The Gu worm, shaped like a string of Buddhist beads or human knuckles, was directly knocked away by a blow from the short stick. The momentum of the short stick did not cease, striking Zhao Sen as well.

As a cultivator of the Witchcraft Worm lineage, Zhao Sen did not prioritize his physical body, which was smashed to a pulp on the spot. However, Zhao Sen's vitality had not yet been extinguished.

Among the many Gu worms flying around, a face formed, resembling Zhao Sen as if reborn. In unison, they spoke human words, "Impressive!"

The person who struck was Lei Jun. In one hand, he held the short stick, while in the other, he took out and activated an Endless Sea of Fire Talisman. Immediately, intense flames continued to attack the numerous Gu worms. "Zhao Sen, is it? Your master, Tian Linlong, once offended my Dragon Tiger Mountain. Today I'm merely repaying the favor."

The Gu worms rapidly fled far away. "I recognize you too, Lei Jun from Dragon Tiger Mountain! One day, I will repay you too!"

The beleaguered monk finally managed to take a breath. Seeing the Relic Worm knocked away, but now escaping with the others, the monk quickly followed.

While suppressing the resurgence of the Seven Emotions Worm, he thanked Lei Jun, "This humble monk from Bodhi Temple, Ruyuan, is grateful for Master Lei's assistance."

Lei Jun replied, "No need for formalities, fellow practitioner. Let us pursue that heretic first."

As Zhao Sen fled for his life, the numerous Gu worms scattered in all directions. Monk Ruyuan, finding it difficult to discern which one bore Zhao Sen's true Spiritual Soul, followed closely after the Relic Worm after a moment's hesitation.

Lei Jun chose to pursue in another direction. After exterminating several Gu worms, he stopped and concealed his presence among the mountains on the eastern side of the Great Southern Mountain.

If he had truly intended, Zhao Sen would have had no chance to escape. But Lei Jun would not do so, of course.

He had deliberately left a survivor to spread the news about their whereabouts to the outside world, in order to attract the enemies lying in ambush on the western side of the Great Southern Mountain. Messages passed through a third party are more credible.

Not only Lei Jun, but later, Yuan Mobai's whereabouts also appeared within the mountain ranges on the eastern side of the Great Southern Mountain, as if, having received the message, he hurried to meet up with his disciple, Lei Jun.

Subsequently, indeed, rumors spread that the master and disciple, Yuan Mobai and Lei Jun, were spotted together in a valley on the eastern side of the Great Southern Mountain, seemingly searching for something.

Some time later, there were rumors that a Nine-colored Radiance from a Celestial Master Robe appeared near Chaoyang Peak, the main peak on the eastern side of the Great Southern Mountain.

The ones who saw the Nine-colored Radiance were from another major power in the Southern Wilderness: the Samsara Abyss of the Witchcraft Curse Lineage.

Years ago, the Southern Wilderness Witchcraft Sect had many entanglements with the Dragon Tiger Mountain Celestial Master Mansion.

Although the Samsara Abyss was not openly hostile to the Celestial Master Mansion like the Golden City Stronghold, their understanding of the Celestial Master Mansion from various experiences and observations was in no way inferior.

People from Yintuo Mountain and Samsara Abyss had personally confirmed the information regarding Yuan Mobai, Lei Jun, and clues about the Celestial Master Robe. Upon hearing this, both the mother-daughter pair of Ye Han and Ye Lingxi, as well as the Golden City Stronghold cultivators, frowned.

The current situation was not only that Yuan Mobai and his disciple had gone to the eastern section of the Great Southern Mountain; traces of the Celestial Master Robe might even be found there.

If this was a counter-trap by the Celestial Master Mansion to lure them, Ye Han had already received the latest news from the north: other members of the Celestial Master Mansion had not left the mountain. Meanwhile, the Tang Imperial Court was focused on the Scholarly Mansion and the Xiao Clan from outside the Long region.

"Could it be Xu Yuanzhen?" Ye Lingxi asked softly. "Could Yuan Mobai and his disciple have secretly made contact with her?"

Ye Han replied, "If that's the case, they would directly assault Lonely City Ridge. There would be no need for such deception."

She took out a scroll and started writing on the paper, "Our efforts at Lonely City Ridge have proven fruitless. Contact the people from Golden City Stronghold. Let's go together to the mountains on the eastern side of the Great Southern Mountain to take a look. If the Celestial Master Robe is indeed there, we can let Yuan Mobai and his disciple escape, but we cannot let them recover the Celestial Master Robe."

The Celestial Master Robe is not only a priceless treasure imbued with spiritual power but also holds vital importance for the Dragon Tiger Mountain Celestial Master Mansion: it harbors the complete inheritance of the Daoist Talisman Sect's Three Caverns and Three Realms Scripture.

With the Li Clan's four High Merit Elders having unexpectedly perished, and the whereabouts of both the Celestial Master Seal and Celestial Master Robe unknown, the Celestial Master Mansion had effectively lost the intact transmission of the Three Caverns and Three Realms Scripture. The Thunder Law Heavenly Scripture Talismans were temporarily lost to them.

For the Celestial Master Mansion, this was naturally a huge loss. If this were not so, Ye Han and her daughter would not have used news of the Celestial Master Robe as bait to collaborate with the powerful experts of Golden City Stronghold in an attempt to lure and kill the Celestial Master Mansion cultivators.

This rare opportunity had arisen, and they had to strive to widen it, not giving the Celestial Master Mansion a chance to seal it back up.

***

"Master, we can withdraw now."

Master and disciple Lei Jun had already left the mountain ranges on the eastern side of the Great Southern Mountain. Lei Jun looked back at the mountains behind him. "Later on, just pay attention to the news from the Southern Wilderness."

Yuan Mobai's face bore his usual smile. "Indeed, whatever happens next will no longer concern us."

To be honest, Lei Jun was somewhat curious about what threats lay hidden around Chaoyang Peak, the eastern main peak of the Great Southern Mountain.

Completely in the dark, he was also unsure whether Chaoyang Peak could spring a grand surprise for those from Lonely City Ridge.

He was equally unsure whether those pursuing from Lonely City Ridge would step into the bounds of Chaoyang Peak, or if, like him and his master, they would actually halt at its outskirts.

Yet Lei Jun had no desire to stay and confirm whether his plan had succeeded. It was a 'nothing ventured, nothing gained' sort of play; no need to confirm the outcome.

Even if the plan wasn't successful, it didn't matter, since neither he nor Yuan Mobai had fallen into the trap at Lonely City Ridge. Any further entertaining developments would be considered an extra surprise.

Thus, he and Yuan Mobai did not linger any longer in the Southern Wilderness. With great care to avoid exposing their whereabouts, they disappeared without a trace and set out to return north. Master and disciple also decided not to return to the Dragon Tiger Mountain Ancestral Court for the time being. Instead, they found a scenic spot outside Xinzhou to stay, calmly enjoying the landscape while leisurely awaiting the latest news from the Southern Wilderness.

Nobody knew they had left the Great Southern Mountain.

At this time, the people from the Jinzhou Ye Clan who had traveled south, along with the experts from the Sacred Land of the Witchcraft Sect's Ghost Tao Lineage of Golden City Stronghold, were delving deeper into the eastern side of the Great Southern Mountain.

Following the traces where Lei Jun and Yuan Mobai had once appeared, they gradually approached the vicinity of Chaoyang Peak, the main peak on the eastern side.

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