Li Minghan quickly arrived at the alchemy room.
"Immortal Master Shentu?"
O Shinan looked puzzled as he saw someone enter.
Li Minghan didn't respond. He stood there with a stern expression, scrutinizing O Shinan.
Seeing Li Minghan's reaction, O Shinan's curiosity was piqued. He stood up and examined him from head to toe, a smile tugging at his lips. His previously gentle eyes turned into something more sinister.
"Why are you here?"
"Did you kill my father?" Li Minghan's voice was cold, cutting straight to the point.
"Your father? I thought you had long severed ties with that man?" O Shinan said nonchalantly, fanning himself.
"Did you kill my father?" Li Minghan's clenched fists trembled with suppressed rage.
Hearing the anger in Li Minghan's voice, O Shinan chuckled lightly. He waved his fan, and after a moment's contemplation, he answered, "Yes."
"Brother Minghan, you can't blame me. Your father meddled where he shouldn't have, trying to retrieve something the Medicine King left at Mirror Cloud Residence. I couldn't let him live. You know, only dead men keep secrets. With him gone, no one else knows the Medicine King's secret. I did it for us," O Shinan explained slowly, his tone dripping with feigned sincerity.
"My father was a descendant of the Dragon Clan. How could someone like you defeat him?" Li Minghan demanded.
"Everything in the world has its weaknesses. The greatest weakness of the Dragon Clan is the blood of the Celestial Hound Clan. I happened to kill one of their kind during my travels and used its remains to craft a weapon. It came in handy," O Shinan said, showing the weapon used to kill Yanding Dragon King.
"O Shinan! You despicable scum!"
"You know, I have a penchant for collecting rare treasures. This bloodthirsty short dagger had yet to see any action until now. Testing it on your father was quite satisfying. Besides, hadn't you already broken ties with the old dragon king? I did you a favor, eliminated a potential threat. Once your brother is gone, you can return to rule the dragon palace," O Shinan taunted.
Unable to control his fury, Li Minghan attacked with all his might, "O Shinan, you bastard!"
O Shinan quickly retreated, his expression teasing. As if calculated, he stopped by a half-open window, allowing Li Minghan's attack to hit his shoulder and sending him flying out the window.
The sound of shattering glass echoed as O Shinan landed outside, right in front of the approaching Li Luoning and Yue Ruling.
Seeing Li Luoning nearby, O Shinan's expression changed to one of terror, pleading for his life, "Don't kill me, don't kill me," as he dragged himself backward.
Hearing footsteps, Li Minghan used a spell to conceal his face with a mask again.
"Immortal Master Shentu!" Yue Ruling instinctively rushed to check on O Shinan, sensing danger from the alchemy room and jumping inside.
"Immortal Master Shentu, there's... there's someone inside..." O Shinan pretended to be weak, using his energy to block his pulse.
Li Luoning checked O Shinan's pulse, trying to assess his injuries. Before he could finish, Yue Ruling was thrown out of the room.
Li Luoning quickly set O Shinan aside and caught Yue Ruling before she hit the ground.
Yue Ruling, blood trickling from her mouth, tried to stand but collapsed again, unable to muster any strength. She didn't know that O Shinan had secretly hit her pressure point with a small stone, rendering her powerless.
Li Minghan slowly emerged from the room. The fight had caused his mask to crack and fall off, revealing his face. Yue Ruling was shocked, looking between Li Luoning and Li Minghan.
Li Minghan glanced at O Shinan, then coldly turned his gaze to Li Luoning.
"It seems you're all here. Saves me a trip," Li Minghan said, his eyes filled with murderous intent. He summoned dark energy, forming a black whip that crackled with lightning.
"Cloud Wing Whip! What's your relationship with Yanding Dragon King?" Li Luoning recognized the weapon, having seen it in Yanding Dragon King's study.
"My relationship with the dragon king is none of your business. But aren't you curious about our connection?" Li Minghan said, stepping closer to Li Luoning.
Li Luoning seemed prepared for this encounter but hadn't expected it to happen this way. He took two steps forward, shielding Yue Ruling.
