Undercurrents Surging

"Heh, it seems the people from the Five Elements Dao Sect are already buried inside." Li Nanyi suddenly sneered. "I told you, a few Golden Core and Foundation Establishment cultivators dared to barge into an evil cultivator's nest? How overconfident!"

Rong Yuying's eyes snapped open, a cold light flickering within them. "Li Nanyi, say that again?"

Li Nanyi crossed his arms and let out a cold laugh. "What? Am I wrong? They went looking for death themselves, so who can they blame?"

"Fifth Junior Brother!" Pei Ji barked a stern rebuke. "Now is not the time for infighting!"

"Not the time for infighting?" Rong Yuying sneered. "Along the way just now, your Sword Heart Sect people haven't been short of sarcastic remarks."

Her gaze swept over to Cang Dongqing, who was keeping her head low, looking deeply worried, yet the corners of her mouth were subtly upturned.

Rong Yuying narrowed her eyes, her fingers brushing against her storage bag as she suddenly changed her tune. "Junior Sister Cang, you seem quite happy?"

Cang Dongqing looked up, her eyes rimmed with red and her voice soft. "Senior Sister Rong, I... I just feel that if the cave collapsed, perhaps those evil cultivators were buried along with them..."

"Is that so?" Rong Yuying took a step forward. "But why do I feel like you're also glad the people from the Five Elements Dao Sect are buried as well?"

Cang Dongqing's expression changed. "Senior Sister Rong, what do you mean by that?"

"What do I mean?" Rong Yuying sneered. "Among the high-grade talismans Mu Zeting gave you, is there something else hidden? For example—an explosion talisman?"

"Rong Yuying!" Pei Ji roared. "Stop making groundless accusations!"

"Groundless accusations?" Rong Yuying retorted. "The talismans prepared by the Wuji Sect for the Hehuan Sect are all recorded. If you really feel wronged, why doesn't Junior Sister Cang open her storage bag and let everyone have a look?"

Cang Dongqing gripped her sleeves tightly, tears threatening to fall. "Senior Sister Rong, why... why do you always target me?"

Her lowered eyelashes concealed the sharp glint that flashed through her eyes.

Rong Yuying's actions today were truly abnormal—if before her behavior could barely be attributed to jealousy over Mu Zeting, now she actually dared to publicly force her to hand over her storage bag? The Hehuan Sect was currently in a weak position; where did she get the confidence to tear off all pretense? Was she truly stupid, or...

Before she could further ponder the deeper meaning, Daoist Master Xuan Shuang let out a thunderous shout.

"Enough!" The Nascent Soul pressure erupted, forcing everyone back. "If you keep arguing, no one will be saved!"

The scene fell into a momentary dead silence.

Daoist Master Yu Heng sighed and stepped forward. "The priority is to confirm whether the Five Elements Dao Sect disciples are alive or dead. Since the entrance is sealed, we can only find another way."

Rong Yuying took a deep breath and looked back at Cang Dongqing. "Hand over the explosion talisman!"

Her voice was as cold as if it were dipped in ice, and her fingertips were already resting on her round fan. Seeing this, the other Hehuan Sect disciples immediately and tacitly fanned out, partially surrounding the group from the Sword Heart Sect.

Pei Ji held his sword horizontally, blocking the way to Cang Dongqing. "Rong Yuying! You dare threaten a disciple of my sect in the presence of a Sword Heart Sect elder?"

"Threaten?" Rong Yuying wore a look of utter disbelief. "Pei Ji, with a great enemy before us, your precious Little Junior Sister is still hiding things and refusing to bring them out. Am I not doing this for everyone's sake?"

"You..."

"Enough!"

Cang Dongqing suddenly spoke up, her eyes bloodshot but her voice exceptionally firm.

Biting her lip, she tremblingly pulled three talismans glowing with spiritual light from her sleeve. Her fingertips were slightly pale, clearly showing her reluctance.

