At this point, the Sect Master of the Purple Smoke Sect and the various elders could no longer sit still. They emerged from the shadows, standing behind their ancestor.
Though fear gripped them, though they sensed that something momentous was upon them, at a critical juncture like this, they had no choice but to grit their teeth and step forward.
"Hmph. A few years ago, someone from your Purple Smoke Sect — a young lady who brought a group of vicious servants — captured a father and son out in the world. Does anyone recall?"
This uninvited guest was none other than Jiao Yun, whom Jiang Chen had sent to the Purple Smoke Sect to retrieve the captives.
The moment these words left his mouth, nearly every senior figure of the Purple Smoke Sect turned their gaze in unison toward an elderly man. He was tall and broad-shouldered, with hair streaked black and white.
This was Yin Tianchou, one of the Purple Smoke Sect's Grand Elders.
With everyone's stares fixed upon him, the old man's face flushed red. He knew exactly what those looks meant.
The uninvited guest had spoken of a young lady who brought servants and captured people from the outside world. That most likely referred to his granddaughter, Yin Hongxue.
Yin Tianchou broke into a cold sweat down his spine, stammering, "Don't all look at me like that. Our Purple Smoke Sect is a large place — it's hard to say this matter is necessarily connected to my granddaughter."
The Purple Smoke Sect's ancestor furrowed his brow. "Tianchou, go and fetch that troublemaking granddaughter of yours. Have her face this elder's accusations so we can determine whether there's been some misunderstanding! Regardless of whether she did it or not, we need to get to the bottom of this first. If it truly was her doing, we cannot shield her."
Yin Tianchou's mouth went bitter. There was no shortage of troublemakers throughout the Purple Smoke Sect. But the vast majority of them were male disciples.
Female disciples, under normal circumstances, would not be so brazenly reckless.
Yin Tianchou hastily whispered a few words to an attendant beside him, his expression grave beyond measure.
The attendant received his orders and shot off toward the rear mountain at great speed. Clearly, he was being sent to summon Yin Hongxue so they could handle the situation properly.
Since someone had come knocking at their door, they must have already investigated the matter thoroughly. If it truly was Yin Hongxue's doing, denying it would serve no purpose.
And if it wasn't Yin Hongxue, then innocence would speak for itself.
Yin Hongxue was in her own courtyard, her heart uneasy with vague apprehension, when she spotted her grandfather's personal guard arriving at a hurried pace. She was slightly startled.
"Miss, the Old Master requests your presence."
Yin Hongxue was somewhat taken aback. "Where is Grandfather? Where is he right now?"
The guard caught a glimpse of Jiang Tong and his son from the corner of his eye, and his expression shifted subtly. He couldn't help but ask, "Miss, who are these two?"
Over the years, Yin Hongxue had done far too many outrageous things, dragging people back from the outside world time and again. These sordid affairs were matters that Yin Tianchou's personal guards naturally never dared to inquire about.
But this time, upon seeing the father and son, something suddenly clicked in the guard's mind, and a foreboding premonition surged through him.
Yin Hongxue's face was displeased. "What business is that of yours? Since when do you get to run your mouth?"
In Yin Hongxue's eyes, Yin Tianchou's personal guards were nothing but servants, mere underlings. In front of her, the elder granddaughter, what right did they have to ask questions left and right?
Under normal circumstances, the guard would have simply smiled it off and dropped the matter. But right now, he understood the gravity of the situation.
"Miss, were these two captured by you from the outside world?"
Yin Hongxue's lovely face darkened. "You talk too much. Believe it or not, I'll tell Grandfather and have your tongue ripped out?"
A servant peppering the young miss with question after question — what kind of conduct was that? Naturally, Yin Hongxue was furious.
But to her surprise, this guard seemed to have abandoned all restraint, pressing on as though he would not stop until he had the full answer. "Miss, you must clarify this matter."
Yin Hongxue erupted in rage. "That's none of your concern! Get out of my sight!"
The guard's face had also changed drastically, and he eyed Jiang Tong and his son with a mixture of alarm and suspicion. "Miss, an Emperor realm elder has arrived from outside, demanding to see a father and son. He says they were captured several years ago by a young female cultivator of our Purple Smoke Sect."
The moment these words left his lips, Yin Hongxue's porcelain face drained of color in an instant.
An Emperor realm powerhouse?
Looking for a father and son?
Yin Hongxue couldn't help but glance toward Jiang Tong and her father, doubt and alarm churning within her. But she immediately dismissed the possibility.
Jiang Tong and his son — the strongest companions they had were nothing more than ordinary Saint realm cultivators. Their strength was utterly laughable. Forget the Emperor realm; they couldn't even have connections to the King realm.
People of that caliber having ties to an Emperor realm powerhouse? Yin Hongxue felt this was completely impossible — it defied all logic.
Jiang Tong and his son heard their exchange and exchanged bewildered glances. An Emperor realm powerhouse, searching for a father and son?
The timing and the description — both matched.
But Jiang Tong and his son also felt this could very well not be about them. After all, the two of them hardly knew a single Saint realm cultivator, let alone someone at the Emperor realm.
The entire Myriad Domain back then was said to not have produced even a single King realm cultivator — it had been the weakest territory in all of the human lands. How could an Emperor realm powerhouse possibly be looking for them?