"Hmm?" Zhang Chen recounted the events once more.
Hearing this, Xie Lingyun nodded in agreement with Zhang Chen’s words, "I think you make a good point. No one would want to be a slave, even if that slave is clothed in silk and leads a life like a prince or aristocrat. And once you become a slave, with your spirit crushed and ambition lost, no matter whether in cultivation or martial arts, achieving great success becomes nearly impossible."
"That’s why I refused him," Zhang Chen chuckled.
The two talked for a while longer, then Xie Lingyun changed the topic:
"This Godslayer battle is bound to shake the world, and from now on, the lives of deities will likely be difficult. The Yellow Heaven Dao is certainly in big trouble."
The Yellow Heaven Dao currently has deities, like the twelve disciples under the Great Virtuous Master, who were all deified through an Acquired Decree, rather than Innate Divine Spirits wielding the power of mountains and rivers.
However, now that people across the land have witnessed the effects of the blood of natural divine spirits, there will inevitably be audacious individuals targeting those Acquired Divine Spirits.
At this point, Xie Lingyun looked at Zhang Chen and asked, "Are you planning to leave Huangli Temple?"
Zhang Chen shook his head, refusing. He certainly wouldn’t leave Huangli Temple; regardless of the Sea Calming Divine Pearl or stealing the Power of Incense, both are reasons he cannot leave Huangli Temple.
Seeing Zhang Chen’s refusal, Xie Lingyun was curious why he insisted on staying, but she didn’t inquire further.
"Tell me, if we were to storm Prince Pingbian’s Mansion right now, would there be a chance to reclaim the Ancient Corpse?" Zhang Chen suddenly asked.
Hearing Zhang Chen’s question, Xie Lingyun’s eyes flickered as she tapped her finger on her knee, "If it weren’t for the protection of Northern Land’s Dragon Qi, we might have a chance to forcefully intrude Prince Pingbian’s Mansion."
With Northern Land’s Dragon Qi safeguarding it, who would dare to use Divine Techniques inside Prince Pingbian’s Mansion? They’d likely be countered and killed by the Dragon Vein Qi of Northern Land.
And without the aid of magic, martial artists facing the army of Prince Pingbian’s Mansion would have no power to resist.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen’s spirits lifted, and he slowly sat up straight. Others gathered Dragon Vein Qi, but he wasn’t afraid. After all, he possessed Dragon Vein Qi himself. At that moment, he looked eagerly at Xie Lingyun, "The guards at Prince Pingbian’s Mansion are currently sparse, all the experts have been summoned here to collect the deific Creation. If we secretly infiltrate and raid Prince Pingbian’s Mansion’s base... that is indeed the corpse of an Ancient God. Shall we do it?"
Upon hearing this, Xie Lingyun hesitated, "There would certainly be defenses at Prince Pingbian’s Mansion; Prince Pingbian is no fool. He must have dispatched an army to guard it. Without the support of techniques, simply using Martial Dao power, attempting to forcefully storm into Prince Pingbian’s Mansion would be suicidal."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen’s eyes flickered constantly, quickly calculating the feasibility of ambushing Prince Pingbian’s Mansion in his mind.
It’s important to know that due to this deification affair, Prince Pingbian’s Mansion’s experts have all gathered at Huangli Temple. Right now, Prince Pingbian’s Mansion is indeed sparse, and if they don’t act now, when will they get another opportunity?
Moreover, there are countless martial world figures in the Northern Land now, and if he could take the lead in breaking the situation, why worry about not having anyone to back him?
At that time, there would certainly be many opportunists taking advantage of the chaos.
And all he needed to do was covertly drive the situation forward.
Zhang Chen noticed Xie Lingyun’s hesitation and understood her concerns; after all, Xie Lingyun wasn’t aware of his skills, so her worries were understandable.
It’s important to know that with the protection of Northern Land’s Dragon Vein, not even Xie Xuan would dare to act recklessly inside the Mansion. As long as the Dragon Vein Qi of Northern Land isn’t broken, Prince Pingbian’s Mansion is a Forbidden Land.
"Sister, could you provide support outside for me? Prepare a carriage to transport the Ancient Corpse out of the city?" Zhang Chen asked.
Upon hearing this, Xie Lingyun’s eyes flashed, revealing a glow of excitement:
"Aren’t you afraid of Dragon Qi backlash?"
Zhang Chen confidently replied, "Not afraid!"
"Are you certain you can seize the corpse from Prince Pingbian’s Mansion?"
"Now that the experts of Prince Pingbian’s Mansion are absent, whether or not it can be done, we have to try to find out." Zhang Chen slowly stood up, "Tonight, it’s just right for sister to witness the methods of a Cultivator."
Zhang Chen’s reliance was merely on the Invisibility Rune.
