She found a few more vines, tied them together, and wrapped the line around her waist.

Once she was sure they wouldn’t break, Zhou Qingmei leaped straight down.

Fang Shuwen gripped the vines, standing a short distance from the mouth of the hole, and slowly paid out the line.

After a moment, Fang Shuwen heard the surprised voice of Senior Sister Lu from below:

"Qingmei, what are you doing down here?

"Who’s up there?"

"Let’s get up there first, we can talk later."

There was no time to waste. Without explaining further, Zhou Qingmei braced herself and shouted up to Fang Shuwen:

"Brother Fang, pull us up!"

Fang Shuwen said nothing. With a slight tug, two figures shot up to the mouth of the hole with a WHOOSH. With another flick of his wrist, he pulled them from the opening and into the air.

With Senior Sister Lu in her arms, Zhou Qingmei tapped a foot against the air, using her Lightweight Technique to land beside Fang Shuwen.

In the dark of night, this Senior Sister Lu was dressed in green. Her features weren’t stunning, but her tranquil and refined aura was something no ordinary woman could match.

Zhou Qingmei set her down, but the woman kept her eyes on Fang Shuwen as she asked,

"Qingmei, who is this?"

"This is Brother Fang."

Zhou Qingmei wanted to explain the situation, but felt it was too complicated for a few words. Instead, she turned to Fang Shuwen and said directly:

"Brother Fang, this is the one I told you about—Lu Xiaoqing, my Senior Sister Lu.

"She’s been struck by the Black Death Demon Technique. Can you see if there’s any hope for her?"

Lu Xiaoqing gave Zhou Qingmei a stunned look, then shook her head.

"Don’t waste your energy. The Black Death True Qi from the Black Death Demon Technique destroys one’s foundation and ruins their cultivation. A recovery is impossible...

"Hey? What are you doing?"

Fang Shuwen had no interest in wasting time on chatter. He walked directly behind her and pressed a palm to her back.

The Black Death True Qi’s corrosion of her meridians was indeed severe, but it was no challenge for Fang Shuwen.

He glanced at Zhou Qingmei.

"This will probably take some time."

"Then I’ll have to trouble you, Brother Fang."

Zhou Qingmei cupped her fists.

Lu Xiaoqing:

"..."

’So, is anyone actually listening to me?’

’Just who is this ’Brother Fang’?’

’How dare they underestimate the Black Death Demon Technique like this? Instead of wasting effort here, they should be rushing back to Zhuji Pavilion...’

Lu Xiaoqing was about to lecture them, to tell Fang Shuwen not to waste his time.

But in the next instant, a profound and potent Inner Strength flowed into her body.

The areas corroded by the Black Death True Qi were instantly soothed.

She swallowed the words she was about to say, obediently focusing her mind. She even began to actively guide Fang Shuwen’s Inner Strength as it coursed through her.

With Lu Xiaoqing’s cooperation, the healing process sped up considerably.

Less than an hour later, the Black Death True Qi in Lu Xiaoqing’s body had been completely swept away.

Lu Xiaoqing opened her eyes, which now shone with a clear light. When she turned to look at Fang Shuwen, her face was filled with gratitude:

"Thank you for expending your Inner Strength to save me, brother... This great kindness, Lu Xiaoqing will never forget!!"

"Don’t mention it... It wasn’t much of a drain, after all."

"Not... not much of a drain?"

Lu Xiaoqing was stunned. As the one who had been saved, she knew exactly how much Inner Strength Fang Shuwen had used.

Even her own master would have been severely drained after using that much Inner Strength to heal someone.

’Fang Shuwen is so young. He must be completely spent by now, right?’

’How could it be "not much of a drain"?’

’Is he just being stubborn because he’s young?’

Fang Shuwen didn’t bother to explain. ’Should he tell her just how profound his Inner Strength was? That this expenditure was merely a drop in the ocean?’

’That would be too much of a humblebrag.’

Fang Shuwen wasn’t that kind of person.

He simply called Zhou Qingmei over.

