Jiang Jichen disappeared into the Darkness, but his figure flickered and he silently returned to where he had parted with Luuo Xue.

After all, he couldn’t rest easy leaving Luuo Xue by herself. He would only truly depart after the Luuo Family’s Elders came to take her away.

When he returned and saw Luuo Xue’s forlorn and sorrowful expression, an inexplicable sense of concern bloomed in Jiang Jichen’s heart.

In his past life, such concerns would have been nothing but a fetter. He wouldn’t have allowed them to linger in his heart for even a moment, lest they obstruct his path of cultivation.

And so, he had lost someone. Was she still out there, gazing at the distant constellations, lost in quiet thought, her longing as endless as the eternally flowing Star River?

But now, they were separated by two worlds. ’Is she alright?’

...

The memories of his past life were sealed. Aside from his Cultivation Techniques, everything else was just a faint impression. Yet there was one thing—something he hadn’t cared about in his past life—that was now so deeply etched into his heart that not even the seal could make him forget it.

Jiang Jichen didn’t dare delve deeper into his memories, fearing he wouldn’t be able to escape if he became lost in his past life. He calmed his mind, concealed himself atop an ancient tree in the darkness, and quietly watched the girl as she gazed into the distance.

His earlier departure had just been a pretense of being suave. He hadn’t wanted their parting to be too sorrowful, so he decided to guard her from the shadows.

"Brother Jiang, I don’t know when we’ll meet again, but please take care of yourself!"

Luuo Xue whispered softly into the distance.

In the darkness, Jiang Jichen sighed to himself. ’Luuo Xue really is a beautiful and kind girl, the only one of the Four Beauties of Qingcheng I have a good impression of. It would be a real shame if I couldn’t add her to my harem!’

’Right, I should focus on raising my Cultivation. Only when I’m strong enough can I protect them openly, instead of watching from the shadows like this.’

He Feng thought to himself.

Soon after receiving the message, the Luuo Family’s Elders arrived and escorted Luuo Xue away.

Once he saw Luuo Xue disappear with the Luuo Family Elders, Jiang Jichen continued on his way.

A message came through his Sound Transmission Jade: Han Qing, Little Yue’Er, and the others were safe for now. Jiang Jichen had absolute faith in Han Qing’s concealment skills, so he wasn’t in a hurry to regroup with them. There was something else he had to do first.

’He Feng of the Mountain Sect and the senior sister of the Flower Rain Sect... I can’t let them get away. I said I would kill you. How could you possibly escape?’

The man who had been so gentle and tender a moment ago was now iron-willed and merciless, his eyes filled with cold indifference.

If they had simply attacked him, whether through assassination or a sneak attack, he wouldn’t have harbored the slightest resentment or anger.

But they had to threaten him with the life of a little girl like Little Yue’Er. People like that, he could not tolerate.

At the time, Little Yue’Er had been in a very well-hidden location. Unexpectedly, however, the young boy Zhang Xiaoyu had a Golden Snake Sect mark on him. In the end, Jin Mu of the Golden Snake Sect used a Golden Snake Secret Technique to track the mark, exposing their position.

Han Qing had already erased the Golden Snake Sect’s mark, and Jiang Jichen had killed Jin Mu. All that remained was to take the lives of He Feng and the Flower Rain Sect’s senior sister.

Jiang Jichen now seemed to transform into a sovereign of the shadows. His body merged completely with the Darkness as he drifted forward, hunting for He Feng’s trail.

After the Spirit Beast stampede, they had all used life-saving Secret Techniques to scatter and flee. However, Jiang Jichen had already left an auric marker on both He Feng and the senior sister. While he couldn’t determine their exact positions yet, the feeling from the markers allowed him to discern their general direction. As long as he followed it and drew closer, he would eventually be able to pinpoint their locations.

Jiang Jichen drifted for some distance with his eyes closed, then snapped them open.

’Found you. Northward, deeper into the Moonlight Forest. He Feng, you can’t escape!’

At that moment, Jiang Jichen seemed to have become a Hunter, his entire being exuding an aura that only a master of the hunt would possess.

