With Shuang Qingqing leading the information gathering, Li Yan basically didn't have to rack his brains anymore. He just had to follow orders.
They spent a considerable amount of Spirit Stones in the market inquiring further, and finally, amidst a pile of news, they obtained a valuable piece of information.
Just five days ago, a group of Dark Spirit Demon Bats had indeed arrived at the Dark Spirit Demon Bat clan's territory. However, those bats had lingered outside the clan for a long time without entering their clan lands. Later, after some other Dark Spirit Demon Bats flew out from within and conversed with them, this group was finally led inside.
For some professional informants and scouts, gathering and organizing such information wasn't too difficult, but the details in their respective accounts were a chaotic jumble.
"Calculating the time, considering Meng Zhiyuan and the others are originally avian beasts, and factoring in the time since you parted ways, flying over three million li nonstop for several Third-rank Demonic Beasts should be just about right. Moreover, the news we received does confirm that the Dark Spirit Demon Bat clan has gained several new Golden Core experts!
"How about this: Li Yan will go alone to find Meng Zhiyuan. If they say there's no such person, you are to leave immediately and not probe any further. I trust you understand the reason. If Meng Zhiyuan's group disappeared after returning, it can only mean they were rejected.
"Zhao Min and I will temporarily enter your Spirit-Storing Pouch. Even if that old monster Meng Shangmo is in the clan, as long as he doesn't probe your Spirit-Storing Pouch with his Divine Sense, he probably won't discover my presence. Keep your mind linked to your refined Spirit-Storing Pouch at all times. If anything happens, I will come out at the first moment."
Shuang Qingqing transmitted her voice to Li Yan and Zhao Min as they walked.
Although she couldn't be completely certain if those people were Meng Zhiyuan's group, how could there be so many coincidences in the world? She was already sixty to seventy percent sure. For Shuang Qingqing and her companions, such odds were more than enough.
But Shuang Qingqing still prioritized Li Yan's safety. She felt that if things went wrong, and she used the Purple-Winged Ice Phoenix and fought with all her might, even if she was no match for Meng Shangmo, she should have no problem holding him off for some time to allow Li Yan to escape…
This was a continuous mountain range enshrouded in dense fog. Nourished year-round by the moisture from the marshlands, the leaves of the trees and shrubs appeared vibrant and lush.
Looking down from the sky, one's line of sight was obstructed by the heavy fog below. The entire field of vision was filled with nothing but churning gray mist, like a sea of clouds.
If a cultivator below the Golden Core Realm were to enter, their Divine Sense would not be able to cover an area of more than ten li. A single misstep could lead to an encounter with a ferocious demonic beast inside, and whether they lived or died would be unknown.
However, for some cultivators, this was also a good place for training.
But many cultivators were unwilling to come here to hunt demonic beasts, because within this fog-locked mountain range lived a very troublesome race—the Dark Spirit Demon Bat clan.
It was said that they were not a native race of the Verdant Continent, but for some reason, they had managed to acquire such a spiritually beautiful place. Therefore, this clan was extremely vigilant against cultivators of other races.
The Dark Spirit Demon Bat clan excelled in group attacks and was proficient in sound wave arts, which were formless and traceless, capable of instantly inflicting heavy damage on a cultivator's Sea of Consciousness. An opponent fighting them could easily experience dizziness or even faint in an instant, and what awaited them would be dismemberment and consumption, their flesh, blood, and bones turned into the other party's demonic essence.
A mountain breeze swept by, revealing a small, fog-dampened mountain path. A figure was faintly visible there, but then the churning fog once again submerged the figure.
Li Yan walked along the small mountain path. The stone path under his feet was exceptionally wet and slippery. His Divine Sense continuously scanned the surroundings.
Although the map they had obtained marked the location of the Dark Spirit Demon Bat clan, it was only a rough area; it did not show where the entrance was. He had already circled high above for a long time before finally confirming a mountain peak and leaping down.
A dozen or so demonic beasts appeared within Li Yan's Divine Sense, the highest level being a mid-stage Second-rank. Li Yan, of course, had avoided them early on.
Within the dense fog, Li Yan's Divine Sense was also severely compressed. He could only probe an area of about a thousand li in radius.
'I wonder if this is a work of nature or the effect of a formation!' Li Yan thought to himself. At the same time, the auras of several other cultivators appeared in his Divine Sense, both near and far. Some were lying in wait, motionless, while others were moving slowly through the fog.
Based on the news that the Dark Spirit Demon Bat clan was reclusive, if he wasn't mistaken, these people were likely the so-called informants, those who specialized in gathering information. They knew the rules well; as long as they didn't trespass into the Dark Spirit Demon Bat clan's territory and only operated in the periphery, the clan probably wouldn't resort to killing them at the drop of a hat.
For cultivators of their level to dare enter this place, Li Yan was certain they were relying on their familiarity with the terrain. Otherwise, if they stayed too long, they might even have trouble flying out of the fog. The fog here did not just limit Divine Sense. Prolonged exposure would cause one's consciousness to become muddled, gradually losing their sense of direction, becoming unable to distinguish east from west, north from south, or even up from down.
At that point, you might fly up and, in the next moment, smash into the ground, your sense of direction inverted without you even knowing. At the same time, the fog-shrouded mountains were home to many low-level demonic beasts. Plunging headfirst into their lairs would be fatal for an ordinary cultivator.
