Chapter 924: Chapter 918: Your Ambition Is Truly Not Small
The Goldflow Prefecture is situated in the central region of the Imperial Dynasty. With sects and Immortal Clans standing in great numbers, it is a place of visible prosperity.
It also serves as a vital transportation hub for the empire; trade from all major prefectures passes through here, and many have established shops within its borders, turning it into a veritable Commercial Capital.
As dawn broke, a white mist pervaded a small town, within which human figures began to appear.
At a tea stall in the morning market, the shopkeeper was still stoking the fire to steam buns.
Through the rising steam, he spotted a black shadow. He had intended to call out a greeting, but the moment the figure arrived, the shopkeeper’s expression froze.
The man was clad in black robes, with iron chains wrapped around his body that bound a coffin to him.
He nodded to the shopkeeper, then produced a medicinal pill—one that dazzled the senses with a mere glance—and placed it to the side, signaling the shopkeeper to push the tables and chairs together.
The shopkeeper wiped the cold sweat from his brow.
Early this morning, a succession of strange individuals had arrived in this small town and seated themselves beneath his wooden shed.
A figure in white carrying a sword case had just arrived—how could such an appearance belong to a mere mortal?
Under the cover of the heavy fog, more people arrived one after another.
They looked like a large family that had arranged to have morning tea together.
There was a woman of stunning beauty dressed in simple clothes; a woman in Daoist robes fondling a jade-green bamboo pole as if it were a rare treasure; a two-meter-tall shirtless brawny man rubbing his bald head; a Daoist priest with an otherworldly aura; a middle-aged man sitting with an imposing and extraordinary bearing; and three youths who, while respectful, looked anything but decent…
With his forehead drenched in cold sweat, the shopkeeper served steamer after steamer of buns. The beautiful woman took the teapot and poured the tea herself.
“Shopkeeper, bring us eighty steamers of buns.”
Li Yaotie called out an order casually, then looked toward Li Dalong. “Father, why did you choose such a place?”
Li Dalong smiled. “I can’t recall how long it has been since our whole family ate a meal together outside.”
Hearing this, the group fell silent for a long moment. Several hundred years had passed in the blink of an eye, yet everything felt as if it were yesterday.
Soon, however, smiles returned to everyone’s faces. Some were pale, their injuries clearly unhealed, yet they acted as if nothing was amiss, savoring this rare morning tea after the great battle.
…..
High in the skies above the Goldflow Prefecture.
Su Chen wore a red leaf hanging around his neck.
It was a Primordial Red Leaf taken from the very center of the Old Tree’s crown, possessing the supreme efficacy for shielding against Heavenly Secrets.
Over these years, he had relied on this leaf to evade the tracking of powerful experts.
He was clad in Li clan armor, and hanging at his waist were a small sword, a spirit tablet, and a medicine gourd.
“Peerless Hall, Min Tiange, Mu Xueqing.”
In the past, whenever Su Chen spoke the names of his former haunts and old acquaintances, his expression would invariably turn dark and gloomy. But now, his expression was tranquil, his eyes as still as an ancient well without a ripple.
He had already received intelligence from the family; just a few days ago, he learned of the powerful forces controlled from behind the scenes by the Peerless Hall.
“Impressive skills. So, after I died sixty thousand years ago, you brought Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems and the Grand Tower under your fold. Min Tiange, oh Min Tiange… your ambition is truly not small.”
Su Chen had to admit that with sixty thousand years having passed, those old acquaintances of his had long since reached a completely different realm.
The enemies he faced now were inevitably far beyond his current self.
He gazed down at the sect on the ground named the “Sect of Righteous Qi.” Within the sect, he could see disciples flying back and forth on their swords.
Under the perception of his Divine Soul, the strongest cultivator on the ground appeared to be no higher than the Golden Core Realm.
Yet Su Chen was certain: this was the headquarters of the Grand Tower, and this was the result he had obtained after years of investigation!
“With the Peerless Hall coming under the scrutiny of the Immortal Suppression Department, Min Tiange did not hesitate for a moment to surrender Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems, the Grand Tower, and the Three Corpses of Ling Tian.
Yet, this man is driven by greed. This implies that to him, neither these two major forces nor the Three Corpses hold any further significance.”
A trace of worry flashed across Su Chen’s expression.
“Back then, the opportunity he stole from me was sufficient to allow him to break through to the Body Integration Realm.
The Three Corpses of Ling Tian possess the Imperial Bloodline, and he used Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems and the Grand Tower to study them for sixty thousand years.
