Chapter 1426 - Refining the Black Tortoise's Shell

Liu Wuxie had walked a path unlike anyone else, cultivating a dao that embraced all things instead of a single direction. He was completely different from Song Siqi, who poured all his devotion into one solitary path.

With the battle between him and Song Siqi over, the apprenticeship ceremony officially drew to a close. The Grand Unity Sect no longer had any pretext to keep issuing challenges, and both disciples, Jian Yiming, had already fallen to Liu Wuxie's sword.

"Farewell," Jian Yiming said, cupping his hands before turning to leave the Auspicious Cloud Hall with his two senior brothers.

What had transpired today would sweep through the Indigo Bamboo Astral Domain in no time, and Liu Wuxie's name would once again resound everywhere.

By now, aside from a few remote planets, almost every cultivator in the astral domain had at least heard his name.

As the guests gradually took their leave, two hours passed before the Auspicious Cloud Hall finally emptied, leaving only the Heavenly Dragon Sect's upper echelons behind. They had already dismissed the disciples. When Lingqiong Zhi departed, he cast a deep, unreadable glance at Liu Wuxie before leading the members of the Lingqiong Clan away.

No one brought up the Undying Chessboard, but they all knew that Liu Wuxie had already refined it. The Undying Sword Intent he had unleashed earlier served as the most evident proof.

"You two come with me," Hua Feiyu said, handing the remaining matters over to the other elders as he led his two disciples into the lesser realm.

Liu Wuxie and Sun Xiao exchanged a brief look. Then, they hurried after their master. They could both tell that Hua Feiyu's expression was far from pleasant when he turned to leave.

Although the apprenticeship ceremony had concluded flawlessly on the surface, the Lingqiong Clan's actions had left a heavy knot in the hearts of the Heavenly Dragon Sect's upper echelons.

The Lingqiong Clan still belonged to their sect, and they ought to have resolved any disagreements behind closed doors rather than airing them in public.

Yet the Lingqiong Clan had brazenly moved against Liu Wuxie in front of countless guests, even going so far as to kidnap his sworn brother and use the Undying Chessboard in an attempt to kill him.

The Heavenly Dragon Sect's elders could not tolerate that.

From the dark expressions on the faces of the surrounding elders, it was clear how outraged they all were by the Lingqiong Clan's conduct. Even those who had once backed the Lingqiong Clan revealed furious looks.

When the three entered the lesser realm, they headed straight to Hua Feiyu's residence. A barrier rose around it, completely sealing the area off from the outside world.

"Take a seat," Hua Feiyu said, gesturing for the two of them to sit.

Sun Xiao and Liu Wuxie sat down and stayed silent. Neither spoke a word, simply waiting. A few minutes later, Elder Jian appeared.

"Sect Master, everything has been taken care of," Elder Jian said, bowing toward Hua Feiyu as he stepped inside.

"

Mmhm!

" Hua Feiyu responded. For the first time, a flicker of murderous intent flashed across his face, and the sight left Sun Xiao stunned.

Sun Xiao had followed Hua Feiyu for decades, and never once had he seen his master this furious.

Elder Jian took out an interspatial ring and opened it, causing dozens of severed heads to roll out across the floor as an oppressive stench of blood filled the room.

"The Lingqiong Clan arranged all these people, and the sect has already executed them all," Elder Jian said, pointing at the heads. When he left earlier, it had been to hunt them down and deliver judgment.

"Elder Jian, what's going on?" Liu Wuxie asked, rising abruptly to his feet. He had no idea what had happened to the Heavenly Dao Society while he was away, nor why even Elder Jian hadn't been able to spare a hand.

"The Heavenly Dao Society is fine for the time being with no casualties, and you can rest easy," Elder Jian said. He naturally knew what Liu Wuxie worried about the most—his friends and family. If anyone had died, the blame would have fallen on him.

Hearing that his loved ones were safe at last, Liu Wuxie finally let out a quiet breath of relief.

"Explain everything from the beginning," Hua Feiyu said, nodding for Elder Jian to continue.

