On the path to immortality, I can see destiny.

The night grew even darker.

The two left the stone chamber and continued westward. The ravine gradually receded behind them, replaced by a gentle uphill slope.

The ground beneath my feet was soft soil, making no sound when I stepped on it, except for the occasional crisp sound of a dry branch breaking, which sounded particularly clear in the silence.

Zhao Fan remained half a step behind, his gaze fixed on the composed figure ahead. Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the clouds, casting a long, blurry shadow of the young master on the ground.

Neither of them spoke.

Zhao Fan quietly spread his divine sense further, covering a ten-zhang radius around him, not missing any unusual movement.

After walking for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the terrain ahead gradually became steeper.

This is halfway up a mountain, with sparse trees and scattered rocks. The moonlight shines on the bluish-gray rocks, giving them a cold, eerie glow.

Zhao Fan was pondering how to find a reason to leave the group when his gaze suddenly sharpened.

There was a dark cave entrance on the mountain wall about ten feet ahead.

The cave entrance is small, about the height of a person, and is half-hidden by a few crooked shrubs. You would not notice it unless you got close and looked closely.

What alarmed Zhao Fan even more was the faint airflow emanating from the cave entrance.

The airflow was clearly visible to him, like silk threads, slowly overflowing from the depths of the cave entrance, swirling and coiling in the night sky.

The color of the airflow was almost exactly the same as the color of the airflow on Zhang Tie in his memory.

Zhao Fan's pupils suddenly contracted.

He was all too familiar with that color; in the Blood Refining Array, he used the color of these air currents to determine Zhang Tie's location.

The aura emanating from the four white puppets was also this color.

There are things related to Zhang Tie in this cave.

Zhang Tie himself might even be inside.

Zhao Fan paused almost imperceptibly for a moment, then resumed his normal pace.

He lowered his eyes, concealing the horror within, and remained expressionless. He even deliberately slowed down by half a step, moving himself further away from the cave entrance.

Zhao Fan finally realized the source of that strange feeling he had been experiencing.

The young shop owner and the cultivator surnamed Zhou seemed to show no fear or tension whatsoever from beginning to end.

Especially the young master of the workshop, with his status, he should not be very good at fighting desperately, but he was not flustered at all.

Either he has strong self-preservation skills, or he knows there is no danger here.

"Fellow Daoist Zhao?"

The young master turned around and looked in the direction Zhao Fan's gaze had lingered, his eyes landing on the cave entrance.

"There's a cave here?"

Zhao Fan's heart tightened, but he remained calm on the surface.

"It's just a cave. There are plenty of caves like this in the wilderness."

"Yeah?"

The young master smiled slightly, a smile that seemed profound in the moonlight.

"Since we've come across this, why don't we go in and take a look? Maybe that demonic cultivator is hiding here."

Zhao Fan's heart sank, and he immediately refused.

"Fellow Daoist Song is joking. If that demonic cultivator is truly hiding here, with our combined strength, rushing in would likely be extremely dangerous."

"Why don't we inform Fellow Daoist Zhou and the others first, and then go in together when the main force arrives?"

"By the time they arrive, that demonic cultivator will have already fled."

The young master shook his head, his gaze falling on the cave entrance, a hint of something unfathomable flashing in his eyes.

"Don't worry, Fellow Daoist Zhao. I'll go first, and you can follow behind me. If there's any danger, Fellow Daoist Zhao can leave first."

As he spoke, he actually stepped towards the cave entrance.

Zhao Fan stood still, without moving.

"Fellow Daoist Song, please forgive me for not being able to keep you company."

The young master stopped and turned around, his gaze falling on him.

"What does Fellow Daoist Zhao mean by this?"

Zhao Fan did not answer, but stared intently at the young master.

The young master's smile gradually faded, and a dangerous killing intent flashed in his eyes.

"Fellow Daoist Zhao is indeed clever."

He sighed softly.

"Unfortunately, intelligent people often don't live long."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao Fan heard a faint sound of footsteps behind him.

Zhao Fan did not turn around, but his divine sense had already caught that familiar aura.

Zhou family cultivator.

He stood three zhang behind Zhao Fan. The divine sense that had been vaguely enveloping Zhao Fan had now solidified into a tangible form, like an invisible net that firmly bound Zhao Fan.

"Fellow Daoist Zhao."

The Zhou family cultivator's voice was calm and unwavering.

"Since Fellow Daoist Song has invited you to investigate together, why do you refuse?"

Zhao Fan's heart sank to the bottom.

He slowly turned around. In the moonlight, the Zhou family cultivator stood on a rock, looking down at him with a cold and calm gaze, as if he were looking at a dead man.

Zhao Fan's voice remained steady.

"What do you mean by this?"

The Zhou family cultivator's lips curled up slightly, a smile exactly like that of the young master.

"Hasn't Fellow Daoist Zhao already guessed it?"

Zhao Fan remained silent.

He did guess correctly.

From the moment he stepped onto that mountain, Zhao Fan sensed that it was a trap, but he didn't expect it to happen so quickly and so directly.

They want to use Zhang Tie to kill him.

They might even have some kind of connection with Zhang Tie.

"Fellow Daoist Zhao."

The young master's voice came from behind, tinged with a hint of amusement.

"Since you're here, why not go in and take a look? Maybe you'll find the answer you're looking for inside."

Zhao Fan did not turn around; his gaze remained fixed on the Zhou family cultivator, whose hand was already on the storage bag at his waist, ready to strike at any moment.

The two attacked from both sides, one at the seventh level of Qi Refining and the other at the sixth level of Qi Refining.

Zhao Fan quickly calculated and knew that it would be difficult for him to escape at this time.

Zhao Fan took a deep breath, suppressing his turbulent thoughts. He slowly turned around to face the young master, a bitter smile on his face.

"Fellow Daoist Song is right, I do indeed want to know the answer."

He paused for a moment, then continued.

"However, my cultivation level is low, and if I walk in front, I'm afraid I'll be a burden to you two."

His gaze swept across the two faces.

"Senior Zhou has the highest cultivation level, so why don't you go first? I, Zhao, will go in the middle, and Fellow Daoist Song will bring up the rear. In this way, even if there are demonic cultivators inside, we can still look out for each other."

The young master raised an eyebrow slightly and looked at the Zhou family cultivator.

The Zhou family cultivator remained silent for a moment, then nodded.

"Can."

He stepped forward, past Zhao Fan, and headed towards the cave entrance first. The young master followed behind Zhao Fan, and the three of them filed in.

The cave entrance was deeper than he had imagined.

Upon entering, the dense darkness engulfed the three. The Zhou family cultivator raised his hand and released a beam of spiritual light, illuminating an area of ​​several feet in front of him.

The rock walls on both sides are flat and smooth, and there are stone steps underfoot that extend downwards one by one.

Zhao Fan's gaze was fixed on the unseen air currents ahead.

The dark red aura grew thicker and thicker, surging from the depths of the cave, weaving into an eerie crimson hue in his eyes. The further he went, the denser the aura became, almost filling the entire passage.

Ahead, the Zhou family cultivators' steps remained steady, while behind them, the young master's breath was almost touching.

Zhao Fan's right hand quietly reached into his robes, his fingertips touching the cool surface of the Mysterious Mirror.

The spiritual energy within the Cloud-Stepping Boots had reached its peak, and the Golden Marrow Thorn was pressed against his wrist, ready to be activated at any moment.

He was waiting for an opportunity.