Chapter 675: Dark Figure Emerge

"Fei Yu is an honored guest of the Qiling Immortal Sect. Fulfill every request he makes, and do not be stingy with treasures. If anyone investigates his background, regardless of who it is, you are to make sure they don't find out who he is."

Inside the ox cart, Cha Yue mentally replayed the sect master's instructions. She unknowingly glanced up at Wang Sheng, unable to fathom who he could be to make their sect master treat him with such importance.

Cha Yue had grown up within the sect and had been cultivating by an elder's side since childhood. Thanks to her outstanding aptitude, she had received generous resources from the Qiling Immortal Sect and had access to nearly all of its internal secrets. Nevertheless, she had never once seen the sect master treat a Heavenly Immortal with such care.

She found it impossible to suppress her curiosity. Even so, she did not ask a single question.

Wang Sheng's residence had been arranged in the relatively remote valley where she lived and normally cultivated in seclusion.

Upon reaching the valley, she gestured for Wang Sheng to wait in the ox cart. She disembarked first to make arrangements and order two young female Ascended Immortals to guard the entrance to the valley.

The two were likely her disciples. In a soft tone, they answered affirmatively. Their laughter echoed as they flew off toward the valley's mouth.

Cha Yue activated the array enveloping the pavilion before inviting Wang Sheng inside.

Wang Sheng clasped his hands solemnly. "I apologize for troubling you. Honestly, all I really need is a quiet room. I hope I'm not imposing."

Cha Yue returned the salute with a slight bow. "Immortal Master, you are too courteous. You're our distinguished guest. If you find any shortcoming in our hospitality, I hope you will forgive us."

With light steps, she led Wang Sheng to the quiet room where she usually meditated in seclusion. As soon as he entered, he caught a faint, soothing fragrance. He relaxed further.

After thanking her once more, he watched as she tactfully withdrew, leaving him alone to cultivate.

"Three months..."

Seated upon a meditation cushion, Wang Sheng gazed at the portrait of the Three Pure Ones hanging before him, momentarily lost in thought.

The faces in the painting were indistinct, yet each figure had a unique presence. It was clearly the work of an accomplished master.

Fengmo probably would not encounter any serious trouble in the next three months. Later, he could make use of the great teleportation array on Qiling to return swiftly to the solar system near the thirteen qi planets, saving him more than half the travel time.

"I might as well cultivate. Three months will pass in the blink of an eye."

Facing the portrait of the Three Pure Ones, Wang Sheng slowly closed his eyes and exhaled gently. Sensing the evolving interplay between his Great Dao of Pure Yang and the Dao of the Stars, he roamed among the laws of Dao and gradually gained new insights.

He cultivated for half a month. Throughout that time, Cha Yue remained in the adjacent room, standing guard and never taking even a single step away.

Mist drifted all over the Qiling Immortal Sect as the fragrance of medicinal herbs permeated the air. The entire sect bustled, with dozens of pill furnaces burning fiercely.

Even more remarkably, no rumors spread about their collective pill refinement, be it inside or outside the sect. The many factions stationed on Qiling weren't even aware of it.

On the sixteenth day of his cultivation before the Three Pure Ones' portrait, Wang Sheng frowned and opened his eyes. His spiritual perception trembled. When he cautiously focused, he felt as though someone close to him had encountered trouble.

Now that he was a Heavenly Immortal, his intuitions or stirring premonitions would no longer ever be groundless. Something had most likely happened.

Wang Sheng instinctively took out the bronze mirror and the soul lamp. The soul lamp was still lit. After waiting a moment, he saw Mu Wanxuan and Lin Feiyao appear in the mirror. They were more blurred than before, but he could still see his senior sister quietly cultivating.

Phew, as long as Senior Sister is safe... Why did my spiritual perception tremble, then? Has something gone wrong on Fengmo?

Wang Sheng took out the communication talisman that Huai Jing, Shi Qianzhang, and Liu Yunzhi had left behind when they went to the Xinghai Sect to find him. He infused it with immortal power and waited. The talisman didn't respond.

"Does this thing... suffer from greater delay the farther away the receiver is?"

Yaoyun telepathically replied,

"That makes no sense. Though a communication talisman has limited uses, it still embodies a profound application of the Dao of Heaven and Earth. Say something to it and see whether it'll push through."

Wang Sheng cleared his throat and told the jade talisman, "Heaven and earth, bestow upon me your righteous qi, which flows in myriad forms."

The talisman in his hand flickered faintly. It flashed nine times before exploding in his palm with a sharp crack.

Immortal light swirled as Yaoyun manifested beside him. The two stared at each other in silence.

Is Fengmo really in trouble?

Wang Sheng's eyebrows knit tightly. He immediately took out another communication talisman, infused it with immortal power, and waited quietly. Soon, Lishang's voice came through.

—Elder Pi, are you in trouble? Where are you right now?

"I am fine," Wang Sheng replied. "Vice Sect Master, are the thirteen qi stars stable?"

—Everything is peaceful right now. The past few years, the Celestial Wind Sect and the Fengli Sect have done nothing but consolidate their strength. There has not been the slightest sign of war. Anyway, if you're in trouble, just say it. I can come assist you at any time.

Wang Sheng paused for a moment. "No, I'm okay. I just felt a little uneasy. There is one matter I have to trouble you with, though."

He asked Lishang to check on the group of Earth's cultivators. Without hesitation, she took the talisman and hurried to Xinghai City.

As their talismans remained connected, Lishang located Liu Yunzhi and the others. Through it, Wang Sheng learned that when Qinghua's Daoist heritage appeared, Huai Jing hastily departed with his golden body.

