Heroine, don't turn back, I'm just a farmer.

A cold glint flashed in Wei Changyuan's eyes.

If only a few spies from the Wuji Demonic Sect were killed, it would be understandable; it could simply be seen as Ming Suxue making an example of them. However, if spies from other factions were also killed, there must be some twists and turns involved.

"Where did he get the information?"

"That's what I wanted to ask too." The scholar in the blue robe put the secret letter back into his sleeve. "We've been laying out our plans at Qingluo Manor for two whole years, from the outer gate to the inner courtyard, from the shops to the ancestral hall. Every piece has been carefully selected and tested repeatedly. These past two years have been peaceful, and Ming Suxue hasn't made a move. That swordsman has only been here for three days. What gives him the right?"

A brief silence fell over the cabin.

The candle flame popped, and Wei Changyuan didn't even pick up the candle scissors. Instead, he slowly used his fingers to rub the burnt wick. His fingers were rough, but his movements were very steady.

There's a mole.

"Not necessarily." The scholar in the blue robe shook his head. "No more than five people in the sect know about the Wuji Demonic Sect's plans. Besides you and me, there are only the sect leader and two deputy sect leaders. If these four people had any problems, the Wuji Demonic Sect would have been gone long ago."

"So what do you mean?"

"I suspect that there's someone behind that Heavenly Blade." The scholar in the blue robe's gaze deepened. "Someone who has a profound understanding of Ming Suxue, the Wuji Demonic Sect, and even Tianluoxiang. Otherwise, it's impossible to explain how he was able to find Ming Suxue so accurately, eliminate the sentries so precisely, and ruin the entire plan so precisely."

Wei Changyuan's fingers suddenly stopped on the scabbard.

In the world of martial arts, it's always good to think things through before acting, so he made a deeper connection to the matter.

"You mean... that person is still alive?"

"Heavenly Blade." The scholar in blue robes remained silent for a few moments. "Back then, the Demonic Sect besieged and killed him, claiming to have succeeded, but no one has seen his body to this day. His fate is unknown. Who says he's definitely dead?"

"Heavenly Blade..." Wei Changyuan slowly closed his eyes. "If he were alive, it would indeed make sense. He understands Ming Suxue, understands Tianluoxiang, comes from the Demonic Sect, and understands the Ten Outer Sects, not to mention some old acquaintances in the martial world."

"If Tian Dao is really still alive, and is standing right behind us," he lowered his voice even further, "then our mission this time will be far more complex than simply capturing Ming Suxue."

"That's why I've come to find you." The scholar in the blue robe tucked his folding fan into his sleeve and sat up straight. "The sect leader's intention is for us to split up. I'll go to Xuzhou to continue with the original plan. You'll go to Qingzhou to keep an eye on that Heavenly Blade successor and Ming Suxue. We don't seek victory in one battle, but rather to find out their backgrounds—especially that Heavenly Blade successor. Who exactly is he? Is the Heavenly Blade backing him? And what level has his martial arts reached?"

Wei Changyuan remained silent for a long time, then suddenly asked, "If the Heavenly Blade is truly behind him, what should I do?"

The scholar in the blue robe narrowed his dark green eyes slightly.

"If you can kill him, kill him; if you can't..." He paused, "Survival comes first. The sect leader said that no one more powerful than Tian Dao is as cunning as him, and no one more cunning than him has as high martial arts skills. His death back then might have been a fake death. If you encounter him, don't be reckless."

Wei Changyuan didn't speak, but started tapping the scabbard again. This time the rhythm was slow, each tap heavy, and the scabbard made a "thump-thump" sound.

"If my guess is correct, I will have nowhere to retreat and will be forced to stand at the forefront of the storm." Wei Changyuan opened his eyes, his gaze falling outside the cabin.

Upon hearing this, the scholar in the blue robe suddenly laughed.

"You actually really want to meet him."

"Yes." Wei Changyuan did not deny it. "That's the Heavenly Blade. People in the martial world risk their lives to venture out here. Who wouldn't want to test its strength for themselves? The only difference is whether they dare to or not. Besides, do you think I have any way out?"

"A lingering obsession from ten years ago, still present now?"

"A martial artist must have a few people he wants to kill." Wei Changyuan said calmly, as if stating a matter of course, "otherwise, the knife in his hand will become dull."

The ship rocked again, and the thick fog in the night grew even thicker. After a long while, the scholar in the blue robe stood up, lifted the cabin curtain, and glanced at the sky outside.

"We're almost at the fork in the river. I'll go east, you go west."

"Are you alone in Xuzhou?"

"The sect leader has other plans." The scholar in the blue robe turned and glanced at him. "But you, Left Envoy Wei, that successor of the Heavenly Blade is no ordinary character, and Ming Suxue is a ruthless vixen. If you only see this pair as a pair of doomed lovers, you're likely to suffer the consequences."

"I know." Wei Changyuan slowly gripped the knife that was lying across his lap. "No one in the martial world knows for sure how many levels Ming Suxue has mastered in the Tianluo Scripture. But she has been living in seclusion at Qingluo Manor for the past three years. On the surface, she is using my Wuji Demon Sect to avoid trouble, but in reality, she may be practicing a very special technique called 'Locking Jade Technique' in the Tianluo Scripture. This technique requires quiet practice without using true qi or having any murderous intent to achieve initial success. Otherwise, she would have made her move long ago."

"The Jade Locking Technique..." The scholar in the blue robe pondered. "I've heard of this skill. Once mastered, one can control their inner strength at will and attack without warning. What's even more terrifying is that it can completely conceal the cultivator's true killing intent, making it impossible to defend against, but one cannot easily use it."

