Hua Lin Yu had no idea where exactly Xiao Li had gone and he couldn’t find any trace of him either. Thus, he chose a direction at random, slowly exploring this place.

Looking around, he couldn’t help but think that if they had set foot into this realm for even a single moment when they came here with the other disciples of the Jian Yi Sect, then they wouldn’t have needed to wonder how this place was related to the demonic faction. Really, even though he had been able to see this at first glance, it became even more apparent how similar it looked to the Hei Dian Sect after walking around some more.

At this point, Hua Lin Yu had entered one of the houses. He had made sure that nobody was inside but then searched through everything inside, trying to get a better grasp of what kind of place this was.

He soon found a set of sect robes that looked the same as the ones that the disciples in the Hei Dian Sect wore. It was of a dark red color and Hua Lin Yu kept it in his hands, trying to remember what exactly the different colors signified.

He wasn’t too familiar with the demonic faction but he knew a bit more about the Hei Dian Sect. Also, he had just been there so he had looked around some more. The disciples would usually wear robes of a different color even though there were all very dark. Only the direct disciples wore inky-black robes and even they had a jade accessory in a specific color attached to their belt.

He hadn’t asked about it but thinking of how the Hei Dian Sect was supposed to be a very varied sect when it came to what they taught their disciples, the colors might signify what a disciple was learning. Red … he wasn’t sure which part of the sect it stood for but there was a certain chance that it might be the one responsible for teaching alchemy. After all, that was what An Rong had been most interested in, right? So it would make sense to mostly take disciples of that profession along.

Hua Lin Yu hesitated for a moment but then put the robe on. Anyway, he had no idea how many people were at this place, but surely, it should at least be enough to ensure that nobody knew all the other disciples. As long as he wore this robe, they shouldn’t know that he wasn’t from here. So he could just walk around without worrying as long as he didn’t get caught in any of the houses or acting otherwise suspiciously.

Hua Lin Yu nodded to himself and walked out of the house. After putting a few steps between himself and the building, he felt a lot calmer. Now, with this so-called ‘disguise’ he should be a bit safer. As for how to behave as a disciple of the splinter group of a demonic sect … Well, he had no idea, but usually, these people weren’t any different from disciples of other sects. And as soon as he found them, he could just watch them and adjust his behavior. That way, nobody would know what was going on.

Strangely enough, he didn’t see anyone close by. He couldn’t help but wonder if there was some reason for this. Surely, not everybody would be outside. Could it be that something was going on in the sect? In that case, that might be where Xiao Li was headed but also where An Rong was.

Hua Lin Yu pondered for a moment, wondering where exactly the disciples in this second Hei Dian Sect might go. Depending on how many disciples there actually were, the answer to that question could be quite different. But usually, it would be a place that was big enough to comfortably hold everyone while also having some significance. As for places like that in the Hei Dian Sect … he could imagine that the beguiling night tree that he had visited earlier today might play a role.

Hua Lin Yu wasn’t too sure what to think about this. Anyway, the further inside he went, the more dangerous it would become. Not to mention that his feelings on the beguiling night tree itself also weren’t positive ones.

Although then again, maybe he should rethink that stance. If not for eating that fruit and seeing that nightmarish vision, he never would’ve figured out that there was something wrong with Xiao Li, and he would have missed out on being with Xin Lan again.

Just thinking of such a possibility, he felt that he should actually be grateful to Grandmaster Shen that he had offered him the fruit with such vehemence against what his Master and the Grandmaster’s wife had said. If not for that, his eyes never would have been opened.

He smiled to himself and finally went in the direction of the beguiling night tree after all. Even if An Rong and his disciples weren’t there, this was as good a place to start with as any. And something told him that the chance of Xiao Li being there was actually not low.

He didn’t know how much he could trust what Xiao Li had previously told him but he did feel that Xiao Li likely hadn’t known about this place when they stumbled upon it on the mission with the younger disciples. Thus, he should have been just as surprised as him when he realized that this place looked like the Hei Dian Sect. And while he was more familiar with the sect, he was just as unfamiliar with An Rong. Otherwise, he would have said something when they talked to Grandmaster Shen about him, right?

Hua Lin Yu chewed on that thought for a moment and finally shook his head. The truth of the matter was that he couldn’t trust anything Xiao Li had said or done. Everything that had come out of Xiao Li’s mouth from the moment he met him could’ve been a lie.

In fact, maybe he shouldn’t be surprised if this was actually the case. Wasn’t that what Xin Lan and his Master had warned him about? That a demon would never be somebody who you could trust? He hadn’t wanted to believe it at first but maybe it had been the truth after all.

Anyway, he couldn’t say for sure whether Xiao Li knew something or if he didn’t. But he couldn’t let that keep him back. No, he had to try to find out more, one way or the other.

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