He also seized the Dao Seed of Azure Mist Mountain, using it to embed his schemes within the major factions of the Azure Dynasty.”
“Now that the dynasty is crumbling and there is hardly anyone left in the world capable of suppressing him, he is undoubtedly plotting something…”
As he spoke, Su Chen raised an eyebrow. He chanted an incantation and concealed his figure.
Within the cloud-filled sky, Spirit Boats approached one after another, the figures aboard them radiating powerful auras.
On the Spirit Boats.
The Immortal Suppression Department had arrived with three hundred cultivators.
All had come from the Imperial Capital, or were experts invited from major sects and Immortal Clans along the way.
“Is this the headquarters of the Grand Tower? What a bunch of rats.”
Zhao Guang swept his sword-fingers across his eyes.
Gazing downward, he saw that beneath the “Noble Spirit Sect” there was a Spiritual formation; a massive Grotto-Heaven Blessed Land was hidden within it.
Yet, amidst his investigation, he let out a soft exclamation of surprise.
“Amitabha.”
Holy Monk Yidian was standing right beside Zhao Guang.
Seeing the odd expression on Zhao Guang’s face, he asked, “Commander Zhao, did you discover something?”
“It is nothing. It is simply that the Grand Tower has hidden itself deeply.”
Zhao Guang smiled faintly and cast a subtle glance toward the distance.
Through his Body Integration Spiritual power, he had long since perceived a black-robed figure concealed within the distant cloud layers.
The man had the appearance of a youth and was dressed in long robes.
He possessed a cultivation base at the Early Void Refining Realm, yet the aura radiating from him was truly boundless.
However, seeing the spirit tablet hanging at the man’s waist, Zhao Guang felt it was inappropriate to comment.
He was, however, secretly alarmed.
“So, the destruction of those three hundred-plus cultivators from Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems and the Grand Tower really was the handiwork of the Li clan!
Rumors outside claim that the Li clan only has Li Dalong and Li Yaozu at the Void Refining Realm. This Azure Cloud Li clan has truly hidden themselves deeply.
This person carries a Li family spirit tablet, yet who exactly is he? My Immortal Suppression Department possesses not a shred of intelligence on him!”
Lost in these thoughts, Zhao Guang’s expression suddenly changed.
Suddenly, Holy Monk Yidian soared into the air.
A Buddha Dharma Body, 3 kilometers high, manifested within the clouds, causing the cultivators of the Noble Spirit Sect on the ground to look up in shock and awe, as if they were beholding the Buddha himself.
Holy Monk Yidian’s majestic voice resounded through the skies.
“Amitabha. Disperse, all of you. Do not throw your lives away in vain.”
“You reckless bald donkey!”
Witnessing the full release of that Body Integration pressure, Zhao Guang’s expression turned incredibly unsightly.
He finally understood just how helpless Qi Wunian and the subordinates of the Immortal Suppression Department must have felt during the battle at Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems.
Even though they had located the Grand Tower’s headquarters, they still knew nothing of the situation inside—how many experts were hidden there, or what traps lay in wait.
They hadn’t even had time to set up their own containment formations yet!
Zhao Guang had clearly prepared to secretly dispatch his subordinates to summon all cultivators above the Golden Core Realm in the Goldflow Prefecture to come forth and suppress the Grand Tower with a grand formation.
He never imagined that Holy Monk Yidian would expose them in an instant.
Were it not for the fact that he understood the Holy Monk’s temperament, Zhao Guang would have surely taken him for a spy.
Now, he had no choice but to act.
Zhao Guang took a deep breath and unleashed his full Body Integration Spiritual power.
Waiting until the cultivators of the Noble Spirit Sect had scattered, nine Vermilion Birds cried out in the heavens and bombarded the sect below, intending to break the formation with brute force!
However.
Whether it was Zhao Guang, Holy Monk Yidian, or Su Chen hidden in the clouds, everyone’s expression changed.
The grand formation opened far more easily than they had imagined!
They entered a Grotto-Heaven Blessed Land, but there… There was no one!
There was only a void, resembling the empty dimension inside a Storage Ring, within which floated a severed head resting inside a brocade box.
“How is this possible?”
Inside Zhao Guang’s Spirit Boat, Li Chang’an was seated, sipping tea.
Upon sensing the anomaly within the Grand Tower, the hand holding his teacup paused in mid-air.
Whether it was Su Chen, the Hall of Heavenly Principles, or the Immortal Suppression Department, they had all been searching for the Grand Tower’s headquarters for years.