As long as there wasn’t anyone in Prince Pingbian’s Mansion capable of seeing through his Invisibility Rune, he would have already succeeded halfway.
"Are you really going to act? Even if there are no experts inside Prince Pingbian’s Mansion, the most troublesome are those soldiers. With thousands of troops guarding the Mansion, it even takes a True Dragon to cut through," Xie Lingyun’s eyes were filled with worry as she advised Zhang Chen.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen smiled, "Sister, just help me figure out how to transport the Ancient Corpse out. And please, don’t let me steal the Ancient Corpse only for it to be retrieved by Prince Pingbian’s guards."
"If you truly manage to steal the Ancient Corpse, then I have a way to hide it so that Prince Pingbian’s Mansion will never find it," Xie Lingyun assured, patting her chest.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen smiled, "I’ll head out first. Sister, please come to Prince Pingbian’s Mansion as soon as possible. Oh, and sister, please leave behind some Samurai to guard Xiaodouding."
"You can leave Xiaodouding’s safety to me," Xie Lingyun said.
Zhang Chen’s figure vanished into the darkness, while Xie Lingyun looked towards where Zhang Chen disappeared, a hint of excitement gleaming in her eyes, "Someone, leave five hundred Armored Warriors to guard this building. No one is allowed to approach, and send another thousand Armored Warriors with me down the mountain."
Xie Lingyun gave the order, leading her Armored Warriors swiftly down the mountain.
As for Zhang Chen, he exited the Daoist Temple, then walked to a secluded place, transforming into a Vampire Bat, flying towards Prince Pingbian’s Mansion.
If it were an ordinary Qi Cultivator or a Cultivator of the Divine Soul Dao, facing the suppression of Dragon Qi within Prince Pingbian’s Mansion, they would be just like ordinary mortals. But for Zhang Chen, he possessed Dragon Qi himself, and what’s more, his Dragon Qi had already upgraded to the third tier.
Though the Dragon Qi of Prince Pingbian’s Mansion did suppress him, he was not completely defenseless.
Zhang Chen’s speed was swift, especially after his Blood Control Technique advanced to the fifth tier. From Huangli Temple to Prince Pingbian’s Mansion took him merely an hour.
At this moment, Goulan County was deathly silent, the streets densely patrolled by guards on constant patrol.
Patrol teams could be seen everywhere, and Prince Pingbian’s Mansion had long been prepared, with tens of thousands of troops stationed on the streets, making it every three steps a post, and every five steps a patrol, forming a Heaven and Earth Net.
If there was any disturbance anywhere, it would quickly fall into the Heaven and Earth Net.
The most crucial element was that there were tens of thousands of troops stationed at each of the four city gates: east, south, west, and north.
Currently, Goulan County, to prevent interference from those martial world figures, Prince Pingbian’s Mansion enforced a curfew and stationed massive troops. Yin Spirit couldn’t emerge, so without the ability to perform Divine Techniques, if martial artists dared cause trouble in the night, they’d die as many as they came. Even a Yin Spirit Great Zhenren entering would just be an ordinary mortal under the army’s suppression.
"No wonder Xie Lingyun hesitated. It turns out Prince Pingbian is so cunning, setting up his fortress with no flaw like an iron barrel," Zhang Chen transformed into a Vampire Bat, flew a loop around Goulan County’s sky, then silently landed on an inn’s rooftop along the street, quietly overlooking the street from the darkness.
At that moment, the entire Goulan County was surging with Qi Blood and Evil Qi; Zhang Chen perceived it, although it did impact his Qi Cultivation Technique somewhat, fortunately, not significantly. At most, he could only unleash seven or eight-tenths of his usual power.
Zhang Chen observed carefully for a while before casting ultrasonic waves, which spread out in all directions with Zhang Chen at the center.
Quickly, Zhang Chen received feedback from the ultrasonic waves, looking in surprise at each inn on the street. In his perception, an armored soldier walked out of an inn, stood against the wall, and relieved himself. After finishing, he went back inside and went back to sleep.
Upon sensing this, Zhang Chen was taken aback, his mind struggling to comprehend, "Strange, how could a soldier in armor come out of a civilian’s house?"
Perplexed, Zhang Chen turned into mist and sneaked into those individual houses, and then he was utterly astounded. It wasn’t long before he returned to the rooftop, muttering, "Prince Pingbian’s Mansion is truly cunning. I thought their three-step-a-post, five-step-a-patrol curfew was their limit, but who would’ve thought Prince Pingbian hid soldiers among the civilians? Those civilian houses even harbor an army, though it’s unknown how many!"
If it weren’t for the ultrasonic waves detecting an armored soldier exiting a house to relieve himself, then cursing as he went back in, Zhang Chen might not have discovered the ruse.