"Your senior sister has several broken bones. I’m going to find something to make a splint.

"You two can catch up. Once her injuries are dealt with, we’ll get back on the road.

"If you need anything, just shout."

"Alright."

Zhou Qingmei nodded immediately.

While Fang Shuwen went to look for materials for a splint, Zhou Qingmei asked Lu Xiaoqing what had happened.

Lu Xiaoqing’s story wasn’t complicated.

Zhuji Pavilion had been entrenched on Jiuning Mountain for many years and had plenty of eyes and ears in the vicinity.

She had received word before the Yunfei Escort Agency’s scheduled arrival. Knowing the Escort Agency was from Julu City, she suspected her junior sister, Zhou Qingmei, had sent something with them.

When they didn’t arrive at the expected time, she came down the mountain to investigate.

She happened to find the members of the Yunfei Escort Agency killed nearby, and then she ran into Li Nanchen.

At the time, she didn’t suspect Li Nanchen. She just described the situation and was about to inspect the bodies for injuries.

But Li Nanchen seized the opportunity to ambush her.

Lu Xiaoqing was the second-strongest expert of her generation, but Li Nanchen was the first.

Even without the ambush, Lu Xiaoqing might not have been his match.

After the surprise attack, he completely overwhelmed her. Unexpectedly, the ground in the seemingly ordinary area was extremely weak, and she was knocked straight into a subterranean cavern.

The cavern seemed bottomless. Li Nanchen looked down and assumed she had fallen to her death.

Who could have known she had actually landed on a Half Cliff.

However, she had passed out upon impact.

She only regained consciousness several days later.

In all that time, she hadn’t had a single drop of water... If not for her profound Inner Strength, she would have died long ago.

But having struggled to survive this long, she was now completely spent.

The Black Death True Qi tormenting her body caused her to drift in and out of consciousness.

Whenever she was conscious, she would do what she could and leave the rest to fate, crying for help. Her calls sounded feeble because she truly was feeble.

She would pass out, wake up, and start calling again.

’Anyway, I wasn’t dead yet, so I had to struggle a bit. What if someone heard me?’

And as it turned out, Fang Shuwen had heard her.

After giving a rough account of what happened, Lu Xiaoqing said weakly:

"Li Nanchen is secretly cultivating the Black Death Demon Technique. This must mean the Black Death Sect is reviving, and there might be other traitors in our sect colluding with them.

"We must report this to the sect immediately. First, we need to capture Li Nanchen and torture a confession out of him!"

"Li Nanchen is the Young Sect Leader of the Black Death Sect."

Fang Shuwen had returned, now holding several scabbards and some strips of cloth.

He had scavenged them from the bodies of the Yunfei Escort Agency members.

"Besides him, Zhang Fang is also one of the Black Death Sect."

Lu Xiaoqing’s story helped piece together what had happened here.

Li Nanchen must have found the Yunfei Escort Agency and intercepted the letter. After he ambushed Lu Xiaoqing, he must have used a carrier pigeon, or some other secret Black Death Sect communication method, to send orders to Zhang Fang.

That’s why Zhang Fang was able to reach Guangning City when he did.

"What?" 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Lu Xiaoqing’s face changed when she heard that Zhang Fang was also one of the Black Death Cult Members.

"How can this be?"

Zhou Qingmei took the scabbards and began setting and splinting Lu Xiaoqing’s bones.

As she worked, she recounted her and Fang Shuwen’s journey.

Fang Shuwen added,

"From what Zhang Fang said, they plan to make their move within the next few days. That’s why we’ve been rushing back.

"I just don’t know what’s so special about these next few days."

"Special..."

Lu Xiaoqing’s head shot up.

"What’s the date today?"

Zhou Qingmei answered immediately.

"The sixth."

"The sixth... Then tomorrow is the day the Pavilion Master and the Elders go to the Profound Secret Cave on the back mountain to enter seclusion and study the Hundred Interpretations Scripture.

"As the head disciple of Zhuji Pavilion, Li Nanchen will be left in charge of all sect affairs!"