"You all spoke of Soul Entering Immortal Palace day in and day out, ostracizing me, forcing me to take the Physical Entry route."
"But then again, thanks to all of you, especially Ning Zhuo. Haha, you opened up a whole new world for me."
"Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river, never underestimate a maiden's potential!"
"When I achieve success someday, standing before you, looking down upon you, I eagerly anticipate the shock on your faces!"
Ning Xiaohui grew more excited as she thought about it, feeling that her future days were beautiful and full of hope.
Especially since not long ago, she had received a direct order from Zhu Xuanji—telling her to spare no effort in securing a position related to the Historical Records Pavilion.
Ning Xiaohui gladly accepted the order!
"As long as I complete this task well, I will gain the favor of the Golden Pill Ancestor and catch the eyes of the Golden Pill Ancestors."
However, at that moment, including Zhu Xuanji, the eyes of the Golden Pill Ancestors were all focused on Ning Zhuo.
Ning Zhuo's earlier suspicions proved correct.
Before Zhu Xuanji left, he had secretly arranged methods to monitor Ning Zhuo's body and residence.
After Zhu Xuanji discussed it with the three families' Golden Pill Ancestors, the Golden Core Cultivators of the three families also secretly moved, gradually concealing themselves around Ning Zhuo.
One by one, they implemented methods to observe Ning Zhuo himself and his surroundings closely.
They were hunters, lying in wait, concealing themselves around Ning Zhuo, patiently waiting for the City Lord's Mansion to make a mistake.
Ning Zhuo's residence.
Under the silent gaze of the six Golden Pill Ancestors, Ning Zhuo took out elixir pills and swallowed them, healing his injuries.
After finishing his treatment, he looked around.
In front of the Golden Pill Ancestors, he performed various detection spells, used magic artifacts for detection, and manipulated arrays for inspection.
As a result, he found nothing suspicious.
Ning Zhuo was only in the Qi Refinement Realm, and although the magic artifacts he used were of high quality and the arrays were at the Foundation Establishment stage, he could not detect any trace of the Golden Pill Ancestors.
This behavior of Ning Zhuo, in the eyes of the Golden Pill Ancestors, was somewhat amusing and made them chuckle.
Ning Zhuo then summoned the guards outside the house.
These men were former stewards of the Ning Family, possessing Foundation Establishment level cultivation.
Ning Zhuo instructed them to guard the surroundings strictly and asked if there were any suspicious individuals around.
The guards all replied: there was nothing suspicious, no suspicious individuals.
Ning Zhuo was alone in the underground cultivation room.
He sighed, taking out the literary classics about mechanical techniques for a closer look, frowning as he read.
After reading for just a short while, he could no longer continue. He placed the classics aside and moved to the workbench, starting to tinker with various mechanical parts.
After fiddling for a while, Ning Zhuo sighed deeply again, pushing all the mechanical parts on the table aside.
Many parts fell to the ground.
Ning Zhuo reached up, grabbing his hair, and repeatedly banged his forehead on the table, letting out painful cries of "aaah."
"The little guy's heart is in chaos."
Watching this scene, the six Golden Pill Ancestors all felt that Ning Zhuo was restless and impatient; he couldn't focus on reading or studying mechanical techniques. The pressure on him was enormous!
Ning Zhuo's broad forehead turned bright red from the banging, then he released his fingers and collapsed weakly on the table, eyes closed, like he was dead.
He maintained this position for a long time, then suddenly, he opened his eyes and sat up abruptly.
He grabbed his hair again and let out another anguished scream.
This time, however, he didn't scream for long before he stood up, pacing back and forth in the underground chamber with his hands behind his back.
His brow furrowed, his face serious.
He walked back and forth, occasionally stopping to sigh to the heavens, sometimes screaming in pain as if venting. At times, his eyes turned red as he walked to a corner, pressed his head against the wall, and forcefully pushed against it without using any mana.
The Golden Pill Ancestors watched in silence, some also frowning slightly.
Zhu Xuanji's eyes flickered slightly, his face solemn, but he felt a significant amount of empathy.
The pressure on Ning Zhuo was far greater than it seemed on the surface!
His various detection spells hadn't yielded any results, but his wisdom had already told him that he must be under heavy surveillance at the moment.
Especially among them, there was a renowned Divine Hunter!
Every move he made, every word he uttered, had to be perfect, without a single flaw.
Otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable!
It was in the evening when Fei Si's letter was delivered to him.
Ning Zhuo looked at the jade slip letter, hesitating for a long time, his expression constantly changing.
There was solemnity, fear, and a hint of resentment. It seemed as if he was blaming Fei Si, thinking he wouldn't be in his current predicament if it wasn't for him!
Eventually, Ning Zhuo sighed, gritted his teeth, and suddenly reached out to pick up the jade slip letter.
He pressed the jade slip tightly to his forehead, continuously infusing it with divine sense.
After reading the letter's contents, he sighed deeply again, his face full of worry, and placed the jade slip on the table.
He then began pacing back and forth in front of the table with his hands behind his back.
After some time, Ning Zhuo took out a blank jade slip, using mana to write a letter.
He wrote another letter to Ning Jiufan, informing him about the letter he received from Fei Si asking for details about what happened during the day.
Ning Zhuo didn't know what to do, so he wrote a letter specifically seeking advice.
Ning Jiufan soon received the letter.
To be precise, he had already seen Ning Zhuo writing the letter and had guessed its contents.
