Somewhere inside the forest, a figure in golden armor was sprinting at high speed.

Long Xueyi stopped in her tracks and took out the wooden token she had 'borrowed' from Fu Shen. After confirming the direction, she was about to set off again but paused as a young man entered her sight.

"It's you!" Long Xueyi frowned seeing the young prince from the Ming Dynasty standing in front of her.

Ming Ren stepped forward and greeted Long Xueyi with a smile, "Princess Long, it looks like you're in a hurry."

"Hmph!" Long Xueyi snorted and brushed past Ming Ren.

Ming Ren saw Long Xueyi's obvious and displeased expression but pretended not to notice it and chased after her.

Seeing Ming Ren tag alongside her, Long Xueyi narrowed her eyes. "What are you doing?"

"Ahem! As the Ming Dynasty's prince, it would be discourteous if I were to leave our honored guest wandering alone." Even as he said it, Ming Ren couldn't help feeling awkward.

Long Xueyi's face twitched on hearing Ming Ren's nonsensical excuse. However, besides gritting her teeth she didn't do anything, rather she couldn't.

Unlike others, Ming Ren's status was really high. Moreover, since she had just resorted to Ye Lanlan's help, she could only put up with Ming Ren's supervision.

Thinking she would find a way to get rid of Ming Ren later, Long Xueyi snorted and focused on her target. Regarding this irritating fly, she decided to act as if it didn't exist.

Unbeknownst to Long Xueyi, Ming Ren was secretly sweating cold sweat. When Long Xueyi decided to ignore him, he secretly sighed in relief and rejoiced. Tales of Long Xueyi's belligerent behavior were nothing new to him. If possible, he would have liked to stay far away from this female tyrannosaurus, but the situation didn't permit it.

If not for Ye Lanlan predicting Long Xueyi's path, he would've lost her trail long ago. Now that he had caught up with her, he couldn't let her out of his sight.

The two continued to streak across the forest without a word. Along the way, Ming Ren silently observed Long Xueyi's behavior. But the more he watched, the more confused he became. The wooden token's origin didn't escape his notice. He couldn't understand why Long Xueyi would be after something that related to the Fu Clan. However, although curious, he didn't dare ask Long Xueyi for an explanation.

Under the token’s guidance, the two of them traveled far enough.

“Hold it!” A person in red robes descended in front of them. “This place has—”

“Scram!” Long Xueyi, whose impatience had already reached the limit, wasn't in the mood for small talk. She raised her hand and simply smacked the guy like she was swatting away some fly.

Thud!

“Ah!” With a scream, the guy cartwheeled and crashed into the trees, no longer moving. Whether he was dead or alive, was up to fate.

“You—” Ming Ren froze as he looked at Long Xueyi in shock.

“What?” Long Xueyi simply glared at him, as if daring him to speak.

“Ahem,” Ming Ren coughed and shut up. Who was he kidding? For a moment, he had almost forgotten that this was a female tyrannosaurus and dug his own grave.

Long Xueyi snorted and continued forward.

Ming Ren shook his head and followed her silently. He felt some pity for that unfortunate soul who decided to block Long Xueyi but decided to ignore him.

While he sympathized with that guy, Ming Ren realized something. The red robes of that person seemed vaguely familiar.

#

In another place inside the forest.

A flaming red sphere with a radius of three feet stood in a small crater. The sphere looked like red-colored glass, however it was anything but glass, evident from how the surrounding area spanning over a dozen feet had been scorched black.

Inside the sphere, a young woman with flowing red hair sat cross-legged in a meditative pose. Although her face seemed to be a bit pale, it did little to diminish her beauty.

At this time, a young man and a woman approached the flaming red sphere.

The woman inside the sphere sensed the approach of the incoming couple and opened her eyes.

“Liu Dong!” Liu Fengying glowered at the guy with her fiery red eyes. “How dare you plot against me!” She turned towards the girl who was standing next to Liu Dong. “And you! Our Liu Clan has always been kind to you, yet you scheme against me?”

Facing Liu Fengying’s condemnation, the girl lowered her head and avoided direct eye contact. In contrast, Liu Dong seemed quite pleased with himself.

“How does it feel?” Liu Dong chuckled. “You who once soared in the sky, are now just a trapped bird.”

Liu Fengying bit her lip in frustration, but besides swearing at the two, there was little she could do.

