"Unknowingly, I've fallen asleep again!"
The Daoist looked around in confusion for a while before muttering to himself.
Then, he suddenly looked in a certain direction.
"Hmm? There's an extremely familiar aura over there. This is..."
For a moment, he was lost in thought again. His long slumber had made it impossible for him to remember too many things at once. He remembered that it didn't seem to have been long since he last fell asleep.
"Didn't that disciple of mine leave? How come this aura seems to be what he left behind? Could it be that I just fell asleep?"
Thinking of this, the Daoist immediately took a step forward, and his figure flickered and disappeared without a trace.
Just like that, he casually walked out of the "Sacred Demon Palace's" sect-protecting grand formation, which even Xiahou Shangxie was wary of.
All of this went completely unnoticed even by the Spirit Transformation cultivator on duty in the "Sacred Demon Palace" at this time.
The Daoist's figure turned into a void, without a trace of aura, and instantly passed through the multiple restrictions of the "Sacred Demon Palace."
It was as if he were entering an uninhabited land. Sensing the familiar aura, he soon appeared in the sky above the dense forest behind the "Sacred Demon Palace."
As he hovered in the air, he looked at the multiple restrictions opened below. Without a trace of hesitation, he took a step down from the sky.
Then, his figure merged into the dense forest below like flowing water.
This place, which the white-haired youth and the beautiful woman regarded as the strongest defense of the "Sacred Demon Palace," also gave no warning from any of its restrictions.
Above the large tree where the white-haired youth was, the Daoist's figure appeared. He stood on a branch, silent and traceless, like a true ghost.
His eyes were fixed on the white sphere of light below, which was so bright that it was impossible to look at directly. The blazing white light that could blind a person's eyes caused him no harm at all.
Looking at the speck of dust in the demonic face's single eye, many memories suddenly flooded into the Daoist's mind like a tide, but there were still many gaps.
"This is... this is... 'Earthen Patch'? Ping Tu?"
The Daoist still remembered many things. Although his memory was fragmented, information about "Earthen Patch" and Ping Tu was all contained within it.
The next moment, he immediately released a wisp of Divine Sense and shot it directly towards the white sphere of light.
And as for someone being above their heads and using Divine Sense to probe the area of their spellcasting, even with the late-stage Spirit Transformation cultivation of the white-haired youth and the beautiful woman, they were completely unaware.
Inside the "Earthen Patch" space, Li Yan and the others stared unblinkingly at the ever-increasing layers of clouds formed by thin lines in the sky. To say they weren't nervous would be a lie.
Zhao Min and the two demons occasionally glanced at Li Yan. Seeing his calm expression, they felt slightly relieved.
But at this moment, a look of astonishment suddenly appeared on Li Yan's constantly calm face. The aura on his body suddenly surged like boiling water.
Just a moment ago, he had sensed a faint, unfamiliar aura appear in the "Earthen Patch" space.
He was connected to the "Earthen Patch." Every blade of grass, every tree, every speck of dust, and every grain of sand here was under his control. No change could escape his senses.
"Did the other party break the restriction?"
Li Yan's aura surged violently. As long as he confirmed that the situation was not right, he would immediately choose to self-destruct. He had never thought that he would have a chance to escape under a broken restriction.
The one person and two demons at his side also immediately sensed Li Yan's abnormality, but their Divine Senses found nothing except for the increasing number of thin white clouds in the sky.
And just as they were puzzled, panic appeared on all their faces, because in those white clouds in the sky, a face suddenly appeared—the face of a middle-aged man.
A fierce resolve flashed in Li Yan's eyes. In an instant, his body swelled up.
His face was already bulging and distorted. In his haste, he looked at Zhao Min.
"Min'er, I can only take a trip to the underworld with you..." At the last moment, Li Yan did not say the words "Senior Sister" again. But before his voice transmission was finished, his swelling body paused, and Li Yan's face immediately changed color.
His reaction just now had been extremely fast. All of this had happened in a flash. The moment that face appeared, he had activated his energy, not even thinking of resisting the other party.
Now, the other party had only just sent in a wisp of Divine Sense and had not yet completely broken the "Earthen Patch's" restriction. Everything here was still under his control, so Li Yan was confident he could destroy his own soul.
But why was he suddenly imprisoned? How could he not be utterly horrified?
On the side, Zhao Min had just seen a still-blurry face when Li Yan's voice transmission came. Before she could turn her head, her entire body was immediately imprisoned by a force.
Then, Li Yan's voice transmission came to an abrupt end.
"Eh, it's not Ping Tu, but it is a human cultivator after all!"
The face had become clearer and clearer. The moment he appeared, he had noticed Li Yan's attempt to self-destruct.
He opened his mouth and blew gently. A gentle breeze immediately swept over the area where Li Yan and the others were standing, imprisoning the two people and two demons.
Although this face's voice was not loud, the words spoken still fell into the ears of the people below. At this moment, besides the extreme fear in their hearts, Zhao Min and the two demons couldn't move their bodies at all, let alone understand what the other party was saying. They had never dreamed that this face would appear and easily subdue them.
But these words falling into Li Yan's ears were undoubtedly like a flash of lightning in the dark night. The mix of shock and anger in his heart was shaken by a name in the words.
'Ping Tu? He said Ping Tu?'
Li Yan felt that he hadn't misheard, but he was also worried that he had been intimidated by the other party's great divine ability.
For the other party to be able to easily subdue him while the "Earthen Patch" was still in his hands, had he produced a hallucination under extreme terror?
For a time, the people below were all in a deathly silence.
"Little one, don't think about self-destructing. You can't do it. Hmm, let me see..."
