The closer they got to the Heavenly Demon Sect, the denser the demonic aura became, so much so that the black clouds piled up and pressed directly on the top of the mountain. Even the heavy snow that floated down from the clouds was now stained with a strange black and red color.
A raven circled above the mountain as if it was looking for tonight's dinner, cawing from time to time.
Clang—-
A sword rang in the sky.
Before the raven could react, it was turned into a piece of meat by a black spirit sword that shot up from the forest below.
Ye Anping, wearing a bamboo hat, stood against a dead tree as he looked at the bird meat scattered in the sky with the Long-Distance Vision technique. He looked sideways and nodded at Feng Yu Die who had wielded the sword with her spirit, and then looked at Xiao Tian floating beside him. "Xiao Tian, is there anything else?"
Xiao Tian pointed her fingers at her forehead and then used her spiritual sense to scan the mountains and forests within a radius of five hundred miles before nodding firmly. "No more! That was the last one..."
Ye Anping did not doubt it, and he relaxed a little.
Although he always teased Xiao Tian for being a useless little spirit, she could actually be useful at certain times.
Seven days had passed since they left Pei Lianxue and the others' immortal ship.
During these seven days, Ye Anping, Feng Yu Die, and Gu Mingxin rode on their flying swords, rushing to the Heavenly Demon Sect day and night, hoping to reach Mo Chiling's Heartbreak Palace as soon as possible.
However, even so, they only traveled less than five thousand miles in seven days.
For three Nascent Soul cultivators, the speed was quite slow.
The main reason was the ravens like the one Feng Yu Die had just killed.
The Heavenly Demon Sect used these ravens as their eyes.
Being seen by them was no different from being looked at directly by Yu Yan.
Ye Anping didn't want to be targeted by another Void Returning cultivator, because then Xuanji would be jealous.
Therefore, he, Feng Yu Die, and Gu Mingxin were very cautious along the way, while Xiao Tian and Xue'e also took turns scouting the movements around them. Once they found a raven, they would inform them and then they would kill it before being discovered or take a detour to avoid it.
Feng Yu Die took back the spirit sword she had shot out and walked back. "Master Ye, it's solved."
"Well, let's go to the mountain cave to rest, and Xiao Tian will continue to scout the way forward."
"Okay!"
After Xiao Tian turned into a streak of golden light and flew high into the sky, Ye Anping looked at Feng Yu Die, reached out to straighten her snow-covered hat, and led her back to the cave where they rested.
The cave was dug out with earth-based talismans and hidden under vines. Because they were afraid of being seen by ravens, they didn't light a fire before, and they relied on Xiao Tian's forehead to illuminate. But now, it was pitch black inside, and you couldn't see your hand in front of you.
However, now that it was confirmed that there were no ravens, Ye Anping condensed his own spiritual energy into a light spot to illuminate the cave.
Gu Mingxin was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the cave, concentrating on practicing her own techniques. When she heard footsteps, she slowly opened her eyes and smiled. "Ye Anping, are you back?"
"...Yeah."
Ye Anping looked at her and actually felt quite strange. Previously, on the Black Star Sect's immortal boat, when he was accompanying his sister and Yunluo, Gu Mingxin had been staying in the room arranged for her, cultivating. During the seven days of traveling, she was silent and didn't even quarrel with Feng Yu Die. Ye Anping felt like she was a different person.
In fact, it was a good thing... But before this, she and Feng Yu Die had been arguing all the time, and now that they suddenly stopped, Ye Anping felt a little off.
Ye Anping silently set up a bonfire in the cave, lit the skewered chicken, and asked, "Sis Gu, you have been pretty quiet these days."
"Hmm..." Gu Mingxin dragged out the words with a mocking smile and asked back, "Are you holding it back? Do you want me to practice dual cultivation with you?"
Ye Anping was stunned for a moment. "...Just pretend I didn't ask."
"I'm trying to be considerate of you, Ye Anping." Gu Mingxin raised her head and squinted. "You have been squeezed by that silly dragon and your sister for six days and six nights. If I also come at you, your essence will deplete... I will feel bad if that happens."
Ye Anping glanced at her, and an equation suddenly appeared in his head.
—Sis Gu = Little Sister + Yunluo
Gu Mingxin poked Ye Anping's shoulder with her finger, drew a circle, and then rested her head directly on his shoulder, smiling. "Ye Anping... Now I only have you in this world. Don't lie to me. You promised to give me a home and help me kill He Buqun."
Ye Anping was taken aback when he heard this, and he glanced at her face.
He saw that her arrogant eyes, which usually looked down on everyone, now had a trace of uneasiness.
Ye Anping asked, "Are you upset?"
"Why would I be upset? For that white fool over there?"
Feng Yu Die, who was sorting out her storage bag, glanced at her coldly and protested with a resentful look. However, thinking of what Ye Anping had mentioned on the road before, to try to get along as well as possible, she didn't respond.
At this time, Xue'e poked her head out from her forehead and spread her hands helplessly. "Ye Anping, didn't you ask her to build a tomb for He Qingjiao that day?"
"Well..."
Xue'e touched Gu Mingxin's head to comfort her and then explained, "On He Qingjiao's sword, there are two characters: 'Ming Xin'. After Mingxin saw it, she stood alone on the hill for a long time."
"What does that have to do with it? I'm just curious what it means?!"