"My grudge with you isn't ready to be settled today. I'm here for him," Li Minghan pointed at O Shinan.
"I have no enmity with you. You killed my father, the Medicine King, and now you want to silence me. What is your motive?" O Shinan asked weakly.
"Ha, you think they can protect you? Do you really believe they can save you?" Li Minghan sneered.
"What do you want?" Li Luoning asked.
"I want his life," Li Minghan said, swinging his whip towards O Shinan.
"Immortal Master Shentu, save me," O Shinan cried.
Li Luoning summoned his sword, deflecting Li Minghan's whip.
Li Minghan flicked his wrist, knocking the sword aside, and aimed another blow at O Shinan.
Li Luoning blocked again, trying to keep the whip from reaching O Shinan. Despite his decent cultivation, Li Luoning was weakened from transferring his power to clear Mi Xingzhe's name and was now struggling against Li Minghan's relentless attacks.
Within a few moves, Li Minghan's Cloud Wing Whip had wrapped tightly around Li Luoning's sword.
"Since you're so eager to meddle, I'll send you off early," Li Minghan said, summoning dark energy laced with frost, aiming it at Li Luoning.
With his sword bound, Li Luoning could only create a barrier to protect himself and O Shinan. The shield began to crack under the pressure of Li Minghan's attack.
"Li Luoning, if you're so keen to die, I'll grant your wish!" Li Minghan shouted, unleashing a powerful spell at Li Luoning.
"Master, be careful!"
Hearing Mi Xingzhe's voice, Li Luoning's pupils contracted in shock as he turned around in a panic. Mi Xingzhe was flying towards him, throwing himself into the path of the attack.
Li Luoning tried to stop him, but it was too late.
In a flash of lightning, the surroundings were enveloped in black mist, occasionally illuminated by flashes of lightning that encapsulated everyone.
Li Luoning watched helplessly as Mi Xingzhe was struck by Li Minghan's spell and enveloped in the black smoke. Then, a strong golden light burst forth, blinding him momentarily.
When he regained his sight, Mi Xingzhe was standing before him, protected by a powerful barrier that repelled Li Minghan's spell.
As the two opposing forces clashed, the wind blew Mi Xingzhe's hair, revealing a mark on the back of his neck.
"The Floating Light Golden Seal!" Li Luoning was shocked when he saw the mark.
Mi Xingzhe stood with his eyes closed, hands extended forward. He had expected to die but was surprised to find that he had unleashed such immense power.
Both his hands and the mark on his neck glowed with the same golden light.
"The Floating Light Golden Seal!" Li Minghan was equally stunned.
The protective power of the Floating Light Golden Seal not only shielded Li Luoning and the others but also blasted Li Minghan several meters away.
[This kid has the Floating Light Golden Seal within him. How did I not detect it earlier? The power of this seal is formidable; I can't break it alone. It seems I must return to Wuming Demon Mountain and plan anew.] Li Minghan thought, wiping the blood from his mouth, glancing resentfully at O Shinan before turning into a wisp of black smoke and vanishing.
"Master, are you alright?" Mi Xingzhe hurried over to check on Li Luoning after Li Minghan left.
"I'm fine."
"Sister Yue Ruling!" Mi Xingzhe rushed to help Yue Ruling up.
"Little brother, what are you doing here?" Yue Ruling was surprised to see Mi Xingzhe.
"I just..." Mi Xingzhe began to explain but was interrupted by the voice of Qingyuan from behind.
"What happened here?" Qingyuan asked.
"Master? Why are you here?" Yue Ruling asked.
"I sensed demonic energy entering The Liao Yin Immortal Realm while I was at the Lian Zhan Pavilion. As I searched, I heard the sound of battle and came here. What happened?" Qingyuan asked.
In the Shangqing Hall, SiTu Fanzhi listened to their report.
"So, it turns out Immortal Master Shentu has a twin brother." SiTu Fanzhi said.
"I only recently discovered this, but I thought it was a family matter and didn't report it. However, I am puzzled as to why he would murder the Medicine King and chase O Shinan," Li Luoning replied.
