"Tie Pan, do you have a way?" the Blind Sword Saint murmured, a thread of undeniable anticipation woven into his low voice.

Tie Pan startled, then managed a wry, bitter smile.

A way? What way was there?

In terms of Void Realm masters, the Guiyuan Sect held an absolute advantage over Qinghu Island. In terms of elite armies, Qinghu Island's Longgang Army was a force that made the entire Jiuzhou tremble.

Guiyuan Sect's only weakness was a lack of manpower! Not enough people to occupy sufficient territory. However, now twenty thousand troops had appeared. Furthermore, Guiyuan Sect was not greedy; they advanced methodically, consolidating every location they took with ruthless efficiency, ensuring absolute control.

"No way, absolutely no way," Tie Pan shook his head.

The Blind Sword Saint also sighed softly. "The hidden 'seeds' have all been placed, right?"

"Yes, from the day we left Qinghu Island, many elite disciples were already settled across Jiuzhou," Tie Pan replied, shaking his head. "But this Teng Qingshan is only twenty-two years old. As long as he exists, it will be impossible for my Qinghu Island to rise again. That means... Qinghu Island will not see a resurgence for five hundred years."

To calculate defeat before victory—no sect in Jiuzhou would allow itself to be completely extinguished. They always leave a few branches hoping for future inheritance.

"Twenty-two years!" the Blind Sword Saint muttered, a wave of despair washing over him.

A Void Realm expert at twenty-two! And capable of fighting him, a peak Void Realm master, head-on! Moreover, this monster’s life had only spanned twenty-two years; his five-hundred-year lifespan had just begun... This was merely his ascent; the future promised only greater brilliance.

"There is no chance for Qinghu Island to rise," the Blind Sword Saint thought. He had pinned his hopes on Guiyuan Sect being overly aggressive. In the Southern Seven Prefectures, where Qinghu Island's influence was deeply entrenched, they could use insidious methods to eliminate the Longgang Army! Once the Longgang Army was wiped out... Guiyuan Sect alone, even with Void Realm masters, could not possibly conquer Yangzhou!

Destroying the Longgang Army would cripple Guiyuan Sect, but unfortunately, Guiyuan Sect was too cautious.

Winter yields to spring, spring passes, and summer arrives.

In the blink of an eye, it was early summer.

Teng Family Village had already been developed into a small town. In a sprawling mansion west of the village, by the edge of a pond, Li Jun leaned against Teng Qingshan, watching the fish swim below.

"Qingshan, what do you think our child will be, a boy or a girl?" Li Jun occasionally caressed her abdomen.

Teng Qingshan smiled, looking at his wife’s belly. Compared to before, Li Jun’s stomach was now significantly large, round and full. She had to hold her back when walking... According to the physician, the child was due around the middle of next month.

"Time flies so fast; it's already April. My child, Teng Qingshan's child, will be born soon."

Teng Qingshan had occasionally visited the Southern Seven Prefectures recently, hoping to spot the Blind Sword Saint, but most of his time was spent at the Teng Family Village. As the birth approached, Li Jun’s moods sometimes became strange. According to his mother, 'Yuan Lan,' pregnant women were always like that. Yuan Lan had even instructed him to spend more quality time with his wife.

"The child is coming, and now, the war between my Guiyuan Sect and Qinghu Island has reached a critical juncture."

A surge of worry welled up in Teng Qingshan’s heart. "If that Tie Xiazi isn't dealt with, I fear he might cause trouble at any time. With Xiao Jun pregnant now... if he causes a disturbance and she miscarries, that would be disastrous!" A woman’s pregnancy could not withstand shock. Even if the Blind Sword Saint unleashed a sword light and Teng Qingshan blocked it...

The intense atmospheric shockwave could injure Li Jun and potentially cause the fragile infant in her womb to abort.

"Hmm—"

"No matter what, it’s best to resolve Tie Xiazi as soon as possible," a thought formed in Teng Qingshan’s mind.

For the sake of his unborn child, the Tie Xiazi had to be eliminated soon.

"Xiao Jun," Teng Qingshan said.

"Hmm?" Li Jun snapped out of her reverie about their future child. "Qingshan, what is it?"

"I plan to go out soon; I probably won't be able to stay with you for a while," Teng Qingshan said solemnly.

"What for?" Li Jun immediately asked.

Teng Qingshan explained, "That Blind Sword Saint from Qinghu Island, 'Tie Wu,' is currently in hiding. Until he is dead, I won’t feel at ease! I worry he might cause trouble at my Teng Family Village. Although... the Six-Legged Saber-Tailed Beast is guarding the Manor. Still, no matter how fast a demonic beast is, it’s not as fast as a sword light. I worry he might target you, Xiao Jun—"

Li Jun’s expression changed: "The child..." She wasn't worried about herself; she worried only for the child. After carrying the fetus for so long, Li Jun had already developed deep affection for the child within her.

"Therefore, I plan to start turning the world upside down to find that Tie Xiazi," Teng Qingshan stated grimly.

"Qingshan, haven’t you searched and failed to find him?" Li Jun frowned.

"I searched quickly before," Teng Qingshan shook his head. "But last time, the search was rushed! This time, I will search slowly. I will look for Tie Pan and Gu Yong! I believe that by starting with Tie Pan and Gu Yong, I might find that Tie Xiazi..." Since the Blind Sword Saint couldn't be found directly, a roundabout approach was necessary, starting with the other two.

"Tie Pan and Gu Yong must be hiding very carefully. Moreover, searching for Innate Realm experts seems to take more time," Li Jun observed.

"Yes."