Heeding Mu Chen’s warning, she had always been cautious regarding Liu Dong, but she didn't expect the one to stab her in the back would be someone else.

After seperating from Mu Chen and Zhou Mei, Liu Fengying immediately used her clan token to send out alerts. Liu Lin was nearby and the first to respond. Liu Fengying didn't suspect anything and decided to meet her. She naturally wasn't on guard against Liu Lin with whom she was quite familiar.

How could she have known this girl had malicious intentions towards her?

When Liu Fengying was distracted, Liu Lin secretly sprinkled spirit poison on her.

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Colorless and odorless, spirit poison’s lethality was zero. Even if a mortal took it, it wouldn't cause them any harm. At first glance, calling it poison seemed absurd. Yet the truth was, this innocuous substance was the nemesis of cultivators due to its unique trait.

Spirit poison could disperse spiritual qi.

This type of poison was silent yet sinister. By the time Liu Fengying noticed something amiss, the poison had already spread. Her spiritual qi began to rapidly disperse.

Liu Fengying knew she had been schemed against and tried to get away, but Liu Dong and his ‘friends’ blocked her path. Forced into a desperate situation, she had no choice but to use her clan’s defense treasure.

Liu Fengying hated Liu Dong, but she hated Liu Lin even more. She couldn't fathom why Liu Lin would betray her.

“Liu Dong, Liu Lin. Just wait, you two won't get away with this,” Liu Fengying spat. “Even if you run to the edge of the world, the Liu Clan will not let you off. Nine generations of your family will be implicated.”

“Run away?” Facing Liu Fengying’s threat, Liu Dong merely sneered. “Why would I need to run away? In this secret realm, no matter what happens to you, the Liu Clan will never know.”

Liu Dong’s words startled Liu Fengying and she looked at him with narrowed eyes.

Did Liu Dong not care at all? Or was he just bluffing?

Liu Fengying frowned. Liu Dong’s confident demeanor didn't seem fake. A sense of foreboding welled up inside her as she thought of something and gasped. “You… did you find the sentinel?”

“Took you long to figure it out,” Liu Dong grinned, satisfied looking at Liu Fengying’s stunned expression.

“Impossible!” Liu Fengying blurted out.

It was true that a secret realm was isolated from the outside world. However, this was rather common knowledge. Since outside communication was blocked, all the sects and clans instead relied on sentinels.

A sentinel was a trustworthy member of the clan who would secretly enter the realm.

After entering the secret realm, the sentinel wouldn't explore it. Instead, they would find a place to hide. They had but one mission: to survive.

The sentinels carried with them a special artifact that would record the details surrounding a clan member's death. After the tour to the secret realm was over, they would surrender the artifact to the clan. This effectively curbed any foul plays against clan members.

Since their survival was of paramount importance, the sentinels carried with them treasures capable of extreme stealth and defense. They would never interfere in any other matter, as it would risk exposure. Finding one was harder than finding a needle in a haystack.

Liu Dong finding and dealing with the sentinel? Liu Fengying couldn't believe it.

“If it was some other sect, it would indeed have been impossible,” Liu Dong chuckled. “After all, regardless of who the sentinel is, it will always be someone from the Liu Clan… ”

Liu Dong didn't say it clearly, but the implied meaning shocked Liu Fengying even more. She looked at Liu Lin with an incredulous expression, but with the latter avoiding her gaze, she couldn't glean any information.

Liu Fengying was confused and wanted to know more. However, while she was musing, Liu Dong and Liu Lin had already turned their back towards her and walked away.

Liu Fengying opened her mouth intending to question the two, but then closed it with a sigh. She could no longer tell if Liu Dong was telling the truth or just trying to mess with her.

“So what if it's the truth,” Liu Fengying shook her head. Right now, it was more important to recover her strength. Without any spiritual qi, she was just a fish on a chopping board.

No matter what, cultivators would always reserve a sliver of spiritual qi for cultivation. However, the spirit poison had even dispersed this final trace of spiritual qi from her dantian.

Without any spiritual qi, Liu Fengying could only rely on natal breathing exercises. First, she had to gather some spiritual qi in her dantain. Only then she could start cultivation. However, gathering that initial qi while solely relying on natal breathing could take hours, even days.

Fortunately, the defensive treasure her Matriarch had given her was special. Not only could it protect her for a day, but it could also filter the environment inside. So although Liu Fengying was in a pinch, she didn't panic.

