After returning from the Marshal's Mansion, Master Ji had spent his time in silent meditation indoors. Yet today a disquieting restlessness had taken hold of him—as if something momentous were about to occur. Cultivators often experience strange sensations, and the more advanced ones can even sense hints of future events. Though he was unsure what exactly might happen, he noted that Li Yan, along with Chen An and Li Yin, had gone into the city—a routine that had become common lately—so he did not give it much thought at first. Only a subtle ripple of unease stirred within him.
As his heart fluttered with disquiet, his divine sense suddenly reached outward. He detected that Chen An and Li Yin were hurrying into the dwelling; he merely cast a brief glance upon their arrival and dismissed it. In the past, such an occurrence had been unheard of. Recently, however, every time Li Yan returned from outside he would bark orders to Chen An and Li Yin to fetch various items before entering the valley. Master Ji assumed they were in a rush because Li Yan had forced them to accomplish some errand. Yet later, after entering the house for a short while, the two emerged again in silence, their expressions filled with palpable anxiety—and still, there was no sign of Li Yan following them. This omission was utterly unprecedented.
At once, Master Ji's heart sank. Rising swiftly, he raced to the valley's mouth and scanned his surroundings, but Li Yan's figure was nowhere to be found. Uncertain, he extended his divine sense once more—still, not a trace of the young master appeared. Overwhelmed by an even deeper unease, he silently crept to the doorway of Li Yan's stone house.
It was then that Chen An and Li Yin suddenly heard a familiar voice asking, and both of them trembled as they turned around. There, standing in the gathering dusk with a face as grim and cold as winter, was Master Ji. In an emotionless tone that sent shivers through the early summer air, he demanded,
"I ask you both—where is Li Yan?"
Li Yin, barely able to lift his eyes from the ground, stuttered, "M–Master… Li Yan… he—he's gone missing." Chen An, equally fearful, could only respond haltingly.
"Gone? Missing?" Master Ji repeated each word deliberately.
Chen An whispered, "Yes... yes, while we were at the military camp today, the young master left on his own." His head remained bowed as he spoke.
Master Ji's voice grew even icier: "Oh? At the camp? And where did you go? Did you wander off to drink with Liu Chengyong? Now—tell me every detail of today's events."
Under the crushing chill of his words, the two aides felt as if the very air had turned to ice. After a long while, with every detail laid bare in their trembling account, Master Ji, clad in his dark robe, stood outside the stone house as the twilight deepened. Then, almost as if the pressure had suddenly lifted, the two knelt on the ground in submission—and in that very instant, the master's imposing figure vanished from their sight.
Racing through the forest with his mind aflame, Master Ji pondered: What clue had Li Yan discovered that compelled him to finally decide to flee? He had meticulously reviewed every occurrence since Li Yan's entry into the valley and found no obvious lapse on his part. Yet one thing was certain—today's events were inextricably linked with Marshal Hong's designs. Otherwise, Li Yan would not have so conveniently shaken off Chen An and Li Yin at the military camp. Moreover, Li Yan had been summoned earlier by Marshal Hong—a circumstance too calculated to be mere coincidence. It was clear that Li Yan had suspected something was amiss for some time; otherwise, he wouldn't have hastily formulated such plans. Master Ji realized with dismay that, in his own elaborate calculations, he had overlooked just one critical point: Li Yan might yet be in control of the situation. In the eyes of lesser men, a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old without power is easily dismissed—but as Master Ji knew all too well, even such a child might seize the initiative when caught unawares.
Before long, Master Ji reached the rear entrance of the Marshal's Mansion as darkness fell. Without lingering, his form flickered and he slipped inside as silently as if returning to his own home. He then roamed the mansion undetected, carefully probing every room with his divine sense. As expected, nothing overtly amiss presented itself—if someone had been that easy to locate, Marshal Hong would no doubt have been foolish. Yet Master Ji was determined not to commit an error borne of carelessness. In his thorough search, he identified three areas of suspicious interest: 1. A hidden chamber behind the main hall; 2. A secret passage within the rear garden that led to a back door; and 3. A concealed chamber underneath a room in the east wing of the courtyard. Armed with this knowledge, he set out to inspect each area in turn.
He first slipped past the main hall, entering the hidden chamber behind it. His divine sense confirmed the room was empty—no one was present. Moments later, he arrived at the eastern wing corridor. Nestled in the shadows, he carefully released his divine sense to scan inside. In Qingshan Pass, no cultivator had ever detected his presence, so no one could know of his probing. After a brief search turned up nothing, he emerged from the darkness and slowly pushed open the door.
