System: After the fortune telling, my cultivation level skyrocketed.

Yancheng, a city built of bluestone, exudes a rough and rugged charm. It's not a big place, only about a third the size of the Jiang family's Jiangshan City in Qushan. Upon entering the city, you're surrounded by old things. The houses on both sides of the street are dilapidated, some almost falling apart. When the wind blows, they creak and groan, as if they're about to collapse at any moment.

The people on the street walked numbly, their eyes filled with despair, as if they had lost their souls. They carried wild fruits and animal hides, hoping to exchange them for something to live on in Yancheng.

The inner city of Yancheng is completely different from the outside, a separate and luxurious area. The soldiers here all wear rattan armor, and each one is strong and robust with abundant qi and blood. Most of them are at the Acquired Realm, and a small number have reached the Innate Realm.

Chen Xuan came from Qushan, a place that was once ruled by five major overlords. The tribes had large populations, numbering in the hundreds of thousands, which was enough to support 40,000 to 50,000 Red Armor Guards at the Innate Realm.

But this Yan clan, with such a small main city and a maximum of 70,000 clansmen, has more than 20,000 Xiantian realm cultivators hidden in the inner city. This is strange, and Chen Xuan began to have doubts.

"Haha, open the clan hall and welcome our distinguished guests!" After chatting for a few minutes, Chen Xuan learned about the three men's background.

The old man was named Yan Qi, a mid-stage cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Realm. He had been cultivating for 380 years and was nearing the end of his life.

The two middle-aged men, the one in white is Yan Bu, the patriarch of the Yan clan, and the one next to him in blue is his younger brother Yan Gong, both of whom are at the early stage of the Opening Mansion Realm.

As soon as the patriarch gave the order, the Crimson-Armored Guards watching over the clan hall swiftly opened the thick, heavy stone door. Soon after, fine wine and food were served. Chen Xuan and Zhan Xin exchanged a few polite words and then sat down.

"Look at my memory!" Yan Bu slapped his forehead. "I forgot about the exquisite wine I got from the Chen family a while ago. Father, brother, you two entertain our distinguished guests first, I'll go get it."

Yan Qi glanced at Yan Gong and said, "You go too, and take more. I want to have a good drink with my two fellow Daoists today!"

"Alright, Father!" Yan Gong said excitedly, following Yan Bu out.

As soon as the two left, Chen Xuan and Zhan Xin appeared calm on the surface, but became wary inwardly. They considered the small tribe's protective formation to be as flimsy as paper; they wanted to see what these two were up to.

"Come, come, Fellow Daoist Beiming, let's drink!" Yan Qi greeted him warmly. Chen Xuan possessed the Crimson Bright Divine Body and had special meridians, making him impervious to any poisons or sedatives. He picked up his wine cup and downed it in one gulp.

"This..." Yan Qi saw that Zhan Xin neither drank nor removed his mask, and looked at Chen Xuan with his eyes full of doubt.

Chen Xuan chuckled and started making up a lie: "My little sister was sick when she was little, and my dad was an alcoholic. The wine jar caught fire and burned her face, so... sigh..." Before he could finish speaking, he felt a hard pinch on his waist, which made him wince in pain.

"Oh, I see. I was being presumptuous," Yan Qi quickly apologized.

While chatting with Yan Qi, Chen Xuan secretly released his divine sense to keep an eye on Yan Bu and Yan Gong.

Inside the underground chamber, the candlelight flickered, creating an eerie atmosphere. The chamber wasn't large; in the center stood a huge alchemy furnace, its surface engraved with cranes, auspicious clouds, and bats, with runes flashing incessantly, exuding mystery.

"Click—" The door opened, and Yan Bu and Yan Gong walked in, heading straight for the alchemy furnace. The two of them made hand seals, channeling their spiritual energy into the furnace.

"Bang!" The furnace lid flew up, and with a surge of spiritual energy, strands of crystal-like white sand fell into Yan Bu's hand.

