Could it be that the Ghost Spirit Sect was moving by itself, independently from the other five Devil Dao sects? If this were the case, the Righteous sects wouldn’t need to fear much. Even the Yan Clan had the power to deal with the people of the Ghost Spirit Sect. After all the Yan Clan had many Core Formation cultivators on guard!

After Han Li thought of this, he felt a bit more at ease.

Even if the heavens were to truly fall upon them, those of high status would go to stop it! Whatever shady business the Ghost Spirit Sect had, what did it have to do with a trifling Foundation Establishment disciple such as himself? Let the Yan Clan deal with it! He only had to be a bit careful; after all, the fires that harm the gates affect the fish in the pond.

(TL: Disaster can affect those who aren’t targeted)

He didn’t know whether the others shared his thoughts. After a moment of fear, their expressions gradually become normal. Unexpectedly, no one further raised the subject. Instead, they chatted a bit about experiences and questions with regards to cultivation. All of this greatly interested Han Li, and he instantly joined in the discussion.

Time passed very quickly and the sky gradually darkened. The group had their fair share of talking, and the foreign cultivators left not long ago; it was time to bid farewell.

Their exchange of experiences left them with no small amount of gains, especially the means and opportunities used to make a breakthrough by the mid Foundation Establishment cultivators! This alone made this trip worth it for Han Li and the other early Foundation Establishment cultivators.

The middle-aged man surnamed Wu, who clearly wished for this discussion to continue, raised the topic of another meeting. Tomorrow, several of them would meet at a remote location and continue on with their long chat. Furthermore, they would also be holding a small-scale exchange of goods. How could this not be a wonderful opportunity!

This suggestion received everyone’s approval; Han Li naturally did not oppose.

Thus, the discussion was complete, and they left one by one.

Han Li then marked an inn that he passed by on his map. This inn specialized in receiving external cultivators.

This inn was located in the southeast corner of Yan Ling Castle. The rather unremarkable inn wasn’t very large. It was clearly inferior to other inns, so not many cultivators went there.

Despite of this, Han Li sought this place because it was peaceful and less popular. Because there were fewer people, the odds of getting tied up into trouble was also smaller. Furthermore, the close proximity to the city walls meant that Han Li could easily escape if any mishap occurred!

After all, the appearance of the cultivators from the Ghost Spirit Sect had left Han Li uneasy. Making preparations for the unexpected in advance was a practice he often used to be careful.

This “Pleased Wind Inn” didn’t have many cultivators as expected. It also wasn’t lively, and the people staying there were reclusive. Han Li got his own room without anyone making a fuss, much to his satisfaction. He immediately found a clean spot in his room to sit down.

As for where that Dong Xuan’er was staying, Han Li did not care to look for her. After all, by the time the Treasure Seizing Assembly started, he would be certain to see her. When the time came, he only had to return to Yellow Maple Valley! As Han Li thought this, he fell into a deep sleep.

During the night, while many cultivators started to sleep or sat in meditation to refine Qi, at the tallest building in Yan Ling Tower, inside the heavily guarded room inside the “Wind Cloud Pavilion”, the command center of Yan Ling Castle, there was a red-haired old man who paced back and forth with both hands behind his back and a deadpan expression.

Not far from him stood three gray-robed old men wearing extremely respectful expressions.

“Zi Jun, those Ghost Spirit Sect youngsters truly wanted to come see me this night?” The red-haired elder eventually stopped pacing and faintly looked at the elder in the middle.

“That is right, Venerable Ancestor! After the young master of the Ghost Spirit Sect concluded the martial competition, he told me this in private!” This person respectfully answered.

“En!” The red-haired elder expressionlessly nodded his head, but radiance flashed through his eyes.

At this moment, a black-robed middle-aged man walked in and saluted, saying, “Venerable Ancestor, Elders, the guest has arrived! We have already arranged the great hall, but his two bodyguards have said they are unwilling to wait outside the hall. A few guards tried to force them out, but instead they wouldn’t budge; it seems at least one of them is at Core Formation. How do we deal with it? Venerable Ancestor, please give us clear instructions!”

“Core Formation cultivator? That’s not odd at all! Without a bodyguard for a grand young sect master, how could that Ghost Spirit Sect Master feel at ease with him coming here! Let us go and see! I actually was curious to see what this young sect master looks like underneath his mask for quite a while; it turned out to be a sneaky ghost.” After the red-haired elder heard the black-robed man’s report, a trace of a scowl appeared on his face as he unpleasantly said this.

Afterwards, he took the initiative to walk out the room, and the others naturally followed closely behind him.

Upon entering the main hall, the red-haired elder saw a lanky youth wearing a silver devil mask. He was completely still, sitting in the guest seat.

