Chapter 1309 - Thousand Divination Art

It struck him as odd that two Heavenly Dragon Sect disciples wanted him to play rescue, especially on their first day in the Netherworld. Ordinarily, he would help if sectmates were in danger, but the look in both pairs of eyes made him wary.

If he refused, they would surely make a scene later, accusing him of letting fellow disciples die.

If he were to agree, he could either find real victims or blunder into a trap someone had laid for him. And beyond the Grand Unity Sect, some in his own sect resented him as well, including Hua Haosheng.

Hua Haosheng surely held a grudge against Liu Wuxie, as the latter had rejected his offer. It wouldn't surprise him if Hua Haosheng plotted to kill him and take his dragon blood.

During the blacksmithing event, outside scrutiny kept everyone cautious, and they never crossed paths inside the ancestral talisman. Now that they were in the Netherworld, how could Hua Haosheng resist such a chance?

"Are Grand Unity Sect cultivators besieging them?" Liu Wuxie asked, feigning puzzlement. He regarded the pair with an easy smile. They belonged to the Heavenly Dragon Sect, too, but they barely knew him.

"The nether clan," the disciple on the right replied.

"What's the name of the disciple the nether clan is attacking?" Liu Wuxie pressed.

Vanya held her tongue. Something was off about the two; not a trace of urgency colored their voices. Their disguise was tidy, but paper-thin to Liu Wuxie's Ghost Eye; every tell stood out.

"Liu Wuxie, enough talk! They could die if we don't go now!" snapped the disciple on the left, almost barking.

"What a joke. You're both eighth-level Primal Origin Realm, and I'm only at the Origin Conversion Realm. Isn't it absurd that you're asking me for help?" Liu Wuxie shot back, his gaze turning cold.

Both were eighth-level Primal Origin Realm, more than enough to cope. To most observers, an Origin Conversion Realm cultivator charging into danger was courting death.

Besides, this was only the first layer of the Netherworld, where the nether clans were ordinary; the formidable ones appeared beyond the tenth.

According to the Myriad Race Ceremony's rules, participants could not go beyond the tenth level. Rumor held that a Nether King dwelt on the eighteenth, with strength on par with immortals.

Their expressions curdled the moment Liu Wuxie called them out.

"Liu Wuxie, as a Heavenly Dragon Sect disciple, you're breaking sect rules by refusing to save those in peril. Must you be so willful?" they pressed, realizing that he had no intention of helping.

Liu Wuxie had no patience left. He guided Vanya down another path. If the two hadn't worn Heavenly Dragon Sect robes, he would have killed them already.

"You'll regret this, Liu Wuxie!" the youth on the right shouted.

"Tell the one behind you to drop these pitiful schemes. Otherwise, the price will be more than they can bear," Liu Wuxie said without turning. He had given the plainest warning. They didn't even try to bar his way as he left.

"Let's go," said the disciple on the left, and the pair vanished.

......

In a cramped valley, several Heavenly Dragon Sect disciples hurried through their preparations.

"Senior Brother Hua Haosheng, will this even work? I doubt Liu Wuxie will fall for it," a disciple said with a frown. They had set a trap, yet confidence ran thin.

The two messengers returned and bowed their heads.

"This Liu Wuxie is unbearably arrogant—talking like that after refusing to help," one youth grumbled.

"I meant to seize him alive and pry out his secrets—perhaps even spare him," Hua Haosheng said, malice bright in his eyes. They built the snare to capture Liu Wuxie and strip him of his knowledge about forging, talismancraft, Dragon-Grasping Hand, and True Dragon Physique. Yet he hadn't taken the bait.

"What now?" Several disciples clustered to debate a counter. Temptation gnawed; mastering even one of Liu Wuxie's forging or talisman techniques would bring immense gains, especially in talismans.

"Kill him," Hua Haosheng said, leading everyone out of the cramped valley toward Liu Wuxie's trail.

......

After crossing the plains without finding usable herbs, he said, "Let's head to the second level."

The first level sprawled wide, and the deeper layers narrowed. Hundreds of entrances led down to the second. When they stepped onto the second level, the environment shifted, and the space around them pressed in.

The dark-attribute energy in the air thickened into fog. Along the way, Vanya worked to grasp the Great Light Magic, drawing on Liu Wuxie's light laws. Soon, she reached the threshold.

