Chapter 926: This Isn't Important

The woman, of course, was none other than Shi Tianbei. After absorbing all twelve Yuqing yin pillars, he was completely unable to withstand the intense yin energy they contained. Although his cultivation had been elevated to the peak of the Boundless Immortal realm, the overwhelming yin energy had warped his physical body in strange ways. Even possessing two pure yang pillars hadn't made a difference.

As he listened to Xiao Nanfeng's nonsense, he immediately realized that Xiao Nanfeng must be deliberately misleading the cultivators around him.

There was no reason to mislead Su Tianxin and his daughter, so his target had to be the unfamiliar man to his side.

"Who are you?" Shi Tianbei asked the Void Saint.

"Don't you know who I am?" The Void Saint narrowed his eyes.

Xiao Nanfeng called out, "Shi Tianbei, don't lie! Don't you know he's the Void Saint?"

"A saint?" Shi Tianbei exclaimed.

Xiao Nanfeng called out, "Shi Tianbei, where is the Heavenly Emperor? Tell us everything!"

Shi Tianbei narrowed his eyes. He finally understood what Xiao Nanfeng's plan was. Xiao Nanfeng was going to frame him and then get the saint to finish him off.

"Xiao Nanfeng, you're trying to get the saint to take me down, aren't you? Don't you know the consequences of trying to trick a saint?" Shi Tianbei demanded.

"Hm?" Xiao Nanfeng raised an eyebrow, as if he had realized something critical. His eyes darted between the Void Saint and Shi Tianbei, and he gradually calmed down. He fell silent.

Sensing that something was off, the Void Saint quickly asked, "You're Shi Tianbei? Why do you have Yu Fuli's aura on you?"

Shi Tianbei immediately replied, "Saint, Xiao Nanfeng must be lying to you. My aura is from the twelve Yuqing yin pillars that I absorbed here. These pillars contain remnants of the Yuqing Grandmaster's energy. Perhaps the Yuqing Grandmaster's aura and Yu Fuli's are somewhat similar."

"Oh?" The Void Saint seemed doubtful.

Shi Tianbei continued, "Su Tianxin should also be aware of the situation here. He once had spies in the Yuqing holy land, though I've since eliminated them. He certainly knows about the twelve Yuqing yin pillars."

The Void Saint turned to Su Tianxin, who nodded. He briefly described what he knew. However, his knowledge was limited to earlier events; he hadn't been aware of Xiao Nanfeng's recent battle with Shi Tianbei.

Shi Tianbei didn't hide anything, either. He filled in the gaps in Su Tianxin's knowledge, recounting how Xiao Nanfeng had attacked the area and fought against him.

"Saint, Yu Fuli has long since fallen. How could he possibly have revived? These are all part of Xiao Nanfeng's lies. He's trying to trick you into killing me and make a fool of you," Shi Tianbei said.

The Void Saint eyed Xiao Nanfeng coldly. "Is Shi Tianbei telling the truth?"

Xiao Nanfeng nodded. "He is."

Xiao Nanfeng's straightforward admission stunned everyone. Why would Xiao Nanfeng confess so easily?

Even Shi Tianbei was left speechless. What was Xiao Nanfeng doing? This didn't match his usual style.

"Void Saint, this was all a personal grudge between Shi Tianbei and me. As he said, I was afraid he would harm me, so I tried to use you to eliminate him. I admit there was some deception involved. But now that the truth is clear, I have no excuses for myself. You're right—Yu Fuli is dead and cannot be revived. I'm willing to apologize for my mistake," Xiao Nanfeng said sincerely.

Even so, the more sincere Xiao Nanfeng seemed, the more wary the Void Saint became.

Was Xiao Nanfeng admitting defeat because he couldn't hide the truth anymore? Or was he deliberately couching the truth in lies?

If it was because he couldn't hide the truth, then Xiao Nanfeng's claims about Yu Fuli's revival were manifestly false—but why would Xiao Nanfeng tell such a lie when the truth could easily be revealed?

On the other hand, if Xiao Nanfeng hadn't been lying, his admission now was meant to protect Yu Fuli, who was indeed weak and hiding.

Xiao Nanfeng had previously said that Yu Fuli had been severely weakened. Could this have been what allowed Shi Tianbei to take him down?

Yu Fuli had survived a battle against even the heavens. Though Shi Tianbei had ambushed him, perhaps Yu Fuli would revive soon enough.

Was Xiao Nanfeng hiding Yu Fuli's existence in hopes that Yu Fuli would soon take down Shi Tianbei?

The Void Saint's doubts gradually resolved themselves.

Most importantly, Shi Tianbei's aura was simply too similar to Yu Fuli's.

The Void Saint turned to Shi Tianbei once more. "Shi Tianbei, are you telling the truth?"

"Of course! Xiao Nanfeng admitted that he had lied," Shi Tianbei replied.

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"If I demand your loyalty, would you submit to me?" the Void Saint continued.