"Since we know the culprit, we should capture him and find out the truth. Qingyuan, you said he possesses demonic energy. Take a team to Wuming Demon Mountain and speak with Demon King Shentu Zhajia to see if we can uncover any leads." SiTu Fanzhi ordered.
"Yes, Immortal Master."
"Immortal Master Shentu, with Yun Qingyi gravely injured, you need not accompany them. If the culprit is captured, we will summon you for confrontation." SiTu Fanzhi added.
"Thank you, Immortal Master."
After a stick of incense, the group exited the hall.
"Qingyuan War God, wait." Li Luoning called out.
"Immortal Master Shentu, what is it?" Qingyuan stopped.
"War God Qingyuan, you are experienced and knowledgeable. There is something I need your advice on." Li Luoning bowed respectfully.
"No need for formalities. If I can help, I will certainly do so." Qingyuan replied courteously.
"War God, aside from the puppet control technique of the past, is there any other method in the three realms that can control someone, turning them into a puppet with dark red eyes and no awareness of their surroundings?" Li Luoning asked.
Qingyuan pondered for a moment and then replied, "Qianmo."
"Qianmo?" Li Luoning repeated.
"I've heard that since the Demon King re-emerged, he has been using Qianmo to control mortals, turning them into puppet soldiers. The symptoms you described match Qianmo." Qingyuan nodded.
"Is there a way to break Qianmo's control?" Li Luoning asked.
Qingyuan shook his head, "I've never heard of a cure. I heard that someone once accidentally killed their rescuing brother, and afterward, they were no longer controlled by Qianmo. However, the person later hanged themselves due to guilt, so the method remains unknown."
"Killed their own brother?" Li Luoning thought, recalling how Yun Qingyi's blood had splashed onto Mi Xingzhe, causing the red in his eyes to flicker. "Could it be?"
Li Luoning seemed to realize something.
"How did you come to know about this control technique?" Qingyuan asked.
"I encountered it while searching for my disciple and wanted to find out more," Li Luoning replied, ending the conversation without revealing specific details.
At Mirror Cloud Residence, Yun Qingyi slowly opened his eyes and propped himself up against the bed, realizing he was back at Mirror Cloud Residence.
"Brother Qingyi, you're finally awake!" Mi Xingzhe, who had just entered, ran to the bedside, wanting to hold Yun Qingyi's hand.
Seeing Mi Xingzhe's actions, Yun Qingyi, still on edge from the recent battle, instinctively grabbed Mi Xingzhe's wrist, scrutinizing him.
"Qingyi!" Li Luoning's voice halted Yun Qingyi's actions.
Mi Xingzhe was taken aback, never having seen his brother look at him like this. What had happened to make Brother Qingyi so defensive?
"Brother Qingyi, what's wrong?" Mi Xingzhe asked, puzzled.
Yun Qingyi looked warily at Mi Xingzhe and then at his master, who subtly shook his head, signaling Yun Qingyi to release his grip.
"It's nothing. I have ointment on my body; be careful not to touch it." Yun Qingyi regained his usual gentle demeanor, ruffling Mi Xingzhe's hair.
"Brother Qingyi, how do you feel? Any discomfort? What happened? Who hurt you? Master wouldn't tell me. Do you remember who it was? Tell me, and I'll avenge you." Mi Xingzhe asked a barrage of questions.
Yun Qingyi was surprised that Mi Xingzhe remembered nothing. He glanced at his master, who simply closed his eyes briefly, not answering.
"It was just a fight. It's nothing. Don't worry." Yun Qingyi reassured.
"Brother Qingyi, I was amazing today. Not only did I save Master..." Mi Xingzhe excitedly recounted the recent events.
Meanwhile, Yun Qingyi and Li Luoning exchanged knowing looks, as if they had made a silent agreement.
At Wuming Demon Mountain, Hua Qiuyuan had been following Li Minghan. When he saw Li Minghan leave the demon territory, he quickly returned to the Demon King's palace.
Seeing no one around, he leapt into the palace, searching for the antidote to the crystal poison. He accidentally noticed the candle holder.
Noticing the faint scratch marks and the clear footprint on the fallen candle, Hua Qiuyuan realized something was hidden behind the wall.