Chapter 589: Being Targeted

"It's about to explode!"

Night Vigil, who instinctively retreated, suddenly saw the Storyteller's figure vanish from this space, and his heart trembled violently.

Time seemed to stand still.

At that moment, Night Vigil was overwhelmed with mixed emotions.

Logic told him that his stomach absolutely couldn't digest this second, intensified version of the energy light sphere.

He had to retreat.

Otherwise, he could very well be seriously injured by Xu Xiaoshou in the White Cave.

But at the same time, if he retreated, what about the White Cave?

This was a very real problem.

Night Vigil was not the Storyteller.

He couldn't simply smile at the impending explosion and then turn away, letting it be.

The duty of the Red-clothed was to protect the White Cave, to protect this space where the ghostly beasts were born, so that more information could be excavated from this place later.

Moreover, if he truly retreated at this moment, not only would the White Cave explode, but what about his companions in the Sword-Leaving Grassland?

"Could it be that this old man is about to become a psychological pervert who specifically ran over just to swallow another energy light sphere?" Night Vigil was furious.

He felt that Xu Xiaoshou was his nemesis.

Every time that kid made a move, it hit his weak spot.

To choose the greater good, or to escape...

"Whoosh!"

His thoughts couldn't linger for too long.

Once he truly understood the pros and cons for the White Cave, Night Vigil simply couldn't choose to save himself.

Some people and some things are predestined from birth.

Clad in that Red-clothed robe, Night Vigil was destined not to choose to flee at this critical juncture!

"Damn you, Xu Xiaoshou, don't let this old man catch you!"

As he roared inwardly, at the very moment the sky completely shattered, Night Vigil turned and met it head-on.

He opened his mouth.

"Ahhh."

And swallowed it whole!

"Boom!!!"

The scene was instantly volatile; Night Vigil's act of swallowing was ultimately a fraction too slow.

The energy that merely leaked out instantly annihilated everything within a radius of dozens of miles.

Space, ground...

Nothing could withstand such explosive power!

As ice and fire intertwined, the symphony of destruction began to play, grey currents breached the barriers, and the entire White Cave space shook violently.

"Buzz!"

In the distant Sword-Leaving Grassland, almost simultaneously, everyone turned their heads in unison, looking in the same direction.

"What's happening?"

Xin's pupils contracted. This explosive power was far more intense than any explosion he had ever witnessed in the White Cave before.

In fact, in terms of single-point explosion, this commotion was almost comparable to when the ancient library space was blown up.

"You and Night Vigil, did you fight?"

Turning to look at the Storyteller, Xin couldn't help but ask.

"I'm so scared, I'm so scared..."

The Storyteller, hovering in the air, kept patting his chest, a look of lingering fear on his face.

"This Wen Ming, he's far too reckless!"

He, too, watched the direction of the explosion from afar, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

There was fear, but also admiration, and a deep affection.

"Too powerful, to be able to achieve this at such a young age. If he were nurtured..."

"Wen Ming?"

The Red-clothed group couldn't even pay attention to the Storyteller's mumbling.

This name was very familiar to them.

Wen Ming, wasn't he the disciple that the second-in-command of the Saint's Servant mentioned?

Wasn't he the one suspected to be Xu Xiaoshou?

He caused this explosion?

"Impossible!"

Xin was instantly stunned.

This commotion clearly indicated a confrontation between Zhandao realm experts, meaning it was a level of conflict that could only be caused by a fight between Night Vigil and the Storyteller.

How could a junior achieve this?

"Nothing is impossible," Hei Ming said with a grim face. "It's come to this point, can't you see clearly yet?"

"The so-called second-in-command of the Saint's Servant might not exist at all."

"If the Storyteller, Wu Xiu, and Night Vigil were over there, they absolutely couldn't have such a battle erupt..."

Hei Ming stopped talking.

He wasn't stupid.

As a former commander of the Red-clothed, he could already guess something at this moment.

If there really were two Saint's Servants in that place, even Night Vigil couldn't stir up such a storm.

The only explanation could be that the explosive area was a three-way standoff, and there was no such thing as two allies.

But who else could remain in the White Cave at this moment?

Apart from those here in the Sword-Leaving Grassland, only the Storyteller's external avatar, the Saint's Servant's second-in-command, and Night Vigil had gone elsewhere.

And according to the above deduction, the Saint's Servant's second-in-command couldn't be at the explosive area.

Plus the Storyteller's whisper.

"Wen Ming..."

Hei Ming closed his eyes heavily.

They had been tricked!

The so-called second-in-command of the Saint's Servant was very likely fake; he was Wen Ming.

