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North of Qingdu, ten miles away lay a relatively gentle slope, nestled against dense forests and streams, alongside the sunset and evening glow.
In the twilight, one could see various sizes of military tents stationed on the high southern face of the slope.
At the center, surrounded by the multitude of tents, was a gigantic blue-gray beast hide tent, unmistakably the central military tent.
Inside the tent.
"Commander."
Deputy Commander Chu stood inside the tent and respectfully said, "Today, I have scrutinized every suspicious person within the area of Qingdu. The details have also been docunted, but we haven't found any clues worth further investigation."
Behind the main desk was a large couch.
On the couch reclined a tall woman, wearing a silver mask that covered most of her face, revealing only a delicate chin and lips. Beneath her crimson war robe, she wore tight-fitting undergarnts that clung to her body, accentuating her graceful figure.
Although not wearing armor or helt, she exuded an aura of bravery and fierce intensity, like a blazing fire.
She was indeed the commander defending the northwestern Heroic Pass, leading an army of 150,000 at the border!
Baili Fengzhi.
The na had long echoed across the northwest regions of Liangzhou.
At this mont, Baili Fengzhi lay in a slightly lazy manner on the couch, quietly listening to the deputy's report, her phoenix eyes partially closed in languor under the mask.
After Deputy Commander Chu finished speaking, she slowly sat up, adjusted her mask, then spoke in a calm voice, "Of all the clues you've ntioned, there is one whose suspicious nature has already been confird."
"Already confird?"
Deputy Commander Chu was slightly taken aback and couldn't help but ask, "I wonder which clue the commander is referring to?"
Baili Fengzhi said indifferently, "On the third day of June, when Xia Lie was about to sever Lin Yue's tendons, Xia Lie's guard suddenly released Lin Yue and returned swiftly to Xia Lie's side as if facing a formidable enemy. They then left with Xia Lie, correct?"
"Yes."
Deputy Commander Chu nodded and said, "The Daoist monastery in this small city of Qingdu only has so Taoists with minor cultivation, posing no threat to a martial cultivator. Perhaps your dispatched guard felt that Young Master Xia Lie's actions were inappropriate and was unwilling to harm the innocent, pretending to discover danger to take young master Xia Lie away..."
"You are wrong."
Baili Fengzhi interrupted, speaking slowly, "That guard is my trusted aide whom I've nurtured for many years. My order to him was to treat facing Xia Lie as if I were personally present, to follow all his commands while ensuring his safety."
Deputy Commander Chu was stunned.
Only then did he understand, murmuring, "So, the guard must indeed have discovered danger, thus releasing Lin Yue to prioritize protecting Young Master Xia Lie?"
"Exactly."
Baili Fengzhi nodded slightly, speaking indifferently, "Thus, if Lin Yue himself wasn't the problem, then there must be a hidden expert within that Daoist monastery, who sohow made the guard sense their presence and threat at that ti."
Deputy Commander Chu pondered for a mont, then said, "Your dispatched guard is a martial cultivator, having already broken through the constraints of the Five Elents Heavenly Barrier. Yet the opponent was able to instill a strong sense of threat without even revealing themselves, suggesting that the person hiding in the monastery has a much higher level of cultivation, perhaps having touched upon an even higher layer of the Heavenly Barrier?"
"Higher is not beyond possibility."
Baili Fengzhi's bright eyes slightly narrowed as she tapped her fingertips gently on the edge of the couch.
"How could a small Qingdu conceal such an individual?"
Deputy Commander Chu shook his head in disbelief and said, "Such an individual, even if not cultivating quietly in a Blessed Land, should be in the Gathering Spirit Land of the State City, shouldn't they?"
"What indeed, remains to be seen."
Baili Fengzhi spoke indifferently, "But my dispatched guard, adept at fleeing and protecting, disappeared without a trace. I fear he has t untily demise, and the perpetrator's cultivation either far exceeded his or their thods were exceedingly strange and hard to defend against."
Deputy Commander Chu knitted his brows slightly and said, "My lord, I carefully sensed Lin Yue's breathing, heartbeat, pulse, and physique—all rely mortal."
"Are you certain about what you sensed?"
Baili Fengzhi said slowly, "In this world, various cultivation techniques exist, so adept at concealing and hiding, and it wouldn't be difficult to disguise as a mortal."
She paused, then continued, "However, Lin Yue's dossier is quite clean, and his history matches from childhood. Perhaps he really is just a mortal, thus the greatest issue should be with that Daoist monastery; Xia Lie's disappearance and it are inevitably linked."
Deputy Commander Chu hesitated for a mont, then said, "My lord, do you an to send troops to take action against that Daoist monastery?"
Baili Fengzhi nodded with a calm expression and said, "Yes, that is my intention."
"My lord, please reconsider."
Deputy Commander Chu couldn't help but say, "After all, it's the Qingdu Daoist monastery. Although small, it still concerns the face of Daoist lineage. You entered Qingdu with your personal guards and can find so excuses afterward, but taking action against the monastery, that might..."
"None of these matters."
Baili Fengzhi spoke indifferently, "Compared to Xia Lie's safety, none of these matters. Even if I can no longer hold this position as commander, finding Xia Lie is imperative; if he dies because of this... then it will be a huge trouble."
Deputy Commander Chu froze for a mont, not expecting the commander to value Young Master Xia Lie so highly?
Even at the cost of relinquishing the commander's position?
Unable to comprehend, he couldn't help but say, "But, my lord, didn't you just ntion that the guard might have already t with misfortune? Perhaps Young Master Xia Lie also..."
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