Bai Ke, who had been holding back a mouthful of old blood all the way, couldn't help but spit it out.

Before hearing Master Lin Jie's words, it seemed that after this hour, only if there were no abnormalities would they be most satisfied. And this hour seemed to be a stage where emergencies were extremely likely to occur, just like the critical period for seriously ill patients. So everyone was especially nervous about Bai Ke's condition. Huo Junxiao even prepared a secret technique as if to perform life-saving magic at the first sign of Bai Ke's abnormality.

But the result was, after an hour, everyone held their breath for another ten minutes, but there was no abnormal reaction from Bai Ke.

"Except for the fiery pain here, I don't feel anything else," Bai Ke frowned, trying to touch the vermilion mole on the back of his neck, but was gently pushed away by Junxiao.

"Don't touch it randomly," Junxiao continued to alleviate Bai Ke's pain with the continuous flow of white light between his fingertips.

Bai Ke: "..." So, this seems to be my neck?

He wasn't an easy person to trust or rely on others, but at this moment, he inexplicably felt a strange sense of trust in Junxiao. Perhaps it was because Junxiao's serious and sincere demeanor when he knelt before him and called him Master last night, or perhaps it was because his concern and care seemed so natural and unquestionable that they couldn't be ignored, thus forming a strange habit in the brief time they spent together.

Although there was still a trace of instinctual worry and fear towards someone thousands of times stronger than himself, it was worrying about the lives of others rather than his own.

It seemed that from the moment he met Huo Junxiao, he subconsciously believed that this tall man in black would never harm him.

So Bai Ke remained silent for a moment before obediently retracting his hand, allowing Junxiao's fingertips to cover the back left side of his neck. The threads of cool air flowed into his skin from the vermilion mole, neutralizing the burning sensation. It felt like someone blowing cool breeze on a wound, gentle yet slightly itchy.

He had to forcibly keep his face still to resist moving his neck, making his expression stiff.

Lin Jie, standing in front of him, was shocked by Bai Ke's expression, which seemed to say, "You seem to owe me millions." After hesitating for a long time, he glanced at the time before hesitantly saying, "It's been another half hour, and there doesn't seem to have been any particularly significant changes. So, should we go to the Hengtian Gate now?"

"Let's go," Bai Ke nodded, taking the lead towards the door. On one hand, he wanted to see how these immortal cultivation sects, which still existed, were hidden in such a vast city without being noticed by anyone. On the other hand, he also wanted to move a bit, seizing the opportunity to end Junxiao's finger technique. After all, the pain was still within tolerable range, and Junxiao's fingers wouldn't be uncomfortable if they weren't covered, but constantly blowing air like this around the neck was making his whole body stiff.

Little did he know that Junxiao, with his long legs, walked a few steps calmly and was already shoulder to shoulder with Bai Ke. After getting shoulder to shoulder, he deliberately slowed down his pace. His hand naturally rested on Bai Ke's shoulder-like posture, covering the vermilion mole on the back left side of Bai Ke's neck, and never moved away.

Bai Ke could only resign himself to fate: "..."

Although this trip wasn't for sightseeing or leisurely strolls in the mountains, Bai Ke still dragged along the eccentric Bai Zixu. The events of last night left him with lingering fear; who knew if some lunatics would show up at their doorstep again one day? Leaving Bai Zixu alone at home was like leaving him as bait.

Neither Junxiao nor Lin Jie objected to this; evidently, they shared Bai Ke's sentiments.

It was Bai Zixu himself who wasn't cooperating.

He struggled a bit against Bai Ke's grip on his arm, adopting a tone of "adults are busy, kids shouldn't interfere," saying, "Why are you dragging me along? If everyone's gone, who will guard the house? It wouldn't be good if those with ill intentions took advantage."

Bai Ke: "..." Great, he even knows about ill intentions.

"It's precisely to prevent anyone from taking advantage that you need to come with us." Bai Ke, slender yet surprisingly strong, held onto Bai Zixu's arm firmly despite his struggles.

"Tch! Know your place!" Bai Zixu scolded with a stern face when his soft approach failed to get through. "Are you still worried even with me guarding the house? Huh?! What's just a room worth? Even if it's a whole house, a whole neighborhood, or even the entire city of Yishi, protecting it is just a matter of moving a finger!"