Before Wang Sheng could ask more questions, the light of the communication talisman in his hand rapidly dimmed. It then slowly crumbled into powder.

The Xinghai Sect had refined this communication talisman. Compared to the ones that the Heavenly Court had used, it was far inferior. After just one long-distance transmission, it was no longer usable.

"Huai Jing is coming?"

Wang Sheng sat, lost in thought. Yaoyun stood beside him, fingers moving as she made some calculations.

"If my spiritual perception is right, and we rule out other possibilities, then Huai Jing has most likely run into trouble," Wang Sheng said. "Have you deduced anything?"

Yaoyun gently shook her head. "I cannot divine anything. If Huai Jing is coming, he would have to rely on primal qi passages."

Wang Sheng unhesitatingly rose to his feet. "Then let's set out now and trace our way back through them. Huai Jing may have a golden body to protect him, but that kind of power bursts and fades quickly. He's not strong enough to wander freely in the endless space."

"Why not ask the Qiling Immortal Sect to help search for him?" Yaoyun suggested. "He may already be near Qiling. Rashly crossing the primal qi passage to look for him is no different from searching for a needle in a haystack. Moreover, we're just going off of your spiritual perception's faint tremor. Huai Jing may not even be the one in danger. There are simply too many uncertainties."

Wang Sheng nodded slowly. He paced beside the meditation cushion, yet his spiritual perception didn't tremble again.

If it is not Huai Jing, then who is in trouble? Earth? Master? Xiaomiao?

As long as the thirteen qi planets remained at peace, Earth would not be in danger. No one would dare provoke the Hua Republic, either.

Then how do I make sense of the communication talisman that had just exploded? Its paired counterpart ought to be in Huai Jing's hands.

Wang Sheng walked to the window of the quiet room and pushed it open. Taking in the valley's serene beauty, he continued to ponder.

"I should seek out Sect Master Wensheng first and see whether he can divine anything. If Sect Master Yao Xingzi were here, we could have at least determined Huai Jing's location."

"Good idea," Yaoyun replied.

She transformed into Spiritless and returned to the Qiankun Ring. Afterward, Wang Sheng turned and headed for the door. The moment he pulled it open, several somewhat urgent bell chimes rang out from beyond the valley.

Rushing out from the neighboring room, Cha Yue glanced toward the direction of the sound, then listened carefully.

"Did something happen?" Wang Sheng asked.

"That's coming from the bell at the mountain gate," she explained. "Nothing serious. The other celestial sects are just here to stir trouble again. This is the third time already, but you don't have to worry, Immortal Master. We would not be of much help even if we went anyway, and the sect master has instructed that you just cultivate here in peace."

Wang Sheng nodded. "

Mm.

I was just about to seek him out, but I can wait until he's done handling this matter."

"I know a minor technique that will allow us to observe the situation at the mountain gate from here."

As she spoke, Cha Yue raised her slender fingers and slowly traced an oval in the air. Mist swirled within it, and an image of the mountain gate appeared on the cloud. The Cloud-Mirror Technique could display what one observed with their immortal perception.

Wang Sheng invited Cha Yue to the quiet room, where they sat down and focused on the cloud mirror before her. Outside the mountain gate, a sea of people composed of over thirty immortal factions had gathered.

The cloud mirror could only show them what was happening; it couldn't receive sounds. Unfortunately, it was impossible to judge the cultivators' realms just by looking at them. Still, from the scale of the gathering, it seemed that the factions long stationed on Qiling had finally united to pressure the Qiling Immortal Sect.

Inside the grand defensive array, streams of light flared all over. The imposing auras of over a dozen Golden Immortals surged up as they exuded a formidable presence.

A gap opened in the array, and hundreds of figures flew out to confront the crowd.

Wensheng stood at the front. Though he appeared somewhat thin, he emitted an overwhelming pressure, as though he were a towering mountain that no one could easily shake.

Through the cloud mirror, Wang Sheng saw Wensheng speak.

"What is he saying?"

Cha Yue blinked lightly as she replied, "Rebuking them for harboring crooked intentions, perhaps."

Several elderly men from the opposing side responded in turn. A few elders from the Qiling Immortal Sect immediately countered them, each speaking with fervor and animated expressions. They seemed engaged in a verbal battle.

Though Wang Sheng could not hear what they were saying, it was surely not some petty exchange of childish accusations.

After watching for a while, he frowned. "What do these factions want?"

With a bit of helplessness, Cha Yue answered, "Mostly just alchemical pills and treasures. Since they suffered losses in the divine tree array, they now wish to get compensation from us and even claim we colluded with Emperor Qinghua. They're quite shameless.

Above all, they're definitely not thinking clearly. If the Qiling Immortal Sect were to bow its head, would that not confirm a connection with Emperor Qinghua? That would invite destruction upon our sect!"

"True." Wang Sheng folded his arms and observed for a while longer. "Will this turn into a fight?"

Cha Yue smiled. "This was no different from their previous visits. Please rest assured, Immortal Master. They have many experts, but they are all bark and no bite. When it comes to actual combat, they only care about themselves. They're not really a threat."

Her reasoning was sound, yet this day was destined to be anything but peaceful for the Qiling Immortal Sect.

No sooner had she spoken when two brilliant streaks of sword radiance appeared at the edge of the cloud mirror. They slashed down from the sky and cut straight toward both sides' arrays.

They looked imposing, yet their power seemed lacking. Wensheng struck out with a single palm and shattered them instantly.

Cha Yue adjusted the cloud mirror at once. The scene panned upward and captured the enemy. No one knew when, but someone had appeared high in the sky. Since they were clad in a black robe and a withered-wood mask, they looked exactly like the guardian spirit of the array!