"This is a Spirit Sealing Powder personally refined by Master. Let alone two disciples at the Foundation Establishment Realm, even a True Person of Myriad Manifestations would immediately become a mortal after consuming it, at our mercy!" Yan Bu said smugly, his smile sinister.

"Big brother, once things are done, that woman has to be mine first. I want to take off her mask myself and have some fun with her!" Yan Gong's eyes gleamed with greed, and the thought of Zhan Xin's figure made him feel hot all over.

The two, who had appeared respectable just moments before, now revealed their true evil nature in the secret room.

Yan Bu frowned and said, "These are all for Master's alchemy. We can't be careless when doing things for Master!"

"Brother, please let me have my way one more time. I'm so tempted by that woman. I bet she's a real beauty under that mask!" Yan Gong pleaded desperately.

"Alright, but don't take too much of her Yin energy. If it interferes with Master's business, we're both doomed. She is, after all, a disciple of a sect." Yan Bu reluctantly agreed.

"Don't worry, brother, it's not like this is the first time we've done something like this," Yan Gong said nonchalantly.

As he spoke, Yan Bu took out a jade gourd, uncorked it, and a peculiar aroma of wine wafted out. Yan Gong took a deep breath and said with relish, "If it weren't for Master giving me the antidote beforehand, just one cup of this Drunken God Wine would have made me sleep for three days, not to mention it also contains Spirit-Sealing Powder."

"Let's go, don't let them get suspicious." Yan Bu put away the gourd and hurriedly returned to the clan hall with Yan Gong.

Their every move was clearly seen by Chen Xuan and Zhan Xin using their divine sense. Zhan Xin was furious and kept pinching Chen Xuan's flesh to vent his anger.

Hearing them address him as "Master" repeatedly, Chen Xuan became certain that Tian Dao Zhenren and Yan Cheng were colluding.

This was his first time carrying out a capture mission for the Godslayer Guard, and with a three-month deadline, he couldn't afford to mess things up.

If they alerted the other party and the Heavenly Dao True Person escaped using an escape talisman, the mission would be ruined. Mission failure wouldn't be so bad, but the time wasted on all that back and forth was far too precious for Chen Xuan, who was anxious to find his clansmen.

After Yan Bu and Yan Gong returned, they poured the strangely fragrant "immortal wine." The three of them feigned hospitality, and Yan Gong even offered to drink with Chen Xuan and the others.

Chen Xuan picked up the drugged wine cup, intending to shield Zhan Xin, when Zhan Xin raised his hand and the fox-eye mask on his face disappeared.

A stunningly beautiful yet icy face appeared, and instantly, the hall fell so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Even Yan Bu, who was usually uninterested in women, was stunned. Yan Qi, however, remained calm, coughing lightly, before the two snapped out of their daze and quickly complimented Zhan Xin's beauty.

Chen Xuan was incredibly embarrassed. He had just said that Zhanxin's face was disfigured. Before he could explain, Yan Qi smiled and smoothed things over, saying, "It's normal to be careful when you're out and about. We understand, we understand."

At this moment, Zhanxin picked up his wine cup, looked coldly at the father and his two sons, and said, "Come on, didn't you want to drink?"

"Are you sure you can handle this? My Crimson Bright Divine Body is immune to all poisons, but that Heavenly Blade True Man is no ordinary person. The poisons these natives are carrying might be strange." Chen Xuan quickly transmitted his voice to Zhan Xin.

Zhanxin replied, "Don't worry, this Spirit Sealing Powder is just a medicine for sealing spiritual energy at the human level, it won't work on me."

"Tsk, I didn't expect your master to be so wary of Huang Mao," Chen Xuan teased.

"What yellow-haired guy?" Zhan Xin asked in confusion. At this moment, Chen Xuan had already picked up his wine cup, clinked glasses with the father and his two sons, and downed it in one gulp.