After being reborn, the villain comes with a spoiler tag.

As soon as Changsun Ning took a step forward and entered the mist, Huo Yu heard Long Yucheng's telepathic message:

"Senior brother, I have a feeling this person has ulterior motives. The jade slip he gave us didn't clearly indicate which person each of the dots corresponded to. How could he be so sure that it was us here, and not the other three?"

Huo Yu had long been aware of Long Yucheng's doubts.

He and Long Yucheng entered this space almost at the same time, but Changsun Ning headed straight for him without hesitation. This clearly shows that the jade slip in Changsun Ning's hand has the ability to identify the identities of other white dots.

However, Huo Yu had already thoroughly examined the jade slip handed over by Changsun Ning and found that it contained only a positioning array and no other restrictions.

Moreover, this secret realm is quite strange, and ordinary methods of locating things are ineffective here. Huo Yu needs a way to accurately pinpoint Long Yucheng's location.

After a moment's thought, Huo Yu replied via telepathy:

Give me your jade slip.

Upon hearing this, Long Yucheng did not hesitate at all and immediately handed his jade slip to Huo Yu.

Huo Yu's divine sense quickly penetrated into it, and after a moment, he returned the jade slip to Long Yucheng.

Long Yucheng took the jade slip and was surprised to find that next to the big bright spot representing himself, the small spot symbolizing Huo Yu had turned gold, while the spot of Changsun Ning walking in front of them had turned gray.

Changsun Ning seemed completely unaware of the tricks Huo Yu had played on the jade slip in Longyu City.

When Huo Yu and Long Yucheng caught up with Changsun Ning, who was walking not far ahead, he was casually dealing with a dummy made of mist.

Seeing the two of them follow, he turned his head and smiled at Huo Yu, saying:

"The creatures in the mist here are quite cunning. They can not only transform into human form, but also imitate human speech and behavior perfectly. Without the guidance of the jade slip, it would be difficult to distinguish the real from the fake."

Seeing this, Long Yucheng simply stepped to Changsun Ning's side, feigning great interest in what Changsun Ning was saying, and brazenly separated him from Huo Yu, asking:

"I wonder if this mist has any specific rules or preferences when choosing which objects to take form?"

Changsun Ning seemed unperturbed by his repeated obstruction of her conversation with Huo Yu, or perhaps she concealed her emotions perfectly, and replied with a pleasant expression:

"I haven't paid special attention to that, but from what I've observed, it only transforms into the people existing in this mist."

Upon hearing this, Long Yucheng nodded slightly, then asked:

"Brother Changsun, you must have visited this secret realm many times before, right? Judging from your understanding of this secret realm, you know it like the back of your hand and are omniscient. I admire you."

Changsun Ning's lips curled slightly, but he did not directly answer Long Yucheng's question:

"I entered this secret realm by chance several years ago. At that time, I was the only one who entered the secret realm, and all I saw were mannequins that looked exactly like me."

"I see."

Long Yucheng forcefully positioned himself between Huo Yu and Changsun Ning, chatting casually with Changsun Ning while maintaining his speed without slowing down.

Before long, Huo Yu and his group successfully reunited with the other three in the mist.

But then they saw Mu Chuyang lightly making a hand seal with his right hand, gently waving it in front of his eyes, and chanting incantations:

"The True Dharma of Heaven and Earth, the Nine Essential Heart Seals, the Five Manifestations of Spiritual Observation, open!"

As the last word fell, Mu Chuyang's eyes suddenly lit up, as if countless complex characters were rapidly flowing within them, dazzling to behold.

Maintaining this technique seemed to consume a lot of spiritual energy. Mu Chuyang wasted no time and immediately focused his gaze on a certain direction in the mist.

Beside him, Ning Zhaoqiu stood tall and straight, like a pine tree, his long sword lightly touching the ground, the tip of the sword trembling slightly, his eyes sharp, always on high alert, ready for battle.

When his gaze fell upon Huo Yu and the other two, his eyes sharpened, and his sword moved slightly, as if he intended to draw it.

Of the three present, Meng Xia, who remained focused on the jade slip in her hand, noticed their arrival even before Ning Zhaoqiu.

Before Ning Zhaoqiu's longsword was even drawn, she had already stepped forward, her voice alluring and captivating:

"Young Master Changsun, you have given me quite a bit of worry!"

Upon hearing this, Changsun Ning merely smiled slightly without replying, his gaze falling upon Mu Chuyang, who was fully focused on maintaining the spiritual observation technique.

Seeing this, Meng Xia had a thousand words in her heart, but she had no choice but to suppress them for the time being and wait quietly with Changsun Ning.

She lightly bit her red lips, her gaze shifting between Changsun Ning and the silent Huo Yu behind him, lost in thought.

When Huo Yu saw Mu Chuyang, he immediately recognized the technique he was using. It was one of the volumes of the Qiankun Dao Canon, called "Nine Essential Heart Seals".

The Qiankun Dao Canon is a closely guarded secret of the Qiankun Dao Sect, accessible only to core disciples.

In his previous life, Huo Yu fought against Dao Yi Zhenren, the Dao Ancestor of the Qiankun Dao Sect in the Nascent Soul stage. Dao Yi Zhenren used the twenty-third volume, "Dao Twenty-Three," which he created after mastering the twenty-two volumes of the Qiankun Dao Canon.

The fact that Mu Chuyang could use the spiritual observation method recorded in the "Nine Essentials of Heart Seal" indicates that he not only came from the Qiankun Dao Sect, but was also a core disciple who had access to the Daoist canon.

He once studied under Mu Chuyang, one of the five major sects of the righteous path. Now, he not only associates with five demonic cultivators, but also openly uses his sect's secret treasures in front of everyone without any attempt to hide it.

Clearly, the other three people present, especially Changsun Ning, already knew his true identity.

After a few breaths, Mu Chuyang finally lowered his eyes slowly, and the words that had been flowing in his eyes gradually disappeared, returning to calm.

"Brother Mu, have you made any progress?"

Changsun Ning, who had been paying close attention to Mu Chuyang, immediately spoke up and asked.

Mu Chuyang put on his signature semi-permanent smile and nodded slightly to Changsun Ning:

"Although I couldn't discern the pattern of the changes in the restrictions here, I did find the core of the formation. Fortunately, I have not failed in my mission."

Changsun Ning smiled and said:

“That’s very good. Then I’ll trouble Brother Mu to lead the way.”

Mu Chuyang nodded slightly, then turned and walked into the misty depths in a certain direction.

Ning Zhaoqiu followed beside him, his long sword gleaming coldly, never leaving his hand for a moment, constantly alert to any movement within the white mist.

Changsun Ning followed closely behind, with Meng Xia walking beside him step by step, while Huo Yu and Long Yucheng brought up the rear.

The group meandered through the mist, heading towards the location of the array's core.