Not far away, Wang Zhuo watched in a daze.
He was the palace master of Skywalk Academy, the Qingxuan King of the Great Zhou, and one of the Ten Great Xiantian Martial Ancestors, yet now, tidal waves of astonishment coursed through his heart.
He hadn’t thought he’d underestimated Su Yi. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have so scrupulously arranged the entire event or planned an ambush.
But he never would have guessed that a seventeen-year-old like Su Yi would be this strong!
This completely overturned his predictions. He couldn’t even imagine how such a monstrous figure could exist in this world.
It was still raining.
The short, gaunt elder who’d placed the Small Thunderflame Formation was a fifth-level Grandmaster, yet he was now so scared that the blood had drained from his face, and he quivered from head to toe.
Not far away, Su Yi raised his oil-paper umbrella and walked towards them, his steps calm and unhurried. Not a single speck of dust or drop of rain sullied his blue robes.
“Do you have anything else up your sleeves?”
As Su Yi spoke, he raised his hand and flung his sword.
Bzzz!
The Abstruse God Sword flashed through the air as if it were sentient, then landed beside Tie Kong’s corpse.
The faint, nigh-illusory image of a vicious bird beating its wings appeared on the dark blade, and the sword trembled with a series of clear hums.
Then, at speeds clearly visible to the naked eye, Tie Kong’s corpse shriveled. The Abstruse God Sword quickly absorbed all of his remaining blood essence, leaving nothing behind!
Once it finished, the sword flashed and returned to Su Yi’s hand.
Witnessing this unsettling, bloodthirsty spectacle, Wang Zhuo completely lost his cool. He exclaimed, “Is your sword already spiritually linked?”
Su Yi shook his head. “Not really. All it can do is drink blood and absorb a bit of qi and true essence.”
Wang Zhuo took a deep breath, then sighed. “No wonder you’re so fearless. With such a terrifying spiritual sword in hand, unless an Earthly Immortal intervened, who in the Great Zhou couldn’t you kill?”
It was obvious that he’d misunderstood; he thought the Abstruse God Sword was Su Yi’s trump card.
Su Yi naturally wouldn’t take it upon himself to explain. Instead, he reminded Wang Zhuo, “It’s getting late.”
Wang Zhuo’s expression shifted, and he grimaced, “Young Lord Su, just now, I trust that I welcomed you with respect and hospitality. I had absolutely no intention of harming you…”
“There’s nothing for it.” Su Yi calmly interrupted him. “In the end, you still attacked me.”
Wang Zhuo said solemnly, “But I dare say with certainty that even if I’d defeated you, I wouldn’t have struck the killing blow. After all, my goal was to invite you to join my organization.”
He paused, then said bitterly, “Young Lord, might you give me a chance to make up for my mistakes?”
“You say that, but I don’t see any sincerity at all,” said Su Yi.
Wang Zhuo paused, but he quickly understood. He glanced at the tiny, gaunt man beside him and said apologetically, “Brother Chongming, I’m sorry.”
The elder’s expression shifted dramatically, and he said, “Your Excellency, you….!”
Bang!
Before he could finish, a hand slapped his head into powder, and his body toppled limply to the ground.
Su Yi’s eyes narrowed slightly, but he shook his head. “That’s not enough.”
Wang Zhuo took a deep breath, then looked into the distance. The eighteen experts who’d joined forces to form the Six Harmonies Qi Gathering Formation were lying scattered across the ground.
“Hurry up and run!” When they sensed Wang Zhuo’s gaze, these experts instinctively realized that this wasn’t looking good for them, and they immediately chose to flee.
“Everyone, I’m truly sorry.” Wang Zhuo let out a long sigh, then leaped into the rain in a flash and began slaughtering the entire group
Just a moment later, all eighteen of the Grandmasters were dead, without a single survivor.
When Wang Zhuo returned, he hung his head and said in low spirits, “Young Lord Su, is this enough sincerity for you?”
Su Yi glanced at the black civet in his arms. The civet’s fur stood on end, and it hissed, its eerie blue eyes filled with rage and alarm.
Wang Zhuo’s expression changed completely. “Young Lord Su, I cannot kill the civet.”
Su Yi looked away, then said thoughtfully, “Are you aware that its body hides a strange wisp of a yao’s soul?”
Wang Zhuo’s face went rigid, and his scalp went numb as he exclaimed, “Young Lord, you could tell?”
“A wicked little creature like that cannot possibly escape my notice,” said Su Yi calmly. “How about this? Kill it with your own two hands, and I’ll grant you a path to survival.”
Wang Zhuo’s expression darkened. “Young Lord, must you push me down the path of no return?”
The black civet in his arms arched its back, fully alert.
Su Yi gazed intently at Wang Zhuo. “I’m helping you obtain release. Don’t tell me you’re really willing to let this vile little beast order you about for the rest of your life?”
“You….” Wang Zhuo’s eyes widened.
Ksssh!
The black civet suddenly leaped into the air and waved its sharp claws, stirring up terrifying and unearthly winds as it slashed at Su Yi.
The attack was sudden and forceful; the civet was no weaker than a Xiantian Martial Ancestor!
But Su Yi merely laughed and shook his wrist.
Splurt!
The Abstruse God Sword struck like lightning, running the civet through.
“Bastard! Don’t ever let me see you again!” A woman’s enraged shriek reverberated from within the civet’s corpse. Immediately afterward, an illusory female figure floated into the air.
She was obviously a soul body; she was extremely ethereal and indistinct. As soon as she appeared, she transformed into a gale of wind and attempted to flee.
