamber remained cold and silent, with only the jade bed emitting a hazy glow.

"You shall wait here and not move about."

Little Dragon Girl gave an order, seemingly wanting to leave to do something, but stopped as soon as she took a step.

She looked up at the faint light filtering through a hidden ventilation hole in the ceiling of the stone chamber, used to determine the time, and her brows furrowed slightly.

"What's wrong?" Yang Guo sensed something was amiss.

"It's almost noon," Xiaolongnu's cool voice revealed a hint of doubt. "At this time of day, Granny Sun should have already prepared the meal and brought it here."

Granny Sun is the only servant in the Ancient Tomb, and the only person besides Master and Little Dragon Girl who lives in the Ancient Tomb for a long time, responsible for daily chores.

She listened carefully again, but the depths of the tomb passage were deathly silent, with no trace of Granny Sun's usual rustling footsteps.

"Grandma Sun never missed a moment's time, nor did she ever leave without saying goodbye."

In Xiaolongnu's voice, the doubt gradually turned into a faint worry.

Although the ancient tomb is isolated from the world, Granny Sun would occasionally go to the town at the foot of the mountain to buy some necessities, but she would always inform her in advance and would never take so long.

Could it be... that something unexpected happened?

Thinking of her senior sister Li Mochou's sudden attack, Xiaolongnu's heart tightened.

My senior sister is ruthless. Will she harm Granny Sun in order to force me out?

"We need to go out and look for them." Little Dragon Girl made a decisive decision, looking at Yang Guo with an unquestionable tone, "You're coming with me."

She couldn't possibly leave Yang Guo, a man of unknown origin and with superb martial arts skills, alone in the heart of the ancient tomb.

Yang Guo naturally had no objection: "That's only right. Granny Sun is from the Ancient Tomb. If something unexpected happens, it might be related to Master Li, and I might be able to help."

The two immediately left the stone chamber and walked out of the tomb along the path they had come from.

Emerging once more from the cracks in the ancient tomb, we returned to the sunlight.

After identifying the direction, Xiaolongnu used her lightness skill to fly towards the general direction of the town at the foot of the mountain.

Her movements were light and swift, like a fairy walking on water.

Yang Guo followed her at a leisurely pace, yet he was not left behind in the slightest.

The path down the mountain inevitably passes through the outer perimeter of the Quanzhen Sect's sphere of influence.

Although it is not the main hall of Chongyang Palace, there is still an area where Taoist priests patrol and disciples move around.

Just as the two were passing through a mountain path outside a pine forest.

A few junior Quanzhen disciples who were sweeping the courtyard not far away looked up by chance and happened to see that fleeting scene.

A woman dressed in white, with a stunningly beautiful and aloof appearance, appeared like a fairy descending from the heavens, her robes fluttering as she passed by outside the forest.

Beside her was a young man in a blue robe whom she had never seen before; the two walked side by side at an astonishing speed.

"Huh? What was that just now?" A young Taoist priest rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was seeing things.

"It looks like... a girl in white? So beautiful..." The other Taoist priest stared blankly in the direction where the two disappeared, not even noticing that the broom in his hand had fallen.

"Who is that man? He's not from our Quanzhen Sect, is he? Why is he with that fairy?" the third person asked in confusion.

"Go and report to our senior brother!" A quick-witted person snapped out of their daze.

The discussions and fleeting glimpses of these Taoist priests quickly stirred up ripples among the calm and monotonous lower-level disciples of the Quanzhen Sect.

The news that "a white-clad fairy was spotted in the direction of the forbidden area behind the mountain" quietly spread among some disciples, accompanied by various embellished imaginings.

Naturally, the news also reached the ears of some people with ulterior motives.

Inside a side hall of Chongyang Palace.

Zhao Zhijing listened to a trusted disciple's whispered report and scoffed disdainfully:

"A woman in white? In the back mountains? Hmph, it must be that little vixen from the Ancient Tomb Sect! Playing tricks, breaking the rules, and traveling with an unknown man—she's definitely not a respectable person! Junior Brother Zhen, don't you think so?"

He looked at Zhen Zhibing, who looked somewhat dazed.

Zhen Zhibing stopped reading the Taoist scripture in his hand.

The image of that stunning white figure he had glimpsed outside the ancient tomb a few years ago involuntarily surfaced in his mind—pure, aloof, and untouched by worldly dust… His heart skipped a beat for no apparent reason.

He composed himself, barely suppressing the ripples of emotion that shouldn't have arisen in his heart, and said in a deep voice:

"Senior Brother Zhao, the Ancient Tomb Sect and our sect are neighbors, and we have always kept to ourselves. There's no need to pay attention to these rumors. Perhaps one of our fellow cultivators has misunderstood."

He said that, but his eyes involuntarily drifted towards the back of the mountain.

Zhao Zhijing snorted and didn't pursue the matter further.

Right now, he's more concerned with how to perform in front of his master and suppress his fellow disciples. As for the women of the Ancient Tomb Sect, although he's somewhat curious about them, they're not worth his time to think about.

However, the words "accompanied by an unknown man" still stirred a dark suspicion and inexplicable unease in his heart.

At this moment, Yang Guo and Xiaolongnu had already left the territory of the Quanzhen Sect.

We arrived at the foot of the mountain.

……