Teng Qingshan nodded. "To search for Void Realm experts, I can have the Undying Phoenix, 'Xiao Qing,' fly at maximum speed. But searching for Innate masters, Xiao Qing's speed must be significantly reduced. Every thirty-four-mile range requires several breaths of time for me to investigate—thus, Yangzhou’s straight-line length is roughly over two thousand miles. One round trip would allow me to check an area sixty miles wide and over two thousand miles long!"

"To search all of Yangzhou, I need forty round trips!"

"Because the search speed must slow down, one round trip of over four thousand miles will take about two hours! If I spend ten hours per day searching, I can complete five round trips! To search the entire area thoroughly will take about eight days," Teng Qingshan calculated. A day has twelve hours; ten hours would be dedicated to searching, leaving two hours for rest and accompanying his wife. After all, being away for extended periods might negatively affect Li Jun's emotions during her pregnancy if she worried about Teng Qingshan.

"A full eight days?" Li Jun nodded slightly.

A typical Golden Core Innate Realm flying demonic beast could cover over ten thousand miles in six hours! One hour usually covered over two thousand miles. The Undying Phoenix, being a Void Realm demonic beast and one of the fastest among them, could cover twenty to thirty thousand miles in an hour even without using its absolute maximum speed. Therefore—

A round trip of over four thousand miles taking two hours was quite slow for the Undying Phoenix.

"Perhaps more than eight days," Teng Qingshan thought to himself. "Tie Pan and Gu Yong might not even be in Yangzhou; they could be hiding in another prefecture!" Just searching Yangzhou thoroughly for Innate masters would take nearly eight days of almost non-stop work. Then, searching all of Jiuzhou—even excluding the Savage Lands, the Western Regions, and the Great Steppe—would take roughly seventy-two days.

Not wanting his wife to worry excessively, Teng Qingshan said no more.

After all... considering the need for command transmission and Qinghu Island's deep roots in Yangzhou, the most likely scenario was that Tie Pan and the others were hiding somewhere within Yangzhou.

On the third day of the fourth month.

"Whoosh~~"

The Undying Phoenix flew high above at several thousand feet, while Teng Qingshan streaked like a beam of light across the vast plains of Yangzhou.

Searching while moving along the ground covered a larger surface area than searching from high altitude. Moreover, this speed—two hours per round trip—posed no difficulty for the Void Realm master Teng Qingshan.

"If I'm lucky enough, perhaps I can find Tie Pan and Gu Yong on the first day," Teng Qingshan thought. With one step, he was upon a distant hill; with another, he was crossing the surface of a river. Thus, Teng Qingshan began meticulously searching every inch of Yangzhou. Furthermore, while moving on the ground, Teng Qingshan could detect depths of thirty-four miles below the surface.

Teng Qingshan advanced on the ground while the Undying Phoenix kept pace high above. Once the Blind Sword Saint was encountered, the assistance of the Undying Phoenix 'Xiao Qing' would be crucial to prevent the Blind Sword Saint from escaping.

...

As evening approached.

Teng Qingshan was having dinner with Li Jun. In the courtyard, the Six-Legged Saber-Tailed Beast and the Undying Phoenix rested.

"You have to go out again tonight?" Li Jun felt a pang of sympathy. Teng Qingshan had been exhausted for three full days now, coming back daily only to eat and chat with her before rushing off to search again.

"Yes. I still have to go out," Teng Qingshan smiled. "Xiao Jun, I must say, these Qinghu Island people are quite skilled at hiding. After three days of plowing through this area like this, I still haven't found them. But—it's close. I should find them soon. Well, it’s getting late. I need to leave." After lightly embracing his wife, Teng Qingshan stepped out of the courtyard.

"Xiao Qing."

Exchanging a look with the Undying Phoenix, Xiao Qing intelligently ascended instantly, soaring rapidly high into the sky.

Swoosh! Teng Qingshan also transformed into a streak of light and vanished.

...

On the sixth day of Teng Qingshan’s search, around noon.

"Hoo... hoo..."

Although it was only early summer, being in the southern part of Yangzhou, the noon heat was already intense, with gusts of hot wind blowing. Yet, in a quiet mansion study in Lucheng, in southern Yangzhou, the windows and doors remained tightly shut.

"What to do? What to do?"

Tie Pan’s eyes were bloodshot as he stared at the numerous secret letters spread across his desk, densely filled with records of engagements between Guiyuan Sect and Qinghu Island over the recent period. Now, the conflict had shifted from open confrontation to clandestine warfare. Sadly—the overall momentum lay with Guiyuan Sect; some city guards had even defected directly to Guiyuan Sect.

"On the sixteenth of the second month, Guiyuan Sect annexed two more of my prefectures. Currently, only three prefectures remain in Qinghu Island's possession."

"At this rate of erosion, within another month or two, Guiyuan Sect will surely swallow the final three prefectures in one gulp. By then, all of Yangzhou will belong to Guiyuan Sect. I, too, will be the island master of a fallen island." Tie Pan’s face was contorted with anxiety. For the past half year, he had worried ceaselessly, trying every possible means to salvage the situation.

But all his schemes and tricks yielded only minimal success under the meticulous arrangements of Guiyuan Sect’s Zhuge Yuanhong, having no impact on the overall outcome.

Suddenly—

"Creeeeak!" The study door opened.

"Who? I expressly forbade anyone from entering without my permission!!!" Tie Pan, boiling with frustration, immediately snapped at the person entering. But when his eyes clearly focused on the entrant, he froze.

Standing there, smiling, was a youth in a white robe faintly dusted with dirt.

"You—" Tie Pan’s heart turned completely cold. He had seen this person’s portrait countless times on wanted posters. Qinghu Island’s current plight was entirely his fault.

"Island Master Tie, you seem quite agitated," the newcomer said with a slight smile.

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