There stood two green-robed men behind him. One of them had a face with many layers of wrinkles and a head of white hair. He couldn’t have looked older. The other was a boy with white teeth, red lips, and two pigtails on his head.

At the center of the hall, there were seven or eight black clothed cultivators lying unconscious on the floor, each with a face filled with black Qi.

“Who am I to compare? So it turned out to be the renowned Li Brothers. It is no wonder that you do not put my Yan Clan into your eyes.” When the red-haired elder saw the two green-robed men, his pupils slightly shrunk, but he still remained expressionless as he said this.

He walked over to the master’s seat, pulled up the sleeves of his jacket, and sat down. He then lightly clapped his hands two times. Several black-clothed men walked into the hall, wordlessly dragging out the unconscious men.

“Hehe, who would’ve thought that our brother’s reputation would be so large. Everyone knows of the Yan Clan’s Venerable Ancestor! Zeze! We are truly honored to have you as our brother! However, right now Big Brother Lia Zhi and I are responsible for protecting the young master, who is carrying out the Master’s affairs! If you have any business, Senior Brother Yan, please discuss it with our young master.” After boy with the innocent appearance smiled, he spoke with a coarse voice like a broken gong. The Yan Clan guards that heard this were greatly startled.

(TL: Zeze is the sound of him clicking his tongue)

When the red-haired elder heard what he said, his heart shivered. He had heard of the impressive reputation of these two devils. With this said, it seems this young master was not a simple character. His gaze then fell on the silver-masked youth.

After sizing him up for a moment, he insipidly asked, “You are the young master of the Ghost Spirit Sect? Why do you wear a mask? Could it be you have something shameful to hide?”

“You are wrongly blaming this Junior. This Junior wears a mask for other, more difficult, reasons, not because of something shameful. If Senior truly wishes to see, then this Junior will naturally take off his mask and let Senior take a look,” the young master of the Ghost Spirit Sect said with a faintly cheerful voice. His words were neither humble nor arrogant.

“Humph! What is so good about a man’s appearance? This old man has no such inclinations! Why did your people from the Ghost Spirit Sect suddenly come to our Yan Clan from so far away? Furthermore, you’ve clearly shown you wanted to meet with me. My people have arrived as you have seen. Just say whatever superfluous words you prepared as you wish. This old man no longer has the patience to deal with you much longer.” After the Yan Clan’s Ancestor looked at the young master of the Ghost Spirit Sect indifferently, he ruthlessly said this, layering his words with a hostility that matched his loftiness.

“Hehe, since Senior Yan has said as such, this Junior will not beat around the bush and speak bluntly. My Lord Father wished for this Junior to deliver a letter to Senior. He also wished for Junior to say two words for Senior to hear.” Even when the young master of the Ghost Spirit Sect saw how the Yan Clan Ancestor treated him, he still remained calm and poised.

“What letter! I have never seen your father before. What’s more is that the Yan Clan and your Ghost Spirit Sect never had such friendly relations. What letter needs to be delivered to this old man? You even want to tell me two words in secret. Are you playing with me?” Old man Yan looked at the Li Brothers for a moment and saw that they hadn’t moved in the slightest.

The Yan Clan Ancestor found it hard to truly believe this was the Ghost Spirit Sect’s young master.

Naturally, the Li Brothers saw the doubts of the Yan Clan’s ancestor and looked at him with a smile. They then made no further movements.

At this moment, the Ghost Spirit Sect’s young master took out a jade slip he had on hand, stood up, and walked several steps forwards, but the Yan Clan Ancestor remained sitting and didn’t have an intention of holding out his hand to receive it. Instead, after he took a look at the jade slip, he said extremely coldly, “I will see this letter later. First say those two words of yours! After this old man hears them, I will decide whether or not I want to look at the letter!”

When the Ghost Spirit Sect’s young master heard those words, he didn’t move. Instead, he sighed behind his mask and slightly moved his lips, spitting out the two words for the old man to hear.

Although those from the Yan Clan could not hear those two words, after the Yan Clan Ancestor heard them, his body suddenly stirred. Letting out a deep breath, he stood from his chair; his expression extremely dark.

“Give me the letter, then follow me to a private room!” After a moment of uncertainty, the red-haired old man said this with fierce resolution.

Thus, in the presence of many Yan Clan Disciples, the Yan Clan Ancestor brought the young master of the Ghost Spirit Sect to a private room covered with layers of restriction spells.

However, the two Core Formation Cultivators who had accompanied him stayed outside. The slightest of unease could not be seen. It was as if they had full confidence in the security of the Ghost Spirit Sect’s young master.

All of them waited through the entire night.