Lin Jie, looking at him with admiration, thought to himself: This guy's behavior seemed off from the start, turned out he was a lunatic indeed. Who else would speak so lightly about protecting an entire city with just a flick of the finger? This guy must be at the level of the elders or sect leaders... these days, even lunatics are so refined?

He glanced at Bai Ke, who was walking ahead with Junxiao supporting him, feeling a surge of sympathy: blind and with a lunatic for a father.

Lin Jie didn't have the physique of a hero, but he had the heart of one; he felt that if he ever succeeded in the future, he would definitely help Bai Ke... even though this guy moved so naturally, you wouldn't even know he was blind if it weren't for his always closed eyes. =_=

Bai Ke simply turned a deaf ear to Bai Zixu's rambling and continued dragging him towards the door.

Bai Zixu grumbled even louder: "Sss— I'm telling you, do you still not believe it? If I throw a Seven Star Charm—"

Just as they were walking forward, Junxiao suddenly turned his head to look at Bai Zixu, his brow furrowed slightly, a hint of puzzlement and curiosity flashing in his eyes. He stopped in his tracks, seemingly waiting to hear what Bai Zixu had to say.

But Bai Zixu was at a loss for words, he struggled for a while, rolling his eyes, "Seven Star Charm?" After pondering for a while, he couldn't come up with anything coherent, and ended up confusing himself. His expression shifted from frustration to confusion, and eventually, he just stood there, lost in thought.

"What's wrong?" Bai Ke thought this was just another case of Bai Zixu's nonsensical rambling due to reading too many cultivation novels. But judging by Junxiao's expression, it seemed there was more to it.

Knowing very little about this sort of thing, and unable to make sense of "Seven Star Charm," Bai Ke turned back to look at Lin Jie.

Lin Jie, thrown off by Bai Ke's sudden turn, scratched his nose, inwardly grumbling: "The hell, the hell, is this young man really blind? Why do I feel like his eyeballs are staring right at me through his eyelids?!"

After grumbling, Lin Jie hesitated for a while, then tilted his head and said, "Seven Star Charm?"

Bai Ke: "..." Suddenly, I've lost interest in your so-called major sects. If these are the products of your training, what future lies ahead?

Junxiao quietly glanced at Lin Jie: "...Good thing you're not under my tutelage."

Lin Jie, curious: "What would it be like under your tutelage?"

Junxiao's gaze slid past Bai Ke, then settled on some unknown point in the air, as he said softly, "I would punish you to memorize the entire library."

"Damn!" Lin Jie looked at Junxiao as if he was crazy, then stiffened his neck to explain, "I'm telling you, even after ten years of practice, I've barely scratched the surface of Hengtian Gate. I've only read a few ancient scrolls and learned even fewer spells. Who knows what a 'Seven Star Charm' is? Normal spells don't include these three words, and the abnormal ones... ss—"

Bai Ke had spent half a day with these three and had gotten used to their way of talking, which made his head spin after just three sentences. The rhythm of their crazy conversations was fast-paced.

He remained silent, waiting for Lin Jie to finish his sentence. But instead, Lin Jie suddenly slapped his own forehead, making a crisp sound and leaving a faint red mark. "Damn it! I can't remember it no matter what! I had it right on the tip of my tongue!"

Bai Ke: "Let's just go." He felt like he would suffocate if he said another word to this bunch of snake spirits.

So he was supported by the tall and slender lunatic number one, grabbed the refined-looking lunatic number two, and followed by what seemed like a sixteen or seventeen-year-old lunatic number three. And thus, they formed a group and left the house in a drag.

Junxiao probably knew that his attire didn't fit in with the city, so as soon as they left, he cast a concealment spell on himself. Therefore, as Bai Ke was supported on his shoulder, leaning slightly to the left, in the eyes of passersby, he looked like a child with cerebral palsy.

"Are you really cultivators? Why are you walking when you go out?" Bai Ke, who was bewildered by the onlookers, finally couldn't help but ask.

Junxiao, who hadn't been "sneaky" like this for many years, had a somewhat stiff expression. "This foolish kid can't remember specific locations."

Lin Jie, with a green face, said, "I can't fly! I've been walking for so many years, just remembering left and right turns, not north, south, east, and west."

Bai Zixu: "What was it... the charm?"

