In no more than a moment's time, the horde of Blood Winged Earth Lizards had left without a trace.

Ye Lingyue touched her chin thoughtfully and followed the Blood Winged Earth Lizards to watch the anticipated drama unfold.

"Zhiyo~"

Just as Ye Lingyue was about to leave with mischief in her mind to enjoy the show, Little Zhiyo, who had been sleeping soundly in her arms, popped its head out.

It tugged at Ye Lingyue's clothes and called out a few times.

"Hmm? You're saying that there's something fun inside Black Valley?"

Ye Lingyue's steps came to a halt, her interest in Black Valley piqued by Little Zhiyo's words.

There were many rumors about Black Valley from the outside world, but what truly lied within Black Valley, remained unknown to the outside.

Curiosity killed the cat, and once Ye Lingyue's curiosity was aroused, it was not something that could be easily subdued.

She had an Invisibility Elixir on her, so she would be safe for the time being. If anything seemed amiss, she would quickly withdraw from Black Valley.

With that thought, Ye Lingyue changed her mind and veered towards the deeper parts of Black Valley.

Outside Black Valley, Xue Hongyu and the others were still anxiously waiting for Ye Lingyue to "take the bait."

"Vice Captain, it's been quite a while, why haven't we seen any sign of that Commandery Princess from the court? Could it be, that she has seen through our brothers' scheme?" The nervously Mercenaries glanced back at Black Valley.

Although they were still outside Black Valley, they knew that the Spiritual Beasts within would not actively leave the valley to attack people. Yet standing at the valley's entrance, hearing the roars of beasts from inside, these mercenaries felt a chill run down their spine.

"Impossible, that naive young lady from Xia Capital, she's very foolish. She's probably just making her way slowly. Let's wait a bit more with patience," Xue Hongyu was also growing impatient.

At that moment, strange noises started coming from behind them.

Xue Hongyu and the mercenaries turned their heads to look, and what they saw nearly scared them out of their wits.

They saw a large group of enraged Seventh-rank Blood Winged Earth Lizards charging towards them.

"Run, it's the Spiritual Beasts from Black Valley!" The mercenaries were almost scared out of their wits; they were merely Innate Martial Artists, and facing Seventh-rank Spiritual Beasts meant nothing but a dead end.

They scrambled frantically without looking back.

But before they could get very far, the Blood Winged Earth Lizards took to the sky, opened their bloodthirsty maws, and snapped the mercenary at the rear of the group in two.

Xue Hongyu was slightly stronger, but surrounded by close to a hundred Blood Winged Earth Lizards, even if she had wings, there would be no escape. As the swarm of lizards, dense like locusts, flew towards her, Xue Hongyu's pupils constricted, eventually getting engulfed by the horde.

The smell of blood, carried by the wind through the valley, wafted into Black Valley.

Ye Lingyue's nostrils flared, a mocking smile creeping onto her lips.

They brought this catastrophe upon themselves; Xue Hongyu and her cohorts have no one to blame.

Without stopping, Ye Lingyue's figure vanished, as she delved deeper into the gut of Black Valley.

At the very moment Ye Lingyue entered Black Valley and Xue Hongyu and her men were torn to shreds by the lizards, the people in the camp also heard the unusually restless roars of beasts coming from the distant Black Valley.

"Captain Xue, you better explain clearly what is going on!" Lan Cai'er grabbed Captain Xue by the collar, slamming a letter left by Ye Lingyue before her departure onto Captain Xue's face.

"Miss Lan, I have no idea what you are talking about. Lady Ye has probably just gone on a patrol with the young miss," Captain Xue steadfastly denied.

He had also heard the commotion coming from Black Valley; logically, Xue Hongyu and the others were only supposed to subdue Ye Lingyue, and it shouldn't have led to such a big fuss.

At this time, Ye Lingyue should have already been thrown into Black Valley by Xue Hongyu and a few other brothers.

But a sense of ominous foreboding was growing stronger in Captain Xue's heart.

"Sword Slave." Feng Xun looked at the letter Ye Lingyue had hastily written, a cold, harsh light flickering in his eyes. Upon closer inspection, one would see Feng Xun's hand slightly trembling with rage.

His slender fingers clenched tightly together, with blue and red veins bulging out on his skin.

Understanding the cue, Sword Slave grabbed a soldier from the Blood Blade Mercenary Corps. A surging Primordial Power accompanied by the force of the palm fell, and without even a grunt, the mercenary's head was obliterated by Sword Slave's Primordial Power into a mist of blood.

The crowd was shocked; everyone was stunned by Sword Slave's action.

Captain Xue's face turned pale.

"I'll count to ten. If by then you don't tell me where Ling Yue is, I'll have Sword Slave kill a person for every number I count. I want to see just how many in the Blood Blade Mercenary Corps you have to sacrifice." Feng Xun, with his hands clasped behind his back, spoke slowly.

A barely expressible murderous aura caused Captain Xue to involuntarily constrict his pupils.

"Young Master Feng, you... you dare. This is Daxia. Even if you're a noble of Beiqing, you must abide by the law," Captain Xue's voice carried a hint of inexplicable fear.

"Law? What's that?" Feng Xun spoke indifferently. "I only know that if Ling Yue is hurt, even in the slightest, I will ensure the Blood Blade Mercenary Corps pays with their lives."

"One..."

Feng Xun coldly spat out the first number.

Sword Slave picked up another mercenary.

"Captain, Captain, save me!" Only despair filled the eyes of that young mercenary.

Apart from Captain Xue, no one in the Blood Blade Mercenary Corps was a match for Sword Slave. If Sword Slave wanted to kill, no one could escape.

"Stop, I'll tell you! They went to Black Valley. But it's no use going there; that woman is already dead by now." Captain Xue did not expect that the seemingly good-natured Feng Xun could become so ruthless for a mere woman. Or perhaps that was his true nature all along, and he had merely concealed his real face.

Upon hearing this, Sword Slave swiftly carried Feng Xun towards the direction of Black Valley.

"What should we do now?" Boss Feng was also full of regret, sighing heavily.

"Wait for me. I'm coming too." Lan Cai'er, who had been dumbstruck by the scene before her, finally snapped back to her senses and immediately rushed after them as if her life depended on it.

Sword Slave, carrying Feng Xun, reached the outskirts of Black Valley.

To their surprise, all they found were the corpses of a few mercenaries and Xue Hongyu. Fortunately, they did not find Ye Lingyue's body.

On the ground were a series of chaotic footprints. Sword Slave examined them, his expression grave.

"Prince, these are the footprints of the Blood Winged Earth Lizard. Judging by the number, there must be at least a hundred of them. I fear Lady Ye is more likely..."

Sword Slave did not continue his words, for he noticed the change in Feng Xun's expression.

Even Sword Slave would find it hard to escape from a hundred Blood Winged Earth Lizards, let alone Ye Lingyue.

She likely fled into the depths of Black Valley.

Sword Slave looked at Feng Xun with concern.

"She won't die," Feng Xun stated, without further words, and flashed into Black Valley.