Brother, how come you're a witch?

Su Yan thought Liu Baishuang was the one who was truly slippery, carrying the little yellow oriole, her two big white legs panting as she walked very fast.

She wouldn't stop even when I called her from behind.

Su Yan had no choice but to use his movement technique to chase after her, but just as he was about to catch up, the little demoness stepped on her flying sword and slipped away without looking back.

"..."

Are you trying to bully an old man who hasn't even reached the Foundation Establishment stage?

Su Yan was speechless. It was really hard to guess what the little girl was thinking. He wondered what he had done to offend her again.

Once the education plan is on track, we must severely correct this disrespectful behavior towards the elderly.

"I also want to talk to her about Xiaozhufeng."

Su Yan shook his head and sighed softly.

The sect clearly hadn't conducted a thorough investigation of Xiaozhu Peak, failing to even discover that demons were lurking in the nearby Guanyu Valley.

It's obvious that their most precious genius, Liu Baishuang, was attacked, yet they don't seem to care. I wonder if there really is a mole among them.

We must have Liu Baishuang go and say something again.

Su Yan looked up at the sky; the bright moon hung high in the sky, neither too early nor too late.

After a moment's thought, he did not return to the outer disciples' residence, but instead went down the west side of the Spirit Beast Peak, crossed a rugged hill, and entered the Fish Watching Valley.

He was still unwilling to give up and wanted to look for clues. Moreover, the place was quiet and deserted, which was a good opportunity to sort out his thoughts.

But as soon as he entered the valley, the communication jade tablet, which had been dormant for a long time, suddenly lit up.

Su Yan retrieved it, and Li Changsheng, who had been out of contact for a day and a night, finally replied:

"Junior brother, I fought with that demonic spy last night, which aggravated my old injuries. I've only just stabilized my condition after adjusting my breathing. My reply is a little late. Thank you for your concern, and please don't be offended."

The way he phrased things was still the same; Li Changsheng always started with a few literary remarks before opening up and letting loose once the conversation got going...

Su Yan believed that the person on the other end was indeed Li Changsheng, not a spy from the Heavenly Demon who had killed Senior Brother Li and was now impersonating him.

After all, this jade communication token doesn't have a chat history function; Fetion only displays the current few sentences, so others can't imitate Li Changsheng's tone.

"Brother Li, you've worked hard. Please take good care of yourself."

Once Su Yan confirmed the other party's identity, he spoke freely:

"I was also on Xiaozhu Peak last night and met someone who looked a lot like the person my senior brother described, but I couldn't see her face."

"Oh? Junior Brother Su was actually at Little Bamboo Peak last night? Why?"

"This... let's go see how the sect's investigation into the demons is progressing."

Su Yan didn't say he went to practice swordsmanship with Ye Jingqiu, but Li Changsheng had stated more than once that getting close to Ye Jingqiu was irresponsible towards saving the world.

"Senior Brother Li, I've noticed that the sect's investigation into Xiaozhu Peak is very perfunctory. Is someone inside obstructing it? Or did Liu Baishuang simply not report this matter at all?"

The message was sent, and there was a moment of silence on the other end of the jade tablet, followed by another moment of silence, before a reply came:

"I felt dizzy again just now."

"Junior Brother Su has truly devoted himself to the cultivation world."

"The investigation into the demons of Xiaozhu Peak is indeed underway. However, this is, after all, the heartland of the Xuanqing Sect. In order to protect the sect's reputation and avoid causing panic among the disciples, it is a secret operation, and the scale of the operation is kept as small as possible."

"And they didn't just go through the motions. Several elders went to the outer perimeter of the sect to trace the route the demons took in, and several law enforcement disciples searched for clues around Xiaozhu Peak every night. Last night, I followed them to Guanyu Valley."

Su Yan frowned: "Is that so? But it doesn't seem like we're taking it seriously enough."

"Junior Brother Su, this is a time of peace, not the Great War between Heaven and Demon a thousand years from now. People are not so nervous."

