Exposed

Li Nanzhu's breath hitched instantly.

Suisui's soul fire suddenly shrank to the size of a needlepoint, and its bone claws gripped her collar tightly.

She hesitated over whether to reveal she was a disciple of the Five Elements Dao Sect, but memories of the original story flashed through her mind. Her senior brothers and sisters never seemed to mention the Five Elements Dao Sect. Even in the Forest of Demonic Beasts, even when facing Liu Qingyang, her second and seventh senior brothers hadn't mentioned their origins...

Was there something that needed to be hidden? Her eldest senior brother hadn't mentioned this point to her.

Li Nanzhu's thoughts were abruptly interrupted by a flash of pink spiritual light. Suisui's soul fire flared up, erecting a thin barrier in front of her.

"Wait!" she shouted, while simultaneously dodging the spiritual energy. "I'm just here to find someone!"

The spiritual light grazed her sleeve and exploded like a brilliant firework against the rock wall.

By the light of the blast, Li Nanzhu saw three women dressed in pink gauze skirts holding various magic tools. The almond-eyed woman in the lead still had lingering spiritual energy swirling around her fingertips.

"Foundation Establishment stage?" The leading almond-eyed woman raised an eyebrow, her jade ruyi lowering slightly. "Little girl, this is no place for someone like you."

Li Nanzhu slowly raised her hands. "Beautiful sisters, my senior siblings and I were separated after an accident in the swamp. I accidentally fell down here..."

Every word she spoke was the truth, she simply omitted her sect information. However, another young girl remained tense. "Then why were you following us?"

"I wasn't..." Li Nanzhu gave a bitter smile. "I was following the sound of the wind to find an exit and happened to find your markings..."

Before she could finish, the almond-eyed woman's eyes widened. She pointed her jade ruyi directly at Suisui, who was hiding behind Li Nanzhu!

"An evil thing?!"

Three streaks of spiritual energy instantly locked onto Li Nanzhu's major acupoints. Seeing this, Suisui panicked, its soul fire flickering violently.

"No!" Li Nanzhu quickly moved to completely shield Suisui. "It's a dao-protecting bone spirit! Not an evil thing! Back in the Forest of Demonic Beasts, both the Sword Heart Sect Sovereign and the Water Moon Sect Sovereign saw it..."

"Nonsense!" the almond-eyed woman snapped. "What righteous disciple would carry around a skeleton monster?"

Spiritual energy surged from her fingertips, and she was on the verge of attacking when a lazy chuckle echoed from deep within the passage.

"Jingyi, stop."

A languid voice drifted from behind.

The three girls immediately withdrew their weapons and stepped aside to make a path. Li Nanzhu saw a familiar figure strolling toward them—Rong Yuying held a Glazed Bracelet lamp, her red gauze skirt pristine and untainted by dust. The golden bells at her waist chimed softly, looking exactly as she had that day in Qingyun City.

The moment she saw her, Li Nanzhu breathed a sigh of relief. If Rong Yuying was here, things would be much easier. With the bit of goodwill they had established in Qingyun City, Suisui wouldn't be attacked directly by them.

"Oh, isn't this little Little Zhu from Qingyun City?" Rong Yuying's red lips curled slightly as her gaze swept over Li Nanzhu's disheveled appearance. "How did you end up in such a state?"

Hearing her words, Li Nanzhu performed an awkward bow. "Beautiful Sister, I..."

Rong Yuying approached with her glazed lamp, her gaze lingering on Suisui for a moment. "A dao-protecting bone spirit of the Five Elements Dao Sect... It is indeed not an evil thing." She turned to the almond-eyed woman. "It's understandable that you wouldn't know about the events in the Forest of Demonic Beasts a month ago, Jingyi, as you were in closed-door cultivation."

Jingyi's hand holding the jade ruyi trembled, her wary expression turning into astonishment. The two younger disciples beside her widened their eyes, their gazes shifting back and forth between Li Nanzhu and Suisui. "The Five Elements Dao Sect? That once-greatest sect?!"

