This was their hidden lair, and there were experts everywhere. Daoist Song Shi was one of the Central Plains’ top experts, versed in Daoist arts. Newest update provıded by 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝✶𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮✶𝓷𝓮𝓽 Li Yanchu’s waist bore a straight, ancient, and unadorned long saber. His gaze was ice cold. Now that he had found their hideout, he didn’t bother with nonsense. He stepped forward with lightning-fast speed and pressed one palm onto the flayed woman’s head. The ground quaked and mountains trembled. In an instant, his blazing qi and blood utterly annihilated her. She was reduced to dust, her very essence scattered to the wind! Seeing this, Daoist Song Shi was instantly dumbfounded, and the rest were also visibly shaken. This guy... you call this a “common martial artist”!? Did you get kicked in the head by a donkey!? At this moment, Li Yanchu’s entire body radiated qi and blood like a blazing furnace, so much so that no one dared to look straight at him. The flayed woman, even in death, could not comprehend this. Hadn’t this young man earlier fought her to a standstill, blow for blow? Why could he now kill her in a single strike? Li Yanchu moved like a tiger descending the mountain. In the blink of an eye, three of the barbarian-looking men were slain. Their bodies exploded, turning into a mist of blood! “Run!” The once-mysterious, cold-tempered Daoist Song Shi’s face suddenly changed. With a loud shout, he turned and bolted madly for the outside. A flash of clear light erupted from Li Yanchu’s body as he extended one finger. Daoist Song Shi instantly froze midair, and he was immobilized as if struck by an immortal’s Immobilization Spell! The blind-eyed, exotic-looking woman could sense all of this through her spiritual perception, and her face changed dramatically. She immediately began to invoke a spirit-summoning ritual, muttering obscure, ancient mantras from the barbarian tribes beyond the Pass. She was summoning a spirit to possess her body, and not just any spirit, it was one of the most fearsome in their northern legends, ranked among the very highest. Li Yanchu formed Daoist hand seals and shouted in a thunderous voice, “Let all evils scatter. Heaven and Earth, lend me your method!” The shamanic chanting in the alluring woman’s mouth instantly stopped, and she choked off before it could be completed. Just like when he used the Immobilization Spell moments ago, he drew upon the power of the Clearheart Jade Pendant. With a Daoist divine mantra, he broke her spirit-invoking ritual. By now, Daoist Song Shi had regained control of his body, but upon hearing Li Yanchu’s words, his expression froze. A Daoist divine mantra!? In his heart, Daoist Song Shi’s hatred for the flayed woman surged like an unending river. She’d actually brought back from outside a murderous god ! “You people, who do you serve? What’s your purpose here? Speak, and I’ll let you go.” Li Yanchu’s voice was deep and cold. Originally, whenever he made a move, it was to kill. One reason was that the enemies he faced were often stronger than him. Without overwhelming, lightning-fast methods, he couldn’t kill them. He also lacked techniques for intimidation. Now, things were a little different; his strength had improved, and he could act with more composure, but he decided to try questioning an opponent for once. Daoist Song Shi’s face showed hesitation, but he quickly made up his mind. This young man’s strength was terrifying, and there was no way he could win. Yes, betrayal would bring brutal revenge... But right now, nothing was more important than staying alive! He was just about to speak, perhaps to bargain, when the blind, exotic woman suddenly sneered, “You think you can get anything out of us? Dream on. If you’ve got the guts, just kill us!” Hearing this, Daoist Song Shi fell silent. This woman’s a fanatic... Li Yanchu noted silently. He directly pulled out the Eight Trigrams Mirror and shone it at her, and a brilliant white divine light shot out from the mirror. The alluring, curvaceous barbarian woman was struck head-on. She didn’t even have time to scream before her soul was utterly annihilated, and she was dead in an instant. Li Yanchu turned the Eight Trigrams Mirror toward Daoist Song Shi, his expression grim. “Wait! I’ll talk! I never said I wouldn’t talk!?” Daoist Song Shi blurted out in panic. Are all young people this ruthless these days? Hearing this, Li Yanchu paused, eyes cold as he stared at him. Everyone in this courtyard was steeped in resentment and evil, and they were sinners of the worst kind. Daoist Song Shi was no exception. But the clear qi still lingering on him showed that he had once been a virtuous Daoist master. For reasons unknown, he had fallen to his current state. Daoist Song Shi hurriedly said, “We’re subordinates of Grand Magus Bantu. We’ve been ordered to search among passing merchant caravans for an item, a bronze key.” Li Yanchu frowned. A bronze key!? At a time , instead of searching for the Heavenly Palace of Myriad Phenomena, they were looking for a key... Could it be the key to the Heavenly Palace? His brows drew tighter. For such news to surface at this moment, it had to be connected to the Heavenly Palace. His eyes narrowed, radiating a chilling aura. No matter what, this key was clearly an important clue. And right now, every single lead regarding the Heavenly Palace was priceless. The more he knew, the greater his advantage! “You’re subordinates of Grand Magus Bantu, why aren’t you searching for the Heavenly Palace of Myriad Phenomena, and instead looking for some key here?” Daoist Song Shi shook his head. “I don’t know either. Grand Magus Bantu has already betrayed the Shaman Sect, and he’s now just a wandering wild ghost beyond the borders.” Li Yanchu frowned slightly at that. What a tangled mess this is! The ones ambushing the caravan to seize the bronze key were Bantu’s men... and had no direct connection to the Shaman Sect’s operations. A flood of thoughts flashed through Li Yanchu’s mind; there was a problem here. The Shaman Sect had captured Hongtu, but the one searching for the key was the renegade Bantu. Did the Shaman Sect not need the key? Or was it that there wasn’t only one key, and the one Bantu sought was a different one entirely? “How many others are lying in wait to ambush the caravan? You alone clearly wouldn’t be enough.” Li Yanchu’s voice was low and cold. Daoist Song Shi met his gaze and couldn’t help lowering his head. Those eyes seemed to flash with thunder, shaking the heart and making it impossible to look straight into them. However, this Daoist from Jiangnan didn’t hesitate at all when it came to selling out his comrades. “There’s also the Shaman Sect shaman Atamu, who’s responsible for tracking the caravan. He’s Bantu’s true confidant and is well-versed in the sect’s sorcery. An outsider like me is neither trusted nor valued. I’ve had no contact with him, and I don’t know how to reach him. Every time, Grand Magus Bantu sends me instructions through a blood crow,” Daoist Song Shi explained slowly. “So in other words,” Li Yanchu said, his gaze sharp as a saber, “you can’t find Atamu, nor can you contact Bantu himself?” Daoist Song Shi’s expression suddenly changed. “Yes, but you said if I told you the truth, you’d let me go!” Li Yanchu suddenly smiled faintly. “Relax. I don’t forget the things I say.” Daoist Song Shi watched him cautiously. Li Yanchu took out a portrait with a lively, handsome young gentleman depicted in fine detail. He’d had this drawn especially by Xu Lingsu, a master of the Painting Dao. “Have you seen this man before?” Li Yanchu asked. Daoist Song Shi marveled inwardly at the artist’s skill, but lightly shook his head. Li Yanchu then took out three more portraits. One showed a burly, broad-shouldered man; another showed an elderly white-haired gentleman; while the third showed a figure in black robes. “Do you recognize any of these three?”