Shi Tianbei frowned. Why would the saint suddenly request such a thing? His thoughts whirled. Though he was now a peak Boundless Immortal, he knew that the heavens would return soon enough. If he swore loyalty to the saint, he might be able to avoid the impending calamity.

"I am willing to serve you, Void Saint," Shi Tianbei replied.

He believed that he had earned the Void Saint's recognition, not realizing that Xiao Nanfeng had successfully planted a seed of doubt in the Void Saint's mind.

No matter how Shi Tianbei responded, the Void Saint's doubts couldn't be dispelled.

"Oh? Is that so?" The Void Saint stared at Shi Tianbei as a cold smile gradually spread across his face.

He didn't care what the truth was. To him, even if there were only a one-in-a-hundred chance—no, even a one-in-ten-thousand chance—that Yu Fuli had revived and been consumed by Shi Tianbei, he couldn't take that risk.

Shi Tianbei's loyalty was irrelevant. He didn't care about gaining another servant. What he cared about was obliterating any opportunity for Yu Fuli to return.

Since that possibility existed, he needed to eradicate it completely—by killing Shi Tianbei and destroying all traces of energy within him.

"As long as you protect me through the next calamity, Void Saint, I am willing to pledge allegiance to you," Shi Tianbei declared.

The Void Saint approached him with a slight smile. "Good..."

He trailed off, then suddenly struck forward with his palm.

"Be careful!" Xiao Nanfeng cried out anxiously.

Xiao Nanfeng's feigned panic right then and there was a stroke of brilliance. He and Shi Tianbei were mortal enemies, so why would he care about Shi Tianbei's life? Clearly, he wasn't worried about Shi Tianbei but rather the potential for Yu Fuli to be resurrected within him.

The Void Saint grew even more determined to kill Shi Tianbei.

Shi Tianbei hastily raised a palm to defend himself, only to be sent flying by the force of the saint's attack.

"Void Saint, what are you doing? I've pledged my loyalty to you. You can't seriously believe Xiao Nanfeng's nonsense? He's trying to frame me!" Shi Tianbei roared.

"That's irrelevant," the Void Saint replied coldly.

He waved a hand. A pillar of blue light that pierced the skies appeared behind him. With a wave of his hand, a blue ocean surged forth, filled with countless skeletal figures.

"Void Saint, Xiao Nanfeng's taking advantage of you to frame me! Can't you tell? Are you crazy?!" Shi Tianbei roared.

He was a peak Boundless Immortal; he wasn't about to go down easily. He was simply indignant that he had been framed.

"As I said, it's irrelevant," the Void Saint replied coldly.

The raging blue ocean surrounded Shi Tianbei. Scores of skeletal figures shot toward him.

"You lunatic! You're insane! You want to kill me? Dream on!" Shi Tianbei roared.

He swung his fist, shattering scores of skeletal figures and sending colossal waves rippling across the ocean.

Even so, the waves only grew more and more overwhelming.

"Die!" the Void Saint declared coldly.

"You're the one who's going to die! If you intend to kill me, I'll make you pay. Break!" Shi Tianbei roared.

A massive surge of flames erupted from within the ocean, incinerating countless skeletons. Shi Tianbei's punches distorted the void itself, each strike bearing overwhelming force. Despite his power, however, the ocean grew larger and larger. It filled even the shattered void with water.

"This is your limit as a peak Boundless Immortal? Ha! You've barely scratched the surface of cultivation. Physical strength is immaterial at your stage—the heart is everything. Die!"

The raging ocean surged. Waves drowned everything around Shi Tianbei.

From its depths echoed Shi Tianbei's defiant voice. "Bronze compass, obey me! Heart Formation!"

High in the sky above the Sieve of Heaven, the projections of three bronze compasses flared to life. They activated all the formations in the vicinity, filling the sky with dazzling blue light. Blue swords descended over the ocean.

The ocean surged even more violently than before. Countless skeletal figures erupted from the ocean and collided with the swords. The resulting shockwaves shattered the void itself, turning the battlefield into an apocalyptic storm of destruction. Even the rubble around the Sieve of Heaven was pulverized into dust that fell into the ocean. Only Mt. Kunlun remained, tall and towering.

Far off in the sky, Xiao Nanfeng, Su Tianxin, and Su Qingchan continued to retreat as they observed the intense clash between two supreme powerhouses.

"Xiao Nanfeng, did you lie about Yu Fuli's resurrection?" Su Tianxin probed.

He had the strong suspicion that Xiao Nanfeng was simply trying to get Shi Tianbei killed.

"Of course I lied! I told you, it's all fake. Yu Fuli didn't resurrect at all. I just wanted to take advantage of the Void Saint to kill Shi Tianbei. You should talk to the Void Saint and convince him to let this go," Xiao Nanfeng said, immediately playing along.

Su Tianxin grimaced. After a moment of silence, he shook his head. The more he asked, the more it felt like Yu Fuli really had returned.

Just then, a colossal wave surged toward the three of them. It looked to be composed of water, but actually contained destructive energy that could obliterate anything in its path. Xiao Nanfeng, Su Tianxin, and Su Qingchan hurriedly retreated once again.