You're just a single demon beast? I have a whole army of beast tamers!

Elder Xun looked north, remained silent for a long time, and then said:

"I'll go back and ask for help. You continue to Three Immortal Islands."

If Qin Gongfeng is still alive, he will surely be waiting for us there.

He possesses the Shui family's token, allowing him to enter the city on his own.

"Alright." Elder Liu nodded.

Without another word, the two parted ways, one going south and the other west.

Hundreds of miles away, the Qin beast landed by a mountain spring and washed the blood off its hands.

He didn't care whether the Shui family members were alive or not.

If Shui Qingli were truly dead, it would mean one less pair of eyes watching him.

However, the ambush was rather suspicious.

Five True Immortals, filled with murderous intent, were lying in ambush on the road that the Shui family was sure to take.

"Whom do you suspect?" Shen Liuli's voice rang in her mind.

"It's not the Ten Thousand Demons Mystic Sect."

Qin Shou said, "If they make a move, they won't just send five True Immortals."

Moreover, these people didn't mention Shen Liuli, nor did they mention you.

It seems more like an old enemy of the Shui family, or someone within the five families, is trying to assassinate Shui Qingli.

"Within the five companies?"

"The five-family alliance has never been reliable."

Shui Qingli is one of the most capable descendants of the Shui family in this generation.

"If she dies, the Shui family will lose a valuable member in the standoff between the Wanmo Xuanzong sect," Qin Shou said.

"You seem to understand things quite well," Shen Liuli said.

Qin Shou smiled but didn't reply.

He got up, dusted off his clothes, and flew east again.

......

Elder Xun returned to Wucang Immortal City on the third day.

He entered the main hall of the Shui family without even changing out of his blood-stained clothes.

Shui Chenyuan was dealing with the jade slips concerning the defense of the western border when he looked up and saw Elder Xun's appearance. He immediately put down the items in his hands.

Elder Xun didn't waste any words and recounted in detail the attack on the Azure Feather Flying Boat, the pursuit of Shui Qingli, and the separation of Elder Liu from the Qin Beast.

Shui Chenyuan's face remained expressionless after hearing this.

He remained silent for a long time before asking, "Where is Qingli's soul lamp?"

Elder Xun bowed his head: "Before I came here, I went to the Soul Lamp Hall. Qingli's lamp was out."

Shui Chenyuan closed his eyes.

When he opened his eyes again, the coldness in them was so intense it was impossible to dispel.

He didn't slam his fist on the table, nor did he curse; he simply said slowly:

"Five True Immortals, instead of intercepting Elder Liu or pursuing Elder Qin, are chasing only Qing Li. This isn't an encounter on the way; they're specifically after her."

"Yes," Elder Xun said. "The two people who were chasing me and Liu Changsheng only blocked and did not attack when we fought."

We retreated, and they didn't pursue us.

Later, seeing that it had been almost fifteen minutes, they dispersed on their own.

From beginning to end, it was all just stalling for time.

Shui Chenyuan got up and walked into the hall, raising his hand to create a light blue screen.

Several geographical markers appeared on the light screen.

He pointed them out one by one, saying:

"The ambush site was located in the desolate mountains east of Wucang Immortal City."

That area was already the border between the Jin and Tu families.

But the Jin and Tu families are all of the same ilk as us, and they wouldn't do such a thing openly.

"What about the Myriad Demons Sect?" Elder Xun asked.

"It wasn't them."

Shui Chenyuan shook his head. "If the Ten Thousand Demons Sect makes a move, they won't just send five True Immortals, nor will they let Liu Changsheng and you go."

Their target is my entire Shui family, not just Qingli alone.

He put his hands behind his back, paced a couple of steps, and continued:

"In recent years, a new Xuanxian force has emerged between the five regions, called Iron Crane Valley."

In his early years, the Valley Master was only a late-stage True Immortal. A few years ago, he somehow obtained several ancient relics, which allowed him to not only break through to the Profound Immortal realm, but also bring several of his subordinates to the True Immortal realm.

They fought with our Shui family over two mineral veins in the western border, and they even clashed with us again six months ago.

Qingli was in charge of handling the situation that time, and she killed one of their True Immortals.

Elder Xun frowned: "I've only seen the people from Iron Crane Valley once, from afar."

They do indeed have one person who is skilled with the golden cord.

Shui Chenyuan said, "The gray-haired masked man you and Liu Changsheng encountered is most likely the second master of Iron Crane Valley."

