"Junior Sister, I know you’ve always had a close relationship with Senior Brother Xiang," Yu Lin said with a concerned expression. "If he hadn’t fallen, perhaps the two of you would have held a dual cultivation ceremony soon after you returned. It’s understandable that you can’t accept this news for now. But Senior Brother Xiang has indeed fallen. Fortunately, his soul is intact. When we arrived, the soul lamp already showed that he had entered reincarnation."

If one did not know her true nature, she would look like the perfect caring senior sister.

But from the dark expressions on the Gou brothers’ faces and the flash of embarrassment in Xiao Ran’s eyes, it was clear how effective her words were.

Although Xiao Ran knew Yu Lin was deliberately implying that she and Xiang Yu had privately pledged themselves to each other, she had no choice but to ask, ignoring the Gou brothers beside her.

"When did this happen? Who was the killer? Are there any clues?"

"It happened less than a month ago. There are no clues," Yu Lin replied. "But the soul lamp traced the location to somewhere near the sea. Anyone daring to kill a direct disciple of the Heavenly Void Sect must be either a demonic cultivator, an evil cultivator, or those lawless rulers of the Three Immortal Islands in the sea."

She spoke with a solemn tone, but inwardly she was pleased.

Taking on this mission had been the right choice.

Not only could she strike a blow at Xiao Ran, she could also stir up her anger.

If possible, it would be best if Xiao Ran blamed the Three Immortal Islands.

Then she would see whether Xiao Ran could still win over those island masters and young lords.

Still unsatisfied, she added fuel to the fire.

"We don’t know the killer’s cultivation level. Senior Brother Xiang carried a gift from Master that contained sealed offensive and defensive spells. For him to still be killed like that, the murderer must be at least a Nascent Soul cultivator, or even a Spirit Transformation expert."

Hearing this, a complicated look flashed through Xiao Ran’s eyes.

She did not follow Yu Lin’s suggestion to suspect the Three Immortal Islands.

Instead, she felt a sudden sense of unease.

Less than a month.

Possibly a demonic cultivator.

A powerful figure at the Nascent Soul or even Spirit Transformation stage.

The possibilities were too obvious.

Uncontrollably, she recalled a moment when she had been with Zhong Kui.

During their first intimate encounter, under the influence of the aphrodisiac and overwhelming emotions, she had called out the names of Senior Brother Xiang and Jian Li.

Afterward, Zhong Kui had smiled with killing intent and said, "I really feel like getting rid of those two men."

And the time since she had parted from him...

Could it be that he had really acted?

Xiao Ran felt both guilt and sorrow.

Yet her expression remained cold as ever.

She said nothing more, but inside, her emotions were far from calm.

Senior Brother Xiang had been her first man.

He had saved her, protecting her from being abused by mortals, and had even given her the sealed spells bestowed by their master for protection.

If he had not given those to her, even if he could not win, he would have at least been able to escape.

Senior Brother Xiang had treated her well without asking for anything in return.

He was a thousand, ten thousand times better than Chi Jia.

And yet...

Standing to the side, Xiao Shou felt even more uneasy.

His skin was not thick enough to remain completely indifferent while listening to all of this being said right in front of him.

Even though Xiang Yu deserved to die, he had indeed been the one who killed him.

That was a fact he could not deny or pretend never happened.

Listening to this made him extremely uncomfortable, so he simply remained silent.

For a moment, everyone fell into silence, each lost in their own thoughts.

Yu Lin opened her mouth as if to speak, but did not know what to say

Just as the atmosphere became somewhat awkward, Chi Jia returned on his flying sword.

Xiao Shou quickly opened the formation to let him in.

Regardless of what kind of person Chi Jia had been in the original story before Xiao Ran’s rebirth or how Yu Lin viewed him, his exceptional talent was undeniable.

Otherwise, he would not have stood out and been chosen by Xiao Ran as her first man in her previous life.

After entering, Chi Jia did not waste time on small talk.

He spoke concisely, "It is exactly as Fellow Daoist Xiao said. This canyon is not flat. It is slanting downward into the underground. If we keep going like this, not only will we fail to find an exit, we will sink deeper and deeper. The black fog moths above are extremely difficult to deal with. Judging the height of the exit by sight alone is inaccurate. Even if all of us work together, we may still fail to break through. What should we do?"

"When I first arrived, I already performed a divination," Gou Yumeng said seriously, suppressing the bitterness in his heart and not dwelling on what he and his brother meant to Xiao Ran. "Above is a dead end. Only this direction holds a chance of survival. There are signs of escape, and also indications of reunion with old acquaintances and the acquisition of great treasures. After that, we encountered all of you one after another."

Xiao Ran’s luck could not be underestimated.

This time, it was very likely that the Heavenly Dao had noticed that Xiao Shou had taken away one of his opportunities ahead of time and might soon bring his destined rival here as well, so it deliberately granted him another opportunity or cheat.

However, who would ultimately obtain this opportunity was not certain.

Yu Lin asked with interest, "So to escape, we still have to continue in this direction. Does the ’great treasure’ refer to Windwheel Dandelion, or something even more valuable?"