As Yang Mi stood momentarily lost in thought, her pierg amber eyes refleg the deep iy of her ptioook the ce to turn and slip away.

  His every instinct screamed caution—he knew all too well that dealing with someone like Yang Mi was akin to walking a razor's edge.

  One misstep could prove fatal. But simply retreating wasn't enough. He o leave her with something to think about, to divert her attention from him and stir her curiosity further.

  His steps were measured, but just before disappearing from her sight, Reon stopped. He gnced back over his shoulder, meeting her gaze with an expression carefully crafted to betray nothing but calm.

  His voice, though soft, carried an air of mystery and a hiddeh that could sow doubt ihe most fident of hearts.

  "Be careful," he said, his tone deliberately cryptic, "the one behind all of this is far more dangerous than you realize."

  The words hung in the air between them, den with hidden meaning. Reon knew well that Yang Mi's mind would immediately start rag, trying to decipher his statement, trying to figure out if he knew more tha on.

  He offered no further expnation, giving her just enough to question but not enough to find answers.

  Without waiting for her response or risking a sed gnce, Reon turned on his heel and tinued on his way, leaving Yang Mi standing in the dust of her own fusion.

  Her initial fury had been interrupted by the plexity of his remark, and now she was lost ihought, her mind filling with questions she hadn't even realized she o ask.

  Reon's heart, however, wasn't nearly as calm as his exterior had portrayed. He knew how dangerous Yang Mi could be, how quickly she could sh out. He had thrown a stoo still waters, and now all he could do was hope the ripples would work in his favor.

  As he moved toward the Mystic Evergreen Forest, his pace quied, but to any casual observer, it would appear as though he was merely walking at a steady, almost leisurely speed.

  There was no sign of haste in his movements, yet beh the surface, there was an urgency he couldn't quite shake. His footsteps fell in a rhythm that carried him swiftly forward, as though he were gliding over the ground with a practiced ease.

  This seamless motion was due to his mastery of the Soulbou and Teique, a skill that allowed him to el Cloudia's abilities subtly.

  With this teique, Reon could mimic Cloudia's natural grace, moving faster than normal perception would allow while maintaining an air of calm posure.

  It was almost as if time around him had slowed, his steps barely disturbing the air as he surged forward.

  Within a matter of seds, Reon passed the t structure of the onry Hall. As he moved, he cast a gnce over his shoulder, his eyes sing the area.

  He was half-expeg to see Yang Mi following him, her intense gaze trag his every step. But she was o be seen, and a small sigh of relief escaped his lips.

  Satisfied that she wasn't tailing him, Reon turned his focus back to the path ahead. Reag into his spatial ring, he retrieved a map, its surface glowing faintly as it materialized in his hand.

  Earlier, at the Skyreach Mission Pavilion, Reon had beeiculous in his preparations. He had purchased ts—one of the eer Sed another specifically detailing the Mystic Evergreen Forest.

  Now that he possessed these, there was o rely on Xu Yang's guidanymore. The map of the Outer Sect would serve as his guide, and the detailed one of the forest would lead him through the wilderness.

  Reon unfolded the map, his eyes sing the intricately drawn lihat represehe Outer Sect's vast ndscape.

  The Mystic Evergreen Forest was located in the southern region of the sect, and while he had known this much, the exact path had eluded him until now.

  The sheer size of the Outer Sect, parable to the scale of a rge try oh, made navigating it without precise dires a daunting task.

  Now, with the map in hand, he pinpoihe forest's location. The map dispyed only the se known as the Outer Rim, or as the disciples often called it, the Beginner's Forest.

  But this was just the beginning. The Mystic Evergreen Forest was far more vast than just the Outer Rim. It stretched over a distahat could easily be said to cover oh of the entire Supreme Dao Sect's territory—a ndmass as rge as Earth itself.

  The forest's deeper regions were home to unimaginable dangers, beasts that even the most skilled disciples feared.

  As Reon traced the path from the Outer Rim and beyond, a surge of excitement mingled with trepidation coursed through him.

  Ahead y a journey filled with peril yet brimming with opportuo grow stronger. He wasn't the same person he had been before arriving in this world, and soon enough, he would prove it.

  With renewed determination, Reon folded the map and quied his pace, stepping into the embrace of the Mystic Evergreen Forest, ready to face whatever awaited him.