The Protected One

“Old sir, are you saying that many children have been taken from here over the past month?” Wen Sining asked patiently.

“Yes, yes. Already twenty or thirty have been taken.”

Seeing that Wen Sining was wearing the uniform of the Heavenly Martial Immortal Sect and carrying the Heavenly Martial Immortal Badge, the elderly man finally revealed the truth.

“Over this past month, every five or six days, a group of strange-looking people dressed in black would come to the village. Each time, they threatened our lives and took seven or eight children.”

“Did you not report this to the local authorities?” Wen Sining asked.

At the mention of this, the elderly man sighed heavily and said, “Of course we did, but it was useless. Every time they came, they couldn't find anything unusual and returned in failure. Over time, they stopped believing us.”

“I see. I understand.” Wen Sining's face grew heavy, her brow furrowing tightly. She could not get any useful clues from the elderly man's mouth.

Or rather, the clues provided by the other villagers were exactly the same.

They only knew that people in black would come to snatch children every time, and then mysteriously vanish on the road, with all their aura and footprints completely disappearing.

It was no wonder the authorities couldn't find any clues. Even Wen Sining couldn't sense any useful traces, even after using a tracking technique.

Using the children's leftover belongings as a medium to locate their exact position.

Unfortunately, that had failed as well.

“Immortal, is there really any way to solve this? We don't want to live in constant fear anymore.”

The old man asked with some urgency, like a drowning man clutching desperately at the last straw.

“This... I will find a way to resolve it. Please do not worry.” This was also Wen Sining's first time encountering such a situation, and she was somewhat overwhelmed.

“Sigh.”

Hearing this, the old man sighed and walked away, seemingly giving up hope.

Wen Sining wanted to stop him, but her outstretched hand froze mid-air.

There were no clues, the enemy was unknown, and even the mission given by her master only noted that a large number of people had gone missing in this area, suspecting that evil cultivators were at work.

“Sigh, what a headache.”

Wen Sining rubbed her aching head as she returned to the inn, pouring herself a cup of hot tea to soothe her worries.

Ever since they arrived here, she and Wang Xuanyi had been acting separately, conducting their own investigations and sharing information via communication stones.

Unfortunately, several days had passed without any progress.

Even the black-clothed men the villagers spoke of had not appeared, as if they knew a cultivator was present and were deliberately avoiding them.

“Senior Brother, do you have any noteworthy clues on your end? It's the same for me as it was four days ago. I can't get any information about the mission. I only know that twenty to thirty children have been kidnapped.”

At night, Wen Sining still sent out her report as usual.

“Same as you, no progress at all. If it doesn't work out, let's just give up and find someone else to handle it.”

Wang Xuanyi's cold voice came from the other side of the communication stone.

Just like when they were within the Heavenly Martial Immortal Sect, Wang Xuanyi always maintained the bare minimum of contact. In fact, if Wen Sining didn't speak up, he could go days without saying a word.

Furthermore, Wang Xuanyi's attitude was also a bit different.

How should she put it? He was much colder than he was back in the sect, carrying an aura of isolation that warned strangers not to approach and acquaintances not to disturb, completely different from how he behaved with Zhu Huai.

Most importantly, this was already the second time he had suggested giving up on this mission.

“Senior Brother, Master has taught me that as cultivators, it is our duty to eliminate demons, defend the Dao, and protect all living beings. We must never casually give up on any living soul,” Wen Sining replied with some anger before cutting off the communication stone.

She had never expected that the suggestion to give up would come from an inner sect disciple. It was truly a disgrace to the sect.

Afterward, Wen Sining sat cross-legged, consumed a Fasting Pill, and relied on meditation to recover her physical strength.

When traveling abroad, Xiao Hongye had repeatedly warned her disciples that the outside world was dangerous, advising them to prepare plenty of Fasting Pills and avoid relying on regular food to replenish their strength.

Wen Sining kept this advice firmly in mind.

On the other side.

Having ended the transmission, Wang Xuanyi was eating skewers in the mountain forest. He had added all sorts of seasonings—cumin, black pepper, chili powder, and more—eating with absolute relish.

“Whew, demon beast meat really is the chewiest. The aftertaste is endless.”

Beside him lay a pile of dozens of demon beast corpses. The permeating scent of blood was so thick that the surrounding insects and demon beasts didn't dare to draw near.

Too terrifying. This man was simply too terrifying.

He ate absolutely anything.

Snake soup, steamed bear paw, charcoal-grilled ant eggs, roasted lamb leg, lamb spine hot pot...

There was nothing he didn't dare to eat, only things he couldn't catch.

After finishing the meat, Wang Xuanyi chugged a large gulp of ice-cold wheat juice, letting out a blissful sigh, his appetite thoroughly satisfied.

Having eaten and drunk his fill, Wang Xuanyi casually plucked a foxtail grass, stuck it in his mouth, and lay down on a tiger pelt, enjoying the tranquility of his starlight bath.

“And here I thought Wen Sining was so capable, yet she can't even solve a minor problem. It's my fault for putting too much faith in Xiao Hongye's disciples. I'll have to re-evaluate that bunch in the future.”

Wang Xuanyi grumbled in boredom. The reason he had taken on this mission and agreed to act alongside Wen Sining was partly due to Xiao Hongye's authority and partly due to that old geezer selling him out.

As for the second reason, this didn't belong to the main storyline of the original novel; in fact, it wasn't even a mission in it.

From the moment Long Zitian stepped into the sect, the plot revolved around the Heavenly Martial Immortal Sect. Going out on missions only happened after reaching the seventh level of the Qi Refining Realm.

Thus, Wang Xuanyi wasn't worried about the other party holding a grudge against him. After all, he had only just entered the sect.

Furthermore, the original novel mentioned that after conquering Leng Ning'an, Xiao Hongye, and those two junior sisters he had yet to meet, it took Long Zitian thousands of years to finally conquer Wen Sining.

Wang Xuanyi suddenly recalled that the book had no sequel, and the story ended right there. As for what kind of ending it was, he had no idea.

Because by then, he had already arrived in this world and completed his reincarnation.

“Damn it, stupid Heavenly Dao. You're even more mischievous than I am.”

Since he was here, he might as well make the best of it.

He still understood this principle.

Since he had come to this world, it meant the story and plotline had changed. Just how much they had changed was still unknown.

“Whatever, I'll sleep first.”

After a busy day, Master Wang fell asleep under the gentle caress of chirping insects and the evening breeze.

As for Wen Sining, he wasn't worried about her at all.

Every day, he would secretly monitor Wen Sining's movements and safety. Her communication stone was also given to her by Wang Xuanyi, with multiple spells carved inside—enough to sustain her until he arrived.

It couldn't be helped. She was Xiao Hongye's darling disciple. If anything happened to her, that old woman would surely skin Wang Xuanyi alive.

Besides, that old geezer back home wouldn't let him off either.

No matter what, he couldn't possibly let a fool like Wen Sining act completely on her own.

It was just that Wen Sining didn't know it.