After speaking, Gu Sheng didnât wait for them to say anything and turned to leave with the group.
The group had long held in their frustrations and were just waiting for Gu Sheng to give the signal to leave; now that he had, they followed him without hesitation.
Watching their backs, Lan Hua wanted to chase after them, but was pulled back.
"We havenât seen each other in a long time, stay with me and weâll chat tonight."
"No, we have things to do tonight."
Lan Hua remembered that Gu Sheng said he would go to Luo Qinâs place tonight, but she couldnât shake off the hand on her wrist.
"There are so many of them; itâs not like they canât manage without you. Let them handle it; letâs have a good chat."
Seeing that nothing she said would make her let go, Lan Hua could only nod helplessly and watch Gu Shengâs figure disappear.
Leaving the inn, Gu Sheng led the group around another street before finding a magnificent inn.
Seeing the inn before them, Lan Yao nodded in satisfaction.
"Not bad, this inn looks big and beautiful; living here will surely be comfortable."
After he spoke, Shi Lou laughed and said, "The wine here must also be good; I could smell the aroma from the door. Although we canât drink today, we can try it tomorrow. Young Master Lan, Iâll count on you then."
"No problem, this is no big deal. Hong Mei, donât be angry with someone like that. Gu Sheng has already made it clear, itâs just that she canât understand human words."
Knowing what he meant, Hong Mei nodded.
"I know, everyone doesnât need to worry about me."
As soon as she finished speaking, Gu Sheng took her hand.
"Iâve always thought that we are so in tune with each other that I donât need to say some things and youâll naturally understand. But today I realized that some words are not just for the other person but also for outsiders to hear. If I donât say it, theyâll naturally misunderstand, so I said it out loud. You donât mind, right?"
Looking into his eyes, Hong Mei blushed and shook her head.
"Of course I donât mind. I also feel that we are in tune with each other. I understand your thoughts."
The two looked at each other, and both couldnât help but smile.
"Please, can you two not be so mushy? There are so many people watching, give us a break!"
Bai Yu rolled her eyes at the two as she spoke, drawing agreement from the others.
Gu Sheng chuckled and led the group into the inn.
As soon as they entered, the innkeeper rushed up to them.
"Are you here to rest or to stay, esteemed guests?"
Feeling the aura from the innkeeper and confirming that he had nothing to do with Luo Qinâs people, Gu Sheng said, "Weâd like to stay. Give us a few upper rooms."
Hearing the words âupper roomsâ, the innkeeperâs eyes lit up, and he hurriedly led them upstairs.
As Lan Yao had said, this place was indeed nice, obviously much better than Lan Huaâs friendâs place.
"Gu Sheng, it seems weâve chosen the right place, or else weâd have to endure."
Understanding why Lan Yao said so, Gu Sheng nodded.
"Remember to send a message to Lan Hua tonight, we can meet there directly."
Lan Yao understood what he meant and agreed directly.
That night, after having a hearty meal at the inn, they went out.
To ensure safety, they took a large detour before arriving outside the Qingcheng Sect.
After confirming no one was following, they found a hidden spot to settle down.
Shi Lou poked his head out, looked around, and then frowned, "Why isnât Lan Yao back yet?"
Looking at the sky, Gu Sheng also frowned.
In theory, the two inns werenât far apart, and Lan Yao was quick; he should have been back by now, but there wasnât even a sign of him. This was clearly not right.
Seeing Gu Sheng frown, Shi Lou softly asked, "Brother Sheng, should I go look for him?"
After thinking it over, Gu Sheng shook his head.
"Your strength is weaker than his, itâs better not to act alone. Letâs wait a bit longer and see if he shows up."
Even though everyone was anxious, they had no choice but to do as he said.
They waited a long time, but still didnât see Lan Yaoâs figure.
Bai Yu stepped forward, "You all wait here, Iâll go look."
This time, Gu Sheng didnât refuse.
With a tap of her toe, Bai Yuâs body quickly floated into the night sky and disappeared.
After waiting for quite a while, they finally saw two figures returning.
Seeing that only the two of them came back, Shi Lou asked puzzledly, "Why did only you two come back? Didnât you go to call Lan Hua? Where is she and her people?"
Upon hearing this, Lan Yao spat forcefully.
"Donât get me started, I went over but didnât even see Lan Huaâs face. I got entangled by her friendâs people and almost exposed myself; it was such bad luck!"
"What? You didnât even see her?"
"No! It seems her friend was prepared, with quite a few people stationed at the door. As soon as I arrived, I was surrounded. They didnât want to kill me, but every hit went for the pain points. I barely managed to escape and ran into Bai Yu halfway."
Saying this, Lan Yao turned to look at Gu Sheng.
"We didnât find Lan Hua, what now?"
"No worries, weâll go ourselves."
Gu Sheng said coldly, and the group could only nod.
Moving forward, they found the backdoor of the Qingcheng Sect.
Seeing no one guarding it, Gu Sheng raised his hand, created a barrier, and led everyone inside.
They all suppressed their auras, inching forward along the walls. They hadnât gone far when Gu Sheng sensed a burst of Evil Qi.
Instantly, he frowned.
Now he believed the Evil Demons werenât famous for nothing, as just from the auras they met, there were quite a few people here stronger than the Evil Demons!
Luo Qin could cultivate these people undoubtedly thanks to the efforts of Saint Ya!
With a stoic look, Gu Sheng touched his waist and then sighed heavily before continuing forward.
The group followed behind him, exploring as they went, until they heard a noise up ahead, prompting them to leave with Gu Sheng.
As soon as their feet landed outside the wall, the footsteps inside halted at where they had just left.
Clearly, the faint footsteps might have been heard, so someone came to investigate.
Fortunately, Gu Sheng was strong and sensed the otherâs movements ahead of time, allowing them to avoid danger.
The footsteps inside kept moving around, while Gu Sheng and the others quietly waited outside, not daring to reveal a trace of breath, just waiting silently.
After a long time, the inside people finally left.
Hearing the footsteps fade away, Gu Sheng dared not make a reckless move. He probed repeatedly, and only after confirming they werenât faking their departure did he lead his group away.
On the way back, the group was more silent than usual, even Lan Yao, who usually talked the most, was quiet.
Returning to the inn, Gu Sheng summoned the small tripod to hover above, and Hong Mei spoke first: "Gu Sheng, the strength over at Luo Qinâs far exceeds our expectations. There are many under him stronger than the Evil Demons, certainly employing some of Saint Yaâs methods, but dealing with them will be very difficult."
After she finished, Bai Yu sighed deeply.
"I also didnât expect Luo Qinâs Qingcheng Sect to be so powerful. Though they appear righteous on the surface with experts backing them, their hidden strength is even more formidable. Hong Mei is right; dealing with them is too hard. Gu Sheng, and this is just one Luo Qin, what are we going to do!"
At this, everyone couldnât help but feel anxious.
For a moment, the roomâs atmosphere dropped to freezing point, and everyone sighed.
Seeing them like this, Gu Sheng rubbed his temples, contemplated for a moment, then turned to Hong Mei: "Do you have any ink incense?"
"Yes, but not much, itâs from my master."
"Give it to me."
Although Hong Mei didnât know what he was going to do, she obediently handed over the ink incense.
During the exchange, both were extraordinarily cautious, as this substance was extremely poisonous, with no antidote in the world. Once touched, death was certain, not even gods could save you.
As the two handled the ink incense, the others couldnât help but grow nervous, even lowering their breaths considerably.