Watching Shen Xiuhan's retreating back as he walked across the water, Shen Cang finally could not help but turn his head and ask in a low voice, “Brother Wen, Sect Master Xu, this is...”
Wen Qingye and Xu Zhouling looked at each other, exchanging glances.
Immediately after, the former's lips moved silently, uttering a few words.
Shen Cang's pupils constricted slightly as realization dawned on him.
He stared blankly at the figure on the lake, then looked at the opposite bank, at the brightly lit Longxiang Army camp.
Shen Cang's large hand involuntarily clenched, veins bulging. He grit his teeth and squeezed out a sentence through them: “Can we... really not save this boy?”
Xu Zhouling and Wen Qingye both fell silent.
The lake wind swept across the beach, making the torches crackle, but no one spoke.
Shen Cang seemed to realize how naive his thought was. He relaxed his fist and let out a bitter laugh. “What a pity...”
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
The sound of four sets of robes cutting through the air rang out in succession.
Dong Fu, Feng Buting, Gongsun Bei, and Lei Xiao, four Gangjin Rank experts, landed on the beach at the same time.
The four of them had clearly received the news in a hurry and rushed over immediately to guard the area and prepare for any unforeseen circumstances.
In an instant, a total of seven Gangjin Rank experts had gathered on this beach!
Layer upon layer of invisible pressure, heavy as mountains, caused even the lake wind to freeze.
Only Shen Miaoyin...
From beginning to end, she was completely bewildered.
Her crimson lips parted slightly, and her beautiful eyes widened. She stared blankly at this sudden, dramatic change, her heart pounding wildly.
“What... What on earth is happening?”
“Who is that person on the lake? Why does Junior Brother Shen have to meet him alone?”
“And... what exactly is this Junior Brother Shen's background, that he can draw seven Gangjin Rank experts to back him up?”
...
Shen Xiuhan stopped.
The lake surface rippled, the water reflecting the firelight from the distant camp, shattering into a shimmering expanse of gold and red.
A few yards away, Xiao Wu stood upon the lake.
His handsome, heroic face was written with exhaustion, and his eyes were bloodshot, looking as though he had not slept for several nights.
Shen Xiuhan pursed his lips and said in a low voice, “Brother Xiao, it has been a long time. Have you been well?”
Xiao Wu let out a bitter laugh, his voice slightly hoarse. “As Brother Shen can see, not very well.”
Hearing this, Shen Xiuhan took a deep breath.
He no longer hesitated and opened his mouth, intending to lay out all the inside details he knew.
“Brother Xiao, the people behind them are—”
“Brother Shen!”
Xiao Wu suddenly raised his hand, cutting him off.
Meeting Shen Xiuhan's puzzled gaze, he pointed to his chest and then gestured toward the Longxiang Army camp behind him.
Shen Xiuhan's eyes shifted, and he understood instantly.
“He has something on him that can monitor our conversation. But... I came prepared!”
Shen Xiuhan immediately retrieved a slip of paper he had prepared beforehand from his sleeve and handed it over.
Xiao Wu looked down at it but did not take it. He shook his head and let out another bitter laugh. “Brother Shen, do not trouble yourself.”
“I cannot look, and I cannot speak.”
“But there are some things I can more or less guess.”
He raised his head, looking at Shen Xiuhan with a calm gaze. “I sought you out, brother, only to pass on a few words.”
Shen Xiuhan stared at him blankly, withdrew the paper slip, and said in a low voice, “Brother Xiao, please speak.”
Although Xiao Wu's face was exhausted, his tone remained steady. “This time, my entry into the Blessed Land is not a certain-death situation. You do not need to come looking for me... including those people you brought.”
“To me, this matter is a tribulation, but also a stroke of fortune. If I face it alone and successfully emerge, I will surely reap great benefits.”
“If I cannot make it out...”
He paused, bent down slightly, cupped his hands, and solemnly bowed to Shen Xiuhan. “I ask Brother Shen to please help look after my younger brother, Xiao Wen... if he is still alive then.”
The muscles on Shen Xiuhan's face twitched slightly. He did not say much, only nodding silently.
Xiao Wu straightened up, retrieved the mother disc of the 『Four Seas Heart-Linking Disc』 from his robes, stepped forward, and stuffed it into Shen Xiuhan's hand.
“This item is my gift to you, brother.”
