Yin Yang Soul Searcher

The night was as dark as ink, silently painting the entire capital city. Thick clouds hung low, as if about to touch the city walls. Occasionally, flashes of light through the clouds illuminated the sleeping capital.

In the alley, lanterns swayed in the breeze, casting flickering shadows. Everything seemed to foreshadow the unease of the night.

In a private room of a restaurant in the outer city, the disguised array master stood by the window, looking at the thick, dark clouds in the sky.

boom

A bolt of lightning tore through the thick clouds, illuminating the man's disguised profile. Behind him stood a burly, imposing figure.

"A storm is brewing?" The formation master chuckled. Then, as if talking to himself, he asked, "How's things going with the demon race?"

"Qiao Shou's eldest disciple has already left, and another disciple is currently repairing the formation at the south city wall." The burly man thought for a moment and then said, "When do we make our move?"

The formation master squinted at a giant eagle preening its feathers on the distant city wall.

The giant eagle's feathers are not brownish-gray like those of ordinary eagles, but jet black, making it easy for it to blend into the darkness.

Its beak was like a drawn scimitar, its edges so sharp it seemed capable of tearing apart the head of any cultivator. Its talons, curved like sickles, landed on the city wall and easily shattered the bricks and stones.

"Tonight." The array master smiled slightly, then leaped down from the window. He landed lightly and silently on the bluestone slabs of the street.

The burly man leaped down after him, and the flagstones, unable to bear his weight, snapped with a crack, scattering bricks and stones everywhere. Two deep footprints were left in the ground.

The two walked one after the other towards the Craftsmen's Hall.

On the distant city wall, the giant eagle's eyes, as deep as an abyss, silently watched their departing figures. It did not follow, and after a moment, it continued to preen its feathers.

With a loud rumble, the rain was about to begin.

"Is it raining?" Bai Jueming, who was still in a light sleep, suddenly opened his eyes and scratched the itch on his bottom.

He was lying on his side on the bed, with a blanket between his legs. He had no choice; it was hard to fall asleep otherwise.

Bai Jueming opened the window. In the darkness, the rain was soaking the flowers and plants in the courtyard. His older sister and Xiaotang had been leaving early and returning late these past two days, and they were already asleep when Bai Jueming got home.

It's all that tomboy's fault; she hit me so hard! I ended up with a bruised and swollen face, too ashamed to go home. In the end, she took out a pill and gave it to me. By the time I recovered, it was already dark.

Bai Jueming leaned against the window, resting his chin on his hand, his thoughts drifting.

Why is the demon race suddenly and openly poisoning the people again? Shouldn't this kind of thing be done secretly?

If I were a demon, killing those people would be incredibly easy. I can't say I absolutely wouldn't let the news get out, but at least I could delay it for a day or two.

However, the current result is that the people have only experienced poisoning symptoms, and there has been no large-scale death toll.

Cheng Yanbing went to the town to treat the people. As a master of alchemy, treating those people was a piece of cake for him. Moreover, Brother Shan and several hall masters also went to investigate the case.

Therefore, the mastermind's purpose was not to harm ordinary people!

Looking at the drizzling rain outside the window, Bai Jueming suddenly remembered what Luo Wuju had said: that person had the ability to ignore the formation, yet still deliberately destroyed it, as if he was deliberately looking for someone to repair it.

This kind of behavior...

A sudden inspiration struck Bai Jueming, and he blurted out, "A diversionary tactic!"

The mastermind's goal was to lure Luo Wuju and Cheng Yanbing away!

That's not right. Qiao Shou is in charge of the Craftsmen's Hall. Transferring away two fourth-rank martial artists wouldn't make much sense. They're capable of dealing with Qiao Shou, and eliminating the fourth-rank Cheng Yanbing and Luo Wuju would be a piece of cake. Why would we need to transfer them away?

The rain kept falling on the street.

The array master and the burly man walked on the rain-soaked street. Although their bodies were soaked, their pace was unhurried.

Just then, the burly man spoke up: "Are those two stone statues really that scary? You insisted on diverting his two disciples before you would make a move?"

