The burly man named Chongfeng shot Bai Yihe a sidelong glance but didn't answer his question. With his straightforward personality, he didn't like Bai Yihe at all, always feeling that endless treachery was hidden behind the man's refined smile. He reached up and scratched his short, steel-like hair, then looked at Shuang Fengyan.
"Are you two the helpers Shuang Qingqing found?"
Shuang Fengyan, with his ruddy, date-like complexion, remained calm. He stared at the man and woman who had suddenly appeared, his eyes showing not a single ripple of emotion.
Hearing this, Bai Yihe and the others were stunned, especially Bai Yihe. He had carefully investigated Shuang Qingqing's background. For some reason, this demoness had survived to this day with a Nascent Soul cultivation. She had ended up on the Desolate Moon Continent—this piece of information was absolutely reliable. Bai Yihe had performed a Soul-Searching on the young girl Bai Rou, whom Shuang Qingqing had brought back, and had learned that Shuang Qingqing was a certain generation's elder of a sect called the Wood Flow Sect!
From this, he had indeed obtained a lot of other information about Shuang Qingqing. At the same time, he didn't dare to turn Bai Rou into an idiot. In front of a shrewd old monster like Shuang Fengyan, doing so might backfire, a case of a guilty person giving himself away. After confirming that Shuang Qingqing had not told Bai Rou any of the Tianli Clan's secrets, he had not altered Bai Rou's memory either. A blank sheet of paper is a blank sheet of paper. If you insist on adding a stroke, Bai Yihe, not knowing the methods of a Great Cultivator, didn't want to mess things up unless absolutely necessary.
However, from this, he also learned that Shuang Qingqing had indeed only just arrived on the Verdant Continent. She had no previous connections with the current experts of the Verdant Continent. At most, she might have obtained some information about cultivators of the same realm during her few years of return. Now, hearing what Shuang Fengyan said, Bai Yihe was naturally surprised, not understanding how Shuang Qingqing had gotten involved with these two clans.
Their Tianli Clan had always kept to themselves and not interfered with the Sparrow Plume Pagoda Domain. This was mainly because the Sparrow Plume Pagoda Domain was basically composed of former vassals of the Peacock Bright King's lineage! Although the Peacock Bright King's lineage had long since disappeared, many of the clans within it still maintained very close relationships. This made some of the clans, whose strength was originally inferior to the Tianli Clan's, very difficult to provoke.
The arrival of these two was too sudden; no one here could react. If the arrival of two Nascent Soul cultivators was really Shuang Qingqing's doing, whether Shuang Fengyan would still be willing to act was really uncertain.
"Fellow Daoist Shuang? No, no, no… our relationship with her is not that great! We were just entrusted by someone else to protect that disciple named Bai Rou. I imagine Fellow Daoist Bai, with your methods, has already searched that young cultivator's Sea of Consciousness. This person is completely irrelevant to the matter between you all. I wonder if you could give us some face and release that young cultivator—Bai Rou!"
This time, it was the bewitching Shuiyue who spoke, her words like fragrant orchids exhaled amidst a charming smile. Her words made even Shuang Fengyan frown and think.
'Bai Rou again? Who could summon so many Nascent Soul experts at once? Listening to what they just said, it even includes that old ghost Ting Fusheng from the Giant Wood Clan. Their face is truly great!'
Shuang Fengyan felt that even he might not be able to summon so many Nascent Soul helpers at once. He couldn't help but become more curious about the person behind all this.
Shuiyue's words did not relax Bai Yihe and the Third Elder; instead, they were even more confused.
'Not here to help Shuang Qingqing? Why are they here for Bai Rou, and they were entrusted by someone else?'
Bai Yihe's mind raced.
'Bai Rou is just a nobody that Shuang Qingqing brought back, right? Two Nascent Soul cultivators came to ask for her release!' The Third Elder was also somewhat bewildered and surprised.