"The Five Elements Dao Sect... actually still exists?" the round-faced girl whispered. "I thought everything Martial Uncle said last time was just drunken rambling..."

Rong Yuying lightly tapped the girl's forehead. "Qinghe, do not be rude." She turned back to Li Nanzhu, a glint of mischief in her eyes. "Little Zhu, this dao-protecting bone spirit of yours is quite a rare treasure. I heard that on that day in the Forest of Demonic Beasts, even those old fossils from the Sword Heart Sect had to admit defeat?"

Li Nanzhu's ears grew warm. Suisui took the cue and bowed politely, its soul fire turning a gentle pale blue. It even twirled around to show off the orthodox Daoist runes carved onto its frame.

These were markings Feng Yi had added on a whim to make it look more legitimate.

Jingyi's tense shoulders finally relaxed. "Since you are a fellow disciple of the Eight Sects..." She stowed her jade ruyi and cupped her hands apologetically. "Pardon my earlier offense."

"It's no trouble," Li Nanzhu quickly returned the gesture. "It's only right to be cautious in a situation like this."

Qinghe suddenly leaned in, curiously poking Suisui's skull. "Senior sister, does this bone spirit really protect one's Dao? I heard that the dao-protecting bone spirits of the Five Elements Dao Sect have to endure ninefold lightning tribulations..."

Li Nanzhu felt a bit awkward. All of that was just nonsense made up by Feng Yi; Suisui hadn't experienced anything of the sort.

Seeing her awkward expression, Rong Yuying knew this topic wasn't suitable for further discussion, as it likely involved the sect's secret transmissions. She spoke softly to change the subject.

Her red lips curved. "It's only been a short while, and the little girl has already reached the Foundation Establishment stage? Back in Qingyun City, you were only at the Qi Condensation stage. If the Sword Heart Sect knew they were targeting such a genius," she chuckled, covering her mouth, "they'd probably be green with regret."

"You're joking, Beautiful Sister," she said in a low voice. "I just had good luck..."

"Luck alone won't get you to the Foundation Establishment stage," Rong Yuying said meaningfully. "Nor would it allow you to survive this long in a place like this."

As she spoke, the glazed lamp in Rong Yuying's hand tilted slightly, illuminating an inconspicuous pentagram mark on the rock wall. "Little Zhu, you drew the mark of the Five Elements Dao Sect quite standardly."

Li Nanzhu's heart skipped a beat. She clearly remembered that the pentagram she had just carved was at the corner behind them. How did Rong Yuying...

Qinghe leaned in curiously. "Senior sister, how did you recognize that as a mark of the Five Elements Dao Sect?"

"The Sect Master showed it to us specifically a few days ago," Rong Yuying said with a smile. "The pentagram represents the rotation of the Five Elements; it's their sect's unique method of contact." She suddenly leaned down and whispered in Li Nanzhu's ear, "But seeing a living disciple of the Five Elements Dao Sect here is quite a pleasant surprise."

Li Nanzhu pursed her lips. She hadn't expected her small actions to be discovered by the other party so easily. Seeing her reaction, Rong Yuying knew she had likely misunderstood something.

"Don't be nervous." She waved her hand. "There's an identical mark at the fork ahead. Your mark wouldn't have been easily found if I hadn't searched with my divine sense. However..."

Rong Yuying's tone shifted. "I was wondering which member of the Five Elements Dao Sect was here and if I could make their acquaintance. I didn't expect..."

She deliberately trailed off, her gaze circling between Li Nanzhu and Suisui. "...that it would be that cute little sister from Qingyun City."

Qinghe suddenly let out a gasp, nearly dropping her jade ruyi. "Senior sister, could this be the girl you mentioned—the one who made Cang Dongqing of the Sword Heart Sect look like a fool in public?"