Clang!
The Abstruse God Sword hummed, and its pitch-black blade burst with the power of the Spirit-Devouring Edict. It was like a pair of invisible hands grabbed hold of the woman’s soul body, dragging her into the sword.
“This might just be a wisp of my soul, but I cannot allow you to profane it!” With an enraged shout, the woman’s soul body burst apart, scattering into flecks of radiant light and dissipating.
Su Yi saw this, but he just lowered his sword, not at all concerned.
Splurt!
Wang Zhuo, meanwhile, coughed up blood, and his spirit and blood essence suddenly seemed to wither. He now looked much older, complete with newfound hints of white at his temples.
He sat there in dejection, cradling the civet’s corpse as if he’d lost his soul. He looked shockingly desolate and upset.
The rain had slowed, but it still came down in a gentle drizzle.
Su Yi stood off to the side, holding his umbrella. “Is the owner of that wisp of soul the Spirit Dao cultivator you spoke of?”
“That’s right,” said Wang Zhuo, his voice low and raspy. His eyes shone with reminiscence. “As a young man, I once wandered the Great Zhou, and I happened upon a girl like a heavenly immortal. She said I was blessed with great fortune, and she offered to guide my cultivation….
“It was on that day that my destiny changed. The technique I cultivate, the pills I took, all of my knowledge of cultivation, all of it came from her. She’s the reason for my current success….”
When he heard this, Su Yi shook his head. “Yet she used a wisp of her soul to shackle you, and throughout the years, she’s controlled your every move. She doesn’t ‘admire’ you; she sees you as a puppet she can use as she sees fit.”
“I know,” said Wang Zhuo bitterly, his expression bleak. “I realized that a long time ago, but deep within my heart, I was unwilling to believe it. Or rather, I was avoiding the problem….”
It was here that Su Yi cut him off. “Enough. I have no interest in hearing about your pathetic past. You just have to tell me the name of your organization and who that woman is. Then you can go.”
Wang Zhuo was silent for a while. Finally, he sighed and said, “Young Lord Su, you killed a wisp of her soul. Sooner or later, she’ll come looking for you. In that case, there’s no harm in telling you.”
He took a deep breath, then said slowly, “The organization I belong to is called the Hiddensky Sect, and the woman who guided my cultivation calls herself the Pomegranate Flame Monarch. She’s the?high?elder of the sect.”
The Hiddensky Sect!
The Pomegranate Flame Monarch!
To Su Yi, both names were unfamiliar.
Still, the realization that the Great Qin was home to a Spirit Dao cultivator came as a huge surprise. To the best of his knowledge, most rumors of Spirit Dao cultivators were from the Great Xia, the true hegemon of the Azure Continent.
“Young Lord Su, are you perhaps wondering why a Spirit Dao cultivator has appeared in the Great Qin?” Wang Zhou had obviously regained his composure. “I once wondered the same thing. Later on, while conversing with the Pomegranate Flame Monarch, I realized that she frequently brought up the Great Xia’s affairs. This led me to suspect that she isn’t from the Great Qin at all, but rather, the Great Xia.”
Su Yi nodded. “That sounds both likely and reasonable, but why would a Spirit Dao cultivator of the Great Xia appear within the Great Qin’s borders? What is she after?”
Wang Zhuo shook his head. “All I know is that the Pomegranate Flame Monarch has continuously sought out both unusual people and incidents. She’s always kept a close eye on the Great Zhou’s Eight Great Yao Mountains.”
He paused, then added, “We targeted you for much the same reason; the Pomegranate Flame Monarch believes you hide a strange and extraordinary power.”
Su Yi’s eyes flashed. “So, that’s why.”
A Spirit Dao cultivator they suspected hailed from the Great Xia had hidden herself within the Great Qin, seeking out strange and unusual circumstances with single-minded focus.?That?was interesting.
“And the Hiddensky Sect?” asked Su Yi. “Is it a faction from the Great Qin, or a faction of the Great Xia?”
“I…. I’m not sure.” Wang Zhuo shook his head. “I won’t lie to you; I don’t even know where the entrance to the Hiddensky Sect is, nor how many disciples they have. Over the years, the Pomegranate Flame Monarch has almost never contacted me.
“It’s only because she learned of you that she sent the civet to the Great Zhou to find me.”
For a while, Su Yi really didn’t know what to say.?This guy really is no different from a puppet.
He thought for a moment, then asked, “Here’s my final question for you: how have you been getting in touch with the Ten Directions Pavilion?”
“With this.” Wang Zhuo took a black copper whistle shaped like a snail out of his pocket. “This is a token from the Ten Directions Pavilion. All you have to do is stand in any of the Great Zhou’s cities and use your cultivation to blow it. Before long, Swiftlight Sparrows will come looking for you.
“Write the information you wish to purchase on a letter and entrust it to the sparrow. The Ten Directions Pavilion will hear about it immediately, and they’ll respond with the price of purchasing said information.?The following transaction is conducted entirely through the Swiftlight Sparrows.”
Su Yi nodded, then took the black copper whistle. 𝗼𝐯𝐥.𝗻𝐭
After examining it briefly, he discovered that it was an exquisitely crafted magic treasure, and its interior was carved with a unique transmission pattern. An ordinary person would struggle to reproduce it, but it wasn’t particularly precious, either.
“So, they use a method like this to trade information? It seems the Ten Directions Pavilion is more mysterious and secretive than I imagined…”
Su Yi then stared up into the sky. “Tell me, do you think there are Swiftlight Sparrows ten thousand feet overhead? Have they been watching us this entire time?”