Even just a few days ago, cultivators from the Grand Tower were seen coming and going from this Noble Spirit Sect; in fact, major factions from all directions had been secretly probing this location.
If the Grand Tower had intended to flee, they should not have been able to escape everyone’s watchful eyes.
“No, that’s not right. The cultivators who were just driven away by Holy Monk Yidian…”
Li Chang’an narrowed his eyes slightly.
Sure enough, high in the clouds, Zhao Guang had also sensed that something was amiss and sent men to search for the cultivators of the Noble Spirit Sect who had just fled.
“Reporting to the Commander… the people… they have already fled. Their means of concealing their aura is extraordinary.
We do not know what secret technique they used, but they can no longer be found.”
“…”
Zhao Guang remained silent for a moment. Holy Monk Yidian was also gone.
The truth was now staring them in the face.
“Damn you, Min Tiange! Damn you, Grand Tower! And damn you, Holy Monk Yidian!”
In this brief span of time, the only conclusion Zhao Guang could reach was that Holy Monk Yidian was also one of the Grand Tower’s people.
That scoundrel had hidden himself deeply. Therefore, the Grand Tower had known the situation well in advance and seized this opportunity to flee!
Inside the Spirit Boat.
Li Chang’an’s thoughts ran deeper.
“But if that is the case, why didn’t the Grand Tower flee earlier?
Min Tiange abandoned them; this matter could only be considered closed if the Grand Tower’s headquarters were destroyed.
Moreover, for Min Tiange, Holy Monk Yidian held an important position within the Immortal Suppression Department and could serve as a trump card.
To use him up like this—isn’t that picking up a sesame seed only to lose a watermelon? And why leave behind the head of the Three Corpses?”
“Since Holy Monk Yidian is a member of the Grand Tower, could it be that he does not carry a Dao Seed?
Min Tiange would not let these people live if they dared to flee, so where do they get the courage? Unless… they possess a method to extract the Dao Seed.”
Doubts—Li Chang’an’s heart was filled with a myriad of doubts!
Yet, seeing the severed head within that spatial void, Li Chang’an had no time to dwell on them.
The Three Corpses—they were determined to secure them!
The Ancestor Spirit Tablet emitted a black mist.
Li Chang’an hurriedly rose to his feet. “Greetings, Old Ancestor!”
Black mist surged forth, and the surrounding space began to ripple.
Li Chang’an looked out from the Spirit Boat, only to hear shouts erupting.
“What is that thing?!”
“Bad news! It’s the Laws of Space! Someone is snatching the Three Corpses!”
“Commander Zhao!”
…….
Amidst the clouds and void.
There stood magnificent jade towers and vermilion pavilions, appearing completely otherworldly. Numerous powerful cultivators were flying amongst them.
Inside the central grand hall, a youth dressed in a purple Daoist robe sat cross-legged.
He was strikingly handsome, his entire being radiating an air of nobility.
Suddenly.
A golden light flashed from his chest, causing him to snap his eyes open.
Beneath the golden glow shimmering in his eyes, his gaze focused inward, observing a Golden Seed located at his heart—it had developed a crack!
“Damn you, Holy Monk Yidian!”
Min Tiange let out a cold snort.
Spiritual power surged from his body, and in an instant, the cracks on the Golden Seed began to gradually heal.
Extending from that Golden Seed was a dense web of golden threads, stretching out from the grand hall in all directions.
However, hundreds of these threads had completely severed their connection, causing Min Tiange to narrow his eyes slightly.
“Good, very good. You removed my Dao Seed. For the rest of this life, you had best hide like a snake or a rat; otherwise, I will surely take your life!”
Min Tiange took a deep breath and channeled his Spiritual power to guard the Dao Seed.
This Dao Seed, obtained from Azure Mist Mountain, had been his method for controlling his subordinates for these past sixty thousand years.
Yet, Holy Monk Yidian had somehow used an unknown method to exploit a loophole in such a short time.
Now, he had no choice but to be extremely vigilant.
“However, the objective has essentially been achieved. With the matters of Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems and the Grand Tower concluded, that fellow Wu Neng will assume he has severed my fangs and claws. From now on, his vigilance against me will be somewhat lessened.”
As he spoke, Min Tiange frowned slightly, watching as a paper kite flew over from the distance and landed in front of him.
“Father seeks a meeting with me?”
Min Tiange’s expression grew complex.
“How can a great man be content to live beneath others? As for the Heavenly Mandate of this Imperial Dynasty—if the Zishu Clan can hold it, why can’t my Min Clan hold it as well? Why is it that you simply cannot understand this truth?”
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