"Seven days ago, members of the Heavenly Dao Society went to nearby planets to search for resources," Elder Jian began. "A group of people suddenly appeared and claimed that the planet belonged to them. Their cultivation was extremely high, and it made no sense for them to fight over such a minor planet.

"One of them even had a higher cultivation than mine. He lured me away, and they took the opportunity to capture Gu Yu."

Elder Jian had already reached the high levels of the Earth Immortal Realm, which meant that the other party had to be at the pinnacle of the Earth Immortal Realm.

Minor planets didn't hold many resources, and even cultivators at the Void Realm typically couldn't be bothered with them. For someone at the pinnacle of the Earth Immortal Realm to fight over such a place was obviously suspicious.

After they captured Gu Yu, Elder Jian immediately began an investigation and eventually traced it back to the Lingqiong Clan.

"The Lingqiong Clan!" Liu Wuxie growled, clenching his jaw as his teeth ground together.

Gu Yu's injuries had already received treatment, and he was now recuperating within the Heavenly Dragon Sect.

"The Lingqiong Clan took part in this matter, but we still don't have direct evidence," Elder Jian said with a shake of his head. "None of the experts who went to that planet bore the Lingqiong Clan's name."

The Lingqiong Clan had acted with meticulous caution, leaving no obvious trail.

But whether there was evidence or not, Liu Wuxie had already decided to settle this debt with the Lingqiong Clan.

"Elder Sword, who are those people?" Liu Wuxie asked.

"Some of them came from the Sky Cloud Star and the Tranquil Meteor Star," Elder Jian replied coldly. "Most were rogue cultivators, and they were the ones who ambushed the Heavenly Dao Society and captured Gu Yu."

He had only just returned from executing them, venting a small portion of Liu Wuxie's fury.

"There's no longer a need for the Sky Cloud Star and the Tranquil Meteor Star to continue to exist," Liu Wuxie said, a cold light flickering in his eyes. Once he finished what he had to do in the sect, he intended to wipe those two planets from the map personally.

"Junior Brother, I'll go with you to slaughter them all," Sun Xiao said, standing up. Naturally, he wanted to accompany Liu Wuxie to protect him.

"Senior Brother, I'm grateful for your goodwill, but this is my personal feud with them. I don't wish to involve the Heavenly Dragon Sect in it," Liu Wuxie said.

If Sun Xiao were to go along with him, the meaning of the endeavor would change completely. People would accuse the Heavenly Dragon Sect of bullying the weak.

If Liu Wuxie moved alone, he would only be acting as the Heavenly Dao Society's representative; no one could fault the Heavenly Dragon Sect.

𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"But..." Sun Xiao said, clearly uneasy about letting Liu Wuxie go by himself.

"Let him handle it himself," Hua Feiyu said, cutting Sun Xiao off. He understood that some matters had to be resolved by Liu Wuxie alone. If others interfered too much, it would only disturb Liu Wuxie's dao heart.

Liu Wuxie's thoughts already lingered on the Heavenly Dao Society, so Hua Feiyu didn't keep him any longer and signaled that he could leave.

"Master, aren't you worried? The planet lords of those two planets are in the Earth Immortal Realm!" Sun Xiao said anxiously. He didn't understand why his master refused to let him accompany his junior brother. If something happened to Liu Wuxie because of this, he would carry that guilt for the rest of his life.

"Don't belittle him. We'll observe quietly," Hua Feiyu replied with a slight shake of his head, calming Sun Xiao down. It was good that Sun Xiao cared for his junior, but fretting too much was unnecessary.

If Liu Wuxie wanted to grow quickly, he had to face these trials himself. Constant shelter under the sect's protection would only stunt his growth.

......

After leaving the lesser realm, Liu Wuxie went to visit Gu Yu, who had already regained consciousness.

"I'm sorry for putting you in danger," Liu Wuxie said, guilt surfacing on his face as he looked at Gu Yu. He couldn't shake the feeling that Gu Yu had nearly lost his life at the Lingqiong Clan's hands because of him.

"We're brothers, so don't think too much about it," Gu Yu replied in his usual casual tone. His complexion looked far better than before, and he could already move a little.