As he spoke, two strange lights appeared in the eyes of the face, like two lamps cast from gold, shooting straight at Li Yan's body.
Li Yan only felt as if something had entered his body and then began to swim around rapidly.
He felt that in an instant, everything about him had been seen clearly by the other party.
This process was extremely short. In just that one instant, the strange light in the eyes of the face in the sky moved away from Li Yan's body.
Then, it looked at Zhao Min and the two demons in the same way. Then, the strange light in his eyes disappeared completely. A smile appeared on his face as he looked at Li Yan again.
"I was wondering how Ping Tu could have lost this thing, hehehe...
You have a five-colored lotus throne in your dantian: black, green, crimson, yellow, and white, with the black petals being the main ones. You are cultivating the 'True Scripture of Gui Water.'
You are a successor of the Gui Water Immortal Sect. Do you know True Lord Heishui? Or his two disciples?
Hmm, it's not necessarily these three. Perhaps others have joined the Gui Water Immortal Sect in the meantime. You might be a later disciple."
The face in the sky had already switched to voice transmission, and at the same time, Li Yan felt the magical power in his body instantly return to normal.
"This junior is a successor of Dong Fuyi!"
Hearing the other party's voice transmission, and that the words spoken were his greatest secrets, Li Yan's face actually regained its composure, and his eyes shone brightly.
"Oh, so you're a successor of Dong Fuyi. You're the only successor of the Five Immortal Sects here. Who is the woman beside you? Little one, I imagine you've guessed my identity."
The face saw that the aura on Li Yan's body was no longer surging. The expression on his face also relaxed, and he continued to speak with great interest via voice transmission.
"That person is my Senior Sister, but she is not from the Five Immortal Sects. If it's not too much trouble, I can explain everything.
Since you know of Ping Tu and the Five Immortal Sects, you must be Senior True Lord Qianchong or his disciple, Senior Brother Pei Buchong."
While transmitting his voice, Li Yan's body had quickly returned to normal, but he still couldn't move.
When the other party mentioned Ping Tu, Li Yan had thought of the two from the Ji Earth Immortal Sect, but he wasn't sure who it was, so he still referred to himself as "this junior."
Moreover, the other party had directly mentioned the name of the Five Immortal Sects. More importantly, the "Earthen Patch" was a magical treasure he had refined with his own blood.
To be able to so easily enter and control him before removing his Divine Sense imprint from the "Earthen Patch," it could only be those two from the Ji Earth Immortal Sect.
Li Yan would not have been surprised if the other party had left any hidden tricks on this magical treasure.
Although he seemed to have regained his composure on the surface, his heart was actually filled with uncertainty. There were many questions he couldn't figure out.
This matter had come too coincidentally, too unexpectedly.
'If my deduction is correct, the two Supreme Elders of the 'Sacred Demon Palace' should be outside breaking the restriction. Why would I encounter someone from the Ji Earth Immortal Sect...'
However, Li Yan was also overjoyed. Based on Ping Tu's attitude towards him back then, he already knew that the Five Immortal Sects were like Branches of the Same Breath. Perhaps a turning point had appeared for his escape this time.
The moment Li Yan's voice transmission ended, the bodies of the two people and two demons, including Li Yan, trembled slightly, and then the imprisoning force all disappeared.
"Don't panic. I have some connection with him. You all just stand to the side for now."
The face in the sky looked down and said to Zhao Min and the two demons.
The moment Li Yan's body was freed, he already knew he had guessed correctly. The other party's seemingly gentle inquiry just now was actually hiding murderous intent.
If he had been a fake disciple of the Gui Water Immortal Sect, everyone here would have been deader than dead.
The reason the other party had not only mentioned the 'True Scripture of Gui Water' in his first question but also the names of Ping Tu and one of the three from the Gui Water Immortal Sect was, firstly, to tell Li Yan that he really understood the Five Immortal Sects, so as to dispel Li Yan's misgivings.
As a disciple of the Five Immortal Sects, Li Yan would definitely treat this matter as his greatest secret and would not easily trust others.
Secondly, it was to set a trap to find out Li Yan's origin.
If Li Yan had answered that he was a disciple of True Lord Heishui, then he would have continued to ask other questions.
The Five Immortal Sects were a piece of information that everyone in the Immortal Spirit Realm wanted to find out about. Neither side would easily trust a stranger.
The other party's last question was also to make a final confirmation. If Li Yan had obtained the legacy of the Five Immortal Sects by chance, then it might be that something had happened to Ping Tu.
A person who had normally obtained the "Earthen Patch" must have been approved by Ping Tu, so Ping Tu would definitely have told them about the origin of the Ji Earth Immortal Sect in the mortal world.
It wasn't until Li Yan mentioned True Lord Qianchong and Pei Buchong that the other party truly confirmed Li Yan's inherited identity.
Otherwise, the life and death of every living being here would have been in the other party's hands just now.
After being released from their imprisonment and hearing the words of the face in the sky, Zhao Min gave Li Yan a serious look. Li Yan nodded to her.
"Senior Sister, I do have some connection with him!"
Although Li Yan didn't explain further, Zhao Min didn't press. She then walked to the side. She knew that the two of them had either communicated via voice transmission just now or had shielded their six senses.
'Weren't the attackers outside the Supreme Elders that Dao Yu found? How could this face suddenly enter here?
If the two Supreme Elders are outside, how did this face manage to bypass their senses...'
One question after another quickly surfaced in Zhao Min's mind, but she just thought about them silently. Behind her, Zi Kun and Qian Ji also walked with fear on their faces, glancing at the face in the sky...