At a gazebo on Cyan Profound Peak.

A young man in blue robes picked up a cup of tea and respectfully offered it to Anx Shijie. "Master, please have some tea."

"Yee’er, are you heading to the Endless Wilderness again?" Anx Shijie asked, looking up at the young man before him. Had Ye Wushuang been present, he would have recognized this youth as Murong Ye—the very person who had invited him to the Endless Wilderness.

Murong Ye nodded and replied, "I discovered a secret location in the Endless Wilderness, so I wanted to go take a look. I also invited Ye Wushuang to come along."

"Ye Wushuang!" Upon hearing that name, a vicious killing intent suddenly erupted from Anx Shijie’s eyes, and the temperature of the surrounding air seemed to plummet to freezing.

"Rest assured, Master. I will kill him," Murong Ye said flatly, the chilling indifference in his voice enough to inspire fear. He added, "Within the Sect, with Dii Qingxue and Star Elder present, we can’t make a move on Ye Wushuang. However, by luring him into the Endless Wilderness, I’ll be able to act."

Anx Shijie understood Murong Ye’s scheme. He lifted his teacup for a sip, a venomous light flickering in his eyes.

A thought then occurred to him, and he immediately asked, "Does he know your true identity?"

"He doesn’t know. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have accepted my invitation," Murong Ye said, an even colder smile blooming on his lips. "As soon as he leaves the Ancient Spirit Sect, his life will be in my hands. I can slaughter him whenever I please."

"Good!" Anx Shijie said with a cold smile. "Bring his head back to offer at Little Jun’s memorial tablet."

"This disciple will be sure to bring his head back to you."

Murong Ye promised, then his cold expression vanished, replaced once more by a gentle smile.

Little did Ye Wushuang know, a deadly plot against him was brewing in the shadows.

...

Broken Sword Peak.

Yuan Chong and Lee Tongtian were seated in a cave residence, seemingly discussing something. The next moment, several people entered from outside, supporting an unconscious Yuan Mei.

Yuan Chong frowned and asked, "What’s going on?"

"Miss Yuan Mei has been crippled!" a Qi Vortex Realm disciple answered, his voice trembling.

’Crippled?’

Yuan Chong’s expression changed drastically. He rushed to examine Yuan Mei’s body, and when he saw the bloody hole in her Dantian, his face grew grim. A searing killing intent flared to life!

"Who did this?" Lee Tongtian, who was beside him, also scowled and coldly questioned the disciples.

The disciples flinched, answering timidly, "It... It was Ye Wushuang!"

"Ye Wushuang!" Upon hearing that name, Yuan Chong spat the words out through gritted teeth, his voice chillingly terrifying. Simultaneously, a powerful wave of killing intent surged out of the cave residence!

"Senior Brother Yuan, Ye Wushuang is preparing to enter the Endless Wilderness. You can kill him then," a disciple pointed out.

"He’s going into the Endless Wilderness?" Yuan Chong said grimly. "Then let’s make sure he stays there forever."

...

「Early on the third day.」

Ye Wushuang arrived at the foot of Broken Sword Peak as scheduled. Just as he arrived, a familiar voice called out to him.

Ye Wushuang followed the voice and saw four young men looking at him.

One of them, the young man dressed in blue, was Murong Ye.

As for the other three young men, one was tall with his brown hair in small braids, giving him a fierce appearance. Another wore a set of brown Battle Armor and radiated a sinister air, especially from his uncanny and unnerving crimson eyes.

The last was a burly youth, his muscles rippling like solid rock with a raw, powerful beauty. Coupled with the imposing Spiritual Artifact Great Saber slung over his shoulder, he projected an air of dominance.

Though the three had distinct appearances, their Cultivation was all at the Qi Vortex Fifth Layer. Their potent auras were formidable, making Ye Wushuang’s expression turn solemn. He became even more cautious; after all, the law of survival in this world was cruel.

"Brother Ye, you’re here."

Seeing Ye Wushuang approach, Murong Ye flashed a warm smile, as pleasant as a spring breeze.

Ye Wushuang nodded lightly, but he did not lower his guard around this person for a second.

Next, Murong Ye pointed to the three young men and said, "Let me introduce you. These three are the members of our Hunting Team: Xi Jie, Zuo Yi, and Yunn Dao."

Ye Wushuang’s gaze followed his introductions. Xi Jie was the youth with the brown braids, Zuo Yi was the one in brown Battle Armor, and Yunn Dao was the burly youth carrying the great saber.

"And this is Ye Wushuang!" After introducing the three of them, Murong Ye introduced Ye Wushuang in turn.

"Ye Wushuang!" Even before Murong Ye finished his introduction, the three had begun to size up Ye Wushuang. Upon sensing his Cultivation, their brows furrowed in unison, and a trace of disdain appeared in their eyes.

Seeing their reaction, Murong Ye smiled faintly and explained, "You three shouldn’t underestimate Brother Ye. He’s the ’ruthless man’ that’s been the talk of the Sect recently. Although he’s only at the Body Tempering Tenth Layer, I personally witnessed him easily defeat more than ten Qi Vortex Second Layer disciples. His Combat Power is second to none!"

