Immortality and Cultivation: Starting with Improving Spiritual Root Aptitude

Master Zhou spoke calmly, offering his advice:

"Alright, second brother, calm down. From the very beginning, Liu Xi and that young girl were wary of us and on guard at every turn. It was expected that the girl would take the opportunity to escape. No matter how angry you are, it won't help. She's already gone. Instead of cursing and blaming here, wasting your energy, you should reflect on where things went wrong so that you don't make the same mistake again at the Star Ascension Conference and ruin our important plans."

He paused, his tone softening slightly, before slowly speaking again:

"Furthermore, we haven't come away empty-handed. Don't we still have Zhao Xuan and Liu Xi in our hands? Especially Zhao Xuan, who comes from an extraordinary background and is quite wealthy. He must be hiding a lot of treasures. If we can capture him, it will be worth ten Lin Shus. From now on, the focus of the rest of us should be on Zhao Xuan. We should send more people to keep a close eye on him and make sure he doesn't get away again. Otherwise, our entire plan will have been in vain."

Upon hearing this, Gao Xu took a few deep breaths, and the rise and fall of his chest gradually subsided. Although the anger in his heart had not completely dissipated, it was forcibly suppressed.

He knew Master Zhou was right. Things had come to this point; further anger and demands for accountability would be futile. He could only accept reality. So he slowly nodded in agreement.

"Yes, brother, I've got it. I'll personally keep an eye on Zhao Xuan and arrange for people to guard him. There will be no more mistakes, and I won't let him have a chance to escape."

Ding Cheng and Tang Xin quickly responded in unison, as if they had been granted a pardon:

"Yes, brother! We will be extra vigilant from now on and will never be careless again!"

Just then, the door to the attic was gently pushed open, and a figure tiptoed in—it was Wang Cheng.

Gao Xu glanced up and saw him, and the anger he had just suppressed instantly flared up again. He shouted angrily:

"Didn't I already tell you all? This is a sensitive time, everyone should stay within their duties and not meet privately unless necessary, so as not to attract attention and ruin our important plans. Why are you here too? Could it be... that something serious has happened?"

After all, Wang Cheng was the most steady and composed of the seven of them. His sudden arrival must have been due to some unforeseen event.

Gao Xu's words hit the nail on the head.

Wang Cheng's face suddenly stiffened. His lips moved, but he didn't speak immediately. His hesitant and extremely solemn expression was an implicit agreement.

Gao Xu's heart sank as he looked at Wang Cheng's silent demeanor. A sense of foreboding washed over him, and he thought to himself, "This is bad; something terrible has probably happened."

Ding Cheng and Tang Xin also sensed something was wrong, their eyes fixed on Wang Cheng, waiting for him to speak.

Instead of directly explaining the situation to everyone, Wang Cheng quickly walked to Master Zhou's side, leaned down slightly, put his mouth close to Master Zhou's ear, and spoke in a low voice, word by word.

Master Zhou, who had been calm and composed, changed his expression drastically after hearing Wang Cheng's words. His composure vanished completely, replaced by an expression of extreme shock.

He suddenly grabbed Wang Cheng's arm and urgently asked:

"Are you telling the truth? Is this really true? Without the slightest error?"

Wang Cheng nodded slightly, replying with a solemn expression:

"Brother, this matter is of utmost importance. How could I dare to joke about it? I just received the news and, after confirming it was true, I immediately rushed over to report to you without any delay."

At this moment, the others in the attic were filled with curiosity and confusion about the two's actions. They stared intently at Master Zhou and Wang Cheng, their faces full of doubt, yet they dared not ask any questions rashly.

Master Zhou slowly released Wang Cheng's arm, his face filled with worry.

He suddenly stood up, put his hands behind his back, and paced back and forth in the attic, his expression solemn, muttering to himself as if he were talking about something.

The atmosphere in the attic was even more oppressive than before. Everyone dared not breathe and could only watch Master Zhou pace back and forth, their unease growing stronger.