Li Yan was actually just walking aimlessly. His idea was simple. Since the group of Dark Spirit Demon Bats, suspected to be Meng Zhiyuan's, was questioned by someone from the clan upon their arrival, he should be able to encounter someone too. All he had to do was to keep trying to get closer to their clan lands, and that situation would likely occur. As for the extent of their clan lands, Shuang Qingqing had already obtained that information through Soul-Searching.
Just as Li Yan had been walking for about half an incense stick's time, a thought stirred in his mind. He immediately stopped and sharply turned his head to look in a certain direction.
'What a brilliant concealment technique. I almost thought it was an ordinary demonic beast approaching!'
"Fellow Daoist, why have you entered the inner area of this region? Are you not aware that outsiders are forbidden here?"
Just as Li Yan looked over, a giant shadow of a Dark Spirit Demon Bat emerged from the churning fog, hovering in the air. It silently flapped its four long wings. At the same time, the figures of more Dark Spirit Demon Bats appeared all around Li Yan. Clearly, the other party had sensed his gaze and decided to simply reveal themselves.
Li Yan was still carefully observing the Dark Spirit Demon Bats surrounding him. A Third-rank, four-winged expert was the one questioning him. The other ten were all Second-rank demonic beasts.
While Li Yan was observing them, the Third-rank Golden Core level Dark Spirit Demon Bat thought that the trespassing Li Yan was at a loss after being discovered. Therefore, the Golden Core level Dark Spirit Demon Bat in Li Yan's Divine Sense, along with the ten bats surrounding him, suddenly attacked.
The Third-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bat opened its great maw, causing the dense fog around Li Yan to churn violently. The shadows of the surrounding bats began to flap their wings rapidly in a rhythmic pattern. This scene was somewhat familiar to Li Yan. He had fought Meng Zhiyuan and his group before and knew this was the prelude to their strange group attack, where their sound wave attacks combined to multiply their power.
"I'm looking for Meng Zhiyuan!" Li Yan immediately blurted out.
"What Meng Zhiyuan? Kill him!"
The attack came howling. With a wave of his hand, Li Yan created a screen of light in front of him.
A sound wave from the Third-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bat instantly appeared before Li Yan. It was only after it launched its attack that its vicious voice followed. The attack was bizarre and swift; clearly, it had no intention of listening to any explanation from Li Yan.
The black light screen in front of Li Yan silently caved inward, yet the sound wave failed to pierce through. This brought a look of astonishment to the eyes of the Third-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bat on the other side, and its killing intent only grew stronger.
He had clearly seen that this dark-skinned brat was only at the Initial-stage Golden Core, yet he had managed to track the trajectory of his sound wave attack and seemed to block it without much effort. He was a minor realm higher than his opponent.
And just as he was astonished, he was shocked to find that the attacks from the Second-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bats surrounding the dark-skinned brat did not follow.
When did these subordinates become so disobedient? A wave of baleful qi surged in its heart.
The reason was that several of the Second-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bats had stopped flapping their wings, which caused a problem with the entire squad's group attack technique. He was instantly furious. Just as he was about to erupt, voice transmissions came from the bats that had stopped flapping their wings.
"Martial Uncle, Martial Uncle, there is a Meng Zhiyuan…"
"He's the leader of the group that just returned a few days ago, that Martial Uncle…"
"The one from that group of outsiders, the thugs!"
The Third-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bat was stunned for a moment, then he too remembered the name. The name made him feel a dull ache in his tailbone. It was a souvenir from his clash with that person. Several other Golden Core experts in his clan were in a similar situation. Those so-called "clansmen" who had appeared out of nowhere had no idea what a spar was; they were reckless and incredibly vicious.
'The leader should be called Meng Zhiyuan. Yes, that's the name. This person actually knows that Meng Zhiyuan. Didn't Meng Zhiyuan say his group was sealed in some confined space and had just broken out? Is this dark-skinned brat also from that so-called confined space?'
Although the Third-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bat remembered who Meng Zhiyuan was, he was even more puzzled. He didn't know where Meng Zhiyuan and his group had actually come from. Only the Ancestor himself knew that. He had only managed to find out a little bit of information later on.
After Meng Zhiyuan led his people here, he had insisted on seeing the Ancestor before he was willing to reveal their origins, and he had even produced a rather strange-looking token. The token bore some resemblance to their clan's tokens, but there were still many differences.
Given that it was rare for their clan to have branches on the Verdant Continent, and seeing so many Dark Spirit Demon Bat clansmen appear at once, their auras revealing them to be orthodox and pure—especially with the sudden appearance of five Third-rank experts with formidable auras—the patrolling cultivators did not dare to neglect reporting the matter to the Ancestor.
Later, after seeing the token, the Ancestor had indeed immediately summoned these sudden arrivals. When Meng Zhiyuan came out again, they were arranged to live in a place with excellent Spiritual Energy and environment. The Ancestor had also ordered that the area, rich in Spiritual Energy, would henceforth belong to Meng Zhiyuan and his group, and other clan members were not to go there to cultivate without permission.
This Third-rank Dark Spirit Demon Bat held a core high-level position within the clan, but even with his status, he had not been able to find out the origins of Meng Zhiyuan's group. The clan leader had only revealed a tiny bit—that there was no doubt about their identities, that they were indeed clansmen who had been stranded outside. They had just happened to be sealed in a confined space and had only recently broken the seal to return to the clan. As for other matters, he had remained tight-lipped, demanding that they not ask or inquire further, stating that these were the Ancestor's orders.