Fairy, you call this repaying a debt of gratitude?

The girl's sword came straight at him, but Ye Qingci did not stop it. Instead, he paused slightly, a look of surprise flashing in his eyes.

Because the direction Luo Yinghe's sword was pointing was not at all towards Shen Wei, who was standing in front of her.

Instead, it was the patch of seemingly ordinary weeds beside Shen Wei!

Just as Luo Yinghe's longsword was about to pierce the grass, the seemingly ordinary grass and trees twisted and transformed in an instant, turning into a tall human figure.

The person who appeared was dressed in a plain-colored Taoist robe, holding a snow-white whisk. He had dignified features, long beard and hair, and an air of otherworldly elegance and detachment from worldly affairs.

The moment he appeared, he suddenly swung the whisk in his hand, and with a gentle flick, it transformed into a fierce and unparalleled gale that rushed straight at his face.

Luo Yinghe was in mid-air and had no way to dodge. She was instantly swept up by the gale and her body was uncontrollably pushed backward.

"It's Master Qiu Jue! I knew it! A kind and benevolent person like you couldn't possibly die!"

Yu Tu shouted excitedly in an instant.

"It really is Master Qiu Jue! But wasn't he killed by Ye Qingci?"

Gu Hao could hardly believe his eyes when he saw the scene before him.

Shen Wei frowned slightly, turned his head to look at Ye Qingci beside him, and said with a hint of confusion in his tone.

"Master Qiu Jue? Who is he, and why is he here?"

Ye Qingci's gaze fell on Luo Yinghe, who was being forced back by the gale. Then, with a slight movement of her fingertips, she separated a wisp of spiritual power and silently protected Luo Yinghe, stabilizing her retreating figure.

"He is the preaching elder of my Shangqing Sect. He has been teaching and lecturing in the sect for many years. I have not had much interaction with him and am not very familiar with him. I have no idea why he would be hiding here."

After hearing Ye Qingci's words, Shen Wei instantly understood, and the cause and effect quickly connected in his mind:

The Qiu Jue Zhenren before us must be the real pursuer sent by the Shangqing Sect.

Luo Yinghe should be on Ye Qingci's side, and she must have discovered Qiu Jue Zhenren earlier.

So his feigned rage and drawing of his sword to stab himself just now wasn't real at all.

Instead, they had already noticed the figure lurking in the bushes and used the argument as an excuse to launch a sneak attack on the enemy hiding in the shadows.

Thinking of this, Shen Wei's feelings for Luo Yinghe returned to normal.

Why has Master Qiu Jue been hiding here for so long, holding his breath and concealing his figure the whole time, remaining motionless?

What sent chills down his spine even further was that neither he nor Ye Qingci, one a Nascent Soul stage cultivator and the other a Deity Transformation stage cultivator, had sensed this person's presence from beginning to end.

What kind of secret treasure or concealment technique did the other party use to evade the two people's spiritual senses?

And then there's Luo Yinghe, whose cultivation is far inferior to the two of them. How did she manage to be the first to discover the hidden Qiu Jue Zhenren?

Shen Wei had many questions in his mind, but now was not the time to delve into them.

The most urgent task is to join forces with Ye Qingci to deal with the unfathomable Qiu Jue Zhenren before us.

He looked up and saw that although Luo Yinghe had Ye Qingci's spiritual power to help her, she still seemed to be having some difficulty holding on.

Under that fierce wind, she plunged her longsword into the ground, using the support of the sword to barely stabilize herself and avoid being completely blown away by the wind.

"Protect your disciple first, then join forces to deal with him."

Shen Wei turned his head and spoke in a deep voice to Ye Qingci beside him.

"Um."

Ye Qingci had already focused her mind and was ready to make a move.

The moment Shen Wei finished speaking, the two moved simultaneously, one on the left and one on the right, with perfect coordination, and together they raised their swords and attacked Qiu Jue Zhenren.

Seeing the two attacking together with fierce swordplay and seamless coordination, Master Qiujue's expression changed slightly. He immediately stopped urging the wind with his whisk, lightly tapped his feet, and hurriedly retreated to dodge.

Shen Wei thrust his sword straight at the center, and Qiu Jue Zhenren dodged to the right, but Ye Qingci's sword, which had been waiting for him, blocked all his escape routes.

Left with no other choice, he hurriedly waved his whisk, forcefully blocking the combined sword strikes of the two.

Shen Wei and Ye Qingci worked closely together, one attacking and the other defending, their sword strikes continuous and relentless, leaving Qiu Jue Zhenren no room to retaliate or catch his breath.

Driven to the brink of despair, Master Qiu Jue suddenly unleashed all his spiritual power, wildly wielding his whisk once more.

This time, the gale was several times stronger than before, and the air waves swept around, snapping all the vegetation.

Using the shockwave as cover, he quickly retreated several feet, putting distance between himself and the two men.

After regaining his footing, Master Qiu Jue raised his hand to brush the dust off his Taoist robe, forcing a gentle smile on his face, and said, "Elder Ye, why do you want to start a fight as soon as we meet?"

"I'm not really familiar with you."

Ye Qingci held his longsword horizontally in front of him, his expression cold and unwavering, showing no sign of letting his guard down.

"Now that I am being hunted down by the entire Shangqing Sect, and you are hiding here secretly, I can't help but suspect that you are a pursuer sent by the Shangqing Sect."

"Elder Ye, you're mistaken. I'm truly not a pursuer sent by the Shangqing Sect."

Master Qiujue shook his head, his tone sincere.

"Then why are you here?"

"It's a long story."

Master Qiu Jue sighed softly and slowly began to recount the whole story.

"The day after you killed several elders of the sect and fled, the sect leader personally came to me and ordered me to hunt you down, even though you were seriously injured. But I had no intention of getting involved, so I made an excuse that I had important matters to attend to and declined the order. But just as I was about to turn around and leave, the sect leader secretly tried to kill me."

"As you know, I have been obsessed with studying unorthodox and secret techniques for many years. A hidden technique that allows one to fake death and escape is the culmination of my years of hard work. I won't go into the details of the principle, but its core function is to create the illusion of death and annihilation, thus deceiving everyone and escaping."

Master Qiu Jue paused for a moment, then continued:

"I managed to escape the Shangqing Sect by chance using this technique, but the very next day after I got away, I heard rumors from the outer disciples that my name was on the list of sect elders you had killed. Everyone in the sect believed that I had died by your sword."

After these words were spoken, everyone present looked puzzled and astonished.

"What?! Master Qingjue was actually murdered by the sect leader!"

Gu Hao suddenly wished someone would come and deafen him right now, because such a secret matter was not something he should hear.

Master Qiu Jue turned his gaze to Luo Yinghe and said with a smile:

"If you don't believe me, you can ask your personal disciple. She's someone you personally trained; she wouldn't lie to you."

Ye Qingci turned to look at Luo Yinghe, his expression grave, and asked in a deep voice, "Yinghe, is what he said true?"

Luo Yinghe steadied herself, sheathed her sword, and nodded slightly, her tone resolute:

"He's right. Within the sect, it's already been decided that Master Qiu Jue died by Master's sword."