Li Changsheng replied quietly:

"As for whether this is true or not, you are already out of the loop in the outer sect, and since this matter is being carried out in secret, many inner sect disciples don't even know about it. You might as well go and ask Liu Baishuang directly."

Su Yan thought about it, nodded, and agreed that it made sense. He decided to ask the little demon girl next time.

He tapped the jade tablet with his fingers and then sent a message:

"it is good."

"Regarding the Heavenly Demon spy, I actually have some clues and infer that it is likely a direct disciple of the Spirit Beast Peak, but I have not yet fully determined who it is and it will take some time to investigate."

Li Changsheng was delayed for a moment, then sent a message via teleportation:

"Very good. Please let me know as soon as there are any new developments in this matter."

Su Yan frowned, looking at the words on the jade tablet, and felt that something was strange about it.

"Splash!"

Suddenly, the sound of bushes swaying came from behind.

Su Yan put away the communication jade token and turned around, only to find that it was actually Ye Jingqiu.

Holding her sword, the young swordsman's aura became more ethereal than when he had seen her before, indicating that he was on the verge of a breakthrough.

She had been trying to comprehend the sword for a day, and by early evening she seemed to have made no progress. But after only two hours, she had actually attained enlightenment.

Is this what genius is?

Su Yan twitched the corner of his mouth:

What are you doing here?

"I was practicing swordsmanship in your room, and you didn't come back until just now, so I came looking for you."

Ye Jingqiu remained as calm as a still well.

"I'm wondering if you've gone to practice your swordsmanship behind my back again?"

"Isn't your sense of smell a little too strong?"

Su Yan touched his nose.

He hasn't gone back to his room all day. How could Ye Jingqiu have come over by smelling him?

"I just guessed you might be around here, and I walked around for a while before I caught your scent."

Ye Jingqiu shook his head:

"They didn't chase after us from your room."

"That's pretty outrageous. How can someone you're targeting have any privacy? But... why are you practicing swordsmanship in my room?" Su Yan then realized something was wrong.

"The scent of the sword energy I had last night dissipated by the afternoon, but some still lingers on your bed."

Ye Jingqiu tilted his head:

"How did you manage to leave your sword energy on the bed?"

"God knows."

Su Yan's lips twitched, and he stepped forward to pat Ye Jingqiu's head:

"Go back. I didn't secretly practice swordsmanship behind your back."

Ye Jingqiu didn't move, but instead looked up at him:

"You didn't come here to practice your swordsmanship, did you? Are you looking for that person from yesterday?"

"Um."

Su Yan nodded; there was nothing to hide.

"Any leads?"

"We found a spot on Spirit Beast Peak, but there's nothing here."

"I'll give it a try."

Ye Jingqiu blinked gently:

"Take that bell out."

Su Yan wanted to say it was useless, but looking at Ye Jingqiu's upturned face, he didn't want to spoil her mood, so he took the bell out of his storage bag and held it in his hand.

A pleasant, warm fragrance immediately wafted through the air.

Ye Jingqiu leaned closer, closed her eyes, twitched her delicate nose, sniffed, and then spun around a few times.

After a short while, she slowly opened her eyes, her lips slightly pursed.

It seems there's no result...

"Ahem, this is entirely due to the poor environment of Guanyu Valley; the scent cannot be preserved for long, it's such a pity."

Su Yan coughed twice, offering this words of comfort.

Ye Jingqiu's lips didn't move, but her eyes gently turned to him:

"When you went to Spirit Beast Peak, did you show this bell to them? Was there any explanation for it?"

"this......"

Su Yan found it difficult to answer.

The origin of the bell was hard to explain, so he didn't take it out rashly. Saving the world was, after all, a secret operation, and he wanted to keep it as secret as possible.

Although the Time Dao Ancestor's concern that too many people from the past would perceive future events and cause the timeline to collapse was just a speculation, Su Yan dared not gamble on it.

"Um?"

Ye Jingqiu tilted his head.

Just then.

"Splash!"

The bushes shook again, and a head popped out from inside.