A Step Too Late
Translator: Cinder Translations
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"Perhaps," Song Wen murmured softly, his voice tinged with speculation, "Zhu Yan was killed by a monster beast?"
"A monster beast?" Jing Kai looked thoughtful. "To kill Zhu Yan, it would have to be a peak-level first-tier or even a second-tier beast. There shouldn't be such powerful beasts near Shan Fu City."
"Bloodthirsty bees can travel thousands of miles to reach Shan Fu City and drink human blood. Perhaps there are some flying monster beasts passing through Shan Fu City?"
Song Wen intentionally linked Zhu Yan's death to a monster beast.
The reason was that just a moment ago, the shadow gu had discovered that Ji Qing hadn't left but was quietly following them from over fifty miles away in the dense forest.
Ji Qing was a peak Golden Core cultivator, and his spiritual sense range was thirty-five miles.
Song Wen, on the other hand, was only a beginner Golden Core cultivator, with a spiritual sense range of eight miles.
The difference in their spiritual sense range was enormous.
Therefore, Ji Qing dared to hide in the shadows and secretly observe Song Wen and Jing Kai without worrying about being detected.
Song Wen was unaware of Ji Qing's surveillance intentions. However, he knew that Shan Fu City was a place fraught with danger and not suitable for staying long.
Thus, he deliberately connected Zhu Yan's death to a monster beast to prompt a quick return to Shepherd Mountain.
Jing Kai hesitated and said, "Jumping to conclusions like this might not be the best way to explain things to Lord Zhu Yin, right?"
"Zhu Yan has been dead for seven days, and all the clues have long disappeared. Whether he died at the hands of a monster beast or someone else, it will be difficult to find any clues. Staying here is just wasting our time. I plan to return to Shepherd Mountain first. What are your plans, little friend?"
Jing Kai hesitated for a moment and said, "I'll stay in Cold Mountain Kingdom for now, temporarily taking over Zhu Yan's duties. The capital has just suffered an attack from the bloodthirsty bees, and I'm worried it might lead to chaos."
Song Wen nodded. "That's fine. Little friend, stay alert. If anything unusual happens, use the 'Starry Line Formation' to send a message to me."
As soon as he finished speaking, Song Wen activated the flying ship and soared into the sky.
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"This Ji Yin is quite a clever person."
Ji Qing watched the flying ship pass overhead and muttered to himself.
With Ji Yin gone, things would be much easier to handle.
As for Jing Kai, Ji Qing didn't take him seriously at all.
Ji Qing retracted his aura and silently approached the royal palace, slipping into Cui Zai Shi's study.
When Cui Zai Shi saw Ji Qing suddenly appear, he was briefly startled before his expression became extremely respectful.
"Greetings, immortal. May I ask if you are the new shepherd?"
Ji Qing curled the corners of his mouth in a disdainful smile. "I am not some lowly shepherd."
Cui Zai Shi's eyes widened in shock, his expression filled with fear.
From the other person's condescending tone, it was clear that the individual had no regard for low-level shepherds in the Qi Refining stage.
This meant that the person was at least a Foundation Establishment cultivator, or perhaps even a Golden Core cultivator, the kind of powerhouse that everyone spoke of in hushed tones.
Such a powerful cultivator suddenly coming to find him could never mean anything good.
"May I ask... why has the immortal come here?"
His excessive nervousness and fear caused Cui Zai Shi to stammer as he spoke.
"Hand over the Demon Soul Order," Ji Qing said coldly.
"Demon Soul Order?" Cui Zai Shi's face showed confusion. "Immortal, I have never heard of the 'Demon Soul Order.'"
Ji Qing's expression grew colder, and his voice turned frigid.
"You don't know the Demon Soul Order?"
Cui Zai Shi stammered, "I would never deceive the immortal."
"I can tell if you're lying with a single probe."
Ji Qing instantly moved in front of Cui Zai Shi, pressing one hand on his head.
Cui Zai Shi only felt an overwhelming surge of spiritual energy rush into his mind, like a massive wave crashing over him, drowning his consciousness.
After a moment, Ji Qing released his hold on Cui Zai Shi.
He murmured, "It seems he really doesn't know about the Demon Soul Order. The order should be in the hands of his father, Cui Shi."
Ji Qing frowned slightly. From Cui Zai Shi's memories, he knew that Cui Shi had left Shan Fu City several days ago, intending to escape Sheep Island.
However, Ji Qing didn't know the exact route Cui Shi had taken to flee.
It was unclear whether this part of the memory was missing from the soul search or if Cui Shi had never told Cui Zai Shi.
Ji Qing's gaze lingered on Cui Zai Shi.
The latter, after being forcibly soul-searched, collapsed onto the ground, unconscious.
Ji Qing flicked his fingers, and a crack suddenly opened in Cui Zai Shi's chest, with crimson blood slowly spilling out.
The blood continued to accumulate, and soon, a blood-colored sphere, about the size of a fist, began to form in the air.
As Ji Qing continually formed hand seals, the blood sphere morphed and shifted in the air, eventually shaping into a strange, eerie symbol.
The symbol emitted a red glow, and one by one, phantom blood-colored runes gradually took shape.
After a quarter of an hour, dozens of phantom runes had formed in the air.
Each of these rune phantoms represented a blood relative of Cui Zai Shi.
"Go!" Ji Qing murmured softly.
The rune phantoms flew out in all directions, darting towards different corners of the palace. Among them, one flew straight out of the palace, heading toward the eastern coastline.
Ji Qing took out a soul banner and captured Cui Zai Shi's soul.
He then stored Cui Zai Shi's body in a storage ring, turned, and left the palace, following the blood-colored runes.
Ji Qing was unusually cautious, leaving no trace behind.
Everything that happened in the imperial study, including the guards outside and Jing Kai who was torturing the empress and princess in the harem, went unnoticed by anyone.
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Cui Shi was aboard a wooden boat, drifting on the vast sea.
His face was filled with excitement and tension, for in front of him lay a thick fog wall, stretching endlessly.
He knew that once he passed through this fog wall, he would gain his freedom.
From being a domesticated two-legged sheep, he would transform into a true human, someone who could act according to his own will, someone who no longer had to fear being treated as livestock and harvested at any moment.
From then on, the sky would be as high as the birds could fly, and the sea would be as wide as the fish could leap!
Cui Shi touched the jade token at his waist, the one he had received after killing Zhu Yan, which was the key to unlocking the maze and passing through the fog wall.
He vigorously rowed the boat, speeding toward the fog wall.
As the boat's prow pierced into the mist, it suddenly stopped.
A figure appeared at the bow of the boat.
Ji Qing's figure materialized before him.
"So, you're quite good at escaping!" Ji Qing said with a smile.
Cui Shi's eyes widened in shock and fear.
He mistakenly thought Ji Qing was a guard of the formation and hurriedly pleaded.
"Senior, please spare me!"
Ji Qing seemed to hear the biggest joke in the world, his face filled with a playful and mocking smile.
"Spare you? When have you ever had a real chance at life? Everything you found in the tomb, all of it was part of a carefully crafted plan of mine."
(End of the Chapter)
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