"Since Senior Sister Rong is suspicious, I will hand them over." Her voice choked with emotion, but she forced herself to stand tall. "These talismans are indeed protective items given to me by Senior Brother Mu, but I never thought of hiding any explosion talismans..."

She handed the talismans toward Rong Yuying, her eyes filled with tears yet carrying a hint of stubbornness. "If Senior Sister does not believe me, feel free to use them."

Rong Yuying unceremoniously reached out and took the talismans, her fingertips lightly stroking the edges of the paper.

Sure enough, the corner of each talisman was branded with a Hehuan flower. However, she was no longer in the mood to bicker with these slow-witted people from the Sword Heart Sect.

"They do indeed have the mark," she said indifferently, her gaze still scrutinizing. "However, since Junior Sister Cang is so generous, why didn't you just take them out from the start?"

Cang Dongqing's body trembled slightly as her tears finally rolled down. "I... I just..."

"Just reluctant?" Rong Yuying sneered. "Or perhaps, you have a guilty conscience?"

"Rong Yuying!" Pei Ji finally couldn't help but interrupt sharply. "The talismans have been given to you, what more do you want?"

"Exactly! My Little Junior Sister gave them up voluntarily!" Li Nanyi also added dissatisfaction.

"What do I want?" Rong Yuying gave a light laugh. "I want to pry open the heads of all you people to see what's inside, but..."

In the next instant, ignoring everyone's stunned gazes, she backhandedly flung the talismans toward the cave entrance.

Boom—!

Amidst the deafening explosion, gravel flew and dust rose. When the dust finally settled, only half a charred passage was revealed at the entrance, while the depths remained tightly sealed by a thick layer of rock.

"Satisfied now?" Li Nanyi sneered with his arms crossed. "Three high-grade talismans wasted for nothing, and all you did was blast out a dog hole?"

Rong Yuying ignored his mockery, her eyes locked onto Cang Dongqing's face—the slight twitch of her mouth, her knuckles clenched white, and the fleeting heartache in her eyes were all taken in.

She had chosen to use them publicly specifically to prevent Cang Dongqing from tampering with the talismans. This way, even if something went wrong, she couldn't be blamed.

But seeing Cang Dongqing's pained expression, these talismans seemed... to truly be just ordinary high-grade talismans?

If that was the case...

A barely perceptible curve formed at the corner of Rong Yuying's mouth.

"Since we can't get through here," Rong Yuying lightly shook her round fan, "why don't we go look where the explosion happened? Perhaps there's an entrance leading underground there."

"Ying'er makes sense," Daoist Master Yu Heng nodded. "At this point, we can only go deeper. We cannot let any evil cultivators who have formed such a presence get away."

"Then after this..." Rong Yuying turned her beautiful eyes. "We'll need Junior Sister Cang to contribute more of her strength."

"...T-This is only natural." For some reason, Cang Dongqing's heart skipped a beat, but at this stage, she couldn't refuse. She could only smile in response, the two of them appearing as harmonious as if no friction had ever existed.

For the rest of the way, Rong Yuying suddenly became exceptionally "considerate."

Whenever they encountered a place with dense baneful energy, Rong Yuying would stop with a beaming smile. "Junior Sister Cang, the baneful energy here is quite thick. Why not use a cleansing heart talisman? After all—" She pointedly glanced at the group from the Sword Heart Sect. "Your senior brothers are all watching."

Cang Dongqing's fingertips trembled slightly, but she had to force a smile as she took out a talisman glowing with green light from her storage bag.

The Hehuan flower mark on the talisman paper was particularly conspicuous amidst the baneful energy. Her heart bled, yet she had to maintain a look of righteousness. "For everyone's safety, I am naturally duty-bound."

The talisman was activated, and its pure light washed through the area. The baneful energy ahead indeed cleared into a passage. The expressions of the three Sword Heart Sect elders softened slightly, their gazes toward Cang Dongqing becoming more approving.

The corners of Rong Yuying's lips curled up, a hint of coldness flashing in her eyes.

—This was only the beginning.