"Just bring some people to meet me tomorrow morning, Zhixuan."

It was understandable that the two of them didn’t want to go, but speed was of the essence. If he went too late, many clues would disappear.

Chen Zhixuan tried to dissuade him, but saw that Xiao Chen was determined to investigate.

So, he picked up the Lianyun Flying Boat from the table and offered it to him. "Since you’re going, Junior Brother, please take this Lianyun Flying Boat. If you run into a powerful enemy, your life is the top priority. Remember that."

Xiao Chen didn’t actually need it. The Vertical Earth Golden Light was his greatest assurance.

However, when he refused the Flying Boat, Chen Zhixuan grabbed him and wouldn’t let him leave, repeatedly mentioning how both Mei Yong and Elder Chen had instructed him to watch over Xiao Chen carefully.

"Fine, I’ll take it."

Xiao Chen accepted the Flying Boat, then transformed into a streak of light and rushed toward Zhu County.

In terms of raw speed, the Lianyun Flying Boat was actually a fraction slower than his Vertical Earth Golden Light.

It also consumed slightly more Magical Power.

However, it did have two advantages.

First, it could carry passengers; based on what he’d seen before, it could even handle children without issue.

Second, flying through the sky was far less trouble than traveling on the ground with Escape Techniques. At the very least, he wouldn’t have to focus on dodging trees and rocks.

Its advantages for long-distance travel were obvious.

A little over two hours later, Xiao Chen was already within the borders of Zhu County.

He deliberately landed the Flying Boat and switched to his Escape Techniques to avoid alerting any Demon Cultivators within the city.

As he cautiously approached, starting from the mortal villages on the outskirts, he saw a scene of devastation. Bodies littered the fields, and not even the chickens and dogs had been spared.

The scene was one of utter desolation: white bones exposed in the fields, with an eerie silence stretching for miles where not even a rooster crowed.

Upon entering Zhu County, the only sounds were the mournful wail of the wind whistling through the ruins and the occasional CRACKLE of a distant, burning fire.

The rampaging Demon Cultivators had already retreated, taking all the blood in the city with them. They hadn’t even spared the cattle and other livestock.

GASP!

After a full circle of the area, Xiao Chen couldn’t help but draw in a sharp, cold breath.

"What a potent Blood Collection Technique."

He had encountered Demon Cultivators before, but when they struck, blood would inevitably spatter on the ground or walls near their victims.

But this time was different.

Across the entirety of Zhu County, not a single drop of blood remained!

Even at the estates of the few Foundation Establishment families, there were no traces of blood, despite clear signs of intense resistance left by Magic.

Since he was already there, he took the opportunity to check the storerooms of the families.

Unfortunately, the vaults were wide open, and the Spirit Stones stored inside had vanished.

Xiao Chen scanned the area again with his Stargazing and Qi Observation Skill.

But this time, he found nothing new.

It wasn’t until he reached the north gate that he found a sentence carved into the wall: *See you at Ten Thousand Demons Mountain on the eighth day of the tenth month.*

Below the message, its author had ’thoughtfully’ included a map.

It marked the exact location of the previous Blood Plague Secret Realm.

Judging by the missing blood, their goal was still to open the Blood Plague Secret Realm and release the Blood Plague Demon.

.

"Hmph. Just a clumsy trick to lure the tiger from its mountain."

Chen Tianfeng shook his head disdainfully.

Just after dawn the next day, Chen Zhixuan arrived in Zhu County along with Steward Chen, Chen Zhiquan, Elder Chen, Chen Tianfeng, and Chen Tianyuan.

"But we can’t be careless. What if they’re deliberately trying to mislead us by doing the unexpected?"

"What’s the significance of the eighth day of the tenth month? Is it a special date?"

"I’ve never heard of anything. Big Brother, does it ring a bell for you?"

"Not for me, either. Perhaps the date is a lie as well."

Chen Tianyuan considered this. "Perhaps they intend to act *before* the eighth day of the tenth month and wrote a false date to mislead us." 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Only Elder Chen seemed worried, scanning the surroundings before shouting into the distance, "Zhixuan, have you found Xiao Chen?"

Chen Zhixuan, returning from his search, shook his head. "I’ve circled Zhu County twice, but I haven’t seen Junior Brother Xiao."

Elder Chen grew frantic. "How could you not have seen him?"

"Didn’t you tell him absolutely not to give chase?"

Chen Zhixuan explained, "I warned him, but Junior Brother Xiao insisted on coming to investigate for clues."

Elder Chen was suddenly overcome with worry. "That boy... why is he always in such a rush?"

"Don’t tell me... He sighed heavily."

Chen Tianfeng tried to console him. "Third Brother, don’t panic. Xiao Chen has a Top-Grade Magical Artifact for protection. He won’t get into trouble that easily."

"Besides, we haven’t found any signs that a Top-Grade Magical Artifact was even used here."

"Finding him is the priority."

Chen Tianyuan cut them off. "We didn’t encounter him on our way here, which means he must have gone in one of the other three directions."

"In that case, we’ll split into pairs and search. Pay close attention to any traces of Magical Combat or Escape Techniques."

Despite his words, everyone’s thoughts turned to the eerie, bloodless state of the city.

They all realized this had to be the work of the Four Directions Wanderer mentioned in the intelligence reports.

Especially after their search of the surrounding hundreds of miles turned up nothing.

This made them even more anxious. When the search parties regrouped, every face was etched with worry.

"I heard the Lianyun Flying Boat is also a Top-Grade Magical Artifact."

Elder Chen turned to Chen Tianfeng. "Second Brother, you were in Hezhou, so you must have heard of the Four Directions Wanderer. If he really ran into one, what are Xiao Chen’s chances of getting away?"

Chen Tianfeng sighed. "Alas, judging from the state of Zhu County, this must be the work of the Eastern Wanderer."

"He was already a late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator fifty years ago."

"He has achieved Mastery in the Blood Refining Divine Technique, and shows particular Mastery in the Blood Escape Technique."

"His Blood Escape isn’t necessarily any slower than the Lianyun Flying Boat. If it were a sudden encounter, I’d estimate Xiao Chen had a thirty percent chance of escape."

Elder Chen pressed him, "And if his opponent was prepared for him?"

Chen Tianfeng considered this carefully, hesitating for a long moment before replying, "Then... perhaps a ten percent chance."