Chapter 1438: Failed to Return

"Shen Shang?" Ji Mie Shen Ti frowned, abruptly sheathing his sword and using the Shi Kong Yin Ji to teleport away. His dark and desolate eyes were fixed on the cave, yet he didn't detect the other person hidden inside.

"This is lively; I want to join in too." Ye Chen emerged, appearing beside Xiao Jiuxian. He completely ignored the black-robed figure from the Hun Clan, his divine sense locked onto Ji Mie Shen Ti.

"Hehe, I'll lend a hand too." Xiao Jiuxian giggled, standing back-to-back with Ye Chen, and couldn't help but tease, "Kid, which family are you from? If we make it out, I'll buy you a drink."

"No need. Just sleep with me for a bit." Ye Chen quipped, then instantly shifted away. The moment he left, Ji Mie Shen Ti's deadly strike arrived, reducing the space to utter desolation.

"You actually want to sleep with me? How bold." Xiao Jiuxian also dodged. As she did, she casually struck the Hun Clan member with a palm. Her small hand contained immense power, sending the Hun Clan man spitting blood again. While his combat strength wasn't weak, he was still no match for the fierce Xiao Jiuxian.

Helpless, he had no choice but to retreat. Before leaving, he glanced at Ye Chen. If not for him, he and Ji Mie Shen Ti would have already slain Di Jiuxian and perhaps even captured her yuan shen.

On the other side, Ye Chen trod on Tai Xu, soaring through the nine heavens without staying in one place for even a second. Just like Xiao Jiuxian had done earlier, he used mysterious footwork to move erratically through the void.

He had fought Ji Mie Shen Ti before and knew his weaknesses well. Ji Mie Shen Ti's instant kill required marking the opponent with a Shi Kong Yin Ji; without that mark, the kill was impossible.

"You're not from the Shen Clan." Ji Mie Shen Ti's voice was bleak and hollow as his deadly strike missed again.

"That doesn't matter." Ye Chen chuckled lightly, dodging the attack, and flipped his hand to cover the sky with a palm. But he could see clearly that his strike hadn't harmed Ji Mie Shen Ti at all.

"You're no unknown figure." Ji Mie Shen Ti let out a sinister laugh, his ethereal voice seeming to echo from Jiu You.

"That doesn't matter either." Ye Chen remained calm and composed, moving at incredible speed with afterimages filling the sky. As he fled, he also erased the Shi Kong Yin Ji that Ji Mie Shen Ti had imprinted on the void.

"Your ally has left; do you still want to fight?" Xiao Jiuxian glanced at the emptiness. "Fei Lei Shen Jue is powerful, but you're not skilled enough to take me down. Is wasting time like this really fun?"

Ji Mie Shen Ti didn't respond. After shuttling through the void a few times, he turned and vanished without a trace. This was his first futile retreat, all because he had chosen the wrong opponents this time.

Seeing Ji Mie Shen Ti withdraw, Xiao Jiuxian finally pursed her lips. "You'll get what's coming to you sooner or later."

"Good thing it was you; if it were anyone else, they'd be dead by now." Ye Chen landed gracefully, clicking his tongue in amazement. "I have to admit, Ji Mie Shen Ti is truly troublesome."

"From the way you talk, it seems you know me." Xiao Jiuxian blinked her big eyes, sizing up Ye Chen from head to toe, occasionally leaning in to sniff him, trying to detect his bloodline.

"Stop sniffing; we're not that familiar." Ye Chen said, adding another layer of secret technique to conceal his origin.

"You're no ordinary person if you can evade Ji Mie Shen Ti's kills multiple times." Xiao Jiuxian began circling around Ye Chen. "You're not Zhong Huang, not Xi Zun, not Nan Di or Bei Sheng, and definitely not Dong Shen. When did Xuan Huang get another young prodigy like you?"

"I'm just an old-timer." Ye Chen said with a meaningful smile. "Just call me senior."

"Don't kid around; your age is only over two hundred years. What kind of old-timer are you?" Xiao Jiuxian lunged forward, trying to pull off Ye Chen's black robe and mask. "Why all this mystery?"

"That's rude." Ye Chen pushed away Di Jiuxian's small hand. "Leave me some mystery."

"Hey!" Xiao Jiuxian wasn't having it and pounced again, her curiosity driving her to see Ye Chen's true face. It was rare to meet someone who could hold his own, so she at least wanted to know who he was.

