The All-Heavens disciples hovered around the borders of Starbound Sect, forming a perimeter. The instant the barrier fell, Gui Delun charged inside toward the mountain that appeared in the middle of their extermination ritual, but after that, things became unclear to them. Not least because of the massive cloud of dust that rose up from the sixth mountain, a cloud of dust that blocked their mental energy and divine sense from penetrating. Even the most powerful of the disciples Gui Delun had brought along couldn’t pierce the dust cloud.

“Was it… a success?” one of the fifth-stage cultivators muttered, a man by the name of Shu Mang. He frowned into the dust, then flicked his hand, retracting an insect-shaped automaton he’d sent into the dust. Nothing returned.

He scowled. The dust cuts off all connections, hmm?

Tang Fei hovered beside him, hesitant. Cutely, she bit her lip, her hand balled into a half-fist and held up near her chin, the picture of adorable anxiety. “Master…?”

The seal that damnable Xiao Hui put on me hasn’t faded. Could it be that Master couldn’t kill him? Or… was Xiao Hui telling the truth when he said it would remain after his death? She bit her lip harder, quietly more nervous about the seal than her master. Having death qi inside me is no good. It’ll influence my cultivation in the future. What if I fall off the righteous path and become a demonic cultivator? What if I can’t accumulate as much qi in the future due to that horrible seal?

And if Master Gui Delun finds out, I… Tang Fei trembled. Internally, she cursed Hui, but only half-heartedly. The other half of her heart cursed Gui Delun, and his inflexible uprighteousness. Anyone else would see it’s no fault of my own, but, but Master…

“Don’t be ridiculous. Of course he succeeded. Gui Delun alone could have crushed a backwater sect like this with the back of his hand. He wanted to give us battle experience, that’s all,” another fifth-realm cultivator replied, this one a woman with a mass of curly hair. Her hair moved on its own, twining around itself and shifting as if a wind carried it, though it moved independently to the actual wind. She tossed her hair, which still refused to move even when she moved it, but continued shifting on its own. “Otherwise, he wouldn’t have brought exactly enough fifth-stage cultivators to match Starbound Sect. It’s not as though our faction lacks martial strength.”

“What Martial Sister Chao Chenguang says is indeed reasonable,” Shu Mang replied, stroking his beard. A bit of an eccentric, he chose to appear as an elder with flowing white hair and a long white beard, despite having reached third stage at a young age and not having lived more than a total of three hundred years up until this point. He could be considered young for an average cultivator of the fifth stage, yet he chose to appear as an ancient member of the senior generation. This eccentricity of his rubbed several of his compatriots the wrong way. To them, it felt as if Shu Mang said, with his appearance, I am so high above you that you should treat me as a senior, rather than an equal member of the same generation.

Chao Chenguang scowled at him, though the effect was lessened as her self-motive hair suddenly flowed into her face. She belonged to the faction that disliked Shu Mang’s presumptuous airs. In her case, it particularly irked her because she was his senior by a few years, and yet many disciples who had not yet been taught better treated Shu Mang with greater seniority, as if he were her elder, all because of his falsely ancient appearance. She pushed her hair back and turned back toward the cloud of dust. “Naturally, it’s reasonable. I don’t need Junior Martial Brother Shu Mang to confirm my words.”

“There’s only a difference of five years between us, is it truly necessary to call me Junior Brother?” Shu Mang returned, squinting up at her with twinkling eyes.

“Especially because there’s only a difference of five years,” Chao Chengguang replied, crossing her arms.

Caught between the two, Tang Fei shrank back. Seniors, might I request that you get a room, and leave the rest of us out of your lover’s spat?

The dust swirled suddenly. A figure shot out of it, racing at top speed. Nearly at the same instant, Gui Delun charged out of the dust. The dust clung to him, as if it refused to let him fully emerge. He fought his way halfway out of the dust, then fell back, unable to escape its clutches fully. Although his face remained as emotionless as ever, a hint of rage sounded in his voice as he pointed a finger after the fleeing figure. “Catch him!”

