Wait a minute, where is my master?

"What scene is this now?"

The little Taoist had this question pop up in his mind.

"Venerable Che, what is happening?"

Jin Xu looked at Che Liang Wood, dressed in a brown robe, with bewilderment. After spitting out that mouthful of fresh blood, a layer of black qi could visibly be seen emerging on his face.

"Taoist Jin is jesting. It seems my divination skills have not gone awry after all. There indeed is an evildoer who has entered this Qingmu Secret Realm.

Please wait a moment, my friend. Let me purge this filth from my body before I converse with you further."

Having said this, he didn't wait for the little Taoist to reply.

Che Liang Wood immediately sat down cross-legged on the ground, Confucian scriptures suddenly appeared on his body, and blue light began to swirl around him. A vigorous life force instantly filled the entire first floor of the thatched house.

Even the wooden floorboards began to sprout.

The little Taoist scratched his head in confusion; he still wanted to ask the other party about the small world.

Yu Yaoer and Little White, who stood behind Jin Xu, also exchanged confused glances.

Zhao Dabao, a cultivator at the Great Perfection realm of Qi Cultivation, was even more clueless about what had happened. He was just thinking of earnestly asking Taoist Jin Xu if it would be possible to exchange for a few petals of the Eternal Lotus from this old man.

But before he could open his mouth, the man opposite him spat out blood.

At this moment, Jin Xu opened his mouth in confusion and temporarily did not know what to say.

However, he also heard Che Liang Wood mention that an evildoer had entered the Qingmu Secret Realm.

He figured that the unprovoked attack from before must have inadvertently made him the scapegoat for that evildoer.

Thus, the little Taoist quietly released his Spiritual Power.

He didn't want to do anything else; he just wanted to see who he was taking the blame for, and then casually hit that person with a Hand Palm Thunder. That would settle the matter.

Jin Xu's Spiritual Sense was unrestrained and quickly spread throughout the Qingmu Blessed Land, enveloping the fourth layer of the Secret Realm.

"No anomalies; perhaps the evildoer is not on this level?"

The little Taoist pondered in his heart, preparing to continue expanding the range and depth of his Spiritual Power.

At this time, Yu Yaoer, who was standing behind him, suddenly spoke.

"Young master..."

"There's no rush. Let your young master take a look at who this evildoer is first; then we can settle our score."

Jin Xu thought that Little Yu, the fish demon, was also curious about who they were being made a scapegoat for.

"Not that, young master. Look at that old man!"

Yu Yaoer gently placed her hand on top of the little Taoist's head, signaling him to look at Che Liang Wood, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground.

"What happened to Venerable Che... Huh!? What's wrong with him now!"

From the time Che Liang Wood spat out blood and sat down cross-legged, to the little Taoist Jin Xu releasing his Spiritual Sense, although it sounds complicated, it all happened in just a moment.

Now when Jin Xu looked again at Che Liang Wood, the former's life-affirming aura hadn't changed, but the accumulation of black qi on his face had almost obscured his facial features!

The little Taoist blinked, subtle silver light emitted from his eyes, and employing the fortune-telling method, he indeed saw a large "ominous" character above Che Liang Wood's head.

"Tsk, the glabella darkening, truly a sign of impending misfortune."

Jin Xu whispered to himself, planning to activate another function of his Spiritual Eyes to see exactly what was wrong with the other party.

But before he could take a closer look,

The old man, Che Liang Wood, sitting cross-legged, spat out three mouthfuls of fresh blood!

He shouted at the little Taoist,

"Fellow Taoist, save my life!"

Then, the entire person fainted onto the ground.

Taoist Jin Xu: "(⊙o⊙)"

Yu Yaoer: "Σ(ﾟ∀ﾟﾉ)ﾉ"

Little White: "Σ(ŎдŎ|||)ﾉﾉ"

Fatty Zhao: "(•'╻'•۶)۶"

The four of them rushed to Che Liang Wood's side in a flurry, with the Little Fish Demon's healing skill continuously entering Che Liang Wood's body.

It had no effect whatsoever.

The little Taoist also condensed a burst of the "Body Purification Skill" in his left hand

and pressed a palm on the back heart of the elder Che Liang Wood.

"Heh!"

The brown-robed elder let out an unintelligible gasp from his throat, reviving him and diminishing the black aura on his face significantly.

"Taoist Jin, please hurry to the second layer of the Secret Realm to rescue me!"

That was the first thing Che Liang Wood said upon awakening.

The little Taoist was still confused, but seeing that the Body Purification Skill worked on him, he was somewhat relieved.

"Che Taoist, don't panic. Take your time and tell me, what exactly is going on? And why do you need me to rescue you from the second layer when you are clearly here?"

Jin Xu's calm voice helped Che Liang Wood regain a semblance of composure.

To make it quick, he swiftly communicated via spiritual transmission to the young Taoist, "Taoist Jin, you don't know, the body I have here is just an avatar I condensed for ease of movement.

Normally, my original body is too huge, spanning the second, third, and fourth layers of the Qingmu Secret Realm, so it mostly remains in a state of sleep.

The sudden blood spitting earlier was due to some malefactor who used an unknown method to invade the roots I have in the second layer of the Secret Realm.

I thought I had been negligent and fell into their trap, so I was planning to shift my consciousness back to my original body to expel them.

But I didn't expect this entity to be extremely vicious and capable of plundering the power within my body for its own use, taking control of the majority of my root system at an incredibly crafty speed.

Fortunately...hiss~"

The transmission cut off there, and the little Taoist, seeing the black qi on Che Liang Wood's face start to increase again, thoughtfully struck his shoulder with another dose of the "Body Purification Skill."

"Hiss~~~

Yes, it's your miraculous skill. It actually destroyed most of their power, and that's what allowed me to wake up.

However, this isn't my main body after all, so I implore you, for Little Yan's sake, to go to the second layer of the Secret Realm and apply this skill a few times to the base of my roots. I believe I will then fully recover."

After taking another hit of the "Body Purification Skill," Che Liang Wood took in a sharp breath before speaking out loud.

Jin Xu, hearing the other's description and confirming that his own skill could subdue the malefactor, was no longer in a hurry.

He condensed the "Body Purification Skill" in his left hand as a precaution and, looking at the black qi on Che Liang Wood's face, asked, "Che Taoist, is the enemy targeting you personally?

Or is it that if they gain full control of your root system, it will have an unmeasurable impact on Qingmu Secret Realm?"

Che Liang Wood, sitting on the ground, was taken aback by the sudden question, but he still rapidly transmitted his response.

"I have been cultivating in this Secret Realm, and the only things of value others might covet are a few Heavenly Talent and Earthly Treasures. Given how secretly and specifically the assailant has acted, they must be aiming for Qingmu Secret Realm.

You may not fully understand, Taoist Jin, but small worlds like Qingmu Secret Realm, due to their incomplete Heavenly Dao laws, will either passively or actively seek a patron, person or object.

The two support and grow with each other, and if one day the small world's Heavenly Dao rules are completed, then the patron, whether it's a person or an object, can make significant strides in cultivation, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they can ascend to the heavens in a single step.

Unfortunately, I am that patron object of Qingmu Secret Realm. If the enemy controls my root system and then further subdues me,

then they might as well call the shots in the small world of Qingmu Secret Realm."

Having relayed his message in one breath, Che Liang Wood awaited, hopeful for the little Taoist to swiftly travel to the second layer of the Secret Realm to treat his roots.

After hearing all this, Jin Xu gave a slight nod, while an intriguing thought popped into his head.

"Could my master have become the patron of some small world, and that's why he can't return?"