"Lord Jian, aren’t you overestimating yourself a bit?"
Time passed minute by minute, yet Lord Jian showed no intention of drawing his bow. Even the usually composed Zhou Xuan couldn’t hold back any longer and urged him aloud.
Lord Jian kept his eyes closed and did not respond to Zhou Xuan’s question.
The Red Coffin Lady tried to calm Zhou Xuan, saying, "Young Master, don’t be impatient. Lord Jian is the foremost You Shen of Ping Shui; his skills are always exceptional. His composure surely reflects his plan. The two of us, well, let’s just enjoy the show."
"Watch Lord Jian make his move."
To Zhou Xuan, Lord Jian was rather like a cat—after catching a mouse, he wouldn’t rush to kill it. Instead, he’d play with it until it was utterly exhausted before landing the final blow.
Zhou Xuan silently observed the shifting situation but didn’t place all his hopes on Lord Jian. He heightened his Perception, allowing his Divine Soul to embark on a Day Trip, closely trailing Mo Tingsheng’s movements.
Mo Tingsheng was sprinting frantically atop South Mountain. At that moment, he was like a panicked bird, far removed from his usual composure. He was desperately fleeing, trying to escape the impending Divine Arrow from Lord Jian.
As he ran, he shouted silently in his mind, "Guangyin, Lord Jian has found us! Get me out of here!"
Silence. Nothing but silence.
Guangyin, the Evil God, was transporting Mo Tingsheng through Jing Country’s Time-Space World but dared not reply—he too feared Lord Jian’s arrival.
"Guangyin, Guangyin... Guangyin, screw your damned mother! Use the Time Law to take me away!"
Terrified beyond measure, Mo Tingsheng was now cursing the Evil God, Guangyin, in rage for leaving him in the lurch.
Time did not pause for Mo Tingsheng’s fear. The appointed moment for Lord Jian drew closer and closer.
Finally losing control altogether, Mo Tingsheng looked toward a specific direction in the sky and shouted, "Guangyin, don’t forget how your masters profited off me... if I die, you won’t get anything good out of it either!"
The Evil God, Guangyin, was deeply conflicted. He had indeed come per the orders of the mistress to assist Mo Tingsheng.
But assistance was one thing—sacrificing his life was another. Lord Jian, with the power of eight Incenses, was glaring him down; how could he dare reveal himself?
Furthermore, next to Lord Jian stood a woman.
Her origins were unclear, but she hadn’t come to the Time-Space World relying on a donkey or a Magic Artifact—she must have attained the "walker" realm of the Time Law.
Her Incense Fire Level would thereby exceed seven Incenses.
A level above seven Incenses, and a confirmed eight-Incense presence—
Even as a relatively powerful Evil God, Guangyin dared not directly provoke these two.
Hence, he chose to lay low, merging himself into the surrounding time-space and completely concealing his aura.
At this moment, he was part of the Time-Space World itself. As long as he remained hidden, Lord Jian wouldn’t be able to pluck him out of time-space.
Mo Tingsheng mentioned "masters," and in that instant, Guangyin wavered and let his mind wander.
He began to hesitate, wondering if he should seize the right moment to save Mo Tingsheng.
It was this wavering thought that stirred—and at that very moment, the previously silent and meditative Lord Jian suddenly opened his eyes.
It wasn’t arrogance. Lord Jian had been using the pretext of "one-quarter hour" to mentally intimidate Mo Tingsheng. The moment Mo Tingsheng succumbed to fear, he would inevitably connect with the Evil God. Whether the Evil God revealed himself or not was irrelevant; as long as even a shred of stray thought emerged, Lord Jian could capture it.
Once he captured that stray thought, he could lock onto the Evil God Guangyin’s energy flow.
The energy flow now exposed, the hunt had begun.
"The first arrow seals the Heavenly Origin of time-space."
Lord Jian bent his bow and nocked an arrow.
The golden Feathered Arrow flew forth, gliding across the vast expanse of land like a serpent, until it reached North Mountain on East Market Street. Suddenly, its trajectory shifted sharply, shooting straight into the clouds, stopping mid-air three hundred meters above ground level.
"The second arrow seals the essence of the earth’s soul."
Another Feathered Arrow surged forth with overwhelming momentum, plunging into the mountainside of North Mountain.
As the arrow descended, a keening sound emanated from North Mountain.
The sound was somewhere between a wail and a grievance,
But the golden Feathered Arrow stood tall on North Mountain like a monument.
Its might was so overpowering that Zhou Xuan’s Divine Soul Day Trip was disrupted.
He hastily withdrew his Divine Soul back into his body.
"The third arrow breaches the void, locking the crevices of time-space."
A third arrow rose, this time bearing golden waves.
The waves collided with the Heavenly Origin Arrow in the sky and the Essence Arrow embedded in North Mountain, forming a golden cage in the air.
"Lord Jian of Ping Shui Prefecture, what does Mingjiang have to do with you?"
From within the cage came Guangyin’s cries.
He marveled at Lord Jian’s skills—just a single stray thought, and his energy flow was locked instantly.
He was terrified. If he fell into Zhou Xuan’s hands, he might meet the same fate as Liu God and Life God, his entity obliterated and essence scattered.
"Mingjiang Prefecture has no direct relation to me, but your group attempting to kill Zhou Family’s Nuo God places you squarely at odds with Ping Shui Prefecture."
Days ago, the Kidnapper Hall’s Mr. Feng had brazenly attacked Zhou Xuan. Luckily, Zhou Xuan was protected by the Divine Armor Horse, and Mr. Feng’s attempt failed.
Since then, Lord Jian had been bottling up a stifling rage, holding it in for days. Coming to Mingjiang Prefecture this time, he intended to release that pent-up fury.
Now that the Evil God Guangyin had descended into the Time-Space World, simply capturing Mo Tingsheng wouldn’t suffice.
Lord Jian gripped his bow and began walking toward the Arrow Qi Cage. Within the cage, he could accurately locate the Evil God and extract him from time-space.
After taking just two steps, Lord Jian abruptly halted. He activated "Insight," a power from the Time Law, and glimpsed scenes of the future.