"What do you mean?" Wu Yuan asked.

Cheng Sheng also couldn't put a finger. "This is just… I felt something is off." He said.

"Then, we can just follow those two people and go to the Plum Blossom City." Fei Yin suggested. "Let's see how things are there… what was her name, 'Du Xiang'? The three other demonic leaders will kill her. This is a chance for us to see how these demonic leaders look like, and then plan how shall we defeat them." He said.

"En." Wu Yuan answered.

"Sheng?" Fei Yin called when he didn't hear Cheng Sheng respond. "What's wrong?" he asked. He noticed that the other is just silent.

Wu Yuan took some time to answer. "Do you think… what we heard is deliberate?" he asked.

Cheng Sheng started. "Yes." He honestly answered.

"Huh? How was this deliberate?" Fei Yin asked.

"I don't know…" Cheng Sheng answered. "It's just… this is so wrong." He said, feeling confused.

Now that Fei Yin pondered about it, he finally sensed that there really is something wrong. "A trap." He said, his expression changed. "Let's gather first and find someplace to hide." He said.

"Yes." Cheng Sheng and Wu Yuan answered.

From afar, Bai Yun watched the three 'beggars' left their post and walked out of the gate. "I didn't misjudge them. Although a little slow, but since they are in a disadvantageous position, this is actually quick for them to find out." He said.

The maidservant cowered and hastily lowered her head as she raised the tray when Bai Yun raised his hand to take the cup of liquor.

The person sitting across him just hummed an answer. "Hm." He didn't even glance at the leaving Cheng Sheng, Fei Yin and Wu Yuan.

The maidservant felt her knees trembled and weakened and she knelt beside them. Only for her hand to reach for her shoe and took out a dagger! "Ha!" she yelled and, even though Bai Yun is nearer to her, but she leapt towards the man sitting across Bai Yun.

BANG! The maidservant's body was suddenly hit by a strong force and she was thrown to the window. Her back hit the window panels and, together with the window panels, she fell outside and crashed in the ground.

If this was the Huilong Continent, you would hear someone screaming and see the people fleeing to all directions after seeing a dead body falling from the second floor. But, this is the Heilong Realm. Even the ordinary people just indifferently glanced at the maidservant's corpse, her limbs twisted in a weird angle, and then resumed working.

Bai Yun saw the maidservant's corpse and blood spilled underneath her body like the spider lilies blooming around her. "We can expect Du Xiang's death tomorrow." He told the man sitting across him.

But, the man didn't react. Instead, he mildly spoke. "Just now, I would think you instructed that woman to attack me." He told Bai Yun.

Bai Yun's eyes widened before he laughed. "And if I did?" he asked.

The man's expression didn't even change. "You will still fail." He answered.

Bai Yun held his stomach and laughed loudly. He patted the armrest of his chair, and his face is red from laughing. "Your Majesty, you of all people know the most that I am an ordinary man." He said. "I don't have a drop of qi in my body, nor I know any martial arts. My body is also weaker than a woman's." he told him. "And, if I know how to plot, I wouldn't have fallen in this situation." He added.

The Heilong Emperor didn't speak. Bai Yun didn't continue the topic, either. He knows that the Heilong Emperor isn't afraid of anyone, since he is undefeated.

At this time, someone knocked the door to their room. "My Lord." A voice called from outside.

"Enter." Bai Yun answered.

The door slowly opened and revealed a figure. If Cheng Sheng was here, he would know that this is the first person whom he heard speaking earlier. "My Lord. I've finished the task." He said and knelt.

Bai Yun nodded. "Good." He spoke. "How about your companion?" he asked.

"I had him wait for me to borrow horses." The person answered.

Bai Yun nodded, satisfied. The second person whom Cheng Sheng heard earlier is one of Ma Wen's people. It was his own people who told Ma Wen about Meng Gui's paramour. With Ma Wen's methods, Ma Wen wanted to see the Heilong Realm fall into chaos. So, Ma Wen would definitely tip Du Xiang's people about Meng Gui's paramour. Du Xiang and Meng Gui were long rivals. But, to Meng Gui, it was only one-sided on Du Xiang's part since Du Xiang envies Meng Gui's beauty.