He performed Shadow Step, drifting northward.

...

In the central region of the Moonlight Forest, He Feng was also moving quickly, followed by a Mountain Sect Elder and three disciples.

"The news is confirmed. The Ice Dragon Flower has appeared in the Ice Dragon Valley in the center of Moonlight Forest. Many people are rushing there now."

A Mountain Sect disciple reported from behind him.

Among them, the Mountain Sect Elder possessed an Innate Fourth Realm Cultivation and exuded an air of authority.

He spoke in a heavy voice, "The Sect Leader has issued an urgent order: all Mountain Sect disciples are to proceed to the Ice Dragon Valley in the central Moonlight Forest immediately!"

He Feng hesitated for a moment before asking, "What about hunting down Jiang Jichen...?"

The Mountain Sect Elder cut him off with a wave of his hand. "Securing the Ice Dragon Flower is our priority. Hunting Jiang Jichen can wait. This isn’t the time. The Ice Dragon Flower will determine the fate of our sect. I’m afraid even the sect’s Minor Grandmasters will personally make an appearance!"

Hearing that the hunt for Jiang Jichen was being postponed, He Feng felt a sudden, inexplicable unease.

He was desperate to kill Jiang Jichen as soon as possible. After all, news had already spread that he had tried to ambush Jiang Jichen, only to be defeated and forced to flee in disgrace. It had become a stain on his reputation, a lifelong humiliation he was desperate to wash away.

He asked, unable to hide his reluctance, "Elder Sunx, is the Ice Dragon Flower really that important?"

Elder Sunx glanced at He Feng, feeling a bit disappointed in him. As the heir disciple of the Mountain Sect, to be so soundly defeated by Jiang Jichen and forced to flee in disgrace was a complete embarrassment to the sect.

However, He Feng’s background was extraordinary, as he was the descendant of a major figure. Thus, the Elder didn’t dare show any arrogance and simply replied coolly, "Ice Dragon True Blood becomes a flower where it falls. A thousand years for seven petals—a Holy-grade Spirit Medicine!"

"The flower’s seed is formed from Ice Dragon True Blood. It takes a thousand years, absorbing the Ice Dragon True Qi of the Ice Dragon Valley, before it finally blooms with seven petals and becomes a supreme Holy Spirit Medicine. A single Seven-Petaled Ice Dragon Flower, if refined into an Ice Dragon Pill, can increase a Minor Grandmaster’s chances of breaking through to the Grandmaster Realm by fifty percent. And if its essence is added to a Pulse Cleansing Pill... well, it can raise the Talent Level of one’s Spirit Vein by an entire grade. As for its other effects, they are almost too numerous to mention. After all, this is an Ice Dragon Flower that has condensed Ice Dragon True Blood and absorbed Ice Dragon True Qi for a millennium. The True Dragon Power it contains is enough to provide endless benefits and cause one’s Cultivation to skyrocket. What’s more, even someone with a shattered Qi Sea and severed Spirit Veins can completely regenerate them by consuming just a single petal. They can even advance their Cultivation further!"

Elder Sunx’s words left He Feng utterly shocked, but that shock quickly turned into a strange excitement.

’His grandfather was the Grand Elder of the Mountain Sect. When the time came, a share of the Ice Dragon Flower would surely be his. Then, his Cultivation and talent would skyrocket! If he stepped into the Innate Third Realm, wouldn’t he be able to crush Jiang Jichen with ease?’

’Oh, Jiang Jichen, you’d better not have died from the after-effects of the Sealing Spirit Escape Technique. Just wait until I consume my Pulse Cleansing Pill. Then I’ll torture you to death.’

He Feng’s heart pounded with excitement; he could already picture the scene of himself brutalizing Jiang Jichen.

At that same moment, the central region of the Moonlight Forest erupted with activity. People from all walks of life began to charge in recklessly. Their target: Ice Dragon Valley!

Jiang Jichen, however, was unaware of any of this. His only targets were He Feng and the senior sister!