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At that moment, Zhang Yiyi's heart was far from calm. Ever since she saw the description of the three-legged crow on the auction list, she had a strong suspicion—Luo Qiheng must be in trouble.

Though she hadn't actually laid eyes on the three-legged crow up for auction, and the description—simply noting it possessed an ancestral bloodline—wasn't enough to confirm it was Luo Qiheng's spiritual pet, her instincts told her there was a high possibility.

This realization completely erased her initial sense of curiosity and excitement about attending the auction. Instead, her attention had been wholly focused on waiting for the ninth item—the actual appearance of the three-legged crow.

Time passed slowly. At long last, the eighth item was finished. As the auctioneer began introducing the ninth item, Zhang Yiyi's eyes lit up, her attention fully fixed on the stage.

"Ninth item—a fifth-rank three-legged crow with an awakened ancestral bloodline!"

With a wave of the auctioneer's hand, attendants brought the latest item onto the stage and began a detailed introduction.

Inside a silver birdcage sat a pitch-black three-legged crow, looking entirely unremarkable. The suppressive aura of the cage had clearly taken a toll on it, and it appeared badly injured from being captured. The poor bird looked as though it was on the brink of death, its eyes dull and spiritless.

Just one glance at the suffering creature filled Zhang Yiyi with fury. She wanted nothing more than to smash that damned birdcage to pieces.

She could confirm it immediately—this was indeed Luo Qiheng's spiritual pet. Whatever had happened, it had clearly been through hell to end up captured and brought to auction like this.

This only confirmed her fear: Luo Qiheng must be in serious danger. He would never allow his spiritual pet to be sold off if he were safe.

As if sensing Zhang Yiyi's gaze, the once-lifeless three-legged crow suddenly lifted its head and looked her way.

It recognized her instantly.

A glimmer of excitement flashed in its eyes—but it quickly lowered its head and shut its eyes again, silently returning to its injured, resting state to avoid raising suspicion.

Seeing this, Zhang Yiyi was even more convinced of the crow's intelligence. Once she bought it and freed it, she'd surely learn the truth about Luo Qiheng's situation.

"Do you want to bid on that three-legged crow?" Xia Luo asked, already sure that Zhang Yiyi was determined to win it, even if he didn't see the appeal in keeping such a pet.

Still, if she wanted it, there was no reason not to buy it.

"I do."

Zhang Yiyi nodded and whispered, "Senior, can I trouble you to help me with the bidding?"

"No problem," Xia Luo agreed without hesitation.

After all, his cultivation level was at peak Golden Core. Even if the bid was high, purchasing a fifth-rank three-legged crow with ancestral blood wouldn't draw much suspicion.

This girl was cautious—far more composed than any of the carefully-selected younger generation disciples of the Xia family. They were nothing compared to her.

On the side, Lu Qiao found Zhang Yiyi's taste a bit odd. Why would she be interested in such an ugly bird?

Sure, it had ancestral blood and was already fifth-rank, but its chances of truly evolving into a divine golden crow were slim. Not to mention, it was clearly injured and had already formed a bond with another master—re-taming it would be difficult. If the injuries were too severe or it couldn't form a new contract, the whole purchase would be a massive waste.

The price kept climbing. Besides Xia Luo's bids, three other competitors seemed very interested in the three-legged crow, making it impossible to win it cheaply.

"If you want a spiritual pet, you don't have to get it at an auction like this," Lu Qiao whispered to Zhang Yiyi. "The price is going way too high. The crow might not even awaken fully, and it's already bound. You could be spending a fortune for nothing."

She assumed Zhang Yiyi just wanted a spiritual pet—after all, she'd never seen her with one. But gambling on a trace of ancestral bloodline like this didn't seem wise.

"I know what I'm doing," Zhang Yiyi replied flatly and ignored Lu Qiao after that.

She was determined to win the crow—but there was no need to explain why.

So what if it cost more? As long as Luo Qiheng was still alive, she'd eventually make him pay her back.

Xia Luo, assured that she must have it, began bidding with even more decisiveness. After several rounds, the other bidders backed off—apparently the price had exceeded their budget.

They all knew the truth: even with ancestral blood, the chance of evolving into a golden crow was slim. If the cost wasn't too high, it might be worth the gamble, but at this point, it was no longer worth it.