"In that case, it's quite remarkable that the Heavenly Blade successor could survive three days under her and even make her willingly transfer her Heavenly Demon True Qi."

"The real trouble is yet to come." Wei Changyuan tucked his knife into his belt and stood up, his head almost touching the low ceiling of the cabin. "According to what you said, you investigated the people Gongsun Yu brought afterward. One had his meridians severed by Ming Suxue's Golden Phoenix Jade Dew, and two died from their joints being broken by her Entangling Silk Meridian Severing Technique. Only Lei Heng was killed by that Heavenly Blade successor himself."

"What are you trying to say?"

"It was Ming Suxue who deliberately left Lei Heng to him." Wei Changyuan's eyes shone brightly in the dim light. "In fact, those people were also deliberately led there by Ming Suxue. She was testing this successor of the Heavenly Blade, testing his martial arts, testing his courage, testing his reaction in the face of life and death, and he caught it."

The scholar in the blue robe remained silent for a moment, then slowly nodded.

"Interesting. A nobody with no connections, no reputation, and no connections was personally tested by Ming Suxue, a traitor from Tianluoxiang—and he passed the test."

"So, I'm becoming more and more interested in him." Wei Changyuan lifted the cabin curtain, and the night fog immediately rushed in, carrying the fishy smell of the river. "Regardless of whether he has the Heavenly Blade behind him or not, this person himself is worth the trip."

The scholar in the blue robe also stood up and walked to the hatch. "We have arrived at the water fork. The Han River splits into two branches here, one flowing towards Xuzhou and the other towards Qingzhou. I wonder if we will ever see Brother Wei again after tonight's farewell."

Having said that, the scholar in the blue robe took out a blood-red command arrow from his sleeve and handed it to Wei Changyuan, "If you succeed, bring Ming Suxue and the head of that Heavenly Blade successor to Xuzhou to meet me. If you fail..."

He paused.

"If you fail, at least bring back your own life. The Left Envoy of the Wuji Demonic Sect cannot be defeated by an unknown person because of your scheming."

Wei Changyuan took the command token and put it into his pocket.

"Don't worry, I've lived for forty-five years and killed more people than I've walked roads. Even if he had three heads and six arms, it's impossible for him to—"

He stopped talking.

Because the old man punting the boat at the bow suddenly spoke.

"Esteemed guests, we've reached the fork in the river. Xuzhou is to the east, Qingzhou to the west—which of you will disembark first?"

Wei Changyuan and the scholar in blue robes exchanged a glance.

The old man punting the boat never turned his head. His straw raincoat and bamboo hat covered him completely, leaving only his two withered hands holding the bamboo pole. The pole plunged into the river silently, without even a splash.

The old man had been rowing the boat all night, but Wei Changyuan only realized at this moment that he had never heard the sound of the bamboo pole hitting the water.

Not even once.

Using air to steer the boat, they sailed for half the night.

Almost instinctively, his hand went to the hilt of the knife.

The scholar in the blue robe slipped his folding fan into his palm.

The atmosphere froze instantly.

The old man punting the boat didn't turn around. He simply raised his bamboo pole and gently touched the surface of the river. The awning boat, like a falling leaf, silently drifted towards the shore.

"No need to be nervous." The old man's voice was still hoarse and calm. "I'm just a boatman. I take money and ferry people across the river. As for who's on the boat, where they're going, or who they're going to kill—I don't ask or care."

He paused, and a string of water droplets dripped from the edge of his straw hat.

"But there is one condition: whoever lays a hand on my old boat shall swim to it himself."

Wei Changyuan's fingers hovered over the hilt of the knife for a while before finally slowly releasing them.

The scholar in the blue robe also put the folding fan back into his sleeve.

"I apologize for the intrusion." The scholar in the blue robe bowed. "May I ask your honorable name, sir?"

The old man punting the boat did not answer. He gently pushed off the side of the boat with the bamboo pole, and the boat came to a stop without moving. He was hunched over and looked like a dark shadow in the dim night, making it hard to tell whether he was real or not.

"Let's disembark."

Wei Changyuan gave the old man a deep look, then turned and leaped onto the riverbank, his figure immediately swallowed by the thick fog.

The scholar in the blue robe followed closely behind.

The two stood on the shore and looked back—the covered boat had already left the shore and silently glided into the depths of the thick fog, the dim yellow lantern gradually turning into a blurry halo in the fog.

"That person..." Wei Changyuan's voice was extremely low.

"Don't ask," the scholar in the blue robe interrupted him. "Farewell."

……

"According to Aunt Liu, the Wuji Demonic Sect is quite powerful within the Outer Nine Paths," Lu Guo commented. "That wistful fellow from Tianluoxiang mentioned that they lost several experts recently. I wonder if they still have the courage to come back."

"The Wuji Demonic Sect will not give up the 'Heavenly Demon Manual,' so they will definitely come to kill me. Now that we have lost our spies and several experts, only he can make a move." Ming Suxue thought for a moment and said, "But he is also cautious, so he may not have the courage to break into Qingluo Manor, especially after so many spies have been killed. When he comes back, he will definitely think of other ways, so he will be easily watched when he is out."

Lu Guo replied without hesitation, "To be honest, that's true."

...However, I have another identity.

"You don't look scared?"

Lu Guo coughed: "Aunt Liu, of course I'm scared!"

Of course he was afraid; he was afraid that the elders of the Wuji Demonic Sect wouldn't come.

Ming Suxue glanced at him. "So?"

Lu Guo said frankly, "I want to stay at Qingluo Manor for the time being."

"Didn't you say we were going to Xuzhou?"

"Aunt Liu, have you ever heard of a divine skill in the Demonic Sect called the Incarnation Technique?"