After receiving the letter, he infused it with divine sense, and a single glance confirmed his guess was entirely correct.
Not daring to make decisions on his own, Ning Jiufan passed the letter to Zhu Xuanji and the other Golden Pill Ancestors.
Though Ning Zhuo was merely a junior at the Qi Refinement stage, his letter was successively read by six Golden Core Cultivators, underscoring its importance.
After finishing the letter, everyone turned their gaze to Zhu Xuanji.
Zhu Xuanji smiled faintly, "Ning Zhuo, this poor little fellow, is completely lost."
"Let him reply, just as he normally would."
"Since Fei Si is suspicious and wants to delve into my purpose in visiting Ning Zhuo today, let Ning Zhuo speak the truth. It will continue to alarm the enemy!"
Zhu Xuanji needed the City Lord's Mansion to make a mistake, preferably sending assassins to kill Ning Zhuo, so Zhu Xuanji could seize the evidence.
Fei Si's initiative to inquire actually worried Zhu Xuanji.
He feared that Ning Zhuo might expose a flaw when faced with an old fox like Fei Si, making it easily recognizable.
So, he decided to let Ning Zhuo tell the truth. After all, his previous conversation with Ning Zhuo was meticulously designed.
At that moment, on his way to Ning Zhuo, Zhu Xuanji had already set his target, intending to exert pressure to make the City Lord's Mansion feel the tension from him.
In his bedroom, Ning Zhuo had already lain down. He tossed and turned on his bed, unable to sleep.
Suddenly, he received a secret communication from Ning Jiufan.
Ning Zhuo's eyes shot open, barely concealing his excitement, but he was immediately warned by Ning Jiufan to behave as usual.
Ning Zhuo went to the study, sat at the desk, and began writing the letter, holding the jade slip tightly.
Following Ning Jiufan's instructions, he truthfully recounted his detailed conversation with Zhu Xuanji.
The letter mainly focused on two key points: Yuan Dasheng and the Demon Dao True Scripture.
At the end of the letter, Ning Zhuo deliberately asked Fei Si: What did he know about the Demon Dao True Scripture?
Early in the morning, Fei Si had been at his desk, handling various affairs of the Immortal City.
He barely left his seat throughout the day.
It wasn't until the crescent moon rose high that he finally managed to wrap up most of the day's tasks.
Of course, by tomorrow or even tonight, new affairs would inevitably arise.
The Recruitment Decree had brought too many outsiders into Fire Persimmon Immortal City.
This created tremendous pressure on the City Lord's Mansion to manage the Immortal City.
If it weren't for Fei Si and Chi Dun working tirelessly, the city would have descended into chaos long ago.
Fei Si was particularly focused on Zhu Xuanji's movements!
On one hand, Zhu Xuanji was from the Royal Family. And it was now certain he was the primary competitor for the City Lord's Mansion in the race for the Magma Fairy Palace.
On the other hand, Zhu Xuanji's aggressive visit to Ning Zhuo clearly indicated something significant had occurred.
People in Fire Persimmon Immortal City were almost all talking about it. As the acting City Lord, Fei Si naturally wanted to know the real details more than anyone.
Given his close, private relationship with Ning Zhuo, Fei Si had straightforwardly written a jade slip letter to inquire.
"At last, a reply," Fei Si said, infusing his divine sense into the jade slip Ning Zhuo had written.
After reading it, Fei Si's expression shifted slightly.
"Demon Dao True Scripture?"
"What kind of topic?"
"I have no knowledge of any True Scripture, and you ask me?"
Fei Si set down the jade slip, his brow furrowed, his mind racing.
"Is the Demon Dao True Scripture one of the Three Superior Sect Techniques?"
Fei Si thought about the Three Superior Sect Techniques, recalling his past conversation with Meng Kui, and speculated about the City Lord's Mansion's cultivation technique regarding the Three Elixir Fields Foundation Establishment.
"If the Demon Dao True Scripture is indeed one of the techniques concerning the Three Elixir Fields Foundation Establishment, paired with the Five Elements Qi Regulation Art..."
"Then obtaining this True Scripture would indeed greatly aid in exploring the Immortal Palace and vying for its master."
"No wonder Zhu Xuanji rushed over so urgently. His presence clearly intended to pressure Ning Zhuo into handing over the Demon Dao True Scripture!"
"But how did Zhu Xuanji know? Where did he get the clues about the Demon Dao True Scripture?"
Since Zhu Xuanji's arrival in Fire Persimmon Immortal City, Fei Si had kept a close watch on his every move.
As the strategist for the City Lord's Mansion, keeping tabs on Zhu Xuanji, the Royal Family's envoy from the Southern Bean Royal Family, was imperative.
Precisely because Fei Si kept a close watch, he was curious about where Zhu Xuanji had obtained his clues.
"Recently, Zhu Xuanji has been leading the three families' Golden Core Cultivators in openly exploring the bottom of the volcano."
"Could it be they found clues to the True Scripture at the bottom of Huoshi Mountain?"
With this question in mind, Fei Si headed to the volcano's summit to seek out Meng Kui.
He inquired with Meng Kui, knowing Meng Kui had been stationed at the summit and should be fairly well-informed about Zhu Xuanji and his group's activities.
Meng Kui knew a little, immediately sharing information about the Mechanical Demon General with Fei Si.
Fei Si was astonished, thinking, "This time, the Ning Family Ancestor made a great sacrifice!"