It was also very likely that he was Xu Xiaoshou!

"Lan Ling."

Hei Ming turned to Lan Ling, his eyes filled with doubt.

If the truth was indeed like this, then only one last mystery remained unsolved.

—Why had these questions, which should have been deduced in the White Cave, only become apparent now?

"Lan Ling, that Yu Zhiwen..."

"Zhiwen is not a problem."

Lan Ling was also dazed, her worldview almost shattered by the explosion.

But she still shook her head, interrupting Hei Ming's question.

"Yu Zhiwen is not a problem!"

Repeating it emphatically, Lan Ling seemed even more certain of her inner thoughts, saying, "Someone from headquarters cannot be an accomplice of the Saint's Servant."

"So, who should be suspected is not Zhiwen, but..."

As Lan Ling spoke, her voice trailed off.

How much she didn't want to admit it!

But the truth was, everyone had indeed been tricked!

"That Saint's Servant's second-in-command is Wen Ming, he is Xu Xiaoshou."

When these words left her mouth, all the Red-clothed present felt their minds go blank with a buzz.

"Huh?"

Xin looked over in disbelief, wanting to speak but unable to utter a single word.

Then, he cast his shocked gaze towards the Storyteller.

Even without speaking, the same question popped into everyone's mind.

"If that was Xu Xiaoshou, how could the Storyteller not recognize him?"

Lan Ling also turned her gaze towards the Storyteller.

This was what she was confused about.

And the key point that muddled everyone's thoughts!

The Storyteller's face suddenly flushed red.

"What are you looking at?!"

He stomped his foot in anger, yelling, "Are you stupid? Do you really think someone from headquarters won't deceive you?"

"Don't change the subject..."

Xin hadn't finished his sentence before he was loudly interrupted by the Storyteller.

"In my opinion, that Yu Zhiwen and Wen Ming have 'that kind of relationship'."

"Don't forget, that girl is a woman!"

"Do you understand a woman's mind?!"

The Storyteller's rhetorical question directly stunned Lan Ling as well.

That's right!

She could choose not to doubt Yu Zhiwen's loyalty.

But as a woman herself, how could she not know that sometimes, some things genuinely cause one to unconsciously overlook their own position?

"Impossible!"

After a long silence, Lan Ling decisively shook her head again: "Xu Xiaoshou can transform into the Saint's Servant's second-in-command, and you, Storyteller, still don't recognize him."

"That shout of 'Run!' — do you think he couldn't imitate it?"

All the Red-clothed were astonished.

This was a very bold conjecture.

But...

Similarly, at such a critical moment, could Xu Xiaoshou be quick-witted enough to this extent, using a single word, "Run," to completely dismantle everyone's deductions?

This was not just a simple word!

To shout that word would mean that Xu Xiaoshou must have understood all the thoughts of the Red-clothed, and even the Storyteller, in the ancient library space.

But!

How could he know how far along the Red-clothed's suspicions about him had progressed?

And how could he know that the Red-clothed's suspicions about him, which he knew, would be exactly as he knew them, without any discrepancy?

It was simply impossible!

If it were the Saint's Servant's second-in-command, perhaps he would be seasoned and cunning to this extent, grasping people's minds perfectly.

But all these deductions were based on the premise that "the Saint's Servant's second-in-command is actually Xu Xiaoshou."

And if it really were Xu Xiaoshou...

How could such a young man play everyone in the palm of his hand like an old fox?

"Crack!"

As Lan Ling thought of this, a sudden bolt of lightning flashed through her mind, making her brows ache.

They were wrong.

Everyone was wrong.

—Inertia of thought!

This was the answer to everything!

Before unfolding any deductions, everyone had, unknowingly, already stood on a commanding height, judging that young man with preconceived notions.

No one would believe that a young man could achieve such a feat in a place teeming with Zhandao realm experts.

But according to the current deduction, Xu Xiaoshou did it in the ancient library space!

He genuinely managed to toy with everyone!

So, with such a track record, could Xu Xiaoshou's mind really be that of a young man?

Even at his worst, his mind was definitely stronger than everyone standing in the Sword-Leaving Grassland at this moment.

Including her, Lan Ling, herself!

"Blacklist, top spot..."

Lan Ling suddenly realized, and after understanding everything, she felt that Night Vigil's approach was truly extreme.

She now regretted why she hadn't realized earlier that what Night Vigil had said was correct.

"That young man, Xu Xiaoshou, his danger level is only higher, not lower, than that of a sealed ghostly beast!"

More than just "only higher, not lower"!

