After lunch, Cheng Xiaofan went into Feng Ying's bedroom to check on her again.
He noticed that Feng Ying's vital energy had grown weaker, her complexion paler, as if all color had drained from her face.
She lay quietly on the bed, like a sleeping beauty sculpted from plaster.
Without careful observation, it would be hard to tell if she was still breathing.
Feng Qingping had clearly noticed this as well and asked with a heart burning like fire, "Xiaofan, my daughter's condition seems to have worsened since this morning!"
Cheng Xiaofan nodded with a stern expression.
He said, "Uncle Feng, don't worry. With me here, Feng Ying will absolutely be fine."
"I will immediately set up a formation to protect her true form. Even if she loses all signs of life, I will retrieve her soul and bring her back to life!"
With that said, he immediately moved Feng Ying's bed to the center of the bedroom.
Then, Cheng Xiaofan extended his right hand, raised a finger, and drew a series of grand Dao patterns in the void around the bed.
Each stroke he made sent a dazzling golden light, like lightning, into the vicinity of Feng Ying's body.
Mei Xueyun and Feng Qingping watched, their eyes wide with astonishment.
"Done!" Cheng Xiaofan retracted his hand and announced.
Feng Qingping clasped his fists in thanks, "Xiaofan, thank you for your hard work!"
Cheng Xiaofan smiled and said, "Uncle Feng, as I said, this is what I should do. Please don't be so formal!"
Mei Xueyun, however, said from the side, "I really can't understand, who exactly stole Feng Ying's soul, and why would they do such a thing?"
Feng Qingping responded, "Could it be that my Feng Ying has offended someone in the past?"
Seeing them lost in their own thoughts, Cheng Xiaofan decided to reveal a sliver of the information he had obtained from Yu Xuanji's clone.
He said, "Don't think too wildly. I seemed to have gained some information from Feng Ying's faint vital energy just now."
"Feng Ying is very beautiful and usually uses a smile marketing strategy when promoting products. One man, thinking Feng Ying was interested in him, visited her almost every day."
"This man later died for some reason, and his family, it seems, obtained some information and believed Feng Ying had caused their son's death. They hired a master to steal her soul!"
Feng Qingping stomped his foot and sighed, "This can't be blamed on my daughter. How could that family be so unreasonable, pushing all the blame onto Feng Ying!"
Cheng Xiaofan said, "I haven't fully figured out the specifics yet, so let's set this topic aside for now!"
"I have already set up a formation around Feng Ying. I need to guard it now. You two had best leave the bedroom and not disturb me in any way!"
Cheng Xiaofan knew well that the female Daoist he saw in his dream was quite powerful. Even without doing anything at Feng Qingping's home, she had sensed him.
The problem was that in broad daylight, this clone of Yu Xuanji could use hypnosis from afar to put him into a trance and meet him in a dream.
One thing was certain: Yu Xuanji was not nearby; she was at a certain distance.
If the other party were close, Cheng Xiaofan would have sensed her location.
The sensing ability of this female Daoist was indeed strong.
So strong that it made Cheng Xiaofan feel incredulous.
Now, with Cheng Xiaofan having set up a formation around Feng Ying for her protection, it was beyond doubt that Yu Xuanji's clone would have sensed it.
To prevent the other party from playing any more tricks or breaking the formation from a distance, Cheng Xiaofan dared not be careless and remained in Feng Ying's bedroom.
At the same time, he took out the Demonic Bone Saber from his spatial storage and placed it between his knees.
If any sudden changes occurred, Cheng Xiaofan could directly use the Demonic Bone Saber to subdue the other party.
Feng Qingping and Mei Xueyun saw Cheng Xiaofan sitting cross-legged on the sofa opposite Feng Ying, with his eyes slightly closed. They dared not speak further and immediately withdrew from the bedroom.
At this moment!
Although Cheng Xiaofan's eyes were closed, his divine sense was already released in his sea of consciousness, searching outwards.
He hoped to take this opportunity to find the whereabouts of Yu Xuanji's clone.
However!
Cheng Xiaofan's divine sense swept across the surrounding city and out to the adjacent villages, but he could not find any trace of Yu Xuanji's clone.
It seemed that Yu Xuanji's hiding place was further away than he had searched.
Cheng Xiaofan's divine sense had a limit. Beyond a certain distance, he could no longer search.
This could not help but cause a tremor in Cheng Xiaofan's heart.
From such a great distance, Yu Xuanji could use hypnosis to put him into a trance, which showed that the other party's magic was exceptionally powerful.
Cheng Xiaofan had read some of Yu Xuanji's poems. Her life story was mostly found in unofficial histories, with almost no mention in official records.
Even in unofficial histories, the introduction to Yu Xuanji was very fragmented, never mentioning whom she studied under after becoming a nun or what Daoist arts she had practiced.
From Yu Xuanji's clone, it was evident that Yu Xuanji must have practiced profound arts in her time, and her Daoist skills were profound.
Even a single hypnosis technique had reached a terrifying level.
For the entire afternoon, Cheng Xiaofan guarded Feng Ying's bedroom, never leaving.
By evening, when Feng Qingping had prepared dinner and went to his daughter's bedroom, he found Cheng Xiaofan still sitting cross-legged on the opposite sofa with his eyes closed, unmoving.
"Cheng..." he started, but saw Cheng Xiaofan shake his head slightly, signaling him not to disturb him.
Feng Qingping had no choice but to retreat from his daughter's bedroom. Looking at the food on the table, he turned to Mei Xueyun helplessly and said, "Xueyun, if we don't eat soon, the food will get cold!"
Mei Xueyun said, "Let's take the food back to the kitchen. We can reheat it and eat when Xiaofan comes out!"
Feng Qingping nodded and said, "Alright, let's wait for Xiaofan to come out together!"
He had no choice but to take the dishes from the table back to the kitchen.
The sky gradually darkened.
Cheng Xiaofan still sat cross-legged in the bedroom.
Even though his eyes were closed, in his sea of consciousness, his divine sense remained fixed on Feng Ying lying on the bed, and everything around them.
The streetlights flickered on.
But in Feng Ying's bedroom, the lights were not turned on.
And at this moment, Cheng Xiaofan slowly opened his eyes.
His gaze fell on the gradually rising Yin energy on Feng Ying. At the same time, he flipped his right palm, and a wisp of spiritual energy was immediately expelled from his palm.
That wisp of spiritual energy covered Feng Ying's entire body.
Then!
A faint white light flew out from Feng Ying, resembling Feng Ying herself, gracefully drifting slowly towards the window.
This was a re-enactment of the scene when Feng Ying's soul was stolen.
Cheng Xiaofan's divine sense immediately followed it out.
Feng Ying's soul drifted further and further, flying over the city, and finally reaching a village, where it loosely descended into a luxurious villa.
When Cheng Xiaofan's divine sense locked onto that villa, at that moment, he witnessed a scene that made his blood run cold...