Before Shen Xiuhan could reply, he had already taken two steps back, cupped his hands, and said, “Brother Shen, we part here. I, Xiao Wu, wish you prosperous martial fortune and hope you reach the Xiantian Rank in the future!”
With that, he turned around, strode back the way he came, and never looked back.
Shen Xiuhan held the mother disc, his fingertips tightening slightly.
Xiao Wu said it was not a certain-death situation, yet he handed over this jade disc. The meaning could not be clearer.
“He doesn't want others to find him through this disc.”
“Is it because he doesn't want others to interfere and disrupt his plans? Or is it...”
“...because he doesn't want them to play with fire and lose their lives for his sake?”
Shen Xiuhan tried his best to lean toward the first assumption.
But he knew...
It was likely the second one!
“Phew...”
Shen Xiuhan let out a long breath, turned around, and walked back to the shore across the water.
He did not immediately use the intelligence system to probe the situation, but slowly placed the mother disc of the 『Four Seas Heart-Linking Disc』 into his robes.
When he reached the shore, several gazes fell upon him in unison.
Although the Gangjin Rank experts did not speak, the questioning look in their eyes was plain for all to see.
Just as Shen Xiuhan was about to speak, Xu Zhouling suddenly waved his hand, his gaze bypassing Shen Xiuhan and falling upon Shen Cang.
Shen Cang was startled at first, but quickly understood.
He turned his head toward Shen Miaoyin, who was stealing glances at Shen Xiuhan out of the corner of her eye, cleared his throat, and said, “Miaoyin, the Blessed Land is about to open. Go and prepare first.”
“I...”
Shen Miaoyin pursed her crimson lips and grit her teeth, her immense curiosity completely stifled by these words.
But she was no ordinary woman.
Instantly, a proper smile adorned her face. She bowed gracefully, her voice soft and sweet without a hint of reluctance. “Grandfather, Seniors, and Junior Brother Shen... Miaoyin will take her leave first.”
Once the jade-green figure disappeared, Lei Xiao was the first to lose his patience, asking hurriedly, “Nephew Shen, what did that Child of Destiny say to you?”
Shen Xiuhan remained silent for a moment. Without hiding anything, he said in a low voice, “He said... we shouldn't go looking for him.”
“Heh!”
Nearby, Zhenhai Marquis Dong Fu sneered upon hearing this, his gaze as cold as iron. “I'm afraid someone is using his mouth to send us a warning.”
“Most likely.”
Feng Buting nodded, then frowned. “Is this the work of Zhendong General Wang Zhifan?”
“No.”
Gongsun Bei shook his head, his tone firm. “I have dealt with Wang Zhifan before. He is a master of diplomacy, skilled at placing hidden pieces, and acts without leaving a trace. Such a blatant and foolish method is definitely not his style.”
“Then I know who it is.”
Xu Zhouling chuckled, a smirk playing on his lips. “The current Emperor has seven sons and two daughters, most of whom are highly talented and meticulous. Except for one Prince, whom His Majesty is rumored to have laughingly scolded as ‘both foolish and stupid, greedy and lustful’...”
“Oh, then I know who it is as well.”
Wen Qingye smiled and picked up the conversation.
The back-and-forth between the two immediately eased the heavy atmosphere on the beach.
“What else did he say?” Xu Zhouling turned his gaze and asked.
Shen Xiuhan shook his head, his voice dropping lower. “He didn't say much else, but I could feel that he seems to... have a death wish.”
As soon as these words were spoken, the surroundings suddenly fell silent, and the eased atmosphere vanished without a trace.
Xu Zhouling was silent for a moment, a sharp glint flashing across his eyes. He whispered to Shen Xiuhan, “A Child of Destiny is favored by heaven and will not perish easily. If he can survive until he walks out of the Blessed Land, I will have a way to save—”
Boom!
Before he could finish, a massive roar suddenly exploded in midair.
Everyone looked up in unison.
In the night sky, it was as if the heavens had split open.
Within that rift, a blinding light rapidly expanded, transforming in the blink of an eye into a massive, arched gateway of light.
Inside the gateway, a surge of emerald-green rippled, revealing a vast ocean stretching for tens of thousands of miles, dotted with scattered islands, and ancient pavilions nestled among them.
Everyone's breath stopped at this very moment.
“The Blessed Land... has opened!”
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