High-level martial arts: Long spear with black flames to suppress demons.

Bai Yin stared at her for a moment, then asked softly, "What...did you see?"

An Nuan lowered her eyes and gently pressed her thumb on the back of her hand.

"I can't tell you the specifics, don't think that far ahead. Once you get near the royal court, find a place to hide and keep an eye on that tree. If you really have a chance, then try your best. If not... then I'll think of another way."

Baiyin pursed her lips, her tail uneasily sweeping across the pebbles at her feet.

An Nuan leaned against the rock wall for a while to recover, and only released her when the trembling in her arms subsided slightly.

"Come closer, I'll leave you a talisman."

Bai Yin hesitated before moving over, and seeing that her wrist was still trembling when she raised it, she reached out and supported her.

An Nuan lowered her head and bit her fingertip, then dabbed the blood on her forehead. She instinctively closed her eyes.

Her fingertips were icy cold, but her blood was warm. She painted slowly, pausing for a moment at each turn, as if her fingers were bearing some kind of resistance.

Bai Yin held her breath and steadied her wrist even more firmly.

Fine lines of blood intersected between her brows, gradually coalescing into a rune. The surrounding spiritual energy remained calm until the last stroke was completed, at which point Bai Yin suddenly felt a slight easing of the tension that had been pressing down on her.

The crimson runes slowly faded and blended into the skin.

An Nuan withdrew her hand, her body swaying slightly. Bai Yin quickly steadied her, helping her sit firmly against the stone wall.

"This is a talisman that obscures the secrets of heaven."

She took a breath and continued to advise, "It won't substantially improve your combat ability, nor will it fool others. When you encounter danger, you should still hide. Don't take risks just because you have it."

Bai Yin touched her brow but didn't feel anything unusual, as if it had never existed.

"And what about you? How much longer are you going to wait here?"

An Nuan hugged the wooden box back to her arms and turned her gaze to Bei Ming.

A bolt of lightning streaked across the clouds, illuminating her pale profile.

She tightened her grip on the wooden box and whispered, "It's not time yet, but it should be soon. I'm waiting for someone to appear. I haven't been able to find any trace of him in the mortal realm. The Northern Sea is the point where fates intersect. If I can deal with him here, then everything will be fine..."

Bai Yin followed her gaze and saw only surging clouds and a curtain of water. She couldn't see the battlefield clearly, nor could she understand what An Nuan was saying. She just felt like her head was about to explode. Before she came here, she never dreamed that she would be involved in such a thing.

She remained silent for a moment, then lowered her head to unpack the package, took out the water and remaining food, and stuffed a bottle of medicine into An Nuan's hand.

"I don't know if this medicine will help, but you can take it."

An Nuan held the medicine bottle and nodded gently.

Baiyin slowly tightened her cloak, took two steps back, and then stopped.

"Let's make this clear first, I can only do my best. If I can't get into the royal court, I'll look for opportunities outside. If things really come to a head, I'll run away, and I might not be able to do what you want me to do..."

"it is good."

An Nuan nodded, forcing a smile, as if she wanted to give Bai Yin some confidence.

Baiyin, at a loss for words, lowered her body and retreated south along the slope behind the rocks. After walking a short distance, she couldn't help but look back.

Finally, she gritted her teeth, turned around, went around the hillside, and headed towards the Ancient Demon King's Court.

Only after her figure disappeared among the undulating mountains did An Nuan withdraw her gaze, wipe the blood from her lips, and lie back down behind the rocks.

......

In another valley, the bloodstains had dried.

The footprints left by the Tianpeng Clan sentinels were gradually filled in by the wind and sand, but suddenly a faint light shone through the ordinary ground at the bottom of the valley.

The buried array patterns lit up one by one, and several array materials hidden in the cracks of the rocks shattered at the same time, sending the last bit of power to the center.

The air distorted, dust rose, and a figure appeared out of thin air in the center.

As the smoke and dust slowly dissipated, Xu Xiuqi emerged, still wearing the long robe he had worn when leaving his residence.

He looked down at his feet, then bent down and picked up a small clump of blood-stained dirt.

The remaining traces of blood were very faint, but their source could still be identified: it was Via's blood.

Xu Xiuqi loosened his grip, letting the soil fall from between his fingers. After closing his eyes and sensing for a moment, his brows gradually furrowed.

Pei Zhao and the others' auras completely disappeared, but in the distant sky above the Northern Sea, the black flames were still burning.

Shen Chang'an is still alive.

The royal army has arrived, the Abyss Gate has been fully opened, and even the Kunpeng, hidden in the deep sea, has appeared on the battlefield. The series of unexpected events has already pushed the situation away from his original plan.

Xu Xiuqi raised his head, his face darkening.

The various families in the capital and Pei Zhao's Soul-Eating Blade—he had prepared several backup plans for different situations, but now they were all failing one after another.

What troubled him even more than the deaths of these people was his inability to find the source of the tragedy.

When exactly did things start to deviate from the future he envisioned?

Xu Xiuqi felt a dull ache in his temple, so he raised his hand to press it, paused for a moment, and then lowered it again.

The current situation no longer allows him to continue the investigation.

A very faint light swept across his brows and eyes, then disappeared into his skin.

The face began to change, becoming very blurry.

When seen by others, a person's appearance will vary. Some may see a gentle middle-aged man, while others may remember a thin old man. Even if they stand in front of each other at the same time, their descriptions of his appearance afterward may not be the same.

This is what it means to have a thousand faces for a thousand people!

As the spell was cast, the aura belonging to the Cangjiang Commander gradually dissipated.

Xu Xiuqi looked north, his divine sense sweeping across the coastal mountains, taking in the situation at sea.

Kunpeng was still being driven by others, and with the help of several supreme treasures and the demon race's grand formation, the battlefield was barely kept outside the city. The aura that emerged from the Abyss Gate was particularly striking; even though it was just an avatar, it still kept several powerful demon race members busy dealing with it.

He watched the demonic tide surging out of the Northern Sea in the distance.

"We still need to deal with these monsters first..."