The point is, Shang He is the victim here. It was always him. Not because the other three demonic leaders find Shang He a pushover, but that Shang He is just unlucky to be always dragged by the other three demonic leaders as a cannon fodder.

"Does my Lord have anything to instruct to me?" his subordinate asked.

"No. Leave for the Plum Blossom City and report to me them four's battle." Bai Yun answered. "Take two horses from the stable." He added.

"Yes!" the person answered before he hurriedly left.

Bai Yun smiled and took a sniff of his tea. "Hm?" he muttered when he thinks he has forgotten something. He looked across him and saw that the Heilong Emperor has left since who knows when. "Ai." He sighed and then shook his head before he drank his tea. "Boss! Bring me snacks!" he cried outside.

"Alright!" the passing boss of the inn answered.

…

"This is my conjecture – " Cheng Sheng said after they have cleaned themselves on the river. He sat on top of the large rock as he watched Fei Yin and Wu Yuan knee-deep on the river.

Fei Yin is washing his and Cheng Sheng's clothes, while Wu Yuan is washing his own clothes as they listened to Cheng Sheng.

Wu Yuan nodded. "Speak." He said.

"Everything is planned." Cheng Sheng spoke.

"Huh?" Fei Yin turned and looked at him. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"Let me start from the beginning." Cheng Sheng said. "The reemergence of the walking corpses." He said.

"Oh. You're right." Fei Yin muttered when he remembered. "The walking corpses seemed to become stronger." He said.

Cheng Sheng nodded. "Not only them." He said. "The demonic cultivators, too." He told them.

"You're right." Wu Yuan frowned when he remembered the time the Youxiwang Sect was first attacked.

"That's not what I meant." Cheng Sheng told Wu Yuan. "What I meant is that the demonic cultivators also reemerged together with the walking corpses." He told them.

Fei Yin and Wu Yuan froze.

"After the walking corpses reemerged, the Youxiwang Sect was attacked. Not only the Youxiwang Sect, but our sect, the Shanliangde Sect, the Qianxu Sect and the Zunjingde Sect, too." Cheng Sheng continued. "After we defeated them, they hid themselves. We thought that they were afraid of us. But, who would've expect for them to disrupt the Intersect Competition and even had Qi Ling be on board with them?" he asked.

Fei Yin and Wu Yuan nodded.

"That initial attack of theirs before the Intersect Competition is just them testing our, the righteous cultivators', strength." Cheng Sheng said. "Their real agenda is world domination, by Wu Ran." He looked at the two. "Wu Ran disguised himself as Ming Ye, and Ming Ye knows all of us. So – " his expression turned grave. " – he must have predicted for us to use Chen Han to stall him and us going to the Southmost Region to find Wu Fan and Chen Jing to increase our strength as a group, and also to destroy the source of the demonic qi." He explained. "Then, now, he has Bai Yun to guide us for Wu Ran's plan to resume. What Wu Ran didn't expect is for me, as well as our friends, to seal the Ni Lai Gates before he could return to Heilong." He finished.

Fei Yin and Wu Yuan sucked in a cold breath. They felt a chill on their spine as they pondered over Cheng Sheng's words. And the more they thought about it, the more they think it is possible. "So, Wu Ran…" they said.

Cheng Sheng nodded. "Wu Ran must be outside my barrier surrounding the Sand Sea Mountain, guarding it until the three of us come out of here." He said.

Fei Yin's and Wu Yuan's face fell.

"But, we don't have to worry." Cheng Sheng said. "The others would definitely do something about Wu Ran. Now that the demonic qi was cut off from our world after sealing the Ni Lai Gates…" he meaningfully looked at Fei Yin and Wu Yuan.

Fei Yin's and Wu Yuan's eyes brightened. "Yes! That's it! With everyone together, they could definitely defeat Wu Ran!" Fei yin said.

Wu Yuan nodded, his expression turning better now.