Leng Yue was somewhat frightened by Bai Zhu's sudden death. A person who was perfectly fine just moments before had suddenly become lifeless right before her eyes.

Leng Yue was stunned and somewhat unable to react; this was the first time she had faced death directly.

"Don't be afraid, I'm here, I'm here," Qianchen comforted Lengyue, holding her in his arms. "Don't look, let's not look."

Leng Yue trembled, her teeth chattering uncontrollably. "Bai Shu... is he really dead?"

Qianchen gave a soft "hmm," and Lengyue remained silent for a moment before suppressing her discomfort and getting out of his arms.

"Yueyue, you..." Qianchen looked at Lengyue with concern.

“I…” Leng Yue paused for a moment, “I’m fine.”

Qianchen was still worried. "Don't force yourself."

Leng Yue shook her head. "I need to get used to it sooner. Bai Shu... how did he die? Did I kill him?"

Leng Yue wanted to check the wound, but she was also afraid. However, she was certain that her sword strike hadn't hit any vital points on Bai Shu's body, so why did he die? Could it really be that she hadn't controlled her strength?

Qian Chen smiled bitterly, "How could that be? Your sword only scratched his skin. He was ambushed, but the attacker's cultivation was extremely high; even I didn't notice..."

What Qianchen didn't say was that they had probably met a formidable opponent! While others cherished a fleeting moment of bliss, they were caught in the chaos of war. Thinking about it, no one could be more miserable than them!

The western barrier had just been repaired when Bai Shu and the Soul-Controlling Beast appeared here. Just as they were starting to make progress in capturing Bai Shu, he was tragically killed. It seemed like one problem after another was brewing. Qian Chen knew that tonight was probably going to be tough.

What Qianchen had thought of, Leng Yue had basically thought of as well. But who exactly was the person hiding behind it all?

Leng Yue crouched down to examine Bai Shu's wound. She saw a large, bowl-sized hole in his chest, from which blood was still gushing. Despite her discomfort, Leng Yue used her sword sheath to lift Bai Shu's clothes and examine him closely.

Qian Chen watched from the sidelines without intervening. He wouldn't stop Leng Yue from growing up, but he would always stay by her side.

"Qianchen, look!" Leng Yue actually found something—a bamboo leaf—right on Bai Shu's chest.

"Bamboo leaves?" Qianchen frowned as he looked at the blood-stained homepage. "Did the Bamboo Fungus Clan react so quickly?"

Leng Yue was also somewhat uncertain, "Probably, didn't Bai Shu say he was sent by Princess Yu Luo? Maybe Yu Luo has a backup plan, and if Bai Shu fails, she'll eliminate him completely?"

Qianchen nodded, "That's not wrong, but I still feel like something's not quite right!"

"Wrong? What's wrong?" Leng Yue was puzzled. Her previous explanation was reasonable, wasn't it?

Qian Chen kept walking, then suddenly stopped, exchanged a glance with Leng Yue, and said in unison, "It's cultivation level!"

"I knew something was wrong!" Qian Chen clapped his hands. "I know that person from the Bamboo Fungus Clan who uses bamboo leaves; her cultivation level can't possibly be above mine!"

"Hmm, Jing'er's cultivation is definitely not as high as yours." Leng Yue also remembered that Jing'er's cultivation seemed higher than Su Gao's, but it wasn't as high as Qian Chen's. If it really was her, how could Qian Chen not know?

"Who could it be?" Leng Yue asked the question again.

The situation was completely baffling, and things reached a stalemate once again.

“Let’s review the known clues again,” Qianchen waved his hand. “I’ll collect Baizhu’s body first.”

Qian Chen moved Bai Shu's corpse aside and sealed it with a barrier. Leng Yue instantly felt much better; the strong smell of blood that had been lingering in her nose had finally faded.

"Based on the accounts of the others, we can confirm a few points. First, the Soul-Controlling Beast is related to the Bamboo Fungus Clan. Second, Bai Shu is an insider of what happened back then. Third, I can't think of anything else." Leng Yue quickly summarized, but ultimately came to nothing.

Qian Chen nodded, "Pretty much. If we think about it a little deeper, it's about what else someone else wants besides Su Yue on Su Xian Mountain. Do you remember what Bai Shu said? He said that everyone wants that woman to die."

"Aren't those the Flamefire Clan and the Bamboo Fungus Clan?" Leng Yue asked, puzzled.

“I don’t think so,” Qianche glanced at Lengyue. “Bai Shu of the Yanhuo Clan and the Zhusun Clan knows, and so do we. But he still insists on calling us ‘everyone.’ I remember that these two clans came from elsewhere at the same time, and they didn’t act coy. Why does he still have to call us ‘everyone’?”

“I think you’re just nitpicking…” Leng Yue retorted, unconvinced.

Qianchen said, "Don't rush, let me finish. Do you think it's possible that both the Flame Fire Clan and the Bamboo Fungus Clan came for something? It's just that at first they didn't know what that thing was or where it was."

"But didn't they come from the opposite direction in the first place?" Leng Yue still didn't understand. Wasn't their bloody incident caused by a love quadrangle?

"Why didn't the Zhusun tribe form a marriage alliance with Suyue after they came from Suyue?" Qianchen asked incisively.

“That’s…that’s…because Su Yue can’t cultivate, so…Yu Luo dislikes him…” Leng Yue’s spirit was weak. Although it sounded a bit like she was a snob, she also felt that Su Yue was, after all, a mountain god, so it didn’t quite fit.

“That’s possible,” Qianchen nodded, “but didn’t Yulu know about this situation before?”

Leng Yue was speechless. How could she not know? It was common knowledge in Su Xian Mountain that Su Yue could not cultivate!

“So, I think there are different forces behind the Flamefire Clan and the Bamboo Fungus Clan. Their actions are also controlled by these forces, right?” Qianchen continued to analyze. “At first, everyone thought that thing was with Su Yue. The Flamefire Clan put forward Hong Xue, and the Bamboo Fungus Clan put forward Yu Luo. But Hong Xue was too hasty and was expelled by the former mountain god early on.”

"Later, only the Bamboo Fungus Clan remained, and they proceeded cautiously. After Yu Luo threw herself into their arms, they discovered that Su Yue did not possess what they were looking for. However, they were discovered by the previous Mountain God, who wanted to expel these people. So, they decided to kill her without hesitation," Qian Chen added at the end.

Leng Yue thought for a moment, "That seems to make sense, but why would they need to prepare a soul-controlling beast?"

"Soul-controlling beasts, as the name suggests, control people's souls. They might have been prepared for the sake of Su Yue, or perhaps for the former mountain god. I haven't figured that out either." It has to be said that Qian Chen also had doubts on this point.

“Perhaps we’ve all overlooked something,” Leng Yue suddenly said.

"What?" Qianchen looked up at Lengyue.

"The origin of the Soul-Controlling Beast!" Leng Yue felt her mind was very clear now. "I remember Hong Xue saying that the Soul-Controlling Beast came from the Demon Clan and was a very powerful creature. When Hong Xue said that, I could feel that she was genuinely afraid. However, the Bamboo Fungus Clan can use such a terrifying thing at will. Therefore, the Bamboo Fungus Clan must be closely related to the Demon Clan!"

"So, all along, it's been the Demon Clan who's been eyeing Suxian Mountain?" Qianchen thought, combining this with what Lengyue had said about the black energy, that this was indeed a possibility.

"Not only the Demon Clan, but we still don't know who's behind the Flame Clan!" Leng Yue said with a sigh.

Qianchen sighed, "It'll be soon, they're about to show their true colors!"