Chapter 66: The Shining Scapegoat

The guest room had been silent for three days. When the restrictions lifted and the door opened, a man in a dark crow-blue long robe stepped out, still wearing that utterly unremarkable, nondescript face as if he were just taking a casual stroll.

Inside the room, a woman nodded to him before closing the door once more.

The man walked down to the inn’s counter and inquired about some matters. The innkeeper behind the counter spoke with unusual respect, for the man’s cultivation was clearly at the early Foundation Establishment stage.

Just then, two outstandingly handsome young cultivators caught sight of the inn’s name from afar and headed straight for the very inn where the man stayed.

The man at the counter had already noticed them. He narrowed his already small eyes and sauntered back to the last room on the second-floor corridor, closing the door and reactivating the restriction.

Moments later, the guest room door opened again, and the man emerged with the same casual air, intending to head downstairs.

By now, the two young cultivators had entered the inn and were preparing to search upstairs.

The two groups crossed paths on the stairs, nearly brushing past one another.

Among the two ascending cultivators, the one in pale blue, following a step behind, had a blank expression; only the faint twitch of his right fingertips, hidden in his sleeve, betrayed anything.

The white-robed cultivator in front slowed his steps, seemingly examining the guest rooms around.

From the corner of his eye, he saw the man heading downstairs was just about to leave the inn.

The white-robed cultivator turned abruptly, raising an eyebrow. In response, the blue-robed figure pivoted as well. The two switched their order and followed the man out of the inn.

Yet the man ahead, fully aware he was being followed, strolled unhurriedly through the crowded streets, emboldened by his presence within Fulings City, showing not the slightest haste.

Back in the inn, after the two young cultivators left, the door to the last guest room on the second floor opened once again. Out stepped another figure.

He wore a robe of the same color as the previous man, but his face was striking and sharp, with thin lips like a blade and a faint, almost wicked smile at the corners of his mouth. Though he restrained his aura, he made no effort to hide his Golden Core cultivation.

He strode out of the inn with a complete disregard for being watched.

Once he had left the street where the inn stood, Ji Yao too opened her door, descended the stairs, checked out with the innkeeper, and headed into an alley across from the inn.

At the very moment Mu Boyun and Gu Qiu ascended the stairs, Ji Yao was in her room watching the scene unfold live. If Situ Jing hadn’t told her in advance that the man who left first was Xuan Yi in disguise, she would never have seen through it herself.

Hadn’t Mu Boyun and Gu Qiu already been fooled? It spoke volumes about the wonders of the Illusory Sky Spirit Tree’s leaves—capable of perfectly mimicking even the unique aura of each person.

Still, knowing those two as she did, Ji Yao was certain that even if they didn’t see through it immediately, they’d soon grow suspicious of Xuan Yi’s actions and return to the inn to investigate.

Time was short. Ji Yao slipped into a deserted corner, quickly affixed a third-tier invisibility charm to herself, and, with Situ Jing and her artifact’s aid, used her Swift Crane Step to race across Fulings City’s rooftops.

Soon, she had caught up to Xuan Yi’s senior brother and, invisible, followed him closely out of the city.

Meanwhile, Mu Boyun and Gu Qiu realized something was wrong within less than a quarter of an incense stick’s time. The man ahead was clearly just a decoy for someone else.

After a brief discussion, they decided Gu Qiu would continue tailing the decoy, while Mu Boyun returned to the inn.

Just as Mu Boyun reached the inn’s entrance, he faintly sensed an all-too-familiar sword aura rising from beyond the north city gate.

That was—! Mu Boyun couldn’t care less that he was still inside Fulings City, and sped toward the north gate with his movement technique.

That sword aura—he was certain it was his own!

Instantly, Mu Boyun recalled the message Ji Yao had sent them. Because of the proximity, he could sense that his condensed sword talisman had been activated.

For Ji Yao to use the sword talisman instead of finding another way to escape, the opponent must be the very person he had been tracking all along.

But hadn’t that person entered the city to use the teleportation array? Why would he abandon it now and head straight out of the city? Unless—something was wrong with the teleportation array!

Mu Boyun urgently messaged Gu Qiu, “Forget about the one you’re following. Go to the City Lord’s Mansion at once. Do whatever it takes to have them temporarily seal the teleportation array. Wait for me to explain everything when I return.”

Meanwhile, Ji Yao followed her target out of the city gates, closing in on the edge of Fulings City’s surveillance and anti-flight array.

Ji Yao clutched the two sword talismans enhanced by Situ Jing, slipped out past the array’s edge ahead of her quarry, and waited for the right moment.

As soon as he stepped a few paces beyond the boundary, Ji Yao activated one of the talismans, targeting the man’s belt rather than any other part of his body.

The reason was simple: the belt itself was a top-grade defensive artifact. While the talisman might not harm his vital organs, it could focus all its power on a single point to shatter the defense and destroy the belt with ease.

Ji Yao had no intention of doing more to him. After all, this was a Golden Core cultivator, and with only three sword talismans, she couldn’t guarantee a flawless victory. Her sole target was the Illusory Spirit Leaf on the belt.

Sure enough, at this close distance, when the sword talisman was unleashed from behind, a bolt of lightning struck first, instantly draining the defensive glow from the belt. The lightning-infused sword energy swept across his waist, slicing cleanly through.

The belt was not only cut apart and sent tumbling to the ground, but even the man’s side was gashed open, blood spurting as he pitched forward into the muddy earth.

Timing her move precisely, Ji Yao snatched up the fallen belt, stuffed it into her storage, and swiftly retreated to avoid any wild counterattack from a wounded foe.

As she withdrew, Ji Yao suddenly sensed a surge of terrifying power from the direction of the city gates. In a flash, blinding lightning and sword shadows appeared. A figure in pale blue with his back to her, wielding a silver-white sword crackling with lightning, appeared before her.

The demonic cultivator, who had still been moving on the ground, was struck by the incoming lightning and knocked completely unconscious, lying motionless in the dirt.

The figure before Ji Yao never turned around. She dared not budge, watching as the Fulings City guards arrived, exchanged brief words with the blue-robed man, then sealed the fallen man’s spiritual power and bound him for return to the city.

When all others had departed and only the two of them remained, the man finally turned. His gaze swept the area, and his spiritual sense probed every corner.

Ji Yao’s heart pounded. Was he searching for her?

Though his face was as stoic as ever, the confusion in his eyes was unmistakable. Mu Boyun called out tentatively, “Junior Sister Ji?”

He had arrived far sooner than she’d expected, and had even taken the blame for her in front of others. Out of both gratitude and courtesy, she ought to greet him.

Ji Yao peeled off her invisibility charm, raised it in one hand, and waved sheepishly at Mu Boyun with the other.

“Master Mu, it’s been a long time!”