I want to tread the heavens

At Chenshi (7-9 AM), Yue Rong changed into relatively clean clothes and tightly wrapped his wound with strips of cloth, concealing it under his sleeve. His face was still pale, but his eyes had regained their calmness, even appearing sharper than usual.

"I'm leaving." He stood at the door, giving Ling Xiao and Fa Cai one last look. "Remember what I said."

"Yes." Ling Xiao nodded emphatically.

Fa Cai ran over, rubbed against Yue Rong's leg, and made a low whimper, as if to say "be careful".

Yue Rong bent down, patted its head, turned around, pushed open the door, and disappeared into the morning mist.

Ling Xiao, holding Fa Cai, stood at the door, gazing in the direction he had left, remaining motionless for a long time.

The morning fog was thick, like milk that couldn't be dissolved, blurring the distant houses and trees into gray shadows. The wind blew, and the fog moved, but it brought no relief, only a heavy, suffocating oppression.

Suddenly, Fa Cai pricked up its ears and looked warily towards the southeast—where the alchemy room was located. It let out a very low, warning growl.

Ling Xiao also felt it. The jade pendant around his neck was getting slightly warm.

Was it the man in the black robe? Or one of Guo Dahai's men?

He hugged Fa Cai tightly, retreated back into the house, gently closed the door, leaving only a crack, and stared intently at the outside.

Time, second by second, passed by agonizingly.

In the inner courtyard, in Guo Yun's study.

The doors and windows were tightly shut, and only an oil lamp was lit inside. Guo Yun sat behind her desk, toying with the Yang pendant in her hand, her face calm, but her eyes were churning with turbulent emotions.

Yue Rong sat opposite her, his back straight and his expression calm. He told her everything he had seen and heard the night before, as well as his own speculations, without reservation. Apart from the most crucial information that the jade pendant around Ling Xiao's neck was the "Star Key," he only said that the jade pendant was a token and might be related to the underground palace.

After listening, Guo Yun remained silent for a long time. She put down the jade pendant and unconsciously tapped the table with her fingers, making a soft "tap, tap, tap" sound that was particularly clear in the quiet study.

"Blood Soul Vulture, Black-Robed Guide, Star Altar, Inheritance Palace..." she repeated slowly, each word making the air in the study grow heavier. "Guo Rong, do you know what all this means?"

"This means the Guo family has been drawn into a vortex far beyond our imagination," Yue Rong said calmly. "The Demon Clan's target is the Starfall Clan's orphans and lineage. Once they succeed, the entire Guo family will be wiped out to silence them."

"Are you threatening me?" Guo Yun's gaze was like a knife.

"It's stating the facts." Yue Rong met her gaze without flinching. "The Third Elder is a smart man; he should understand that the only way to survive now is through cooperation. Once we obtain what's in the underground palace and leave the old land, the demons will naturally chase after us. Only then can the Guo family be preserved."

Guo Yun stared at him for a long time, then suddenly laughed, a bitter and self-deprecating smile: "Cooperation? Guo Rong, you overestimate me. The core of the spiritual vein is a forbidden area of ​​the Guo family, protected by an array. No one can enter except the patriarch and the three elders working together. As for me, I have long been excluded by the Grand Elder's faction and have no right to open the entrance."

Yue Rong's heart sank. But he didn't panic. He just looked at Guo Yun and said, "Since the Third Elder knows that the entrance to the underground palace is in the core of the spiritual vein, he must also know other ways to enter. The ancestral teachings have been passed down from generation to generation. There should be some... backup plans."

A strange light flashed in Guo Yun's eyes. She looked Yue Rong over again, as if she were seeing this taciturn, outsider servant for the first time.

"You are very perceptive," she said slowly. "Indeed, besides the main gate, there is a secret passage that can bypass the formation and lead directly to the depths of the spiritual vein. However, that secret passage has been abandoned for hundreds of years, the entrance is buried, the internal situation is unknown, and it is fraught with danger."

"Any road will do." Yue Rong said without hesitation.

Even if you might die inside?

"If you're afraid of death, you won't come back to this old land." Yue Rong's voice was calm, yet it carried an undeniable resolve.

Guo Yun remained silent for a long time, finally letting out a long sigh. She stood up, walked to the bookshelf, moved a few scrolls of bamboo slips aside, revealing an inconspicuous groove on the wall behind them. She placed the sun pendant into the groove and gently turned it.

"Click".

The wall slid open silently, revealing a narrow passage just wide enough for one person to pass through. The passage stretched downwards, its bottom unseen, and a cold wind blew out, carrying the scent of earth and time.

"The entrance to the secret passage is right below my study." Guo Yun turned to Yue Rong. "I can tell you the location, and even give you some items for self-defense. But I won't go down with you, nor can I send anyone to help you. This matter must be kept absolutely secret. If it's leaked, you, me, and Ling Xiao will all die without a burial place."

Yue Rong nodded: "I understand. As long as the Third Elder provides the route and the necessary supplies, I will take care of the rest myself."

Guo Yun took out a palm-sized leather pouch and a yellowed sheepskin map from her desk drawer and handed them to Yue Rong: "Inside the pouch are three 'Vajra Talismans,' which can block a Foundation Establishment cultivator's attack in a critical moment. The map shows the secret route, but it is very old, and many places may have collapsed or changed. You can judge for yourself."

Yue Rong accepted it and carefully put it away: "Thank you."

"No need to thank me." Guo Yun waved her hand, a complex emotion flashing in her eyes. "I did this not for you, but for the lives of hundreds of members of the Guo family. And..."

She paused, her voice low: "The ancestral precepts state that if one encounters a descendant of the Starfall Clan, one should do everything in one's power to help them, to repay the life-saving grace of one's ancestors. Guo Rong, that child Ling Xiao... is he truly a descendant of the Starfall Clan?"

Yue Rong was silent for a moment, then nodded: "Yes."

Guo Yun closed her eyes briefly, then opened them again, her eyes filled with unwavering resolve: "Go. But remember, you only have three days. After three days, regardless of success or failure, you must leave the secret passage. At that time, I will activate the protective array at the core of the spiritual vein, completely sealing off the entrance to prevent the demons from entering."

"Three days is enough." Yue Rong bowed, turned around, and walked into the dark passage without hesitation.

The wall behind him closed silently, returning to its original state.

Guo Yun stood there, staring at the wall. After a long while, she slowly sat back down in her chair, as if she had aged ten years in an instant.

Outside the window, the morning mist gradually dissipated, and the sky was already bright.

But the dark clouds hanging over the Guo family were growing thicker and thicker.