In the end, Xia Luo won the crow with a price nearly three times the starting bid.

Zhang Yiyi sighed with relief. She no longer had any interest in the rest of the auction. She instructed Xia Luo to pay the spirit stones and retrieve the crow, and they quickly left the auction house.

Soon after, Zhang Yiyi booked three rooms at a clean inn for the night. She'd figure out what to do next in the morning.

Xia Luo and Lu Qiao had no objections. Honestly, whether they did or not didn't matter—neither had any authority to interfere with her plans.

"You can either go out or rest in your own rooms. Unless it's an emergency, don't disturb me," Zhang Yiyi instructed before retreating into her room.

After shutting the door, she activated the inn's protective formation, then set up an anti-surveillance array from her storage ring.

Only then did she take the crow out of the beast pouch.

The three-legged crow scanned its surroundings, confirming no one else was present, then finally relaxed and chirped anxiously at her.

"Don't worry. It's safe now. We'll figure everything out," Zhang Yiyi said gently.

Of course, she wasn't its master, so she couldn't understand its cries—but it was clear what the crow wanted.

"You want to take me to rescue your master, don't you?"

"Caw, caw!" The crow nodded eagerly.

"He's still alive, right?"

The crow nodded again, confirming that Luo Qiheng was alive—but barely, hanging by a thread. That's why it was so desperate.

It couldn't explain the details, but it hoped she'd act fast.

"Do you know where he is? Is it far? What kind of danger is he in?"

Zhang Yiyi added, "If we're going to save him, we need to prepare. Rushing in blindly would just get me killed too."

The crow chirped rapidly in panic, but she still couldn't understand.

Suddenly, it had an idea. It stopped calling and leaped onto her head.

Zhang Yiyi didn't stop it. She remembered that when she first came to Lanyu World, Luo Qiheng had this crow deliver a mental message to her in a similar way.

Sure enough, moments later, the crow transmitted several fragmented images directly into her mind.

The scenes flashed quickly and weren't very detailed, but she could clearly identify a unique landscape.

In the last image, she saw Luo Qiheng, his body black and purple from poison, fall into a massive pit and vanish.

After the transmission, the exhausted crow fainted, falling from her head.

Zhang Yiyi caught it just in time. Thankfully, it had only passed out.

She fed it some high-grade beast recovery pills she kept for Maoqiu and transferred a bit of spiritual energy to help it heal before returning it to the pouch.

Its injuries weren't light but not life-threatening either. What it needed most was time.

She figured that after Luo Qiheng got into trouble, the crow had suffered a lot trying to find her. If not for today's auction, she might never have found it—and without its final mental images, she would've had no idea where to search.

She reviewed those images repeatedly and narrowed down several possible locations.

One detail in particular—Luo Qiheng's poisoned body—solidified the answer in her mind.

"Wandu Island."

She murmured the name, feeling a sinking weight in her chest.

If that was really where he was... this was going to be a nightmare.

Wandu Island—Ten-Thousand Venom Island—was one of the top ten forbidden zones in Lanyu World. Unless someone wandered in by accident, most avoided it like the plague.

Why in the world had Luo Qiheng gone there?

She was torn. That place was practically a death sentence.

It wasn't that she lacked courage, but charging into Wandu Island might cost her her life.

Yet if she didn't try, Luo Qiheng would surely die there.

He was her only true friend in this world. If she hadn't known, it wouldn't matter—but now she did. How could she ignore it?

"Ugh... what a mess."

Zhang Yiyi buried her face in her hands. This was the first time she'd faced such a difficult decision.

To save, or not to save?

That was the question... and it was driving her mad.

The next morning, the crow stirred inside the beast pouch.

Seeing it awake, Zhang Yiyi let it out.

It was visibly much better after just one night, thanks to the expensive healing medicine—far more energetic.

"Is your master trapped on Wandu Island?"

Holding onto the last shred of hope, Zhang Yiyi asked.

The crow flapped wildly, chirping and nodding excitedly—yes!

It even tried to pull her outside.

"Okay, okay, I get it! I'll go! I promise I'll go save your master!"

Zhang Yiyi sighed heavily. All hope of it being somewhere safer was gone.

As the crow tugged and chirped nonstop, clearly terrified she might back out, Zhang Yiyi finally relented.

"I'll go, okay? But that place is too dangerous. At least let me prepare first!"