They occasionally spotted nether clansmen foraging on the second level. Unlike the abyssal race, which relished human flesh, the nether clan favored anything rich in dark-attribute energy.

The abyssal race preferred to travel at night, but they could move even during the day. The nether clan differed—they rarely surfaced even at night and lived underground.

When Liu Wuxie and Vanya ran into nether clansmen, they detoured, avoiding conflict whenever possible.

Meanwhile, many Grand Unity Sect disciples gathered a few hundred miles away. Using a secret method to communicate upon entry, they formed small parties; other sects and races did likewise.

"Any sign of Liu Wuxie?" asked a ninth-level Primal Origin Realm expert who sat on a boulder, his gaze sweeping the group.

The surrounding disciples poured true essence into a transparent sphere.

"Found him!" a disciple cried as two figures bloomed on the sphere—Liu Wuxie and Vanya.

"He's on the second level and close by." They locked onto his position at once.

"Young Master Liu, what is it?" Vanya asked when he halted.

"The Thousand Divination Art," Liu Wuxie said with a cold smirk, as the Heavenly Dao Book unfurled and erased his projection from the transparent sphere.

"Liu Wuxie has something that blocks all divination. Move before he gets far!" The Grand Unity Sect disciples stowed the sphere and departed. The man on the boulder vanished, too—he had grasped a spatial art.

"They've found us," Liu Wuxie said, stopping to tell Vanya to get ready for a fight.

"But there's no one nearby," Vanya replied, scanning the emptiness.

No one stood close, but enemies had already exposed their position. The Thousand Divination Art originated from the Thousand Divination Elder, whose standing once rivaled that of Emperor Haoyuan in the Indigo Bamboo Astral Domain.

Over the years, the art branched widely—divine calculation, astrology, face-reading, and more—and hunters often used it to track targets.

Trusting him, Vanya summoned her short spear and sank into a battle stance. Liu Wuxie eased his pace; since pursuers had already locked their location, speeding up wouldn't change the outcome.

He could sever the divination with the Heavenly Dao Book, but chose not to—he wanted to see whether the hunters were from the Heavenly Dragon Sect or the Grand Unity Sect.

Having reached the eighth level of the Origin Conversion Realm and with Vanya beside him, he didn't fear even dozens of ninth-level Origin Conversion Realm foes.

A few hundred miles vanished in minutes, and dozens of streaks speared toward them.

"They're here!" Vanya said, lifting her short spear. For now, Doom Tempest remained her most potent spell.

Twelve figures arrived and ringed them in, their robes marking them as disciples of the Grand Unity Sect.

"You're slower than I expected," Liu Wuxie said with a slight smile, letting his gaze sweep across them. Five were ninth-level Primal Origin Realm; the rest stood at sixth to seventh—a strong lineup against an eighth-level Origin Conversion Realm cultivator.

He fixed his attention on a ninth-level Primal Origin Realm expert whose rising pressure loomed like a mountain.

"Liu Wuxie, you knew we were coming?" asked a seventh-level Primal Origin Realm disciple. The others also wondered how he had sensed their full-speed approach.

"Your Thousand Divination Art is second-rate," Liu Wuxie said, shaking his head with a mocking look.

At that, eyes narrowed. They hadn't expected him to name the art, much less predict their arrival.

"Liu Wuxie, how many secrets are you still hiding? Even I'm curious now," said the man he was staring at, his aura roaring like a flood and rippling Liu Wuxie's robes.

"Enough talk. If you came to kill me, then come," Liu Wuxie said. He refused to drag this out; he and the Grand Unity Sect could not mend their feud.

"You're the first to speak to me, Hu Shan, like this. I'll rip your head from your neck," Hu Shan said, his aura climbing until Vanya had to step back with Doom Tempest ready.

Of the twelve, only Hu Shan stirred even a faint threat in Liu Wuxie; the rest barely registered.

"Attack!" Hu Shan barked. The others surged forward, unleashing a deluge of techniques that crashed down from above.

"Vanya, switch to Wind Erosion Magic!" Liu Wuxie called, shelving Doom Tempest. Against a wide-area barrage, Wind Erosion Magic would hit harder.

Vanya dispelled Doom Tempest at once, as she had already seen through his goal. They had fought shoulder to shoulder before, and their teamwork remained seamless.