But Cao Zhengyang gently shook his head.

He had visited multiple times in the capacity of the Taiqing Sect's Leader, but was always ignored.

Apparently, Sikong Yan, the madman, just wants to torment Gao Xuan.

Yet at this moment, the mountain gate rippled.

Soon after, Wu Sha emerged step by step and cupped his fists towards Zhou Qing, "Our Palace Master invites the Junior Sect Leader inside for a talk."

Zhou Qing's heart stirred slightly.

It seemed that they were intentionally waiting for him.

Just as he was about to step forward, Mo Xingjian urgently grabbed his sleeve, eyes full of concern.

Zhou Qing smiled slightly and said, "Don't worry, Master. No one can harm me now."

Cao Zhengyang said sternly, "I will go with you."

"The Palace Master only invites the Junior Sect Leader." Wu Sha coldly refused.

Zhou Qing turned his gaze to Gao Xuan, who was kneeling on the ground, and solemnly promised, "Don't worry, Uncle, Nannan's matter is on me."

Gao Xuan's pupils suddenly contracted, his cracked lips trembling, but he was ultimately unable to speak.

As Zhou Qing stepped into the mountain gate, the ripples gradually calmed.

Passing through the blood-colored barrier, Zhou Qing was suddenly enlightened.

Within the gate, hundreds of Cangyan disciples were lined up on both sides, each pair of eyes burning with deep-seated hatred.

In the battle of the Five Sects, this was the person who slew their five great prodigies consecutively.

Zhou Qing's face remained calm; boldly speaking, he didn't bother to look at these people directly now.

As Second Uncle once said, when a person is weak, even their anger seems kind of adorable.

"Please follow me," Wu Sha led him onto the blood-colored stone steps ahead.

This time, neither of them flew even a bit.

Everything seemed like it was meant to let Zhou Qing understand what the Cangyan Daoist Palace looked like.

As they ascended, Zhou Qing arrived at a central plaza.

On these pillars, there were still those disgraceful inscriptions left by Yan and Lei Luo when they sneaked in.

"It's self-reflection!" Zhou Qing was stern in his heart.

After an unknown duration, the two finally arrived at the peak of the main summit.

A pitch-black hall stood in the blood mist, its gates carved with nine ferocious ghost faces, each with a bloodthirsty open mouth.

"Please." Wu Sha stopped outside the hall and gestured.

Zhou Qing took a deep breath and pushed open the heavy hall doors, but soon, the scene before his eyes made his body stiffen.

Inside the hall, countless Black-robed Puppets sat cross-legged, numbering in the tens of thousands.

They formed a massive circular array, with a wisp of gray air rising above each puppet's head, converging into the center of the array like rivers flowing into the sea.

At the eye of the array, a little girl floated quietly; it was Nannan.

Her eyes were closed, her lashes lightly trembling, yet her whole being was enveloped in an imposing vitality.

Zhou Qing suppressed the impulse to make a move and carefully observed every corner of the hall.

Everywhere were Black-robed Puppets as far as the eye could see; Sikong Yan seemed not to be present.

"Could it be, this is the life-supplementing technique he spoke of two days ago in the Divine Ruins Celestial Palace's forbidden zone?"

Zhou Qing mused to himself.

One breath, two breaths...

Time quietly flowed by, the hall filled only with the humming of the array's operation, yet Sikong Yan still did not emerge.

Zhou Qing gritted his teeth and took advantage of the opportunity to see what tricks the other party was playing.

Unable to identify anyone, he focused directly on the array for a "Daily Reflection".

Soon, a piece of information was fed back.

[Nine Nether Soul-Returning Array: A special array recorded in the life-supplementing technique. If a person without a cultivation foundation dies, as long as this array is sacrificed within a hundred days after death, there is a certain probability it can help them return to life. Unfortunately, the technique is incomplete.]

Upon seeing this piece of information, Zhou Qing's heart was shaken.

Sikong Yan wasn't lying; he really was saving someone!

He immediately focused his senses and indeed found Spiritual Power circulating within Nannan.

For a moment, a bold speculation gradually took shape in his mind—

Long ago, Sikong Yan accidentally entered that forbidden zone and acquired treasures like the life-supplementing technique.

He repeatedly risked his life, narrowly escaping death several times.

Subsequently, the real Gao Xuan was affected by battle, resulting in Nannan's death.

At the time, Dong Lisheng, with only Nascent Soul cultivation, desperately attempted rescue but ultimately couldn't reverse fate.

During this, something unknown happened, resulting in Sikong Yan obtaining a token from the Divine Ruins Celestial Palace because of Nannan.

Perhaps he discovered in ancient books within the forbidden zone that this item was extraordinary.

To repay karma, he not only kept Nannan's body to perform a life-saving technique but also slew the greedy Gao Xuan and had Nannan's birth father replace his position.

However, the rescue wasn't going smoothly.

Sikong Yan researched the token's secrets while continuing the life-supplementing technique.

Until the battle of the Five Sects, he took the opportunity to create a mass of Black-robed Puppets, using a quantity-to-quality transformation to finally achieve initial success.

Later, he successfully activated the token and discovered the Rebirth Lotus deep within the forbidden zone during simulated deductions.

The item, when used with the array, might completely revive Nannan...

Understanding these key points, Zhou Qing's brow furrowed tightly.

In this case, he truly cannot recklessly take Nannan away.

After all, Sikong Yan's forbidden zone is far beyond the Eastern Domain, he has yet to successfully acquire the Rebirth Lotus.

He couldn't find this Spirit Medicine himself, otherwise, it would expose his identity as number one.

"This guy..." Zhou Qing sighed, "Clearly doing good, yet pretending to be a villain."

Is it masochism gone mad? Or psychological distortion?

Just then, in the central array, Nannan's lashes fluttered and slowly opened her eyes.

Those clear eyes brimmed with the unique confusion of a child, as if just waking from a long dream.

With her awakening, the tens of thousands of Black-robed Puppets within the hall, just like last time at the Canglan Mountain relic, directly transformed into shadows.

Silently merging into the ground, disappearing without a trace in an instant.