"Don't worry about it. It won't be long before those who plotted against the Heavenly Dao Society pay with their lives," Liu Wuxie said, indicating that Gu Yu should focus on recovering here before returning to the Heavenly Dao Society.

As a descendant of Ancestor Long Xiao, Gu Yu naturally received the best possible treatment in the Heavenly Dragon Sect. Elder Long had even expressed several times that he wanted to take Gu Yu as his disciple, but Gu Yu had repeatedly turned him down.

Before leaving, Liu Wuxie used the Ancestral Tree to comb through Gu Yu's meridians once more. After that, he didn't head straight back to the Heavenly Dao Society. Instead, he went to find a blacksmithing chamber, intending to reforge the Heretic Blade.

If he could reforge the Heretic Blade into an Earth Immortal Artifact, he could rely on it to break through to the second-level Void Realm.

When the elders heard that Liu Wuxie wanted to reforge his weapon, they immediately arranged the best blacksmithing chamber for him.

After slaughtering so many cultivators at the Void Realm, Liu Wuxie no longer lacked ordinary blacksmithing materials. What he needed now were only the top-tier materials, and the black tortoise's shell had conveniently solved that final problem.

......

Time flowed by, and Liu Wuxie's feats spread through the Indigo Bamboo Astral Domain within just a few days. People passed his brilliant answers to the various trials from mouth to mouth.

Strangely, though, the Divine Alchemy Sect remained unusually quiet even as everyone eagerly waited for the Golden Cicada Pill.

Many people had already witnessed the pill's effects firsthand, and they far surpassed those of ordinary seventh-grade spiritual pills. On top of that, the ingredients required were not expensive.

Once that pill entered the market, it would naturally dominate, and the seventh-grade pills of other sects would suffer a heavy blow.

After a few days of silence, the Divine Alchemy Sect finally announced that they would not sell the Golden Cicada Pill to the public.

However, their explanation sounded forced, and it immediately aroused suspicion. Why would the Divine Alchemy Sect abandon such a perfect opportunity?

If another sect were to somehow refine the pill instead, wouldn't that mean the Divine Alchemy Sect had thrown away a golden chance?

Eventually, everyone learned from a pill attendant in the Divine Alchemy Sect that they had failed to recreate the Golden Cicada Pill and had no choice but to claim they wouldn't sell it.

It was nothing more than an attempt to hide their failure—a way to buy time while implying that they could eventually succeed.

Liu Wuxie had already foreseen this outcome, and he was sure that no one but him could refine the Golden Cicada Pill. Once he returned to the Heavenly Dao Society, he planned to teach the method to Bi Gongyu and the others.

......

With all the materials finally gathered, Liu Wuxie began the Heretic Blade's reforging in earnest.

The Heretic Blade floated in mid-air, its artifact spirit on the verge of fully awakening. Once the Heretic Blade advanced to an Earth Immortal Artifact, it would gain true sentience, and future reforging would become much easier.

Before he started, Liu Wuxie took out the Divine Heavenly Feather Robe and put it on. The robe transformed into a simple azure robe, yet a cool, gentle aura flowed from it, subtly reshaping his body.

The Divine Heavenly Feather Robe wasn't just a defensive treasure; it could also assist Liu Wuxie in his cultivation.

"Let's begin," Liu Wuxie said as he formed a series of seals that contained a hint of immortal energy.

The moment the immortal energy touched the various materials, they began to dissolve rapidly and fuse into the Heretic Blade. The black tortoise's shell hovered beside them, wrapped in demonic flames that had burned for an entire day and night, yet the shell still showed no sign of melting.

Liu Wuxie inscribed several immortal runes and injected them into the black tortoise's shell, but it remained unmoved. The shell was even tougher than he had anticipated. Still, he didn't rush and continued forging patiently.

On the third day, a fine crack finally appeared on the surface of the black tortoise's shell, and torrents of Quasi-Immortal Runes began to pour out.

When Liu Wuxie refined the Undying Chessboard, the Quasi-Immortal Runes were devoured by the Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron, the Heavenly Dao Book, and the desolate world. This time, he intended to use part of them to reforge the Heretic Blade and reserve the rest to push his cultivation even higher.