Chapter 121: Discussing the Search for Wei Xiaofan

Master Xuanzhe recounted to Master Xuanwu and Zhang Xiaoyan everything he had witnessed on the battlefield, describing Wei Xiaofan’s expression and the moment he was abducted by the practitioner of soul-seizing arts.

"It seems," Master Xuanwu remarked, "that the one who took Wei Xiaofan away all those years ago must indeed be this practitioner of soul-seizing arts. If this is true, it proves that this individual had already mastered the art a decade ago. It is astonishing that we remained unaware of such a technique, and that no mention of it has ever surfaced across the Wildlands in all these years. This person is remarkably skilled at hiding their tracks. You must realize that the Wildlands is home to dozens of factions and several kingdoms; every single day, these powers dispatch spies and scouts to infiltrate one another in hopes of one day annexing their rivals. For this practitioner to operate for a decade without leaving a single trace—they are as cunning and elusive as a needle lost in the depths of the ocean."

Master Xuanzhe sighed deeply. "That is precisely what worries me most. Not only is this person versed in soul-seizing arts, but they also possess the ability to turn invisible. When they appeared and struck me, I could see nothing; I only saw Wei Xiaofan, unconscious, being carried away by some unseen force as he vanished into the air. Furthermore, the way they spirited him away in an instant suggests that their flight techniques and agility far surpass our own. If they are determined to remain hidden, we are truly at their mercy."

Master Xuanwu replied, "Brother, it is unlikely they can stay hidden for long. Did you not say that when they carried him away, they left you a message? They claimed to be 'borrowing' Wei Xiaofan temporarily and promised to return him once they have achieved their ambitions. Since they seek glory and success, they must be planning something significant. If they intend to undertake such grand designs, they cannot remain in the shadows forever; they will have to move in the open eventually."

Zhang Xiaoyan added, "Master Xuanwu is right. If this person has grand goals, they will surely emerge. The difficulty lies in the fact that we have never seen them and do not know what they look like, which makes the search complicated. Master Xuanzhe, now that we know Xiaofan is still alive and serving as a general in the Shihui Kingdom, we should begin our search there."

Master Xuanzhe nodded. "You are right. Since we do not know the appearance of the soul-seizing practitioner, we shall start our search for Wei Xiaofan in the Shihui Kingdom. As for the practitioner, I will ascend the mountain to consult our Master; perhaps he can offer some insight. He is far more experienced than us and has mentioned the soul-seizing arts in the past. I believe he may know more about its origins."

Upon hearing that they were to search for Wei Xiaofan, Zhang Xiaoyan immediately volunteered. "Master, leave the search for Brother Xiaofan in the Shihui Kingdom to me. However, I will need a few people to accompany me."

Master Xuanzhe cautioned her, "Zhang Xiaoyan, as a general of the Qingfeng Kingdom, you must uphold military discipline. Many factions and kingdoms covet our territory and are watching us like tigers, eager to destroy us and claim our land. While there is no immediate danger, we must be prepared for a sudden assault. As we saw with the recent surprise attack by the Shihui Kingdom, had our scouts not warned us, we would have been caught unprepared and suffered a great loss."

Zhang Xiaoyan replied, "It is a pity I was not present at the battle beneath Twin Peaks Mountain. Had I been there, the situation where Brother Xiaofan wounded Brother Xiaoping would never have occurred." As she said this, she cast a glance of dissatisfaction toward Dahuang.

Dahuang, hearing her words, lowered his head in apparent shame.

Seeing Dahuang’s reaction, Master Xuanwu patted the creature’s flank and said, "Zhang Xiaoyan, do not blame Dahuang. If we were in his place, we might have acted the same. Besides, Xiaoping and Xiaofan have loved each other since childhood. After so many years of believing Xiaofan lost, seeing him reappear so suddenly, only to find him serving as an enemy general, must have been heartbreaking for Xiaoping. He surely felt a sense of conflict between his duty to his kingdom and his brother. I suspect that during their duel, Xiaoping was trying to persuade Xiaofan to leave the Shihui Kingdom and return to him. To prove his sincerity, Xiaoping must have agreed to take three blows without retaliating, which is why he ended up so severely wounded."

"You are right, Brother," Master Xuanzhe agreed, stroking his beard. "That must be it. Especially since Xiaofan is under the influence of that soul-seizing art and has lost his childhood memories."

Zhang Xiaoyan sighed. "You are right, Master. I did not consider that. But regardless, I still blame Dahuang for not intervening when he saw the two brothers clashing. Dahuang, do you agree?" Dahuang looked at her and gave a heavy nod.

"Master Xuanzhe," she continued, "how shall we arrange the search for Brother Xiaofan?"

"For now," Master Xuanzhe replied, "we must keep the fact that Wei Xiaofan is an enemy general a secret. If word reaches the King, it could lead to unnecessary speculation."

"I understand," Zhang Xiaoyan promised. "I will keep it confidential. But besides us and General Huang Xianlin, who else knows?"

"My disciple is also very discreet," Master Xuanwu said. "He likely knew of this last month but did not mention it until today. I believe only we and Huang Xianlin are aware."

Master Xuanzhe added, "According to Huang Xianlin, after they won the battle last month and returned to the gates of Twin Peaks City, Wei Xiaofan challenged him to a duel. Three other officers saw him then and noted that he looked exactly like Wei Xiaoping. So, there are three others who know. Brother, when Huang Xianlin returns, tell him to instruct those officers to keep this a secret."

"I will not wait for him to return," Master Xuanwu said. "I will head out now to meet him on the road."

"There is no need for such haste," Master Xuanzhe noted. "He should be reaching the camp soon. You can speak to him there."

"Master is right," Zhang Xiaoyan added. "Let us wait here and plan our next move together."

Master Xuanwu nodded and departed. As he left, Zhang Xiaoyan asked, "Master, will Brother Xiaoping truly wake up in ten days? Could we help him recover faster by channeling more true essence into him?"

"In theory, yes," Master Xuanzhe explained. "But he was injured only today; he cannot handle too much essence at once. When Dahuang brought him back, I stitched his wounds and channeled some energy into him. When I checked his pulse just now, I felt a significant increase. It seems your Master Xuanwu also contributed. Any more might be counterproductive."

Dahuang, hearing this, nudged Master Xuanzhe and then gently touched Xiaoping’s hand, mimicking the act of channeling energy before letting out a low, soft growl.

"Dahuang, you have also been channeling energy into him?" Master Xuanzhe asked in surprise. Dahuang nodded.

Master Xuanzhe checked Xiaoping’s complexion; it was ruddier than before. Observing the *Tiantu* acupoint, he saw it pulsing gently. His expression grew grave. "How strange... and how miraculous..."

Seeing his solemn face, Zhang Xiaoyan feared something had gone wrong. "Master, what is it? Is there something wrong with Xiaoping?"