Chapter 917: Infiltrating the One Heart Sect
This grotto-heaven of swords was unlike any ordinary evolved grotto-heaven.
Inside, there were no mountains, rivers, or lakes—only a scene strikingly similar to the Sword Tomb itself.
The ground was a chaotic tapestry, pierced by thousands upon thousands of swords.
Sword qi crisscrossed and flowed, forming gusts of astral wind that howled through the air.
The entire grotto-heaven was a world belonging solely to swords, with no room for any other living thing.
Outside the sword grotto-heaven, within the Sword Tomb, the clone Li Qing—who had been shattered to pieces—slowly reformed as flesh and blood writhed and knit back together.
"Early Nascent Soul stage," he noted, sensing his cultivation level with a slight nod.
His realm was slightly weaker than his original self's. While his actual combat power couldn't compare either, he had, after all, used a Heavenly Wonder for his Foundation Establishment. Overwhelming an ordinary Soul Transformation cultivator wouldn't be a problem.
However, upon entering the Nascent Soul stage, Li Qing felt an unseen resistance impeding his progress.
A string of words involuntarily surfaced in Li Qing's mind.
"The Heavenly Venerate's New Method is an act of defiance against the heavens. The more favor one receives from the world, the more difficult it will be to reverse the logic of heaven and earth in the future."
"Even when sacrificing an Earth's Soul, one will suffer a backlash from the world's will, magnified several times over. No matter how talented, most will find their path ending at the Soul Transformation stage."
Perhaps because Li Qing had played a part in the birth of this black sword, he felt little resistance when he devoured it and transformed it into his grotto-heaven.
But he had a premonition that this was the absolute limit of what the heavens would tolerate.
If he tried to advance further, to ascend to the Soul Transformation or even the Dao Integration stage, he would have to face the full brunt of the world's malice.
But Li Qing wasn't particularly concerned.
After all, as a clone, his mission wasn't cultivation. It was to travel to the Five Elders Council, find the One Heart Heavenly Venerate, and retrieve the lost techniques of the Xuantian Sect.
He reviewed the information sent by his original self. Due to that strange spatial fluctuation from before, the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance and the Five Elders Council were currently in a rare period of truce.
Li Qing took a moment to get his bearings, then transformed into a streak of black light and sped toward his destination.
As he flew, Li Qing immediately noticed something different from before.
When his original self traveled through the sky, he had to overcome the resistance of the world and the buffeting astral winds.
But Li Qing, transformed into a beam of sword light, moved like a fish in water, perfectly merging with his surroundings.
Not only was the resistance negligible, but the energy consumed during flight was astonishingly low.
"A Heavenly Wonder is, by its nature, a part of the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao. It is only natural that it receives preferential treatment."
Flying was no longer a chore; it had become an enjoyment.
Li Qing felt an immense sense of freedom. If not for the fear of attracting the attention of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, he would have let out a long cry to vent his exhilaration.
The black sword light grew faster and faster, flashing across the sky in an instant.
Even if someone happened to catch a glimpse of it, they would dismiss it as a trick of the eye.
After just seven days, Jiwei Prefecture, a territory of the Five Elders Council, was already visible in the distance.
Before the barrier of white mist that spanned the horizon, a team of cultivators from the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance's Martial Hall was stationed.
Li Qing didn't alert them. Using the information from his original self, he easily bypassed the surveillance of the Alliance's protective grand array and slipped into the white mist.
As a buffer zone between the Five Elders Council and the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, Jiwei Prefecture was untouched by the influence of any Heavenly Venerate other than Wuyou Immortal Venerable.
The reason he chose to enter the Five Elders Council's territory here was to avoid the Realm of Reality. By passing through the Human Dao Heavenly Realm, he could reach the One Heart Immortal Sect directly.
In the Realm of Reality, no lie could remain hidden. It was clearly not a suitable place for infiltration, so it was best to avoid it if possible.
The Human Dao Heavenly Realm, by contrast, was much safer.
Compared to the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, which was busy preparing for war, the territories of the Five Elders Council seemed far more peaceful.
Aside from the border and buffer prefectures where heavy troops were stationed, the other regions seemed completely oblivious to the war. The cultivators and mortals Li Qing encountered along the way were all relaxed, some even languid.
Li Qing couldn't help but marvel, impressed by the Five Elders Council's method of governance.
He encountered no danger, and after passing through the Human Dao Heavenly Realm, Li Qing finally arrived in the territory of the One Heart Immortal Sect.
Of course, his smooth journey was not only due to his Heavenly Wonder foundation and exceptional stealth, but perhaps also because he wasn't officially a member of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance.
Had he been an Alliance cultivator, infiltrating so easily would have likely been far more difficult.
This place was called Yilu Prefecture.
True to its name, which suggested pleasant travels, the landscape was a vast expanse of fertile plains.
He could even see mortal caravans traveling between the cities.
Unlike the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, where cultivators and mortals lived separately, every city under the Five Elders Council housed a mixed population of both.
They were merely divided into inner and outer city districts.
Mortals resided in the outer city, while cultivators lived within the inner city.
Sensing a vague familiarity in the surrounding scenery, Li Qing became lost in thought.
"I feel like... I've been here before..."
In the next instant, he suppressed the distracting thought and began searching for his target.
According to the information from his original self, the key to entering the true One Heart Immortal Sect was to attract the attention of the One Heart Heavenly Venerate.
The erotic picture books secretly circulating within the Five Elders Council were the swiftest and most effective method.
Unfortunately, this part of the operation didn't seem to be going smoothly.
Li Qing wandered around Yilu Prefecture for several days without finding any of those audacious merchants.
This was understandable, though. After all, openly distributing such materials under the nose of a Heavenly Venerate was a crime punishable by death.
Just as Li Qing was about to try his luck in another prefecture, a commotion suddenly erupted in the usually placid city.
His interest piqued, Li Qing followed the crowd to the center of the incident.
"You're Wan Zailai?!"
Several cultivators with hostile expressions had surrounded a handsome youth in flowing white robes.
"So you've found me. It's just as well. I've rested for a few days; it's time to get back to work," Wan Zailai remarked, glancing sideways at the crowd. Under the pressure of his gaze, the surrounding cultivators subconsciously took half a step back.
At this, the cultivators of Yilu Prefecture were all thoroughly embarrassed.
One of them, flushed with shame and anger, snarled, "A mere Golden Core cultivator dares to speak so arrogantly! Saying that we in Yilu Prefecture are all incompetent!"
"I'm going to teach you a lesson today!"
"Brother Pei, you're already at the Nascent Soul stage. Isn't it improper to bully someone weaker?" a bystander couldn't help but advise.
Before the cultivator named Pei could respond, Wan Zailai let out a soft chuckle. "A Nascent Soul cultivator? So what? In my eyes, you might as well be made of clay."
Now, every cultivator from Yilu Prefecture present wore a mask of fury.
"Fine! Just fine!"
"Pei Qingshan of Yilu Prefecture challenges you!"
As Pei Qingshan spoke, a transparent, circular structure suddenly materialized in the sky.
Amid the crowd's gasps, the colosseum-like building cast down two beams of light, pulling both combatants inside.
"It's the Heavenly Venerate's trial grounds!"
"It seems the rumors were true! That Wan Zailai plans to challenge Nascent Soul cultivators as a Golden Core, all to earn his way into the One Heart Immortal Sect!"
(End of Chapter)
Comments