"A young cultivator who isn't even at the Golden Core Realm, and has nothing to do with the grudge between you. Fellow Daoist Bai, don't tell me you found something unexpected after your Soul-Searching. I know Bai Rou's origins better than you do!" Seeing Bai Yihe not answering for a moment, Chongfeng's thick eyebrows knitted together.
At their level, let alone interceding for a Foundation Establishment cultivator, even for a Golden Core cultivator, as long as there was no life-or-death feud, they would have to give face no matter what. If it was only Bai Yihe here, he felt that he and Shuiyue coming alone would definitely be no problem. That Zhang Ming said Bai Rou had nothing to do with the matter between him and Shuang Qingqing. He assumed that since Zhang Ming was asking for a favor, he wouldn't deceive three Nascent Soul cultivators on this matter. It was too easy to verify. If Zhang Ming lied, they could just pat their butts and leave. So they had stated everything clearly as soon as they arrived.
At the same time, the two were observing Bai Yihe's reaction. As expected, he did not refute it immediately. This meant that what Zhang Ming had said was true; that young cultivator had nothing to do with Shuang Qingqing's affairs.
"Do you two fellow Daoists know Bai Rou? And who entrusted you? She is a disciple of my Tianli Clan. On what grounds do you want to take away a cultivator of my clan?"
Seeing that Shuang Fengyan seemed to be pondering something and not speaking, Bai Yihe finally asked back, his refined face showing a grave expression.
Chongfeng continued to scratch his head. "This is really hard to say. How about this: aren't you dealing with the matter with Fellow Daoist Shuang right now? Bring Bai Rou over, let the old demon Shuang personally perform a Soul-Searching. If that young cultivator has anything to do with the grudge between you, we will leave immediately. If not, what trouble can a young Foundation Establishment cultivator stir up? If worst comes to worst, you can erase all her memories of this place and then hand her over to us. How about we owe you a favor?"
"You two fellow Daoists suddenly come to my clan to demand a disciple of my clan. Do you think that's appropriate? Unless you two can explain this matter clearly, we will discuss it again!"
Bai Yihe sneered. He had no idea who was pulling the strings from behind, to actually have two Nascent Soul experts come to his door specifically for this young cultivator Bai Rou. But this was definitely related to Shuang Qingqing, which made him even less willing to easily hand Bai Rou over to them. And no matter where this went, he was in the right. Bai Rou had already been inducted into the Tianli Clan.
If this were a normal situation, he wouldn't really care about an outer disciple who wasn't from the direct lineage. What's more, among cultivators, it was common to give people and things to other cultivators of the same realm. It was nothing more than a way to connect with each other. This was especially true for some female disciples who were often given away as concubines. In this cultivation world, the law of the jungle was even more pronounced; there was no fairness to speak of. The strong mostly only considered whether their own will was satisfied. As for whether it was reasonable, they didn't care.
Shuang Qingqing stood in the distance, watching the exchange, with no intention of interrupting for the time being. This was the wisest choice at the moment, to not let Bai Yihe and the others use the opportunity to shift the target. Although she had already received Meng Shangmo's promise, these two had still come as agreed. This confirmed in her heart that Li Yan's influence on these few clans was really not small.
'Just asking for her directly like this will probably make Bai Yihe value Bai Rou even more. With such a lineup, the Tianli Clan, concerned about the other party's status, will surely ensure Bai Rou's life is safe. But if they want her to be released easily, it will take a lot more effort!'
Shuang Qingqing thought to herself. However, Shuiyue and Chongfeng's approach was not wrong either. Perhaps if they were more secretive, Bai Yihe's suspicions would be even greater.
As expected, Shuiyue and Chongfeng looked at each other, then ignored Bai Yihe and turned to face Shuang Fengyan. The request they made was not too excessive. As long as Shuang Fengyan was willing to personally perform a Soul-Searching, the matter of Bai Rou would be easy to resolve.
"May I know who it is that can even summon the experts of the Sparrow Plume Pagoda Domain to come out of the mountains?" Shuang Fengyan said with a blank expression, making it impossible for anyone to guess what he was thinking.
