...

His aura no longer focused inward. With each breath he took, he could almost hear waves crashing within his spiritual ocean. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

He felt much better now than before, and decided to go into meditation, both to familiarize himself with his Heavenly Dao Foundation and Heavenly Dao Halo, and also to wait for Du Lingfei.

Two hours passed, and Du Lingfei still hadn't come back. Yan Xiaobao opened his eyes, feeling a bit nervous.

"She still isn't back?" he thought. He took out a transmission jade and sent her a message, but it was like throwing a stone into the sea. There was simply no response at all.

"What happened?!" He leaped to his feet and immediately began searching the area. By evening he had been all over the place, but hadn't found the slightest trace… Du Lingfei… had vanished!

At that point, he was consumed by anxiety and felt that something bad must have happened. His face was ashen, his eyes bloodshot, and he expanded his search range.

"Where are you, Lingfei!?"

"Du Lingfei, where are you?!?!"

"Du Lingfei…" For four days straight he searched, everywhere he could think of. Soon his hair was disheveled and he looked like he'd grown thin. And yet, Du Lingfei was nowhere to be found.

"Did I say something wrong, Lingfei? Why are you hiding from me? Tell me!"

"Du Lingfei, come out, wherever you are!"

"What happened!?"

By now he was practically driven mad by anxiety. In the end, he returned to the cave where he had last seen her and searched the entire place with a fine‑toothed comb. Unfortunately, the result was the same as before.

He wasn't sure why, but his heart hurt. It felt as if someone had torn it to shreds, a feeling unlike anything he had ever experienced. His hands clutched tightly at his belly as he recalled how he had fallen asleep for no apparent reason, and then his heart suddenly sank. Eventually, a blankness appeared in his eyes.

**

The fact that Yan Xiaobao had been gone so long without returning caused the sect to send out more people to look for him. Hou Yunfei, like the other important disciples from the North and South Shores, led a team. Even Li Qinghou helped.

When they finally found him, he was sitting outside that cave, his eyes bloodshot, his face haggard. He looked utterly heartsick.

When Li Qinghou saw him, a pang of pain stabbed his heart and he asked, "Xiao Chun, what happened?!"

Yan Xiaobao trembled. His eyes empty, he turned to look at Li Qinghou and whispered, "Uncle Li, Du Lingfei… is gone." As he was escorted back to the Spiritual Sect, Yan Xiaobao remained silent. From time to time he would look back over his shoulder in the direction of the cave where Du Lingfei had disappeared.

Li Qinghou ordered the Spirit Creek Sect and the Cultivation Tribes to search for Du Lingfei. However, not a single clue appeared. It was as if she had vanished into thin air.

This strange turn of events was even taken seriously by the upper echelons of the Spiritual Sect's leadership.

Because of Du Lingfei's disappearance, Yan Xiaobao lost all excitement upon reaching the Heavenly Dao Foundation.

The sect held a grand ceremony, and Yan Xiaobao's name gradually became known throughout the cultivation world of the downstream eastern region. News of the violent struggle for the massive energy in the Fallen Sword World spread, and soon people were saying that Yan Xiaobao had surpassed Master Wu Xian.

However, Yan Xiaobao didn't really care about any of that.

He received enormous rewards from the sect, and when other disciples looked at him, their eyes shone with respect. Even the main elders and Clan Leaders gazed at him with admiration. Yet inside, he was filled with disappointment.

At the grand ceremony held by the sect, Yan Xiaobao revealed the corpses of the disciples who had perished in the Fallen Sword World. Everything fell silent. The Peak Lords and the Sect Leader looked on in grief, as did the elders of Daoseed Mountain.

After the ceremony ended, many people realized that Yan Xiaobao seemed much quieter than before. It was as though he had forgotten things like glory and pride. People would often see him alone on Fragrant Cloud Peak, looking lost.

He was like a different person, and many disciples close to him found it frightening.

Brussel ran over from the North Shore. Clearly able to sense Yan Xiaobao's dark mood, he simply sat beside him to keep him company.

Fatty Zhang came several times, but never knew what to say, and could only sit there sighing. Hou Yunfei also visited him, keeping him company in silence.

Hou Xiaomei came to comfort him, as if to remind him that even if Du Lingfei was gone, she was still there.

"Big Bro Xiao Chun, I won't disappear…"

Xu Baocai brought lots of rumors. For example, Gongsun Wan'er had gone missing, but her soul lamp hadn't gone out. Her elder brother Gongsun Yun was frantically searching for her, but had never been able to find her.

Xu Baocai had spoken with all the disciples who returned from the three Foundation Holy Lands, and compiled all the information into a comprehensive report. He had also obtained information from other sects about all the electors.

"Uncle Bai, you might not have heard. While you were in the Fallen Sword World, one of the chosen Gods suddenly rose up with an original spirit hollow. He was a miraculous disciple from Pill Stream Sect!

"His name is Lin Mu, and in the trial he proved himself a true dark horse. The character 'Mu' in his name is the same character as in the word 'tomb'! He actually mastered Pill Stream Sect's most powerful Magic, the Primeval Medicinal Daoseed Incantation! Only later did many of the Pill Stream Sect disciples realize that he had secretly been planting Daoseeds in them. In the end, he reached the Earthstring Foundation with eight Tideflows!"