Parting Ways

The five of them put away the communication jades, each bowing to Xuan Mo. Shangguan Yunzhu and Qingfeng took the lead, heading towards the Juezhang Treasure Forest.

“Take care, Martial Aunt.”

Lu Qiancha lagged half a step behind, turned to cup his hands at Xuan Mo, then his lips moved slightly as he transmitted a message to her.

Then she quickened her pace to catch up with the main group, trailing at the very back.

At this moment, Bai Yan suddenly spoke to Lu Qiancha, “Junior Brother Qiancha, you can follow me later. I’m actually just here to try my luck and don’t have any specific herbs to find, so there’s no need to disturb Junior Brother Qingfeng and the others.”

Hearing this, Lu Qiancha gave Bai Yan a knowing smile, and Bai Yan raised an eyebrow in return.

The meaning of his words was clear: Lu Qiancha should not be a third wheel between Shangguan Yunzhu and Qingfeng, and should give them some space to be alone.

The five of them walked along the only path in the forest, their spiritual senses vigilantly scanning the surroundings for fierce beasts.

This forest was chaotic, filled with ferocious beasts that had yet to gain intelligence.

But because of this, its danger level was relatively low for Beiju Luzhou.

The medicinal herbs here had been mostly harvested by demons and humans, making it quite difficult to find a single treasured herb.

However, the herb Lu Qiancha was looking for was not in this forest at all, but in a deeper region of Beiju Luzhou.

As she walked, Lu Qiancha took out a sheepskin map, looked at the mark she had made, and confirmed her direction of travel.

‘But… first I need to find a reason to leave the team. And… this reason must be plausible enough that Xuan Mo, who is secretly following them in the sky, won’t intervene.’

After walking for more than half an hour, the jungle ahead grew darker.

Lu Qiancha followed closely behind the other four. She was still far from the point where she needed to change direction, so there was no rush to split off immediately.

Suddenly, a suppressed roar was heard, and a ferocious aura assaulted them from the front.

A fierce beast could wait no longer and was about to attack them.

Shangguan Yunzhu, at the front of the team, immediately raised her hand, stopping the others from advancing.

The broken sword on her back began to hum softly.

Qingfeng flicked his right hand, and a green immortal sword appeared in his grasp, his entire being exuding a sharp aura.

At that moment, a three-meter-long black shadow shot out from the woods to their left front.

It was a black panther with ferocious eyes, its front claws gleaming with a metallic luster.

The moment it appeared, without a word, it pounced viciously at the four of them.

“Insolent beast, you seek death!”

Qingfeng let out a low shout.

The immortal sword in his hand transformed into a streak of light, extending an eight-foot green glow.

The sword light flashed in an elongated ‘Z’ shape.

Just as the black panther was about to raise its paw, its head was sent flying into the air.

At the same time, two more figures shot out from the woods on the right, pouncing directly at Zhuang Yang and Shangguan Yunzhu.

“Let me block it!”

Bai Yan shouted, slapping his hands on the ground.

The earth began to pulse.

But before the earthen wall could rise, a bright red figure had already flashed past.

The broken sword, with a sound of tearing air, sent the two panthers flying like sandbags.

Shangguan Yunzhu did not pursue them further.

She sheathed her broken sword and looked at the black panthers in the distance.

A phoenix bird emerged from the bodies of the two panthers.

Their bodies exploded, and the remains were completely engulfed by the brilliant flames.

In the blink of an eye, not even a speck of the two black panthers was left.

Bai Yan chuckled sheepishly, dispelled the technique in his hands, and obediently retreated to the side.

Lu Qiancha was somewhat surprised by this scene.

‘The Crimson Feather Ash Annihilation Art. Shangguan Yunzhu has actually mastered it?’

The three black panthers were killed in an instant, and most of the gazes that had been secretly watching the five of them immediately withdrew.

The five of them reformed their ranks and continued on their way.

It was not until they reached a fork in the road ahead that they tacitly stopped.

Shangguan Yunzhu turned and said, “Senior Brothers, I am going in this direction to find the Crimson Phoenix Grass. It has been recorded in the sect that this spirit herb has been found in this direction. Please take care of yourselves and do not go too deep.”

Zhuang Yang also stated the herb he was looking for and that he would be heading in another direction.

The group began to split up.

Qingfeng would naturally go with Shangguan Yunzhu; he was here to be her helper and protector.

Bai Yan was here to see the world and decided to help Zhuang Yang find his herb.

Then, the gazes of the four fell on Lu Qiancha.

“I will take this path. I must part with you all for now,” Lu Qiancha said, pointing in a direction different from the other four.

They all frowned slightly.

Shangguan Yunzhu asked, “What herb is Senior Brother Qiancha looking for?”

Lu Qiancha said solemnly, “It is not convenient to speak of this matter. But you need not worry. Please take care.”

Qingfeng tried to persuade him, “Senior Brother Qiancha, why don’t you go with Senior Brother Zhuang Yang…”

Before Qingfeng could finish, Lu Qiancha had already stepped onto his chosen path.

Using a simple movement technique, he quickly disappeared around a corner in the forest ahead.

“Honestly, taking kindness for ill will.”

Zhuang Yang complained with some dissatisfaction.

Qingfeng and Bai Yan also shook their heads slightly, probably thinking that Lu Qiancha was too proud and headstrong.

Shangguan Yunzhu, on the other hand, seemed lost in thought, then turned and walked down her chosen path.

“This little one… she could have just followed one of the pairs. Why did they have to split into three groups!”

On a gray cloud above the Juezhang Treasure Forest, Xuan Mo watched Lu Qiancha’s receding figure and was so angry she almost cursed out loud.

‘Of the five who came to Beiju Luzhou, four are precious immortal scions that the sect is heavily invested in. Nothing can happen to them…’

‘These five are too bold. There aren’t many of them to begin with, yet they still split into three groups. It’s giving me a headache.’

After thinking for a moment, Xuan Mo turned her head to look at Qiong Gong, who was standing on a gray cloud behind her.

She had intended to ask him to follow Shangguan Yunzhu and Qingfeng to reduce her own pressure, but as the words reached her lips, Xuan Mo blinked slightly…

“Martial Aunt Xuan, someone of unknown origin is always suspicious and cannot be trusted lightly.”

The words Lu Qiancha had transmitted to her when she left echoed in her mind.

Although Xuan Mo was somewhat dismissive—after all, this big fellow behind her seemed utterly weak in her eyes.

But for some reason, Xuan Mo actually hesitated.

“Forget it. For now, these five little ones are still within the range of my spiritual sense. There’s no need to be too anxious just yet.”

Riding the gray cloud forward, Xuan Mo didn’t forget to turn her head and say, “Big fellow, stay close to me.”

“Rest assured, High Immortal.” Qiong Gong cupped his hands and said in a deep voice, maintaining a distance of three zhang as he followed behind Xuan Mo on his own cloud.

The five of them had chosen three different paths, and as they walked, they naturally grew farther apart.

After much deliberation, Xuan Mo chose to temporarily follow Bai Yan and Zhuang Yang.

She was relatively at ease about Qingfeng and Shangguan Yunzhu.

As for Lu Qiancha…

Although Xuan Mo was quite worried, she couldn’t possibly abandon the group of two to protect a lone wolf.

That would be too obviously biased.

She decided to tail the three groups in rotation, distributing her protection time evenly.