"This… I can only say that their background is immense. Our side cannot afford to provoke them!" Shuiyue's face showed a trace of difficulty. After a moment of hesitation, she finally let out a sentence. But in her heart, she was sneering. 'Trying to get the real reason from us? Dream on!'
Shuang Fengyan's brows finally furrowed slightly. The Third Elder and Bai Yihe were even more surprised. An existence that even the Sparrow Plume Pagoda Domain could not afford to provoke.
"Great Elder, Bai Rou's relationship with Shuang Qingqing is not shallow. She might be her descendant!" Bai Yihe suddenly said in a low voice. He didn't quite believe what Shuiyue said, thinking that they were just invited by Shuang Qingqing to create a mystery.
Shuiyue and Chongfeng cursed Bai Yihe inwardly, then they began to communicate via voice transmission.
"Shuiyue, it seems Bai Rou is very important in his hands. He's trying to provoke Shuang Fengyan. Should we help Shuang Qingqing?"
"We can. But don't really fight. Just interfere with them so they can't easily succeed either. Hmph!"
Having cultivated to the Nascent Soul Realm, their insight was incredibly sharp. It seemed that repaying that favor to Zhang Ming would really take some effort. The other party clearly knew that the young cultivator was ignorant of the inside story, yet still refused to give them face. Then, as long as the other party fought with Shuang Qingqing, although they wouldn't truly help, they would definitely interfere.
The two came up with a plan in just a single exchange. Then, their figures flickered, and they immediately formed a pincer formation with Shuang Qingqing.
"You two fellow Daoists, do you wish to interfere in my clan's internal affairs?" At this time, the dissatisfied voice of the Third Elder of the Tianli Clan sounded out. How could they not see that Shuiyue and Chongfeng were already somewhat displeased and were now about to help Shuang Qingqing?
As the Third Elder spoke, he looked again at Shuang Fengyan, who had only asked one question and then said nothing more. But Shuang Fengyan unexpectedly waved his hand at him.
"Great Elder, they came to our door like this…"
Bai Yihe's voice was already tinged with some dissatisfaction. After Shuang Fengyan returned this time, everything about him seemed a bit strange.
And just at this moment, an ancient voice sounded in everyone's ears.
"Just a little girl. What's the big deal? Just agree and be done with it. Why must you fight over it!"
Before this voice sounded, none of them had noticed that among all the Nascent Soul cultivators present, only Shuang Fengyan's expression had moved almost imperceptibly, but he had not made a sound.
This voice also came with extreme abruptness, suddenly ringing in everyone's ears at the same time. This caused the expressions of Bai Yihe and the others to change. Someone had gotten so close to them without them even noticing. Even Chongfeng and Shuiyue's auras surged violently as they looked around vigilantly. They also had no idea who had approached so silently. They had not sensed anything at all before. Although they appeared relaxed on the surface, this was the Tianli Clan's territory, and they also had to be vigilant of everything around them at all times. It was just that the newcomer's cultivation was too terrifying; they had been completely unaware.
And as this voice fell, a gray-robed old man abruptly appeared before everyone, like a ghost suddenly emerging from underground. And behind him, a pretty young girl was looking over, her face somewhat pale.
"Meng Shangmo!"
"It's you!"
"Old ghost Meng…"
Except for Shuang Fengyan and Shuang Qingqing, the others couldn't help but cry out in surprise. They never would have expected this person to appear here. This was an existence on the Verdant Continent who was ridiculously strong below the Spirit Transformation Realm.
"Bai Rou? Fellow Daoist Meng, you are…"
Bai Yihe's eyes fell on the white-robed young girl behind the gray-robed old man. His expression changed dramatically. He had placed Bai Rou in a formation he had personally arranged. Yet now, Bai Rou had appeared right in front of him, and he hadn't received any warning in his mind.
Was this old ghost Meng really that strong? His own methods were like paper. This was even more absurd than the legends. A true phantom, untraceable!