The formation master smiled and shook his head: "You don't know enough about the Craftsmen's Hall of the Great Xia Dynasty. Those two stone lions usually guard the Craftsmen's Hall, which is equivalent to a third-grade formation."

"However, if his two disciples are manipulating that formation in the Craftsmen's Hall, even a second-rank cultivator wouldn't be able to break in. That eagle isn't powerful enough yet, which is detrimental to our subsequent plans. Therefore, we must relocate those two disciples!"

"I see, these two stone lions are that powerful?" the burly man said with surprise. "Could we try to move them and bring them back to our place?"

The array master was taken aback for a moment, then looked at the burly man with the eyes of someone looking at an idiot: "You can give it a try."

"Those two stone lions were crafted by Qiao using the eyes of a mythical beast called the Azure-Eyed Falcon, which he then incorporated into their bodies, along with an array to give them defensive capabilities. They are practically an integral part of the Craftsmen's Hall."

"Then forget it." The burly man said somewhat sullenly.

As they talked, the two had already reached the entrance of the Craftsmen's Hall.

On either side of the vermilion gate, two imposing stone lions crouch majestically. Heads held high, chests puffed out, eyes wide open, they gaze ahead.

The two stood one after the other on the street, and then the array master took out a golden compass from his sleeve.

The compass appeared to be cast in gold, with dense and complex Sanskrit inscriptions and a red pointer.

The array master held a golden compass, and as the pointer spun on it, a faint glow appeared around their bodies. Then, the two slowly walked into the array range of the stone lion.

At this moment, something unexpected happened. The stone lion, which had exuded murderous intent upon first seeing Bai Jueming, acted as if it hadn't seen the two at all. It continued to stare ahead with its eyes wide open, letting the two approach.

The formation has malfunctioned!

The burly man touched the stone lion with some curiosity: "This material is no ordinary stone. The wealth of the Great Xia Craftsmen's Hall is indeed extraordinary."

"Don't waste our time, let's go find Qiao Shou directly." The formation master's voice was indifferent as he put away the golden compass.

Pushing open the vermilion door, the array master led the burly man into the third floor. He knocked politely on the door.

The knocking didn't carry far in the rainy night.

"Since the formation has failed, then come in yourself," Qiao Shou's calm voice came from inside.

The array master pushed open the door, and what came into view was still that enormous alchemy furnace. Qiao Shou sat calmly on a futon, his body covered by a wide black robe.

"You've arrived." Qiao Shou looked at the newcomer in a calm tone, as if greeting an old friend of many years.

"You knew I was coming?" The formation master narrowed his eyes slightly.

"I don't know when you'll be coming."

"Looks like I was exposed the time I swapped the pills." The formation master said knowingly, then added with a hint of mockery, "Old man, you look quite weathered."

"Yes, inheriting this position means more things to worry about, and I can no longer do whatever I want." Qiao Shou said with a smile.

Their conversation didn't sound like enemies meeting; it sounded more like long-lost friends exchanging pleasantries.

"Why waste words with him? Let's just attack!" The burly man who had been silent behind the formation master spoke up somewhat irritably, his body surging with qi.

The burly man clenched his fists, the muscles in his forearms bulging like coiled pythons, tendons protruding on the back of his hands. He looked noticeably more robust than before.

He then stepped forward and struck Qiao Shou with a palm strike from a distance. The terrifying gale, carrying immense power, tore apart all the furnishings in the room. Only the alchemy furnace remained standing, motionless.

Despite the palm strike that seemed capable of destroying everything, Qiao Shou's eyes remained calm, and he sat upright on the futon, motionless.

Just as the palm strike was about to reach Qiao Shou's face, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him. Clenching a fist, gathering strength, twisting his waist, he delivered a powerful punch towards the center of the gale.

With a "bang".

When the terrifying gale struck the man's fist, it first made a loud noise, and then the gale exploded like fireworks, the scattered winds causing the pillars in the room to sway precariously.

Once the gale subsided, the formation master squinted at the man in front of Qiao Shou.

The burly man had a solemn expression on his face; the newcomer was no ordinary person.