To her surprise, Liu Dong and his gang didn't seem to be too eager to break the barrier. This instead made her even more wary.

At first, she didn't believe Liu Dong dared to kill her. But if the sentinel was dead, things could take a turn for the worse.

Anyways, if the push came to a shove, she could only abandon her clan members and leave the realm. Thinking so, Liu Fengying calmed herself. After checking her surroundings, she took out a fire crystal she had previously hidden and pricked it with her hairpin. The fire qi from the crystal began to leak out and slowly filled the barrier…

“Why did you have to tell her about the sentinel?” As they left, Liu Lin turned to Liu Dong and whispered. “What if you scare her and she uses the token?”

“The token?” Liu Dong sneered. “I hope she uses it.”

“What?” Liu Lin was stunned, and then immediately panicked. “B-but… if she escapes, I-I… no w-we will be…” She gasped, not willing to imagine the consequences.

Liu Dong looked at Liu Lin’s scared visage and grinned,“Who said she can leave?” he said, trying to sound enigmatic.

“You just said, you want her to…” Liu Lin was confused for a while. Looking at Liu Dong’s sly and confident smile, she realized something. “Y-you have a way to interfere with the token?”

“The bird has been trapped,” Liu Dong smirked. “How can I let it escape?”

“Phew!” Liu Lin patted her chest. “I got scared for nothing.” She hesitated for a bit but eventually decided to ask. “So… about my reward… ” Her voice shivered in anticipation she could barely contain.

“Not yet,” Liu Dong shook his head. “We still need her alive.”

“Alive…” Liu Lin murmured and shuddered as she felt pity for Liu Fengying’s fate. But facing the allure of the reward, she steeled her heart and buried that trace of sympathy.

Liu Fengying had no idea. She was not just a target, but also a bait. Liu Dong wasn't eager to break through her defenses, because it wasn't the time yet. Now, his preparations were complete. The sentinel had been taken care of, and they had even set up means to block the token’s ability. To make matters foolproof, he was just trying to deceive Liu Fengying into wasting her token. This way even if she restored her strength, she had already lost the best chance to escape.

Liu Dong and Liu Lin were chatting when a token on Liu Dong’s waist began to vibrate. Liu Dong raised the token. His smug expression was soon replaced with a frown.

“What happened?” Liu Lin asked seeing his worried expression.

“The Fourth Prince’s men found the captain of the Second Prince’s team heavily injured,” Liu Dong said. “They took him to the Fourth Prince for questioning. But when they met, he attacked the prince and escaped.” Liu Dong couldn't make the head or tail of the situation. “The Fourth Prince is now furious and is chasing after that guy.”

Liu Dong’s token buzzed once again. When he read the message, his brow twitched.

“What?” Liu Lin asked. “Did Fourth Prince kill that guy?”

“No, that guy… he ran into the First Prince’s territory,” Liu Dong took a deep breath. “He said it was the Fourth Prince’s men who ambushed the Second Prince’s team and killed everyone. The First Prince is now suspicious and blocked the Fourth Prince. They might end up fighting.”

Liu Dong felt overwhelmed. He was so confused he didn't know what to do.

To prevent conflicts, it was decided that each party would only guard their designated zone. While this worked, it also meant each side was unaware of what was going on inside the other party’s zone. To coordinate, they needed a common point of contact. And so, Liu Dong became the liaison.

When he got the role, Liu Dong was very excited and happy. This privilege to facilitate communication between the princes was a good opportunity for him to establish relationships. Everything was going smoothly for a while, but now a problem arose. If he couldn't handle the situation well, it could easily backfire.

“Ugh! It looks like I'll have to go in person and meditate,” Liu Dong groaned. “You stay and keep watch.” He shot a glance back in the direction of the sphere and frowned. Before their goals had been achieved, he couldn't let the situation escalate. However, the princes were naturally distrusting of each other. Convincing them to maintain peace wasn't going to be easy. Knowing he had an arduous task in front of him, Liu Dong mentally prepared himself.

Liu Dong had taken just a few steps when his token rumbled again. When he read the message, the calmness he had just restored collapsed once again.

“Fuck!” Liu Dong groaned as a storm raged inside him. It was just a short message but its impact was tremendous.

“The Crown Prince is here, along with the Long Clan’s Princess.”