Lan Ling's gaze lost focus.

She saw further than Night Vigil.

Judging from his performance in the ancient library space, it wouldn't even take long.

Just five or six years...

No, perhaps even two or three years, or one year!

If the Red-clothed couldn't apprehend Xu Xiaoshou in the shortest possible time...

In the future, they might not even get a chance to touch the hem of his clothes!

"Xu Xiaoshou, he's simply too terrifying..."

At this moment, Lan Ling could barely imagine what the real face of that young man, whom she had never met, actually looked like.

Did he have three nostrils and two tongues to be able to achieve such a level?!

The White Cave, an unknown place.

This world, as if asleep, was pitch black.

But for the second time, it was slightly disturbed by sudden commotions.

"Hiss!"

A massive spatial rift, a gaping wound, tore through everything in the void.

The old woodcutter lay idly on the ground, staring blankly at the darkness above.

"Is it going to explode outside?"

"Who's causing trouble?"

"Didn't I already tell that effeminate man not to clash with the Red-clothed?"

Cen Qiaofu uneasily stood up, looking worriedly towards the spatial rift.

"The main business hasn't been finished yet..."

Even though this place was protected by the great power of the Saint Emperor, no commotion from the White Cave could possibly transmit here.

It was also almost impossible for outsiders to discover this location.

But this was the second time!

Unless the commotion outside was of the kind that would cause the White Cave to explode, it couldn't affect this space.

"Did they really start fighting?"

Cen Qiaofu paced back and forth, occasionally frowning and glancing at the spatial rift.

Even in this place where the concept of time flow didn't exist, he kept track clearly.

The Head Seat had entered that rift a long time ago.

"Still not coming out?"

If it weren't for the instruction "Wait for me here" when the other party entered, Cen Qiaofu would definitely have squeezed through the spatial rift's opening himself at this moment.

"Could it be that he couldn't find the person and fell into the spatial currents himself?"

"Can he hold up?"

Cen Qiaofu shivered, frightened by his own speculation.

He thought of the Head Seat's frail physique; when still, even a gust of wind seemed capable of toppling him.

No...

The degree was lighter.

There was no "seemed"!

"Could it be, he really fell into the spatial currents?"

Cen Qiaofu tightened the small axe on his waist. After a moment of thought, he ultimately dared not waste time lingering and got up, preparing to enter the spatial rift to investigate.

"Whoosh."

Just then, a figure flashed out of the rift.

The next second, as if having overshot, it returned from ahead and shot out.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

"Cough, cough..."

Violent coughing sounds, suppressed for a while, echoed continuously, followed by...

"Pfft!"

A pungent smell of blood spread, and Cen Qiaofu's entire face turned green. "Did you get lost?"

"No such thing."

The masked man instinctively wiped his mouth, but only touched a soaked cloth.

He pressed hard on his lips, squeezing out the bloodstains, and then took a breath, wanting to say something.

"Pfft!"

As a result, another mouthful of blood was sprayed out.

Cen Qiaofu: "..."

His mouth twitched a few times. He didn't bother to comfort him anymore and went straight to the point: "Where's the person? Did you find them?"

"Yes." The masked man took several long breaths, and his chest finally settled down.

"How was it?"

"In terms of outcome, it's quite good."

"In terms of outcome?"

Cen Qiaofu's eyes narrowed upon hearing this. "What about the process? Did you make a move again?"

"I couldn't help it. That old fellow said he found the candidate, and at first, he didn't want to cooperate at all. If I didn't make a move, he would've wanted to expel me directly." The masked man sighed.

"Candidate?" Cen Qiaofu was startled. "Who?"

The masked man immediately rolled his eyes. "Do you think he would say?"

"Uh, that's true." The old woodcutter chuckled awkwardly.

"But it's not hard to guess."

The masked man took another breath, and without waiting for Cen Qiaofu to ask, he continued on his own:

"The emergence of a Void Island rift is rare; for it to appear in the White Cave this time is truly a one-in-a-million probability."

"In fact, from my personal deduction, this is likely the result of their many years of planning."

"Those old fellows want to come out, so they must seize this opportunity tightly."

"And the rift is right here in the White Cave; where else could they find a candidate?"

"There's simply nowhere else to go."

Cen Qiaofu "hmm"-ed in response. He watched the masked man spread his hands and couldn't help but grit his teeth, "Speak slowly."

"Okay."

The masked man nodded, exhaled, and then continued:

"To dare to pluck the fruit during this opening of the White Cave means they have found a satisfactory candidate."

"So, in this White Cave, which candidate would they favor?"