"Alas..." Xue'e smiled like an old mother and shook her head. "Ye Anping, Mingxin has been alone since she was a child, and no one cares about her. At that time, she heard you say that He Qingjiao protected her since she was a child, and then..."
"Xue'e, shut up!!"
"Hmm..."
Xue'e felt that there was no need to say anything more, so she simply shut her mouth.
Ye Anping roughly understood what she said. "So, you realized it later and felt uncomfortable about killing your childhood benefactor?"
"No~" Gu Mingxin replied with pursed lips.
"..."
Seeing her like this, Ye Anping didn't continue the topic.
He had thought about recruiting He Qingjiao before. In addition to the fact that He Qingjiao was indeed a fighting force, another reason was that he also wanted to find a companion for Gu Mingxin.
Gu Mingxin was different from his sister, Xiao Yunluo, Feng Yu Die, and the others.
She was a demonic cultivator, and because she grew up in the Heavenly Demon Sect, her personality was a bit strange.
After the matter of the Heavenly Demon Sect was over, even if he took Gu Mingxin to the Hundred Lotus Sect, he could accept her, but the sect disciples might not be able to.
His sister had countless little fans who liked her in the Hundred Lotus Sect;
Xiao Yunluo had a group of Elders from Black Star Sect and her master Xuanji;
Yun Yiyi had Yun Jiujiu and Yun Xi;
Li Longling had the Dragon House left by her father;
Feng Yu Die had Zu Lingzhi who respected and worshiped her, Elder Qin and Mr. Qi who were willing to take care of her, and Yun Tianchong who wanted to make up for Master Taixu;
However, Gu Mingxin would still be alone even if she went to the Hundred Lotus Sect. It would be no different from her life in the Heavenly Demon Sect.
Ye Anping guessed that He Qingjiao's death probably made her realize this.
That's why she had been so taciturn lately, right?
"Sister Gu, if I said I would give you a home, I definitely will."
"I didn't say I didn't believe it... Hehe~~ Also, you have to help me kill He Buqun."
"Well..."
Xue'e looked at the two of them dotingly from the sides.
However, the next moment, a golden light bulb suddenly rushed in from the cave entrance, shouting anxiously, "Anping!! Anping!!"
Hearing the urgency in Xiao Tian's voice, Ye Anping, Feng Yu Die, and Gu Mingxin looked toward her alertly.
Ye Anping asked, "What's wrong? What happened?"
"About one hundred twenty miles to the north, seven or eight Snow Guards were surrounded by more than twenty demonic cultivators. I picked one of those demonic cultivators and checked his storage bag. It seems that he was from the Heartbreak Palace."
Ye Anping raised his eyebrows, slightly surprised.
The Snow Guards were from the Cold Country. Their appearance here meant that Sun Juehu was already nearby.
This was faster than he expected.
However, it was not a big problem...
The priority now was to kill Yu Yan. After that, Xuanji and Sun Juehu would inevitably have to fight, but that was a matter for the future. Sun Juehu was not stupid. Before Yu Yan died, she would not attack Si Xuanji; otherwise, she would also die in the Eastern Region.
"It wouldn't be unusual for Mo Chi Ling's people to attack the Snow Guards, but the Heartbreak Palace is now on the side of the Immortal Family, and in fact, they have the same goal. I think they must have been forced into a corner..."
Ye Anping explained, then propped his chin and started to calculate the gains and losses.
Although they were from the Cold Country, they were still immortal cultivators after all.
Normally, if he could save him, he would do it.
But this place was already the hinterland of the Heavenly Demon Sect. If the Heavenly Demon Sect's ravens found Gu Mingxin, it would be over.
"We won't get involved in this mess..."
Xiao Tian paused before hesitantly saying, "But Anping, I saw Xu Mulan there..."
Ye Anping's eyebrows trembled slightly when he heard the name. "Is Xu Mulan there?"
"Yes, I saw that she was injured at that time. If she continues like this, she might die in the hands of those demonic cultivators."
Xue'e and Gu Mingxin didn't recognize this name, but seeing that Ye Anping's face did not look too good, they couldn't help but ask, "Who is Xu Mulan?"
Ye Anping didn't answer. After a moment of reflection, he stood up suddenly. "Yu Die."
"Yes." Feng Yu Die also stood up immediately. "Am I coming with you to help?"
"No, you and Sister Gu stay here. Xiao Tian, come with me," Ye Anping said decisively. "It doesn't matter if I am seen by the ravens, but you and Gu Mingxin must not show your heads. Xue'e, you help guard the surroundings."
"Okay!"
Feng Yu Die pouted slightly and sat down slowly. "Oh, okay!"
Ye Anping looked at the three people. He let Xiao Tian sit on his shoulder, then put on his hat again, turned around, and walked out of the cave again.
After his footsteps completely disappeared, Gu Mingxin glanced at Feng Yu Die. "Is Xu Mulan also his cultivation partner?"
Feng Yu Die looked back, was silent for a while, and replied, "Young Master Ye used to talk about a girl named 'Xiyue'. Xu Mulan is Xiyue's sister."
"So, Xiyue..."
Xue'e looked at the two people looking at each other and shook her head helplessly. "Mingxin, and... Feng Yu Die, don't quarrel or fight, understand?! I'll go outside to watch and come in to tell you if there is any movement! Don't fight!! Remember it!"