Bai Ke, expressionless: "Then let's go nearby first and look for it."

Lin Jie, feeling ashamed: "Sorry, young master, I won't lead the way anymore."

Junxiao sneered, "Heh!"

Bai Ke: "..." Finally understood why this guy, after ten years of practice, had only reached the lowest level of disciple.

The group of four followed Lin Jie's directions, weaving through winding alleyways and wandering through a residential area until they reached Xijing North Road.

This road was the commercial center of the southern part of Yishi, lined with skyscrapers and large office buildings. They were currently standing in an open space behind a rather upscale building on Xijing North Road. To their left was the entrance to the underground parking lot, and to their right was a pedestrian walkway leading to the entrance of the building.

Bai Ke looked up at the four characters on the top of the building, "Tianheng International," (NT: 天亨 tiān hēng prosperous heavens) and curled his lips. "Why did you bring us here?"

"Hengtian Gate is inside here!"

"..."

Bai Ke felt like he was about to spit out all the old blood he had been holding back all the way.

Although he rarely came out for leisure due to his blindness and Bai Zixu's presence, it didn't mean he hadn't been here before. Sometimes he would accompany Aunt Pang to run errands and pass by here.

Although this building wasn't the most conspicuous one on Xijing North Road, it was far from simple. It had been standing for quite some time, yet it maintained a relatively new appearance.

Most of the companies in the building were foreign enterprises. The ground floor mainly housed afternoon tea restaurants and cafes, and there was even a garden in the concave-shaped building. People sat in twos and threes at tea tables or on sofas, chatting away. Some stood by the garden, holding coffee in their hands, creating a relaxed and casual atmosphere.

In short, it was completely different from the style of Bai Ke and his group.

"Let's go this way," Lin Jie said, leading them along the pedestrian walkway on the right side. They turned to the front of the building, and after entering the entrance, they walked straight ahead.

The building was divided into Blocks A and B, with Block A on the left and Block B on the right. There was a row of security gates on both sides leading to the elevators, requiring card access.

Block A seemed to have more people, with constant movement near the security gates as people entered and exited the building. On the other hand, Block B seemed much quieter, with hardly any signs of human activity.

After turning the corner, Junxiao dispelled his invisibility spell and returned to his appearance with black hair and a black robe. Bai Ke looked back with some concern and found that from this angle, the people in the lobby couldn't see them at all, which put him at ease.

The three followed Lin Jie to the security door. They saw the chicken boy take out a black piece of wood from the pocket of his jeans and tap the sensing area of the security door with the side engraved with strange patterns. With a muffled "beep," the door opened. After Lin Jie entered, the security door closed quickly, accurately blocking Bai Ke and the other two without cards or permits from entering.

Lin Jie: "..." Junxiao, the hero! Junxiao, the god! How could you space out at such a critical moment?! What happened to the teleportation you promised?!

Bai Ke: "...So what's the situation?"

Lin Jie looked innocently at Junxiao, "I thought Senior could bring you all in when I opened the door. Now, the door is under a ban, sealed by the Sect Leader and the Elders. It's basically impossible to break."

Bai Ke: "Then just come out and go in again."

Lin Jie looked even more innocent, "Entering the building only requires the Sect Emblem, and leaving requires a Sect Permit. I used mine when I went out to find Senior earlier."

Bai Ke: "..."

"How about... you guys hide here for a while? There will definitely be more senior brothers coming back later."

Bai Ke: "..."

As the two were talking, they saw Junxiao, who had been calm all along, raise his hand.

Lin Jie's expression changed drastically, and he hastily said, "Stop! This ban is of a high level. At least it's at the level of the Elders. Otherwise, any casual touch will trigger an alarm, and everyone in the sect will know that there are —"

Before he could finish his words, Junxiao raised his eyebrows, nonchalantly raised his slender fingers to form a hand seal, and then tapped the security door. As a result, the entire security gate rippled like a stone dropped into water, creating ripples.

"Let's go." Junxiao patted Bai Ke's shoulder, then calmly led Bai Ke and Bai Zixu through the high-level ban of the security door. After they passed through, the security door returned to its original state, as if everything that had just happened was an illusion.

"...intruders..." Lin Jie mechanically finished the last few words, then silently closed his mouth.

 

Translator : DarNan