Chen Yan knew absolutely nothing about the white-clad young woman standing before him.
He could only determine from her attire that she was an inner sect disciple, and moreover, an inner sect disciple of quite high status—that was all.
Because whether they were outer sect disciples or inner sect disciples, everyone usually needed to wear Kongshan Sect's standard Daoist robes.
Only those holding positions at or above the rank of deacon within the sect, or core disciples and even personal disciples of elders, could be exempt from this rule.
Why did she want to go to the detention center so late at night?
If she did something improper, then Chen Yan, as her guide, would naturally bear shared responsibility.
Therefore, Chen Yan simply stood there motionless, pondering for another moment before finally speaking:
"May I ask senior sister's name, which inner peak you come from, and who your master is?"
The white-clad young woman remained silent, simply and efficiently taking a token from her waist and tossing it to Chen Yan.
Qingchan Martial Enforcement!
It was the token of Qingchan Peak's Martial Elder.
Of course, the current Martial Elder of Qingchan Peak was not yet Lu Li.
He had heard some anecdotes about the current Qingchan Peak Martial Elder—apparently this elder's surname was Fu, was highly virtuous and respected, and was already over six hundred years old.
But considering the thousand-year lifespan of Passable God Realm cultivators, Elder Fu could still be considered in his prime.
"Lead the way."
The white-clad young woman said indifferently.
"Yes, senior sister."
Chen Yan gave an embarrassed smile, then agreed.
When the other party had even produced Qingchan Peak's Martial Elder token, what reason did he have to refuse?
The Martial Elder was absolutely high-ranking within the sect, their status on Qingchan Peak second only to Qingchan Peak's Sword Master Elder and True Dharma Elder—undisputedly the third most powerful figure on Qingchan Peak.
Being able to possess Qingchan Peak's Martial Elder token undoubtedly declared the other party's prominent status.
Probably not just a core disciple—perhaps a personal disciple, or even higher.
Chen Yan speculated about the other's identity in his heart.
While muttering to himself, he began walking down the mountain.
And the white-clad young woman followed behind Chen Yan.
The moonlight on the mountain path cast a blueish glow, the two walking one after another on the steps, their shadows stretching long between the trees.
"Senior sister, the outer sect Enforcement Hall is just ahead."
Chen Yan stopped walking, then turned to speak to the white-clad young woman.
"To the detention center."
The young woman said.
"Senior sister, after the hour of Hai, the Enforcement Hall strictly prohibits idle disciples from approaching, so..."
"Is Qingchan Peak's Martial Elder token not weighty enough?"
"Senior sister would naturally pass unimpeded, but as for me..."
"If you don't want to die, come with me."
The white-clad young woman's cool voice spoke with absolute finality.
Chen Yan's expression stiffened slightly, then he gave an awkward smile:
"Senior sister shouldn't have any need to make things difficult for a mere outer sect disciple like me who's just guiding the way."
"Not making things difficult, but giving advice."
As she finished speaking, the white-clad young woman lightly lifted her fair wrist, then rested her palm on the sword at her waist, beginning to walk slowly toward the Enforcement Hall.
Chen Yan simply watched as the white-clad young woman walked past him, her skirt brushing over the blue bricks on the ground.
Strange.
Advice for me?
Someone wants to kill me again?
Everything that had happened tonight seemed quite peculiar.
After hesitating and wavering for a moment, Chen Yan ultimately chose to follow the white-clad senior sister from the inner sect.
Because she didn't seem to have any intention of harming him, and in this situation, Chen Yan chose to believe her advice.
The Enforcement Hall's dark iron gate stood before them, the black iron door appearing even colder under the clear, chilly moonlight.
Soon, Chen Yan noticed something strange—there were no disciples on guard duty in front of the Enforcement Hall tonight.
"Do you know that the outer sect's detention center recently detained a deacon from the Merit Hall?"
A deacon?
The position of deacon was quite high in the outer sect, ranking only below outer sect elders and supervisors.
Although since his reincarnation, Chen Yan had no interest at all in outer sect affairs, and never even went to the Scripture Hall to listen to teachings, if an outer sect deacon had been imprisoned in the detention center, he should have at least heard something about such a major event.
"I don't know."
Chen Yan replied.
The white-clad young woman said nothing more, simply pushing open the Enforcement Hall's dark iron gate. Half of the black shadow diagonally cut across the blue bricks on the ground, then the Enforcement Hall's central courtyard was revealed before Chen Yan and the white-clad young woman.
Completely empty, with only a thousand-year-old ancient tree standing in the very center of the courtyard, its shadow mottled under the moonlight.
Eerie.
Although it was perfectly normal for the central courtyard to be empty at this hour, combined with the fact that there were no disciples on guard outside the Enforcement Hall tonight, it still felt quite eerie to Chen Yan.
Passing through the corridor of the Enforcement Hall's central courtyard led to the outer sect's detention center.
The outer sect's detention center had a total of seventy-two cells, and although the outer sect had over twenty-five thousand disciples total, this was still more than sufficient.
After all, only disciples who committed major offenses would be imprisoned in the detention center.
The white-clad young woman raised her hand, her fingertips dancing several times in the air while she murmured incantations, then lightly pointed—a clear light flashed through the air before them.
It was Spirit Tracing Art.
Chen Yan recognized the technique the white-clad young woman was using.
Spirit Tracing Art was a commonly used technique throughout the entire cultivation world, capable of determining someone's current specific location based on their energy signature.
"This way."
Soon, the young woman reached a conclusion through Spirit Tracing Art.
The direction she faced was toward the cells in the northwest corner of the detention center.
The cell door wasn't locked, but was slightly ajar.
This quickly raised the white-clad young woman's vigilance, the energy in her meridians beginning to surge and concentrate, as if she might draw the sword at her waist at any moment.
Martial Spring Realm.
Based on the young woman's energy fluctuations, Chen Yan determined her cultivation level.
At least Martial Spring Realm or above—the thickness of her energy was completely different from his current peak Qi Circulation Realm level.
The white-clad young woman slowly pushed open the cell door, then paused, standing motionless in the doorway.
"...Senior sister?"
Chen Yan tentatively called out.
He took several steps forward, his gaze passing over the white-clad young woman's back—Chen Yan could see the general scene inside the cell—
A chair, a pool of blood, a corpse with its head separated from its body.
The corpse slumped in the chair still had an outer sect Merit Hall token tied at its waist, undoubtedly declaring this person's identity.
It was precisely the outer sect Merit Hall deacon the white-clad young woman had mentioned earlier.
The white-clad young woman's hand fell from the sword hilt at her waist, then she slowly turned around.
"I'm returning to Qingchan Peak, right now."
The white-clad young woman said, then turned her gaze to Chen Yan:
"You should temporarily come back with me too, otherwise you'll die. You'll definitely die."
Chen Yan's brain rapidly worked, trying to understand the current situation.
Because everything that had happened tonight had been far too rushed.