"You carry on playing; I'm leaving." Ye Chen turned and walked away, leaving Xiao Jiuxian grasping at thin air. He had no intention of revealing his identity here, or it would lead to endless trouble later.

Xiao Jiuxian chased after him. Seeing Ye Chen's escape speed, she was stunned. She thought her own speed was fast enough, but here was someone even quicker, like he had some kind of boost.

The two of them chased and fled, crossing over a dozen mountains and several rivers.

It wasn't until they reached a mountain peak that Ye Chen stopped. Xiao Jiuxian arrived shortly after, panting, but instead of tugging at his robe, she stood beside him, looking out at the distant horizon just as he was.

There, mountains were collapsing, and vast expanses of ancient trees turned to ash. That stretch of land had become a chaotic battlefield, the result of an intense fight.

The combatants were one in a black robe and the other in dazzling immortal attire. Their combat prowess and footwork were evenly matched, their divine abilities and secret techniques on par, shaking the heavens and splitting the earth.

People searching for treasures in the ruins gathered from all directions, thinking some secret treasure had appeared. But upon arriving, they saw it was just a fierce battle, with both fighters incredibly formidable.

"One of them is Nan Di; who is that woman?" Xiao Jiuxian scratched her head. "Xian Ling Zhi Ti, with a bloodline identical to Bei Sheng's—where did she come from?"

Ye Chen coughed inwardly. "Can I say she's Bei Sheng?" he thought, his expression odd. The one fighting Nan Di was indeed Bei Sheng, and even Xiao Jiuxian didn't know she was a woman. Bei Sheng's ability to hide her true identity was impressive.

"Nan Di and Bei Sheng are actually fighting. Are they after some treasure?" Ye Chen stroked his chin. "Or is Bei Sheng just venting her anger and attacking whoever she sees?"

"Stop!" As Ye Chen pondered, Nan Di's roar echoed from the distance. He ceased fighting, his face darkening as he stared at Bei Sheng. "Be honest; are you Bei Sheng?"

"Mind your own business." Bei Sheng snorted coldly and stepped forward, sending a crystalline jade seal crashing down from the sky.

"Are you out of your mind? What did I do to you?" Nan Di's temper flared, his shout echoing through the heavens. He had been treasure hunting when he suddenly took a palm strike out of nowhere and still didn't know why.

"You know what you've done." Bei Sheng's beautiful eyes sparkled with fury as she attacked again.

"I don't know!" Nan Di cursed, refusing to stand there and take it. He'd already been slapped once for no reason, and with his anger building, he couldn't tolerate her arrogance. He charged into the sky, unleashing secret techniques nonstop, holding his ground without falling behind.

"I get it." On the mountain peak, Ye Chen coughed and rubbed his brow. No need to ask; he knew why. Bei Sheng had probably mistaken Nan Di for him, which was why she was acting so wildly.

That made sense. In this ruin, only a few could outpace her. Once Bei Sheng narrowed it down, Nan Di was the prime suspect, so naturally, the fight broke out.

Poor Nan Di was completely baffled and still had no idea why this mad woman was attacking him.

What puzzled him most was that this mad woman had the exact same bloodline as Bei Sheng, even sharing the same immortal techniques and secret arts, which was why he suspected she was Bei Sheng.

But everyone in Xuan Huang knew Bei Sheng was a man, and now this person had appeared, leaving not just him but anyone familiar with Bei Sheng utterly confused.

"Why am I getting confused too?" Xiao Jiuxian scratched her head again. "Could she be Bei Sheng's twin sister? Their strength, cultivation, divine abilities, and bloodline are all identical. What a coincidence."

"I'm a bit confused too." Ye Chen played along perfectly, shamelessly pretending to scratch his head. He thought to himself that once they were out, he'd invite Nan Di for a drink and have a good chat about life—and women.

"Huh?" As he acted, Ye Chen's eyebrows twitched, and he glanced toward a nearby mountain peak. There stood a figure in a black robe, holding an ancient book and watching the distant battle.

"She came too." Ye Chen paused, recognizing her even from afar. Holding the Wu Zi Tian Shu, it had to be Dong Shen Yao Chi—Ji Ning Shuang.

"How beautiful is Bei Sheng? Has anyone ever seen her stripped bare?" Ji Ning Shuang blinked her lovely eyes.