Damn it, the thing I was worried about still happened.

There's an ambush in the valley.

I barely managed to retract the Soul-Chasing Chain when two bolts of electricity surged through the chain towards my arms. I felt my hands go numb, and I immediately fell to the ground, trembling uncontrollably.

Ye Yang's sword qi arrived from afar, instantly severing the Soul-Chasing Chain's lock. Only when the iron chain hit the ground did I manage to catch my breath.

I watched Hei Ye Xiao's figure hurtle out of the valley entrance and land not far from me.

Before he could even get up, two fireballs shot towards him, one after the other. They were trying to kill Hei Ye Xiao without leaving a trace.

Just as the whistling thunder-fire was about to strike its target, Ye Yang's longsword pierced the ground in front of Hei Ye Xiao.

"Soul Transfer!" Ye Yang's roar and the sound of thunder-fire striking the sword exploded in the air almost simultaneously.

All that remained before my eyes was flying thunder and fire. By the time my vision returned to normal, Hei Ye Xiao was nowhere to be seen, and Ye Yang's longsword was still stuck in the ground, vibrating slightly.

Although the fireball that had struck the sword was terrifying, it hadn't damaged the blade in the slightest.

Ye Yang walked over slowly and pulled out his longsword. "There are people in the valley!"

"Let's go take a look!" I moved my arms back and forth, drew the Life-Reaping Blade from my back, and walked towards the valley entrance, blade in hand.

Before Ye Yang and I reached the valley, we heard someone say, "Why resort to such hostility when old friends meet? I have tea and wine here. Why don't you both come in and have a cup?"

A tremor ran through my heart: Lin Si Han! I recognized it; it was Lin Si Han's voice.

When I turned to look at Ye Yang, I saw the shock in his eyes as well.

I had personally chopped off Lin Si Han's head in the Little Underworld. How could she be alive again?

Lin Si Han spoke again, "You've come all this way to save Yun Ya, haven't you? If you don't enter the valley, who can break the Ten-Day Life-Extinguishing Curse on her?"

Ye Yang gave me a cautious gesture, and we walked into the valley side by side.

The valley wasn't as large as we had imagined. There was only a single courtyard inside.

On the courtyard wall facing the valley entrance were two gates side by side. A red lantern hung on the left gate, and two white lanterns hung on the right.

Black and White Clinic!

This was the real Black and White Clinic!

As I stepped through the gate, the first thing I saw was Lin Si Han sitting behind a table, with Meng Qingqiu standing behind her.

Lin Si Han raised her head as we entered. "It seems my face is making you two uncomfortable. Perhaps it's better if you don't look at it!"

As she spoke, Lin Si Han picked up a white iron mask and put it on her face. "Does this make you feel better?"

I stared at her and said, "Who are you?"

The moment Lin Si Han put on the mask, I clearly felt her face change. If the mask were removed now, I certainly wouldn't see Lin Si Han's face.

She said, "You can call me Zero! Zero as in, dividing into zero."

Zero: existing, yet not existing.

Zero, as a number, allows you to see clearly, yet it represents nothingness.

The person before me was probably just a substitute, like Lin Si Han.

Zero said softly, "You must be curious as to why I've appeared before you."

"I can tell you: I come from 'The Formless.' The Formless exists to collect the world's secret arts. Anything we want, we'll find a way to get. For example: the Huangquan Longevity Sutra, for example: the Black and White Judgment Art."

"Lin Si Han infiltrated the Little Underworld to obtain its secrets. Unfortunately, she first ran into the Stone Rain from 'The Unborn,' and then ran into you, the life-borrower."

"Before she died, Lin Si Han told you not to kill her. You might not be able to bear the consequences of killing her. However, you ignored her warning and cut her down."

"Originally, according to our style, you would have died without a burial. However, I really don't want to make an enemy of the Coffin Gate."

Zero emphasized, "The Yin-Yang lineage isn't scary. I just don't want to add any more trouble for myself."

"Actually, we can coexist peacefully. Like the business you've taken on now, you just want to heal Yun Ya and don't really care about whether Yun Xian lives or dies."

"I promise you, heal Yun Ya, leave the Black and White Clinic immediately, and we can still be at peace. Isn't that good?"

I said in a deep voice, "What if I say no?"

Zero laughed. "If you insist on acting impulsively, the name 'The Formless' will become a nightmare you can't escape until you die."

"The Formless never considers the matter resolved just because the person they want to kill's body has died. We'll kill you for at least a hundred years. And within those hundred years, you won't even have the chance to dissipate your soul."

I narrowed my eyes slightly. "I want to know the truth about Yun Sheng's disappearance."

Zero laughed again. "What does Yun Sheng's whereabouts mean to you? Your first business is already over. Your second business has nothing to do with Yun Sheng!"