Chapter 538: Chapter 544: Ring World! Ten Thousand Year Taoist Origin Fruit! (Second Update)
Judging from the tense atmosphere, Master Tie and the witch didn’t seem like they had come to reminisce with the people from Heavenly Spring Sacred Land and Heavenly Snow Holy Domain. Everyone was on edge, ready to draw their weapons at any moment. It seemed like a fight could break out at any time.
Yang Zhen didn’t know what had transpired here, but he was pretty sure that the travesty of a cat was nearby. The mark Yang Zhen left on the cat sent out a wave of movement not too long ago, and the relief was that there was no sense of imminent danger coming from the fluctuation.
However, Yang Zhen was puzzled. Since there was no danger, why hadn’t the darn cat shown up? Could it be pulling the same stunt as him, hiding on the sidelines to watch the uproar?
Quite possible!
While Yang Zhen was lost in his own thoughts, Lu Tianwei and Fang Zhongjian, the two wicked old pals, led a group of people towards Master Tie. Especially Fang Zhongjian, who had a deceiving smile plastered on his face that screamed of ill intentions. You had to admire his ability to maintain such an insincere expression.
“Master Tie, we meet again.”
Fang Zhongjian looked at Master Tie with a cunning smirk and said, “I’ve long suspected you had a connection with the Mountain River Academy. It turns out you really did show up. I assume you know why we are here, right? Why not just hand it over?”
Yang Zhen listened dumbfounded and looked at Master Tie in surprise. His suspicions were correct. Master Tie was indeed associated with the Mountain River Academy, and it appeared to be a deep connection at that.
Then, Lu Tianwei spoke up, “Master Tie, there’s nothing more to say at this junction. We were not here for a friendly chat. We’ve already removed everyone in the vicinity. We’re here for the Mountain River Map. If you hand it over, we promise not to disturb your unsealing of the Mountain River Academy’s seal.”
“Mountain River Map?” Yang Zhen was stupefied at first, then a smile spread across his face, “Oh, so there’s a treasure at stake.”
“What’s the Mountain River Map?” Feng Lingqiao curiously asked from the side.
Yang Zhen shook his head and said, “I have no idea, but if it has caught the attention of Heavenly Spring Sacred Land and Heavenly Snow Holy Domain, it must be a real treasure. Let’s wait and see.”
With that, Yang Zhen took out a set of table and chairs from his storage ring, arranging a fruit plate on the table. As he sat down, he invited Feng Lingqiao, who was dumbstruck, “Would you like some?”
Feng Lingqiao sat down with a strange expression and asked, “Aren’t you worried?”
“Worried?” Yang Zhen froze, then looked at Feng Lingqiao in confusion, “Worried about what? About Master Tie and the witch’s lives, or which side will end up with the so-called Mountain River Map?”
At his question, Feng Lingqiao faltered before stating, “We should be worried about something, shouldn’t we?”
Yang Zhen burst into laughter and shook his head, responding, “I never worry about anything.”
What good does worrying bring? If you’ve done everything you could, regardless of success or failure, you won’t be left with any regret. Given that, what’s the point in worrying?
Just forge ahead when you can, or bide your time if you can’t. Life is really that simple.
At that moment, a hearty laughter resounded. Master Tie looked around, an ironic smile playing around his lips, “So this is how the lofty Great Sects behave. If I don’t hand over what you want, you plan to rob me?”
“Old man!”
The Senior Brother from Heavenly Spring Sacred Land, Qi, let out a cold harrumph, glaring at Master Tie, “Don’t try to put a big hat on our heads. Given the current situation, even if we did rob you, what then? The Cultivation World has always been a place where the survival of the fittest reigns; if you were in our position today, would you miss such an opportunity?”
A cold gleam flitted across Master Tie’s eyes as he shook his head, “No.”
Senior Brother Qi laughed heartily. He exchanged glances with Fang Zhongjian and others, saying, “See? Didn’t I say this old man understood very well? Why are we even wasting time talking to him? Let’s just take it directly.”
Everyone hesitated slightly, but gradually they started to close in on Master Tie.
Master Tie sighed heavily and opened his hands, saying, “You are all mistaken. The Mountain River Map is not in my possession right now.”
Mistaken?
The Mountain River Map wasn’t with Master Tie?
The people who had just begun inching forward were taken aback, looking at Master Tie in bewilderment.
Fang Zhongjian sneered and brandished a long sword that had appeared in his hand out of nowhere. Even though it was not a sacred weapon, it shimmered chillingly in the light. He stared at Master Tie, saying, “Old man, do you still insist on quibbling? I’d thought that in spite of your stubbornness, you were a straightforward man. But it turns out you’re as indecisive as anyone else.”
Master Tie exchanged a glance with the witch, then burst into laughter. Looking directly at Fang Zhongjian, he replied, “You think, if the Mountain River Map was in my hands, you’d still be standing here?”
Upon hearing Master Tie’s words, everyone was taken aback. Fang Zhongjian and Lu Tianwei looked at each other, both seeing confusion in each other’s eyes, and spoke in a serious voice,
“Master Tie, the people of Heavenly Spring Sacred Land and Heavenly Snow Holy Domain are all here. Even if you have the Mountain River Map, do you think you can kill us all? If the map isn’t with you, then where is it?”
Master Tie pointed to a mountain behind the group and said, “It’s inside there.”
Everyone subconsciously looked towards the mountain Master Tie was pointing at, their faces changed unanimously. Fang Zhongjian exclaimed coldly, “Master Tie, do you think we would believe that? If I’ve guessed correctly, that place should be the Ring World where Mountain River Academy is sealed, right? Once you break the seal and the people of Mountain River Academy come out, won’t we all end up dead?”
At his words, Yang Zhen exchanged bemused glances with Feng Lingqiao. The Ring World where Mountain River Academy was sealed. What on earth was that?
Were all these Great Sects sealed in such ring worlds, living for tens of thousands of years?
At this point, an ironic smile appeared on Master Tie’s face as he said, “During the epoch, in the face of the great catastrophe, all the major forces used the Ring World for hibernation, to survive the disaster. You people are all sleepers from before the epoch, aren’t you, even afraid of an old man like me?”
Fang Zhongjian and Lu Tianwei exchanged glances. Just as they were about to speak, Master Tie interrupted, “The line of the Final Void Academy has been guarding the secret of Mountain River Academy for all these years, and I have finally lived to see the day. My only wish is to fulfill the will of my ancestors. As for who ends up with the Mountain River Map …”
Master Tie sneered, moments of self-mockery flickering in his eyes. He looked out at the boundless mountains as if murmuring to himself, “Who ends up with the Mountain River Map is not for this old man to decide.”
Everyone’s face tightened at his words, looking at Master Tie uncertainly. Fang Zhongjian frowned and said, “Master Tie, are you telling the truth?”
Master Tie threw back his head and laughed, turning to the witch and saying solemnly, “Undoing the seal would take a whole day. Whether I’m telling the truth or not, won’t you know if you just wait and see? There are two layers of seals, the Mountain River Academy members are trapped within the second layer. Within the first layer are not just the Mountain River Map, but also …”
“Also, what?” Fang Zhongjian’s eyebrows twitched.
Master Tie took a deep breath, dragging each word, “Also, the Daoist Origin Fruit of a thousand years!”
What?
Upon hearing these words, everyone was stunned!