’Body Tempering Tenth Layer, and he easily defeated a dozen cultivators at the Qi Vortex Second Layer!’

Hearing Murong Ye’s explanation, the pupils of all three constricted. They were inwardly stunned, and the disdain in their eyes was quickly masked.

"Allow us to reintroduce ourselves!"

"Xi Jie!"

"Zuo Yi!"

"Yunn Dao!"

Only then did the three cup their fists and say, "Welcome to the Hunting Team!!"

Ye Wushuang nodded, his expression calm and impassive. ’Only powerful strength and talent can win respect. This is an immutable law.’ He was not surprised by this in the least.

"Now that we’re all acquainted, let’s head out." After seeing Ye Wushuang and the others introduce themselves, Murong Ye shot him a smile before leading the group away from the Ancient Spirit Sect.

The Endless Wilderness was boundless. Legend claimed it was the burial ground of the supreme Desolate God!

It still contained the terrifying Desolate Race, which had been passed down from the Great Wilderness Era. Their strength was so immense that not even the Major Sects dared to provoke them.

Of course, the Endless Wilderness was immense, with most of it desolate and uninhabited. It was a place where Desolate Relic Species lay dormant, Desolate Beasts ran rampant, and poisonous mists and miasmas lingered. The various unknown dangers were enough to make one’s blood run cold.

However, it also contained undiscovered treasures such as Spiritual Talents, Treasure Medicines, and Spirit Stones, attracting countless Cultivators to risk their lives treasure hunting.

The group traveled for half a day before finally stepping into the Endless Wilderness.

Inside the wilderness, ancient trees towered to the heavens, their trunks so wide it would take four or five people to encircle them, like the great pillars of a palace from ancient times. Their dense leaves formed a canopy like a giant umbrella, blotting out the sun and plunging the forest into darkness. Old vines twisted like horned dragons, weaving the woods into a single, interconnected entity.

SWOOSH!

SWOOSH!

SWOOSH!

Several figures shot through the deathly silent forest, as nimble as monkeys and as fast as a breeze. They covered several dozen meters in the blink of an eye, like phantoms of the jungle.

These figures were none other than Murong Ye’s Hunting Team. All of them were at the Qi Vortex Fifth Layer, and their speed was incredible.

"Let’s wait for Ye Wushuang!"

After about four or five minutes, Xi Jie shouted to the others, and the four of them came to a stop beneath a withered tree.

"Why did you stop?" Just as the four of them turned around, Ye Wushuang’s voice sounded in their ears, leaving all four of them stunned.

"You..." Xi Jie stared, dumbfounded, looking at Ye Wushuang standing right behind them in complete shock and surprise. He had been worried that Ye Wushuang, not yet being in the Qi Vortex Realm, would struggle to keep up. He was just about to stop and wait for him, but to his astonishment, Ye Wushuang had been right behind them all along.

’Such incredible speed!’

The other three were also astounded by Ye Wushuang’s speed. They were all at the Qi Vortex Fifth Layer, with extraordinary swiftness, yet Ye Wushuang, who was only at the Body Tempering Tenth Layer, had managed to keep pace.

Ye Wushuang simply smiled faintly without offering an explanation. His speed was a result of practicing the Floating Light and Shadow movement technique.

The others shot Ye Wushuang a curious glance before turning to ask Murong Ye, "Are we close to the destination?"

Murong Ye pulled out a map and scanned it. "We’re about thirty li from our destination!"

"Good. It’s getting late, so we should get there as quickly as possible," Zuo Yi said. The others nodded in agreement, got to their feet, and set off again.

"Wait!"

Suddenly, Ye Wushuang frowned and called out, stopping the group. He said gravely, "There’s a powerful presence up ahead, and it’s heading our way."

"A powerful presence?" The others looked blankly at him. They immediately scanned the area with their Divine Sense but found nothing. They stared at Ye Wushuang in confusion. "You aren’t hallucinating, are you?"

"I’m not!" Ye Wushuang replied, his expression growing even more solemn. "My Divine Sense has already detected a terrifying, colossal beast heading for us!"

"A scan with your Divine Sense?" Yunn Dao shook his head and chuckled in disbelief. ’When it comes to the strength of one’s Divine Sense, is it possible for someone in the Body Tempering Realm to be stronger than us at the Qi Vortex Fifth Layer?’

’Ye Wushuang was a ’ruthless man’ with formidable Combat Power, sure, but that only proved his talent was high. It didn’t mean his overall strength was comparable to theirs.’

"You don’t believe me?" Ye Wushuang turned to ask Yunn Dao, his eyes narrowing. The man’s dismissive gaze was obvious.

"Let’s go!" Yunn Dao was utterly disdainful and seemed too impatient to even bother with an explanation. He shouted to the others, hoisted his Spiritual Artifact Giant Saber onto his shoulder, and started walking.