"Mmmh, if she didn't, then her actions back then track. Based on my guess, your wife may have been on the run when you met her and the seal she placed on you the day she got taken along with your daughter, was to save your life.

Her capitulation and the running seem to suggest that she viewed the lady in white and the sect behind her, as too powerful to fight against and doing so would likely end in death.

She knew you well enough to know you would likely chase after her, so she decided to proactively hinder your plans by destroying the one thing you needed for the search, the visual image of that lady. Without it, it would be hard for you to track them. I think she hid all information about her past from you, for the very same reason.

Her plan may have very well been flawless but the locations she chose sold her out.

If we go by your earlier judgment from your escaping experience, then all the places you settled at, were places she deemed the sect she was running from would never think to look.

With this we can narrow down the area and who we are searching for," said Yang Qing as he drew a few things on the map.

Ma Yuan wasn't all too surprised about Yang Qing's deduction on the reason for the seal on his forehead, since he had come to the same conclusion too after he thought on it a bit.

.....

"First, we can eliminate every area in between or close to the places you lived in , and also the area around the mysterious realm she found you in. If I'm running, I'd make sure it's as far away from the headquarters of those I'm running from and their sphere of influence. Therefore any area around the mysterious realm and the places you lived in, can be eliminated.Next is the relationship between these areas and who she is running from. Some of these areas are either too secluded from that sect or they have a terrible relationship with it, so she deemed those places suitable.

We will look for the commonality in all these places and the organizations they have a horrible relationship with and see if they overlap, and from there we will see which of those resulting organizations use a yin-based blue-grade cultivation art.

This should reduce the area and the organizations that will be placed under investigation by a significant number and since we also have the name your wife mentioned, 'Yao' Though it may not contribute much, it doesn't hurt to use it," Yang Qing said as he circled a few areas on the map, marking them as 'obsolete areas' and circled other areas and marked it as 'potential zone'.

"Judge Yang Qing...," Ma Yuan's voice turned shaky as he got overwhelmed that he didn't even know how to continue.

How long has he been searching, for seven years it has been nothing but dead ends, few clues, and even more pitiful resources to work with. As years went by, the more desperate he became, which then evolved into a cup of despair that kept growing in size till it reached a point he had chosen to take his life rather than continue drinking from that cup.

Yang Qing's deduction had given him something he feared more than anything, 'Hope'.

"My deductions are not definite but it's a place to start. We will take it a step at a time and see where it leads," Yang Qing said as he gently patted Ma Yuan's back which was shaking. He looked to be struggling to hold back his tears as he gave a muffled okay response.

Yang Qing didn't say much after that and just poured himself and Ma Yuan another drink. Today's events must have shaken Ma Yuan, he needed time to process everything and his emotions.

As for Yang Qing, after making a few notes and plans on how to proceed with the case, he refocused back on his evaluations.

They were now traveling back to the Southern quadrant of the area of his evaluations. He had already done 1120 evaluations and was left with 280 of them. Of that number, 120 organizations would be evaluated within the Chain Gate sect's territory which was a rank 3 sect, while the remaining 160 were spread about between a few rank 4 organizations and the Blue carp sky sect which was a rank 3 sect.

By his count, he had about 19 hours left to complete everything. The time was tight but doable.

About an hour later they passed over the Purple City of the Red Maple Empire. There were battle cries all around the city with most of the residents indoors.

The battle seemed to be concentrated in a particular area that Yang Qing detected was the Noble's district.

"Mmmh, so it's them?" Yang Qing muttered as he detected two familiar auras in the midst of that chaos leading the charge in one of the buildings.

Those two auras were rapidly moving around the building. Everywhere they moved, a core formation expert would disappear.

Ma Yuan was shocked at what was happening below him. He could detect more than a dozen auras of cultivators who were stronger than him even when he had his cultivation base. There were even some whom he detected were stronger than his wife. He cautiously looked at Yang Qing almost as if to ask 'You're not intervening', but the man in question had a lackadaisical look to him, as he took out sunflower seeds to munch. He didn't seem to have any intention of stepping in.

"The Order does interfere in certain matters, but not all.

While we maintain some semblance of peace, this is a cultivation world after all, we can't intervene in everything nor should we, otherwise we would bear more infamy than we do.

Besides we are cultivators, battles are to be expected, the southern continent would grow weaker without it. As long as it doesn't pull in the innocents and those too weak to defend themselves, the Order will turn a blind eye to it.

We are not the continent's babysitters. The rules of the cultivation world will always be in effect, even with us around." Yang Qing offhandedly said.

In a few minutes with Ellie's speed, Purple City was left in the rear and was nothing more than a tiny dot.

Almost half an hour later they reached the Chain Gate sect's territory, where Yang Qing immediately resumed his evaluations with the assistance of a core elder from the sect.

From there he followed a set trajectory as he moved in a lateral line clearing the remaining 160 evaluations. Relief washed over him when he completed the last evaluation with 10 minutes to spare.

He left the place immediately after and flew back to the Order with much eagerness. All that was on his mind was sleep and food. It had been an exhaustive three days.