The man, dressed in the robes of the Yin-Yang Palace, stood there ramrod straight. Unfortunately, a demon mask concealed his face. He was none other than the Deputy Palace Master sent by the Imperial Advisor!

"The Vice Hall Master of the Yin-Yang Palace." Upon seeing the person's attire, the formation master immediately guessed his identity. That demon mask was too distinctive.

"You guessed I was going to make a move against you, and you even brought the Imperial Advisor's men along," the formation master said, somewhat surprised.

"That's not right." The formation master frowned and continued, "Since you knew I was going to attack you, why did you let your two disciples out? Wouldn't it have been better to just stay here and guard them?"

"I'm not good at deducing cases from clues, so it wasn't me who guessed you were going to attack me." Qiao shook his head and explained patiently, "It was that guy who guessed it, which is why he sent the deputy hall master to help."

"I see." The formation master narrowed his eyes. "The third-rank deputy hall master has arrived, which is why you felt comfortable letting your two disciples go out."

"That's not entirely the reason," Qiao Shou smiled, then countered, "You should know very well that my disciples are only at the fourth rank. Although they can use formations to entangle you for a while, killing you won't be easy. I'd like to ask you, why did you insist on transferring those two away? What impact does that have on you?"

"You'll find out when you're dead." The burly man spoke up again in a fit of rage, then said to the formation master, "What are you waiting for? That masked guy is just as strong as me. I can't take him down in a short time."

The formation master didn't waste any words, directly taking out a golden compass from his sleeve and spinning the pointer on it. Two cylindrical beams of light enveloped the two of them, and after a moment, the same light appeared on Qiao Shou's body.

This is the teleportation power generated by the compass. They want to teleport Qiao Shou away from the Craftsmen's Hall because Qiao Shou has too many tricks up his sleeve in the Craftsmen's Hall, and it will be difficult for the two of them to deal with him!

"Qiao Shou, since we want to make a move against you, how could we be unprepared? Even if you have helpers, so what? I can definitely kill you once I teleport you out!" The formation master's tone was icy, and his eyes were filled with killing intent as he looked at Qiao Shou!

Once they teleport out, the two of them working together can easily take down Qiao Shou. Two against one, the advantage is in my hands!

"Are you that confident?" Qiao Shou's face remained calm, while the deputy hall master stood beside him.

His calm demeanor made the two formation masters uneasy.

Qiao's whisk flew up on its own, circling rapidly around him and the vice hall master. After the whisk left an afterimage, the light also appeared on the vice hall master's body.

Qiao Shou wants to teleport with the Vice Hall Master! It's two against two, very fair.

"Damn it!" The array master cursed inwardly. This Qiao Shou was indeed resourceful. All the arrays in the Craftsmen's Hall had temporarily failed, yet he was still able to teleport with the deputy hall master. This was far beyond his expectations!

If it's two against two, I'm not sure I can kill him!

But the formation had already been activated, and there was no way to stop it.

Damn it, damn it! The formation master was furious, but he had no choice but to bite the bullet and go for it!

The burly man clenched his fist, his eyes fixed on the deputy hall master wearing a demon mask. With the same cultivation level, judging from how the deputy hall master had just dispersed his palm wind with a punch, this opponent was not easy to deal with.

Boom! Another bolt of lightning flashed beneath the thick, dark clouds.

Bai Jueming snapped out of his reverie and looked toward the direction of the Craftsmen's Hall.

Four beams of white light flashed across the sky. Bai Jueming rubbed his eyes. They'd already made their move?

It seems my guess was correct; the mastermind used a diversionary tactic before targeting the Craftsmen's Hall. Unfortunately, I guessed a bit too late. If I had guessed earlier, I would have gone to the Craftsmen's Hall to report; that would have been a great achievement.

And that white light looks so familiar, it's like...like the scene when Ultraman Tiga teleported on TV...

On the city wall, the giant eagle that had been preening its feathers stopped. Its eyes were as cold as steel blades, devoid of any emotion. It turned its head to look at the light shining in the distance.

"Why is there one more person?" the giant eagle asked in a puzzled tone. Then it spread its wings and flew towards the Craftsmen's Hall.