"It seems his name is Lin Mo. Haven't humans in the Mortal World established the Four Great Martial Arts Schools to contend with the Demon Sect and Heavenly Sect for Spirit Veins? Lin Mo is the founder of one of those schools, the Sword Heart Martial Arts Hall," Qing Huo explained.
"Lin Mo, Lin Mo..." Ye Mou murmured to himself, suddenly a hint of murderous intent flashed in his eyes.
Qing Huo and Qing Bing both sensed the chilling aura emanating from Ye Mou and showed a look of confusion on their faces. Could it be that Ye Mou knows Lin Mo?
"Both of you, please come and enjoy some time in my clan. I've prepared dozens of beauties and exquisite wine in the banquet hall. You two special envoys can rest first," Ye Mou said, then summoned a servant to lead the way.
Qing Huo and Qing Bing cupped their hands in salute, not daring to ask more questions, and followed the servant out of the hall.
Ye Mou is the leader of the Giant Elephant Clan, and being one of the more powerful groups within the Demon Gate Royal Family, his status and influence continued to rise due to having a genius son, making him a force to be reckoned with inside the Demon Sect.
"Isn't Lin Mo the human who attended the last auction?" Ye Mou frowned, his fingers gliding over the armrest of his throne, producing a harsh screeching sound. Ever since Ye Hui was murdered, Ye Mou had been investigating the culprit. Naturally, with his power, obtaining the list of auction participants was not difficult. Among that list, although there were cultivators from the Heavenly Sect and Mortal World, only Lin Mo seemed to have had a bidding conflict with Ye Hui's box.
Moreover, it didn't end amicably.
This was something that could be easily verified by asking any Demon Clan member who attended the auction, it wasn't a difficult matter.
"Gou Yu..."
Ye Mou suddenly transmitted a message.
Moments later, a young man flew into the palace, respectfully kneeling on one knee, saying, "Gou Yu, greets the Clan Leader."
"Investigate Lin Mo, I suspect he killed Ye Hui," Ye Mou said coldly.
"Yes, Clan Leader." Gou Yu nodded, then looked up and said, "Clan Leader, I know a bit about this Lin Mo. He is indeed the Master of the Sword Heart Martial Arts Hall, revered by humans as the foremost Martial Arts Master..."
Ye Mou snorted coldly, "Hmph, I don't care who he is. If he truly is the one who killed Hui'er, I want his entire family to be buried with him!"
"Yes, Clan Leader." Gou Yu felt the Clan Leader's violent energy and quickly lowered his head, not daring to say more.
"Go." Ye Mou rubbed his tense temples. Gou Yu bowed and retreated a few steps before turning and flying out of the palace.
Inside the grand hall.
After Gou Yu left, the entire vast hall was left with only Ye Mou sitting on the throne, his fingers tapping on the armrest, producing a dull thumping sound.
With each tap, the stone armrests of the throne began to crack inch by inch.
"No matter who killed Hui'er, I will make them pay a heavy price."
Ye Mou's icy voice echoed in the empty great hall.
...
In the East Province, a luxurious villa occupied the mid-mountainside of the entire peak, connected only by a thirty-meter-wide cement road that spiraled around the mountainside down to the base. In the forests to the east, west, south, and north of the villa, stood four massive blood-colored jade pillars, requiring three people to embrace them, standing thirty-three meters tall, looking like blood jade, with blood energy subtly floating on the surface, each pillar engraved with lifelike Flood Dragon entanglement patterns, the blood energy entwining them emanating an ancient and eternal aura.
The four blood jade pillars encircled the entire villa estate, and above the manor, they faintly converged into a giant and complex circular pattern, with a fierce, mighty Flood Dragon brimming at the pattern's center, protecting the manor.
At this moment, several figures appeared at the gates of the estate.
Standing outside the manor were four bodyguards in black clothes and pants, looking solemn, with a vague aura of vastness around them, unexpectedly all being above the Three-star Star Wheel Mirror in strength.
"Young Master."
Upon seeing the five figures emerging, the four guards immediately showed a respectful demeanor.
"Young Master Ye, your Jade Pillar Blood Flood Dragon Formation is truly exquisite. As soon as I entered, I felt the spiritual energy nourishing my body, relieving much of my fatigue," Guo Da said with a smile.
Ye Beichen looked embarrassed, his mood lifted not at all.
Originally, Lin Mo was supposed to accompany them to Duwu Island, but unexpectedly they encountered cultivators from Han Country and had to flee back, with Lin Mo's safety now uncertain.
They had already seen the news, facing the Sky-reaching Snake, it seemed Lin Mo had little chance of victory; his current status was unknown.
"Young Master Ye, don't worry. I believe Mr. Lin will surely find a way out. Even those Han Country cultivators couldn't manage him, and though the Sky-reaching Snake is formidable, it won't easily be able to kill Mr. Lin," Mu Lihong said in consolation.
"Well, hopefully." Ye Beichen nodded.
The five entered the interior of the manor, and in the living room of the largest villa in the estate, they met a middle-aged man.
"Uncle Ye!"
"Uncle Ye!"
"Second Uncle," the five called out in unison. The middle-aged man, dressed impeccably, with short black and silver-streaked hair and piercing eyes, exuded a powerful aura restrained like a coiled Flood Dragon. Despite his gentle smile, he still imparted an underlying strong sense of pressure.
"Hmm, you're all back." The middle-aged man nodded slightly, his gaze softening.
This middle-aged man was none other than Ye Cang, the second leader of the Ye Family and Ye Beichen's second uncle, ranked among the top five experts in the Beiyao Sect.
As for Ye Beichen's father, he was the leader of the Beiyao Sect, the family head of the Ye Family, but had been in closed cultivation for a long time, not appearing for some time, so the family and Beiyao Sect affairs were temporarily managed by Ye Cang.
"Uncle Ye, I suspect that beast might be the legendary Sky-reaching Snake from Han Country. The Han Country cultivators are closely monitoring it, and I think we don't have the means to hunt it. Any attempt might attract attention from the Heavenly Sect and other Demon Sect forces," Mu Lihong said.
Mu Lihong belonged to the Golden Eagle Clan, which had excellent relations with the Green Flood Dragon Clan. The dispatch to Duwu Island was actually a decision made after discussions between the Ye Family and the Mu Family.
"I know, that Sky-reaching Snake is very powerful, and even if you encounter it, you won't be able to kill it. Temporarily give up," Ye Cang waved his hand dismissively.
"Second Uncle, but Lin Mo, he..."
Ye Beichen started to say.
"I know what you want to say. When the Immortal City opened, our Ye Family didn't help him. Now you want me to rescue him?" Ye Cang's weathered eyes stared at Ye Beichen.
"I just want to check, after all, Brother Lin is also a friend, and he has benefited our Beiyao Sect in the past," Ye Beichen said.
Back then, Lin Mo had traded with Ye Beichen some cultivation techniques for the Demon Clan concerning Alchemy and Talisman Making Skills, exchanging them for top-grade spiritual stones.
"Don't worry about him. He has experts helping him. If he can't escape, there's nothing I can do," Ye Cang said indifferently.
Hearing Ye Cang's words, everyone looked puzzled.
Lin Mo has expert assistance?