The All-Heavens cultivators leaped into action. Shu Mang, Chao Chengguang, and Tang Fei all shot after the blur of light. Even as they flew, Shu Mang and Chao Chengguang continued to bicker, leaving Tang Fei bitterly caught between them.

As she flew, Tang Fei glanced back at Gui Delun, who stoically fought against the dust. There’s something a bit strange about this, but I can’t put my finger on what…

Suddenly, a second Gui Delun appeared out of the dust. He caught sight of the first, and without speaking, pounced toward him.

At the sight of the two Gui Deluns fighting, the disciples paused in chasing the light. Shu Mang and Chao Chengguang’s eyes lit in the same instant, but Shu Mang spoke first.

“That Gui Delun is a fake! Everyone, the one we need to capture is before us, still within Starbound Sect!”

The All-Heavens disciples turned about. Rather than chase the rapidly-fleeing beam of light, they hurtled toward the Gui Delun caught in the dust. The dust-trapped Gui Delun’s eyes widened, and he fled into the dust, chased by the second Gui Delun.

Even as some of the All-Heavens disciples disappeared into the dust, another Gui Delun appeared out of it. He instantly charged after the light. The dust clung to him, disguising his realm and aura.

Again, the All-Heavens disciples paused. Chao Chengguang’s eyes sparkled, and she harrumphed gleefully, looking down on Shu Mang. “So easily fooled! That little ancient act of yours is nothing more than an act, in the end. Shu Mang, you lack wisdom. Clearly the first two Gui Deluns were merely a smokescreen! We must chase the light!”

As she spoke, a fourth Gui Delun rushed out of the dust. He caught up with the Gui Delun who chased after the light, and the two wordlessly began to exchange blows.

This time, it was Shu Mang’s turn to look smugly down on Chao Chengguang. “A smokescreen? The true smokescreen is this dust cloud! Disciples, let us join forces to disperse this dust. Once all is laid clear, we will see who the true Gui Delun is!”

Chao Changguang scowled. Not to be outdone, she waved her hand. “Disciples, chase the light beam! Whatever it is, we can’t allow it to escape so easily. Let Shu Mang’s disciples clear the dust.”

Her disciples saluted and chased after the beam of light. Shu Mang chuckled. “Falling for such an obvious diversion?”

“There’s no harm in being prepared for all eventualities,” Chao Changguang replied. She turned toward the dust. She, Shu Mang, and the other fifth stage disciples worked together to disperse the dust.

Despite the majority of the All-Heavens force that had arrived at Starbound Sect working together to clear the dust, it refused to be so easily dissipated. The time it took to burn an incense stick passed, and passed again. In the end, three incense sticks’ time passed until finally, the fifth stage cultivators joined forces and managed to disperse the dust.

In the center of the dust cloud, a handful of figures darted around Gui Delun. Some looked like Gui Delun, and others looked like a handsome cultivator with a ponytail. When the dust cloud vanished, Gui Delun’s eyes flashed. A pulse of gold light emanated from his center, and all the figures withered, then screamed, light bursting from their five orifices.

“Did you catch him?” Gui Delun demanded, striding out from within the dust cloud.

Chao Changguang and Shu Mang exchanged a glance. Instantly, the two of them shot off into the distance.

“I knew it!” Chao Changguang shouted.

“That filthy demonic cultivator, using such underhanded means,” Shu Mang grumbled.

Far off in the distance, a shiver ran down Hui’s spine. He glanced back. A few fourth stage cultivators pursued him, and yet, the sensation of overwhelming doom only grew stronger.

They’ve broken through the dust cloud and figured out my tricks, huh? As I thought, by confusing them with a few fake Gui Deluns and using the unique properties of the dust cloud, I was able to escape this far. Though… I’ve already overdrawn my snakeskin technique. I won’t be able to create any more false skins, except for ones that look like me. I’m fortunate I remembered that chamber full of false skins from back when I was trapped on the sixth mountain due to the duck incident, or I’d be out of those, too!

He grit his teeth. Fine. Come after me! I still have tricks up my sleeve. This small cultivator isn’t an easy cockroach to catch! Unless you completely kill me, I’ll bring Starbound Sect back, no matter what it takes.

And I won’t let anyone kill me!