Gao Xu could no longer contain his eagerness. He stepped forward and asked in a low voice:

"Brother, what's the matter that's so urgent? Even you're so flustered. Tell us quickly so we can prepare and figure out a solution together."

Master Zhou stopped, slowly turned around, glanced at Gao Xu, Ding Cheng, and Tang Xin, sighed, and said in a heavy tone:

"Second brother, something terrible has happened! We need to pack our things and get out of here immediately, or it will be too late!!!"

"What?! Evacuation?"

Gao Xu was startled and quickly asked, "Brother, what exactly happened? Everything was still under control, why the sudden evacuation?"

Ding Cheng and Tang Xin quickly nodded in agreement.

They really couldn't understand why Lin Shu had just left.

Why the sudden and hasty evacuation?

Master Zhou's expression grew increasingly solemn. He waved his hand and quickly said:

"Fourth brother, fifth brother, they've disappeared."

"Gone?!"

Gao Xu's pupils contracted sharply, his face showing even greater disbelief, and he quickly asked:

"Brother, could it be that they went out to gather information and haven't been able to contact us yet? Fourth Brother is impulsive; maybe he took Fifth Brother somewhere else and got delayed. It might not be anything serious!"

"Won't!"

Master Zhou spoke firmly, shaking his head, "My third brother hadn't received any messages from them for two days, and he was uneasy, so he secretly went to their residence. There was no one inside, so they must have been gone two days ago."

He paused, his tone growing increasingly heavy:

"We, the Seven Friends of Mangshan, have known each other for many years. Fourth Brother is impulsive and might get carried away with his playfulness, or he might leave without saying goodbye. But given Fifth Brother's nature, he would never leave without saying goodbye, much less abandon his post without leaving a message. So I suspect that the two of them have most likely met with misfortune."

"To kill both of them simultaneously, their cultivation must be quite high. Ordinary cultivators couldn't possibly kill Fourth Brother and Fifth Brother at the same time. The one who succeeded is probably at the same level as me, around the ninth level of Qi Refining. But what's most terrifying is that they were able to kill them both silently in this market, without making a sound. I suspect this couldn't have been done by Qi Refining cultivators; it's highly likely that a Foundation Establishment cultivator made the move!"

"A Foundation Establishment cultivator?!"

This conjecture sent a chill down the spines of Gao Xu, Ding Cheng, and Tang Xin.

They were all Qi Refining cultivators, and their lifelong pursuit was to break through the bottleneck and reach the Foundation Establishment stage.

Foundation Establishment cultivators are already powerful figures, able to control the world at will. Ordinary Qi Refining cultivators are like ants in front of Foundation Establishment cultivators, utterly vulnerable.

How could such an important figure make a move so easily?

"Could it be...?"

Ding Cheng's lips trembled as he slowly spoke, "The Liu Xi that Fourth Brother and Fifth Brother have been secretly watching is not some rogue cultivator, nor is he from some small family. He is very likely from a family of a Golden Core cultivator. Otherwise, why would a Foundation Establishment cultivator specifically protect him and even kill Fourth Brother and Fifth Brother for his sake?"

Once this thought arose, it was like a nightmare, instantly engulfing everyone's minds. Everyone felt a chill run down their spines, and a coldness shot from the soles of their feet to the top of their heads.

"Don't just stand there!"

Seeing this, Master Zhou shouted sternly, "Quickly, pack your things immediately! We'll leave through the back gate of the market, bypassing the main road. The sooner we get out of this market, the better!"

Startled awake by Master Zhou's loud shout, everyone instantly came to their senses and dared not delay for even a moment.

Gao Xu stood to the side, gritting his teeth, and said:

"Brother, are we just going to let Zhao Xuan's matter go like this?"

Master Zhou's face darkened:

"As long as the green hills remain, there's no fear of running out of firewood! We're barely clinging to life now, and you're still talking about Zhao Xuan?!" After saying that, he was about to leave when he suddenly turned back and glanced at Gao Xu, adding, "Go tell him we have urgent business and need to leave for Falling Star Valley ahead of schedule, and ask him if he wants to come along."