Within the room, he soon discovered the entrance to the concealed chamber. Settling himself on the floor, he once again extended his divine sense toward the entry. Unfortunately, his current cultivation—merely third layer of Condensing Qi—limited his range to only about ten zhang, and he could only confirm that a hidden chamber lay beneath the room without discerning its full layout. Determined, he waited until he was sure the room was empty before venturing closer.
Shortly thereafter, his face suddenly brightened, and his eyebrows twitched with a hint of a smile as his divine sense penetrated the chamber. He detected two individuals seated on meditation mats inside. Yet that brief smile faded into a grim frown when he realized that Li Yan was not among them. Instead, he sensed Marshal Hong's presence, along with another person known to him—one who often took on an air of mystery and lurked in the dark chamber behind the main hall. This individual's aura was as potent as Marshal Hong's, and he was reputed to be among the top martial artists in the jianghu. Master Ji merely dismissed this fact with a cool indifference—after all, he was accustomed to such characters.
At the moment, the two occupants of the hidden chamber were absorbed in their inner cultivation, each seated quietly on a plain meditation mat. This discovery forced Master Ji to question: Why had Marshal Hong not kept Li Yan by his side? Or had he hidden the young master elsewhere under tight surveillance? Even if that were the case, it mattered little; Master Ji retracted his divine sense and left the room, his thoughts already turning to his next move in the rear garden.
After some time passed, within the hidden chamber one of the occupants—Marshal Hong—suddenly opened his eyes. The hand that had been half-closed into a fist slowly relaxed, and he released that small porcelain bottle he had long held. Faint clattering noises emanated from within the bottle. Glancing at it, he murmured, "He's gone far away."
At that very moment, the burly man present in the chamber also opened his eyes and examined the bottle. "Brother," he said, "has Ji Wenhe arrived now? Could it be he's come for that kid?"
Marshal Hong fell silent for a moment before replying, "By now, that must be the case."
Then the burly man remarked, "Fortunately, we have this device. Otherwise, with Ji Wenhe's incredible agility, neither you nor I would have sensed his approach. And it's astonishing—how that kid managed to place this bottle upon Ji Wenhe without him noticing."
Marshal Hong's expression became grim as he considered the words. After a long pause, he continued, "Ji Wenhe's martial prowess has truly reached a transcendent state. That he could eventually detect such minute fluctuations within this vast Marshal's Mansion is remarkable. We can only monitor his progress by gauging the intensity of the fluctuations produced by this bottle. In the beginning, the fluctuations were slight, but as he advanced, they grew stronger—indicating that he was using his inner force to probe, patiently progressing until he finally emptied—i.e., reached—this spot. Perhaps he did not descend further because he did not detect Li Yan here; or perhaps he assumed we were still oblivious and continued his covert work."
The burly man listened, half in disbelief and half in wary admiration, and said, "Brother, it might be possible for someone with sufficient inner force to generally sense through an object. But to determine the presence of a particular person hidden within a chamber seems nearly impossible."
Marshal Hong replied thoughtfully, "Even so, when inner force reaches a formidable level, one may not identify a person's precise identity—but by sensing their breathing and aura, one can deduce their condition."
Nodding quietly, the burly man added, "In that case, it's fortunate that you wisely kept this bottle in hand and channeled your inner force to mask any extraneous vibrations; otherwise, Ji Wenhe might have detected the clattering sound and realized something was amiss. With his tracking ability, that would have compromised his position quickly. Truly, today his capacity for such detection shows that his method is nothing short of marvelous."
Marshal Hong nodded in agreement. "Earlier we briefly attempted this method. Although it did not yield a full reading, it confirmed that the technique senses the ambient vital energy of heaven and earth. This method is extraordinarily ingenious—unlike any other mind technique I have ever seen. If only we could obtain the complete manual, we would be able to compare it more thoroughly."
The burly man's gaze flickered with anticipation as he asked, "Then shall we head to our arranged meeting point?" His eyes sparkled with excitement after having witnessed Master Ji's method once again.
After a brief hesitation, Marshal Hong retrieved a folded piece of paper from his pocket—the very message Li Yan had sent him. Reading it over and over, he carefully refolded and tucked it away with reverence. Looking up at his companion, he said slowly, "Let's proceed as planned. This is a fine opportunity. As for that kid… once all is done, I'll take my time dealing with him."
The burly man's expression grew somber. "Brother, with our current martial cultivation, I'm not entirely confident we can take on Ji Wenhe." He recalled how just a few years ago he had laughed at others' exaggerations of Ji Wenhe's abilities—until now, when he found himself nearly face-to-face with the reality. Had he not inadvertently interfered with his enemy's plans in the past, he might never have known just how formidable Ji Wenhe truly was.
Marshal Hong smiled quietly, then silently transmitted his thoughts using the "Silent Transmission into the Secret" technique. After several tense breaths, the burly man's features softened in approval as he whispered, "Brother, your method truly works."