That person cultivated the power of metal, and a golden rope hung from his waist. There's no mistake.

"Since it's Iron Crane Valley, why didn't you make a move sooner?" Elder Xun asked.

"They are waiting for an opportunity."

Shui Chenyuan said, "The Wanmo Xuanzong has started a war with my Shui family, and the defenses of the five families are under pressure."

At this time, the slightest disturbance in the western border region kept the Shui family busy.

"Tiehe Valley made their move when Qingli went to the Three Immortal Islands, knowing we wouldn't dare retaliate openly."

Elder Xun gritted his teeth: "Are we just going to swallow this insult like this?"

"What's the rush?"

When Shui Chenyuan said this, his tone was completely flat, without any fluctuation. "Qingli is a member of my Shui family bloodline. If she dies, I will not let Tiehe Valley live for more than a few years."

However, the western border cannot be allowed to descend into chaos at the moment.

The Myriad Demons Sect is more than happy that we split our forces.

Tiehe Valley wants to force us to take action, and then stab us in the back.

This step cannot be taken.

He sat down again, picked up the jade slip containing information on the defense of the western border, and continued to annotate it.

Elder Xun wanted to say something more, but seeing that the clan leader was no longer looking at him, he could only bow and leave.

After leaving the main hall, he paused at the door for a moment, then turned and walked towards the Soul Lamp Hall.

The soul lamp of the Qin beast is still lit.

Elder Liu's was also lit up.

Only Shui Qingli's lamp was completely dark.

When the Three Immortal Islands came into view, the Qin Beast finally saw the Immortal City of Danyin.

It was a large city built on a floating island.

The city walls were built of huge blue-white stones, and a pale golden light curtain surrounded the outside of the city.

The light barrier does not block cultivators; it merely examines the immortal spiritual power emanating from the newcomer.

Without the introduction of a true immortal, one must pay immortal crystals.

Qin Shou had received a token for the Pill Dao Conference when he was with the Shui family. He showed it now, and the city guards only glanced at it before letting him in.

He entered the city but did not look for the Shui family's shop there.

Danyin Immortal City is extremely large, with its main street being ten zhang wide, and the shops on both sides are far more impressive than the black market of Wucang Immortal City.

The shop selling talismans had a large vermilion banner hanging on it, with spiritual patterns flowing on it.

A row of transparent crystal cabinets stood in front of the shop selling immortal artifacts, with several low-grade immortal artifacts clearly priced.

Qin Shou walked for a while and stopped in front of a shop selling elixirs.

The fragrance of the elixir in the shop was extremely faint, mixed with a slight bitterness.

A Foundation Establishment maidservant greeted him and led him inside with a smile.

Qin Shou didn't buy anything, but only asked about the prices of several common first-grade immortal pills.

Here, one Qi Condensation Immortal Pill costs four low-grade immortal crystals, four Immortal Essence Pills, and three Foundation Strengthening Pills.

It's 20% more expensive than Wucang Immortal City.

"Everything here is expensive," Qin Shou said in a low voice.

"Three Immortal Islands is the richest place in the Three Immortal Realms."

Shen Liuli replied from within the immortal abode, "Didn't you bring immortal crystals with you before you came?"

"I did bring it, but at this price, even tens of thousands of immortal crystals wouldn't be enough to cover it," Qin Shou said.

"If I can't find something suitable, I won't buy it."

"Let's observe first, there's no rush to make a move," Shen Liuli said.

Qin Shou responded and continued walking forward.

Turning a corner, he saw a rather imposing three-story building with the words "Heavenly Craft Immortal Abode" written on the plaque above the door.

There weren't many people at the entrance; an elderly man with gray hair stood with his hands behind his back.

Qin Shou listened outside the door for a while and learned that this building was actually selling immortal residences.

He became somewhat interested and stepped inside.

The lobby on the first floor is extremely spacious, with dozens of light and shadow paintings hanging on the four walls.

Each painting is a miniature landscape of a celestial abode, some built atop snow-capped peaks, some nestled deep in secluded valleys, and others suspended in the clouds.

As Qin Shou looked around, he discovered that these immortal abodes were not true grotto heavens, but rather independent courtyards fixed by spatial laws and earth and stone spiritual materials.

The smaller ones are no more than a hundred feet in diameter, while the larger ones can be tens of miles in circumference.

Prices range from 30,000 to 200,000 Immortal Crystals.